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A woman timing another women in the military as she does push ups.

Hegseth Made the Fitness Test Harder for Women in Combat Roles. Most Female Marines Are Passing.

​Paintings of Stalin

The Stalinization of America

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee speaks as Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter, U.S. Vice President JD Vance, U.S

Trump's Sale of Arms to Israel Violates U.S. Law

The sky clears behind the U.S. Capitol after rainy weather

We Didn't Get This Angry Because Americans Changed: We Got This Angry Because Washington Did

Long-shot constitutional amendment to restrict campaign financing introduced

The Fulcrum
By The FulcrumMay 09, 2019
The Fulcrum
The Fulcrum staff.
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The most ambitious proposal for curbing money in politics, an amendment to the Constitution, has resurfaced in Congress. Its short-term prospects are statistically zero.

Just nine Democratic House members signed on as sponsors Wednesday when Californian Adam Schiff formally proposed an amendment to permit Congress to regulate campaign finances notwithstanding the Supreme Court's landmark Citizens United decision saying donations are a form of highly protected First Amendment free speech.

Throughout the last Congress, only 19 Democrats agreed to co-sponsor the same proposal. And amending the Constitution requires two-thirds majorities in both the House and Senate (meaning plenty of Republican support, which is now non-existent) plus the approval of three quarters of the states.


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How Democracy Dies Alongside a Constricted Press

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Faith leaders can help renew America's social and civil contracts by protecting every eligible vote and honoring lawful results. Here's how to get involved.

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Dignity, Democracy, and the Courage to Stay Engaged

Crises are arriving faster than we can absorb them: climate, loneliness, artificial intelligence, housing, addiction, debt. In communities across Washington state, what I see is not mainly anger. It is a sense of being overwhelmed.

When everything feels urgent, people are tempted to withdraw. And when enough of us quietly withdraw, we can begin to believe that nothing works anymore and the rules no longer apply.

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United States Capitol building shows classical architecture and an American flag waving against a clear blue sky.

Getty Images

Our Democracy Is a Beast, When It Should Be a Buffalo

The Fulcrum is committed to nurturing the next generation of journalists.

We asked Alejo Cruz, a Fall Fulcrum Fellow, to share what democracy means to him and how he sees its current health.

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Hand with "VOTE" stickers

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California’s 22nd District and the Myth of the Predictable Voter

For years, I thought California’s Central Valley presented one of the more puzzling electorates I encountered as a public-opinion researcher.

I conducted dozens of surveys throughout the Valley, including communities that would eventually become parts of David Valadao’s congressional districts. One pattern was difficult to miss. Democratic registration, particularly among Latino voters, often suggested a considerably more Democratic electorate than appeared on Election Day. Participation was uneven, and Latino Democratic registration did not translate into equivalent electoral strength.

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