On MLK Day, a look at black and white America
Nearly 47 years after Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, blacks and whites in the United States in many ways continue to live starkly different lives.
Drew DeSilver
Publications
Job shifts under Obama: Fewer government workers, more caregivers, servers and temps
The healthcare industry, food and drink establishments and temp services have driven most of the jobs growth since Barack Obama took office nearly six years ago.
Will GOP-run Congress lead to more Obama vetoes? History suggests yes
Some political observers predict that Obama will be using his veto pen a lot more in his last two years in office than he did in the first six. Recent history indicates that presidents do veto more bills when both houses of Congress are controlled by the opposing party.
In late spurt of activity, Congress avoids ‘least productive’ title
An unusually active lame duck session enabled the 113th Congress to avoid its predecessor's record for legislative unproductivity.
Do lower gasoline prices make for confident consumers?
Lower gas prices tend to improve consumer sentiment, but the actual impact on the overall economy probably is small.
Retailers still rely on holiday sales, but not quite as much as they used to
Sales at many retailers spike during the year-end holiday season, but holiday sales overall are a bit less significant than they were two decades ago.
For retailers, the holidays mean a hiring binge – and then a purge
Retail is one of the more seasonally variable sectors of the U.S. economy, but much of the holiday hiring surge is concentrated in just a handful of categories.
How productive are lame duck Congresses?
Lame duck congressional sessions have become more common in recent years, but their actual legislative productivity has varied considerably.
Facing challenges, pollsters broaden experiments with new methodologies
Pew Research Center is working to broaden experiments, aimed both at dealing with the problems confronting traditional probability-based polls and taking advantage of opportunities provided by new technologies.
Executive actions on immigration have long history
President Obama's executive action to protect millions of unauthorized immigrants from deportation is an act that both follows and departs from precedents set by his predecessors.
