Outside the Beltway

Really, they owed (and still owe) us better behavior.

It hasn’t changed in over 100 years (but the population sure has).

An interesting podcast conversation.

It’s not getting any better, folks.

Kinda, sorta, maybe, but probably not really.

It passed the Senate unanimously.

The law and justice are frequently not the same thing.

And general considerations on mid-term elections.

The long shift of population from the Rust Belt to the Sun Belt continues—with the unusual exception of California.

It’s undemocratic and we should get rid of it. But doing so isn’t a panacea.

A recent report shows 78 of 435 seats in the US House are truly competitive.

Our insistence on relying on an 18th Century understanding of electoral systems is our ongoing bane (if one values representative government).

Any “fair” drawing of districts will yield a GOP advantage over time.

And what GOP opposition says about the party.

A story that is both unserious and yet emblematic of our age in a serious way.

Yet another reminder about pathologies of US democracy.

America’s institutions are undemocratic but only some of them are a product of the Constitution.

Some political history,

Implications for Alabama and the GOP as well as considerations on the evolution of American politics.

Amending the Constitutional through unconstitutional means is a very bad idea.

Here we go again.

Although prosecution and conviction are unlikely.

The absurd notion that the President of Senate is the arbiter and judge of the electoral vote.

The zombie idea for ousting an erratic and dangerous President.

The phone tour continues.

Arguments and analyses that are, well, turkeys.

Perhaps the most normal thing President Trump has done.

Competing priorities.

Who’s to blame for the Blue Wave not materializing?

A legally correct ruling based on a lie.

The Emoluments Clause is essentially unenforceable.

I couldn’t help myself.

A clever political gambit that raises real issues.

Definitions are fun, right?

An interesting but unlikely-to-pass bill is about to be introduced.

A long-winded and esoteric discussion about an elusive idea.

More on SCOTUS expansion and other issues.

Legitimacy hangs in the balance.

The American political system is broken but it’s not fair to blame that on its architects.

A quick overview and some examples to start a longer conversation.

An open Senate race is now much more likely to stay Republican.

Shame on him for defending authoritarian actions.

A civil rights legend has passed.

It’s just not immediate.

Conspiracy theories are poisoning the United States. That’s no joke.

A shocking and yet completely unsurprising development.

It creates a veto gate that they are almost guaranteed to control when they need it.

The writing is on the wall for simple-majority voting in the Senate.

The Magnolia State is the last in the nation to have the stars and bars on its state banner.