partisanship

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What's Up With Our Ridiculous Bill Titles?

Just try to say any of these five times fast

(Newser) - Remember when bills had simple names like the Civil Rights Act or the Highway Beautification Act? Not any more. Lawmakers are increasingly using these titles as a political tool, saddling bills with cumbersome and partisan names like the Reducing Barack Obama's Unsustainable Deficit Act or the Repealing Ineffective and...

27% of Senate Press Releases Taunt Other Side

Professor analyzes writings, finds lots of name calling

(Newser) - This could explain why Congress is having such a hard time agreeing on a budget: Its members are too busy taunting one another. A Harvard professor analyzed the writings of Congress members, and found that about 27% of the time, they're just insulting each other. “It’s jarring and...

A Goodbye to Olbermann Is a Goodbye to Wingnuts

America is finally demanding something different, writes John Avlon

(Newser) - Keith Olbermann, Glenn Beck, and Sarah Palin are “the best-known faces of the … extreme partisanship and the cycle of incitement that [is] dividing our nation instead of trying to unite it.” But now they’re fading away—Olbermann out at MSNBC, Beck’s ratings collapsing, Palin’s...

Whine All You Want: Obama Gets It Done
Whine All You Want:
Obama Gets It Done
andrew sullivan
Dec 20, 2010 1:50 PM CST

Whine All You Want: Obama Gets It Done

He's no Michael Moore—he's a pragmatist, and he keeps scoring

(Newser) - Frank Rich and Paul Krugman can rail all they want, fueled by their disappointment that President Obama is no “Michael Moore in chief.” These “brilliant men" are “profoundly resistant to the core rationale of the Obama presidency"—a strategy that’s working well as Obama...

Financial Crisis Panel Breaks Along Party Lines

Republicans dissent, place more blame on government

(Newser) - Republicans on the bipartisan Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission have broken from their Democratic colleagues to release a document placing more blame on the government for the 2008 catastrophe. The commission has split clearly along partisan lines, the New York Times reports, with Democrats placing the preponderance of the blame on...

Republicans Can't Wait for Debt 'Blood Bath'
Republicans Can't Wait for Debt 'Blood Bath'
Paul Krugman
Nov 22, 2010 9:52 AM CST

Republicans Can't Wait for Debt 'Blood Bath'

One of our parties just doesn't care about 'making American governable'

(Newser) - Alan Simpson must be a serious moderate Republican—after all, President Obama appointed him to co-chair his debt commission. Well here’s what this moderate said Friday: “I can’t wait for the blood bath in April. … We’ve got guys who will not approve the debt limit...

Ex-Lawmakers to 2010 Candidates: Behave!

130 former legislators calls for civility on Capitol Hill in letter

(Newser) - More than 130 former members of Congress banded together to offer a message to 2010 congressional candidates via letter: Stop the "zero-sum game" partisanship that has paralyzed the legislative branch. So many former lawmakers have never spoken with one voice to all congressional candidates, but they felt prodded by...

Court Becomes More Diverse—and Partisan

Flurry of recent appointments make court's political split apparent

(Newser) - The Supreme Court that begins its new term tomorrow will be very different than its predecessor. The most striking change may be the presence of three women on the bench, which Ruth Bader Ginsburg thinks will cause a "major" shift in public perception of the court. “When...

Obama, Stop Snubbing Progressives
Obama, Stop Snubbing Progressives
Paul Krugman
Jul 30, 2010 12:24 PM CDT

Obama, Stop Snubbing Progressives

This one's easy: Pick Elizabeth Warren

(Newser) - President Obama is having well-documented troubles with progressives , partly because their "sky-high expectations" have collided with political reality, writes Paul Krugman. But the president deserves a fair share of the scorn because of his "consistent snubbing of those who made him what he is." The latest: his...

Obama: Congress Is Hypocritical on Oil Spill

Same pols screaming about slow response would have blocked regulation

(Newser) - President Obama wants some members of Congress slamming his response to the Gulf oil spill to know they can't have it both ways, he tells Politico. "If six months ago, I had gone up to Congress and I had said we need to crack down a lot harder on...

SEC Shouldn't Knife Goldman on a Split Vote
SEC Shouldn't Knife Goldman on a Split Vote
Henry Blodget
Apr 20, 2010 12:21 PM CDT

SEC Shouldn't Knife Goldman on a Split Vote

Fraud charges too serious to bring without even 5 people onboard

(Newser) - When the SEC charged Goldman Sachs with fraud, it rocked global markets and cost Goldman shareholders $12 billion—all for a charge that only 3 of the 5 SEC commissioners could agree to. That just seems wrong to Henry Blodget of Business Insider . “Fraud is a serious charge,”...

Goldman Case Splits SEC Along Party Lines

Decision came after months of secret negotiations failed

(Newser) - The decision to go after Goldman split the SEC along party lines and came only after months of secret talks broke down. Though the commission generally aims for unanimity, they voted, 3-2, to proceed with the civil suit despite opposition from two Republican members. The tiebreaker was an Independent commissioner...

Don't Fan the Flames&mdash; We'll All Get Burned
 Don't Fan the Flames— 
 We'll All Get Burned 


PEGGY NOONAN
Mar 26, 2010 8:10 AM CDT

Don't Fan the Flames— We'll All Get Burned

Political rage is a national problem, not a partisan one

(Newser) - America's white-hot political rage is a national problem, not a partisan one—and if we're not careful, we'll all get burned. The Democrats are right to call attention to threats to lawmakers but they shouldn't treat this as a political opportunity, writes Peggy Noonan for the Wall Street Journal . "...

Right, Left Are Blind to Obama's Centrism

Prez is neither a pushover nor a big-government liberal

(Newser) - If you believe President Obama is either a ruthless big-government liberal or an ineffective, overly intellectual leader, it probably says more about your politics than his, argues David Brooks. Obama is, and always has been "a center-left pragmatic reformer" who believes in "a moderately activist government restrained by...

Mag Names Most Liberal, Conservative Lawmakers

Rankings show ideology trumping Obama's change agenda

(Newser) - National Journal 's rankings of the most liberal and conservative lawmakers confirm that President Obama's first term has had little effect on the partisan atmosphere in Congress. Most members stick to the ideological positions they've staked out for most of their careers, with Sherrod Brown, John Kerry, and Chris...

Frustration Mounts at Health Care Summit
 Frustration Mounts at 
 Health Care Summit 

Halftime
Feb 25, 2010 12:57 PM CST

Frustration Mounts at Health Care Summit

President slams Cantor for using 'props'

(Newser) - Barack Obama began the day by expressing hope “that this discussion is actually a discussion and not just us trading talking points.” But by the time Republicans and Democrats broke for lunch, the sides didn’t look any closer to compromise. “In spite of the many hours...

Greek Debt Crisis Is Warning for US
 Greek Debt Crisis 
 Is Warning for US 
OPINION
Feb 17, 2010 1:24 AM CST

Greek Debt Crisis Is Warning for US

Partisan deadlock allowed budget problems to fester

(Newser) - America's on course to become much more like Greece and not in a good way, warns Anne Applebaum. Greece is bankrupt because of financial weaknesses that were allowed to fester for years. Its budget deficit ballooned largely because the nation's deeply partisan political system was paralyzed and no cuts could...

Evan Bayh Calls It Quits
 Evan Bayh Calls It Quits 
Feb 15, 2010 10:27 AM CST

Evan Bayh Calls It Quits

Indiana senator says partisan bickering drove him out of politics

(Newser) - Evan Bayh won’t seek reelection, he announced today, saying he was sick of the partisan rancor in Washington. “My decision was not motivated by political concerns,” the Indiana Democrat said in a statement. “Even in the current challenging environment, I am confident in my prospects for...

UK-Style Question Time Isn't What US Needs
 UK-Style Question Time 
 Isn't What US Needs 
PEGGY NOONAN
Feb 5, 2010 8:34 AM CST

UK-Style Question Time Isn't What US Needs

Terror threat calls for unity, not more partisanship

(Newser) - Question Time—in which opposition British politicians grill the prime minister every week—is great political theater but probably wouldn't translate so well to the US, writes Peggy Noonan. The idea has its pluses, but American politicians don't seem able to insult each other with the skill and elegance of...

Obama Must Use 'Shame,' GOP's 'Sketchy Bladders'

Democrats should make GOP pay for being obstructionists

(Newser) - With bipartisanship dead and Republicans in love with the filibuster, Barack Obama has few weapons. Marc Ambinder surveys the landscape and comes up with a measly two—shame and the "sketchy bladders" of old white Republicans. First, Obama must "shame Republicans. Increase the costs of not doing business"...

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