Outside the Beltway

150 years ago, President-Elect Abraham Lincoln was presented with a chance to avert Civil War. He passed it up, and we should be glad that he did.

The sitting RNC chairman is losing to a field of no-name candidates. Is he actually the favorite?

Over the past two days, Sarah Palin has become the center of the media firestorm over the tragic shootings in Arizona, she doesn’t belong there.

Palin’s infamous “target” poster recycles a theme used by both parties over the years.

More tortured logic on the issue of the filibuster.

President Obama is likely to issue a signing statement in order to keep his Gitmo options open.

208 years ago today, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to The Danbury Baptist Association that has resonated through the years.

The usage of the recess appointment process is just another example of the need for institutional reform in the Senate.

President Obama was correct to commend the Eagles for giving Michael Vick a chance to redeem himself.

The seemingly sensible end-of-life counseling that was originally part of the Health Care Reform Bill is making a comeback.

Now that the US has ratified New Start, it’s Russia’s turn.

Those who argue that tariff increases, and not slavery, were the key reason for secession have some basic problems with the historical sequence.

The repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is a sign that the political ground is shifting. Will the GOP take notice?

According to two new polls, Sarah Palin has absolutely no chance of beating Barack Obama in 2012. So, why does it look like she’s going to run anyway?

The internal debate in the Republican Party over the tax cut extension deal with President Obama is serving as a preview of some of the battles that may erupt during the race for the party’s nomination in 2012.

The battle over the individual mandate is really just nothing more than the latest round in a batter that has been ongoing for 221 years.

Marine Commandant James Amos is going all-out to keep gay Marines in the closet, saying allowing them to serve openly could get men killed.

Republicans were largely silent during the Bush Administration as spending went out of control. Will they do that again?

Several smart center-left commentators argue that President Obama is not triangulating. At least one argues there’s no such thing.

Amid signs that Democrats in Congress might rebel against the tax cut deal he struck with Republicans, President Obama took to the airwaves today to defend it at the same time that his base is rebelling against it.

Those of us who think we’re overreacting to terrorism should remember that we’re in a tiny minority.

The Senate rejected an effort to limit the extension of the Bush tax cuts based on income level. At this point, the only question is when Democrats will concede defeat on this debate.

The commander-in-chief, secretary of defense, and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff all support removing the ban on gays in the military without further delay. A long-awaited Pentagon study showed no reason not to do so. But three of four Service chiefs disagree.

Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley wants to fix the filibuster by making Senators actually filibuster. It’s a good idea.

The Republican Party is united on the issues in a way it hasn’t been in a long time, but personalities threaten to tear the fragile coalition apart.

President Obama’s plan to free federal employee pay is getting praised by Republicans but is wildly unpopular among progressive activists.

After 1 1/2 years in office, President Obama has yet to grant a single request for a pardon or clemency, continuing a thirty year trend in which the Presidential pardon power has nearly fallen in to disuse.

The Republican talking point that lowering taxes lowers spending and raising taxes increases spending is denied by reality.

Former Senator Alan Simpson is fighting back against the critics on the left and the right who are shooting down the Deficit Commission’s plan before it’s even been released.

As bicycle advocates have been getting new lanes and other concessions in major cities across the country, a minor backlash has formed in reaction.

Rush Limbaugh is apparently not impressed with Barack Obama’s presidency. That doesn’t make him a racist.

So will there be an efficacious backlash against TSA policies? I am guessing no.

The immediate reactions from left and right to the proposals from the Chairmen of the Debt Commission are about what you’d expect.

There’s a move afoot to postpone the election of the House Democratic leadership. Why should people who were defeated in the recent elections have a say? And, surely, those just elected should have a vote.

An incident at a school in England provides us with an object lesson in why the often derided concept of separation of church and state is an important part of protecting individual liberty.