Outside the Beltway

Pope Francis defrocked former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick after decades of allegations of abuse of young boys and seminarians.

Two new reports identify hundreds of Catholic Priests who have been credibly accused of abusing children over the past decades.

In a rare display of assertiveness in the foreign policy arena, the House voted yesterday to bar U.S. assistance in Saudi Arabia’s genocidal war on Yemen.

New polling indicates that a solid majority of Democrats are more interested in finding a candidate who can beat Donald Trump in 2020 than they are with finding a candidate that agrees with them on specific issues.

New Jersey Senator Cory Booker is the latest entrant into the race for the 2020 Democratic Nomination.

Pensions and health care costs for the elderly are crowding out other vital spending.

The Speaker was dealt a winning hand and played it with the skill of a seasoned pro. But the outcome was all but inevitable.

For the first tine in nearly ten years, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving Second Amendment rights.

As expected. California Senator Kamala Harris has entered the race for President.

Could Maryland Governor Larry Hogan be just the kind of Republican to challenge Trump in 2020?

Former Vice-President Joe Biden will reportedly decide on whether or not he’ll be entering the race for President in the near future.

Herb Kelleher, who helped found an airline that revolutionized the industry thanks to his unconventional choices, has died at the age of 87.

Begun, the 2020 campaign has.

I’m not saying it was aliens, but……..

Is it possible that the solution to the government shutdown is letting the President pretend he got funding for his border wall even though he didn’t?

A preliminary report from Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan found at least 500 Catholic Priests whose abuse of children had been covered up by Church officials.

New York State seems likely to join the list of states where marijuana has been legalized sometime next year.

The Senate overwhelmingly passed major reforms in Federal sentencing and related laws. As the name of the bill implies, it’s a first step, but a good first step.

After a barrage of criticism, New Jersey Democrats are abandoning a controversial redistricting proposal.

Former Vice-President Biden and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders are, not surprisingly, leading the early polls for the 2020 Democratic nomination.

An argument against “bothersiderism” in this case and, yet again, noting the problem with single seat districts.

Trump has selected current Budget Director Mick Mulvaney to replace John Kelly as Chief of Staff, but that’s unlikely to change how the West Wing operates.

In a small, but meaningful, step, the Senate has rebuked the Administration’s policies toward the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Gerrymandering. It’s not just for Republicans.

President Trump’s first choice to replace John Kelly as Chief of Staff turned the job down, leading one to wonder why anyone would want the job.

Cory Booker’s interest in running for President has been an open secret for some time, now he’s being far less coy about it.

Bernie Sanders has not officially said that he’s running for President, but he’s reportedly planning a much more aggressive campaign than what we saw in 2016 if he does.

Once again, Republicans in California find themselves looking up and seeing a lot of desolation. They need to find a way to bounce back.

Another part of the country that was once a Republican stronghold is now almost completely blue.

Election Day 2018 saw Republican representation in the New Jersey Congressional Delegation nearly entirely decimated.

The economy may be doing well, but that didn’t help Republicans in the midterms.

Rest in Peace and Excelsior, Stan Lee!

The NYT is trying to start a conversation.

Beto O’Rourke should consider running again in 2020, but not for President.

On Tuesday, Michigan joined the ranks of the states where marijuana is legal and several other states legalized it for medical purposes.

Whether as candidates or as voters, Democrats can thank women for many of their victories on Tuesday.

President Trump has fired his Attorney General, a move than many are interpreting as the precursor to a move against Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

It’s all over but the vote counting.

The Party of Donald Trump has left no sane choice but to vote straight Democrat.

With the 2020 Campaign set to begin as soon as the 2018 campaign ends, Democrats find themselves facing an age issue.

For better or worse, here are my projections for the midterm elections.

While the numbers seem to show that scandal-plagued Senator Bob Menendez will win re-election on Tuesday, national Democrats aren’t taking any chances.

Despite the relatively strong economy, President Trump and many other Republicans are relying on the politics of fear to drive voter turnout on Tuesday.

To the surprise of absolutely nobody, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders hints that he’s thinking of running for President in 2020.

Just over a week before two states will be voting on referendums to legalize recreational marijuana, a new poll finds that two-thirds of Americans support legalization.

One of the longest-lasting characters on The Simpsons may not be long for this world, but before we write him off perhaps we ought to stop and think.

The vise is tightening on the Catholic Church.

Just days after appearing to condone donning blackface in the style of a 19th Century minstrel show, Megyn Kelly is out at NBC News.

Authorities have arrested a Florida man named Cesar Sayoc, a 56-year-old Trump supporter, in connection with the wave of bombing attempts directed at critics of the President.

More outrageous behavior by the President of the United States.