Molly BloomThe U.S. Senate passed an immigration reform bill yesterday 68-32. The House will now take up the issue, but Republican leaders have made it clear they will draft their own version of the bill. The Senate bill includes a 13-year path to citizenship for immigrants living in the country illegally, new visa programs, as well Read more →
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Archives for June 2013
A bipartisan group of senators has announced a proposal to prevent a doubling of the interest rate on certain federal student loans, an increase that would affect seven million college students in the coming school year. Student loan debt is a burden for many, the total surpassing $1 trillion earlier this year. Today’s Question: How Read more →
The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that legally married same-sex couples should get the same federal benefits as heterosexual couples. The court invalidated a provision of the federal Defense of Marriage Act that has prevented married gay couples from receiving a range of tax, health and retirement benefits that are generally available to married people. The vote Read more →
Jon Gordon“A new national study of charter schools finds some improvement in school performance, but shows students at charters still aren’t doing as well as students in traditional public schools,” reports Tim Post of MPR News. Critics of the charter movement in Minnesota say it is further proof that charters are not living up to their Read more →
“An increase in Minnesota’s cigarette tax is giving a boost to electronic cigarettes as an alternative to traditional smoking,” according to MPR News Reporter Mark Zdechlik. The number of Twin Cities shops selling the “e-cigs,” as they are called, has been rising, and shop owners credit the $1.60-a-pack tax increase that goes into effect July Read more →
Michael OlsonSunset at MSP by carlyett117 via Flickr Less than one percent of the $58.3 million the Minnesota Legislature allocated for arts and cultural heritage projects in FY2014 was spent on travel for Minnesota artists, but during the past legislative session, lawmakers determined that artists can only use Minnesota State Arts Board grant money for travel Read more →
The wolf population on Isle royale is down to eight individuals. For the first time in 50 years of intense study, there is no evidence of reproduction. In considering what to do next, the National Park Service is investigating three options: the first is to do nothing, let nature take its course. The wolves may Read more →
Update: A previous version of this post included a graph that used nominal dollars based on USDA data. stated the annual spending by the U.S. Government on SNAP. This updated post now features a graph from the Congressional Budget Office in adjusted dollars. Congress is poised to cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly Read more →
View the full program here Update: The Obama Administration has expressed an interest in open peace talks with the Taliban. The 12 year long U.S-led war against the Taliban in Afghanistan reaches a turning point today. Afghan forces are now the primary group responsible for providing national security. American and NATO military forces will now Read more →
The Senate last week overcame a procedural hurdle in moving forward on the first immigration overhaul in a generation. Lawmakers from both parties’ voted to begin formal debate on a proposal that would give an estimated 11 million immigrants in the U.S. illegally a long and difficult path to citizenship, reports Phillip Elliot for the Read more →