Outside the Beltway

Princeton historian Sean Wilentz lays to rest a pernicious idea propagated by . . . Princeton historian Sean Wilentz.

A reminder that over 3 million citizens have no effective influence over the federal government.

Senate Republicans are pushing for the end of minority obstruction—and the Democrats can’t wait.

Last November the state voted overwhelming to amend its constitution. The lawmakers they elected at the same time are sabotaging it.

The woman famous for losing the Georgia governor’s race is eyeing a bigger job.

President Trump will ask for $8.6 billion for his border wall in his Fiscal Year 2020 budget. He’s unlikely to get it.

It’s been a rough two years under Trump, but America’s institutions are surviving.

More polling evidence that the public does not support Trump’s emergency declaration or his wall.

Republicans are blindly loyal to this President in a way we have not seen before. They are likely to end up paying a price for that.

Last week, the House passed two bills to strengthen the laws regarding background checks for guns, but they’re not likely to even make it to the floor of the Senate.

Washington Governor Jay Inslee is running for the Democratic nomination for President on a platform primarily focused on climate change. Whether that helps distinguish him from a growing field of candidates remains to be seen.

The House of Representatives voted yesterday to block the President’s declaration of an “emergency” at the southern border. Now the matter goes to the Senate.

Republicans face a choice in the coming days. Do they support the Constitution, or do they support Donald Trump? You can count on them making the wrong choice.

While not subject to filibuster, it’s still subject to Presidential veto.

The House of Representatives has begin the process of challenging the President’s recent declaration of a ‘national emergency’ at the southern border.

The lawsuits against President Trump’s “national emergency” have begun. Except more.

Walter Jones, a former supporter of the Iraq War who became one of the most prominent anti-war voices in Congress, has passed away at the age of 76. He will be missed.

President Trump’s impending decision to declare a national emergency to get funding for his border wall will quickly face serious legal challenges. It may be more vulnerable than the White House suspects.

The President will sign the bill to fund the government and avert another government shutdown, but in doing so he’ll also lay the groundwork for another showdown with Congress.

William Barr was easily confirmed as Attorney General in a 54-45 votes that included three Democrats crossing over to support him.

The former #2 official at the FBI is trying to sell a book.

The right has spent a seemingly inordinate amount of time focusing on relatively powerless Members of Congress.

After a week of scandal and chaos in Virginia politics, there’s no sign that Virginia Governor Ralph Northam is going anywhere, and there’s very little that can be done to force him out of office.

The longest-serving member of Congress in American history has passed away at the age of 92.

In his business career Donald Trump relied largely on fear and intimidation to get his way on business deals. As President, he’s finding that nobody is afraid of him.

A new poll shows most Americans oppose President Trump’s border wall and support more liberal immigration laws.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has warned the President against using a national emergency to fund his border wall.

The way we elect Presidents make it unlikely that a third-party candidate like Howard Schultz could ever actually win the the Presidency.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has managed to become a media star, but she has a lot to learn about politics.

Regardless of whether or not you think Nancy Pelosi won the government shutdown, Donald Trump clearly lost.

In a deal that can only be described as a cave by the President, the government shutdown is on course to be ended by the end of the day today.

President Trump has backed down in his showdown with Speaker Pelosi over the State of the Union Address, but that does nothing to bring us closer to a resolution of the government shutdown.

Two years into his Presidency, Donald Trump continues to set the wrong kind of records.

A leading conservative makes a truly bizarre defense of the President.

With Democrats making a new proposal and the President set to speak later today, there could be movement on ending the government shutdown. I wouldn’t be too optimistic, though.

As the shutdown continues the numbers get worse for the President, but he doesn’t seem to care.

A Federal Judge has blocked the Trump Administration from going forward with a plan to put a question about citizenship on the 2020 Census.

Nancy Pelosi is “suggesting” to the President that the State of the Union be rescheduled for a time after the government shutdown ends, but it clearly seems like more than just a suggestion.

The Speaker is well within her rights to make Trump’s invitation conditional on ending the shutdown. But let’s not pretend we can’t keep him safe.

The House GOP has moved to rebuke Iowa Congressman for his racist remarks. What took them so long?

Later today, Theresa May’s Brexit deal will face a decisive vote in the House of Commons in a vote that could have implications for May’s own hold on power.

Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard is the latest Democrat to throw their hat into the Presidential ring.

Historical numbers, but still a very male chamber.

President Trump is claiming that he could use authority to declare a “national emergency” to build his wall even if Congress doesn’t authorize it.

As the shutdown drags on, Mitch McConnell finds himself facing pressure from the White House and from members of his own caucus.

As 2018 draws to a close, there’s no sign that the government shutdown will end any time soon.

Congress will not be returning to Washington until some time next week. Thus guaranteeing that this shutdown will last at least through January 3rd.

Christmas is behind us, but don’t expect any progress when it comes to the government shutdown, which is in its fifth day.

With Congress out of town until at least Thursday and negotiations apparently deadlocked, the White House is saying it’s likely the shutdown will last into 2019.

While the political media is spending a lot of time talking about it, the actual impact of this latest government shutdown is likely to be limited and possibly even unnoticeable to most Americans.