This week, Barack Obama will sign a 2011 budget that pleases the majority of congressional Republicans, and angers the majority of congressional Democrats. Expect the same to happen with the 2012 budget that will come up for a vote in half a year from now.

Congressional Member Organizations in the House of Representatives, commonly called “caucuses,” are a way members of Congress can work together on legislation that doesn’t fit into traditional committees or their chairs’ agendas. When caucuses are registered by the Committee on House Administration, one or more Representatives is identified as a co-chair. There are currently 597 [...]

Last year, the Department of the Interior published regulations to keep the carcinogenic and otherwise poisonous rubble created by mountaintop removal mining out of the streams that sustain wildlife and (if you want to be anthropocentric) feed into the drinking water supplies for millions of Americans. Last month, Rep. Bill Johnson of Ohio introduced H.Amdt [...]

The Senate Democrats sneaked a renewal of the Patriot Act’s worst spying powers without any hearings, and without any reforms, on February 15, 2011.

Out of the 15 Democrats who crossed the aisle on the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell repeal, only six have managed to keep their seats. That makes the anti-gay House Democrats a remarkably unsuccessful group.

The Democrats don’t appear to be gearing up for a fight to retake the House in the 2012 elections. They aren’t setting up an agenda of opposition, or reinforcing stands they’ve made over the last two years.

The strength of the Progressive Caucus within the House Democrats was dramatically increased by the election, while the strength of Blue Dogs was radically diminished.

The Ending Spending Fund arranged for its donors to all give their money in a coordinated rush, right after its “pre-general” donation report that reported zero dollars in donations. As a result of this scheme, Ending Spending now won’t have to report the identity of any of its donors until after Election Day, preventing them from becoming a campaign issue.

Since the Citizens United Supreme Court decision this spring, front groups representing the interests of corporations and wealthy Americans have been able to spend unlimited amounts in “independent expenditures” to influence congressional elections. As the 2010 election draws closer, more and more of that money is being spent. The contributors to these front groups are [...]

A list of the most vulnerable Democrats in the House this year shows that, to the extent that American voters are upset with Democrats in the House of Representatives, it’s not because the Democrats were too progressive.