Outside the Beltway

A disastrous day for American troops in Afghanistan.

Texas Governor Rick Perry got lousy grades as an undergrad at Texas A&M. Does it matter?

While it’s hard to argue with S&P’s political analysis, its economic judgment is a head-scratcher.

The main issue driving the downgrade appears to be lack of faith in the political parties to act responsibly and compromise over entitlements and revenues.

So, it happened………

The agenda of the Tea Party movement doesn’t necessarily coincide with what voters say they want from Washington.

Does it matter which candidate the GOP nominates?

The job approval numbers for Congress are at historic lows, but will that matter in 2012?

Looking at the state-by-state map way too early.

There is little to cheer in the jobs report released by the Labor Department today.

iPad games, on the other hand, are like someone you meet in a bar and find yourself screwing in the bathroom 10 minutes later. This is not a criticism.

Apparently, getting the debt deal done was not a panacea.

The “super committee” created by the debt ceiling deal is already the subject of criticism, most of it unwarranted.

Don’t worry be happy!

Perry has a combo of Tea Party populism and establishment going for him.

Congress is failing to complete even simple tasks thanks to a bitter partisan divide.

I got your broken right here: the presidential nomination process.

Tim Pawlenty is rethinking his campaign strategy.

Rumors of Timothy Geithner’s departure from the Treasury Department may have been exaggerated.

International options with respect to Syria are limited and likely to have little impact on the governments treatment of civilians.

Harvard economist Kenneth Rogoff says we’re undergoing much more than a mere recession.

After years of becoming more inclusive, the Conservative Political Action Conference is closing itself off to opposing points of view.

Marvel has created an alternate universe in which Spiderman is a half-black, half-Latino teenager. Some people are angry.

Following on Doug’s cheery post about the weak state of the economy here are some more things to consider.

Pat Buchanan referred to President Obama as “your boy” in conversation with Al Sharpton.

House Republicans are being criticized for utilizing a tactic they learned from Senate Democrats.

Will the trial of Hosni Mubarak actually change anything?

One year ago, Timothy Geithner said them things about the economy he probably wishes he could take back right now.

Has a precedent been set for future requests by the President to increase the debt ceiling?

Kurt Vonnegut on teaching a computer to write a story.

The reviews are in on the debt negotiations, and the public isn’t happy.

The general made famous by his leadership of the Katrina effort has some harsh words for our political leadership.

First it was same-sex marriage, now it’s a abortion. Rick Perry hasn’t met a Constitutional Amendment usurping state power he doesn’t like.