House News & Analysis

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Might Be Why Americans Hate Congress

by Stuart Rothenberg August 13, 2014 · 10:38 AM EDT

The media’s narrative about Congress is clear: It is unproductive, members care only about getting re-elected and they have failed to do their jobs.

So it should come as no surprise that Americans believe Congress has been unproductive, that members don’t care about doing the right thing, but…

Inside House Democrats’ Expanding Ground Game

by Nathan L. Gonzales August 8, 2014 · 10:13 AM EDT

In the face of a challenging midterm environment, Democrats are relying on money and an expanding get-out-the-vote effort to avoid losing any more ground in the House. But what does that souped-up ground game look like?

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s fundraising advantage over the National Republican Congressional…

New Poll Numbers Reinforce Bush-Obama Comparisons

by Stuart Rothenberg August 7, 2014 · 9:31 AM EDT

My last column, which argued President Barack Obama’s situation going into his second midterm closely resembled President George W. Bush’s standing going into his second midterm, is reinforced in a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.

When I filed the column on Monday, I used the…

President George W. Obama Meets the Midterms

by Stuart Rothenberg August 7, 2014 · 9:30 AM EDT

I certainly didn’t know foreign policy would be front and center in the final months before the midterm elections when I wrote in late April that these issues “could have an indirect yet significant impact on the midterm elections.”

But now, it looks increasingly as if foreign…

So You Want to Be a Political Handicapper? 2014 Edition

by Stuart Rothenberg July 30, 2014 · 10:29 AM EDT

The thought of three candidate interviews over a four-hour period invariably fills me with dread.

The chance of all three congressional hopefuls being thoughtful, reasonable and personable — and having a good chance of winning in the fall — is relatively small.

But sometimes the unexpected happens.…

Chuck Schumer’s Dream: A Democratic Nightmare

by Nathan L. Gonzales July 29, 2014 · 10:16 AM EDT

New York Sen. Charles E. Schumer laid out his dream for a less partisan Washington recently. But the Democrat’s New York Times op-ed is giving some strategists in his own party nightmares.

“Polarization and partisanship are a plague on American politics,” Schumer wrote in the piece —…

GOP Can’t Catch a Break in Congressional Baseball Recruitment

by Nathan L. Gonzales July 22, 2014 · 10:23 AM EDT

Phil Berger Jr.’s loss in last week's Republican runoff in North Carolina’s 6th District was about more than an establishment favorite getting knocked off by an anti-establishment challenger.

He could have been a key player for Republicans in future Roll Call Congressional Baseball Games.

According to…

‘Would You Rather?’ House Race Edition

by Nathan L. Gonzales July 21, 2014 · 9:40 AM EDT

In the game “Would You Rather?” one is usually faced with a choice between two difficult and undesirable options.

“If you had a machete, would you rather amputate the feet of two friends or amputate one of your own feet?” asks the site YouRather.com. Or, “Would…

Fight for the House About 2016, not 2014

by Stuart Rothenberg July 18, 2014 · 4:00 PM EDT

With the 2014 midterm elections less than four months away, the fight for Congress is all about the Senate. On the other hand, the battle for the House of Representatives is about positioning for 2016 rather than about which party will control the chamber next year.

National poll…

2014 House Overview (July 18, 2014) Alabama - Indiana

July 18, 2014 · 3:59 PM EDT

Alabama (6 Republicans, 1 Democrat).
AL 6 (Open; Bachus, R). Former Alabama Policy Institute president Gary Palmer defeated state Rep. Paul DeMarco 64 percent to 36 percent. DeMarco finished first in the initial primary with 33 percent. Palmer will be a Member of Congress next year.

Alaska…