Only a few lawmakers on Capitol Hill are floating ideas to tighten U.S. gun laws after the mass shootings in Aurora, Colorado and at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin. Critics say much like after the shooting at Virginia Tech the efforts are going nowhere because of the powerful National Rifle Association.
Critics say dirt race tracks are more harmful for horses than the new generation of synthetic race tracks. But synthetics aren’t taking off in America’s broke horse racing industry. It’s not all dollars and cents though. Another reason synthetics haven’t caught on in the U.S. is cultural.
A controversial voter I.D. law that just passed the Virginia state Senate is turning heads in the nation’s capital, because it reminds Democrats of the Jim Crow days.
Millions of dollars was spent on the Iowa caucuses, but voters report that some of the candidates spent their money and time more wisely than the others. And in the end voters recall that a handshake and a minute of a candidate’s time still has the luster it always has.
Political campaigns have tapped into the growing field of behavioral marketing on the Internet. That means politicians are now tracking you online and, in a sense, coming into your home to deliver hand crafted ads on your computer. Consumer groups say that’s terrifying, yet they still haven’t made any legislative headway.
This year Republicans in Congress, including members of Wyoming’s congressional delegation, have aggressively attempted to unwind clean water and air standards. This as the EPA recently released a report that fracking compounds showed up in tap water in Pavillion, Wyoming. That report has environmentalists saying it’s time to reassess the debate in Washington.
Based
on Capitol Hill, Matt Laslo is a freelance reporter who has been
covering Congress, the White House and the Supreme Court for more than
five years.