Outside the Beltway

After hastily removing the House Chaplain under unclear circumstances, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan has reversed himself.

Nearly two-thirds of Americans support marijuana legalization according to a new poll.

General (Retired) Michael Hayden has some harsh, and concerning, criticisms of the Trump administration.

Republicans joined with Democrats to advance a bill to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller, but it’s unlikely to go anywhere beyond that.

The Donald Trump presidency has some eerie parallels with his run on “The Apprentice.”

The highest ranking Democrat in the Senate has introduced a bill that would effectively decriminalize marijuana nationwide and leave it up to each state to decide how far they wish to go with regard to cannabis regulation. It’s a huge step in the right direction.

Republicans on Capitol Hill and in positions of power are slavishly backing their President over their country. They should be ashamed.

Running for and being President of the United States has been very lucrative for the family business.

President Trump is on the attack against James Comey as the former F.B.I. Director begins his book tour.

Mark Zuckerberg’s second day before Congress was somewhat more contentious than the first, but at the end of the day it’s still unclear that more regulation is the answer to the issues raised by recent Facebook “scandals.”

John Boehner is now pro-weed. The world just keeps getting weirder, man.

He cooperated with the FBI. He was arrested by ICE.

Americans actings as agents for Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been working hard to manipulate the President.

Challengers to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s ruling on Congressional redistricting suffered two big setbacks in court yesterday that suggest that they’ve reached the end of the road legally.

Conor Lamb’s win in Pennsylvania’s 18th Congressional District has set off an inevitable debate inside the Democratic Party about how to approach the upcoming midterm elections.

Maryland’s legislature is considering a law that would require candidates for President to release their tax returns. It’s probably not Constitutional.

POLITICO buries the lede in making the case for “Donald Trump’s bubble presidency.”

A Federal Judge has dismissed a lawsuit that sought to invalidate Federal laws against marijuana use and possession.

Presidents are much more constrained in issuing and rolling back regulations than they or the public think.

Continuing a pattern that has gone on for eight years now, the Supreme Court has declined to hear another appeal regarding a Second Amendment challenge to state gun control laws.

NRO’s David French offers “A Gun-Control Measure Conservatives Should Consider.”

Donald Trump is now claiming that he had never denied that Russia interfered in the 2016 election. This is, of course, not true.

A Federal Court in New York City is set to hear argument tomorrow in a case that essentially argues that a large swath of Federal laws regarding marijuana are unconstitutional.

Donald Trump’s own lawyers are afraid he can’t help but lie to such an extent that he should not sit down for an interview with special counsel Robert Mueller.

The Supreme Court has declined to stay a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling requiring the legislature to redraw the state’s Congressional District map.

Two Amtrak crashes in less than a week is newsworthy. It is not, however, a trend.

A newly released poll has encouraging signs for Democrats in 2018, but there are several caveats.

Embattled New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez has dodged a bullet, but still faces uncertain prospects for reelection.

The prospects for a deal in Congress on DACA are starting to look grim.

With the Administration set to commit the United States to a forever war in Syria, it’s time for Congress to act.

The GOP’s potential troubles in 2018 don’t just exist at the Congressional level.

The numbers aren’t looking good for Republican prospects in this year’s midterm elections.

New reports indicate that the President is spending more and more time watching television and tweeting. That’s not what he was elected to do.

Republicans passed their tax bill yesterday. What that means for the economy and the 2018 midterms is another question.

House and Senate Republicans say they have reached agreement on a final tax bill, and Democrats are engaging in an effort to delay a vote in the Senate until Doug Jones can be seated.

Polling remains uncertain in the Alabama Senate race, but the odds favor Roy Moore.

The Supreme Court heard argument today in a case challenging a 1992 law barring sports gambling in all but a handful of states, and the Justices appeared skeptical of the law.

For a guy who considers the Russia investigation “Fake News,” President Trump sure is doing a lot to try to stop it.

The Washington Post exposes another James O’Keefe fraud.

The Supreme Court has declined to hear yet another Second Amendment case.

The woman who says Ray Moore assaulted her when she was just 14 spoke out this morning at the same time that the White House effectively endorsed Moore’s candidacy.

There’s growing evidence that Donald Trump’s tweets are hurting him but his aides have basically given up trying to control his Twitter habit.

House Republicans passed their tax reform bill. That was the easy part.

New Jersey Senate Bob Menendez has temporarily dodged a bullet, but his ultimate fate is far from clear.

Republicans have a Donald Trump problem, and they can’t run away from it.

Democrats, Republicans, and Independents came out for an an election that can only been seen as a strong rebuke to President Trump and the Republican Party.

To nobody’s surprise, a blue state returns to its roots.

With less than forty-eight hours to go, the race for Virginia’s Governor is tighter than ever.

A month that was highlighted by the capture of the ISIS capital city of Raqqa ends with an apparent lone wolf ISIS-inspired attack in New York City

President Obama spoke out yesterday against his successor and the America he has created.