Outside the Beltway

A new poll finds that people in Illinois have an accurate assessment of politics in their state.

Gizmodo’s Brian Barrett explains “Why the South Fell Apart in the Snow.”

The year that will soon ended will go down in history as the year that the same-sex marriage debate changed forever.

The state where the same-sex marriage battle began is just days away from legalizing same-sex marriage.

The battle for marriage equality has scored a number of victories in a short period of time, but that’s about to change.

The news that Obama aides discussed a change to the 2012 ticket is part of the latest Halperin/Heilemann campaign history.

Portland, Maine seems to about to make some progress in the fight against dumb laws.

Are these four men our last, best hope for a deal that will end the shutdown and avoid breaching the debt ceiling?

Harry and Mitch to the rescue?

With the House’s proposed deal reaching an impasse, the Senate is now taking center stage.

A Colorado 6-year-old with a penis has successfully sued for the right to use the girls’ restroom.

The United States is as politically polarized as it was in 1865.

The Senate moved last night to end the airport delays caused by furloughing air traffic controllers.

The days of tax-free online shopping are coming to an end.

The odds that any of the Senators who voted no on Manchin/Toomey will pay a political price for doing so is low.

The Judicial Confirmation process needs to be fixed.

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul won a completely meaningless straw poll.

Chuck Hagel will be confirmed, but the campaign against him tells us much about the current state of Republican foreign policy

Some proposed reforms just need to be ignored.

No Labels is attempting to relaunch itself after amounting to exactly nothing in the 2012 cycle. Let me save you the trouble: They won’t matter in 2014 or 2016, either.

An attempt to declare the filibuster unconstitutional has ended in failure.

While no official announcements have been made, President Obama’s second term national security team appears to be taking shape.

Democrats are approaching an “Electoral College lock.” Republicans are trying to pick it.

Pennsylvania Republicans want to do the right thing for the wrong reason.

Perhaps we should take a pass on trying to reach a deal on resolving issues propelling us toward the Fiscal Cliff.

Jovan Belcher, a linebacker with the Kansas City Chiefs, this morning murdered the mother of their 3-month-old baby before killing himself.