The Nuclear Option

The Democrats in the United States Senate put an end to Republican obstruction last week when they voted 52 to 48 to end the filibuster. Called the nuclear option, the change to Senate rules allows for executive and judicial nominees to be approved with a simple majority vote. The minority party can no longer filibuster these nominees and require a majority of 60 votes.

North Carolina's New Voting Law Defies Logic and Fairness

Recently Governor Pat McCrory signed into law new voting regulations passed by the Republican supermajority legislature in North Carolina. The laws, according to the governor, are "common sense" and ensure there's no voter fraud in the state. Within hours of the bill becoming law, civil rights groups filed lawsuits against the new regulations. This law was passed even though there had been few instances of voter fraud in the state.

Coup Or Civil War In Egypt

The day after new protests erupted in Egypt the military in a show of support presented an ultimatum to Mohamed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood-led government. Morsi was to step down from power and meet all of the demands of the Egyptian people, or face being removed by the military on Wednesday. As the ultimatum deadline draws closer in Egypt, Morsi refuses to leave, insisting that parliamentary elections are needed before he should be removed, and that he doesn't have permission from the United States to remove himself from power. Most recently he stated he will pay with his life to preserve the sanctity of the ballot box.

The Legacy of Citizens United and the IRS

Recently acting IRS commissioner Lerner resigned from office after the discovery that it appears the Cincinnati office had been targeting certain groups applying for 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) status. The news erupted into scandal in the wake of a week of apparent scandals piling on top of President Obama. At first the problem looked as if the IRS was targeting only tea party groups for audits, while no other social welfare group received the same scrutiny. Was this really the case?

Will South Carolina Ever Learn ?

This week the state house of South Carolina voted to nullify Obamacare, making it a criminal act if anyone in the state tried to use any part of it. Do states have the power to nullify federal laws? This question has been asked before, and South Carolina is best known attempting to subvert the federal government with this method.

The Defense of Marriage Act and the Supreme Court

On Tuesday and Wednesday last week, the United States Supreme Court began hearing arguments for Hollingsworth v. Perry, the case that will decide the fate of Proposition 8 and United States v. Windsor, the Defense of Marriage Act. Both laws being challenged prohibit same sex couples from getting married.