Outside the Beltway

Former Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty failed in his comeback effort last night, confirming yet again that the GOP is now the Trump Party.

There’s another round of reports about Joe Biden running for President, but I wouldn’t put much stock them.

Former Texas Governor Rick Perry is going to be looking for that elusive second act in American politics.

The political media is breathlessly reporting on every event in a campaign that is just beginning, and voters aren’t really paying attention to it at this point.

Rick Perry is sounding for all the world like a candidate for President, and says he’s a different candidate this time, but initial perceptions are hard to overcome.

It’s beginning to look like the 2016 race for the Republican nomination will have its own collection of oddballs.

A setback for supporters of Rand Paul in the Hawkeye State.

Can Rick Perry bounce back from the epic disaster of his 2012 campaign?

The votes are in. And the outcome is meaningless.

Could Rick Perry recover from his disastrous 2012 campaign to become a viable candidate?

The Governor of Iowa thinks the Ames Straw Poll should be ended, but he really ought to go further than that.

Was Rick Perry the worst candidate to run in the 2012 cycle? It certainly appears so.

Guess who’s back?

Mitt Romney wasn’t a perfect candidate, but he was much better than most of the 2012 Republican field.

This year’s Iowa Caucuses stand as Exhibit A for an argument against Iowa being first in the nation.

We won’t have Rick Perry to kick around anymore.

The Ames Straw Poll isn’t going away any time soon.

Executive summary: She’s a kook unfit to serve as dog catcher, much less leader of the free world.

Right now, Iowa is all about Mitt Romney, Ron Paul, and a bunch of also-rans.

Has Iowa “blown its special claim as the first state” in the nomination process? No, it never had any special claim in the first place.

Newt Gingrich is looking really good in the Hawkeye State right now.

Is Herman Cain for real, or is this rise int he polls just another boomlet destined to fade away?

We’re getting close to the point where only two people on this stage will matter.

There were eight people on the stage last night, but the GOP field has narrowed significantly.

Rick Perry’s rise in the polls can be traced to factors that threaten both Mitt Romney and Michele Bachmann

Meet your new Republican frontrunner.

Do we have a new frontrunner in the race for the Republican nomination?

The first poll in the wake of Michele Bachmann’s victory at Ames and Rick Perry’s entry into the race shows a brand new frontrunner

Does Ron Paul’s second place showing at Ames mean the media should take him seriously as a contender? No, it doesn’t.

Rick Perry will need to get past Michele Bachmann before he takes on Mitt Romney. But, really, how hard could it be?

Tim Pawlenty is out, to nobody’s surprise.

The Ames Straw Poll is like the first scrimmage of NFL training camp.

A good day for Michele Bachmann, Ron Paul, and Rick Perry. A bad day for everyone else.

While most of the Republican field was at the Iowa State Fair, Rick Perry was in South Carolina shaking up the field.

Time for the spinning of the straw poll results to begin.

Last night’s debate was definitely more combative than previous renditions.