Timothy Karr, 2/7/12

Campaign Director, Free Press and SavetheInternet.com

Obama succumbed late Monday to the dark logic of the Super PACs. What's happening in 2012 is a transfer of money and power unlike any other in the history of U.S. politics.

Neeta Pal, 2/7/12

Research associate, The Brennan Center

Michael Shaw, 2/7/12

Publisher of BagNewsNotes, topping LIFE.com's 2011 Best Photo Blogs

If we want to take visual politics seriously, what Chrysler and its corporate Madison Avenue agency did in its ad can be best understood as anti-union.

Neil McCarthy, 2/7/12

Political Activist and Senior Partner at Allegaert Berger & Vogel LLP

Somewhere between the comical and the incredulous, the GOP has simply channeled its inner hatred. There is, literally, nothing they will give Obama credit for and a whole host of fictive evils the responsibility for which they regularly lay at his feet.

Adam Winkler, 2/7/12

Professor of Law, UCLA

Never before has a federal court of appeals declared that gay marriage is protected by the U.S. Constitution. Today's decision has the potential to benefit not only thousands of gay Californians but could establish the foundation for extension of marriage equality to all Americans.

Irwin Redlener, M.D., 2/7/12

Professor of clinical public health and pediatrics, Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health

Too many people -- including national leaders who should know better -- can't begin to understand what it means to be profoundly poor and the challenges faced by disadvantaged kids.

Bruce Reyes-Chow, 2/7/12

Presbyterian Minister, Social Media Hack and Dad to Three Girls

In a country that often sees race in terms of White America and Black America, like Latinos, Asian Americans live in a racial middle where we must choose between being Asian (or Chinese or Filipino or Indian) or American, but not both.

Nadine Smith, 2/7/12

Executive Director, Equality Florida

Whether on tax returns or customs forms, in the muddle of contradictory, nonsensical, and infuriating laws, married gay couples are refusing to identify as "single." Quietly, couples are refusing to deny their spouses and are willing to enter legally murky territory to take a stand.

Bob Edgar, 2/7/12

President and CEO, Common Cause

With Monday's announcement that PObama has blessed the workings of a Super PAC, I can only conclude that I and the rest of the reform community have been sold a bill of goods.

Michael J.W. Stickings, 2/7/12

Founder, The Reaction

Santorum's attacks could hurt Romney significantly, not just by depressing turnout but by reinforcing the deep divide in today's Republican Party between the pro-Romney establishment and the anti-Romney rest of the party.

Al Eisele, 2/7/12

Editor-at-Large, 'The Hill'

While he declined to offer an assessment of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, or compare his performance to his own as minority leader from 1987-95, Dole criticized the "use and overuse" of the filibuster.

Richard (RJ) Eskow, 2/7/12

Consultant, Writer and Senior Fellow, Campaign for America's Future

The real question is: Do we really want our charities to be marketing arms for the country's largest corporations?

David Leopold, 2/7/12

Past president, American Immigration Lawyers Association

The decision raised troubling questions about the fairness of the Postville convictions. Which brings me to Stephanie Rose, who just happens to be awaiting Senate confirmation of her appointment as a federal district judge by President Obama.

Charles Kearney, 2/7/12

Author, The Logic of Maps and Dreaming

In other words, baraka as a word and barack as a word each have deep roots in many ancient languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, Swahili, and others. But the gist of the derivatives has remained by and large remarkably similar throughout time: "blessed and lucky."

Charles Karel Bouley, 2/7/12

Syndicated host, KGO Radio; stand-up comedian, author, actor, and dog-walker

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals just declared Proposition 8 unconstitutional. Yes, this is a positive step. But these steps have been stomping all over members of the LGBT community for years, and most of us are tired of it.

Joe Peyronnin, 2/7/12

NYU Journalism Professor

No matter how the administration explains the decision, most Catholics see the proposal as forcing institutions run by the Catholic Church to violate the churches' own moral teachings. And, while well intentioned, this does not make sense and it is not smart politics.

Stewart J. Lawrence, 2/7/12

Founder and managing director, Puentes & Associates, Inc.; journalist and public policy analyst

His performance in national debates shortly after he was declared the winner in Iowa seemed to confirm the impression that he simply wasn't ready for prime time. So why is Santorum re-emerging?