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Since the beginning of this year, states around the country have enacted a total of 162 laws aimed at limiting reproductive rights and health. # The Guttmacher Institute reports that in just 19 states, the amount of abortion laws passed this year was “more than triple the 23 enacted in 2010.” Forty-nine percent of the 162 laws enacted “restrict access to abortion services, a sharp increase from 2010, when 26% of new laws restricted abortion.” # Guttmacher reports that these laws are a combination of “old and new strategies.” The types of laws enacted included: counseling and waiting periods before abortions, gestational bans/fetal pain restrictions, a “heartbeat” bill in Ohio, restricting the use of chemical abortions and banning abortion coverage in health insurance exchanges created by the federal health care reform law of 2010

Is the price of concert tickets an economic indicator? The Big Picture spots a discount for a Steve Miller Band concert from its promoters that features

Here’s some good news: since our story Tuesday about Congress’ failure to include adequate protection for government contractor whistleblowers in the stimulus

Today, the Senate is taking up two provisions affecting small businesses -- the Small Business Jobs Act and competing amendments that would reduce tax paperwork

Eleven Democratic senators have signed onto a resolution, sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), vowing to strike down any proposal by the White House debt

With Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) kicking out the crazy on a nearly daily basis, Paul Demko of TWI’s sister site, The Minnesota Independent, reports that the

The Iowa Independent’s Jason Hancock was trailing Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) as the senator made appearances across the state to talk about health care.

A lot of pundits have drawn comparisons between the current midterm election cycle and the GOP wave year of 1994, but the University of Minnesota’s politics

Sen. Barack Obama often drops by small diners and restaurants during his campaign trips, chatting with patrons and posing for pictures. But a Sunday pit-stop at

Mike Allen has the scoop: The White House has instructed the Senate to take up its energy bill -- which looks increasingly unlikely to include meaningful

China will overtake the U.S. economically in just five years, according to the latest International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts. On MarketWatch, the Wall

The recession is getting worse, with the jobless count steadily rising and credit markets still far from operating smoothly. A big part of the problem is that government bailouts are encouraging banks to mask the extent of their balance-sheet problems. It’s time for the banks to come clean if the economy is going to restart.

When it comes to health care, at least, following the polls can be tricky. Take this latest one Sam Stein reports on for The Huffington Post, showing that 77

I’m thrilled and proud to introduce the newest member of the TWI team, Annie Lowrey. Annie is wrapping up her illustrious stint as an assistant editor at

State Rep.

Minnesota Democrats introduced a bill on Monday that would repeal the state’s Defense of Marriage Act, which prohibits same-sex couples from benefiting from the rights and responsibilities of marriage. The bill, the Marriage and Family Protection Act , was offered just as heated debate at the Capitol continues over a proposed constitutional amendment that would write a ban on gay marriage into the state constitution. “Marriage is a legal institution recognized by the state to promote stable relationships and to protect people in those relationships and their children,” the bill states

Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum , of Pennsylvania, will seek the White House in 2012, he announced this morning on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” Perhaps channeling 2008 Hillary Clinton in Des Moines, Santorum said, “We’re going to be in this race and we’re in it to win it,” before launching into extensive criticism of President Barack Obama on foreign policy.

This statement just came out from President Obama: Today marks the eleventh Anniversary of the terrorist attacks against the U.S. Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya

This morning, Standard & Poor’s released its S&P/Case Shiller housing index data for February. It is not pretty. The composite index declined for the

A report by the Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor found a number of problems with the state Pollution Control Agency’s accounting systems, including neglecting to scrub banking data that auditors said could be used to commit fraud.

The Texas House passed Thursday a measure within a Medicaid overhaul bill that removes state funding to all hospitals and clinics that perform abortions or

Author Frank Schaeffer told MSNBC on Wednesday that Michele Bachmann’s beliefs will be a liability for her with the general public if she gets the GOP nomination in 2012. And Schaeffer knows something about where Bachmann stands: His father, Dr