Congress

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Dems' Tax Plans Raise Fears of Rich Rebellion

(Newser) - Over the last few elections Democrats have captured House seats from the GOP in some of the wealthiest constituencies in the nation, from northern Virginia to suburban Denver. But as the White House and leaders in Congress look to tax hikes to fund the health care overhaul, recently elected congressmen...

When Going Gets Tough, Obama Loses His Cool
When Going Gets Tough, Obama Loses His Cool
ANALYSIS
Jul 19, 2009 3:27 PM CDT

When Going Gets Tough, Obama Loses His Cool

Prez changes tactics, dials up the heat

(Newser) - Here's some change you might not believe: President Obama, he of the unflappable political cool, is starting to sweat. And he's also learning to adjust his strategies, writes Politico. Faced with a stagnating economy, troubled foreign relations, and a bogged-down health care bill, the president has (sometimes literally) rolled...

Gates: Public Won't Stand for 'Long Slog' in Afghanistan

Turnaround must happen within year

(Newser) - Americans aren’t going to put up with a ‘long slog’ in Afghanistan, says Robert Gates: if the public doesn’t see things getting better within a year, support for the war will likely falter, he tells the Los Angeles Times. “After the Iraq experience, nobody is prepared...

Dems' 'Monopoly' Helps GOP Hopefuls Raise Cash

(Newser) - As the 2010 election nears, GOP senatorial candidates are seeing a bump in campaign donations, the Washington Post reports. FEC filings show that in Florida, for instance, Charlie Crist pulled in $4.3 million in the second quarter, almost 4 times as much as his leading Democratic rival. Roy Blunt...

Silver: Don't Forget Wyden's Health Plan

(Newser) - When a bipartisan group of six senators sent a letter to Harry Reid yesterday asking him to slow down on health care reform, one name stood out to Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight.com: Democrat Ron Wyden of Oregon. At first glance, the liberal-ish senator doesn't seem to fit with the...

House Will Probe Possible CIA Lies

Panel Republicans decry inquiry as partisan politics

(Newser) - The House Intelligence Committee will investigate whether the CIA lied to Congress and violated the National Security Act, the Hill reports. The probe stems from claims by new CIA chief Leon Panetta and Rep. Nancy Pelosi that the agency regularly misled Congress.

Marital Woes Strike Ensign's Ex-Housemate
Marital Woes Strike Ensign's Ex-Housemate
ANALYSIS
Jul 17, 2009 3:30 PM CDT

Marital Woes Strike Ensign's Ex-Housemate

'Christian fellowship home' in DC was also Sanford hangout

(Newser) - Add Chip Pickering to the list of Republicans with fidelity issues: The former congressman’s estranged wife is suing his mistress for alienation of affection—in essence, destroying the Pickerings' marriage, TPM Muckracker reports. Oddly enough, Pickering lived in a Capitol Hill home that operates as a sort of boarding...

Senate Votes to Expand Hate Crime Laws to Gays

Five Republicans join in 62-38 vote

(Newser) - The Senate has voted to extend hate crime protections to include those attacked because of their gender or sexual orientation, mirroring a similar measure already passed in the House, the Hill reports. Five Republicans, including Olympia Snowe and Dick Lugar, joined all the Democrats present in supporting the bill. Other...

US May Lift Ban on HIV-Positive Travelers

CDC wants to end 'stigma,' but 22-year-old rule has some support

(Newser) - The CDC is considering ending the rule forbidding HIV-positive foreigners from entering the US, MSNBC reports. Congress voted last year to dump 1987 restrictions on entry to those with the condition, but the exclusion policy will remain in place until the department of health and human services lifts it. “...

Hill Aide Threatens Pesky War Widow With Jail

(Newser) - An apparently harried congressional aide picked the wrong woman to threaten with police action, Fox News reports. Marianne Stringer, widow of a Vietnam veteran, was petitioning congressmen to oppose a decrease in benefits for veterans’ spouses. When she politely emailed the office of a reticent lawmaker, the aide shot back...

CIA Assassination Scheme No Big Deal In-House

(Newser) - Not only was the CIA's “targeted killing” program an “open secret,” but there's also “less to it than meets the eye,” Robert Baer writes for Time. The former intelligence officer notes that the Washington Post broke the story in 2001, and a New York Times...

First Chinese-American Woman Elected to Congress

Dem Chu wins Calif. runoff to replace Solis

(Newser) - Democrat Judy Chu will become the first Chinese-American congresswoman after winning yesterday’s runoff House election in California, Xinhua reports. She fills the Los Angeles county seat vacated when Hilda Solis became secretary of Labor. Chu, 56, handily defeated her Republican opponent, cousin Betty Chu, with 62% of the vote.

Dems to Palin: 'No Thanks on Campaign Help'

Polled on idea, they give 'awkward' responses

(Newser) - Sarah Palin recently said she’d be up for campaigning for some Democrats, but the interest doesn’t appear mutual, Politico reports: Many dove for cover upon being asked. “That’s a new one on me,” said a Georgia rep before ducking into an elevator. “There may...

To Fix Health Care, Fix Malpractice Mess

But that requires ignoring special interests—an unlikely scenario

(Newser) - If we’re going to reform health care, we need to contain the vast costs of a malpractice system that chiefly benefits trial lawyers, writes Philip Howard in the Wall Street Journal. As it stands, “billions of dollars are wasted in ‘defensive medicine,’” and 60% of...

Shy Scientists Dropped Ball on Climate Change

(Newser) - The Senate will soon debate the climate bill passed by the House, but “even if we do get a global-warming law for the first time in 2009, in a sense we’ve already failed,” write Chris Mooney and Sheril Kirshenbaum on BuzzFlash. The issue’s 20 years old,...

Aug. Health Reform Looks Impossible

Divisions among lawmakers may make reaching goal impossible

(Newser) - President Obama has called for the passage of a health care bill by August—but that would require an unusually smooth few weeks on Capitol Hill, Politico reports. The Senate Finance Committee hasn’t released a version of the bill planned for early June; disagreements among Democrats in both chambers...

Dems to Probe Cheney's Secret CIA Program

(Newser) - Democrats plan to investigate the CIA program Vice President Dick Cheney reportedly ordered be kept secret from Congress, reports the Washington Post. The 8-year-old covert operation only came to light June 24 after CIA officials briefed spy-chief Leon Panetta, who then canceled the program. A day later, Panetta notified Congress,...

Cheney Told CIA to Hide Counterterror Program

Panetta has since ended still-secret program

(Newser) - Dick Cheney ordered the CIA to withhold information from Congress about a secret counterterrorism program for 8 years, CIA chief Leon Panetta has told congressional intelligence committees. The revelation, leaked by two intelligence insiders to the New York Times, serves the latest volley in the fierce dispute over how fully...

It's Official: Burris Won't Run

(Newser) - Roland Burris made it official this afternoon: He won't run for a full term next year, the Chicago Tribune reports. “I love serving the people of Illinois,” the current holder of President Obama's old Senate seat said. But “political races have become far too expensive in...

No House Resolution Praising Jacko: Pelosi

(Newser) - The House of Representatives will not consider a resolution praising Michael Jackson’s humanitarianism, the Boston Globe reports. “A resolution, I think, would open up to contrary views to—that are not necessary at this time to be expressed in association with a resolution whose purpose is quite different,...

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