We're convinced that the Senate's power to adopt its own rules is limited to rules that do not conflict with the Constitutio
Chris Weigant | Posted 05.18.2012
It was a somewhat eclectic week in politics. The House -- in one of their rare moments when they actually meet and attempt to get something done -- passed a bunch of bills which have exactly zero chance of becoming law. Well, at least they had fun, right?
Lyle Denniston | Posted 05.17.2012
Does a case for banning the use of the filibuster in the Senate stand a chance of success with the Supreme Court? This lawsuit has real promise. But it will have to overcome some potential obstacles.
HuffingtonPost.com | Elise Foley | Posted 05.15.2012
WASHINGTON -- Would-be Dream Act beneficiaries aren't just angry that the bill failed in the Senate in 2010: Some also are joining a lawsuit seeking a...
HuffingtonPost.com | Jason Linkins | Posted 05.15.2012
Lots of people agree that our government is currently bogged down in a morass of dysfunction that's so disastrous that it's basically criminal. And I ...
The Washington Post | Posted 05.15.2012
According to Best Lawyers - "the oldest and most respected peer-review publication in the legal profession" - Emmet Bondurant "is the go-to lawyer whe...
Bob Edgar | Posted 05.14.2012
The filibuster does not extend debate -- its supposed purpose -- it stops debate. It's an affront to our democracy, and it has real consequences for real people. That's why Common Cause filed suit on Monday to stop it.
HuffingtonPost.com | Ryan Grim | Posted 05.01.2012
WASHINGTON -- Harry Reid, as majority leader of the United States Senate, has done "a terrific job," according to the most celebrated historian of the...
HuffingtonPost.com | Ryan Grim | Posted 02.29.2012
WASHINGTON -- Today's Senate is such a dysfunctional mess that it has become a joke even to the beleaguered man tasked with running it. Senate Majo...
Leo W. Gerard | Posted 02.11.2012
"We all do better when we all do better." Republicans don't ascribe to that. They want to set up a country where every person is responsible for every aspect of daily life, from ensuring drinking water is safe to reducing workplace hazards.
HuffingtonPost.com | Ryan Grim | Posted 12.11.2011
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said on Sunday that an agency established to protect consumers from financial fraud "is something out of th...
Geoffrey R. Stone | Posted 02.10.2012
In his ground-breaking speech in Osawatomie, Kansas, the president was telling the American people that he understands and shares their concerns, and that government has a responsibility to take those concerns seriously.
The Huffington Post | Arin Greenwood | Posted 12.08.2011
WASHINGTON -- This week's Republican filibustering of judicial nominee Caitlin Halligan brought to light a whole bunch of ironies. In Slate, Dahlia...
AP | By LARRY MARGASAK | Posted 12.06.2011
WASHINGTON -- Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked President Barack Obama's nominee to the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, partly as payback for...
Wilmette-Kenilworth-Patch | Steve Sadin | Posted 12.17.2011
Frustrated with Senate Republicans blocking a majority of 51 senators from passing President Barack Obama’s American Jobs Act, Sen. Richard Durbin (...
Chris Weigant | Posted 12.14.2011
The Occupy Wall Street protest continues. So far, its staying power has surprised and enthused a large swath of America, and surprised and bemused mu...
Bob Cesca | Posted 12.12.2011
When I heard President Obama announce The American Jobs Act, I mistakenly thought the Republicans wouldn't dare vote against "American jobs."
The Huffington Post | Luke Johnson | Posted 12.11.2011
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) criticized Republicans for holding up President Barack Obama's jobs legislation and defended his precedent-...
AP | ANDREW TAYLOR and BEN FELLER | Posted 12.11.2011
By ANDREW TAYLOR and BEN FELLER, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Republicans have voted to kill the White House jobs bill despite weeks ...
The Hill | Alexander Bolton | Posted 12.06.2011
In a shock development Thursday evening, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) triggered a rarely-used procedural option informally called the "n...
Adam Levin | Posted 11.15.2011
Last week's hearing on the nomination of Richard Cordray to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau featured prepared speeches that were utterly without sound and fury but still managed to do a huge disservice to American consumers.
Michael Bendetson | Posted 11.07.2011
While politics appear to be as divisive in nature as ever, Americans have managed to reach a consensus around one concept: government is broken.
HuffingtonPost.com | Zach Carter | Posted 11.06.2011
UPDATE: The patent reform bill cleared a filibuster on Tuesday by a vote of 93 to 5. WASHINGTON -- The seemingly endless congressional circus known...
HuffingtonPost.com | Amanda Terkel | Posted 09.02.2011
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is planning a Senate filibuster next week in an attempt to force debt ceiling negotiations into the open. "We'...
AP | JIM ABRAMS | Posted 08.22.2011
WASHINGTON — Many would-be federal office holders would be freed from nomination limbo with legislation to exempt some 200 presidential appointe...
Bob Edgar | Posted 05.22.2012