tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z Movable Type 3.33 tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44937 2013-05-24T23:06:15Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

Even though the nation's capital enjoys a rich tax base and a comparatively booming job market, it still hasn't avoided the aging infrastructure woes plaguing much of the country. On...

Devin Castles www.washingtonmonthly.com Even though the nation's capital enjoys a rich tax base and a comparatively booming job market, it still hasn't avoided the aging infrastructure woes plaguing much of the country. On Tuesday, a piece of concrete fell and broke through a sewer line, halting traffic, and creating a 15-foot-deep sinkhole in downtown DC at 14th and F streets NW, just blocks away from the White House. While some lanes on 14th St have since been reopened, repairs (and traffic delays) are... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44935 2013-05-24T21:42:16Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

The following is the first in our series of collaborations with journals to feature guests posts from authors of recently published political science research in conjunction with ungated access to...

Joshua Tucker The following is the first in our series of collaborations with journals to feature guests posts from authors of recently published political science research in conjunction with ungated access to the article that is being discussed.The guest post is written by political scientist Roland Paris, of the University of Ottawa (@rolandparis). An ungated version of his article is being made available temporarily by Cambridge University Press here.*****In the June 2013 issue of Perspectives on Politics, I have a review essay... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44933 2013-05-24T21:40:27Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

Happy Memorial Day Weekend! Do you think you have a good political memory? Try this little five question quiz. Which US President dramatically cut federal criminal penalties for marijuana possession,...

Keith Humphreys Happy Memorial Day Weekend! Do you think you have a good political memory? Try this little five question quiz. Which US President dramatically cut federal criminal penalties for marijuana possession, was a forceful advocate for expanded food stamps and affirmative action, and worked closely with Congress to create the Environmental Protection Agency? (a) John F. Kennedy (b) Lyndon Johnson (c) Jimmy Carter (d) Richard Nixon The share of GDP devoted to social spending increased from 22% to an unprecedented 26.7%... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44931 2013-05-24T21:07:57Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

The more I learn about the so-called IRS tax scandal, the more I pity the IRS. When this story broke, the story was billed as President Obama was using the...

Jamie Malanowski http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/inside/jmalanowski.html The more I learn about the so-called IRS tax scandal, the more I pity the IRS. When this story broke, the story was billed as President Obama was using the IRS against his political enemies. Well, that’s a bad thing! It was so reminiscent of Richard ordering the IRS to go after his political enemies, like Paul Newman and Tony Randall. Think of it—Nixon taking on Felix Ungar. That seems as simple, and as impeachable, as anything. Time will eventually... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44926 2013-05-24T17:37:15Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

Sri Srinivasan was confirmed unanimously this afternoon, 97-0, for a position on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals. He was originally nominated on June 11, 2012 for a position vacant...

Jonathan Bernstein Sri Srinivasan was confirmed unanimously this afternoon, 97-0, for a position on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals. He was originally nominated on June 11, 2012 for a position vacant since November 1, 2008. So there's one obvious point, and one huge question. The point: yes, it's absolutely ridiculous that a unanimous pick took eleven months. The only somewhat reasonable part of the delay was in the run-up to the 2012 election; it's traditional for the out-party to drag their... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44941 2013-05-24T13:48:21Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

Republican politicians and activists can barely contain their glee at the simultaneous eruption of three major controversies about the Obama administration. Conservatives are at a low boil over the administration’s...

Ramesh Ponnuru Republican politicians and activists can barely contain their glee at the simultaneous eruption of three major controversies about the Obama administration. Conservatives are at a low boil over the administration’s dissembling about its actions after the attacks on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya. The public is concerned about the targeting of conservative groups by the Internal Revenue Service. And even liberals are outraged by the administration’s heavy-handed investigations of leaks to the news media. Finally, many Republicans think,... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44908 2013-05-23T17:08:55Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

Marriage equality advocates are understandably disappointed by Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy’s decision not to pursue an amendment to the immigration reform bill that would have recognized same-sex marriages. Announcing...

Raymond A. Smith Marriage equality advocates are understandably disappointed by Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy’s decision not to pursue an amendment to the immigration reform bill that would have recognized same-sex marriages. Announcing his decision “with a heavy heart,” Leahy conceded that pursuing the amendment could jeopardize the bipartisan coalition around immigration reform.But few issues have ever evolved so quickly, and advocates should not take this week’s setback as the last word on equality. For clues on what could happen to the GOP’s... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44902 2013-05-23T15:32:33Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

This article in The Nation is likely to cause some considerable embarrassment to the Center for American Progress (CAP). Though the think tank didn’t disclose it, First Solar belonged to...

Henry Farrell This article in The Nation is likely to cause some considerable embarrassment to the Center for American Progress (CAP). Though the think tank didn’t disclose it, First Solar belonged to CAP’s Business Alliance, a secret group of corporate donors, according to internal lists obtained by The Nation. Meanwhile, José Villarreal—a consultant at the power-
house law and lobbying firm Akin Gump, who “provides strategic counseling on a range of legal and policy issues” for 
corporations—was on First Solar’s board until April... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44901 2013-05-23T15:24:30Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

There have been various calls in recent days for the appointment of an independent counsel to explore and expunge the IRS’s selective investigation of conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status after...

Andrew Rudalevige www.washingtonmonthly.com There have been various calls in recent days for the appointment of an independent counsel to explore and expunge the IRS’s selective investigation of conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status after 2009.From the right, Peggy Noonan in the Wall Street Journal claims, for instance,that “we are in the midst of the worst Washington scandal since Watergate.” If you can get past this cheap hyperbole (Ms. Noonan herself worked in a White House marked by a worse scandal, Iran-contra, and in 1998... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44903 2013-05-23T15:20:26Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

The senior senator from Arizona urged this body to trust the Republicans. Let me be clear, I don’t trust the Republicans. I don’t trust the Democrats and I think a...

John Sides The senior senator from Arizona urged this body to trust the Republicans. Let me be clear, I don’t trust the Republicans. I don’t trust the Democrats and I think a whole lot of Americans likewise don’t trust the Republicans or the Democrats because it is leadership in both parties that has got us into this mess. So said Ted Cruz yesterday.  This is not the first time he’s run afoul not only of Democrats—Harry Reid called him a “schoolyard bully”... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44900 2013-05-23T15:16:56Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

I’ve written many times on how it’s rational for wealthier countries to spend more on health care than poorer countries. I’ve even graphed GDP vs health care spending to show...

Aaron Carroll I’ve written many times on how it’s rational for wealthier countries to spend more on health care than poorer countries. I’ve even graphed GDP vs health care spending to show this relationship. In this week’s NEJM, Victor Fuchs makes a new chart to look at this relationship in the US over time: His thoughts: An examination of data from the past 60 years for the economy as a whole and for health care expenditures indicates that there has been a... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44899 2013-05-23T15:11:11Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

The use of psychiatric medications with young children has increased greatly in the US over the last 25 years, including 0.3% of US children under 6 (perhaps 100,000 kids) who...

Bill Gardner The use of psychiatric medications with young children has increased greatly in the US over the last 25 years, including 0.3% of US children under 6 (perhaps 100,000 kids) who take stimulants such as Ritalin. These children are given these drugs because they have or are thought to be at risk for attention/deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). They get this diagnosis largely because they are aggressive or unruly, or at least are not being successfully managed by their parents or caregivers.Is... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44898 2013-05-23T15:05:25Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

At a briefing yesterday on cannabis policy, I made my usual argument that (in rough numbers) 80% of the users of almost any drug use it moderately, take no harm...

Mark Kleiman At a briefing yesterday on cannabis policy, I made my usual argument that (in rough numbers) 80% of the users of almost any drug use it moderately, take no harm from it, and do no harm to others, but that the other 20%, who use more than is good for them, account for 80% of the consumption and an even larger fraction of damage to themselves and others. My conclusion from that was the necessity of regulation, since the industry... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44897 2013-05-23T14:59:13Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

Some candidates are thinking of running against Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper next year. Does that spell danger for him? Republicans seem to think so: At least five candidates are officially...

Seth Masket www.washingtonmonthly.com Some candidates are thinking of running against Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper next year. Does that spell danger for him? Republicans seem to think so: At least five candidates are officially challenging Gov. John Hickenlooper in 2014 and another three are mulling whether to jump in the race. That so many are choosing to challenge the popular governor is, Republicans contend, a sign that a Democrat who once seemed invincible is vulnerable. Well, that could be a sign that Hickenlooper is... tag:www.washingtonmonthly.com,2013:/ten-miles-square//5.44905 2013-05-23T14:48:01Z 2013-05-25T13:51:36Z

Put aside the politics, and the question of who-knew-what-when. There are two policy problems highlighted by the controversies at the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Justice. The first...

Ezra Klein Put aside the politics, and the question of who-knew-what-when. There are two policy problems highlighted by the controversies at the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Justice. The first is the growth of 501(c)(4) groups into vehicles for anonymous and unlimited political spending. The second is the Barack Obama administration’s overzealous prosecution of leaks. Unfortunately, for those who would like to see these policy problems resolved, the wrong party is angry about them and the wrong party is complacent....