Does Having an Irish Name Help You Get Elected In Chicago?

It’s a truism that being identifiably part of the Irish diaspora, at least on a ballot, is a huge advantage in Chicago’s provincial, low-information electoral contests. But a look at judicial elections, among the lowest-information of all, indicates that the advantage is barely statistically significant.

The Fiscal Cliff: A Legacy of Dennis Hastert's House

John Boehner’s Plan B to avert the fiscal cliff got nixed by his own party raising the question of what, if anything, he could get the members he leads to agree to. He could also try to swing some Democrats his way—but that would violate the edict established by his predecessor, Dennis Hastert, which Boehner has made, at his peril, even stronger.