Outside the Beltway

After the 2010 elections, several newly Republican state legislatures flirted with the idea of changing the way their state allocates Electoral Votes. The outcome of last weeks elections raises the possibility that this could happen again.

Vatican politics is older than American politics, and can be just as entertaining.

Americans have wildly distorted understandings of the society around them.

Good news for two released Americans, but no clue what’s motivating North Korea’s latest actions.

Even innocent interactions with women in public can amount to harassment. Where should we draw the line?

There’s more to life than politics. Unfortunately, there are many Americans who don’t seem to recognize that fact.

Another mostly good, but not great, jobs report.

Trying to explain one of the biggest surprises of Election Night 2014.

Good news that ought to quiet people’s concerns significantly, on the Ebola front.

Increasing the minimum wage proved to be popular at the ballot box Tuesday, unsurprisingly, However, it did not help Democrats on the same ballot.

The results of the 2014 midterms should teach us some lessons about how to handle and evaluate polling.

The Republican wave extended even to Governor’s races that, in any other year, they should have lost.

The GOP added to its majority in the House, giving it the biggest majority it has had since Truman was President.

Reports from the Justice Department seem to be laying the groundwork for more disappointment for those hoping for charges against Officer Darren Wilson.

Two Duke University academics make an incredibly weak, ultimately unpersuasive, argument in favor of eliminating midterm elections by changing the length of Congressional terms.

Early numbers seem to suggest that it depends on which state you’re looking at.

Would increasing the size of the House of Representatives be the cure for what ails Congress?

There’s nothing wrong with choosing not to vote.

Two states and the nation’s capital could have legal marijuana after Tuesday’s elections.

We may have our first legal challenge to an Ebola quarantine order by tomorrow

Important numbers in recent polling suggest big problems for Democrats on Tuesday.

Politicians on both sides of the aisle like to tell people they’re just “average Americans,” but they’re lying and the American people seem to have figured out that they’re lying.

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul continues to challenge Republican orthodoxy on foreign policy, and that’s a good thing.

Mandatory quarantines are a massive violation of personal liberty. We ought to be careful in how, when, and why we impose them and who they are directed toward.

Facing a tough re-election battle, Kansas Senator Pat Roberts is engaging in abject fearrmongering.

The Koch Brothers are putting money behind an effort to reform a part of the legal system that is ignored far too often.

The City of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho will not force two Christian ministers to open their wedding chapel business to same-sex wedding ceremonies.

Things are looking good for the GOP to take over the Senate, but there are still several right races that could tip the balance one way or the other.

After an avalanche of negative commentary, the Governors of New York and New Jersey have modified their policy regarding quarantining people returning from west Africa.

The first person to be quarantined under the new policy announced by New York and New Jersey is raising concerns about the way she was treated, and whether the policy is even the right idea.

A Google Executive jumps from the edge of space, breaking a record.

It’s been three months, but there’s been no action on the lawsuit that the House of Representatives said it was filing against President Obama.

A surprise move from Governors Christie and Cuomo that sounds like a good idea but may not be as effective, or legal, as it sounds.

A new outbreak, or hopefully just an isolated case.

What if the Grand Jury investigating the Michael Brown shooting fails to indict Officer Darren Wilson? We may find out if newly leaked evidence is accurate.

Who should own antiquity?

The passing of a true legend in American journalism.

Despite conventional wisdom, there remains little incentive for the GOP to change its position on immigration reform.