Protests Staged to Back Obama Plan
About 1,000 union members and supporters of the Democrats’ health plan rallied in front of the Ritz Carlton in Washington, D.C., Tuesday to protest insurance companies and pressure Congress to pass a bill. Inside, America’s Health Insurance Plans held a meeting for its members, including CEOs of insurance providers, to discuss policy solutions to the…
Activists Pin Hopes on the Academy
For some Oscar viewers, the excitement this year is not which movie wins Best Picture, but how it will win. A change in the selection process this year is getting rave reviews from proponents of an alternative method of voting long favored by progressive activists. Using so-called instant-runoff voting, members of the Academy will rank…
Pentagon to Review Don’t Ask Policy
The Pentagon plans to undertake a yearlong review of the military’s Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy. Since Congress laid out the policy in 1993, gay and lesbian soldiers have been allowed to serve in the armed forces as long as they don’t openly declare their sexuality. Now President Obama and some lawmakers want to lift…
The Best Seats in the House
Once a year, on a winter morning, Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.) changes his routine. Rather than going to his desk in the Rayburn House Office Building, the 11-term Congressman makes his way to the House chamber. Arriving no later than 9 a.m., Engel takes a seat along the center aisle and waits. And then he…
Ten Notable Bills of the ’00s
It’s been a turbulent decade on Capitol Hill. From terrorist attacks to financial meltdowns, Congress has had its share of crisis moments to handle, even as it has swung from Democratic to Republican control and back. As the ’00s draw to a close, we at Congress.org pulled together a list of the 10 most notable…
