Outside the Beltway

America is discovering that throwing money at an industry in the hope it will create jobs doesn’t work.

President Obama’s approval ratings are at an all-time low. Only 33% of whites and 48% of Hispanics approve. He’s still at 84% among blacks.

The Sarah Palin bloom seems to be off the rose.

Democrats are fearing the President’s jobs plan will be underwhelming. Based on initial reports, it looks like their fears are well-placed.

Richard Cohen reports that people like Richard Cohen have lost their enthusiasm for Barack Obama.

Assuming that the President is easy to beat could cause Republicans to move too far to the right.

With most of the public looking at the future and not seeing anything good, the President is suffering

Why was the ATF allowing thousands of weapons to be smuggled to Mexican drug gangs?

Is the GOP race really down to just two men at this point?

The Solyndra case is a classic example of what’s wrong with “government investment.”

It never ceases to amaze me how many smart people manage to believe, against all evidence to the contrary, that their political philosophy has massive support.

No matter how weak he becomes, no President will ever be completely irrelevant to the political process.

What does the apparent outcome of the war in Libya mean for the so-called “Responsibility To Protect” doctrine?

The bloom is off the rose for some of the President’s most ardent 2008 supporters.

Sarah Palin’s much-anticipated Tea Party speech in Iowa was, in the end, much ado about nothing.

Environmentalists are upset by President Obama’s decision to abandon stringent new smog regulations, but he made the right decision.

The last time black unemployment was this high Barack Obama was fresh out of college. Now, he’s in the White House.

The connections between the White House and failed solar energy company Solyndra deepen.

Obama’s economic policies are failing because he’s listening to conservatives – not small businesses.

Did Speaker Boehner insult President Obama by snubbing his speech request? If so, so what?

Another bad report from the Labor Department.

The White House is still smarting over the fact that they got burned by John Boehner, again.

How a six hour long dispute over scheduling demonstrates yet again that Barack Obama isn’t up for the fight.

The failure of a solar energy firm in California is raising questions about a centerpiece of the Administration’s economic policy.

A political scientist whose formula has correctly picked every presidential winner since 1984 says Barack Obama will be re-elected.

Details of the President’s jobs plan are starting to leak out, and they’re not looking impressive.

The Romney campaign may be finally starting to pay attention to Rick Perry.

Is it every appropriate to ask candidates about their religious faith? In some cases, yes it is.

Rick Perry placed his cowboy boots firmly on the third rail of American politics.

What are the contours of “mainstream” religious thought in today’s America?

Will 2012 be the Republican version of the 2008 race between President Obama and Hillary Clinton?

Ensuring the integrity of the voting process is a worthy goal, not evidence of discrimination.

Political journalists aren’t like you and me. Well, you, anyway.

Is America’s political system to blame for our current problems?

While Sarah Palin continues to tease her supporters about a possible Presidential run, the damage she could do to the GOP becomes even more apparent.

That a popular two-term governor of Utah is being rejected by likely Republican primary voters as insufficiently conservative shows just how extreme American politics has gotten.

It’s a shame that Duverger’s Law doesn’t come with criminal penalties.