Outside the Beltway

Steven Metz muses, “Scholars argue that too much political mobilization can make democracies dysfunction. Is that where the US is today?”

Barack Obama’s biggest enemy in the debt negotiations has been himself.

The Supreme Court is being asked to decided if Congress can overrule a foreign policy position the U.S. has held since 1948.

News that Norwegian terrorist Anders Behring Breivik was a fan of anti-Islamist sites, including Robert Spencer’s Jihad Watch and Pamela Geller’s Atlas Shrugs has opened a big can of schadenfreude.

Their mouths were moving, but nothing of substance was coming out.

Some history of the last 7+months.

Yes, the President is a key actor in the debt ceiling debate. However, the actual decision is a congressional one.

John Boehner and Harry Reid introduced their debt plans. Now, where do we go from here?

Does the 10th Amendment contain the answer to the same-sex marriage debate? Not really.

In the 80’s it was yachts, today it’s private jets. The argument is the same, and it’s still without merit.

European leaders have put another Band Aid on the Greek sovereign debt crisis while America’s leaders are trying to stave off a self-inflicted financial default.

By choosing to go it alone on a debt ceiling plan, the GOP is taking a big risk.

The debt talks in Congress are moribund now, and both sides are working on their own versions of a plan, again.

The problem at the moment is not the lack of a Democratic plan.

The two Minnesotans in the Presidential race are starting to trade barbs.

Some on the left are upset with the President, but does it really matter?

It hasn’t been a very productive weekend in Washington, D.C.

If a crisis over the national debt is averted, Oklahoma’s Tom Coburn may be the unlikely hero.

The House GOP’s proposed Balanced Budget Amendment contains the seeds of its own utter worthlessness.

Chris Christie and Rahm Emanuel are being criticized for the brusque manner they handled questions about their children’s education.

On paper, the U.S. lost $1.3 billion on the Chrysler bankruptcy, but the true cost is far higher than that.

On reflection, Al Franken was right.

I never would have negotiated in the first place.

Even if we adopt the “Cut, Cap and Balance” plan, tax hikes are a necessity.

It wasn’t a good day for the debt ceiling negotiations.

He’s not in the race (yet), but Rick Perry is already a top-tier 2012 candidate.

It’s very easy to create a “balanced budget” when you cook the books.

Does a family court have the authority to tell a parent to delete a blog critical of his ex-wife?