Inside Capitol Hill

Just when you thought America was done with elections for a while, another race has succeeded in garnering the attention of the national media, spawning a series of attacks and negative ads, and transfixing the attention of political junkies everywhere. What’s unique about the special election to fill the vacant House of Representatives seat in [...]

On Tuesday, the bipartisan group of Senators known as the “Gang of Eight” released a blueprint for a dramatic overhaul of the way America deals with both legal and illegal immigrants seeking citizenship. Considered long overdue, immigration reform strikes us here at home more than most political issues. At Swarthmore, many of us personally know [...]

After the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut last December, many expected Congress to temporarily put aside its dysfunction and pass a limited but not inconsequential package aimed at regulating the sale of firearms. However, three and a half months have passed since the massacre, and a gun control bill has not yet come to a floor [...]

For both supporters and opponents of same-sex marriage, next week will mark a historic event: the Supreme Court will hear two cases relating to the laws and amendments that seek to limit same-sex marriage and whether liberties protected by the Constitution grant same-sex couples the right to get married. Whether such laws as the Defense [...]

Tomorrow, March 1st, is not only the deadline for the dreaded Sophomore Plan, but also the deadline for Congress to act, if it so desires, to avoid a trillion-dollar slate of automatic spending cuts. The “sequestration,” as it is called, was set up by Congress as part of the “fiscal cliff” deal at the beginning [...]

The 2014 Senate elections are likely to keep Democrats on the defensive. During the Democratic wave of 2008, the party won or held several seats in traditionally red states such as Alaska, South Dakota and North Carolina. Given the high number of Democratic seats up in 2014 (20 to the Republicans’ 13) and the conservative [...]

Hillary Clinton is perhaps the most beloved politician in America. While Barack Obama’s presidency polarized the nation and suffered from low approval ratings throughout much of his first term, the Secretary of State has maintained sky-high favorability. Though only days have passed since the second inauguration of President Obama, Democrats are already keen to see [...]