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- A renewed debate of the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force is lon...
- Two days after the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001, I was sitting in...
- The US House of Representatives took an important step last week toward the...
- Next week, the U.S. House will take up the federal farm bill, which include...
- By a 305-121 margin, the House of Representatives voted to accelerate US tr...
- Washington, D.C.— Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee released the foll...
- ...
- WASHINGTON — Isolated human genes may not be patented, the Supreme Court ...
- Unreported in the mainstream press is the dramatic long-term hunger strike ...
- WASHINGTON -- The U.S. House of Representatives passed a slate of bills Wed...
- The spate of alarming incidents in recent months underscoring the depth of ...
- New York stood for equality by approving same-sex marriage two years ago. I...
- During the Bush II Era, excessive deficit spending was no big deal for Repu...
- Washington’s attack on the poor continues as the Senate votes for big cut...
- WASHINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday filed a lawsui...
- In this new era of austerity, it was disappointing to learn that Congress i...
- One in three Americans are now poor, sapping our nation's social, economic,...
- The 29-year-old source behind the biggest intelligence leak in the NSA's hi...
- When asked what the world needs, people tend to go all gushy and offer up s...
- From his California beach house at San Clemente, Richard Nixon once watched...
- Isn't it interesting that the ethics of corporate pay shift 180 degrees as ...
- Note: This is the first in a two-part series on Early Head Start and its im...
- I think of a “social welfare charity” being like The Little Sisters of ...
- Perhaps I've been too harsh on congressional Republicans. I had assumed t...
- “The ‘universe’ of programs and processes in need of reform at the Pe...
‘Discriminatory Purpose’ in Texas
Written by Editorial | The New York Times
Hispanic and black voters in Texas were vindicated on Tuesday when a federal three-judge panel rejected the state’s new redistricting plans for Congressional and state legislative seats. A panel of the United States District Court in the District of Columbia properly found that the maps, based on the 2010 census, had a discriminatory purpose and effect in reducing the ability of minority voters to elect candidates they favor.
The Vacuum Behind the Slogans
Written by Editorial | The New York Times
The party that claims to have all the answers on Medicare seemed to have no interest in sharing them with the American people at its convention on Wednesday. The session, devoted to the theme of “We Can Change It,” never went any deeper than that slogan or a few others: Reform Medicare. Strengthen Medicare. Protect Medicare.
Federal Court Rejects Texas Voter ID Law
Written by Aviva Shen | Think Progress
A federal three-judge panel has struck down Texas’ restrictive voter ID law, finding it would suppress minority voting. The Department of Justice blocked the measure after it failed to get the pre-clearance required under the Voting Rights Act for states with a history of discrimination. The DOJ concluded that Latino voters would be disproportionately affected by the ID law.
Judge to Toss Out Changes in Florida Voter Registration
Written by Lizette Alvarez | The New York Times
A federal judge said on Wednesday that he planned to block provisions of a Florida measure that made it harder for organizations to register voters in the state.
The measure, part of a broad and contentious 2011 election law in Florida, had a serious impact on third-party voter groups, like the League of Women Voters and Rock the Vote, which filed the suit along with the Florida Public Interest Research Group Education Fund. The groups asserted that the new requirements were onerous and made volunteers vulnerable to fines and even felony charges.
In RNC address, Ryan strains his own credibility
Written by Rob Anderson | Boston.com
Paul Ryan’s speech last night could mark the launch of a great career — but it could also be the start of a long journey into the wilderness of extremism. It was less about Ryan’s own vaunted budget plan than an attack, in the needling voice of the House GOP majority, on President Obama’s economic stewardship.
A Story of American Struggle By U. S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.)
Written by Rep. John Lewis | Black Politics on the Web
WASHINGTON - Next year this nation will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington on August 28, 2013. Many of you will be on your way to DC to honor the legacy of a movement that helped liberate, not only African Americans but all Americans from the chains of legalized segregation.
A Smarter Way to Trim the Pentagon Budget
Written by Charles Knight | Time
As the U.S. economy struggles to recover from the Great Recession, most American families have had to make tough decisions about their current needs and future spending.
Similarly, one year ago, Congress passed the Budget Control Act (BCA), which put caps on future government budgets. As a result most federal agencies, including the Department of Defense, will be required to roll back their spending plans.
Someone tell the RNC: The inspiration for their immigration platform lost another election in Arizona Tuesday
While Republican convention-goers fortify the ramparts of their Arizona-style immigration platform, SB 1070 standard-bearer Russell Pearce went down in an expected but still humiliating Republican primary defeat for a state senate seat last night.
Voter Suppression: The "Schurick Doctrine" and the Unravelling of American Democracy
Written by Ruth Rosen | OpenDemocracy.net
Republicans across the United States have passed a spate of voter suppression laws aimed at those most likely to vote for Obama. They are specifically targeting African American women who, in the past, created a gender gap that decisively elected Democratic presidents. America needs immediate international monitoring of its presidential election, says Ruth Rosen
Women Backslide in Retail Jobs, Losing Yet Another Foothold in the New Economy
Written by Bryce Covert The Nation
Women are on the verge of ruling the new economy, right? They’re getting more college degrees, dominating middle management and grabbing up jobs in industries that are set to see explosive growth. Except that last part is starting to reverse course.
Among the reasons Hannah Rosin highlighted in support of her thesis that the “End of Men” is nigh was, “Of the 15 job categories projected to grow the most in the next decade in the U.S., all but two are occupied primarily by women.”
The GOP's Split-Screen Convention
Written by Katrina vanden Heuvel | The Nation
This week, the anti-disaster assistance party scrambled to shuffle its anti-government convention speakers in the face of Hurricane Isaac. Meanwhile, the New York Times reported, “As the American Petroleum Institute planned a concert and a party here to push its agenda, which includes expansion of oil exploration on federal lands, some of its members were ramping down production in the gulf and removing workers from platforms.”
Hundreds Protest Bain-Owned Corporation in Tampa Over Low Wages
Written by George Zornick | The Nation
Far away from the glistening convention center in downtown Tampa Bay on Monday, there was a battle over the minimum wage as throngs of workers and progressive activists marched in driving rain outside the corporate headquarters of Bloomin’ Brands, a mega-restaurant chain owned by Bain Capital.
Romney Games GOP Rules to Benefit His Campaign... in 2016
Written by John Nichols | The Nation
Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus says the platform crafted by a committee on which Tea Party–inspired delegates and social conservatives drove the process “is the platform of the Republican Party; it’s not the platform of Mitt Romney.”
Say what? Aren’t the Republican Party and Mitt Romney somewhat connected at this point?
Romney aides outline attack plan for after Republican convention
Written by Justin Sink | The Hill
Mitt Romney is set to launch the next stage of his campaign — the post-convention general election match-up against President Obama.
Romney aides, appearing at a panel hosted by ABC News and Yahoo in Tampa on Tuesday, made it clear they were prepared to hit the ground running after Romney accepts the party's nomination on Thursday night.
PDA In Your State
