Candidate

By Michael BeckeliWatch NewsIn the aftermath of Tuesday's Republican U.S. Senate primary in Nebraska, campaign finance watchdogs are concerned about...

I no longer take anything at face value. Like Freud asking, "What do women want?" I find myself asking this question without regard to gender...

WASHINGTON — Herman Cain on Thursday became the first Republican presidential candidate to receive Secret Service protection. Cain asked for the...

Almost a full month ago, I placed four names in the "Frontrunners" category: Michele Bachmann, Sarah Palin, Rick Perry, and Mitt Romney. This list hasn't changed at all.

Monday's Republican debate dashed any expectation that some populist candidate would rise from that side of the aisle, and in an honest way tap into voter resentment over the deep hurt that the Wall Street superrich have put on ordinary Americans.

At this point, there are only a few holdouts left on the sidelines, as most of the bigwigs (and some decidedly "smallwigs") have made their intentions known.

The Court's ruling will likely determine the constitutional limits of rescue fund provisions and define the boundaries of public financing laws across the country.

If I had to describe what it's like running for office for the first time, I'd explain it this way: Wait for a sunny day and seek out the tallest, thickest, nastiest tree you can find. Once there, strip naked and climb to the very top, wrap a blindfold around your eyes and jump into the thicket below.

the closer we get to the Nov. 2 elections, the more frequent all the mudslinging political TV commercials will get. Most of them are soul-sucking, brain-draining, amp-up-the-volume, corporate-paid trash.

One of the most important races that you haven't heard about yet in this election cycle is currently unfolding in America's Heartland. Thicke is turning heads, shining a light on current unsustainable food-production practices and oversight.

This week, a group of more than 130 former legislators, both Republicans and Democrats, released a letter urging for civility and encouraging candidates, once elected, to focus on cooperation to face our country's greatest challenges.

A full-scale interview on one of the prestigious Sunday shows is normally the gold prize for a campaign. There's a reason for this -- it is free. That was then, though, and this is now.

Tea Party candidates suffered defeats in yesterday's primaries in Indiana, Ohio, and North Carolina, but are enjoying varying degrees of success in Florida, Kentucky, and Utah. It's going to be an interesting election season to watch.

One way or another the Tea Party's future prospects are likely to hinge on whether their decentralized nature turns out to be their strongest point, or their weakest.

I'm not saying the Tea Party wackadoodles shouldn't be exposed by the Left, to show the lunacy and nastiness being openly displayed by some Tea Partiers. But it doesn't mean the movement itself is solely comprised of such gadflies.

The question is: "What, exactly, in the federal budget will you cut to attack the deficit?" Because the answers to that are going to be the most effective argument to make against the Tea Party movement's surge.

Corporations can now directly intervene in campaigns with candidate-specific ads. The only requirement remaining is that they not be coordinated with a campaign. But that's a requirement more of form than substance.

I think as people continue to see so much of politics as usual in this town -- partisan bickering and big money buying votes -- they are increasingly likely to vote against whatever represents the old politics for them.