Outside the Beltway

Third-party candidates in several states could end up having a big say in the battle for control of the Senate.

A strong rebound for the economy from the downturn at the start of the year.

The Administration’s policy in the President’s war against ISIS has no coherent plan, and that virtually guarantees escalation.

The sixth year of a presidency leads to some predictable commentary (and some comparative notes).

President Obama is still insisting that his war against ISIS will not require American ground troops. He’s not being honest with the American people.

President Obama hits new job approval lows, while the GOP seems poised for success in November,

After keeping his distance from them for three years, President Obama is placing much misplaced hope in the “moderate” Syrian rebels,

If the President is going to increase American involvement in the Middle East, he needs to address some fundamental questions first.

One analyst thinks that the predictions of a Republican Senate in 2014 are wildly optimistic.

A major escalation.

There is a good possibility that Darren Wilson could be acquitted in the shooting of Michael Brown.. Are the protesters ready to accept that reality?

We should not tolerate them acting otherwise.

The United States is, in fact, doing the exact opposite.

Iraq’s problems cannot be fixed by the United States.

Former Reagan speechwriter and gun control activist Jim Brady’s death has been ruled a homicide. No, there was no foul play involved—at least not recently.

While not as big as previous months, the July Jobs Report was still mostly good news.

A much better Second Quarter.

Fairly or not, the President has created the impression that he is not a good leader, and there’s not much he can do about it at this point.

School.

The Grey Lady sees the light on a major part of the War On Drugs.

Our laws and social norms have not caught up to modern life.

Things are getting serious in eastern Ukraine.

Big news, and potentially a big merger, in the entertainment industry.

Jose Antonio Vargas was brought to the U.S. at the age of 12 and never left. Now, some are suggesting he should be deported as soon as possible.

Iraq continues to fall apart.

Much of the criticism of Hobby Lobby, and Citizens United before it, is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of what those decisions stand for.

Things look to be going from bad to worse in Gaza.

Rush Limbaugh is still really, really angry about subsidized birth control. And lots of other stuff.

There’s a declared winner in Afghanistan’s Presidential Election, but a cloud hangs over the results.

Ed Klein says he has “Democrat sources” who Obama wants Warren to continue his mission to “transform America into a European-style democratic-socialist state.”

Another area where the law has not caught up with technology.

In previewing a story about an Arkansas town fighting to keep phone booths, The New York Times explains what those are.

As the medium matures, something important is being lost.

Could a transcription error be changing our understanding of America’s founding document?