U.S. Congressional Politics

Antonio Villaraigosa's Quest for Wall Street, Washington and Wealth

2012 Election Results: Historic Night for Gay Issues and Candidates Across the United States

Four years ago, Senator Barack Obama won the presidency, but gay folks across the country were outraged that California voters approved Proposition 8, the anti-gay marriage ban. Last night, it was a completely different story -- and one of the most historic and significant nights for the LGBT comm ... More >>

Tony Kushner Explains How He Adapted Lincoln for the Age of Obama

Tony Kushner isn't shy about politics. He's opinionated, and he stirs up controversy. In his own words, he's a "man of the left." His 1992 Tony Award-winning play Angels in America tackled AIDS at the height of its epidemic. In 2005, he co-wrote Steven Spielberg's Munich, which took heat for its po ... More >>

The Iraq Vote: Howard Berman's Most Momentous Achievement Is One He's Come To Regret

In his 30 years in Congress, Howard Berman has established a reputation as a savvy Washington operator. That reputation has become his chief selling point now that he's fighting for his political life.Berman's supporters like to note that he has a long list of bills to his name, on topics as diverse ... More >>

Villaraigosa to Chair Democratic National Convention: First L.A. Mayor To Do So

Mayor V.​If President Obama is reelected, he might have to put L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on his list of people to thank. Villaraigosa is taking the high-profile position of chair of the Democratic National Convention this summer, which will take place in Charlotte, North Carolina, accor ... More >>

SNL Stars Whose Careers Have Done a 180

Art Made by U.S. Senators

$100 Billion Bullet Train

Democrats fray as cost skyrockets, feds bail, and Amtrak starts to look good

Congress Insider Trading: L.A. County Senators, Representatives Respond (or Don't)

NorCal's Nancy Pelosi finds nothing shady about her convenient investment in Visa.​As we learned on "60 Minutes" last night, many of the politicians we've elected to U.S. Congress have clearly been using their backdoor V.I.P. passes to gather exclusive intel on when to buy and sell stocks, bon ... More >>

Senate Blocks Obama's Bill to Limit Potato Consumption in Schools

cuorhome/FlickrThe Senate hearts potatoes.​ Hell no, potatoes won't go! Okay, we imagine it wasn't quite that dramatic on the Senate floor, but still. On Tuesday the Senate voted to stop an Obama initiative that would have limited the amount of potatoes and other starchy vegetables that can be ... More >>

Anthony Weiner Gym Photos Revealed: Nude, Near-Nude Pics at Taxpayer-Funded Facility?

TMZ​Anthony Weiner probably wishes there was no such place as Los Angeles. First an L.A. blogger revealed that the U.S. congressman from New York was sexting -- including at least one nude penis photo -- with women who aren't his wife. Now L.A.-based TMZ published 11 Weiner pics -- one nude, ... More >>

Anthony Weiner: Shirtless, Christopher Lee-Like Photo Revealed by L.A.'s Breitbart

bigjournalism.comBreitbart comes with more Weiner.​L.A. blogger Andrew Breitbart today blew the shirt off of Weinergate, revealing a few more racy photos of the U.S. representative, ones he allegedly tried to use to woo women. This as Anthony Weiner of New York admitted in a Monday afternoon ... More >>

Return to Sender

What would comprehensive immigration reform look like if the Feds got off their duffs?

FAIRY-y Tales

Congress Approves Child Nutrition Bill, Finally

Flickr/Sea Frostwhat Congress has been eating lately​ Despite some last-minute histrionics (of course), today Congress approved the child nutrition bill. The House passed the bill by a vote of 264 to 157; the Senate passed the bill unanimously in August. The legislation will expand the school ... More >>

[Updated] Senate Votes on Sweeping Food Safety Bill

Flickr/graymalkna farm in Northern California​ Updated: Yesterday evening the Senate passed the Food Safety Bill, otherwise known as the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, or S.510. The bill passed on a 73-25 vote. It now goes to the House, which is widely expected to pass it, and then to Pre ... More >>

The Weirdest Lottery of All

14 people will win the chance to un-gerrymander California

Soft Revolution Ends Gerrymandering

Under Prop. 20, 14 citizens chosen this month will remake state political map

California Election Results: Statewide Democrats Fend Off Republican Wave, Barack Obama Should Study Golden State for 2012

Colin Young-WolffPresident Barack Obama at USC​On a night when the Republican party took over the House of Representatives and made things tight in the U.S. Senate, Democratic President Barack Obama should study what California Democrats did right in their statewide races, fending off possibl ... More >>

Barbara Boxer vs. Carly Fiorina Election Results: California U.S. Senate Race Side-Steps Anti-Incumbent Anger, Exit Polling Predicts Democrat Boxer Wins

U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer​Update, 10:13 p.m.: The New York Times is projecting that the Democratic Party will retain control of the U.S. Senate, but lose the House of Representatives. Update, 11:37 p.m.: Republican Carly Fiorina refuses to concede during a speech, saying, "This is going to ... More >>

Proposition 20 and 27: Barack Obama's Home Got Carved Out Of His Illinois District As A Young Guy. California Incumbents Gerrymander To Remove Such Threats From Their Races

By Hillel Aron The original Gerrymander in Massachusetts: Governor Gerry salamander. ​Gerrymandering, in which politicians create stacked "voting districts" to fix elections, is a great original sin of our democracy. Three examples: 1) Barack Obama vs. Bobby Rush In 2000, Democratic incum ... More >>

Prop. 27 Gerrymander Supporters Duck and Cover

Howard Berman camp issues denial; consultant Michael Berman won't talk

Is This Thing Over? Brown Whipping Whitman In California Governor's Race

Ted SoquiMeg Whitman could lose this thing via the Latino vote.​It looks like Meg Whitman's undocumented maid might lose the former eBay chief California's governorship. The latest poll from USC College and the Los Angeles Times had Attorney General Jerry Brown beating Whitman 52 to 39 percent ... More >>

California Propositions 20 and 27: A Peek At The Gerrymandering Soul Of Congressman Howard Berman's Filthy Rich Handmaiden, Haim Saban

By Hillel Aron Mastering the Politburo​Haim Saban is different than you and me: he's the 287th richest man in the world, worth $3.3 billion. The Egyptian Jew, who looks an Ian McShane/Silvio Berlusconi cross, created The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. And he's the biggest giver to Proposition ... More >>

Duane Roberts, Green Party U.S. Senate Candidate Against Carly Fiorina And Barbara Boxer, Assails KPCC For Censoring Him From Debate

Green Party U.S. Senate Candidate Duane Roberts lashed out at public radio station Shut up, important people are speaking​KPCC 89.3 FM this morning for barring Roberts from debating Carly Fiorina and Barbara Boxer -- yet another incident in which Los Angeles and California media systematicall ... More >>

Aide To Sen. Barbara Boxer Arrested On Suspicion Of Carrying Weed

​Sen. Barbara Boxer might not like pot - she's against the initiative that would legalize marijuana in California - but one of her top aides allegedly does. Marcus Stanley, a senior economic adviser, was arrested on suspicion of pot possession after U.S. Capitol Police alleged he tried to "re ... More >>

Barbara Boxer And Carly Fiorina In A Dead Heat For U.S. Senate

Barbara Boxer.​A new poll this week finds that the mighty Barbara Boxer is in a real race for U.S. Senate: She's in a statistical dead heat with businesswoman and Republican challenger Carly Fiorina, according to Rasmussen Reports. The poll has Democratic Sen. Boxer leading 44 percent to Fior ... More >>

For $2,500 You Can Rub Shoulders With President Obama At The Home Of Hollywood Producer John Wells

​President Obama will be in Los Angeles this month to help raise money for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, according to Variety (via LA Observed). You can rub shoulders with the prez for only $2,500 when he meets with Hollywood industry supporters at the home of ER and The Wes ... More >>

Californians Top Capitol Hill's Beautiful People List

Via FacebookAllison Sadoian​According to KPCC (89.3 FM), 16 percent of the most attractive people on Capitol Hill are from California. "We just have a certain glow about us, maybe," Allison Sadoian, a legislative aide to Republican Congressman George Radanov said.

Desmond Tutu Criticizes President Barack Obama's AIDS Strategy

Rev. Desmond Tutu​AIDS Healthcare Foundation president Michael Weinstein isn't the only person slamming President Barack Obama's AIDS strategy, which L.A. Weekly reported last week. Now Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu has spoken out. "I appreciate that tough financial times require the ... More >>

Elena Kagan On Your Daily Fruit & Vegetable Requirements, Maybe

Can the government really make you eat your fruits and vegetables? Can Elena Kagan? Can Senator Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma)? Perhaps not, but they can force you to watch more Senate confirmation hearings. Elena Kagan will almost certainly become the nation's 112th Supreme Court justice, but that didn't ... More >>

THE HARDEST BUTTON TO BUTTON

Schwarzenegger's Tuesday Voting Attempt A Fail

​Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger got a do-over Tuesday morning when his ballot was rejected because he apparently voted for two U.S. Senate candidates instead of one (Meg Whitman and Steve Poizner?). The fail in Brentwood was caught on Fox 11 News live. The governor was apparently given two choices ... More >>

Maxine Waters Leads Challenge Of Comcast-NBC Deal

​Los Angeles-based U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters is leading a sizable group of congressional leaders in questioning federal approval for the proposed takeover of NBC Universal Inc. by Philadelphia-based cable and content company Comcast. Both entertainment conglomerates have a sizable presence in th ... More >>

Badlands: From Ground Zero of the Immigration Crisis Along the Mexican Border

Sheriff Joe Arpaio's Reign of Terror Becomes Arizona Policy, Thanks to State Senator Russell Pearce and Governor Jan Brewer

Native Not Envisioned

They Shoot News Anchors: Part II

Media moguls, not looters, killed Katrina’s truth tellers

The 9/11 Cover-up

What did Bush know about the al Qaeda threat?