Outside the Beltway

Republicans have set a Judiciary Committee vote for less than a day after hearing from Christine Blasey Ford and Judge Brett Kavanaugh.

In what appears to be a first, Judge Brett Kavanaugh took to the media to defend his nomination. Not surprisingly, he chose a friendly venue.

New allegations of sexual misconduct mark the start of a crucial week for the confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh.

We’ll likely never know whether the Supreme Court nominee is a sexual assaulter. But it really doesn’t matter.

Some details still need to be worked out, but it looks as though Dr. Christine Blasey Ford will be testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday.

Christine Blasey Ford put “two teenagers” at the party where she alleges a rape attempt occurred. Neither remembers any such party.

Regardless of who wins control of the Senate in November, the person who will stand third in the line of succession will either be over, or very close to, eighty years old. That doesn’t make sense.

Trumpism is a direct by-product of the poisonous populism of the Tea Party movement, and they’ve both taken over the Republican Party.

This morning, President Trump took to Twitter to attack Dr. Christine Blasey Ford over her allegations against Judge Brett Kavanaugh.

Monday’s hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding the charges made against Judge Brett Kavanaugh is still on as scheduled, but the details are still being negotiated.

The status of Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation remains up in the air, as does the question of whether or not Christine Blasey Ford will appear for a hearing on Monday morning.

Several days after detailed sexual assault allegations against the Supreme Court nominee, I’m not fully sure what to believe.

Attorneys for Christine Blasey Ford want the F.B.I. to investigate the charges she has made against Judge Kavanaugh before she testifies, but it’s entirely unclear what such an investigation would accomplish.

President Trump is set to expand his ill-advised, economically ignorant, trade war with China.

Donald Trump has been in office just over 600 days, and he’s proven beyond any doubt that he doesn’t care if what he says is the truth or not.

Cracks are beginning to show in the previously united Republican front on the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation notwithstanding what appear to be credible allegations of sexual assault.

A woman accusing Brett Kavanaugh of having assaulted her when he was 17 and she was 15 has come forward. What happens next is anyone’s guess.

As problematic as some of what we know about the internal workings of the White House may be, it isn’t a coup.

Another day, another plea agreement in the Mueller investigation. This one could prove to be problematic for the President.

Some last minute dramatics in the Kavanaugh nomination fight, but it seems unlikely to impact the outcome of the nomination fight.

President Trump is apparently a Hurricane Maria Truther.

New evidence indicates that the same Russian backed bots and trolls that sought to influence the 2016 election are now attempting to exploit the social divisions raised by the N.F.L. players kneeling during the National Anthem.

With less than two months to go before the midterm elections, President Trump’s job approval numbers are hitting new lows.

Just how far should White House staffers and civil servants go in protecting the public from an erratic president?

After four days of hearings, the fate of Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court seems assured.

The second day of questioning for Judge Brett Kavanaugh was a bit rockier than the first, but nothing happened that seriously threatens his eventual confirmation.

The tough guy actor best known for the “Smokey And The Bandit” movies has passed away at the age of 82.

Amazon has joined Apple to become the second American corporation to reach $1,000,000,000,000 in market valuation.

The first day of the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings was much ado about pretty much nothing, but then that can be used to describe a process whose outcome is pretty much foreordained.

A new book by legendary Washington reporter Bob Woodward appears to contain explosive revelations about the President and the operation of the White House.

New polling seems to show a significant shift toward Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections.

The confirmation hearings for Judge Brett Kavanaugh begin today, but the outcome seems foreordained.

Passports being denied to citizens whose birth records are being questioned.

As the midterms get closer, the public’s perception of the President’s job performance is getting worse.

Throughout the War On Terror, John McCain stood out as a strong moral voice against the use of torture against prisoners. For that he deserves the thanks of a grateful nation.

President Trump’s much-hyped replacement for NAFTA doesn’t really amount to much and won’t amount to anything unless he can get Canada, and the U.S. Congress, on board.

A top Vatican official is alleging that Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI were both aware of previously unknown allegations of sexual abuse and chose to allow them to be covered up rather than bringing them to light.

Democrats have pulled the trigger and essentially eliminated the power of superdelegates except in the unlikely event that a nominating convention goes to a second ballot.

Here’s what will happen regarding the selection of a successor to Senator McCain.

Senator John McCain has died at the age of 81,

Max Boot proclaims “Trump is an illegitimate president whose election is tainted by fraud.”

No matter how long Donald Trump remains in office, August 21, 2018 will be the day that everything changed.

California Republican Duncan Hunter Jr, who was an early backer of President Trump’s campaign, has been indicted on charges he used massive amounts of campaign funds to pay for personal expenses.

Robert Mueller and his legal team get their first victories in court.

The President’s former lawyer and “fixer” is pleading guilty to a number of charges, including apparent campaign finance law violations related to the Stormy Daniels payment.

Pope Francis took the rare step of sending a letter addressed to all of the world’s Catholics on the sexual abuse scandal. Words are fine, but they need action to back them up.

Through our so-called allies in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the United States is helping to destroy Yemen. It’s time for our support for that war to come to an end.

The American public is not sold on the idea of a ‘Space Force.’

Orwell lives.

Care to guess the demographic makeup of the county?