partisanship news stories on Newser

In Epic Statement, Lugar Rips Foe, Congress

Kevin Spak — Wed, 09 May 2012 11:37:55 CDT

Dick Lugar isn't going quietly into the sunset. The newly deposed Indiana senator has released a scathing 1,425-word statement lambasting his party, his opponent, and Congress in general, Politico reports. Lugar says he wants opponent Richard Mourdock to win because he wants to see a GOP majority for pal...

Democracy Is Dead, Welcome to 'Vetocracy'

Kevin Spak — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 17:21:27 CDT

The US isn't a democracy anymore. It's a "vetocracy," with a system designed to prevent anyone from doing much of anything, Thomas Friedman argues in the New York Times . The constitution's system of checks and balances "assumes—indeed requires—a certain minimum level of cooperation on major issues," he observes....

Olympia Snowe: I Quit Because Senate Is Hopeless

Kevin Spak — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 11:59:05 CST

Olympia Snowe has had it with the Senate's intractable partisan gridlock. In a Washington Post op-ed, Snowe explains her impending retirement , and she doesn't mince words. "Simply put, the Senate is not living up to what the Founding Fathers envisioned," she writes. "The greatest deliberative body in human history is...

Congress Is Done for the Year

Kevin Spak — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 09:03:52 CST

It's only February, but most lawmakers expect the payroll tax holiday extension be the last major piece of legislation Congress passes all year, as election year politicking brings the 112th Congress —not exactly known for its blistering pace —to a screeching halt. What will Congress do about the raft of...

How Obama Lost That 'Hopey-Changey' Thing

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:10:03 CST

In a lengthy New Yorker piece culled from hundreds of pages of internal White House memos, Ryan Lizza paints a detailed picture of President Obama's fall from the idealistic candidate who promised to usher in an era of post-partisanship. A week before his inauguration, Obama enjoyed an amiable dinner with...

Senate GOP Blocks Obama CFPB Nominee

Kate Schwartz — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 10:39:11 CST

As expected, Senate Republicans today blocked President Obama's choice to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau he created. Few questioned Richard Cordray's credentials for the job, notes the AP , which reports that the former Ohio attorney general fell victim to a "particularly nasty partisan fight." Only one of the Senate's...

Colin Powell: Tea Party Candidates Can't Win

Neal Colgrass — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 13:32:28 CST

Colin Powell took aim at Tea Party candidates, Democrats, and Republicans alike today in a plea for compromise on Capitol Hill. Speaking on Christiane Amanpour , the former Bush secretary of state said Tea Party contenders are too hard-line to win next year's presidential election: "The Tea Party point of view...

Dean: What's the Tea Party Smoking?

Polly Davis Doig — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 11:42:42 CDT

If nothing else, the S&P downgrade made for a lively August Sunday on the talk show circuit, with anyone who is anyone booking an appearance to sling some blame for the US' brand new AA+ rating . The Democrats pointed directly at the Tea Party and its refusal to raise revenues,...

'Corrosive' Partisanship Drives DC's Gridlock

Mark Russell — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 09:27:12 CDT

Washington's hyper-partisan gridlock is far worse than the usual political squabbling; in fact, this political breakdown "could be as corrosive to the political system as the possible financial default looming could be to the economy," writes Dan Balz in the Washington Post . Voters have chosen divided government "because the public...