All DC Decoder
Team Obama plays 'let's make a deal' on Romney taxes. Risky?The Obama campaign made this offer Friday: Release five years of returns and we won't demand more. But that does not address Mitt Romney's concern that he will face more attacks on the content of his returns. Team Obama could face diminishing returns with its tactic.
Paul Ryan's record: huge role in debt debate but few legislative winsRep. Paul Ryan's grasp of federal spending has given him an outsized role in defining the GOP position on deficits and debt, but he has a lower profile in driving the bipartisan compromises needed to pass laws.
The Paul Ryan budget: your guide to what's in it Rep. Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney's running mate, is best known for drawing up a series of spending-and-tax plans meant to challenge the Obama administration's policies from the right. But it's been some time since his latest budget, which Mr. Ryan terms a "path to prosperity," was released. Here's a primer on what's in it.
In joining Romney, will Paul Ryan get his 'clear choice' campaign?Back in February, long before he got the vice presidential nod, Rep. Paul Ryan urged Mitt Romney to run an 'affirmative' campaign, laying out how he differs from Obama. Picking Ryan may signal Romney's intent to do just that.
Veepstakes: Why rise of Paul Ryan, Chris Christie signals trouble for RomneyBeltway chatterers are telling Mitt Romney, who is down in the polls, he needs to go bold with his choice of running mate 鈥� and are pointing to Rep. Paul Ryan and Gov. Chris Christie.
'Welfare voters' are latest battleground in Brown-Warren Senate raceGOP Sen. Scott Brown charges that a new drive to register low-income voters in Massachusetts is a bid to boost support for Democrat Elizabeth Warren, pushed by a left-leaning group with ties to the challenger.
Congress goes on summer break: Top 5 things it left undone Members of Congress have skedaddled for the month of August, leaving behind a long list of unfinished business.What did Congress leave in the lurch? Here are five of the top pressing issues.
Who creates jobs? How economists see the Obama-Romney debate.The debate about job creation is becoming one of the central themes of the presidential campaign. The answers aren't simple, many economists say 鈥� especially in the current climate of employment malaise.
What foreign trip revealed about Mitt Romney's world view, gaffes asideMitt Romney wraps up a seven-day trip overseas. His immediate audience was abroad, but his message 鈥� self-reliance and private enterprise build better countries 鈥� was for American voters.- GOP roadshow: Senators pound on need to stave off defense cutsSens. John McCain, Lindsey Graham, and Kelly Ayotte are holding town-hall meetings to generate awareness about looming defense cuts. On Monday, they stopped in the military center of Norfolk, Va.
How Bill Clinton's prime-time convention speech could hurt ObamaDemocrats are excited that former President Bill Clinton will deliver a prime-time address the night before President Obama's big speech in Charlotte, N.C. But there could be a downside, which the Republicans are already trying to exploit.
Romney pressed to release tax returns. Watchdogs ask what about Congress?Democrats and some Republicans are hounding Mitt Romney to release his tax returns. But ask Congress members to release theirs and silence is the most frequent response. Double standard?聽
Disabled Americans: Jobless rate still high 22 years after landmark lawTwenty-two years after passage of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act, there's progress, but employment rates for the disabled remain dismally low. Advocates hope to change that.聽
Mitt Romney's overseas trip: where he's going and whyMitt Romney, the man who rescued the Winter Olympics of 2002, is making London the first stop on his tour abroad. From Britain he'll travel to Israel and Poland, with an eye both on policy differences and domestic constituencies.
Why gun sales spike after mass shootings: It's not what you might thinkAfter the Colorado shooting, gun sales have risen around the country. For some, it's because they want to buy a gun for self-protection. But there's a bigger reason, gun-shop owners say.
Colorado shooting highlights barriers to tough gun control: Obama and RomneyEarly in their political careers, Barack Obama and Mitt Romney advocated tougher gun laws. But as President, Obama has been largely silent on the issue, and Romney has embraced gun rights.
'You didn't build that': Obama's business quip is gift to Romney campaignPresident Obama was speaking of public infrastructure when he talked about government鈥檚 role in business. But his clumsy phrasing opened the way for a conservative attack.
Who's the real 'outsourcer in chief'? Why Obama, Romney both shoulder blame.The trend of outsourcing US jobs predates either President Obama or Mitt Romney, but both have contributed to it in different ways, according to one economist.聽
Obama tax proposal: Who makes more than $250k, and are they rich?President Obama has proposed extending the Bush-era tax cuts for households making less than $250,000 a year. Here's a look at who would end up paying higher taxes.
Obama tax-cut plan: easing risk of 'fiscal cliff'?Not extending the Bush-era tax cuts for the rich could cut the federal deficit by $81 billion in 2013, but it could also damage the economy by reining in spending by the highest-earning Americans.
