Game On

This article describes how game theorists view the ongoing health care debate.

It also discusses how the Founders set up the structure of congress to make passing legislation extremely difficult. Ultimately concluding, "That doesn't mean the Founders didn't want health care reform to pass. It just means they intended it to be a pain in the ass."

Isn't flip flopping bad?

Watch this and you will wonder if all this theory about spacial politics actually is applied in the political arena.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Obama to GOP: work with me

This article demonstrates that once again the power in the senate has shifted dramatically because of one vote. This article however is meant to try to regain some footing in the eyes of the American public by trying to portray Republicans as obstructionists and unreasonable. Obama is attempting to work with the other side. The problem is that when the Democrats had 60 votes they had no intention of working with Republicans on the health care bill. I personally try to be an unbiased observer of the current events. I think that if Republicans had the 60 votes they probably would have tried to ram their agenda through as well. The main point however is that I personally am cynical of anyone claiming to want to work with the other side now that they need the other side. I would be just as cynical of a Republican doing the same thing.

Democratic Frontline incumbent protection program

Here are the contributors in the Democratic party, who hope to aid their fellow Democrats in the upcoming elections.

One Senator can grind it all to a stop

After putting a "blanket hold" all 70 of Obamas appointments, Senator Shelby (R-Alabama) releases most of them after getting the "White House's attention on two issues that are critical to our national security - the Air Force's aerial refueling tanker acquisition and the FBI's Terrorist Device Analytical Center."
White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs said, "If you needed one example of what's wrong with this town, it might be that one senator can hold up 70 qualified individuals to make government better because he didn't get his earmarks."
...I couldn't have said it better.

Senate Seat is Up for Grabs

After the republican party picked up a crucial senate seat (Scott Brown), they could pick up another one in Ohio. This could be a trend in many upcoming elections. This shows a little of how the nation is viewing the job President Barack Obama is doing (Good, but not good enough).

Another open seat

With the unexpected death of Rep. John Murtha, there could be a change is the makeup of the house. With Mid-Term elections comming up this could turn to the Republicans favor. It is vert interesting reading his history in the legislature.

Demonstrative of changing political will

This article shows the nervousness that exists that because of the election of Scott Brown which is fueling grumblings that Obama may, like Clinton, fail to implement substantive health care reform. The speculation can also be correlated to the inability of Democrats to come to an agreement amongst themselves when they had total control, and shows that the rift deepens when faced with the real possibility that some may lose re-election to their seats.

America Is Not Yet Lost

Op-ed about Senate in "paralysis" because of the filibuster and the ability of individual senators to put a hold on nominations in effect holding hostage the senate and govt agencies waiting for their appointed heads to be confirmed.

Ryan acting like a Trustee

Paul Ryan has proposed a solution to the budget problem which can be considered radical. It includes privatizing SS, Medicare, and Medicaid, and as a result leads to a solution to the health care debate. There is definitely going to be disagreement over this idea, but the article reveals at the end that he is definitely acting like a trustee with this. He is fine if he gets voted out because of this, because he feels that this important and is his duty as a Representative to fix this problem.

Feinstein says Obama should move terror trials from New York City

This article details how Khalid Shaikh Mohammed's trial in New York is creating a public controversy because it is seen as a possible terrorist threat. Feinstein states,"In my view, from an intelligence perspective, I think the situation has changed with the Christmas attack,". I think that this is pure political grandstanding on the part of Feinstein because the idea of having his trial in New York was questioned long before the Christmas bomber attempted to blow up a plane over Detroit. Dianne Feinstein is chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee so her input is of some value and relevance, I just question the timing of this statement, because poll numbers for Obama have declined lately.

The Fundraising Congress

Lawerence Lessig characterizes congress as the "fundraising congress" and a "bankrupt institution." He brings up a lot of points that were also in "the vulnerable american politician." I think these are fair and accurate characterizations with plenty of facts to back them up. Another clear example of congressmen acting as perpetual fundraisers is Sen. Shelby of Alabama putting a complete hold on presidential nominations until two pork projects worth billions of dollars get back on track for his state.

Democrats chafe as White House wavers on health care bill

This story written by Carrie Brown illustrates who the administration is now essentially at square one in the health care debate. This is due to the fact the senate does not have enough votes for passing the current bill and the house does not want to pass the senate bill. This has left the congress looking to President Obama for directions and frustrated they have not found the answers they are looking for. Sen Bill Nelson from Florida summed this up by asserting, "The president has not been engaged like he should". This comment demonstrates how the Massachusetts election has dramatically shifted the power structure in the in the senate even though the democrats still have a 59-41 lead.

Hawk-Dove or Dove-Hawk

I see this is an interresting debate within congress, how to retain you seat, satisfy "the folks back home" and get the job done in congress.
This article deals with senator Kent Conrad

Senate Campaigns: California style.

From the NY-23 and spreading across the country, one of the biggest developing stories of the 2010 cycle is the increasing tension within GOP primaries between moderate "mainstream" Republicans and the so called "Tea Party" Activists. What is so bizzare about this ad from the Carly Fiorina U.S. Senate campaign is that she is not all that conservative herself, to run an ad like this is a pretty desperate attempt at getting the "Tea Party" vote.



This (poorly done) campaign ad may take the GOP Con vs. Moderate war to a whole new level (a great book was written about this a few years ago) While watching intra-party squabbles is fun in any party, part of me really wishes this was a parody since it is more than a little depressing that a U.S. Senate race has come to this.

Can we bring seriousness back to politics?

We don't need no stinking deficiet reductions!

The Bipartisan Task Force for Responsible Fiscal Action Act of 2009 was defeated 53 For 46 Against. So much for majority rule... especially troubling was 7 of its Co-Sponsors voted against it. How the heck do you vote against a bill you sponsored?

AP Analysis: Possibility of GOP takeover of Congress?

Still a long shot, as the article admits, but an increasing possibility as anti-incumbent sentiment rises, even in solidly blue states like Massachusetts and New York, as a result of continued economic distress, high unemployment rates, and fallout over healthcare reform.

Why not "get out the cots and do it for real?"

This post explains the evolution of the filibuster, and how it has made the Senate "a dam in the governing stream."

Senate Fundraising

Our reading this week points to the expense of election campaigns as being one reason why our elected officials are so vulnerable. King says American politicians "are mostly required to find the means of funding their own election campaigns." Rollcall.com lists what senators nationwide have raised, what they spent, and how much they have left.

The senator who has raised the most money at the end of 2008, is Carly Fiorina (R) Cal., at nearly 3.6 million. Conrad Reynolds, Republican from Arkansas, has the distinction of gathering a mere 42 grand. Our own Russ Feingold raised $947,000, but has spent close to half. Not to worry Feingold supporters! The man still has a few mill on hand to work with.

Republican Takeover of the Senate?

An Opinion Column in the Washington Post, listing all of the competative senate races around the country in 2010. This was propted by underdog Alexi Giannoulias winning the Democratic Primary for President Obama's old senate seat. It's also the only article I've seen in awhile not to mention the hypothetical race in Wisconsin between Russ Feingold and Tommy Thompson.

Congress Speaks

Congress Speaks is a cute little website that counts how many words each member of Congress spoke during the 110th Congress. It turns out that Russ Feingold is one of the talkiest talkers in Congress (13th overall, Kohl is much more quiet). You can also see which words members were using more frequently than their colleagues.

I'm not sure it's useful for anything, but it's fun to poke around. Karma points to whoever reveals in the comments who is the biggest gasbag in Congress.

Via the indispensable political science blog The Monkey Cage.

Congressional hearing reveals US Intelligence agencies shielded Flight 253 bomber

Its apparent that without congressional hearings, there would be too many agencies acting independent from their charters. While the case of the underwear bomber could have been a coverup to this day, at least Congressional pressure puts the pressure on independent agencies to work harder in NOT making mistakes.

Lawmakers pledge action to limit election spending

An interesting article about lawmakers reaction to the recent Supreme court campaign finance decision. I found this interesting because of John kerry's suggestion that a constitutional amendment might be needed to ensure corporations dont have the same free speech rights as individuals. Any mention of constitutional amendments gets me excited!

Great Source for Final Paper: CFI article with Figures

As we know, money is critical to most contests in American Society. This report shows figures on challenger and incumbent fund raising over the past few elections. It gives a nice perspective of trends and differences between challengers and incumbents from 2003-2009.

This empirical data is a good example of a type of source to consider when writing your final paper.

Charlie Crist's Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.

On paper Florida Governor Charlie Crist should be cruising toward the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate, socially liberal, fiscally conservative, handsome, an "Schwarzenegger" style Republican, he should have no problem winning over independents and moderates in a state where the President only won by 2%.

However in a scene very similar to the NY-23 special election, conservatives are revolting and turning toward their hero, former state House Speaker Marco Rubio, young, latino, and very conservative.

With two polls showing a widening lead for the GOP primary, some pundits are speculating that Crist could make FL Senate even more like NY-23 and run as an independent, so the 2010 roller coaster continues.

GOP election strategy

It seems as we move forward to the midterm elections that a strategy is unfolding to use the damage done to the United States via terror to gain political advantage. It is clear from polling in Mass. that the threat of terror is on the minds of Americans, but is that a reason to politicize the fear. The article points out this strategy of the GOP to expose the hint of weakness in the Democrat's and the Presidents ability to protect the country.
My thought on this is not weather this is a viable strategy to gain election wins, as it may very well be. My concern would lie in the prudence of the decision to exploit a potential weakness in American defenses. If the GOP members in Congress see real threats it is their responsibility to bring to light not only those weaknesses but also corrective action. If they intend to use this solely as a political strategy it seems like this strategy has the ability to cause more harm than good for the country. Divisive rhetoric over the safety and security of the nation has a dangerous ramification to embolden the enemies of the U.S.
If the rhetoric encourages more attacks on the country by exposing weakness (real or imaginary) regardless of its potential to win elections then it is irresponsible. This (National security) is an issue that should not be used to expose partisanship. It should be an issue that draws both parties, and all branches together to seek best approaches and fixes. At this point with the writing on the wall for the strategies for the 2010 midterms one has to ask is this the best strategy for the Country as a whole.

"Behind the fundraising numbers"

This article highlights some of the contested seats that could be threatened in upcoming elections based on the amount of fund raising being done in certain contests.

Congress Faces Obama's 3.83 Trillion Dollar Heart Attack

This article entails Obama's newly introduced 3.83 trillion dollar 2011 budget including ways to tax Americans. Will congress be able to stop themselves from having a heart attack long enough to vote it through to approval?

Productive Congress?

This article talks about how Congress has actually been productive, even though it may not be obvious. The reason for this is because they accomplished quite a bit with just one bill, and essentially took care of a fare amount of business real quick. This is pretty interesting since there isn't much bipartisanship going on in Congress these days.

Obama Faces the GOP

This is an interesting article and clip about President Obama trying to "reach across the isle" to Republican congressmen just days after giving his State of the Union address. It's funny, at least in the movie clip, to see how friendly the congressmen are when they shake Obama's hand at the end...

-Chris Jenkins-

Interesting process for selecting a candidate

I thought it was interesting how this "progressive" group is searching for a candidate to replace an incumbent Democratic Congressman.

Just checking

just wanted to insure this is set up..

moderate stance issues

This sounds like what we were talking about in class, how does congress get it's collective act together. Moderate stance here sounds like a huge problem for the Dem's considering the up-coming mid term elections. This article from the Wall Street Journal Illustrates the issues surrounding both houses and within the Democratic Party. What is interesting is the differences between the houses and the party.

RNC Considering Ideological Purity Test

As we discussed in class today, there can be conflicts between moderate members of a party and those who are firmly liberal/conservative.

Recently we have seen Democrats struggle to find consensus between the more conservative blue dog Democrats and liberal Democrats while working on health care reform.

The Republicans are also dealing with this debate. This New York Times blog discusses how the Republican National Committee was considering a purity resolution that would force those seeking Republican support to undergo a test to prove that they are conservative enough for the party.

Is Wisconsin Warming up with a Top Tier Challenger?

As one can see in the polls, weak challengers have not polled well in past months when considering a race for Senate against Sen. Russ Feingold. However, when considering Tommy Thompson as a challenger, polls indicate that the Republican, former-governor may have the name recognition needed to give Feingold a heated battle for the Senate seat in 2010. While Thompson has not announced a run for Senate, according to an interview with Politico.com, he has not ruled it out.

This is a very interesting topic when considering the quality of challengers and 2010 Midterms.

Welcome to Spring

It's 2010. Time to get ready for the midterm elections. More soon.

Cheney backs Limbaugh over Powell on GOP future

Cheney favors Limbaugh over Powel in terms of GOP future. In one way this add to partisianship that helps the republicans build a more distinct name brand. On the other hand Limbaugh's politics will no doubt alienate some moderate conservatives. Would the benifits of a more Limbaugh leaning ideollogy lead to a more disicnt republican name brand help or hurt the party? It seems like to me that alienating moderate conservatives is the last thing the GOP needs to do.

What should be the issue?

It should not be about politics when talking about the use of torture. Whether Speaker Pelosi knew of waterboarding techniques or not should not be of issue. What should be of issue is how reactionary some of the measures that almost all of our citizens were ready to stomach to respond to terrorism in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 and take a look at ourselves at as a nation nearly eight years later and determine whether we are taking the most effective approaches in dealing with and preventing terrorism while continuing to not only follow basic American principles like not torturing people and whether we are following internationally recognized agreements like the Geneva Accords.

The Current Committee System

A good cool-down for the semester. A full list of rules for the process of committee assignments per party, referrals, jurisdictions, rules for waivers for exclusive committees, as hoc mechanisms, and procedures. Cool stuff for those who are political junkies and want to know more about how the assignment and referral system works. All of this is directly from the House website. Enjoy the summer!

In regards to subcommittees: "From a 1950 low of 125 subcommittees of House and Senate standing committees, the number increased to a high of 271 in 1975."

U.S. House Passes "hate crime" bill that Bush opposed

In the hustle and bustle of Washington, we sometimes forget to look at the bread and butter of what goes on there. Though Arlen Specter's party-switch is definitely significant, I prefer to look at good old fashioned law-making. Here we have a story discussing visible policy shifts from administration to administration. Hate crime legislation has always been a hot-button issue in American political circles, and it seems we might see the debate's first major development in a long time.

How It Came Down to This: 244 Democrats, 0 Republicans

An interesting article about moderates and bipartisanship

Specter: I'm not an automatic 60th vote

More fallout and reaction to the big news of the day.

An you all thought my gallery of party switchers was a bad a idea....

Shift of Power

The switch by Specter will allow him to gain traction within the Democratic Party leading up to 2010 and allow him to raise campaign finances much more easy along with not having to answer a litany of questions from reporters every time he votes with the Democrats.

A rare event with potentially huge impact

I am conjuring up a vision of United States congressmen as single-minded seekers of reelection.

Arlen Specter to convert to Democratic Party!

Wow! CNN just reported that Arlen Specter will join the Democrats (no link yet, but hopefully this story will flesh out soon). This is huge news. He will most likely remain fairly conservative, but what a smack in the face of the Republican party. Also, considering he is up for reelection in 2010, do you think this move will help or hurt his reelection chances? Will any Democrats run against him in the primary?

Clinton says U.S. no longer AWOL on climate changeStory Highlights

The US, EU, and 15 other nations will meet in a prepatory session before a UN meeting in December. The goal will be to replace the Kyoto Treaty which expires in 2012.

Lawmakers Arrested

I guess those who make the law are not about the law. Five lawmakers from different parts of the country are arrested while protesting the expulsion of aid groups in Darfur in front of the Sudanese Embassy.

New York's 20th District Seat Finally Filled

Not as dramatic as the MN Senate race, but it took four weeks to finally decide a winner for NY-20 Congressional District. In a continuation of the results from the 2008 elections, Republicans are still on the losing end, even in a district they held for decades.

Measuring success in the first 100 days of the 111th

The first 100 days is apparently not only a measure for Presidential success, but for Congressional success as well. The 111th Congress has undergone some of the most activity since the 1930's (although without the same level of success) and still has more on the agenda.

The new Congress, led by Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, have had to deal with crisis management in an economic period of unrest. From bailing out banks, TARP, investigating CEO bonus pay, and passing the largest stimulus in history, the real work has yet to be done.

Language has always been key in the fight on the Hill, especially when talking about "stimulus" which was branded a "spending bill" by Congressional GOP'ers. On the other side, the "stimulus" was a "Recovery Act" to Democrats. Congress seems to be as hyperpartisan as always, as seen in the passage of said stimulus in the House of Representatives, where it made it through without a single Republican vote supporting it.  

"And while the first 100 days saw unprecedented new spending, an extension of health insurance for children, and new employee rights in wage discrimination cases, most votes and debates followed party lines. One thing Congress has not achieved in this first 100 days is clear: that much talked about spirit of bipartisanship."

1. With more on the agenda, such as the reforms in the health care system, how long can President Obama expect to have the same level of support now that his first 100 days are coming to a close?
2. Do you feel that "the first 100 days" is even a valid measure in modern politics, considering it was first used by FDR after his election in 1933?
3. Can Congressional Democrats hold the reigns of power long enough to pass the projects they have waited years to push (such as education reform, a new energy policy, universal health care, etc.)?

Democrats push for investigations into interrogation

Democrats in both chambers of Congress are beginning to push for investigations into whether or not the Bush administration used illegal techniques when questioning detainees who were suspected of terrorism, and whether or not criminal charges are in order. Senator Carl Levin, the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is leading the charge in pressuring the Obama administration to do more.

President Obama stated earlier that he will not seek charges against any CIA official who was found to have used the techniques in question (possibly to keep good relations with the intelligence community, who he desperately needs the support), and has said that he is open to charges against those who drafted the policies in question (the Bush administration lawyers and policy makers). However, he has deferred this power to his Attorney General, Eric Holder. Republicans in Congress are claiming that this is simply a move to settle old political scores, and this type of action does no good for the country. And of course, Joe Lieberman is opposed to looking into any misdeeds that the Bush administration may have committed.

1. Should Democrats investigate the former administration for possibly breaking the law? Would such an investigation help or harm the DNC nationally?
2. How far should the investigation go? If it turns out that orders came from President Bush, should he be held accountable for violating any laws?
3. When comparing the investigation of Bill Clinton to the possible investigation of George W. Bush, have the Republicans already forgotten about their personal political score settling?

House Heavyweight Feels Threat to Power

More scandals brewing. Money & politics, two great tastes that taste even better together.

John Murtha:

If I am corrupt it is because I take care of my district.

Congress, interest groups gear up for highway bill

As discussed in class on Wednesday, lobbyist groups spend large amounts of money advocating to legislators for their causes. With that said, I think many of these groups should start investing more of their money into the actual implementation of their desired projects. I realize that some groups do in fact donate money to such funds, but think that their money would be more wisely spent if they directed their money towards their projects' implementation, rather than using their resources to "buy off' legislators. Personally, I think that with the public's growing distrust in Congress' relations with lobbyist groups, having these groups show that their money is going directly the execution of such a project instead of paying for a Congressman's fine dining bill or luxury vacation would sway the public to rally more favorably towards their cause. I think that plenty of people would favor Congress' decision to pass a $470 billion dollar program to re-vamp the transportation system, if they were to know that the special interest groups advocating the project, were actually going to be paying for a substantial part of the bill. Sure, this course of action would not give legislators the exclusive "perks" they seem to enjoy, but if the public had a more positive view on Congress' actions, maybe this could persuade voters to keep them in office.

Fundraising Shows Cantor’s Growing Clout Within GOP

Someone's arrived:

House Republican Whip Eric Cantor ’s monster first-quarter campaign finance report is no more remarkable for its impressive bottom line — $963,900 — than for what it says about his exploding share of Republican fundraising clout.

Guantanamo Bay

Why does it seem to suddenly be an issue for Congress to decide. If my memory serves me correctly the Bush administration was free to dictate the creation and implementation of Gitmo. Now, it seems as though Congress wants its say in deciding what will happen with the terrorist prison. What seems to be the reason for the switch, the change in party in the White House, or new sentiments over who has the authority to decide what haooens to these prisoners? Weigh in...

Kohl now leaning moderate

Senator herb Kohl is now joining a coalition of 15 Democrats who are committed to be more fiscally responsible. Kohl Said that he wants to be more responsible because he fears that some initiatives being put out there that could hurt Wisconsinites. With the senate being a super majoritarian institution, this kind of coalition could hurt the more liberal dems. Kohl is specifically against the cap and trade measure that could raise energy bills on coal burning states like Wisconsin. Both him and Sen. Feingold voted against the measure.

Overview: Congress Works Toward Energy Compromise

A first -ever cap and trade system is in sight. Some interesting obstacles to success: getting moderate Dems on board, mitigating externalities of a the new policy(In terms of higher energy costs) , will the rest of the industrialised world get down on this and how are will this policy be enforced?

Nate Silver explains why Congressional elections are rarely well contested

Gov. Rick Perry (TX) talking about secessation

Some perspectives from bloggers on Rick Perry insinuating that Texas may secede. Matthew Yglesias makes an interesting point about Congress, however:
One advantage of large-scale secession of the most conservative states is that it would be a lot easier to pass progressive legislation. An aspect of Civil War history that people don’t tend to appreciate is that the temporary departure of the Dixie bloc of Senators allowed a huge flowering of legislative activity that wouldn’t otherwise have been possible. In addition to prosecuting the war, the Lincoln-era GOP took sweeping action on industrial policy, infrastructure, land reform, etc. much of which would have been extraordinarily difficult to accomplish had the southerners just stayed in their seats and used the considerable levers of obstruction that are available to legislative minorities.

Cornyn Endorsing Specter

Apparently the GOP realizes that a super-conservative can't win a Senate seat in Pennsylvania. Specter is still looking to be on shaky ground, however.

Pirates vow to kill U.S., French sailors

Somali Pirates weren't vary happy when SEAL snipers took out three of their buddies. They vowed to use harsher tactics with Amercian and French hostages and kill them if they are Navy sailors.

Arlen Specter has a primary opponent

This relates to earlier in the semester when we spoke about candidates needing to be at the median of their party as well as at the median of their district. It'll be interesting to see how this turns out. Will a vicious primary leave Pennsylvania with 2 Democratic senators?

Judges Country's Most Trusted Mathematicians

It appears that some of Minnesota's most trusted judicial officials can count.

Obama to ask congress for more war money

President Obama is asking for for more money to help the war effort in Afghanistan. Congress is mixed about this. The anti-war democrats wont support the extra funds but it has the supports of republicans. The minority leader John Boehner is ready so support this war effort but is weary of the president's leadership. It does look as though that the president will get his way and congress will most likely pass the extra amount. It is situations like this wonder how Obama's relationship with congress will develop over the years? I feel like the president does a lot to work with the minority party in congress.

Democrat wins Rahm Emanuel's Ill. Congress seat

Quigley handily wins Rahm Emanuel's Ill. Congress seat. Republican challenger Pulido gets burned after trying to campiagn in a democratic stronghold without her partie's support.

An Article about Pelosi

Maybe she doesn't have a personal army. I'm not convinced though.

Better Know A District

I'm pretty sure that Congressman Maffei is not nearly as safe as Congressman Wexler was... This could get interesting in 2010.

Ohio Redistricting Competition

The goal of the Ohio Redistricting Competition is to demonstrate that an open process based on objective criteria can produce fair legislative districts in Ohio. During the competition, it is our belief that a robust public conversation about the process can occur, leading to the development of the best possible redistricting recommendations for consideration by the Ohio General Assembly.

The Ohio Redistricting Competition represents the culmination of over nine months of planning amongst the League of Women Voters of Ohio (LWVO), Ohio Citizen Action, Common Cause, Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, Former State Representative Joan Lawrence, and State Representative Dan Stewart.

via The Monkey Cage

The world of politics works in strange ways

Despite the obvious wrongdoings of former Senator Stevens of Alaska he will walk clean in his ethics violations case. Not because of actual innocence, but because of more incompetence by the people who were in government positions to carry out the prosecution of former Senator Stevens. Who was the more incompetent, Stevens or the prosecutors? You make the call.

Obama Vs. Congress

The Importance of the Median Voter

Pretty incredible election results so far to fill (now Senator) Gillibrand's House seat.

Congress and Cuba

Cuba may be a new tourist attraction for many Americans soon. There are 20 senators looking to lift the embargo against Cuba. They see the post-Castro regime coming closer and closer and there could be an opening for freedom there. These senators argue against the original principals that the embargo was supposed to do. The embargo was supposed let communism fail by suppressing trade from the US. Cuba has learned to survive without it. The strategy to suppress totalitarianism by letting Cuban see how we live. Congress has not yet set a date to go over the proposed bill but it could come soon. Pres. Obama could be looking for some changes. During the campaign he suggested that change was a possibility.

Not very educational

I know this isn't educational at all, just kind of funny to me. I never thought of Russ Feingold as being a Dylan fan, or any 60's/70's music fan at all. Who knew?

Sen. Chris Dodd facing a strong challenger in the 2010 Dem. Primary?

Just a little blurb about a challenger looking into his chances for Chris Dodd's Senate seat. 

House approves FDA regulation of tobacco products

Earlier this week, as part of the effort to prevent tobacco use, the House of Representatives passed legislation allowing the Federal government to regulate the production of tobacco products (including smokeless tobacco i.e. "chew" tobacco). I find myself on the wire with this subject, while I am an advocate for tobacco use prevention and agree that there should be stricter regulations on the most dangerous and "lethal of all consumer products", to quote Sen. Ted Kennedy, I can see how the sponsored support from Phillip Morris USA may create a government created monopoly, and personally do not think the government should have authority to create a monopoly any such consumer products. I will be interested to see how the Senate will vote, and also to see exactly how these FDA regulations will be exectuted and their direct and indirects on tobacco use.

Paul Ryan Leads Way for GOP Budget

While Kohl is taking on the BCS, Paul Ryan from Wisconsin's 1st district and ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee has come up and proposed an alternative budget. This alternative details how it will: 1) fulfill the mission of health and retirement security; 2) control our nation's debts; 3) put the economy on a path of growth and leadership in the global economy; and 4) preserve the American legacy of leaving the next generation better off. It will be interesting to see how the Democratic majority responds to this alternative, be it voting it down, or finding some compromise.

Herb Kohl Takes On Crucial Issues

The BCS??!! I understand that it is a rather controversial issue to many Americans, but with all the other issues of our time, isn't there something else that Kohl could be in charge of? Better yet, why does Congress even bother with this anyway. Outside of hurting those who may be involved in gambling situations that deal with the BCS, who is the government protecting by taking this on? This seems to be a waste of time, money, and resources to me, and kind of sad that Kohl is the chairman on this issue.

Justice Dept. Seeks To Void Stevens' Conviction

April fools Stevens walks! Shouldn't this case have been a slam dunk? Are the prosecuters in contempt going to be repremanded in someway or is losing the case their punishment?

What has become of the D.C. full-vote measure? The NRA

The National Rife Association, with approximately four million members, is beginning to flex its political muscle with the Democrats in control of both Congress and the Executive. The NRA threatened to show its influence when the measure to give Washington, D.C. a full-voting representative in the House passed in the lower chamber of Congress. Suddenly, the bill was stalled in the Senate.

"The National Rifle Association's lobbyists made it clear to lawmakers that they believed the bill should include a measure to overturn the capital's gun control laws. Left mostly unsaid, but well understood by all 535 members of the House and Senate, was that failure to do so would unleash a barrage of political pain on resisters."

The NRA's political action committee spent $15.6 million in the last two election cycles, donating money to candidates who are "pro-gun" and more to the challengers of others who oppose them.

With the NRA readying itself for a battle against those in Congress who oppose them (regarding lifting the gun control laws in DC):

1. Do you think this is a situation meant for compromise? Is public safety going to take a back seat to politics?
2. Do you feel this is the perfect situation for the two parties to fully distinguish themselves from one another (the need for a clear divide and definition of what each party represents/stands for)?
3. Can Democrats maintain their majority status while taking on such a controversial issue? Would taking a "Democrats are for certain gun restrictions" stance damage the party, or make them look stronger?

Gates: U.S. Not Prepared to Respond to North Korea Missile Launch

North Korea has moved a missile onto a launch pad and says it will be fired by April 8. Pyonyang insists the missile is designed for carrying a communications satellite, not a nuclear warhead that the secretive nation appears bent on developing.

What is the point?

Why would either party, in this case the Republicans, make a half-hearted attempt to block a budget that will undoubtedly pass eventually by making amendments when they don't even have an alternative budget proposal in place? Partisanship like this demonstrates the time our so-called leaders waste on taking shots at each other rather than coming up with solutions to our very real problems.

U.S. Congress Cautiously Welcomes New Afghan Plan

Russ Feingold will be heard! It looks like we're in store for a new direction in the Middle East, and Russ Feingold is weighing in.

Democrats Agree on Budget's Outline

We might be close to a finalized budget soon

Barney Frank, King of Pork

So apparently the idea of pork has been expanded. This article talks about how Frank defended Fannie and Freddie, along with other measures that led to huge bonuses to executives. Seems to me that pork not only deals with bringing money back to one's constituency, but also to enabling corporations the means to alter their books to get extra bonuses. That is a pretty far stretch, and just more finger pointing instead of solving the problem.

Congress, Largest Landlord in the U.S.

The article states that the land will be an area where man does not invade, or ruin, or whatever terminology one chooses. So there should be no need for billions of dollars to be put towards this, but why does there need to be billions of dollars set aside for this? I suppose for buying the land they would have to, but doesn't government just seize land anyway? Along those lines, if there is not to be humans on this land, why do livestock need to be protected from wolves of other wildlife? Isn't that just nature running its course?

Democrats Take Knife to Obama's Budget

Are the Democrats eating their own? "Key leaders" are scrapping the financial bailout. How will this budget turn out?

Congressional Chestbeating?

These hearings our always fun to keep a close eye on in that many Congressional members look to make a name for themselves by making so-called "tough" remarks to the star witnesses. It will be interesting to see Republicans treatment of Mr. Geithner in one of his first appearances up on the hill.

Administration launches plan to initially buy up half-trillion in toxic assets, free up credit

Administration officials said the plan put forth Monday will deploy $75 billion to $100 billion from the government's existing $700 billion bailout program for the purchase of bad assets - resources that will be supported by loans from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and a loan facility being operated by the Federal Reserve.
Under a typical transaction, for every $100 in soured mortgages being purchased from banks, the private sector would put up $7 and that would be matched by $7 from the government. The remaining $86 would be covered by a government loan provided in many cases by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

Law Professor Who Advised Obama Says House AIG Bill May Be Unconstitutional

The "AIG Bonus" bill that passed through the House might be doomed. The Senate could sit on it, Obama could veto it, and now it seems the Courts could kill it too.

Feingold/Ryan unveil earmark veto plan

A little Wisconsin bipartisanship at work right here. Feingold and Ryan unveiled their plan to allow for Obama to  cut "embarrassing" pork today. 

Team Effort in the House to Overhaul Health Care

I am really excited to see where this goes, while our country is one of the leaders in health care in terms of technology and research, our country has such great disparities when it comes to health care access. With the correct reform, we could see a great advancement with health care coverage but we will need the support and input of both parties in congress for this, because at first glance, this reform is seen as very liberal (in terms of nationalizing, making it available to all citizens) but, in order for this to be truly successful we need conservative input in terms of mandates if we want insurance companies and private hospitals to comply in order to ensure fair coverage. It is know that states (including Wisconsin) offer such State regulated health care access to all children such as the Wisconsin Women Infants and Children Program and BadgerCare with out straining the state's economy or even placing heavy restrictions on health care providers all while offering families the health care coverage they need. I think that if we really utilize the Congress members from these states, the government can successfully implement a similar federalized program.

What Would Happen Without Local Newspapers?

John Sides with a political science take on the relationship between Congress and local news media.

Are earmarks really so bad?

Its nice to see the media finally acknowledge that some earmarks are actually positive things that congresspeople are doing for their districts and not merely vote pandering.

Hillbillies: Don't Worry

Well, it turns out these crazy Communists we got running the House don't plan on takin' away the guns of the Gun-totin', bible clinging folks of this great nation after all. Man I love that 2nd Amendment.

Median Voter Theory in Action

Trouble is starting to stir for those in the party base of the Democratic party. Rep. Melissa Bean, D-Ill, the leader of the New Democrats Coalition (a 68-member group of moderate House Democrats), has begun her meetings with the heads of governmental financial leaders such as White House Budget Director, Peter Orszag.

Why would this pose a problem for the Democrats in Congress? Because the liberal base, who has been waiting patiently to pass its agenda for more than a decade, is being stalled by the moderates who seek to bring all of the policy positions to the middle. Showing their power early in the game, the New Democrats Coalition has been cited with:

"temporarily sidelining a measure to let bankruptcy judges rewrite mortgages. They held out for limits on court-ordered easing of mortgages, a move lenders were demanding. And a few centrist Senate Democrats helped slow passage of a $410 billion spending bill because of its cost."

With the Democrats poised to push forth their agenda to revolutionize energy policy, and a complete reform of the health care system:

1. How can Democrats successfully pass the legislation they deem necessary while still having to appeal to the moderates? (Median Voter Theory)
2. Are the moderates within the Democratic party more of a threat to the legislative process than the minority party?
3. How can the moderate member group be an advantage/disadvantage to President Obama?

Lawmaker Tried to Aid Bank Partly Owned by Husband

Steele In Hot Water Over Abortion Comments

Steele continues to draw the concern of cultural conservatives within his party with his comments about state rights and abortion during his interview with GQ magazine this week. Although all may be forgiven provided he brings home the bacon (fundraising not pork) during his upcoming fundraising circuit schedule.

Senate Clears Spending After Fractious Debate

Hopefully this is the last of big spending bills and this country can get back on its feet. In other news, 4 states hit 10% unemployment today according to the Associated Press.

Big Test for New Chairman

This will be a big test for California Representative Henry Waxman. One of the reasons he was chosen in the face of seniority rules traditions to head the chairmanship of the House Energy and Commerce Committee was the fact that he has proven to be progressive on environmental and clean energy initiatives. Now he faces old-school representatives from his own party who still look to generate a great deal of their support from the coal and auto industries.

Congress having difficulty evaluating its carbon footprint

It was a bold move by Rep Pelosi to drastically cut the carbon output by Congress, but it may have been to bold. Congress has scrapped the idea to have a neutral output of carbon last month claiming it is too difficult to know just how much carbon Congress is producing. Also, they are unclear whether or not the offsets they purchased are sufficient. If Congress can't figure it out for themselves, how can the legislative body determine how much carbon its constituency can/cannot produce?

Don’t Rely on Bush’s Signing Statements, Obama Orders

Obama rewrites the rules for presidential law-making and invests a good deal of power in to the Attorney General. However, Obama is still claiming the privilege to issue signing statements which prolongs the struggle between the executive and legislative branch over where policy-making occurs.