Outside the Beltway

Trump betrayed his oath. That should disqualify him from office. That’s the whole point of section 3 of the 14th.

He appointed a third of the Justices but has the worst record before them in modern history.

Most no longer believe it’s possible to get ahead through hard work.

America’s weird system for choosing Presidents keeps getting weirder.

The NYT goes too far but not far enough.

I know it when I see it.

And, not surprisingly, about parties.

A satisfying but unlikely explanation.

The base is remaining loyal to the only candidate they think can beat Biden.

Wherein I finally reveal my answer (spoiler: it is hardly surprising). And, also, wherein despite the goal of brevity, I fail at that goal.

There’s an inherent tension in public education.

America survived a civil war and the turmoil of the 1960s. Can we rebound again?

The President is trying to change perceptions ahead of the election.

Young Americans are increasingly ruling out those of the other party.

Separating rhetoric from action.

A symbolic gesture is now highly impractical, if not harmful.

A hypothetical spoiler for 2024? (Stress on “hypothetical”).

“Red States” and “Blue State”

The lunatic fringe idea is both appealing and unworkable.

Tips for how to check yourself before you wreck yourself.

Latin America’s answer to Donald Trump has his own insurrection attempt.

A moderate Republican almost diagnoses the problem.

The Supreme Court may revisit a controversial criminal justice ruling.

Democratic politicians are lining up behind the octogenarian President.

A reminder of how things (specifically the party system as a whole) have changed.

Looking at some historical data.

A deep dive into why our politics are so broken.

Local issues barely matter in Congressional races anymore.

The attack at the Pelosi house should surprise no one.

The party in the White House is likely to lose seats.

Touting the accomplishments of the last two years isn’t working.

A new book raises fundamental questions about how far journalistic objectivity should extend.

The intersection of politics, morality, and meaning.

“Moderate” is up, “Liberal” is down, and “Conservative” is static. What does it mean?

What we believe and what we say we believe are often not the same.

Approval is down (again).

A theory floated in Bush v Gore could radically change American elections.

Columnists write bad columns apologizing for bad columns.

Who should have the final say on the law of the land?

With the government throwing its hands up, it’s now up to the citizenry.

Yet another reminder of the pathologies of American institutions.

This will just reinforce minority rule in the US.

Could Alaska point the way to a solution?

Tweaking the message and getting out the vote don’t matter as much as strategists think.

Half a century have passed since a botched burglary changed history.

Are you going to believe this index or your own lyin’ eyes?

A recurring genre about presidents.

The NYT and CA41 and yet another example of telling the wrong story.

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

The role of American political institutions.