Tag: Congress

A new poll from the Washington Post and ABC News reveals mixed messages from the American public over the country’s budget crisis. With regard to fixing the federal deficit, trust in congressional Republicans edged out trust in President Obama by a slight margin, but on the issues, those polled were supportive of Obama proposals while rejecting Republican cuts.

Discontented voters who swept an historic Republican majority into the House last November are ready to sweep out that majority just as dramatically, according to a survey released Tuesday (pdf) by Public Policy Polling. The Republicans, who have been pushing deep spending cuts and controversial anti-abortion and anti-gay rights policies since January, have apparently alienated the independent swing voters who put them in power.

Democrats in Washington are catching on to the idea that they can’t capitulate to an extension of Bush-era tax rates for the rich without...

Less than two hours after President Obama suggested in a post-midterm press conference that Republicans and Democrats could find common ground on proposals to develop the country’s natural gas resources, Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune underscored environmentalists’ love-hate relationship with the fossil fuel. He said gas, abundantly available in Colorado, isn't he cleanest form of energy -- but it's a lot cleaner than coal.

The midterm elections brought an unprecedented number of climate skeptics into Congress, with no incoming Republicans acknowledging the existence of man-made climate change. Environmentalists have all but given up on passing significant climate legislation in the near future, but in the long term, it may be difficult for climate skeptics to hold their ranks: Young Americans are significantly more concerned about global warming than older generations, and there are no major organizations of young climate skeptics.

Now that Senate Democrats have indicated that they will not vote on whether to extend the Bush tax cuts before midterm elections, the biggest...

Tonight, after waiting 30 hours for a cloture vote, the Senate reauthorized the federal extension of unemployment benefits — moving one step closer to...

Results of a poll commissioned by NPR to analyze 60 House districts that elected Democrats and 10 districts that elected Republicans in 2008...

The economy added 431,000 jobs last month, dropping the national unemployment rate from 9.9 percent to 9.7 percent, the Department of Labor Statistics announced...

The well-worn theme going into Tuesday's elections — that a nationwide storm of voter unrest would spell mid-term doom for “big government” incumbents and particularly Democrats — was hardly proven. Indeed, two of the three high-profile races yesterday featured establishment candidates taking on other establishment candidates — with liberals coming out on top. If any one message emerged from the voting, it was that Republicans, who have been hoping that public discontent will translate to big congressional gains in November, may be forced to reevaluate.