Outside the Beltway

There are still three days left, but it’s looking less and less likely that a budget deal will be reached in time to avoid a government shutdown.

Paul Ryan unveiled an ambitious plan to cut the deficit today. The question is whether it will be the beginning of a debate, or an opportunity for Democratic demagoguery

Can a candidate appealing enough to the base to win the Republican nomination beat Obama?

Rather than fighting over the remnants of the FY 2011 budget, the GOP should make a deal and get ready for the bigger, and more important, battle ahead.

House Republicans engaged in a publicity stunt on Friday that displayed a profound misunderstanding of how government actually works in the United States.

The next week promises to be a battle between John Boehner and the Tea Party over whether or not compromise is a good idea.

Freshman Members of Congress are threatening to block a vote to raise the debt ceiling that Congress will have to take by this Spring. They’d be irresponsible if they did so.

Would returning to indirect election of Senators really have a significant impact on the growth of the Federal Government? Probably not.

Within the first few months of 2011, Congress will be required to take another unpalatable vote to raise the debt ceiling. Already, some incoming Republicans are talking about waging an effort to block the vote. That would be politically, and financially, stupid.

Republicans are promising two years of gridlock and obstructionism if they take control of Congress, but is that really what the people who are likely to vote for them next week really want?