Jennifer Harper

Inside the Beltway: ‘Elvis & Nixon,’ the movie

As President Frank Underwood on "House of Cards," Kevin Spacey is deft at playing fictional presidents. Now the actor takes on the real kind, portraying Richard Nixon in "Elvis & Nixon," which arrives in theaters next month. The feature film chronicles the moment when the 37th president met Elvis Presley, who showed up unannounced at the White House gate around 6:30 a.m. on December 21, 1970.

Inside the Beltway: The 2016 election and America’s ‘mental state’

New York-based psychiatrist Frieda Birnbaum has tracked the persistent appeal of Republican front-runner Donald Trump for months. "Trump's prolonged popularity reveals a lot about the mental state of Americans," she says, noting that the wide range of his appeal and the unpredictable surges of support signals the nation seeks "massive" change.

Mark Levin’s ambitious new TV project debuts Monday night with an emphasis on patriotism

It's launch day for conservative talk radio kingpin Mark Levin's much anticipated, ambitious new broadcast project. "LevinTV" cranks up at 9 p.m. EST on Monday, providing daily, five-day-a-week online programming that is commercial-free and emphasizes unapologetic, liberty-minded patriotic fare, the host says.

Inside the Beltway: Streetfighter Donald Trump can close ‘deal of a lifetime’

The presidential race is chaotic and compelling, the media coverage just plain chaotic. But in the end, Election Day will dawn, Americans will go to the polls, and someone will be elected. In the meantime, a moment of clarity is emerging for Republican front-runner Donald Trump.

Hillary Clinton agrees to appear at a live town hall on Fox News

The Fox News Channel announced Friday night that Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton has agreed to appear in a live town hall Monday night in Detroit. This is her first appearance on the network in two years; Mrs. Clinton last granted an interview to Fox News two years ago when she was promoting her book "Hard Choices."

The Right Side Forum with Armstrong Williams previews new show: “The Good Kids 20/20”

A special episode of a Saturday morning staple: Political commentator and nationally syndicated columnist Armstrong Williams debuts a new show concept, titled: "The Good Kids 20/20." On this exclusive edition of The Right Side Forum, Armstrong advises viewers to stop guessing about what kids "think" and join the discussion. Hear what the "good kids" actually have to say.

American Conservative Union chairman Matt Schlapp defines the organizational mission in 140 words

The seemingly indefatigable Matt Schlapp, chairman of the American Conservative Union, is also the cheerful pointman behind the Conservative Political Action Conference -- CPAC -- now underway just south of the nation's capital. It is a melee of speeches, enthusiasm, socializing, intense moments and even more intense media coverage. But there is an essential mission behind it all.

Inside the Beltway: House of Cards: Welcome back President Underwood

Hollywood is obsessed with presidential culture, and Kevin Spacey's portrayal of fictional President Frank Underwood for the brooding, smart Netflix series "House of Cards" is no exception. The fourth season goes public Friday and will rattle social media from top to bottom for the entire weekend

Inside the Beltway Weekly March 7, 2016

Inside the Beltway: Scott Walker, Joni Ernst, Rick Santorum to appear at bodacious CPAC 2016

Over 10,000 attendees can't be wrong: The annual Conservative Political Action Conference is an inspiring event, now underway in a glittering hotel on the shores of the Potomac. Beloved CPAC draws an eclectic, intense audience from around the nation, there to bear witness to 126 speakers and 160 separate events.

Libertarian presidential hopeful Gary Johnson: ‘I may have won Super Tuesday’

The likely Libertarian Party nominee for president took a look at the results of Super Tuesday, and came away with a single thought. "I actually believe I may have won Super Tuesday," says Gary Johnson, who ran for the White House in 2012 and managed to snag 1.2 million votes in the process.

Inside the Beltway: Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and the pet words of 2016

The White House hopefuls talk a lot. But they do have favorite words says Dictionary.com, which used a metadata analysis of transcripts from every presidential debate through mid-February to determine which words were "most statistically significant" among contenders. "Every idea and belief, down to the level of the individual words chosen, counts," says Liz McMillan, CEO of the popular information site.

Ben Carson calls for candidate meeting prior to GOP debate on Thursday to ensure civility

Republican hopeful Ben Carson has gone on behavior patrol. He has called for a meeting of all the GOP candidates on Thursday, prior to the 11th presidential debate on Thursday in Detroit, to be aired by Fox News. "This race has taken a turn for the worse, to the point of embarrassment on the world stage," he says.

Inside the Beltway: Media pushes idea of ‘Republican panic’

Stand aside, duck and cover, bar the door -- there's "panic" afoot in the Republican Party. That is the repeated narrative in the mainstream media's lead-up to Super Tuesday, whether the party has panicked or not. As GOP front-runner Donald Trump stands poised to be the likely victor in many of the primary races, the press is conveniently framing the moment as sure Armageddon. And oh, the drama.

Inside the Beltway: Reagan National Defense Forum set for December

This should be quite the gathering. The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation has announced it will stage the fourth Reagan National Defense Forum in early December, just three weeks after the presidential election.

Inside the Beltway: Super Tuesday takes over the campaign trail

A form of primary panic has taken hold of our White House hopefuls as they realize Super Tuesday is but a mere 96 hours off, give or take a few hours -- it is a dreaded, hair-raising, exhilarating day. Can the candidates hit a dozen states and one territory with primary elections in motion? Some would if they could, flying in and flying out, the campaign jet idling at some regional airport.

Inside the Beltway Weekly: Feb. 29, 2016

They need space: Record-breaking 18,300 Americans apply to be an astronaut

The stars are calling, apparently. After NASA put out the word they would be hiring astronauts just over two months ago, over 18,300 people sent in their resumes. The right stuff is required. The federal space agency will only pick 8-14 candidates from the huge flock of hopefuls - three times the number of applications that arrived during the last search four years ago.

Inside the Beltway: Donald Trump’s surprise support from Catholics

There are some new faith findings of note: Republican front-runner Donald Trump has more support from GOP Catholic voters than their Protestant brethren. According to a review of three Monmouth University surveys, Mr. Trump pulled 44 percent support in Iowa from Catholic caucusgoers compared to 24 percent from Protestants. The candidate garnered 30 percent of the Catholic vote and 26 percent of the Protestant vote in New Hampshire. In South Carolina he currently holds 42 percent of the Catholic vote compared with 32 percent of the Protestant vote.

Inside the Beltway: Marco Rubio racks up endorsements

At last there are only five Republican presidential hopefuls to track, rather than 17. It's still a complicated business, though. Their political currency goes up and down like the stock market. Grappling has commenced for the title of establishment favorite, conservative standard-bearer and mighty outsider.