Jeff Spross

The five TAP pieces that have made a stir around the Web this week. “Oscar Grant, A Victim Of American Fear“ “Flashback To The Bush Days At The DoJ“ “Summer Opportunities for Indentured Servitude“ “Slowed Food Revolution“ “Goddamn, You Should Read This Post“

It’s official. A new Democracy Corps poll finds that 55 percent of likely voters believe the term “socialist” fits President Obama. This concludes the semantic bleaching of the term “socialist.” It apparently now applies to an executive who passes market-based health-care reform, cuts taxes, and presides over a relatively bank-friendly financial-regulation bill. (Flickr/fibonacciblue)

It’s a bitter irony that only after being declared more or less dead on arrival, Sen. John Kerry’s American Power Act (APA) would get a political boost from a CBO score saying the legislation would save the government $19 billion over the first 10 years. (Specifically, it would increase spending by $732 billion and increase […]

Officials with the International Monetary Fund hold a press conference today, July 8, 2010, on the IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook. While the report featured slightly increased forecasts for global economic growth overall, it also predicted slower economic growth in the U.S. than the Obama administration has been anticipating in its budgeting. The IMF went […]

A girl walks her dog past the fountain in Washington Square Park in Manhattan. The summer heat in New York City and much of the Northeast has broken records in the last few days, going as high as 105 degrees in Baltimore. (Flickr/Ed Yourdon)

A protester marches against Arizona immigration law SB 1070. CNN is reporting that the Justice Department has just filed suit against the law. Most likely, the DOJ will also seek a preliminary injunction to prevent the law from going into effect. (Flickr/fibonacciblue)

Markos Moulitsas, the founder of Daily Kos, sued the polling firm Research 2000 today, alleging fraud and breach of contract, among other violations. Moulitsas was approached two weeks ago by three statisticians who were concerned about some of the polling results Research 2000 had provided. Two days ago, Moulitsas published the statisticians’ report, concluding that […]

Politico is reporting that senators from both sides of the aisle wrapped up their energy-and-climate-legislation powwow today with President Obama, who apparently reiterated his desire for a price on carbon and told everyone present to “aim high.” With an energy and climate bill already out of the House, this places the burden squarely on Harry […]

Gen. David H. Petraeus before the Senate Armed Services Committee today reassuring lawmakers in the wake of Gen. Stanley McChrystal’s departure that the military is still on track and that the July 2011 withdrawal date would merely be “the beginning of a process.” (Flickr/jonphillipsheridan)

With the passing of Sen. Robert Byrd this morning, Democrat Daniel Inouye from Hawaii is now the Senate’s longest-serving member. Sen. Inouye has represented Hawaii since it gained statehood in 1959, beginning in the House of Representatives before being elected to the Senate in 1963. He is a veteran, a recipient of the Congressional Medal […]