After putting this project off for nearly a year, I'm finally writing a "brief" explainer about how the U.S. government works, because this isn't taught as widely/deeply as it should be. This is mostly intended for non-Americans who don't have a deep background in American history, but I don't doubt that some American readers might…
The 41st President of the United States of America, George Herbert Walker Bush, has died. He was 94. His final words were sent over speaker phone to his son, President George Walker Bush: "I love you, too." I don't remember anything from the Bush 41 Administration (obviously), but I do know that it was led…
I've been waiting for this election for a very, very long time. With two days left until the 2018 midterm elections, I feel like it's time to dust this thing off and give everyone a "brief" rundown of this year's House, Senate, gubernatorial, and state legislative elections. Donald Trump himself might not be on the ballot,…
Today, Justice Anthony Kennedy announced that he will retire from the Supreme Court of the United States, effective July 31st. Kennedy has been an Associate Justice for just over thirty years now, and his moderate conservative-ish voice made him a swing vote on the court of nine. Upon his retirement, Kennedy will likely be replaced…
The fun never ends, does it? On June 26th (or between now and the 21st, if you feel like voting early), Marylanders will cast their primary ballots for the gubernatorial election, congressional races, and various county council races, and a bunch of other things. Of the races, three are worth paying attention to: The Democratic…
On April 9th of this year, former UN Ambassador John Bolton will replace Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster as President Trump's National Security Advisor. He will be the third person to become National Security Advisor in this administration - the first Advisor, Lt. General Michael Flynn, was forced to resign over concerns that he lied to…
Once again, I'm procrastinating my homework to deliver analysis and a reaction to President Trump's State of the Union. This was his first real SOTU address, although he gave an address to Congress last February (and you can catch my reaction to that speech here), so this is kind of a big deal. Presidents usually…
In roughly 20 days, Doug Jones will be sworn in as a United States Senator from the state of Alabama. Jones, a Democrat, will replace Republican Luther Strange and narrow the GOP's already-slim majority from 52 seats to 51. The official election results have not yet been certified, but it appears that Jones has beaten…
No, Jeb! Bush isn't back. But the Democrats are. Sorta. In case you haven't heard, November 7th, 2017, was a pretty great night for the Democratic Party. In the first real general election since the inauguration of Donald Trump, the Democrats took back the governorship of New Jersey, held on to the governorship of Virginia,…
Just 90 minutes after midnight, 51 United States Senators voted against Majority Leader McConnell's latest proposal to repeal the Affordable Care Act. I spent the evening worrying about the bill, labeled a "skinny repeal" by the Senate Republican Leadership. The repeal promised to get rid of Obamacare's individual/employer mandate (the thing that requires everyone to…
Politics and Other Fun Stuff 