Eager to calm economic anxieties, President-elect Barack Obama is rolling out an economic vision that will require congressional cooperation even before he settles into his new desk in the White House's Oval Office. ...more

November 24, 2008

After more than two weeks of virtual silence on the economy, President-elect Barack Obama's transition team burst onto the scene with new ambition and urgency Sunday, demanding swift passage by Congress of a massive two-year spending and tax-cutting recovery program. ...more

November 24, 2008

Last week was a tough one for the leadership teams in the House of Representatives, and when Adam Putnam visited The Tampa Tribune's editorial board during a break Tuesday, he made it clear it's also a tricky time to be an incumbent. ...more

October 5, 2008

Millions of taxpayers, thousands of businesses, and groups as diverse as solar power developers and natural disaster victims will see tax relief with the House vote Friday to approve and send to the president a $700 billion bailout. ...more

October 4, 2008

Few actions taken by Congress have been as complicated as the proposed $700 billion rescue of Wall Street. Here's a closer look at how it would work. ...more

September 29, 2008

The government said Thursday that the salmonella outbreak that sickened at least 1,440 people appears to be over, but its ultimate source may never be known, partly because of shortcomings in the nation's food safety system. ...more

August 30, 2008

During an election year when access to health care is the second most important domestic issue cited by Americans, Sen. Mel Martinez, incredibly, voted against legislation that would ensure stability in the Medicare program for Florida's elderly and disabled patients. ...more

July 9, 2008

The Federal Communications Commission, overturning a 32-year-old ban, voted Tuesday to allow broadcasters in the nation's 20 largest media markets to also own a newspaper. ...more

December 19, 2007

Kipling memorialized the ability of a society to forget about its soldiers once the time of crisis had passed in his poem called "Tommy Atkins." Our country has on occasion shown a similar disregard for the welfare of our veterans as when President Hoover ordered Gen. McArthur to use force to drive a political protest of war veterans out of Washington, D.C. McArthur obliged by driving the marchers out of D.C. with fixed bayonets and ordered the burning of their encampment. Since then we have generally done better for our veterans, a farsighted G.I. Bill after World War II providing educational benefits, which well served the veterans and the nation for a generation. I personally will be forever grateful for the education I received under P.L. 550 at the end of the Korean War, without which I could never have attended college. ...more

October 12, 2007