Biden and bin Salman

An embarrassing photo demonstrates the perils of leading the free world.

Contacts on Hunter’s Laptop

Remarkably, he had contact information on there!

Watergate at 50

Half a century have passed since a botched burglary changed history.

John Allen, Illegal Lobbying, and Foreign Influence

The retired general and think tank president is in hot water.

Round One in Colombia

The first round produced two very different candidates.

The Flawed Nature of Representation in the US

Our representation problems are far, far more about structure than they are about the messaging of the parties.

Democrats Prepared for Impending Doom

Party leaders are treating an electoral defeat as inevitable.

NATO Has Been Training Ukrainian Forces for Years

A fascinating report from the WSJ.

Has Trump Finally Gone Too Far?

Republicans are aghast that he’s abandoned his principles.

Democratic Backsliding and the American Right

The only way to save our freedom is to destroy it.

Hunter Biden’s Laptop

New evidence changes the story ever so slightly.

Is Putin Predictably Irrational?

Putin is a monster, but he may also be just as irrational as the rest of us.

Double Jeopardy in All But Name

Two notorious cases indicate a policy shift on federal prosecutions of cases already tried in lower courts.

The free high-resolution photo of street, bicycle, asphalt, vehicle, hat, park bench, homeless, stockholm, packing, baby carriage, drifter, norrm larstrand , taken with an DMC-FS10 01/29 2017 The picture taken with 10.0mm, f/3.8s, 1/640s, ISO 80 The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0. You may download, modify, distribute, and use them royalty free for anything you like, even in commercial applications. Attribution is not required. The free high-resolution photo of street, bicycle, asphalt, vehicle, hat, park bench, homeless, stockholm, packing, baby carriage, drifter, norrm larstrand , taken with an DMC-FS10 01/29 2017 The picture taken with 10.0mm, f/3.8s, 1/640s, ISO 80 The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0. You may download, modify, distribute, and use them royalty free for anything you like, even in commercial applications. Attribution is not required.

Hitting Russia Where It Hurts

Sanctions are already taking a toll. But the West could do more if it had the will.

Deterring The Deterrers

Deterring Russia is a matter of principle.

The Olympic Spirit and Authoritarian Regimes

There’s no keeping politics out of these Games.

Cruz Challenges Campaign Finance Law

Is a contribution after an election different from one during an election?

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Monday Tab Clearing

Let the browser be cleared!

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Pence Likens Election Reform to Capitol Riots

It doesn’t add up.

Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks to the National Congress of American Indians Annual Conference, Tuesday, October 12, 2021 in the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building at the White House. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson) Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks to the National Congress of American Indians Annual Conference, Tuesday, October 12, 2021 in the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building at the White House. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

Kamala Harris is Frustrated

Apparently, getting her elected President is not a high enough priority in the Biden White House.

The free high-resolution photo of writing, pencil, number, font, text, handwriting, document, testing, test, exam, bubble form, test form, exam form, bubble sheet, multipe choice , taken with an SM-N900V 02/12 2017 The picture taken with 5.0mm, f/2.2s, 1/17s, ISO 200 The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0. You may download, modify, distribute, and use them royalty free for anything you like, even in commercial applications. Attribution is not required. The free high-resolution photo of writing, pencil, number, font, text, handwriting, document, testing, test, exam, bubble form, test form, exam form, bubble sheet, multipe choice , taken with an SM-N900V 02/12 2017 The picture taken with 5.0mm, f/2.2s, 1/17s, ISO 200 The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0. You may download, modify, distribute, and use them royalty free for anything you like, even in commercial applications. Attribution is not required.

The College Admissions Rat Race

An interesting argument, albeit about a tiny and vastly over-discussed segment.

Is Autocracy Really Winning?

A depressing magazine piece argues it is.

Most Politics Is National

Tip O’Neil’s famous saying hasn’t been true in a long, long time.

Michael K. Williams, 1966-2021

The actor known for his roles on “The Wire” and “Boardwalk Empire” is gone at 54.

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The Bizarre Economics of Media

Not everyone is losing money.

Who Lost Afghanistan?

The postmortems are well underway.

Taliban Quickly Retaking Afghanistan

The collapse is coming even faster than feared.

Douthat Misses the Point on Hungary

Hungary is part of a broader global trend, but the real issue isn’t Hungary, it is the Americans who praise Hungary.

Netanyahu Finally Out, But for How Long?

Israel’s long national nightmare is over. Or is it?

FBI Supplied Encrypted Comms to Criminal Networks

A massive sting operation has been revealed.

Start the Steal?

Cries that American democracy is in jeopardy are not hyperbole.

More on Social Policy and Comparisons

Mostly about how not to do it.

Gaetz’s Trouble Deepens

His partner in crime wrote it all down.

Peru to the Polls

A problematically wide-open election in difficult times.

Maryland Removes Police Protections over Hogan’s Veto

The Free State may have gotten just a little freer.

United States Less Democratic Than it Used to Be

Multiple indicators point to a decline in the representativeness of the American system.

POTUS Should Be Just A Job

The distance in accountability between the highest and the lowest must be shortened.

Are “Liberal” States Shrinking?

Thinking about unsupported narratives and a little bit about data usage.

Barr Contradicts Trump on his Way out the Door

Although, as usual, he maintains his odious approach to it all.

The Arab Spring at 10

Tunisia is freer but poorer than it was before Mohamed Bouazizi’s desperate act.

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The Scouring Of The Shire

Saruman’s rigid arrogance ultimately made him pathetic. Sound familiar?

The Flynn Pardon

Perhaps the most normal thing President Trump has done.

This is what a loser looks like. This is what a loser looks like.

Republican Leaders Refuse to Lead

They know Trump lost the election yet are aiding his outrageous assault on democracy.

Two Parties, Not Two Countries

We’ve just had an election, not psychoanalysis.

The Great Disappointment

Trump Likely to Claim Victory

The expectations game will be especially tricky this year.

Final 2020 Debate Less Awful Than Worst Debate Ever

Less Trumpy Trump still Trump.

The Endless Corruption of the Trump Presidency

Same endless song, different verse.