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From a tragic weekend, a return to the daily grind of politics. Our hearts may not be in it, but the challenge is undying and the struggle is one: to protect each other and preserve our humanity in the face of relentless forces. Still, the tragedy haunts. A friend of...

Yesterday I noted that the main Senate Republican arguments against filibuster reform pretend that Democrats want to do away with minority filibusters, when in fact the proposals on the table simply ensure that filibusters be conducted in public view. Today, the...

With 17 days as the crow flies before it happens, it's time for me to do something I've been resisting for a week or so: formally increase my odds that we'll go over rather than avoid the fiscal cliff.

Back in September I said it was better than 50-50 that no deal would be in place by January 1. I raised that to 60 percent immediately after the election. Today, I'm raising my predicted likelihood of no deal before January 1 to 75 percent, and I may still be overstating the possibility that an agreement will be reached and put in place before the tax cuts and spending increases go into effect.

I really hope I'm wrong, and will gladly and publicly say that if a last-minute deal materializes. But here's why I don't think I am:

  Big Banks are famously too big to fail, too big to manage, and too big to prosecute.  Now a recent report by the OCC details that they fail to meet even minimal standards of sound management.  Even after blowing up the economy, getting a multi-trillion dollar...