Politics & Government

Gun Hearing Airs Issues, Disagreements On Solutions

6:33am January 31, 2013

by Carrie Johnson

More than 200 people crowded into a Senate building on Wednesday for the first hearing on gun violence since the tragic shootings at a Connecticut elementary school. Lawmakers have proposed any number of new regulations — from banning assault rifles to closing loopholes in the background check system.

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Politics & Government

Immigration, Gun Legislation And The Shakeup In Iowa

2:27pm January 30, 2013

NPR's Ken Rudin recaps the week in politics, from the new proposals for immigration policy, to the Senate testimony on gun control legislation. Kathie Obradovich, political columnist for the Des Moines Register, about the retirement of Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and the politics of Iowa in 2014.

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Polling Firm Gallup Lands In Legal Hot Water

1:17pm January 30, 2013

by Carrie Johnson

The company's name has been tarnished by a whistle-blower lawsuit alleging that it overcharged the federal government, and by a guilty plea from a former FEMA executive for improperly steering business to the polling firm. For now, Gallup has been suspended from winning any new federal contracts.

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Politics & Government

Latino Voters Help Push Immigration Changes Forward

10:44am January 30, 2013

by Scott Horsley

President Obama told a friendly audience in Las Vegas Tuesday that the prospects are bright for an overhaul of immigration laws, now that bipartisan congressional leaders are on board. The new sense of urgency comes after Latinos turned out in large numbers last fall to help re-elect the president.

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Politics & Government

It's Time For 'A Rational Approach' To Immigration

8:36am January 29, 2013

An immigration plan announced Monday by a bipartisan group of senators would create a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants already in the country and overhaul legal immigration. It also calls for improved border security and better tracking of individuals in the U.S. on visas. Steve Inskeep talks with one of the senators behind the plan, Republican Jeff Flake from Arizona.

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Visitors take in a re-created scene at the massacre museum at Vietnam's My Lai village. Researcher Nick Turse says atrocities of all kinds were more common in the Vietnam War than most Americans believe.

'Anything That Moves': Civilians And The Vietnam War

4:06pm January 28, 2013

In a new book, Nick Turse says the pressure on U.S. forces to produce a body count during the Vietnam War led to mass civilian deaths. "The idea," he says, "was that the Vietnamese, they weren't really people."

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Vice President Joe Biden participates in a round-table discussion on gun violence at Virginia Commonwealth University with Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., on Friday. The panelists included people who worked on gun safety after the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting.

Politics & Government

Obama Administration Takes Gun Control Fight Outside Washington

5:36pm January 26, 2013

by Tamara Keith

With gun control legislation facing obstacles in Congress, the president's political team is looking for support outside the Beltway. On Friday, Vice President Joe Biden held a round-table discussion in Richmond, Va., with people who worked on gun safety after the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting.

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RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, shown at the Republican National Convention in August, has been re-elected to another two-year term.

Politics & Government

For GOP Comeback, Leaders Urge Stepped-Up Outreach

5:36pm January 26, 2013

by Don Gonyea

"I will talk to a head of lettuce if I can get them to vote Republican," says Sharon Day, the newly re-elected Republican National Committee co-chair. RNC Chairman Reince Priebus says the GOP needs better relationships in "minority communities, urban centers, college towns."

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Court Ruling Upsets Conventional Wisdom On Recess Appointments

6:51pm January 25, 2013

by Carrie Johnson

In a bombshell decision, a federal appeals court panel has invalidated President Obama's recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board. Legal experts say the ruling deals a big victory to Senate Republicans in an era of congressional gridlock, and could push the issue to the Supreme Court.

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The Cathedral of Alcala de Henares is one of many buildings owned by the Catholic Church in Alcala de Henares, Spain. The town, which is outside Madrid, is broke and is pursuing a plan to have the church pay additional taxes.

Spain's Strapped Towns Look To Churches For Cash

5:12pm January 25, 2013

by Lauren Frayer

Alcalá de Henares is re-evaluating the status of hundreds of church holdings that have been exempt from paying property tax for hundreds of years.

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