Outside the Beltway

Mitch McConnell’s campaign was forced to do a shakeup thanks to a scandal that could envelop Ron Paul’s 2012 Presidential campaign.

Despite a high profile effort to oust him, the most prominent libertarian Republican in Congress survived his primary challenge yesterday.

It’s beginning to look like the 2016 race for the Republican nomination will have its own collection of oddballs.

Recent polls notwithstanding, Republicans and Democrats remain largely in lockstep when it comes to U.S. policy toward Israel.

A setback for supporters of Rand Paul in the Hawkeye State.

Congressman Walter Jones beat back a primary challenge from a former Bush aide who attacked him over his foreign policy views.

Chelsea Clinton is pregnant, and once again America’s political pundits are making fools of themselves.

The votes are in. And the outcome is meaningless.

Time to watch a bit of true American exceptionalism in action.

Republicans have some good ideas about overhauling how they pick a nominee. Unfortunately, it’s hard to see how most of them can be enforced.

The race for Virginia Governor turned out to be much closer than many predicted, but that should not be a surprise.

It may be Rick Santorum’s “turn” but he’s too harsh and extreme to win the nomination.

Some interesting taking of sides is already taking place in the GOP Senate race in Wyoming.

The Stoned Hedge Edition OTB Caption Contest^TM is now over.

Republicans seem to think they need fewer Presidential debates in the 2016 cycle, but it’s unclear how they can make that happen.

The Iraq War did significant damage to the legacy of the Republican Party.

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul won a completely meaningless straw poll.

Last January 1, some of us made a series of predictions. Here’s how we did.

What Crist demonstrates about the US party system.

The Governor of Iowa thinks the Ames Straw Poll should be ended, but he really ought to go further than that.

Are two-term Presidencies the new normal?

Mitt Romney wasn’t a perfect candidate, but he was much better than most of the 2012 Republican field.

Like the men who came before him, Barack Obama has vastly increased the powers of his office. Someone should have asked him about that last night.

The Center for Responsive Politics touts “Overwhelming Support for Obama” among military donors. The numbers show something more interesting: those associated with the military don’t give money to political campaigns.

The response rates for opinion polling of all types has become incredibly low.

Whether Republicans like it or not, Mitt Romney was the best candidate they had in 2012.

Senator Rand Paul suggests the GOP may want to reconsider its foreign policy aggressiveness.

The Libertarian Party’s Presidential candidate could prove decisive in determining who wins the Electoral College.

It’s official.

Mark Levin provides the latest example.

Mitt Romney’s forces won a rules change that will allow future nominees to have more say over their conventions. While this strikes me as a no-brainer, some conservative activists are up in arms.

The GOP is set to approve rules changes that will impact the 2016 primaries, and beyond. They’re a good start.

For the first time in 80 years, there are no veterans on the major party Presidential tickets.

The most recent round of national polling seems to show that the negative attacks on Romney are having an impact.