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By Justin Dorazio

After enduring serious economic challenges amid the COVID-19 pandemic, 2021 was an extraordinary year of economic growth and recovery. The country saw record job gains and an unprecedented drop in unemployment. The size of the economy, measured by real gross domestic product, grew at its highest rate in decades and surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Despite heightened inflation spurred by supply chain issues, war-related energy price increases, disruptions to food supplies from climate change, and climbing housing prices, Americans’ disposable incomes were higher in 2021 in real—or inflation-adjusted—terms than they were in 2019 and 2020. -- CLICK STORY TO READ MORE

By Michael Sozan

Dec. 7 --Today, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments* in Moore v. Harper, a case that could strike a major blow to free and fair elections. At least three justices in the court’s extreme conservative majority signaled their openness to adopting a discredited theory—the independent state legislature (ISL) theory—that could hand partisan state legislators potentially limitless power to manipulate election rules and draw unfair congressional districts. This theory—which even many conservative leaders deem meritless—could upend the nation’s system of checks and balances and undermine the emergence of a truly representative democracy. The Supreme Court would be wise to reject any form of the ISL theory when it issues its decision in this case next year.

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By Maggie Jo Buchanan

Last September, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) introduced a nationwide ban on abortion. The bill—of which a substantively identical version was introduced in the House by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ)—is the first major abortion ban to be introduced in the Senate after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade Graham’s proposed national ban would prohibit abortion after 15 weeks nationwide, with only very narrow exceptions—while still allowing states to ban abortion even more strictly. It is modeled off legislation Graham has previously introduced that criminalized abortion starting at 20-weeks nationwide, which then-Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) brought for a vote in 2018. The only Republicans who opposed that ban were Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK). -- CLICK STORY TO READ MORE

​By Anne Christianson, Sally Hardin & Miriam Goldstein

Off the desert shores of Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, where the 27th U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP27) recently concluded, the Red Sea is teeming with life. Conference-goers who took a break to venture below the waves were rewarded by one of the most biodiverse and potentially resilient reefs in the world—and were reminded of what is at risk if humanity does not immediately address the joint climate and biodiversity crises.-- CLICK STORY TO READ MORE

By Madison Weiss

The for-profit college industry has a long history of engaging in predatory practices. These colleges heavily market their services to low-income students, students of color, women, and veterans—groups who are often eligible for the maximum amount of federal financial aid—all while overcharging and underdelivering. Many students have claimed that these institutions misrepresent the value of the degrees they award and the job prospects students can expect post-graduation. Some colleges have even “used manipulative sales tactics, hired unqualified faculty, enrolled unprepared students, and hid their misdeeds through forced arbitration clauses,” leaving students with heavy debt loads. .-- CLICK STORY TO READ MORE

By Rose Khattar & Jessica Vela

Economic uncertainty is unsettling most countries today. Major, persistent headwinds are threatening global economies, and the severity of these impacts loom. Given Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ongoing economic implications resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, climate-related disruptions, and central banks’ decisions to rapidly increase interest rates, another global economic downturn seems increasingly likely. Yet despite these global challenges, the U.S. economy remains strong with a tight labor market, a historically low unemployment rate, and a growing economy. -- CLICK STORY TO READ MORE