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Thinking of having a child? Better have some serious cash. The Department of Agriculture released their annual "Expenditures on Children by Families" on Thursday, detailing the cost of raising a child through age 17. A middle income family in 2011 can expect to shell out $234,900 in order to house, feed, cloth, transport and cover other humanly needs for their new bundle of joy. "For the year 2011, annual child-rearing expenses per child for a middle-income, two-parent family ranged from $12,

Both Mitt Romney and President Obama are giving campaign speeches in Ohio today. President Obama's speech has been touted as a major statement on the economy. UPDATE: David Axelrod, President Obama's campaign advisor, will now be taking questions submitted to @BarackObama with the hashtag #Obama2012 -- UPDATE: After an hour, Obama ends his speech with, "this November you can provide a mandate..." and of course, reminding the crowd that America is the best nation. -- UPDATE: Battle of the

With competition heating up between President Obama and former Gov. Mitt Romney, a special election in Arizona, the possibility of an Independent voice in Senate, and some pretty controversial ballot measures, here are 5 things we're watching today in politics. 1) Arizona to hold special election to replace Rep. Giffords Arizona's 8th district will hold a special election today, voting to fill the vacancy of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Giffords, who resigned to focus on her recovery after her Jan

In light of former Senator Rick Santorum's recent comments on ABC's This Week, it is clear GOP social conservatives are becoming increasingly worried about the presence, and power, of Dr. Ron Paul at the Republican National Convention. In the case of a divided Republican Party, if Governor Mitt Romney is going to have to choose between Dr. Paul and Sen. Santorum in Tampa, he has to go with Dr. Paul. In an earlier posting by IVN, we pointed out that at some point Gov. Romney was going to have to

Credit: boston.com This year, Proposition 14 was tested for the first time in California’s open primaries. The two candidates with the most votes were chosen regardless of party affiliation to compete in the November election. For the first time, candidates from the same major party will have to compete for votes in the general election. While there is still an overwhelming amount of Republicans vs. Democrats in the top two positions, there are six districts in California where the top two can

Independents around the country are calling on Congress to hold hearings investigating the disenfranchisement of Independents from the political process. The campaign, launched by IndependentVoting.org, aims to bring much needed attention to the issue of structural discrimination against Independent voters and candidates for elected office. Though they are courted by politicians from the president on down, and receive a fair amount of attention in the mainstream media, Independents are prevente

The hardest part for a candidate when selecting their vice presidential candidate is finding the right balance. You want to select someone who adds new demographics of supporters and increases your odds of winning the general election without overshadowing yourself. The nominee doesn't want to select a candidate who is not noteworthy enough to make a difference (think William E. Miller in 1964), different or controversial enough to cause a loss of focus on the candidate's platform (think Sarah P

Race was a hot topic during the 2008 presidential election. As Barack Obama gained momentum, it became clear that history could be made. By the end of the election, it had - Obama was elected as the first African American president in the history of the United States. As President Obama now runs for re-election, it begs the question: Is race still an issue for some voters? An article in the New York Times drew attention to the role of race in winning over parts of the country made up of mostly

Politics. The things that politicians will say, and the political calculations that are made by politicians to get elected or re-elected. No party corners the market on virtue, no matter the rhetoric. For words do not matter, actions do. A recent action comes from the administration of President Obama. More specifically in this case the Obama administration mandate from Health and Human Services (HHS) requiring health insurance plans to include coverage for abortifacient drugs, contraception, a

The blogosphere is in a flurry today on the heels of the Ron Paul campaign announcement. Concerning its future in states yet to hold Republican primary elections, it looks like Dr. Paul will not be pouring money into these contests as he has continued to do. Is he done, completely? Or will he continue amassing what have been called "stealth delegates"? Even without an "official" campaign effort in states like Texas and California, can Dr. Paul continue to siphon a sizable chunk of Republican sup