February 17, 2015
On DHS Funding, GOP Doesn’t Deserve the Blame (But Will Probably Get It)
Republicans in Congress remind me of the kid who constantly gets in trouble at school. Even when it’s not his fault, he gets blamed. Speaker Boehner said over the weekend that the House has done its job when it comes...
February 14, 2015
His Words Jumped Off the Pages
His words jumped off the pages. And at that point, I knew I was in the Major Leagues. I moved to Washington in September of 1989, and improbably found myself with a job in the office of House Minority Leader...
February 12, 2015
AUMF
Congress used to declare war. Now it authorizes the use of military force. We used to go to war against countries. Now, we use military force against imaginary caliphates....
February 11, 2015
Fake News, Real News and the State of Journalism
I am not a journalist. I went to journalism school for two years, but transferred my major to History because I just liked it more. I do write this blog, and I have a column in The Hill, and I...
February 10, 2015
Democracy Unbalanced
(This originally appeared in The Hill) Where is Robert Byrd, now that the Senate really needs him? The former long-serving senator from West Virginia was a stickler for congressional prerogatives. He would give lengthy orations on the floor of the...
February 6, 2015
The Common Carrier
In English common law, a common carrier transports products or people from one place to another. In America, that evolved from products and people to include telephonic and radio communications. Under the common carrier principle, the Congress and President Roosevelt...