Politics

Politics & Government

Obama Fails To Accomplish Ambitious Agenda In 2013

8:00am December 23, 2013

President Obama has had a dramatic trajectory this year. He started 2013 fresh off a hard-fought electoral victory, going into a second term with a lot of goals. He ends the year with many of his priorities stalled and his poll numbers at all-time lows.

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Politics & Government

Congress Faces Farm Bill, Debt Ceiling In 2014

11:30am December 21, 2013

The Senate left town Friday, wrapping up the first session of the 113th Congress. Capitol Hill reporter Ailsa Chang joins NPR's Scott Simon to talk about the many things left to tackle in the year ahead.

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Politics & Government

How The Government Spent $2 Billion Paying Workers To Not Work

5:42pm December 19, 2013

by Tamara Keith

Two billion — that's the number of dollars the federal government lost during the partial government shutdown, paying furloughed employees not to work.

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Senate Follows House, Passes Budget Deal

12:08pm December 19, 2013

Congress has approved the bipartisan Budget Act of 2013. It temporarily ends months of partisan gridlock over spending.

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Push For Release Of CIA Interrogation Report Continues

7:31pm December 18, 2013

by Carrie Johnson

Democrats on the Senate Intelligence Committee are pressing for the release of a so-called torture report on Bush-era interrogation practices. But there are several hurdles to clear before portions of the report might become declassified.

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Study: Commuting Adversely Affects Political Engagement

12:04pm December 17, 2013

Researchers think an increase in commuting may be partly to blame for widespread political disengagement among many Americans. As stressed-out commuters disengage, they leave the political arena to the most partisan voters.

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Gov. Scott Walker Recounts First-Term Battles In New Book

12:51pm December 12, 2013

by NPR Staff

The Wisconsin Republican survived a recall effort last year after signing legislation that eliminated collective bargaining rights for most of the state's public employees. He writes about the political battle in Unintimidated: A Governor's Story and a Nation's Challenge.

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Obama Concedes Botched Insurance Website Rollout Cost Time

12:51pm December 12, 2013

by Scott Horsley

The Obama administration is asking for people who've been turned off by the government's problem-plagued insurance website to come back. Officials say the website is working better now, though it's still far from fixed.

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Politics & Government

House, Senate Negotiators Announce Deal To Avert Another Shutdown

12:30pm December 11, 2013

by Tamara Keith

House and Senate negotiators said late Thursday that they reached a budget deal. The agreement would restore some of the automatic spending cuts known as sequestration, and includes some relatively small deficit reduction over the next two years. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., and Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., hammered out the deal, which they characterized as a step in the right direction that would avoid another government shutdown in mid-January if both the House and Senate approve the budget.

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Protesters gather outside ALEC headquarters in Washington, D.C., on March 29, 2012, to protest stand-your-ground laws in the wake of the Trayvon Martin killing.

How ALEC Serves As A 'Dating Service' For Politicians And Corporations

12:07pm December 11, 2013

Leaked internal documents reveal new insights into the goals and finances of the American Legislative Exchange Council. ALEC brings together state legislators and representatives of corporations to develop model bills that lawmakers try to pass in their state legislatures.

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