Outside the Beltway

A student in Florida has been charged with creating a disturbance after declining to recite the Pledge Of Allegiance in class.

…there is only one plausible pathway to get there.

Federal employees deemed “essential” missed a paycheck yesterday in violation of US labor law.

Several states are getting rid of caucuses in favor of primaries, a move that could be to the disadvantage of candidates like Bernie Sanders.

New York State seems likely to join the list of states where marijuana has been legalized sometime next year.

Martha McSally and Kyrsten Sinema will end up representing Arizona in the Senate together.

It would be a rather quixotic effort, but Jeff Flake isn’t ruling out challenging the President for the Republican nomination in 2020.

There’s a new church/state separation case on the Supreme Court’s docket.

The vise is tightening on the Catholic Church.

Last week, the Washington State Supreme Court declared the death penalty unconstitutional. The latest in a string of victories for opponents of capital punishment.

One month before voters in several states head to the polls to vote on legalization referendums, a new poll shows that public support for legalization remains at record high levels.

The State of Texas is arguing in Court that a school district can force a student to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. This is a blatant violation of the First Amendment.

Republicans intend to “plow through” on the Kavanaugh nomination even after yesterday’s hearing, but it’s not clear that they have the votes to confirm him.

President Trump has made no secret of the fact that he is displeased with the performance of Jeff Sessions, but he could find it hard to replace him.

Several states are opening new investigations of the Catholic Church abuse scandal. It’s about time.

Donald Trump spent part of Labor Day engaged in yet another unhinged attack on his own Justice Department.

A group of lawsuits filed across the country are seeking to challenge the predominant method for allocation of Electoral College votes. These lawsuits appear to have little merit.

In what amounts to a significant, albeit not surprising, change in Catholic doctrine, Pope Francis has declared that the death penalty is unacceptable in all circumstances.

President Trump’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin was an even bigger disaster than anticipated.

Democrats have decided to move up the date of their 2020 Convention.

Earlier this week, the Illinois legislature ratified the Equal Rights Amendment. What’s unclear is if this act has any meaning at all.

The incident involving Paul Ryan and the House Chaplain has raised some questions.

While the Trump Administration slowly tries to remake the Federal Judiciary, states are moving to pass radical new challenges to Roe v. Wade.

A new lawsuit seeks to have the 2012 DACA program declared unconstitutional.

Trump’s tariff plan isn’t going over well in farm country, and that could cause problems for the GOP in November.

President Trump is continuing his dangerous and misguided trade war rhetoric,

Mississippi’s Governor has chosen a replacement for Thad Cochran, but the White House isn’t too happy about the pick.

Things are looking good for Democrats in 2018, but there’s some speculation that Nancy Pelosi’s position at the head of the party in the House could be in danger.

Conor Lamb’s win in Pennsylvania’s 18th Congressional District has set off an inevitable debate inside the Democratic Party about how to approach the upcoming midterm elections.

President Trump appeared to change positions on several gun control ideas, but he probably doesn’t mean it.

Report that President Trump considered withdrawing the Gorsuch nomination are another sign of his unhealthy obsession with pledges of loyalty from people who have no business giving it to him.

There are no good outcomes for the GOP in Alabama.

One of the few Republicans willing to speak out against Donald Trump is retiring at the end of his current term.

Former Trump aide Steve Bannon is declaring war on Republicans in the Senate.

Hugh Hefner, who became both a cultural icon and a catalyst and reflector of vast social changes, has died at the age of 91.

Republicans now face a stark choice.

More stupid, irresponsible rhetoric from the President of the United States.

On the special election for US Senate in Alabama

The Senate left for vacation without a viable path forward on health care reform, and the road ahead seems treacherous and hard to navigate.

Puerto Rican voters voted overwhelmingly for statehood yesterday in a referendum whose legitimacy is being questioned due to boycotts by opposition parties.

There seems to be no question that the decision to fire James Comey was motivated largely by the President’s frustrations over the fact that his campaign is under investigation.

More fireworks on the second day of the questioning of Neil Gorsuch, but his confirmation nonetheless seems assured.

Judge Gorsuch isn’t much of a fan of Donald Trump’s comments about the judiciary.

There were fireworks on the floor of the Senate last night, but it was really just politics as usual.

A speech traditionally used to unite was instead a continuation of a divisive campaign.

Wherein a law professor makes the absurd argument that the Electoral College, which exists pursuant to the Constitution, is unconstitutional.

Hillary Clinton’s national campaign wasn’t nearly as well-organized as we’d been led to believe.

A look at the Electoral College shows that It is far more likely that Hillary Clinton will win the election than that Donald Trump will.

The “independent conservative” running for President is finding it hard to even get on the ballot.

The death penalty appears to be effectively dead in Delaware thanks to a decision by the State Supreme Court.