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...

  • San Antonio Mayor to Tout 'American Dream' in Keynote

    By Corrie MacLaggan

    Julian Castro, 37, mayor of San Antonio, TX, America's seventh largest city, will be in the spotlight Tuesday night at the Democratic convention in Charlotte, N.C., when he delivers the keynote...

  • Labor Day Blues for Families with Stagnant Income

    By Merrill Goozner, The Fiscal Times

    More than three years after the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, Labor Day 2012 finds American families still struggling to catch up from the devastating losses suffered during the...

  • GOP Not Alone in Cutting Costs for Public Pensions

    By Josh Boak, The Fiscal Times

    To hear it from Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie at the Republican National Convention last week, only the GOP is willing to challenge public employee unions. But when...

  • Candidates Tied As Democrats Look to Charlotte Convention

    By Steve Holland, Reuters

    President Barack Obama enters an important campaign week tied with Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found on Sunday, leaving the incumbent an opportunity to edge...

  • The Obama Presidency: Why Partisanship Prevails

    By Dan Balz, The Washington Post

    There is polarization in Washington as deep as it has been in modern times. Instead of cooperation, there is confrontation. Instead of civility, there is rudeness. The political system seems frozen...