Bill Kaplan considers the possibilities for a Russ Feingold Senate run in 2012 now that Wisconsin’s Herb Kohl has announced his retirement: Two potential front runners, former Wisconsin Democratic Senator Russell Feingold and current Wisconsin GOP Representative Paul Ryan, have completely opposite voting records: Feingold Issue Ryan NO Bush tax cuts YES NO Iraq War [...]

Wars over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region have flared between Armenia and Azerbaijan for a century, and disputes over the the identity of the region simmered long before that. With a new war between Armenia and Azerbaijan looming over the horizon, it is interesting to note that the United States Congress maintains congressional caucuses to represent [...]

In the first month and a half of the 112th Congress, 187 Congressional Member Organizations — more familiarly known as “caucuses” — have registered with the Committee on House Administration in keeping with the rules of the House of Representatives. Caucuses bring together members of Congress who are focused on a subject, be it broad [...]

In the U.S. House of Representatives, one of the primary means by which a member of Congress can demonstrate an interest in an issue, besides the writing or supporting of a bill — is membership in a Congressional Member Organization, also known as a CMO or less formally as a “caucus.” As the 111th Congress [...]

The House Armed Services Committee appears to have a two year backlog in the release of committee hearing transcripts to the public. But these transcripts are not actually transcripts: they are links to WMA audio files, not text files. Furthermore, the links are dead and the audio now removed. The situation is worse than it [...]

We are at CyberWar, our national politicians tell us, and in a CyberWar we must be ever CyberVigilant and on CyberGuard against our CyberEnemies. Usually, showing up is a prerequisite for vigilance. Earlier today, the full House Armed Services Committee was called together for a hearing entitled “U.S. Cyber Command: Organizing for Cyberspace Operations.” There [...]

A number of political advocacy organizations need Americans to think of Congress in dire and extreme terms in order to attract donations and advance their particular causes. As Bill Nissim advises non-profit organizations: “The human mind can only attach one specific meaning or feeling to an item. Although the overall perception of that item represents [...]

As a report issued by the U.S. Census bureau this week shows, only the top income bracket in the United States saw its average income rise last year: everybody else’s income in the United States went down. It’s the poor and the middle class who are struggling; America’s rich are doing just fine and even [...]

In the House of Representatives, members have the right to form voluntary associations that are formally called Congressional Member Organizations but informally called caucuses. These caucuses organize around identity or interest in order to pursue policy, signal identification, or boost a member’s public bona fides in some manner. When these caucuses are formed, members of [...]

In the first eleven months of the 111th Congress, 276 Congressional Member Organizations — more familiarly known as “caucuses” — registered with the Committee on House Administration as the rules of the House require. A caucus focuses members of Congress on a subject, be it broad (the Water Caucus), narrow (the Congressional Caucus to Pass [...]