All Politics Voices
It鈥檚 not all gridlock: what Republicans can accomplish in the 114th CongressNow that Republicans control the Senate, we鈥檙e likely to see more robust negotiations between Congress and President Obama.听It will be very difficult for the president use his political capital to veto legislation if there is a good chance it can be overridden.
Why a 'manufactured story' is often in the eye of the beholderThe cry of 'manufactured story' arises when one side is aggrieved that the other side is making a big deal out of something the former sees as trivial.
Why the 'donor class' matters, especially in the GOP presidential scrumRepublican presidential hopefuls are assiduously courting mega-rich elite potential donors, whose financial support is crucial聽in the wide-open 2016 GOP primary.
Tom Coburn: farewell to a rabble-rousing statesmanTom Coburn, who delivered babies before running for Congress, relished taking on sacred cows and special interests. But he also understood that both sides had to give a little.
Why the Supreme Court, this time, may take up same-sex marriage caseAlthough the high court declined to take up the constitutionality of same-sex marriage laws earlier this year, now there is a disagreement among federal appeals courts on the issue.听
Only one man has 'blood on his hands' in NY police shootings, and that's the gunmanWenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos were shot by a gunman, who killed himself as fellow police officers closed in. Mayor聽DeBlasio may have bungled his relationship with the NYPD but that hardly makes him responsible for murder.
Why Vermont abandoned its single-payer health-care planAdvocates saw Vermont as the ideal laboratory for hatching a single payer system that might even serve as a role model for other states. But the price tag 鈥撀�$2.6 billion in a state with revenues totaling about $2 billion a year 鈥� was out of reach.
Sony to allow limited screenings of 'The Interview,' smaller theaters rebookPresident Obama was correct to criticize Sony, and by extension the theater owners and distributors, for caving in to threats so quickly. The consequences open up other American businesses to extortion that would be very hard to combat.
China losing patience with Pyongyang? Don't believe it until you see it happen.Despite reports earlier this year that North Korea was 'on the verge of collapse,' the Kim regime has survived for another year and collapse seems unlikely.听
Young turks and old bullsYoung turk flamethrowers tend to mellow into old bulls of the Establishment. It's the way of Washington. It's also why to expect creeping pragmatism in the new Congress.
Did '24' help make torture acceptable?Most Americans think that torture was justified in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks. The TV drama '24' debuted soon after those attacks and ran for eight seasons. But '24' also showed a cost to those who tortured others, even if the victims were bad guys.
Jeb Bush: upsides and downsides for a 2016 presidential runJeb Bush hasn鈥檛 been actively in the middle of the Washington political game for a decade, and politics has changed rapidly since then. He's not an ideologue or a populist 鈥� and that's good.听
Rand Paul breaks with other 2016 GOP contenders to back Obama's opening to CubaThe US has kept its embargo on Cuba in place since 1961 and it hasn't produced regime change, so there's nothing wrong with trying a different path. But Rand Paul better be ready for tough criticism on that point from some GOP primary rivals.
Jeb Bush says he wants 'conversations with citizens.' Does he mean it?In sort-of announcing for the 2016 presidential race this week, Jeb Bush said he wanted to have 'conversations with citizens' before deciding whether to formally run. It's a tried-and-true rhetorical fig leaf.
Who is the architect of Obamacare? Well, we know who isn't.MIT economist Jonathan Gruber, who has said some controversial things about Obamacare, also said he isn't the author of the law. But folks like him 鈥� not legislators 鈥� are just the sorts of people who do write laws.
Congress鈥檚 real reason for passing a budget? The smell of 'jet fumes''Jet fumes' is shorthand for lawmakers鈥� fierce desire to get to D.C.-area airports. It often drives legislative business 鈥� and that鈥檚 not a good trend, a former senator says.
How a bipartisan bill about disabilities shows Congress's ability to workThe usually strife-torn House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill to help parents of children with disabilities. It shows how D.C. can find common ground.
Landrieu battle cry: 'The only poll that matters is on Election Day'When politicians say 'the only poll that matters is on Election Day,' they're telling you their candidate is behind. So we're hearing that a lot with Sen. Mary Landrieu ahead of Saturday's runoff election.
Is Obama favoring donors in ambassador appointments? That's nothing new.The Obama administration took some fire Tuesday for choosing a soap opera producer (and successful fundraiser) as ambassador to Hungary. But the president鈥檚 record has been consistent with those of his recent predecessors.
Is Schumer right? A top Democrat calls early focus on Obamacare a mistakeSen. Chuck Schumer says that his party 'blew the opportunity' 鈥� and, later, lost the Senate 鈥� when they focused on health-care reform, instead of jobs and helping the middle class.
