Outside the Beltway

Detroit shows how modern technology can lead to a virtual police state.

Realistically, President Trump has very few options when it comes to dealing with Iran and its nuclear program.

The Supreme Court ordered a new trial in the case of a Mississippi defendant whose trial was tainted by a prosecutor who routinely struck black jurors from the jury pool.

Congress is considering a bill that would establish a commission to examine the issue of reparations for slavery.;

Last week, New Hampshire became the latest state to repeal the death penalty. Thus becoming the 21st state to do so.

So far at least, appearing on Fox News Channel does not appear to be hurting the candidates who’ve done it with Democratic voters.

The House has passed legislation that would extend the protections of the Civil Rights Act to LGBT Americans, but it is probably doomed in the Senate.

Attorney General William Barr has opened a new investigation into the origins of the Russia investigation, a move that seems suspiciously political.

The White House claims to want to talk to Iran but the President’s actions make clear that negotiation is the furthest thing from his mind.

A panel of three Federal Judges has found Ohio’s Congressional District map to be unconstitutional, but a case currently pending before the Supreme Court could mute the impact of this decision.

A law professor asks some interesting questions, but ultimately not the right ones.

Trump campaign officials are worried about the President’s chances of holding onto a state that was crucial to his win in 2020. They should be.

Let’s just say that he isn’t impressed.

California Governor Gavin Newsome may have put the issue front and center for 2020.

It’s the battleground states that are the issue, not small states v. large states.

On one level, it is rather amusing; on another is it quite insidious.

The relatively light sentence that Paul Manafort received is raising eyebrows. Hopefully it will lead to a long-overdue debate on sentencing reform.

Actor Jussie Smollett is charged with staging an attack initially called a “hate crime.”

Gender bias in student evaluations of college professors diminishes considerably by changing the scale.

Regardless of whether or not you think Nancy Pelosi won the government shutdown, Donald Trump clearly lost.

A state trial court Judge in New York rejected efforts by the Donald Trump to halt a lawsuit alleging charity fraud in connection with the operation of The Trump Foundation.

Some examples from 2018 of the problems with single seat districts.

President Trump’s latest attack on the Federal Judiciary prompted a rare rebuke from the Chief Justice of the United States.

Charges have been filed against the man responsible for the massacre in Pittsburgh in both Federal and State court.

More outrageous behavior by the President of the United States.

Last week, the Washington State Supreme Court declared the death penalty unconstitutional. The latest in a string of victories for opponents of capital punishment.

As Hurricane Florence bears down on the East Coast, most people are listening to orders to evacuate, but some people aren’t.

In an extraordinary anonymous Op-Ed, a senior White House official describes a White House in chaos.

California is taking a major step in Criminal Justice reform by eliminating cash bail.

Once again, the President has thrown the Rule of Law under the bus.

As much as we hate paying $200 a month for television, the future is likely going to be worse.

Facebook, Google, and several other companies have closed down accounts associated with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

I have heard Trump supporters offer the following rationale for Trump’s tarris, “It is a bargaining strategy.” Then they sit back and smirk, and tell me, “Trump really wants zero tariffs, but to get these other countries to come to the table he has to get their attention. And once he has softened them up, they’ll be willing to reduce their tariffs.”

Some thoughts on the Strzok hearing.

The Presidents of the United States and Russia will meet next month and there’s reason to worry about what Trump might give away.

In a 5-4 party-line vote, the High Court declared that the Constitution and Federal Law give the President broad authority over immigration.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders was asked to leave a restaurant in Virginia last night, and the incident raises questions of how far we should let politics infiltrate everyday life.

Another unilateral withdrawal from an international institution.

The Department of Justice’s Inspector General found that former F.B.I. Director James Comey was ‘insubordinate’ in regard to the Clinton email investigation, but found no evidence of political bias at the Bureau.

A seemingly innocuous change to a newspaper style guide has some significant implications.

Donald Trump hinted that he’s considering a pardon for Muhammad Ali, but Ali doesn’t need a pardon.

Donald Trump’s approach to international trade has nothing to with economics and everything to do with politics and the culture war he loves to provoke.

Some legal scholars are speculating that the Court’s ruling in Masterpiece Cakeshop could impact the ruling on the President’s Muslim Travel Ban. This seems unlikely.

In the age of Trump, morality is optional for conservatives.

Donald Trump chose to mark Memorial Day by talking about himself.

Jack Johnson, who was convicted of violating the Mann Act in a case obviously infected with racism, has been pardoned by President Trump.

President Trump has been tweeting up a storm since Sunday, raising a question. Should we view his Tweets as the rantings of a cranky old man, or as something more serious?

The Internet is a global platform. Should every country’s laws apply to everyone using it?

Eleven states plus DC, who have 172 of the 270 electoral votes needed to elect a President, are now part of the compact.

It takes a whole lot of work to net small gains for underrepresented groups.