NPR Topics: Politics http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1014&ft=1&f=1014 NPR's expanded coverage of U.S. and world politics, the latest news from Congress and the White House, and elections. Subscribe to podcasts and RSS feeds. en Copyright 2010 NPR - For Personal Use Only NPR API RSS Generator 0.93 Fri, 10 Sep 2010 11:01:00 -0400 http://media.npr.org/images/npr_news_123x20.gif Politics http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1014&ft=1&f=1014 Obama: Economic Progress Has Been 'Painfully Slow' In his first formal news conference since May, the president said the nation's economy is showing improvement from the deepest recession in decades but said he understands that many voters in November's elections may blame the weak recovery on him. Fri, 10 Sep 2010 11:01:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129773604&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129773604&ft=1&f=1014 In his first formal news conference since May, the president said the nation's economy is showing improvement from the deepest recession in decades but said he understands that many voters in November's elections may blame the weak recovery on him.

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]]> Happening Now: President Obama's News Conference LIVE BLOG: The president is expecting questions on the economy, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and the controversy over a Florida church's on-again off-again plan to burn Qurans. Fri, 10 Sep 2010 10:40:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/09/10/129772866/obama-news-conference?ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/09/10/129772866/obama-news-conference?ft=1&f=1014 LIVE BLOG: The president is expecting questions on the economy, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and the controversy over a Florida church's on-again off-again plan to burn Qurans.

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]]> Schwarzenegger Pokes Fun At Palin: Can't See Russia As He Flies Over Alaska The California Republican's "tweet" is a bit of a humorous jab. Palin will forever be linked with something that's often misquoted. Fri, 10 Sep 2010 10:18:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/09/10/129772467/schwarzenegger-pokes-fun-at-palin-can-t-see-russia-as-he-flies-over-alaska?ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/09/10/129772467/schwarzenegger-pokes-fun-at-palin-can-t-see-russia-as-he-flies-over-alaska?ft=1&f=1014 The California Republican's "tweet" is a bit of a humorous jab. Palin will forever be linked with something that's often misquoted.

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]]> Obama To Take GOP To Task On Economy, Tax Cuts The president is faulting Republicans for refusing to help him turn around the sluggish economy. Fri, 10 Sep 2010 09:05:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129771782&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129771782&ft=1&f=1014 The president is faulting Republicans for refusing to help him turn around the sluggish economy.

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]]> A.M. Report: Obama News Conference; Terrorism Study; 'Don't Ask' Ruling The president prepares for a news conference. A new report warns of the threat of homegrown terrorists. And a judge knocks down the "don't ask, don't tell" policy barring gays from openly serving in the military. Fri, 10 Sep 2010 08:15:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/09/10/129770343/quran-fires-obama?ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/09/10/129770343/quran-fires-obama?ft=1&f=1014 The president prepares for a news conference. A new report warns of the threat of homegrown terrorists. And a judge knocks down the "don't ask, don't tell" policy barring gays from openly serving in the military.

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]]> Obama News Conference: Economy A Hot Topic For the third time in a week, President Obama spoke about the economy, announcing a new head of the Council of Economic advisers Friday in a nationally televised news conference at the White House. He also continued to press his case that Republicans are responsible for the bad economy and are presenting no new ideas about how to fix it. Fri, 10 Sep 2010 11:53:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129775114&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129775114&ft=1&f=1014 For the third time in a week, President Obama spoke about the economy, announcing a new head of the Council of Economic advisers Friday in a nationally televised news conference at the White House. He also continued to press his case that Republicans are responsible for the bad economy and are presenting no new ideas about how to fix it.

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]]> Politicians Disagree Over Economic Fix Heading into the midterm elections, the economy continues to be the big political issue. President Obama and House Republican Leader John Boehner have offered dueling remedies. David Wessel of <em>The Wall Street Journal</em> talks to Steve Inskeep about the plans to get the economy moving again. Fri, 10 Sep 2010 04:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129768337&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129768337&ft=1&f=1014 Heading into the midterm elections, the economy continues to be the big political issue. President Obama and House Republican Leader John Boehner have offered dueling remedies. David Wessel of The Wall Street Journal talks to Steve Inskeep about the plans to get the economy moving again.

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]]> Bipartisan Tax Overhaul Faces Uphill Battle A Republican and a Democrat have teamed up to push a proposal for saving time, sweat and paper: a one-page tax return. But is there any way to streamline the tax breaks in the 3.7 million-word tax code? Each complication has its constituency and interest group lobbyists. Fri, 10 Sep 2010 00:01:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129750529&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129750529&ft=1&f=1014 A Republican and a Democrat have teamed up to push a proposal for saving time, sweat and paper: a one-page tax return. But is there any way to streamline the tax breaks in the 3.7 million-word tax code? Each complication has its constituency and interest group lobbyists.

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]]> Palin Backing O'Donnell Campaign In Delaware Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin on Thursday endorsed Christine O'Donnell's Senate bid in Delaware, hoping to give another Tea Party-backed candidate a final push to defeat establishment favorite, Rep. Mike Castle. Thu, 09 Sep 2010 18:24:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129759325&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129759325&ft=1&f=1014 Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin on Thursday endorsed Christine O'Donnell's Senate bid in Delaware, hoping to give another Tea Party-backed candidate a final push to defeat establishment favorite, Rep. Mike Castle.

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]]> Boehner's A 'Country Club, Cocktail-Drinking, Cigarette-Smoking Republican' Though President Obama has portrayed the Ohio Republican as leader of the "party of no," political observers see Boehner as more mainstream than Tea Party and apt to work with Democrats on occasion. Thu, 09 Sep 2010 15:35:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/09/09/129752532/boehner-s-a-country-club-cocktain-drinking-cigarette-smoking-republican?ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/09/09/129752532/boehner-s-a-country-club-cocktain-drinking-cigarette-smoking-republican?ft=1&f=1014 Though President Obama has portrayed the Ohio Republican as leader of the "party of no," political observers see Boehner as more mainstream than Tea Party and apt to work with Democrats on occasion.

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]]> Tax Code Overhaul As Tough As Doing Your 1040 There's broad agreement among economists that a new tax system should have few loopholes and relatively low tax rates. But that's where the consensus ends. Rewriting the tax code in Washington is tricky, and as one tax expert put it, right now there is no politically feasible fix. Thu, 09 Sep 2010 16:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129748978&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129748978&ft=1&f=1014 There's broad agreement among economists that a new tax system should have few loopholes and relatively low tax rates. But that's where the consensus ends. Rewriting the tax code in Washington is tricky, and as one tax expert put it, right now there is no politically feasible fix.

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]]> Court Lifts Funding Ban On Stem Cell Research The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has temporarily lifted the temporary injunction on federal funding for stem cell research. Melissa Block talks with NPR's Julie Rovner about what the decision means and the next steps in the battle over stem cells. Thu, 09 Sep 2010 15:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129756117&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129756117&ft=1&f=1014 The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has temporarily lifted the temporary injunction on federal funding for stem cell research. Melissa Block talks with NPR's Julie Rovner about what the decision means and the next steps in the battle over stem cells.

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]]> White House Makes Boehner A Household Name If you haven't heard of House Minority Leader John Boehner before, President Barack Obama is trying to change that. The Ohio Republican could take over the speakership if the GOP succeeds in winning a majority of House seats this November. Between now and then, Democrats will paint a scary picture of Boehner. Thu, 09 Sep 2010 15:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129756133&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129756133&ft=1&f=1014 If you haven't heard of House Minority Leader John Boehner before, President Barack Obama is trying to change that. The Ohio Republican could take over the speakership if the GOP succeeds in winning a majority of House seats this November. Between now and then, Democrats will paint a scary picture of Boehner.

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]]> Help For Poor Could Be Sacrificed To Boost Economy As Congress debates what to do about spending and extending tax cuts this fall, advocates for low-income Americans worry that several programs and tax breaks to help the poor will lose out. Thu, 09 Sep 2010 10:16:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129747980&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129747980&ft=1&f=1014 As Congress debates what to do about spending and extending tax cuts this fall, advocates for low-income Americans worry that several programs and tax breaks to help the poor will lose out.

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]]> A Closer Look At Past Tax Overhaul Attempts The complexity of the tax code makes it easy to bash, but efforts to revamp the system have proved that it's a real political minefield. Nevertheless, frustration over the tax system often reaches a fever pitch. Here are some highlights of past attempts at simplification. Thu, 09 Sep 2010 14:20:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129754766&ft=1&f=1014 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129754766&ft=1&f=1014 The complexity of the tax code makes it easy to bash, but efforts to revamp the system have proved that it's a real political minefield. Nevertheless, frustration over the tax system often reaches a fever pitch. Here are some highlights of past attempts at simplification.

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