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Just the Facts: Canadian Tariffs

Just the Facts: Canadian Tariffs

Project 2025: How the White House Plans to Gain Control Over U.S. Elections

Project 2025: How the White House Plans to Gain Control Over U.S. Elections

Redistricting

Redistricting

Tracy Chapman and Luke Combs on stage

Luke Combs, politics and healing our nation's divide

A fictional, fanciful sign depicts the results of voter suppression through the unfair, partisan manipulation of district lines (gerrymandering).

The worst congressional gerrymanders of the 2020s

Five stories to read about voting rights

Sen. Joe Manchin

West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin is trying to negotiate a compromise on the For the People Act.

Sarah Silbiger-Pool/Getty Images
The Fulcrum
By The FulcrumMay 07, 2021
The Fulcrum
The Fulcrum staff.
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This week, governors and legislatures across the country took action to change voting rules in a handful of states while Senate Democrats made modifications to the sweeping election overhaul bill known as the For the People Act.

While many state legislatures are debating bills to alternately ease or restrict voting, the most progress has been made in states that are tightening election rules. This week, Texas and Florida took big steps in that direction, while New York became the latest to restore voting rights to felons who have completed their sentences.

Here are five key stories to keep you in the loop on the latest activity.

Senator Joe Manchin Seeks Compromise on Voting Rights Legislation (The Intelligencer/Wheeling News-Register)

Texas GOP's voting restrictions bill could be rewritten behind closed doors after key House vote (Texas Tribune)

DeSantis signs controversial new election law making it harder for some Floridians to vote (Orlando Sentinel)

Cuomo signs law to restore voting rights to parolees immediately after prison release (CBS News)

Bill to Give Parties Control over Congressional Primaries in Louisiana Dropped (IVN)

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The Psychology of Politics

An illustration of people and their unique minds.

Getty Images, Carol Yepes

The Psychology of Politics

Have you ever wondered why so many otherwise reasonable people are completely bananas about politics? We all know plenty of normal and decent folks who spout wacky political views. But it’s not just our neighbors who’ve gone mad. All over the country, Americans pick and choose the facts they want to believe, champion policies they don’t understand, hold contradictory views at the same time, admire immoral politicians, loathe decent ones, and so on.

What’s going on here? And why does it seem to be getting worse?

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Addressing Economic Inequity Among Domestic Violence Survivors

A person holding a stack of dollar bills that are flying away.

Getty Images, PM Images

Addressing Economic Inequity Among Domestic Violence Survivors

The 2024 film, “Anora,” about a young woman victimized by sex trafficking, recently won five Oscars at the Academy Awards. Perhaps, it is a signal of more awareness and less stigma surrounding the pervasiveness of domestic violence at all levels of society.

The ongoing lawsuits between actors Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni claiming sexual harassment and violence threat allegations around their film, “It Ends With Us,” about a relationship scarred with domestic violence, demonstrates the thin line between real life and on-screen adaptations.

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Layoffs at the EPA May Impact Federal Funding for Communities

Environmental Protection Agency EPA | Where James works | mccready ...

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Layoffs at the EPA May Impact Federal Funding for Communities

WASHINGTON—The federal government laid off more than 60,000 workers in the first two months of 2025, while another 75,000 employees accepted a buyout and voluntarily resigned.

Among those laid off was James Clark, an Environmental Protection Agency employee who lost his job while on his honeymoon. “It’s just very sad to see someone like Elon Musk take a chainsaw on live TV and say what we do doesn’t matter,” said Clark.

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Congress Avoids a Shutdown But at What Cost?

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol on March 14, 2025 in Washington, DC.

Getty Images, Tasos Katopodis

Congress Avoids a Shutdown But at What Cost?

On March 14, the GOP-led Senate passed a stopgap spending bill to keep the federal government running until September 30. The bill’s passage was made possible by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s last-minute reversal—shifting from opposing the measure and advocating for a shorter extension to allowing the bill to advance. His decision was purely tactical: he feared Democrats would be blamed for a shutdown.

Schumer’s move provided the necessary votes to overcome procedural hurdles, effectively thwarting a Democratic filibuster. While Republican support for Trump’s budget was unsurprising, the Democratic leadership’s decision to go along was a stunning concession. It handed the Trump administration a significant victory while further eroding Congress’s budgetary authority, shifting more spending power to the executive branch.

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