blogging the beltway

Rep. Donald Payne, the long-term congressman from New Jersey, died on Tuesday of complications from colon cancer. He was 77. Payne, New Jersey’s first African-American congressman and a past chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, served in the U.S. House of Representatives for 12 terms. He was a member of House committees on education and…

After almost a month since their last debate (that’s like a year in campaign time), on Wednesday night the final four GOP candidates shared the stage in Arizona. From the Mesa Arts Center, and broadcast on CNN, here are the top moments. 1. “How dare you ask about birth control?!” says the audience and Newt…

On Wednesday, President Obama’s re-election campaign announced 35 national co-chairs — a mix of elected officials, everyday volunteers and a few celebrity friends. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, actress Eva Longoria, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, actor Kalpen Modi and AME Bishop Vashti McKenzie are among the names that made the list. In…

On Tuesday night the president and first lady paid tribute to blues music as part of the PBS In Performance at the White House series. Seated around a brightly lit stage, about 200 guests gathered in the White House East Room and waited excitedly for the show to begin. Spotted in the crowd: Health and…

As part of the Obama campaign’s “Greater Together” initiative to reach young voters, on Tuesday the team hosted a student summit at North Carolina Central University. The event marks the first of more than 28 others that the campaign will hold throughout the next two weeks at historically black colleges and universities, including Morehouse College, Norfolk…

When Congress voted last Friday to extend the payroll-tax cut and unemployment insurance for the rest of the year, it was seen as a win for President Obama. The measure, which passed along bipartisan lines, involved little of the congressional squabbling that normally arises around his agenda. Likely to avoid the appearance of voting against…

A coalition of civil rights organizations and members of Congress are planning to re-enact the historic 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery in protest of new voting laws passed and proposed around the nation. Scheduled for March 4-9, the event also seeks to draw attention to Alabama’s immigration law requiring government officials to verify citizenship…

On Monday President Obama released his budget proposal for the 2013 fiscal year, which the White House is calling “a blueprint for how we can rebuild [the] economy.” Much like his 2012 budget request, it has little chance of actually getting passed by Congress. But as a symbolic statement on his economic vision, it continues…

After weeks of uproar from Catholic bishops over the Obama administration’s rule that would require Catholic universities and hospitals to cover contraceptives in their health care plans, on Friday the White House announced an accommodation measure. As originally stipulated by the Affordable Care Act, churches and organizations closely tied to a religious mission are exempt…

On Thursday the Obama administration and state officials announced a $26 billion settlement with five of the nation’s biggest banks over a range of foreclosure fraud abuses. Forty-nine states, all but Oklahoma, signed onto the largest government-industry settlement in more than a decade. The Washington Post reports: The deal aims to help troubled borrowers by…