Outside the Beltway

Elliot Cohen laments the lack of steel in the spine of the statesmen, diplomats, soldiers, and thinkers of the current generation.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has redrawn the state’s Congressional Districts based on its recent ruling finding the current map to be unconstitutional partisan Gerrymandering. It makes a lot more sense than the map the state is currently using.

Donald Trump’s dereliction of duty in response to clear evidence of Russian interference in the 2016 election is a staggering and flagrant dereliction of the duties he agreed to take on when he took the Oath Of Office more than a year ago.

Blake Hounshell has doubts about whether Trump colluded with Moscow.

A few key observations on the bigger picture.

The Russian government likely is quite pleased.

The tragedy in Florida last week revealed once again how hyperpartisanship is destroying our politics and harming the country.

There are no adequate words.

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.

Despite what his own intelligence chiefs are saying, President Trump still does not believe that Russia interfered in the 2016 election.

Israeli police have recommended that charges be brought against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Whether that damages him politically remains to be seen.

Intelligence officials are warning that the Russians are set to seek to influence the 2018 elections just as they did in 2016. Despite this, the Trump Administration refuses to acknowledge this publicly while the President seeks to undermine the investigation into past Russian interference.

Women voters are turning decidedly against Donald Trump, this could pose problems for Republican in 2018 and beyond.

Republicans spent the eight years of Obama Administration railing against fiscal irresponsibility. Now that they have power, they’re the ones being fiscally irresponsible.

One of the main objections that many on the right seem to have to proposals to legalize DACA beneficiaries and other illegal immigrants is the idea that they could eventually become citizens. There’s no good reason they shouldn’t be able to do so.

Congress seems likely to pass a budget deal today that will massively increase spending, putting to rest once and for all the rank hypocrisy of Republicans when it comes to claims that they are “fiscally conservative.”

Administration officials are admitting that it’s likely that Russia will try to interfere in the midterm elections just as it did in 2016, but they don’t seem inclined to do anything about it.

Congress appears to be moving closer to a budget deal even as the President tries to throw a monkey wrench into the whole thing.

Recent polls have caused Republicans to become more optimistic about their chances in this year’s midterms. That optimism is both premature and misplaced.

Poland’s President has signed a controversial bill that purports to criminalize any effort to tie Poland to the Holocaust.

Donald Trump spent much of the past year touting the rising stock market, now he’s getting a lesson in reality.

Donald Trump’s own lawyers are afraid he can’t help but lie to such an extent that he should not sit down for an interview with special counsel Robert Mueller.

The Supreme Court has declined to stay a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling requiring the legislature to redraw the state’s Congressional District map.

A newly released poll has encouraging signs for Democrats in 2018, but there are several caveats.

He’s tan. He’s rested. He’s ready. And, yes, he’s running.

The 2008 Republican nominee for president condemned his party and its president for the release of a controversial memo attacking the FBI.

After spending much of 2017 trying to do it, Republicans are giving up on any effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act before the midterms.

Chelsea Manning is running for Senate, but she may be violating military regulations by doing so.

The President talked about national unity last night, but given his own rhetoric as a candidate and as a President, it’s a call that seems to be hypocritical.

Once again, President Trump is going soft on Russia. Why? I’ll leave that up to the reader to decide.

The Polish Government appears ready to approve a law that seeks to whitewash the truth about the role that many Poles played in the Holocaust.

And a little Electoral College for good measure.

Despite mounting evidence and outrageous behavior, Republicans nationwide and on Capitol Hill continue to do the Administration’s dirty work. They’ll most likely live to regret it.

This is not unreasonable.

It’s been seven years since Congress eliminated earmarking, and what we’ve seen has provided good evidence for the argument that it should never have been eliminated.

Another win for forces fighting partisan Gerrymandering.

The deal that led to the end of the Federal Government shutdown isn’t sitting well with the progressive wing of the Democratic Party.

It’s Day Two of the Federal Government shutdown and there are few signs of a quick resolution.

The government is shut down and Washington is playing the usual blame game. In reality, there’s plenty of blame to go around, and one of the guilty parties is the American people.

With only days to go, Congress seems unable to come up with either a funding deal for the Federal Government or a solution to the DACA issue.

The GOP’s potential troubles in 2018 don’t just exist at the Congressional level.

The numbers aren’t looking good for Republican prospects in this year’s midterm elections.

The Supreme Court heard argument yesterday in an important case dealing with the circumstances under which voters can be purged from the voting rolls.

A Federal Court in North Carolina has issued a stinging ruling against the partisan gerrymandering undertaken by the Republican legislature in that state.

Controversial former Sheriff Joe Arpaio is running for Senate in Arizona.

Republican David Yancy was declared the winner of a disputed election, giving the GOP a slim one-seat majority in the state’s House of Delegates.

Contrary to expectations, jobs growth in December was relatively modest.

The Trump Administration is reversing policy on an Obama Era policy that allowed states to choose their own course on marijuana laws.

President Trump has shut down the commission he established to investigate unsupported claims of “voter fraud” in the 2016 election.