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Credit: CNN With the surprise resignation of South Carolina US Senator Jim DeMint this week, there is high anticipation to see who Republican governor Nikki Haley will appoint to the vacant seat until 2014 when a special election will be held. While many people believe the front-runner is US Representative Tim Scott, there are a number of other names that may be considered for the appointment. Tim Scott (US Representative, 1st District) US Rep Tim Scott emerges as the likely favorite to fill

Credit: Gage Skidmore/Flickr US Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) announced on Thursday that he is resigning his seat in the Senate to head the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Sen. DeMint is a leading voice for the tea party on Capitol Hill and his resignation raises further questions on the future of the movement’s influence in Washington. The sudden announcement quickly made headlines across the country and shocked several political analysts, pundits, and commentators. Speculation on

Credit: Gage Skidmore/Flickr US Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) announced on Thursday that he is resigning his seat in the Senate to head the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Sen. DeMint is a leading voice for the tea party on Capitol Hill and his resignation raises further questions on the future of the movement’s influence in Washington. The sudden announcement quickly made headlines across the country and shocked several political analysts, pundits, and commentators. Speculation on

(Credit: Washington Times) Barely a few weeks after the conclusion of the 2012 presidential election, there is already much speculation about the 2016 elections. Kentucky US Senator Rand Paul has indicated some interest and former Florida governor Jeb Bush's name has been floated, most notably by his son. Just prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, Iowa Governor Terry Branstad announced his interest in eliminating one of the first events of the presidential election season: The Ames Straw Poll. He

Credit: MTV.com During this election, IVN made an effort to give fair coverage to third party candidates running for president, such as Gary Johnson, Jill Stein, Rocky Anderson and Virgil Goode, as well as independent candidates for national or state offices. Despite the limited success of the presidential candidates, 25 independents or minor party candidates were elected to state offices. The 2012 election marked record numbers of independents and third parties in government since 1942. At fi

Citizens in nearly thirty states have signed online petitions propagating secession from the United States. These states have filed their petitions with the We the People Program, a facet of the Obama Administration which attempts to facilitate citizen participation in government. Though the ability to petition a presidential administration is not a new concept, the online petition program is. Petitions bear little to no legislative power, but the implications of online petitions for secession a

Since Obama won reelection a week ago, the White House website has been flooded with petitions from citizens in various states wanting their states to secede from the union.  It is important to note that these are not official petitions by the state governments but rather petitions started by individual citizens. The threat of secession is nothing new in the United States.  It seems that after any election, people want their states to secede so that they don't have to live under a leader they d

For the great majority of mankind are satisfied with appearances, as though they were reality, and are often more influenced by the things that seem than by those that are.- Nicolo Machiavelli, The 8th Institute I began writing opinion pieces in 1973. It’s now 39-years later and in something approaching 500,000 words, I have expressed many opinions about issues and people. I have neither hidden my political beliefs nor Christian faith, neither my cultural values nor love of baseball. I have so

Every two years approximately one-third of the US Senate is up for re-election. The following 13 Republican US senators face re-election in 2014. Click here to read about the 20 Democratic US Senators who also face re-election in 2014. 1. Lamar Alexander (Tennessee) Before election to the Senate in 2002, Alexander was governor of Tennessee, US Secretary of Education, and a two-time presidential candidate. Alexander resigned from his position as chairman of the Senate Republican Conference in

of all US Senators are up for re-election. Every two years approximately one-third 1. Max Baucus (Montana) Baucus is the longest-serving US Senator in the history of Montana, having first won election in 1978. He has voted to allow concealed carry and was a major player in the passage of the Affordable Care Act. 2. Mark Begich (Alaska) Begich is the former mayor of Anchorage and defeated Ted Stevens in 2008, the longest-serving Republican US Senator in history. In his term in the Senate,