Outside the Beltway

It’s been two years since John Boehner stepped down as Speaker, and he’s got a few things to say about his former colleagues and the state of American politics.

Squirrel!

The capital of the purported caliphate declared by ISIS has apparently fallen, but that doesn’t mean the end of ISIS. In fact, it may make the group more dangerous.

Vice-President Pence left an Indianapolis Colts game early in what was obviously a cynical pre-planned publicity stunt.

In other news, this week we learned that AIM still exists.

Stephen Paddock’s crime was clearly terrorizing, and will impact the lives of survivors, families, first responders in many ways for a long time. Based on the currently available evidence, though, the Las Vegas shooting was not “terrorism.”

Catalonia’s independence referendum is one day away, and nobody seems to know what to expect.

Some more interesting post-election commentary from Hillary Clinton.

Senate Republicans are considering one more last-ditch effort to ‘repeal and replace’ the Affordable Care Act.

Hillary Clinton has found another group to blame for her loss, educated white married women in suburbia.

Despite pleas from conservative lawmakers, the Dept. of Justice will not reopen the case against former I.R.S. official Lois Lerner.

Hillary Clinton’s latest memoir lashes out at those to blame for her unexpected loss.

A stupid comment about Hurricane Harvey cost a Florida professor his job.

Sarah Palin’s lawsuit against The New York Times suffers a significant setback.

Another Cabinet member rebukes the President for his comments about Charlottesville.

The Trump Administration has reportedly finalized its order to the Defense Department regarding a ban on military service by transgender soldiers.

President Trump continues his war on one of the most important guardians of American democracy.

The Daily Caller crosses a line and doesn’t seem to regret it.

The dangers of the tyranny of the majority have only magnified.

A public intellectual is getting the help he needs.

The First Amendment protects the rights even of the people who gathered in Charlottesville to promote hatred and violence, However, it does not shield them from the consequences of that speech.

At least thirteen dead in an apparent terrorist attack in Spain.

Yes, even Nazis must have their rights to peaceful speech and assembly protected.

Donald Trump has had harsher things to say about Rosie O’Donnell than he did about the people responsible for yesterday’s violence. That says something about him.

A Federal Judge has ruled against an elected official who blocked a constituent from accessing her Facebook page.

Sad news about a Washington stalwart.

Twitter users who have been blocked on the service by President Trump are suing him, claiming that their First Amendment rights have been violated.

Sarah Palin has filed a defamation suit against The New York Times alleging defamation in an Editorial linking her to the January 2011 shooting of former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. From the facts alleged, she appears to have a good case.

Once again, Donald Trump has taken to Twitter to attack women, embarrass himself, and embarrass the nation he purports to represent.

Twitter is, in some way, the most vacuous and simplistic of all social media, and it also appears to be the President’s main intellectual outlet.

The Supreme Court rules that states cannot bar convicted felons from using social media sites.

Donald Trump thinks the media doesn’t like his Twitter habit. In reality, they love it.

A Congressman was shot, and a staffer and security detail members injured, at a practice session for tomorrow’s Congressional baseball game.

Donald Trump’s first Cabinet Meeting looked like something out of a Maoist propaganda video.

President Trump says he’d be willing to testify under oath in response to former F.B.I Director Comey’s accusations. That would be a mistake for several reasons.

If Donald Trump blocks you on Twitter does that constitute a First Amendment violation? Two Twitter users say yes, but their argument is very weak.

President Trump responded to last night’s terror attacks by taking to Twitter.

After 100 days in office, President Trump has very little to show for his work except to show that there’s no reason to trust his judgment going forward.

When a prominent political scientist committed suicide yesterday, I was deeply struck by how much he was like not only me but most of the people in my professional circle.

An apparent terrorist attack in Russia’s second largest city.

Rachel Maddow hyped the fact that she had obtained a copy of Trump’s 2005 tax return last night. It turned out to be much ado about nothing.

Part One in a series of observations about health care and health insurance in light of the introduction of the House GOP’s health care plan.

Ben Carson is back and he’s saying some pretty dumb things again.

Donald Trump took to Twitter again this morning with predictable results.