Explainers

How Washington and the world actually work: plain-language guides to Congress, the White House, the Supreme Court and the institutions behind the headlines. Facts are sourced to official records; our view is labeled.

Congress

• How a Bill Becomes Law: The Real Path Through CongressIntroduction, committees, floor votes, the filibuster, and the President's signature or veto.
• Debt Ceiling vs. Government Shutdown: Two Different FightsOne is about permission to spend, the other about permission to borrow. What happens in each.

Supreme Court

• How the Supreme Court Picks Its Cases, and How Its Rulings WorkCertiorari, the rule of four, oral argument, the conference vote and who writes the opinion.

White House

• Executive Orders vs. Laws: What a President Can and Can't Do AloneWhere a President's orders get their force, and how courts, Congress and successors can undo them.

Economy

• How the Federal Reserve Sets Interest RatesThe FOMC, the federal funds rate, the dual mandate and the 2 percent inflation goal.
• How Tariffs Work, and Who Actually Pays ThemWho pays at the border, who bears the cost, and what the 2026 Supreme Court ruling decided.

World

• NATO Article 5: What 'An Attack on One Is an Attack on All' Really MeansThe treaty text, what it commits allies to, its one use after 9/11, and the 5% pledge.
• The UN Security Council and the Veto, ExplainedFifteen members, five vetoes, what binding resolutions can do, and why the veto endures.

For the day’s news, see today’s updates, the archive, and our sources and methods.