Topic: U.S. House of Representatives

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Get irrational: 3.14 things to do on Pi Day

March 14 is Pi Day, which celebrates the mathematical constant measuring the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter (beginning with 3.14). Pi Day is celebrated internationally, and in 2009 it was decreed an official holiday by the US House of Representatives. Here are 3.14 ways to celebrate.

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House GOP pushes through curbs on No Child Left Behind

The House bill rolls back much of the accountability requirements for the No Child Left Behind law. It also locks in lower levels of federal funding. The Obama administration threatened a veto.
House votes to delay two health care mandates: Will it matter?

The U.S. House of Representatives voted to delay two provisions of the 2010 health care reforms on Wednesday. Though the bills are unlikely to pass in the Democratic-run Senate, the votes gave Obamacare opponents a chance to express frustrations with the reforms.
Liz Cheney, daughter of ex-VP Dick Cheney, will run for Senate (+video)

Liz Cheney announced Tuesday that she will run for the US Senate seat currently held by a three-term Republican senator. She kicked off her campaign with a six-minute YouTube video.
Texas abortion vote mirrors Americans' divided view

Texas lawmakers have passed a restrictive abortion law that could sharply reduce the number of clinics. Over the years, the sharply divided public view has become more conservative.
House farm bill leaves food stamps in limbo

A House version of the farm bill took food stamps out entirely – leaving them to be taken up later and separately. But if cuts are what Republicans want, the tactic might backfire.
Immigration reform: How is the House approaching it?

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives appeared divided on whether to provide immigrants living in the U.S. illegally a path to citizenship following a closed door meeting Wednesday.
Robert Reich Tax polluters, not students.

Republicans are willing to impose taxes on college students while shying away from taxing polluters; the GOP has it backwards, Reich says.
USA Update Arizona wildfire prompts Congressional hearing on logging.The right focus?

The Yarnell Hill wildfire in Arizona is 45 percent contained. Next week, Congress will hold hearings on how to reduce wildfires through better forest management. Some see political opportunism for logging.
Stunning farm bill defeat lays bare House dysfunction

The farm bill failed to pass the House Thursday after Republicans began tinkering with the measure, driving off Democrats who otherwise would have voted for it.
House defeats farm bill because of food stamp cuts

In rejecting a $500 farm bill that included cuts to food stamps, Congress temporarily sidesteps a paradox: Why are food-stamp rolls growing while the economy is recovering?
House GOP passes major antiabortion bill. Why Democrats are pleased. (+video)

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.
Energy Voices Keystone XL: Hot topic in D.C. Ho-hum in rest of US.

The House of Representatives issued another symbolic vote Wednesday in favor of the Keystone XL pipeline. But after years of debate, a new poll shows half of Americans have never heard of it. Is anyone listening to the Keystone XL pipeline debate?
'Obamagate' danger for the GOP: political overreach

Republicans are jumping all over what they see as major scandals in the Obama administration, including Benghazi, the IRS, and checking journalists’ phone records. But some in the GOP are warning against the perception of overreach for partisan purposes.
Why US Senate race in Massachusetts is Ed Markey's to lose

Ed Markey is a Democrat with high name recognition running in a blue state, and polls show him leading the GOP's Gabriel Gomez. But another US Senate race, in 2010, showed that Massachusetts voters can mete out some surprises.
In Gear Tesla Motors can't email customers, says North Carolina law

A new law passed by the North Carolina state Senate would apparently make it illegal for Tesla Motors to e-mail its customers, Voelcker writes. The law is an effort to prevent what the North Carolina Automobile Dealers' Association terms 'unfair competition' by Tesla Motors.
Benghazi emails: What do they reveal?

One email confirmed officials removed information about CIA warnings regarding an al Qaeda threat before the attacks in Benghazi, Libya in September 2012 from talking points the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations presented to the public. The administration released the emails in an effort to seem more transparent.
Officials seize AP's phone logs: What are they looking for?

The Associated Press is now in the news as well as covering it: Justice Department officials secretly obtained two months of telephone records from AP reporters and editors.
Minnesota governor expected to sign same-sex marriage bill (+video)

The Minnesota state Senate passed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage Monday. If the governor signs it, Minnesota will become the 12th state to sanction gay marriage.
Tax VOX IRS was wrong to target Tea Party. What about other political groups?

The IRS shouldn't have targeted the Tea Party, Gleckman writes. But the unsavory IRS actions should also shine a light on the law that gives tax-exempt status to political groups of all ideological stripes – not just the Tea Party.
In Mark Sanford race, a test of how much infidelity matters in South

Voting is under way Tuesday in Charleston, S.C., where Mark Sanford (R) hopes to prevail over Elizabeth Colbert Busch (D) for a US House seat. The Republican is usually a shoo-in, but the former governor's 'Appalachian Trail' tale of infidelity raised doubts.
$900,000 per inmate: World's most expensive prison (+video)

$900,000 per inmate makes Guantanamo Bay the world's most expensive prison. That's 13 times the cost of a super max inmate. Is $900,000 per inmate worth it to US taxpayers?
Howard Kurtz fired? Why the columnist is leaving The Daily Beast.

Was Howard Kurtz fired? The Daily Beast retracted his factually incorrect blog post about Jason Collins today, and 'both sides agreed it was best to part company,' he tweeted.
Opinion Obamacare faces new legal challenge: Its 'tax' still violates the Constitution

The Supreme Court saved Obamacare by deeming the law's individual mandate a 'tax.' But in that case, the law violates the Constitution's Origination Clause, which says all tax bills must originate in the House, not the Senate. Letting the law stand sets a dangerous precedent.
Energy Voices Sally Jewell: How 'green' is the new Interior secretary?

Sally Jewell's first moves as secretary of the US Interior Department show so far that she's embracing her dual legacy as an environmental steward with rare ties to the oil industry, Graeber writes.
Irked by airport delays, Senators ease FAA furloughs

The Senate re-appropriated money Thursday to reopen closed air traffic control towers and rehire furloughed air traffic controllers. Many members of Congress had already flown home to their districts, thus experiencing the delays affecting many air travelers.