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Obstructionism

Hey, House GOP: We Need to (Re)Build Bridges, Not Burn Them

Amy B. Dean | Posted 05.21.2013 | Politics
Amy B. Dean

Here we have an investment that would repair the beating heart of America -- its roads, airports, bridges, transit systems and energy grid -- and House Republicans would rather skip it and go golfing with their funders.

The Curious Case of the Silent Filibuster

Josh Kalven | Posted 02.20.2013 | Politics
Josh Kalven

Amid all the talk about filibuster reform, perhaps you've thought to yourself: "If filibusters are such a problem, why don't I ever see any news reports about senators talking through the night, holding up Senate business in protest?"

Whatever It Is, They're Against It: Health Care, the Courts and the Anti-Obama Agenda

Marge Baker | Posted 05.13.2012 | Politics
Marge Baker

The health care debate highlights the importance of appointing judges who place their duty to the Constitution over a partisan agenda. But it also crystallizes the agenda of opposition that has caused the Republican Party to go off the deep end.

Stop Over-the-Top Attacks on the Office of Legal Counsel, and Focus on Governing

Caroline Fredrickson | Posted 04.03.2012 | Politics
Caroline Fredrickson

Please -- cut the hyperbole, senators, and get back to work.

Time to Rebuild Our Foundations

Jim Wallis | Posted 01.10.2012 | Politics
Jim Wallis

A survey released this week by the Public Religion Research Institute shows that majorities in every major religious category, as well as the religiously unaffiliated, all believe that the country would be better off if the distribution of wealth was more equal.

Truman Moment for Dems

Brent Budowsky | Posted 11.22.2011 | Politics
Brent Budowsky

The idealism of JFK, the reformism of Ross Perot, the toughness of Harry Reid and the fighting spirit of Truman will make today's headlines look like ancient history long before ballots are cast in 2012.

End "Trips and Traps": Recess Appoint Elizabeth Warren as CFPB Director

Victor Williams | Posted 07.15.2011 | Politics
Victor Williams

Senate Republicans have preemptively filibustered the appointment of a founding director for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Without a director, the CFPB will not have authority to regulate both bank and nonbank financial operations.

'Cleaning the Gunk' out of Washington With Transparency and Accountability

Sen. Jon Tester | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Sen. Jon Tester

Accountability goes hand-in-hand with transparency--and Washington needs more of both. That's why I introduced two bills this week to boost accountability and shine more sunlight on government.

A Second Chance for Obama

Will Marshall | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Will Marshall

The Republicans' midterm triumph obviously is a demoralizing blow to President Obama, but it's also a second chance. Unlike the scores of Democratic l...

Nobel Prize Obstructionism

Chris Weigant | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Chris Weigant

It is downright ludicrous to say that a Nobel Prize-winning economist is somehow not qualified to get a job running economic policy for the government. Until Sen. Richard Shelby realizes this, Obama and the White House should point it out.

What If John Boehner Smoked Marijuana?

Robbie Gennet | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Robbie Gennet

Boehner's statements on cigarettes have a strong Libertarian slant. If that's true for lethal and addictive products like cigarettes and alcohol, why wouldn't it be true for recreational use of non-lethal, medicinal cannabis?

The Choice In November: A Congress That Works With The President, Or Doesn't Let The Presidency Work

Bill Scher | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Bill Scher

The country may be cynical. The country may be dissatisfied. The country may be angry. But the country does not want to stop Barack Obama. An ABC Ne...

Friday Talking Points [138] -- "Candidate" Obama Returns

Chris Weigant | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Chris Weigant

America (as, likely, everywhere else) always has a seamy underside, crawling with metaphoric maggots, to anything that is mostly seen as good by the m...

Tom Daschle On Senate Dysfunction: I Didn't 'Have A Clue' What I Was Voting For A Lot Of The Time

The New Yorker | George Packer | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics

[Former Senate Majority Leader Tom] Daschle sketched a portrait of the contemporary senator who is too busy to think: 'Sometimes, you're dialling for ...

Friday Talking Points [132] -- The DMV? Really?

Chris Weigant | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Chris Weigant

Last week, this column took a week off, due to an extended trip into the desert for the Netroots Nation convention. But now, we turn our sights back ...

President Obama, Make Congress Stay in DC Until They Pass Jobs Legislation

Dave Johnson | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Dave Johnson

We have a jobs emergency and the Congress has not acted. The Congress is planning to go on recess in August and the President has the power to make them stay until robust jobs legislation is passed.

Stop Playing Political Games with Wall Street Reform

Paul Hodes | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Paul Hodes

Across New Hampshire, people are telling me they've had enough of the Wall Street ponzi schemes and casino games. The American people know that we can...

No Justices, No Peace

Daniel Cluchey | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Daniel Cluchey

To nobody's surprise, Senator Kyl made it clear that the filibuster will be on the table for Obama's eventual Supreme Court nominee -- who does not yet exist -- whomever he or she may be.

Republicans Embrace "Party of No" Label

Chris Weigant | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Chris Weigant

If Republicans continue their tantrum once the Senate passes the reconciliation bill, it's going to be a lot easier for Democrats to convince independents that they, the Democrats, are the adults in the room.

Ryan Grim

Senators Engage In Bipartisan Civil Disobedience, Refuse To Halt Hearing

HuffingtonPost.com | Ryan Grim | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics

Jim Webb and Lindsey Graham had an unorthodox answer to a Republican parliamentary maneuver that blocked committees from meeting on Wednesday: Biparti...

Pelosi: Stupak Wants Health Care Reform (VIDEO)

Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appeared on "The Rachel Maddow Show" Thursday and weighed in on everything from Bart Stupak's threats to derail health care...

No Hits, No Runs, Big Error

Lance Simmens | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Lance Simmens

Senator, playing with people's lives is not a game. These childish antics only reinforce the cynicism and distrust that a frustrated and worried populace feels towards their government.

Friday Talking Points [113] -- Republican Reconciliation Hypocrisy

Chris Weigant | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Chris Weigant

As the dust settles on the aftermath of the health reform summit, not much has changed. Not that anyone really expected anything to change, much, to be honest.

NFL Football Inspires A Resolution For The Filibuster Nightmare

Stephen Herrington | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Stephen Herrington

Congress, long ago, adopted the filibuster without anticipating, as the NFL did, that the practitioners of the Senate might stoop to disrupting the game indefinitely in order to intimidate and punish the referees, in the Senate's case, the public.

Friday Talking Points [111] -- Use It Or Lose It

Chris Weigant | Posted 05.25.2011 | Politics
Chris Weigant

President Obama this week has successfully put the Republican Party on the defensive. This could be a fleeting thing, or it could be the start of a whole new way for Obama's administration to operate.