Christian Science Monitor | DC Decoder

Obamas hosting Carole King: What's the special occasion?

When the Beatles got off the plane for the first time in the US, the first person they wanted to meet was Carole King. So, winning the Library of Congress's Gershwin Prize for Popular Song and a White House gig were events just waiting to happen.

Anthony Weiner for N.Y.C. mayor? Why he is no Mark Sanford. (+video)

Disgraced former Rep. Anthony Weiner announced his candidacy Wednesday for mayor of New York City. But he will have a harder time than Rep. Mark Sanford did in staging a comeback.

Obama dials back drone strikes: 3 reasons why

IRS official Lois Lerner invokes Fifth Amendment. Why won't she talk? (+video)

Senate panel passes immigration reform bill: how Republicans helped shape it (+video)

The immigration reform bill, which passed the Senate Judiciary Committee by a 13-to-5 vote Tuesday night, received some tweaks aimed at attracting more GOP support during its next key vote on the Senate floor.

IRS deliberately harassed conservatives, majority say in poll

Why Rand Paul thinks Senate is 'bullying' Apple Inc. (+video)

Might Obama fire Attorney General Eric Holder?

Obama administration targets Fox News reporter in 'chilling' echo of AP probe (+video)

Last week, news broke that the Justice Department obtained records from AP for its investigation into an internal leak. Now, details are emerging about an investigation of a Fox News reporter that some experts say could harm investigative journalism even more.

Ted Nugent's brother slaps Ted on gun background checks. Family feud?

North Korea missile launches: Pyongyang toying with foes? (+video)

Why IRS investigation is already Obama's Watergate – and Benghazi, too (+video)

Since Watergate, every two-term president has had a second-term scandal. First-term mistakes and hyperpartisanship make probes – like those into Benghazi and the IRS – almost inevitable.

The good news – and the bad news – for Obama in scandal-tinged polls

President Obama's approval rating has not slipped in public opinion polls despite a trio of political scandals. But most Americans don't think much of the way the administration has handled the issues, and they believe further investigation is justified.

Did the Associated Press blow an Al Qaeda informant's cover?

Some officials say the Associated Press scoop on a thwarted terrorist plot by an Al Qaeda affiliate in Yemen harmed the effort to neutralize a master bomb-builder. Does that excuse the Obama administration's aggressive crackdown on national security leaks?

'Obamagate' danger for the GOP: political overreach

Republicans are jumping all over what they see as major scandals in the Obama administration, including Benghazi, the IRS, and checking journalists’ phone records. But some in the GOP are warning against the perception of overreach for partisan purposes.

Playing the IRS card: Six presidents who used the IRS to bash political foes

The Obama administration isn't the first to face criticism of using the Internal Revenue Service as a political hit squad. Since the advent of the federal income tax about a century ago, several presidents – or their zealous underlings – have directed the IRS to turn its formidable police powers on political rivals.

As President Coolidge's Treasury secretary, Andrew Mellon ordered an IRS audit of a rival, only to find the Franklin Roosevelt administration, later, doing the same to him. President Nixon was caught on tape ordering IRS field audits of dozens of people deemed to be his political enemies. In other cases, a direct line of accountability to the president is not so clear. But whether directly ordered by a president or not, the IRS field audit has long been an option that gives new meaning to the term "bully pulpit."

Here's how six administrations played the IRS card.

Bob Woodward compares Benghazi with Watergate. Is he right? (+video)

House Republicans repeal Obamacare again. Why do they keep doing it?

House Republicans repealed Obamacare for the fourth time Thursday, and like their other efforts, it will go nowhere in the Senate. Yet for the party's base, it's hardly a pointless vote.

Why Benghazi talking points make US government seem like Dunder Mifflin (+video)

Why furor over IRS tea-party scandal won't subside, despite ouster