Blog: Policy Shop

David Callahan has already posted a comprehensive analysis of Mitt Romney’s recently revealed assertion that 47 percent of Americans are entitled freeloaders, and it’s well worth a read. So I’m going to tackle another, related question: Why is there such a persistent, pernicious tendency to beat up on the poor? What psychological needs are filled […]

David Callahan has already posted a comprehensive analysis of Mitt Romney’s recently revealed assertion that 47 percent of Americans are entitled freeloaders, and it’s well worth a read. So I’m going to tackle another, related question: Why is there such a persistent, pernicious tendency to beat up on the poor? What psychological needs are filled […]

A 2011 protest of Act 10 outside of the capitol. Last Friday a Circuit Judge in Dane County, Wisconsin ruled that certain portions of the Wisconsin law known as “Act 10” was unconstitutional under the state and federal constitution. Act 10 is the controversial law passed by the Wisconsin legislature in the March, 2011, that […]

A 2011 protest of Act 10 outside of the capitol. Last Friday a Circuit Judge in Dane County, Wisconsin ruled that certain portions of the Wisconsin law known as “Act 10” was unconstitutional under the state and federal constitution. Act 10 is the controversial law passed by the Wisconsin legislature in the March, 2011, that […]

In a 4-2 decision issued yesterday, Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court vacated a lower court’s ruling that would have allowed the state’s controversial voter ID law to go into effect for this November’s elections. The ruling, which sent the case back to the lower Commonwealth Court for further consideration, is not the end of the legal fight […]

In a 4-2 decision issued yesterday, Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court vacated a lower court’s ruling that would have allowed the state’s controversial voter ID law to go into effect for this November’s elections. The ruling, which sent the case back to the lower Commonwealth Court for further consideration, is not the end of the legal fight […]

Another week, another distraction for the Romney campaign. This latest flap, though, is instructive. The revelation that Romney told donors that nearly half all Americans are basically freeloaders offers insights into the core ideas — or myths, as it turns out — that animate modern conservative thinking. The conservative framework that pits hardworking Americans against […]