Outside the Beltway

The Supreme Court heard argument yesterday on the issue of whether online sellers can be required to collect sales taxes, and the status of the issue remains as confused as ever.

The parents of two of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre are suing Alex Jones for falsely accusing them of lying about the deaths of their children.

A Federal Judge has struck down the revised version of the ban on transgender members of the military from serving openly, and the ruling has significance that goes well beyond the issue at hand.

A Federal Judge in Texas has ruled that discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity is barred by Federal Law. Legally speaking, this is a tenuous argument at best.

In addition to opening up the Speakership, there’s a legitimate possibility that Wisconsin-11 flips to the other party.

Another Federal Court loss for gun rights activists challenging state laws banning “assault weapons.”

A woman who was fired after a photograph of her giving the middle finger to President Trump’s motorcade went viral is suing her former employer. She doesn’t have much of a case.

New York and nearly two dozen other jurisdictions have filed a lawsuit seeking to bar the Trump Administration from asking about citizenship in the 2020 Census.

More than 1200 refugees, mostly from Honduras, are trying to come to the United States. What should we do about it?

A Federal Judge In New York City is allowing a lawsuit against the President’s DACA order to go forward, and he based part of his ruling on the President’s own rhetoric.

A Federal Judge is allowing a lawsuit alleging that President Trump is improperly benefiting from business being done at the hotel in Washington, D.C. bearing his name to go forward.

The Supreme Court heard oral argument in the second partisan gerrymandering case of the term, and once again they appear to be divided.

If you recall your grade school civics, you already knew this.

California has pushed back quickly against the Trump Administration’s decision to include a question regarding citizenship in the 2020 Census.

The Department Of Justice is proposing a rule change that would ban bump stocks, but it could run into legal problems.

Former Playboy model Karen McDougal is suing the publisher of the National Enquirer for the right to tell her story of an alleged affair with President Trump in 2006.

A state trial court Judge in New York has ruled that a defamation lawsuit filed in Manhattan against President Trump can go forward.

The Supreme Court appears ready to strike down a California law requiring Crisis Pregnancy Centers to provide information on abortion.

Sometimes, it’s all in the framing.

Mississippi has passed a law that seems designed to directly challenge the underpinnings of Roe v. Wade.

Challengers to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s ruling on Congressional redistricting suffered two big setbacks in court yesterday that suggest that they’ve reached the end of the road legally.

Attorneys for the Defendants in the lawsuit filed by Stormy Daniels, including the President, have removed the case to Federal Court and are claiming that Daniels owes $20 million for her alleged breaches of a settlement agreement.

Another Federal Court has ruled in favor of a student seeking to use the restroom facilities that correspond with their gender identity.

Talking to adversaries is a good idea. Of course, it matters how it is done.

Within hours after the new Florida gun law was signed by Governor Rick Scott, the National Rifle Association had filed a lawsuit seeking to strike it down.

Maryland’s legislature is considering a law that would require candidates for President to release their tax returns. It’s probably not Constitutional.

The Federal Government has fired another shot in the ongoing war over so-called “sanctuary cities.”

Another lawsuit has been filed against Dick’s Sporting Goods over its policy barring gun sales based on age.

Adult film star Stormy Daniels has filed a lawsuit against the President, handing the already beleaguered White House yet another headache.

The inevitable response to announcements by the big box stores that they would not sell guns to those under 21 has arrived.

A group of twenty states have revived an old argument to mount a new legal challenge to the Affordable Care Act.

The Supreme Court is being asked to decide whether an American company can be required to turn over data stored on servers located overseas.

Yesterday, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in a case pitting the First Amendment against the right of states to regulate elections.

A Federal Judge has dismissed a lawsuit that sought to invalidate Federal laws against marijuana use and possession.

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals rules that existing civil rights laws bar discrimination based on sexual orientation.

After yesterday’s oral argument, the Supreme Court seems poised to deal a major blow to public-sector unions.

Mark Levin says we’re “morons” and “illiterate in English” because we’ve quoted the NYT.

Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee have released a memo that completely eviscerates the memo prepared by Committee Chairman Devin Nunes.

The Mueller investigation moves forward.

Continuing a long-standard tradition, the Trump Administration claims it doesn’t need to get legal authorization to keep American troops in Syria.

Continuing a pattern that has gone on for eight years now, the Supreme Court has declined to hear another appeal regarding a Second Amendment challenge to state gun control laws.

A significant and important development in the Russia investigation that shows that President Trump’s claim that the stories of Russian interference in the 2016 election were “Fake News” is completely untrue.

Another day, another Court ruling against the Trump Administration.

Another Federal Judge has placed a hold on President Trump’s order to end DACA.

A Federal Court in New York City is set to hear argument tomorrow in a case that essentially argues that a large swath of Federal laws regarding marijuana are unconstitutional.

Donald Trump has blocked the release of a memo prepared by House Intelligence Committee Democrats to rebut the Nunes memo. It’s hard not to see this as a blatantly partisan move.

A Federal Judge In Kansas has blocked enforcement of a state law barring anyone who does business with the state from engaging in a boycott of Israel.

Republicans have released the memo prepared by Congressman Devin Nunes that purports to call into question the basis for the Russia investigation. In the end, though, it amounts to much ado about nothing.

Yesterday marked fifteen years since I launched Outside the Beltway on the old Blogspot service. 

Another win for forces fighting partisan Gerrymandering.