Outside the Beltway

It’s becoming a sad joke.

A second stash has led to a special counsel and political embarrassment.

A brilliant national security leader is gone too soon.

Three-and-a-half years and almost 6 million tax dollars have produced nothing.

It’s much bigger than it appears.

A bill that was never about the thing it’s called doesn’t do that thing.

The Schumer-Manchin compromise includes a massive increase in the tax collection budget.

The economy, it turns out, is complicated.

Much ado about a perfectly normal phenomenon.

The combination of a horrendous rollout and a social media onslaught was disastrous.

Are retired officers on defense boards presumed liars?

The US conducted a preemptive strike against the GRU’s systems.

Two April Fool’s Day orders are no joke. And they’re apparently causing confusion.

They’re not missing and that points to a systemic issue

Ukraine’s leader wants more help than he’s going to get.

The Russian leader is isolated and under tremendous pressure.

The American President is once again leading the free world.

Putin’s forces are in Kyiv.

Former President Trump routinely broke the law with respect to protecting public records.

How do we know when our government is telling us the truth?

The Biden administration is close to repairing the damage Trump caused.

Expert opinion on the standoff differs sharply.

Is the administration governing like it’s 2009?

Russia may invade Ukraine again. The United States would prefer otherwise.

The Islamic Republic is very close to being able to fuel a single weapon.

Because Afghanistan and Hurricane Ida weren’t enough for the Biden administration to deal with.

The collapse is not his doing. But he’s accountable for the poor planning.

The postmortems are well underway.

Fear of Chinese spies led to a bizarre and illegal operation within the Commerce Department.

He has nominated only 304 people out 1,200+ that require Senate confirmation.

Discussing the filibuster.

The project that has been on-again, off-again since 2008 seems to be off for good.

The President used his first speech to Congress as an attempt to unite the country.

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

The President has overturned decades of US foreign policy and alienated a NATO ally for, well, reasons.

It doesn’t work like the movies, Senator.

The downfall of Andrew Cuomo shines a light on toxic workplaces and governance styles.

Those expecting Bernie Sanders’ agenda are sorely disappointed.

A way-too-early assessment of how it’s going.

Reflections on the events of 6 January two months later.

Democrats are already jockeying to influence President Biden’s pick should a vacancy arise.

The loaners, the dreamers, and schemes.

Aung San Suu Kyi and her top officials are under house arrest.

We’re witnessing something not seen since 1989.

Biden nominees Janet Yellen, Tony Blinken, and Avril Haines are under scrutiny for their financial disclosures.

Not another general.

When an apolitical process gets politicized.

My latest for Defense One.