Outside the Beltway

To no real surprise, the Obama Administration has rejected the application to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline. It is likely to remain an issue in the upcoming Presidential campaign, though.

A much stronger than expected October Jobs Report suggests that the Federal Reserve is likely to move on interest rates, and raises questions about how economic issues will play out politically in 2016.

Fluctuations continue, but the Republican Presidential field appears to be sorting itself out as we near the beginning of a new phase of the campaign.

Virginia Democrats tried to capture control of the Virginia State Senate by, in part, emphasizing gun control issues. The fact that they failed is instructive.

The juxtaposition of two headlines at memeorandum is amusing.

Another piece of news that all but guarantees the fate of the Keystone XL project will not be resolved before President Obama leaves office.

More good news for Hillary Clinton, and a sign that the race for the Democratic nomination, to the extent there really is a race at this point, is close to being over.

President Obama came to office inheriting the legacy of one unnecessary war, and another that had faded from memory. He will leave office with Iraq and Syria in crisis, Europe uneasy, Yemen and Libya unstable breeding grounds for terrorism, and China doing whatever it is they’re doing.

Marco Rubio has won the support of a top Republican donor and bundler, giving a much needed boost to his campaign.

Because that’s what White Houseses do.

Marco Rubio’s performance in this week’s debate is once again leading to speculation about whether is about to have a breakout moment.

Marco Rubio is taking heat for missing a lot of Senate votes since he started running for President, but he’s not really any worse than other legislators who have run for President.

Republicans seem to be thinking that Hillary Clinton will be an easier General Election candidate than the evidence suggests she is likely to be.

Several recent nominees were flailing at this point in those cycles.

Once the Republican frontrunner, Jeb Bush is now floundering and dealing with donors worried that they may be backing the wrong horse.

So close, and yet so very, very, far.

Two new Iowa polls show Ben Carson passing Donald Trump in the Hawkeye State, but that’s not necessarily good news for Republicans.

After an eleven hour day on Capitol Hill, it was Hillary Clinton 1 House Benghazi Committee 0.

As the House Select Benghazi Committee continues to question Hillary Clinton, a new poll finds that the vast majority of Americans view its work as political rather than part of an objective investigation.

Two new polls show that political efforts to enact more stringent gun control at the national level are not likely to succeed.

What will likely be the apex of the House Select Committee’s investigation of the Benghazi attack begins and ends today with the testimony of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

To the surprise of nobody who was actually paying attention to political reality, Vice-President Biden announced today that he will not be a candidate for President.

For much of the summer, the story of the Democratic race for President was the story of Hillary Clinton’s seemingly endless problems. Those days seem long gone if the latest polls are any indication.

A new poll shows an up-tick in public support for some gun control measures, but gun control advocates can’t ignore the political reality that says those restrictions are unlikely to ever become law.

According to reports, Vice-President Biden may or may not be close to a decision about running for President, and he may or may not be running.

Another Republican Congressman has said that the Select Committee investigating the Benghazi attack is primarily concerned with scoring political points against Hillary Clinton.

Ben Carson will spend most of October on a book tour rather than campaigning for President. Further proof that he is not a serious candidate despite his standing in the polls.

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders may think otherwise, but many Americans do care about Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while Secretary of State.

Donald Trump and Ben Carson are still the top two candidates in the GOP race, while Chris Christie and John Kasich appear to be in danger of being relegated to the “KIds Table” debate at the end of the month.

In addition to doing everything she needed to do last night, Hillary Clinton also destroyed whatever logic remained for a Joe Biden candidacy.

There were five candidates on the stage. Only two mattered.

With the first Democratic Presidential Debate just hours away, Hillary Clinton got some good polling news from Fox News Channel.

In the wake of failure that could have been easily foreseen, the Obama Administration is ending a program to train so-called “moderate” Syrian rebels.

Another political earthquake in Washington as Kevin McCarthy drops out of the race for Speaker, and the House GOP doesn’t seem to know which way to go.

Hillary Clinton has started to distance herself from President Obama on some issues. It’s an understandable strategy, but it carries many risks.

Obama’s first Secretary of State has come out against Obama’s Trans Pacific Partnership.

An FCC rule from a bygone era may get Bernie Sanders and company some time on NBC.

With time running out for him to make a decision, a new report shows how deeply Vice President Biden has been in stirring up the speculation that is now surrounding him.

A woman who has been running for President for at least eight years is apparently having trouble explaining why she wants to be President.

Vice-President Biden will apparently not be at the first Democratic debate, which may be yet another sign that he’s not running for President.

The man who will likely be the next Speaker of the House accidentally acknowledged the real motivation behind the Select Committee investigating, yet again, the Benghazi attack.

RNC Chairman Reince Priebus suggested that Iowa and New Hampshire shouldn’t get used to their place at the top of the primary calendar. He’s right, but fixing the crazy system that put them there isn’t going to be easy.

She’s where she’ belongs.

Vice-President Biden continues to rise in the polls even though he has yet to actually enter the race for President.

The Club For Growth has released two ads criticizing Donald Trump, so of course Trump is threatening to sue them.

The pressure on Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz to expand the 2016 debate schedule is increasing.

Hillary Clinton seems to be bouncing back from recent troubles in the latest national poll, but Vice-President Biden is starting to rise in the polls before even getting in the race.