Rep. Trent Franks (R) of Arizona arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington Tuesday. He is the author of a bill that would change US abortion law to ban almost all abortions after a fetus reaches the age of 20 weeks. (Carolyn Kaster/AP)
7:46 pm ET -House Republicans passed legislation Tuesday that would ban abortions after 20 weeks' pregnancy. The party's social conservative base is happy, but Democrats see a political boon.
- Immigration reform: Senate Republicans on the cusp of buying in? (+video)
- Immigration reform tying House Republicans in knots
- Is NSA exaggerating its surveillance successes?
- NSA chief: Snooping helped thwart 50 terrorist attacks in 20 countries (+video)
- Decoder Wire Edward Snowden a hero to many young Americans, poll suggests
- Decoder Wire 'Ready for Hillary': Are Democrats behaving like Republicans?
- Focus In the end, NSA might not need to snoop so secretly
- Gun control: Why Vice President Biden is trying again
- Decoder Wire Did Edward Snowden just disclose more secrets in online chat? (+video)
- Can immigration reform pass? Five senators to watch.
You Asked »
-
Why Washington and its debt woes eclipse 'jobs' as public's top concerns
- Where do big deficits come from? James M. Buchanan had an idea.
- Everything you need to know about budget 'sequestration' – except the consequences
- Obama's record on job creation: How good or bad?
- Why Obama beat Romney in fundraising for first time since April (+video)
More DC Decoder
-
Obama job approval drops 17 points among young Americans
The latest poll from CNN is bad news for the president, who rode to reelection on the backs of young and minority voters. But Republicans are doing even worse.
-
Sarah Palin returns to Fox: What did she say?
Sarah Palin goes lite on whistleblower Edward Snowden – 'nothing will ever be the same for this man' – and calls for 'more revelations' about what a 'big, overgrown government' is doing.
-
Dick Cheney: Edward Snowden a 'traitor' who likely spied for China (+video)
Officials and lawmakers are scrambling to explain the National Security Agency's massive surveillance program leaked by former intelligence analyst Edward Snowden. Many of them weighed in on the Sunday TV news shows.
-
In Syria, do Americans hear echoes of Vietnam and Iraq? (+video)
Polls consistently show most Americans oppose direct military involvement in the Syrian civil war. But that changes with the presumption that the Assad regime has used chemical weapons.
-
Decoder Wire Jeb Bush says immigrants 'more fertile.' Is that right?
In speech to conservatives Friday, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush raised eyebrows with the words he chose to discuss the benefits of immigrants producing many young workers.
-
Did Bill Clinton goad Obama into stepping up in Syria?
Former President Clinton told a private forum this week that President Obama would look like 'a total fool' if he followed public opinion too closely on Syria. Now the US is sending small arms to the rebels.
-
US military aid to Syria rebels: Why Obama is starting with the minimum
Obama's cautious shift away from providing only non-lethal assistance to Syria's rebels reflects continued deep misgivings about sending US arms into the war and a desire to keep a door open to diplomacy.
-
Decoder Wire Sarah Palin is back on Fox! Why is she reappearing now? (+video)
While Sarah Palin and Fox parted company earlier this year, Fox announced Thursday that she's back. Among the likely reasons: Washington has plenty for a conservative to comment on.
-
Decoder Wire Hillary Clinton makes a splash in Chicago, but not an overtly political one
In her first policy speech since leaving the State Department, Hillary Clinton made no firm declarations of political intentions. But she did laud the role of women in politics.
-
NSA surveillance 101: What US intelligence agencies are doing, what they know
US intelligence agencies are gathering massive amounts of US telephone calling data and social media data on both foreigners and citizens. Here are seven questions and answers about what is known so far.
-
Why Obama chose woman with no CIA experience for No. 2 CIA job
Avril Haines will be the first woman to be second in command at the CIA, but critics point not to her gender but her lack of CIA experience. Her choice suggests Obama wants a close ally.
-
Decoder Wire Chris Christie 'slow jams' the news: How'd he do?
Gov. Chris Christie, appearing on 'Late Night With Jimmy Fallon,' slow-jammed his decision to hold a special Senate election. He upped his cool quotient, but probably not with the Republican base.
-
Actually, Americans aren’t shrugging over NSA surveillance (+video)
Two new polls find that a majority of Americans disapprove of the NSA's data-mining programs. The head of the NSA says he's ready to provide evidence they've helped prevent terrorist attacks.
-
Decoder Wire Edward Snowden: Who is he, and what kind of life is he leaving behind?
Edward Snowden, who leaked the information on the NSA's monitoring program, was a well-paid analyst for a consulting firm with a girlfriend and a home in 'paradise' (Oahu). All gone now.
-
Morning-after pill: how the politics of Plan B changed for Obama
In a change of course, the Obama administration has cleared the way for Plan B One-Step to become easily available to women and girls of all ages. Social conservatives are furious.
-
Decoder Wire Did Hillary Clinton just drop a presidential hint on Twitter?
Hillary Clinton said on Twitter that her next role is 'TBD,' prompting a flurry of interest in her debut on the social networking site.
-
Edward Snowden leaks: why Obama has a political cushion (+video)
Edward Snowden and his decision to speak out as the leaker of classified national security documents have deflected attention from President Obama. The political odd couples defending and opposing the programs also insulate the president.
-
Decoder Wire Edward Snowden: How much trouble is he in for leaks of NSA snooping?
Prosecutors would certainly pursue mishandling of intelligence and possibly espionage charges that could result in decades of prison time. But the first US challenge is to get Edward Snowden in custody.
-
How do Americans feel about NSA surveillance? Ambivalent
When terrorists strike, intelligence agencies are faulted for failure to 'connect the dots.' If that's what the NSA is trying to do with its mass surveillance of phone records and Internet use, how do Americans feel about that?
-
PRISM: What’s behind this NSA surveillance tool lurking about your Facebook page?
The PRISM program has been sucking up what most people would think of as personal information on Google, Facebook, Skype, and other Internet providers. What’s up with the NSA's secret surveillance effort?
-
How immigration reform might also spur young Americans to study math, science
Measures in immigration reform legislation would channel fees from high-skilled visas into investments for American students to delve into science, technology, engineering, and math.
-
Obama touts California as health-care reform model. Will costs really fall?
The impact of President Obama's health-care law on medical costs is hotly debated. On Friday, he argued his side, highlighting trends in a state where premiums by some measures may not change much.
-
Obama on NSA data-mining: ‘Nobody is listening to your telephone calls’ (+video)
President Obama defends once-secret counterterrorism programs, such as NSA data-mining, and decries leaks, even as he welcomes public debate over how to balance security with civil liberties.
-
US immigration reform: Why 'E-Verify' screenings, while flawed, will pass
E-Verify screenings of new workers, in use in some states, has the strongest public support of all the basic elements of immigration reform. It's included in the bill the Senate began debating Friday.
-
Decoder Wire Michele Bachmann hints at another run. Is she back already? (+video)
GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann, who announced last week she will not run for reelection to the House, said Thursday she is looking for a 'different perch' from which to advance her causes. As for 2016? Nothing is 'off the table,' she said.
Become part of the Monitor community