Politics
Alum Donald Trump shows interest in 2016 presidential bid
Trump launched an exploratory committee on Wednesday.
Members of Pussy Riot speak at Penn
The faces of the Russian counterculture took the floor last night. The Slavic Languages Department and Perry World House brought Maria Alyokhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, two of the founders the Russian band Pussy Riot to Penn for a question and answer session on Tuesday.
Alec Ward | Throw the bums out
The report makes clear that the mostly-white city government systematically and intentionally used the police and courts to extract money from the mostly-black population. It was not simply that the government’s composition did not reflect that of the electorate, the government was acting directly against the majority’s interests.
Phila. teachers union endorses Jim Kenney for mayor
The endorsement was publicly confirmed on Monday at the John B. Kelly School in Germantown on Monday, though union members had been alerted of the news by email the previous Friday.
New Senate bill calls Penn sexual assault policy into question
Amidst campus controversy over Penn’s recently unveiled sexual assault policy, a bipartisan group of 12 U.S. senators reintroduced a bill establishing guidelines for colleges to adjudicate sexual assault complaints on Feb. 26.
Education at center of city and state budgets
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter has proposed a 9.34 percent increase in property taxes for Philadelphia in an effort to offset the School District’s $80 million deficit for the upcoming school year and to answer their plea for additional funds.
Penn Democrats prepare to volunteer at 2016 DNC
The convention to elect the next Democratic nominee for president will be held at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center on July 25, 2016.
Penn faculty have family trees rooted in politics
For a few Penn professors, politics is not only something to teach — it’s something that runs in the family.
Penn researcher uses Twitter to gauge Common Core debates
The project worked with 190,000 tweets over a six month period between September 2013 to February 2014 that included “#commoncore.”
Governor's suspension of death penalty to go to state Supreme Court
Pennsylvania is currently one of the 32 states with the death penalty.
Penn's first PAC forms out of Penn Ready for Hillary
Student-run PACs at other schools are rare.
Sam Sherman | Obama's foreign policy stick
SAM SHERMAN is a College junior from Marblehead, Mass. His email is samsherman6@gmail.com
Mayoral candidate Lynne Abraham addresses 'flip-flopping' on marijuana at Penn Dems event
Abraham is the second candidate to visit Penn this month, following Former City Councilman Jim Kenney’s visit last Tuesday.
Legislation to privatize state liquor stores comes closer to law
Republican legislators in Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives just took the first step to get Pennsylvania out of the liquor business.
Referendum is early step on staircase to fossil fuel divestment
A referendum this week will reveal if Penn students support fossil fuel divestment, but the vote is only the first step in a long process leading to change. Starting Monday, Penn undergraduates can vote in a referendum on whether or not they believe the University should divest from fossil fuels.
Phila. school board approves five new charter schools
Signs were confiscated, protesters were led out by police and both charter school applicants and opponents made last minute appeals on Wednesday evening. At the peak of the testimony, about 150 people filled the auditorium during a special meeting of the commission to announce the decision at the headquarters of the School District of Philadelphia.Guest column by Peter Thacher | Why you should vote yes to divest
Climate change is scary. 2014 was the hottest year on record. Scientific predictions of climate change impacts are being realized as we encounter more extreme storms, rising sea levels and devastating droughts.
Under new governor, medical marijuana bill reemerges in state agenda
A group of state senators have been working hard to make Pennsylvania the 24th state to legalize medical marijuana.
Mayoral candidate Jim Kenney talks weed, same-sex marriage and education
Jim Kenney is a former City Councilman.