US Politics Special: Will the Democrats Fight Back over Jobs?

The Democratic response to the twin problems of the stagnant economy and the successful Republican onslaught on "irresponsible" government spending has been to play defense. Little has emerged from Congress, and nothing from the Obama Administration, to suggest that the Democrats have vision of how to stimulate not only the economy, but also a liberal base feeling battered by the conservative resurgence.

But there were signs last week that Democrats are beginning to emerge from the bunker mentality re-engaging Republicans with the case that more should be done to invigorate the labor market through government investment.

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US Politics Special: Does Planned Parenthood Pay the Price for the Budget Deal?

Following up on this weekend's analysis of the last-minute deal on the Fiscal Year 2011 budget that averted the shutdown of the Federal Government....

As part of the deal, Democrats agreed to hold votes in the Senate on repealing the health care law and defunding Planned Parenthood. At first, this budget agreement appeared to be a victory for the Democratic position, holding the line against the level of cuts demanded by conservative members of the House of Representatives.

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US Politics: A Beginner's Guide to Tax Rate Reform

To tackle the deficit, the government must sharply curtail the $1.1 trillion it currently "spends" annually on exemptions and deductions in the tax code. To give that number some perspective: it roughly equals what America spends each year on discretionary programs --- including defense --- and is about 2/3 of the yearly deficit. If these “backdoor spending grants” for special interests are eliminated, the commission contends, marginal tax rates can be lowered to broaden and simplify the tax base while increasing government revenue. Controversially, much of this increased revenue would not be used to finance government spending, but would be dedicated solely to paying off America's debt.

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US Politics: Getting Serious on the Federal Debt?

The stakes involved in America's debate over the country's debt crisis were significantly raised last week. Senior lawmakers, and some of the figures involved with the President's deficit reduction commission, have decided that a passive role on the sidelines is no longer a winning strategy for forcing Congress and the White House to get serious about talks designed to solve the debt problem. In an appearance before the Senate Budget Committee on Tuesday, Alan Simpson --- one of the co-chairs of the commission --- warned that if the United States did not attempt to deal with the debt burden immediately then, sometime within the next two years, the nation would face its worse economic crisis in history.

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