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Podcast: Abortion and the Supreme Court: Politics over law? Or law over politics?

Podcast: Abortion and the Supreme Court: Politics over law? Or law over politics?

USC Dornsife Center for the Political Future (CFP) Director Bob Shrum joins an all-star panel discussion on the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and the politics of Supreme Court decisions. They discuss the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision, the impact of Roe v. Wade on voters and the midterm election, the upcoming Supreme Court cases, and if Roe can be restored.

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Trump’s Department of Education Has Become a Threat to Democracy

Student protestors hold signs while participating in the "Hands Off Our Schools" rally in front of the U.S. Department of Education on April 04, 2025 in Washington, DC.

Getty Images, Kayla Bartkowski

Trump’s Department of Education Has Become a Threat to Democracy

President Trump wants to abolish the Department of Education, and his handpicked Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon, has promised to do so. But in the meantime, that department has been turned into a weapon for displaying the raw power of the new administration and punishing those who refuse to hew to its party line.

Nowhere is that agenda more clearly expressed than in a remarkable and disturbing letter sent by McMahon to Harvard University President Alan Garber, informing him that the university would no longer be eligible to apply for any federal grants. I was startled, but not surprised, both by the letter’s aggressive and dismissive tone and the substance of its indictment of Harvard.

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Raising Taxes or Cutting Spending: House Budget Committee Argues Over Debt Crisis Fix

Republican and Democratic representatives discussed the fiscal state of the United State in a House Budget hearing on May 7, 2025

Huiyan Li | Medill News Service

Raising Taxes or Cutting Spending: House Budget Committee Argues Over Debt Crisis Fix

WASHINGTON –– Republicans and Democrats clashed on May 7 at a House Budget Committee hearing over how to address the nation’s mounting federal debt—whether to raise revenue through tax increases or cut spending on federal programs such as Medicaid.

Both parties agreed that the United States was on an unsustainable fiscal path and that urgent action is needed to prevent a debt crisis.

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Defining the Democracy Movement: Francis Johnson
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Defining the Democracy Movement: Francis Johnson

The Fulcrum presents The Path Forward: Defining the Democracy Reform Movement. Scott Warren's interview series engages diverse thought leaders to elevate the conversation about building a thriving and healthy democratic republic that fulfills its potential as a national social and political game-changer. This initiative is the start of focused collaborations and dialogue led by The Bridge Alliance and The Fulcrum teams to help the movement find a path forward.

The latest interview of this series took place with Francis Johnson, the founding partner of Communications Resources, a public affairs organization, and the former President of Take Back Our Republic. This non-partisan organization advocates for conservative solutions to campaign finance reform. A veteran of Republican politics, Francis has been at the forefront of structural reform efforts, including initiatives like ranked-choice voting.

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Outside Money, Inside Influence: How National Donors Shaped the 2024 Congressional Elections

An individual voting with money.

Getty Images, Orbon Alija

Outside Money, Inside Influence: How National Donors Shaped the 2024 Congressional Elections

In 2024, campaign fundraising in federal elections was more nationalized than ever. Candidates for both the House and Senate continued a decades-long trend of relying less on donations from the voters they represent and more on contributions from donors across the country. The nationalization of campaign contributions, once a concern among elections experts, is now a defining feature of congressional campaigns.

An analysis of 2024 House and Senate campaign data reveals just how deeply this transformation has taken hold. From candidates in small states with limited donor bases to top congressional leaders with national profiles — and especially in competitive races in battleground states — non-local campaign contributions were ubiquitous.

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