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Illinois lawmakers draft bill to keep Gitmo detainees put
Two Illinois Republican lawmakers have teamed up on legislation that would bar the use of federal money to move accused terrorists held at Guantanamo Bay to the United States. The bill, sponsored by newly minted Sen. Mark Kirk and two-term Rep. Aaron Schock, also would block the use of federal dollars for any future transfer of new foreign detainees to U.S. soil.
Santorum gears up for Iowa
Rick Santorum hasn't made it official yet, but it sure looks like he's making a run for the 21012 Republican presidential nomination. The Des Moines Register just reported this afternoon that the former Pennsylvania senator has hired a couple of key political advisors from Iowa.
Rubio adds former Cheney staffer
Freshman Sen. Marco Rubio has named veteran Washington insider Cesar Conda — a former aide to Vice President Dick Cheney and a longtime Capitol Hill staffer— as his chief of staff.
Last Congress gets a 'C-plus'
Amid all the talk of most productive Congress in generations, political scientists have come up with a grade for the way the institution operated in 2010 — a "C-plus," or just a slight improvement over 2009's "C" grade.
Check your tax refund? There's an (IRS) app for that
After years of the IRS "following" taxpayers, you can now track them via Twitter, and a smartphone app will let you track your refund status.
Obama not in favor of drug legalization
Facing a growing movement to legalize the use of marijuana and other drugs, President Obama on Thursday said they should stay illegal but suggested that governments spend more time trying to reduce demand, rather than punishing nonviolent first-time offenders.
(AUDIO) Sebelius on waivers: We grant waivers to more than 90 percent who apply
Nearly 800 unions and companies are now exempt from the new health care law as a result of being granted a waiver by Health and Human Services. The Senate Health, Labor, and Pensions Committee held a hearing on Thursday morning and questioned HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius about the impact of the new health care law.
Chaffetz says he was wrong to chide Bachmann
Rep. Jason Chaffetz has backed off criticism of fellow conservative Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann and her televised rebuttal to President Obama's State of the Union address, saying he was mistaken as to the timing of her event.
Health care reform loses ground in poll
Opposition to the Democrats' 2010 health care law ticked upward in January, as Republicans ramped up efforts to repeal the reforms, a new poll says. Yet while the public remains divided on health reform overall, a survey conducted by researchers from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health also showed there is no groundswell of public support for overturning the law that includes many individual components popular across the political spectrum.
Liberals make Bachmann enemy number one
Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, Minnesota Republican, has never been a favorite of liberal pundits and commentators. Groups like moveon.org and the Daily Kos have been taking shots at her for some time now. However, some are wondering if she has plans for 2012. She traveled to Iowa last week, and later gave her response to President Barack Obama's State of the Union to the Tea Party Express. It is no surprise she angers up the left into a complete frenzy.
Not everyone loved Obama speech
So much for Washington's bipartisan love-fest. While Democratic and Republican members of Congress broke tradition and — in an attempt to foster greater civility — sat together for President Obama's State of the Union speech Tuesday night, Rep. Paul Broun was holed up in his office firing off nasty Twitter posts about the president and his speech.
State of the Union speech meant to resurrect Obama campaign '08 vibe
Make no mistake. President Obama's State of the Union Speech was only about his 2012 re-election campaign.
New SOTU seating causing jr. high school headaches
The State of the Union traditionally has lawmakers from both chambers sitting in the House chamber solely with their Party on one side of the aisle. If the president is a Republican, it is expected that the GOP side of the aisle will make standing ovations for the president's remarks more often than the Democratic side would. The reverse is when the president is a Democrat. From a birds-eye view, it is simply one side of the room making the noise and doing the standing most of the time.
Obama's John Hancock most popular, poll says
He's never won an Oscar or scored a game winning World Cup goal, but President Obama has beat out movie stars, professional athletes and other celebrities in a poll ranking the most sought-after autographs.
Pro-life leaders accept awards to further work
Right to Life's UN representative Jeane Head was one of six recipients of a pro-life award from Life Prizes on Saturday. Ms. Head told the audience about her work, where she works with UN member nations to keep abortion from being recognized as an international human right.
Self-proclaimed pro-life Democratic senator says little about pro-life march
Self-professed pro-life Democrat Robert Casey has little to say about annual pro-life march on Washington.
Cantor: Maybe the SOTU 'sitting thing is a first step'
Congressman Eric Cantor, Virginia Republican talks about who he is willing to sit next to at the State of the Union on Tuesday.
Polls shows Romney in GOP lead for 2012
A new Rasmussen Reports survey of likely Republican primary voters shows that Mitt Romney leads the pack with the support of 24 percent. Sarah Palin, the party’s nominee for vice president in 2008, runs second with 19 percent, closely followed by Mike Huckabee with 17 percent.
38th anniversary of Roe v. Wade brings pro-lifers to D.C.
Pro-life movement leaders and activists are in Washington this weekend to mark the 38th anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling Roe v. Wade--a court decision that legalized abortion across the nation. The annual march for life will happen on Monday, but before the march, pro-life activists are gathering together. On Saturday night, Life Prizes, an initiative of the Gerard Health Foundation and a private charity foundation, will be giving awards to activists within the movement that looks to eventually overturn Roe v. Wade.
