Valerie Richardson

N.Y., California sing blue-state budget blues

California's Jerry Brown and New York's Andrew M. Cuomo won their gubernatorial election bids last year with strong support from public-employee unions, which puts them each in a particularly dicey position when it comes to their states' mammoth budget deficits.

February 1, 2011

Reagan’s 100th wins a gala for the Gipper

The Great Communicator would have been 100 years old on Feb. 6, and those at the Ronald Reagan Foundation and Library here plan to do a bit more than fire up another candle.

January 30, 2011

‘Old school’ Hatch girds for new wave in primary

Orrin Hatch has served Utah for many years — maybe too many. The political mood among Republican voters favors fresh faces with tea party connections, and while the 76-year-old Mr. Hatch may be a veritable political institution in his state, he's not exactly fresh.

January 30, 2011

Outspoken Tucson sheriff faces recall bid

Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik has never lost an election, but that was before his remarks assigning blame for the deadly Tucson, Ariz., shooting to political "vitriol" and calling Arizona "a mecca for prejudice and bigotry."

January 20, 2011

Fighting Sioux on warpath over nickname

When North Dakota's state board of higher education voted to phase out the "Fighting Sioux" last year, that seemed to signal the end of the lengthy battle over the University of North Dakota's nickname and logo. Except that it didn't.

January 17, 2011

Psychologists view Loughner as a man with ‘serious mental issues going on’

Jared Lee Loughner isn't your typical depressed-but-angry rampage shooter, seeking vengeance for a failed marriage, a lost job, or a life that just didn't turn out the way he had planned.

January 10, 2011

Gay group in, values groups out at CPAC

Social and economic conservatives have worked together under the mantle of the Republican Party since Ronald Reagan made them the core of his 1980 coalition, but the alliance now may be fraying.

January 5, 2011

San Diego memorial cross ruled to be unconstitutional

A cross perched atop San Diego's Mount Soledad for nearly a century is unconstitutional and must be removed, according to a federal court ruling Tuesday.

January 4, 2011

CPAC attendance raises gay issue

Some of the biggest names in social conservatism are opting out of the upcoming high-profile Conservative Political Action Conference in response to what they see as the growing marginalization of social issues, culminating in the participation of GOProud, a gay-rights Republican group.

December 29, 2010

Arizona lawmaker set to ramp up fight against illegals

Arizona took a public-relations punch to the gut after passing the nation's toughest anti-illegal-immigration law earlier this year, but anyone who thinks (or hopes) the state Legislature will lower its profile on the border-security issue in 2011 likely will be disappointed.

December 28, 2010

Western states win people power in census

Americans continued to heed Horace Greeley's advice and go West, as states in the Rocky Mountain and Southwest regions emerged as the big gainers in the 2010 U.S. Census report.

December 22, 2010

Obama adopts U.N. manifesto on rights of indigenous peoples

President Obama announced Thursday that the U.S. would reverse the position of the Bush administration and become the last nation to drop its opposition to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

December 16, 2010

Anti-illegals activist to target voter fraud

Outside of Kansas, Kris Kobach is best known as an expert on immigration issues. He's the author of Arizona's anti-illegal-immigration law, a longtime counsel to the Immigration Law Reform Institute and a hero within the border-security movement.

December 15, 2010

Appeals court hears pros, cons of gay marriage for California

The fight over California's same-sex marriage ban unfolded Monday before television audiences as attorneys began arguing the validity of Proposition 8 before a federal appeals court in proceedings broadcast live and watched by those anxious about the outcome and possible national implications of the case.

December 6, 2010

State, local lawmakers seek alternatives to TSA airport screenings

A coach-class rebellion against the Transportation Security Administration is brewing as state and local lawmakers challenge the agency's right to implement its invasive airport-safety protocols.

December 2, 2010

Churchill loses appeal of university firing

Former University of Colorado professor Ward Churchill won't be returning to the classroom anytime soon after losing his appeal Wednesday to get his job back.

November 24, 2010

Bristol Palin matches mom in ‘Stars’ power

Bristol Palin had the bloggers and the buzz, but Jennifer Grey had the moves.

November 23, 2010

Independent panel to draw the line on districts in California

It was as Californian as beaches, surfing and movie stars, but the legislative gerrymander may now be a thing of the past in the Golden State.

November 18, 2010

Court backs in-state tuition rates for illegals

The California Supreme Court ruled unanimously Monday that illegal immigrants attending state universities can continue to pay the cheaper, in-state tuition rates instead of the pricier rates charged to U.S. legal residents and citizens who live outside the state.

November 15, 2010

3rd-party bid buffed Tancredo viability

Technically, he's no longer a Republican, but Tom Tancredo's decision to run for governor as a third-party candidate may have made him the most electable conservative in Colorado.

November 10, 2010