Outside the Beltway

There is a frustration and a growing sense that the American political system is illegitimate.

Longstanding policy that the Justice Department defend an Act of Congress if there is “any reasonable argument” it is constitutional is being ignored.

The Federal Government is signing on to an effort by Texas and several other states to have the DACA program declared unlawful.

The Trump Administration is declining to defend the Affordable Care Act in Court, arguing that the individual mandate is now unconstitutional because the tax penalty has been eliminated.

Has the party paid too big a price to attract suburban voters?

Hillary Clinton isn’t running for anything in 2018, but that isn’t stopping Republicans from running against her.

Republicans are planning on pushing judicial nominees through the Senate in case they lose control in November. Meanwhile, the possibility of a Supreme Court vacancy raises the stakes.

With just over six months to go before the 2018 elections, the storm clouds are starting to gather for the Republican Party.

Profiles in courage? With Republicans in the Trump Era, it’s more like profiles in cowardice.

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.

It is a fair question. But judging the Trump administration on tax cuts, Gorsuch, and the DJIA is to ignore a lot of profound problems.

A group of twenty states have revived an old argument to mount a new legal challenge to the Affordable Care Act.

After yesterday’s oral argument, the Supreme Court seems poised to deal a major blow to public-sector unions.

After spending much of 2017 trying to do it, Republicans are giving up on any effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act before the midterms.

America’s closest European allies are rebuffing the Trump Administration’s efforts to renegotiate the nuclear deal with Iran. They’re right to do so.

Getting to a DACA deal isn’t going to be easy.

Both #TrumpShutdown and #SchumerShutdown put the blame in the wrong place.

With less than two days to go, the prospects for Congress finding a way to prevent a government shutdown aren’t looking good.

Republicans passed their tax bill yesterday. What that means for the economy and the 2018 midterms is another question.

The difference is, dare I say, huge.

With time running out in the year, it’s looking increasingly unlikely that the Senate GOP will be able to meet its deadlines on passing a tax reform bill.

For some reason, Senate Republicans want to attach a bad health care reform idea onto an already controversial tax reform bill.

Since taking office, President Trump has made an average of 5.5 false claims per day.

The Moore situation illustrates the nonhierarchical nature of US parties. This is nothing new.

Voters in Maine hand their conservative Governor a setback.

House Republicans haven’t released their tax bill yet, but it’s already unpopular.

Forget all the talk about a civil war in the Republican Party, the truth is that Republicans and conservatives have already surrendered to Trump and Bannon.

Due mostly to cowardice and naked self-interest, you shouldn’t expect many other Republicans to speak out against Trump in the near future.

Donald Trump’s entire modus operandi involves pushing divisive cultural hot buttons.

Republican Lamar Alexander and Democratic Senator Patty Murray say they’ve reached a bipartisan deal to fix an important part of the Affordable Care Act.

The President’s job approval numbers remain at historic lows, while a growing number of Americans say that the country is headed in the wrong direction.

After initially signaling support for a bill banning ‘bump stocks,’ Republicans in Congress now appear to be hoping someone else will act for them.

At least for now, Republicans seem to be giving up on repealing and replacing the PPACA. That’s not going to make the base happy.

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

Roy Moore’s victory in Alabama is raising fears of a wider battle in the Republican Party heading into 2018.

What was essentially the final effort to ‘repeal and replace’ the Affordable Care Act is officially dead.

The latest effort to ‘repeal and replace’ the Affordable Care Act appears to be dead.

The GOP’s effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act appears to suffer a fatal blow as Senator John McCain announced his opposition to what is the last gasp of that effort in the Senate.

Senate Republicans have ten days to act on their last-ditch attempt to ‘repeal and replace’ Obamacare, and it’s not at all clear if they have the votes to do so.

Senate Republicans are considering one more last-ditch effort to ‘repeal and replace’ the Affordable Care Act.

Independents don’t seek to shape party nominations.

Republicans on Capitol Hill and elsewhere were gambling when they lined up behind Donald Trump. So far, they’ve lost.

The effort to ‘repeal and replace’ the Affordable Care Act is dead for now.

As Congress heads back to work, a corruption trial in New Jersey could have big implications for what happens on Capitol Hill.

Winning was easy.  Legislating is hard.

President Trump remains obsessed with the Russian investigation and continues to try to shut it down.

Trump’s legislative accomplishments have been anemic at best.

Three new polls show Trump’s job approval down significantly in the three states that put him over the top in the Electoral College last year.

The problem with the Trump White House is the man who sits behind the Resolute Desk.