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Talk about your sore losers. After the Supreme Court struck down its attempt to make voter registration harder, Arizona is now attempting to implement a two-tier voting system that would require proof of citizenship in order to vote in state and local elections. Eligible voters who do not show proof of citizenship would only be allowed to vote in federal elections and not in state and local elections.

The push to require labels for genetically modified food, which flared up in Californiabefore drowning under a flood of industry cash last year, is now underway in Washington State.

President Obama showed real spine in standing up to Tea Party hostage takers. Now he needs to draw on the same grit in the budget negotiations set to begin immediately as part of the deal to reopen the government and raise the debt ceiling. 

Remember the days when conservatives deployed an endless series of wedge issues to splinter the Democratic coalition -- peeling white moderate voters off from liberals? Well, now the shoe's on the other foot. 

The brewing civil war in the GOP between Tea Party extremists and more normal conservatives hit a boiling point over the past few weeks. But President Obama is poised to keep things boiling by pushing immigration reform to the top of Washington's agenda. 

Suppose we think income redistribution is a good idea -- given near-record corporate profits at a time when wages for most workers are stagnant. There are two main ways to achieve this goal: We could make business pick up the tab directly by raising the minimum wage, making it easier for workers to form unions, and mandating more employee benefits, such as paid vacation time. Or, we could leave business alone, but give poorly paid workers public benefits like tax refunds, free health insurance, food assistance, and so on. 

In 2005, Indiana passed a law requiring voters to present a government issued photo-ID before they would be allowed to vote. The law was challenged by voting rights advocates and was upheld by the Appellate Court and ultimately, the Supreme Court. The Appellate Court concluded that the burden placed on potential voters to show a photo-ID was outweighed by the state’s interest in reducing voter fraud.

Joseph Stiglitz makes the important point that economic inequality is the result of political decisions, not inescapable global conditions.

A growing number of experts are arguing that the era of fast economic growth is over, at least for wealthy countries like the United States. If that's true, what does it mean for progressive politics?

I'll get to that question in a minute. But first consider the recent obituary for prosperity that Stephen King published in the New York Times, excerpting his new book, When the Money Runs Out: The End of Western Affluence.

Dunkin Donuts is getting a sweet deal. The company enjoyed $108.3 million in profits last year and compensated its CEO, Nigel Travis, to the tune of $1.9 million. Meanwhile, the public paid an estimated $274 million to feed, provide medical care, and subsidize the wages of their workforce.