Outside the Beltway

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

Could the Vice President end the filibuster herself?

Specifically: the former confederacy and Democratic dominance.

An opportunity for unity and a restoration of normal order.

It is not a tool to foster compromise. It is tool of obstruction, plain and simple.

The problem is theoretical at best and cannot stop the Senate from acting.

Policy wonks are seeing a refreshing return to the normal order. Some believe that’s a bad thing.

Amending the Constitutional through unconstitutional means is a very bad idea.

As expected, the Congress has overridden his veto of the NDAA.

His tantrum stopped checks over the weekend but Congress called his bluff.

First whining about losing, now whining about legislation. (And creating chaos along the way).

A sad and disturbing report from a reliable source.

Not of governance.

Another sign of the dissent of the GOP into madness.

More on why it isn’t going to happen.

Gridlock doesn’t mean government stops. It just shifts who is governing.

A lot to think about, not a lot of conclusions.

Will he be a uniter or a divider?

A whole ‘nother board came to a sane conclusion.

The stakes of losing will be catastrophic. Either way.

Chuck Schumer and company sent a signal to their base against a fait accompli.

A clever political gambit that raises real issues.

An interesting but unlikely-to-pass bill is about to be introduced.

Ok, so what should change?

The American political system is broken but it’s not fair to blame that on its architects.

To mix cultural references: less than meets the eye.

Remember how people used to think he was playing multi-dimensional chess?

An unintended consequence of the Cares Act.

Could a blue state governor be the future of the Republican Party?

The emotional and economic impact of the pandemic is hitting women especially hard.

It creates a veto gate that they are almost guaranteed to control when they need it.

The writing is on the wall for simple-majority voting in the Senate.

The Magnolia State is the last in the nation to have the stars and bars on its state banner.

A too-long discourse on how courts should function.

The 6-3 opinion written by Justice Gorsuch and joined by Chief Justice Roberts defies conventional wisdom.

The President is sending a terrible message.

This isn’t how it is supposed to work.

An 8-1 rebuke from the nation’s highest court.

Sigh.

A disgraced governor is signing a wave of progressive legislation

Orban has used Covid-19 to kill whatever vestiges of democracy remained.

Finally.

We may be in a national crisis but it’s still politics as usual in Washington.

Some on Twitter (yes, I know) seem concerned, but is this even a good question?

How do we balance societal and individual rights during a pandemic?

CBS did a lousy job.

Lack of control of label is lack of control, ultimately, of a party.

A long overdue correction.

The assassination of a top Iranian official on a visit to Baghdad is having the expected negative impact on our relationship with Iraq and the fight against ISIS.

Despite Pompeo’s assurances, we are already seeing consequences for the Suleimani killing.