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Ohio’s Issue 3 Could Influence Federal Decriminalization Efforts
[An earlier version of this blog post was published by The Washington Post’s Monkey Cage blog. See here. Thanks to John Sides for his support.] Last Tuesday, voters in Ohio rejected… Read More
When Does Congress Repeal Legislation? A New Dataset of Major Repeals from 1877-2012 Provides Answers
Our understanding of Congress—and how we evaluate the institution—is shaped by the laws it enacts. Yet Congress often performs the opposite of law creation: repealing landmark laws. But despite the regularity and… Read More
Gun Control Remains Unlikely in this Congress
A post in July explained why gun control is unlikely to happen in this Congress. It was prompted by the shootings Tennessee and Louisiana. A shortened version of that post appeared… Read More
The Fallout: Does Boehner’s Absence Change Anything?
Speaker John Boehner finally succumbed to the three-year pressure campaign waged by House conservatives. As politically weak as Boehner was in his conference, he was never going to be forced… Read More
How John Boehner would Lose his Job: He Chooses to.
This is the week Speaker John Boehner will supposedly face a vote to remove him from the speakership on the House floor. Don’t buy the hype. Amid multiple headlines claiming… Read More
Conservatives’ Playcalling: Hail Mary… Repeat.
(Hail Mary, noun, 2. (FOOTBALL) a very long, typically unsuccessful pass made in a desperate attempt to score late in the game.) It appears Speaker Boehner may have another… Read More
Why the House is to blame for the Senate’s polarization
In the American political lexicon, the Senate is said to possess “coolness” and “wisdom.” Words like “decorum,” “comity,” and “respect” are frequently used to describe the institution as well. In… Read More
Gun Control is Unlikely in this Congress: Here’s Why
According to surveys, Americans support gun control measures like background checks and bans on assault weapons. Yet Congress is unlikely to act. Why? Read More
Will the Senate Go Nuclear Again?
Put this in the “it’s not really nuclear” category. Despite several accounts reporting that Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) plans to go nuclear, don’t believe the headlines. That said this is… Read More
Simulating the Vote to Remove the Confederate Flag from South Carolina’s Capitol Grounds
Do opponents of the Confederate flag have the votes to remove it from South Carolina’s Capitol grounds? In an attempt at answering this question, Charleston’s newspaper, The Post & Courier,… Read More