2012 Elections

Budget Battles

  • The Great Debate

    Five Debate Moments that Changed Elections

    By Robert Speel, The Conversation

    Every presidential election year in my American Political Campaigns and Elections course, I get an opportunity to spend a full lecture discussing with students some of the famous moments from...

  • House panel says IRS official waived rights, contempt possible

    Lois Lerner Is Cleared, Sparking Conservative Fury

    By Rob Garver

    Concluding that “poor management is not a crime,” the Justice Department on Friday informed members of Congress that it would not be filing criminal charges against anyone in what has become known as...

  • GOP Leaders Take on Far Right Pressure Groups

    By Eric Pianin

    There have been plenty of theories about why Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) strode onstage at a conservative gathering late last week carrying a rifle. Ostensibly, McConnell, the 72-...

  • Romney: If Hillary Runs, She Won’t Need Bill

    By Thomas Ferraro, Reuters

    Failed 2012 U.S. Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney said on Sunday he expects Hillary Clinton to win or lose the White House on her record, not that of her husband, former Democratic...

  • Joint Session of Congress

    Voters Give a Thumbs-Down to Their Own Lawmakers

    By Eric Pianin

    In another sign of public outrage over a dysfunctional and politically divided Congress, a record low percentage of registered voters now say their own House member deserves another chance while even...

  • Tea Party Still a Threat to Lugar and Hatch

    By Eric Pianin

    Republicans Richard Lugar of Indiana and Orrin Hatch of Utah were sworn in as freshman senators the same day 35 years ago. They rose to the highest echelons of their party on Capitol Hill, and now...

  • Romney, After Big Night, Has Obama in His Sights

    By Dan Balz and Philip Rucker, The Washington Post

    Mitt Romney, whose first campaign for the White House ended in failure and disappointment, claimed the Republican nomination Tuesday night after a five-state sweep and turned his full focus to the...

  • Newt Gingrich's Last Day on Campaign Trail?

    By Samuel P Jacobs, Reuters

    Tuesday could be the final stop of Newt Gingrich's wild ride of a presidential campaign. The Republican candidate told NBC News he would reassess his candidacy depending on his finish in Delaware,...

  • Romney Aims for Five Wins Today

    By Steve Holland, Reuters

    Mitt Romney's expected wins in five states that hold primary votes on Tuesday will earn him scores of delegates on his way to becoming the Republican presidential nominee and allow him to concentrate...

  • Food Stamps: Desperate Need or Double Dealing?

    By Eric Pianin

    The House Agriculture Committee vote last week to cut $33 billion in spending for food stamps in the coming decade probably won’t stand, but it is emblematic of the vulnerability of this key social...