TIME’s photo editors bring you the best pictures of the past week from the Beltway and beyond.
Celebrity Apprentice: Donald Trump to Moderate GOP Debate
Because the Republican presidential primary has been too stodgy and dignified lately–what with all the sex-harassment eruptions, memory-lapse gaffes and “SexyBack” parodies—Donald Trump will host a GOP debate in Iowa on Dec. 27, announced conservative news outlet Newsmax. The New York Times has the details:
Obama’s Christmas-Tree-Lighting Immigration Sermon
Between Kermit the Frog’s antics and the christening of a new National Christmas Tree Thursday night, you may have missed the moment President Obama preached on immigration reform. And unlike his Thanksgiving address that did …
Why Does Newt Gingrich Hate Christmas?
If you’ve read Newt Gingrich’s Rediscovering God in America–and you really should, to get a better understanding of why this thrice-married former Speaker is gaining ground among social conservatives–you know that he considers secularism one of the greatest threats facing the country. In fact, here’s the first sentence of the
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President Obama—With Help from Bill Clinton—Pushes Energy Efficiency
It’s been tough going in the renewable energy business lately. Prices for solar panels have fallen drastically, which is good news for consumers, but not so good for solar manufacturers, who are struggling to survive. Some—like the much-maligned Solyndra, which went down earlier this year after receiving more than $500 million in …
Herman Cain, Master Salesman
His latest fundraising pitch to supporters seeks to capitalize off his impending decision on whether to fold his own campaign:
As I assess the future of my campaign, I need to gauge the support of the people of this great nation.
I am inviting you to share your voice with me, my family and staff, and the nation. In short, I need to
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Mitt Romney’s Nuanced Evolution on Immigration
It’s well known that Mitt Romney has changed his position on certain issues over time: cap-and-trade, abortion, gay rights, gun control. In all of these areas Romney toed (or leapt) rightward as he transitioned from the politics of blue Massachusetts to the national stage. But—beyond unceasing allegations of general …
Senate Democrats Putting Up a Fierce Fight for 2012
On Friday morning, South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint sent a blast email to his Senate Conservatives Fund list blasting former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson as a RINO (Republican In Name Only) and endorsing his Tea Party challenger Mark Neumann. In 2010, DeMint made himself no favorite of the leadership by using his PAC to support …
November Job Numbers: What Are We Missing?
“I think there's now an evangelical tri-lemma. Do you vote for a Mormon who's had one wife, a Catholic who's had three wives, or an Evangelical who may have had an entire harem?”
Obama’s War: U.S. Casualities in Afghanistan By Year
Charts can make clear too often what words only obscure. Take this arresting graphic, contained in a new Congressional Research Service study made available by Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists (CRS reports are generated solely for congressional use, and aren’t released to the public; Aftergood gets a lot of …
Morning Must Reads: Counter
- With each party’s payroll tax cut plan voted down in the Senate, real negotiation on extending that measure, unemployment benefits and the “doc fix” moves ahead.
- The Gingrich campaign plays catch-up.
- The case against taking his polls numbers seriously.
Butterball Jihad: Why Islamophobia Is Still On the March in the GOP
It’s been a while since the GOP presidential candidates have engaged in a good old-fashioned round of Who’s the Biggest Islamophobe. Those party-poopers Jon Huntsman and Mitt Romney usually sit out the game. But in the wake of the Muslim Brotherhood’s strong showing in early voting for Egyptian parliamentary elections, their opponents …