Outside the Beltway

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

A laser focus on the pandemic and economic insecurity has him in good shape at the traditional check-in point.

A recent report shows 78 of 435 seats in the US House are truly competitive.

An interesting but uneven debate.

Our current forms of collective action on guns have failed us.

Multiple indicators point to a decline in the representativeness of the American system.

Yes, partisanship is real. And it influences more than just voting behavior.

An explanation to a question you likely weren’t asking.

Reacting to the asymmetrical polarization of the electorate.

A story that is both unserious and yet emblematic of our age in a serious way.

Yet another reminder about pathologies of US democracy.

And a discussion of markets (and a warning about partisanship).

The reflections on the departed right-wing talk host continue.

An opportunity for unity and a restoration of normal order.

Some political history,

Our two-party system distorts the representativeness of our politics.

Yesterday showed that Biden understands the “dignified” part of politics.

Not of governance.

Arguments and analyses that are, well, turkeys.

Was Trump’s attempt to overturn the outcome a one-off or a sign of things to come?

But, still very bad.

Governing without Congress has its price.

We’ve just had an election, not psychoanalysis.

Up is down. Down is up.

Joe Biden’s chances remain extraordinarily good.

The problem is real.

Multiple reports have the Notre Dame graduate replacing Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The iconic Supreme Court justice has died at the age of 87.

Is Trump really an outlier?

A new poll shows meaningful shifts in public attitudes.

Media bias is real, but it isn’t what many claim it to be.

The one-time wunderkind, blogging pioneer, and same-sex marriage champion is now on the outs.

The convergence of design flaws in the constitution and a flawed leader have brought us to brink of an electoral crisis.

A quick overview and some examples to start a longer conversation.

We were much slower and have higher non-conformity than countries that have it under control.

Ongoing ambiguity is not helpful.

Leadership matters (as does culture).

It creates a veto gate that they are almost guaranteed to control when they need it.

Joementum.

Mostly stability.

Biden’s polling lead over Trump is historically stable.

“Will some people be affected badly? Yes.”

The policy choices before us are not a dichotomy between off and on.

The President seems to be enjoying a mild rally effect.

We may be in a national crisis but it’s still politics as usual in Washington.

The similarities are rather obvious. But the differences matter.

On presidents

Lack of control of label is lack of control, ultimately, of a party.

Not surprisingly, we remain as polarized as ever.