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In April of this year, a federal judge struck down Wisconsin’s voter ID law, claiming that the measure placed an unfair burden on older and low-income citizens, particularly minorities. Yesterday, less than two months before the midterm election and with the governor election in a dead heat, a federal appeals court ruled to reinstate the law requiring voters to show photo identification when casting ballots. The Wisconsin Legislature passed the voter ID law in 2011, but it had never gone into

Oscar the Grouch, the cranky Sesame Street character who lives in a garbage can, was used in reference to veterans who attended the mandated town-hall style events in Philadelphia, resulting in plenty of raised eyebrows from several VA employees, who themselves are veterans. The presentation also drew the ire of veterans groups, who say that the insult is indicative of a bigger problem within the VA, both in Philadelphia and across the country. Following the dust up, Veterans Affairs Secretary

1. Op-ed says open primary would unlock voting for all Florida voters. "In an open primary, all registered voters can vote for any candidate, regardless of their political affiliation or lack thereof. In a closed primary, voters may vote only for candidates of the party with which they are registered." The author of the op-ed does confuse some terms, including open primary and a mixed primary system. For us to move forward with this discussion, we need to a) make sure we are using consistent a

Is a vote for an independent or third-party candidate a wasted vote? Is it fair to accuse a candidate not running with major party backing of being a “spoiler”? Is the potential for vote-splitting a compelling reason to adopt major reforms to our electoral system? These issues have been debated in America since the Founding Fathers cautioned against the two-party system. Some notable presidential elections in which third-party candidates have been criticized as spoilers include Teddy Roosevelt

Governor Scott Walker has already run a statewide campaign in Wisconsin for his seat, twice in fact. First, he ran in 2010 against Tom Barrett and won. Then, in 2012, the two candidates had a rematch in a recall election -- Walker, again, triumphed. In both elections, polls showed Walker holding onto steady leads throughout the campaign season. After both victories, Walker’s national profile rose substantially. His name is frequently floated as a potential 2016 presidential candidate and Walker

1. An opinion piece in the News Leader argues that Virginia should not indulge partisan calls to close the state's primaries after Eric Cantor lost his seat. Interestingly enough, one of the biggest names leading the charge to change state law to allow closed primaries is former Virginia Lt. Governor Bill Bolling. Bolling suspended his campaign for the 2013 gubernatorial election in November 2012 because the state GOP decided to change the method of nomination from a primary election to a conve

In June, Wisconsin witnessed both enormous highs and distressing setbacks for those who are battling for gay rights. On June 6, 2014, District Judge Barbara Crabb overturned Wisconsin’s same-sex marriage ban, asserting that the case “is about liberty and equality, the two cornerstones of the rights protected by the United States Constitution.” That weekend, various county clerk offices around the state extended their hours to allow couples to exercise their right to marry. While each county of

A bipartisan group of legislators looking to restore transparency to data collection programs conducted by the National Security Agency (NSA) won an initial victory late last week. Passing 293-123, an amendment to H.R. 4870, the "Fiscal Year 2015 Department of Defense Appropriations Act," prohibits the agency from searching American citizens' communications without a warrant. A majority of both parties supported the NSA amendment. The amendment was designed to stop so-called "back door searche

Midterm elections tend to see lower voter turnout and less interest from the media. Midterm primary elections have even more paltry turnout numbers among those that even are able to vote. This year’s primary season though has been particularly interesting so far from Mississippi’s surprising run-off election between Thad Cochran and Chris McDaniel to Eric Cantor’s stunning defeat in Virginia. Now, heading into the general election, there is another twist from two Koch brothers, David and Charl

It’s no secret that the Keystone issue is a political powder keg. Neither is it a secret that it’s a controversial topic pitting two traditional foes: environmentalists versus big oil. Very murky, however, is what benefit Keystone XL offers the United States.As in so many situations, in order to understand the present, we need to understand the past and Keystone has a bit of a checkered and rapidly evolving past. With blinding speed, progress on the Keystone project began in 2005 when it was pr