Outside the Beltway

The House of Representatives passed a defense spending bill that seeks to limit Presidential authority when it comes to striking Iran and aideing the Saudi war on Yemen.

Citing the so-called “Billy Graham Rule,” a Republican candidate for Governor in Mississippi is refusing to let a female reporter accompany him on a campaign ride-along.

After a firestorm of criticism for his handling of a decade-old plea deal with Jeffrey Epstein, Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta has resigned.

Recent video showing what appears to be uncontrolled shaking are raising health concerns about German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

After a year of fighting, the Administration has given up on its effort to get a citizenship question on the 2020 Census.

Later today, the President is expected to take some form of ‘Executive Action’ in an effort to get a citizenship question on the 2020 Census.

Democratic voters and donors appear to be narrowing their choices for a nominee down, which could mean a short future for a lot of current Democratic candidates.

The Trump Administration is expected to begin mass deportation raids as early as this weekend.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals heard argument yesterday in a case that could radically impact health care coverage for millions of Americans.

Senator Elizabeth Warren raised $19 million despite eschewing the high-dollar fundraisers her opponents have utilized.

Detroit shows how modern technology can lead to a virtual police state.

The independent who upended the 1992 Presidential race has passed.

The victory of the U.S. Women’s team in the World Cup has renewed a long-standing argument over pay equity, but the issue is far more complicated than it seems.

A weird media narrative has formed.

Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein was formally charged with multiple counts of procuring underage girls for sexual molestation.

Well, of course they are.

Nearly half the country thinks he’s not a terrible President.

Bernie Sanders is finding that the 2020 campaign is very different from 2016.

Ideas, not tanks.

Is it possible, or even appropriate, to express pride in a country that is being led by a President who stands against everything this country stands for?

A convergence of OTB discussions.

The Republican Party is ruining the country. But so are the Democrats?

The post-debate polling of the Democratic race continues to be somewhat chaotic, but it’s clear that Harris and Warren have made this a very different race than it was before the debates.

One of America’s fist celebrity CEO’s has passed away at the age of 94.

Mayor Pete is raking in the dough.

President Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un met at the Demilitarized Zone for what amounts to their third summit in a year. As with the previous two, there was nothing of substance accomplished.

Democrats clashed, to some degree, in last night’s inaugural debate of the 2020 season but they clearly agreed far more than they disagreed.

One photograph that has gone viral is standing as a visualization of the Trump Administration’s inhumane asylum policies.

Stephanie Grisham, presently a top aide to First Lady Melania Trump, has been named the new White House Press Secretary and Communications Director.

Robert Mueller has agreed to testify before Congress in public. Testimony that is likely to be the big story of the summer.

The Ebola outbreak that began last year in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is still a problem, and still threatening to spread.

Eight months later, the President and his Administration continue to refuse to acknowledge the truth about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.

There are children being held in what amount to internment camps on the southern border under appallingly bad conditions and the President is more concerned with falsely blaming his predecessor for the problem.

The Democratic Socialist wants to absorb $1.6 trillion of student debt.

A possible way forward?

With hours to go before they were set to start. the President delayed the mass deportation raids that were supposed to begin this morning.

Trump and Iran.

Following through on a threat made by the President earlier this week, immigration authorities are reportedly planning mass raids aimed primarily at immigrant families starting tomorrow.

Another woman has accused President Trump of sexually assaulting her some 20 years ago.

Congress is considering a bill that would establish a commission to examine the issue of reparations for slavery.;

As if the situation in the Persian Gulf weren’t already tense enough, the Iranians shot down an American reconnaissance drone late yesterday

Not surprisingly, the President’s opening speech of the 2020 campaign was filed with lies.

The Justice Department has released a memo attempting to justify the Administration’s refusal to comply with a subpoena for the President;’s tax returns. Their argument is weak to say the least.

President Trump’s opening rally of the 2020 campaign sounded an awful lot like a rally from 2016

Patrick Shanahan is out as nominee to be Secretary of Defense after questions were raised during his background investigation.

As we head toward a potential crisis in the Persian Gulf, the consequences of the President’s lies are coming home to roost.

While the world is largely focused on the much larger trade war with China, the United States is engaged in a similar battle with a nation that ought to be a natural ally.

Hospital phone lines are being overwhelmed.

It’s still way too early to be predictive, but the latest head-to-head matches between the President and the top contenders for the Democratic nomination.

Presidential adviser Kellyanne Conway stands credibly accused of multiple violations of Federal law. The President will do nothing about it.