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Steven Pearlstein

The Latest From Steven Pearlstein
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., arrives to hold his daily news conference on the government shutdown in the Capitol on Monday.

Whom to blame for shutdown? All 535 members of Congress

By Steven Pearlstein
Posted November 3, 2025 at 1:19pm
Blue skies replace rain clouds over the Capitol on Oct. 8.

Shutdown serves as exhibit A into why Congress does not work

By Steven Pearlstein
Posted October 10, 2025 at 11:42am
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., talks with reporters after the Senate luncheons on Tuesday. His caucus has a choice in how it will approach negotiations with the GOP and White House on spending, Steven Pearlstein writes.

Ditch the bromides; stand up for the Constitution

By Steven Pearlstein
Posted September 9, 2025 at 5:24pm
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., voted for the legislation but said he would work to head off future cuts to Medicaid after saying he was deeply opposed to such cuts. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

Serious legislating hits a low point

By Steven Pearlstein
Posted July 8, 2025 at 6:30am
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., takes over the action on budget reconciliation from Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., left. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Senators: It’s time to reclaim your relevance

By Steven Pearlstein
Posted June 2, 2025 at 2:16pm, Updated at 7:06am
Speaker Mike Johnson, left, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune hold a news conference earlier this month on adopting a partisan budget resolution. Pearlstein suggests that the parties haven’t learned from the recent political past.

Congress can do better than a ‘big, beautiful,’ hyper-partisan bill

By Steven Pearlstein
Posted April 29, 2025 at 6:00am
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., conducts a news conference after the Senate luncheons in the Capitol on Tuesday.

Democrats had months to head off Schumer’s no-win dilemma

By Steven Pearlstein
Posted March 27, 2025 at 5:30am
President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress in the House chamber of the U.S. Capitol on March 4. Columnist Steven Pearlstein writes that Democrats have more options in how they go about their business.

A third way for congressional Democrats

By Steven Pearlstein
Posted March 6, 2025 at 3:56pm
Newly sworn-in President Donald Trump takes part in a signing ceremony in the President’s Room following the 60th inaugural ceremony on Jan. 20 at the Capitol. Also in attendance are: Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, Sens. Deb Fischer and Amy Klobuchar, Vice President JD Vance, Melania Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Congress has itself to blame for current constitutional crisis

By Steven Pearlstein
Posted February 19, 2025 at 6:30am