Outside the Beltway

Both sides in the John Edwards case are heading into uncharted territory.

While President Obama has had some amusing gaffes on his trip to London, including getting the year wrong in the guest book and an awkward toast to the Queen, his speech to Parliament today hit all the right notes.

In a move sure to satisfy Deathers as much as a contemporaneous newspaper story satisfied Birthers, al Qaeda has released a statement confirming that Osama bin Laden is dead.

Francis Fukuyama: “In the developed world, we take the existence of government so much for granted that we sometimes forget how difficult it was to create.”

Public disclosure of campaign contributions makes it easier for incumbents to pressure backers of their opponent.

Matthew Doig of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune posted a want ad for an investigative reporter and it’s gone viral.

It’s institutions of government – not its size – that matter when it comes to how good a job the government does.

Former French president Jacques Chirac is being tried on corruption charges stemming from misconduct as mayor of Paris.

Contrary to some assertions, Wisconsin public servants are not better compensated than their private sector counterparts.

An interpretation of the events in Egypt.

The Beast has released its The 50 Most Loathsome Americans of 2010, which I gather is supposed to be amusing rather than taken seriously.

Brief takes on foreign affairs

The last thing that Haiti needed was for a former dictator to return, but that’s exactly what has happened.

Information made public by Wikileaks appears to have played a role in sparking the protest movement that has brought down the President of Tunisia.

A capsule look at the world situation as 2010 draws to a close.

The Presidency has lost the aura of mystique that used to surround it, and that’s a good thing.

Unless you paid close attention, you probably missed most of the coverage of the war in Afghanistan in 2010.

UCSD grad student Mark Farrales is a good example of why something like the DREAM Act has merit.

Peter Orszag, President Obama’s first budget director, is headed to Citigroup and a multimillion dollar salary.

Are American diplomats lying to reporters because they figure our citizens can’t handle the truth?

Less than expulsion, but more than a slap on the wrist. The House Ethics Committee recommends that New York Congressman be censured for cheating on his taxes and breaking the rules of Congress.

Yet another sign that the GOP’s biggest nightmare may actually end up coming true.

The incoming freshman of the 112th Congress say that they won’t repeat the mistakes that Republicans made when they gained power sixteen years ago, but some of the advice they’re getting virtually guarantees it will happen if they aren’t careful.

There was bound to be entertainment during Charlie Rangel’s Ethics Committee hearing, and the Harlem Congressman did not disappoint this morning.

Hamid Karazi says that the United States needs to reduce it’s military presence in his country. Perhaps we should listen to him.

Ezra Klein argues that Sarah Palin’s Twitter account isn’t very popular. But that misses the point.

We already knew that Hamid Karzai was corrupt, now we know he takes bribes from the Iranians.

Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo has won the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. He probably doesn’t know it, though, because he’s currently sitting in a Chinese prison.

Robert Lane Greene investigates the rise of acronyms, initialisms, and other informal shortenings of speech.

Steve Walt, Steve Clemons, Matthew Hoh and others have released a provocative new report arguing for a change in our Afghanistan strategy.

It’s getting harder and harder to tell blogs from newspapers.

Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, and his hair, will live to fight another day.