A.D. Quig 
Since it’s Ken Rudin’s first week off in a long time, we’re taking this opportunity to share our interviews about great political firsts in history. Our first “first” is one that’s been studied over and over for more than half a century: the first televised presidential debates between Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy. We …
We’ve noticed a trend here: Now comes a second woman in the Senate named Barbara who has announced her retirement. First there was Barbara Boxer in California. Now, after a 28-year Senate career, Barbara Mikulski’s stepping down. So this week’s question is: Mikulski has been in the Senate for 28 years. What woman is in …
The event everyone was waiting for happened. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, nervous about the possibility that the Obama administration might make major concessions in its negotiations with Iran on its nuclear capabilities, accepted a Republican invitation to address Congress on his concerns. It led to recriminations from both parties. The GOP agreed with Netanyahu …
On Tuesday, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel was forced into a runoff in his bid for re-election. Of course, he’s held elected office before — he served six years in Congress. So this week’s question was: who was the last person elected mayor of Chicago in their first run for public office? Submit your answer in the …
The President has, as expected, vetoed the Keystone XL Pipeline bill. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has already scheduled a vote on a veto override, but its chances are very slim. Professor John Gilmour of the College of William and Mary, and Philip Bump, a reporter with the Washington Post, talk about the politics, and …
While senators are stalling on Loretta Lynch and DHS funding, they had no problem voting last week to confirm Ashton Carter as secretary of defense. He’ll succeed Chuck Hagel, the former Republican senator from Nebraska. The Senate vote wasn’t even close: 93 to 5. But this week’s question is: what defense secretary had the most …
While Republicans in Congress remain furious with President Obama and his planned executive orders to alter immigration policy, Senate and House leaders can’t come to an understanding about how to battle Obama while preventing a shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security. Sarah Mimms of the National Journal explains how Republicans may have boxed themselves …
As many of you should know, today is Valentine’s Day. So this week’s question is: Who was the last serious candidate to run for the House, the Senate and the Presidency, who was born on Valentine’s Day, February 14th? Submit your answer in the box below. We’ll pick a winner at random from the bunch. The …
This week is all about exits — whether it’s Brian Williams at NBC, Jon Stewart at The Daily Show, whispers about Gov. John Kitzhaber resigning in Oregon, or the goodbyes (large and small) in political history — it’s never easy, but there’s a lot to learn. Jeb Bush left the Florida governorship way back in 2006, …
It’s common knowledge that there’s a cross section between political junkies and sports junkies. And some of us here on Team PJ are still shaking our heads over that amazingly exciting Super Bowl finish. What was Pete Carroll thinking in that final play?? Fun fact: Russell Wilson is the first African-American quarterback to win and …