News & Comment
Blogs and Opinion
After Health Care, Immigration by Gabriel Arana, prospect.org | March 19, 2010
Without the 23 members of the Hispanic caucus, Democrats have little chance of corralling the 216 votes they need to pass health care. Ultimately, these legislators are expected to vote yes, but the Obama administration should immediately turn to overhauling the immigration system. Not only is it badly needed for its own sake, it is the logical extension of health-care reform — and a no-brain political win for the Democrats. Barring an entire class of people from access to health care is in itself deeply immoral, but it also undermines the very goal of health-care reform. read more »Progressive Breakfast: Sunday, Sunday, Sunday! by Bill Scher, OurFuture.org | March 19, 2010
On the menu this morning: Strong Deficit Reduction Smooths Path To Sunday Health Care Vote Student Loan Reform In Health Care Bill Republicans Embrace Bankers Before Dodd Bill Vote President Signals Support For Bipartisan Immigration Proposal How Different Is Kerry-Lieberman-Graham? read more »30 Million Reasons by The Nation, The Nation | March 18, 2010
If this health care reform fails, Obama will probably be forced to abandon the issue for the duration of his presidency, as will most mainstream Democrats. Conversely, a victory would suggest that the Obama administration and Democrats in Congress have the wind at their back and are moving their agenda. And it raises the prospect that more can be done — to improve the health care legislation. What about the legislation itself — what does it accomplish? On a concrete level, it expands health insurance to as many as 30 million Americans who are currently not covered; on a symbolic one, it makes clear that the government — not the market — is responsible for health care. Those are no small achievements. read more »Democrats: Vote Your Conscience on Health Care by Marjorie Margolies, The Washington Post | March 17, 2010
Dear wavering House Democrats: I feel your pain. Eighteen years ago, I was elected on the coattails of a popular young Democratic president who promised a post-partisan Washington. A year later, with partisan gridlock capturing the Capitol, there was a razor-thin vote on the House floor over legislation that Democrats said would remake the country and Republicans promised would bankrupt it. I voted my conscience and it cost me. I am your worst-case scenario. And I'd do it all again. read more »Progressive Breakfast: Conservatives Deemed Hypocrites by Bill Scher, OurFuture.org | March 17, 2010
On the menu this morning: Phony GOP Attack On House Rules Dodd Bill Hit From All Sides Bipartisan Bill Presses China On Currency Weak WH Jobs Forecast Conservatives Shill For Bank Lobby on Student Loan Reform Next Steps On Climate In Senate Unclear read more »The False Luxury of Time To Wait by Terrance Heath, OurFuture.org | March 16, 2010
If you believe the buzz in Washington, this week could very well be "make or break" for getting any kind of health care reform done — not just this year or next year, but for the foreseeable future. As a progressive, to me that means that no matter limited I believe the current reform package is, how much I wish it included, or what I would like to see restored to it, I can't in good conscience oppose its passage. read more »The Problem with the Legislative Process by Mike Lux, openleft.com | March 16, 2010
There are two things that are sucking all the life out of that surge of hope so many people felt when Obama came to office. The first is the perception that, early on, Obama chose to help rescue the big banks but has been more passive when it comes to creating new jobs for people, a perception which, while unfair in some regards, is reinforced by record profits and bonuses last year for the big banks we rescued while unemployment is stuck around 10%. The second is that the legislative process always seems like it follows the same depressing pattern. read more »Progressive Breakfast: Health Care Gets Parliamentary by Bill Scher, OurFuture.org | March 16, 2010
On the menu this morning: GOPers Complain About Rules They Used ... Again Dodd Tries To Thread Needle With Financial Reform Bill Jobs Tax Credit Nears Final Passage Today Can Senate Deal Its Way To 60 For Climate Bill? read more »Glenn Beck: Conservatism's Snake Oil Salesman, Pt. 1 by Terrance Heath, OurFuture.org | March 15, 2010
(Or "CPAC: Sideshow and Snake Oil, Pt. 2") read more »Progressive Breakfast: Health Care is In The House by Bill Scher, OurFuture.org | March 15, 2010
On the menu this morning: House Begins Reconciliation Process, Aims For Final Vote This Week Dodd Bill To Be Released Today China Digs In On Manipulating Currency read more »
The Latest
Poll Shows Democrats Lead On Issues, CNN | September 4, 2009
Despite the drop in President Obama's approval ratings, Republican policies are still not as popular as Democratic policies, according to a new national poll. A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey indicates the GOP has gained some ground in polls in recent months, but Democrats still hold the advantage on key issues such as the economy and health care. read more »
White House To Shift Efforts On Civil Rights, MSNBC News | September 1, 2009
Seven months after taking office, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. is reshaping the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division by pushing it back into some of the most important areas of American political life, including voting rights, housing, employment, bank lending practices and redistricting after the 2010 census. read more »
Obama Sets Immigration Changes for 2010, The New York Times | August 11, 2009
Flanked by his counterparts from Mexico and Canada, President Obama reiterated his commitment to pursuing comprehensive immigration reform, despite his packed political agenda and the staunch opposition such an initiative is likely to face. read more »
Obama Aims To Overhaul Immigration Jail System, Los Angeles Times | August 7, 2009
Pledging more oversight and accountability, the Obama administration announced plans Thursday to transform the nation's immigration detention system from one reliant on a scattered network of local jails and private prisons to a centralized one designed specifically for civil detainees. read more »
Senate Panel Backs Sotomayor, BBC News | July 28, 2009
Source URL:A key Senate panel has voted in favor of Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. The majority-Democrat Senate Judiciary Committee voted 13-6 to back 55-year-old Ms. Sotomayor. Her nomination will now go to the full Senate, where she is expected to be confirmed as the court's first Hispanic justice in a historic vote next week. read more »
Poll: Americans High On Obama, Direction of U.S., Associated Press | April 23, 2009
For the first time in years, more Americans than not say the country is headed in the right direction, a sign that Barack Obama has used the first 100 days of his presidency to lift the public's mood and inspire hopes for a brighter future. read more »
National Service Act Continues U.S. Tradition, npr.org | April 21, 2009
President Obama's signature on a massive $5.7 billion national service bill, which triples the size of the Clinton-era AmeriCorps program, harkens back not only to the days of FDR's New Deal but to an idea imbued in the American psyche since the country's earliest days. read more »
Prison Spending Outpaces All but Medicaid, The New York Times | March 3, 2009
Article Publication Date:03/03/2009One in every 31 adults, or 7.3 million Americans, is in prison, on parole or probation, at a cost to the states of $47 billion in 2008, according to a new study. Criminal correction spending is outpacing budget growth in education, transportation and public assistance, based on state and federal data. read more »
Political Fight Brewing on Census, Associated Press | February 12, 2009
Article Publication Date:02/12/2009There's still a year before Americans start filling out their census forms. But even before President Barack Obama has named a new director for the U.S. Census Bureau, Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill have begun bickering about how that person will carry out the once-a-decade job of cataloging the country's population. read more »
Gregg Nominated to Commerce, The New York Times | February 4, 2009
Article Publication Date:02/04/2009Senator Judd Gregg, named by President Obama as the choice for commerce secretary, once supported eliminating the department he is to lead. He differs with his boss-to-be in favoring oil drilling on the coast of an Alaska wildlife refuge. He promotes a lighter touch with China than does the president. And he disagrees with him in backing private accounts for Social Security. Given all that, Mr. read more »
