Our familiar and enduring ideologies offer convenient explanations and easy solutions to contemporary problems – and this is no less true when it comes to understanding government dysfunction. Generally speaking, liberal Democrats see a well-funded state as capable of remedying social ills caused by the failures of the free market, and conservative Republicans see the state – at best – as incapable of solving major social problems that are best left to the workings of market forces.

Baghdad is on the verge of falling to Islamist rebels, and Americans are somehow surprised. As far as we knew, things were peachy in Iraq until sometime last week. More important than trying to figure out what is happening, however, we are trying to figure out who to blame.

It’s no secret that the Keystone issue is a political powder keg. Neither is it a secret that it’s a controversial topic pitting two traditional foes: environmentalists versus big oil. Very murky, however, is what benefit Keystone XL offers the United States.

When a district court ruled that Wisconsin’s same-sex marriage ban was unconstitutional, one onlooker exclaimed, “it’s like wildfire!” What she was referring to was the recent barrage of rulings that have overturned gay marriage bans across the nation. Wisconsin joins Pennsylvania on the growing list of states that are now issuing same-sex marriage licenses.

On Thursday, Pew Research published a survey that found that there is a deeper divide between Democrats and Republicans now than at any other point in the last 20 years. According to the survey of 10,000 adults nationwide, "these divisions are greatest among those who are the most engaged and active in the political process."

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has been described as “the biggest free trade deal you’ve never heard of.” The arrangement would liberalize trade by bringing down protective tariffs and “harmonizing” regulations and standards in order to facilitate the exchange of goods and services across 12 countries along the Pacific rim.

While the agreement is being negotiated, experts and politicians are debating the potential effects of the TPP on the United States.

"We have to fix this," said President Obama shortly after the 2012 presidential election saw widespread problems with long waiting times at polling places across the country. The single most poignant example of someone affected by the problem was Desiline Victor, a 102-year-old woman who waited in line for 5 hours to vote.

In May, President Obama announced that 9,800 American soldiers will remain in Afghanistan in 2015 -- a significant troop reduction from the current level of 32,000. This residual force, in conjunction with more than 2,000 NATO troops, will continue training the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and engaging in counterterrorism operations, both of which are essential for safeguarding Afghanistan’s political transition into the post-Karzai era.

This commitment jells with the recommendations of the current top brass, as well as independent assessments.

Eric Cantor will no longer represent Virginia's 7th Congressional District. In what is arguably the biggest primary defeat since Republicans took control of the U.S. House in 2010, the chamber's majority leader was ousted by primary opponent Dave Brat.

"The Tea Party has been a tremendously positive input, I think."                                                    --Eric Cantor, November 10, 2010

The election of 1820 was the beginning of the “Era of Good Feelings.” The Federalist Party of Hamilton, Washington, and Adams barely even existed and did not even field a candidate in the presidential election.