Last Friday, President Barak Obama issued a statement announcing that he would not lend his support for the Stop Online Piracy Act, known as SOPA, citing concerns over First Amendment rights and cyber security risks. Introduced last October in Congress, SOPA would give content providers wide reaching powers to shut down websites distributing copyrighted materials. 

Wednesday marks the tenth anniversary of the United States opening a detention camp in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. The past decade has seen no shortage of controversy about the base, both on legal and moral terms. Barack Obama campaigned for president on the promise to close the base, but signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act on December 31, which includes a provision allowing indefinite military detention without trial. There are currently 171 prisoners being held there, and no signs of shutting the facility down in the near future.

Congressional hearings on Islamic Extremism in America begin Thursday morning in front of the House Committee on Homeland Security. Congressman Peter King (R-NY), chair of the committee, called the hearings in order to start a debate over whether American Muslims are doing enough to prevent home-grown terrorism plots. Rep. King has a long history interacting with Muslims who live in his Long Island district and some say his relationship with the Muslim community changed drastically after 9/11. Many complain that singling out one religious group and tying it to extremism is discriminatory.

This week, the House Homeland Security Committee will hold a hearing on what they are calling the radicalization of American Muslims. The hearing, hosted by chairman of the committee, Representative Peter King (D-NY), is tasked with investigating the threat posed by homegrown Muslim terrorists. "At this stage in our history, there is an effort to radicalize elements within the Muslim community," Rep. King said on CNN's "State of the Union" this weekend. There has been an outcry by Muslim Americans criticizing the congressional committee for signaling out the Muslim community as posing a threat to the country. Is it a worthwhile exploration of the issues or a witch hunt?

The federal deficit is set to top $1.5 trillion this year. It's a huge number, but does it even mean anything anymore? Takeaway Washington correspondent Todd Zwillich says that competing budget plans are popping up all around the Capitol as lawmakers try to find ways to cut as much as possible. The Republican leadership in the House says they will cut $100 billion from the budget this fiscal year. Meanwhile, President Obama has proposed a $400 billion cut over ten years. As the Republicans look for deeper and deeper cuts, the Democrats warn that this could shock the economy back into a recession.

Gone are the days of the "Washington wife." As the 112th Congress opens, most members of Congress have left their spouses and children at home. For an article released this week, Newsweek spoke with 46 of the 107 new members of Congress and only one of them — Republican Senator Mike Lee, of Utah — is moving to Washington with his family. What does this mean for the culture in Washington?

On the insistence of House Republicans, the U.S. Constitution will be read from beginning to end today on the floor of the House of Representatives. This may prove a fitting overture to what could be a Congressional session filled with Constitutional battles. Is this reading a stunt or a significant symbol of how Congress will work?

With the 112th Congress starting this week, Ohio's Rep. John Boehner is set to take his seat as the new Speaker of the House. What kind of Speaker he'll be remains to be seen. Will he follow in the steps of Newt Gingrich, who became Speaker when Republicans took control of the House back in 1994?

The 112th Congress begins this week, and with the House under Republican control while Democrats still hold a slim majority in the Senate, many are expecting gridlock for the next two years. Todd Zwillich, The Takeaway's Washington correspondent, and Charlie Herman, economics editor for The Takeaway and WNYC, look at what's in store for Congress in the upcoming days, weeks, and even years. They also discuss the obstacles President Obama's health care plan may face this year: Will the plan as implemented look the same in 2012 as it does today?

Data from the 2010 census will be released today, and the results could help give Republicans more seats in the House of Representatives.  For each state, the census data will confirm the total and regional populations, and indicate whether the state will gain or lose representation in the House. At this point, the GOP looks poised to pick up seats in several states.

The Senate voted to repeal "don't ask, don't tell," over the weekend. The law, enacted 17 years ago by President Bill Clinton, allowed gays to serve in the military, as long as they did not reveal their sexual orientation. Todd Zwillich, The Takeaway's Washington correspondent, looks at what's next for the repeal. Meanwhile, a number of economic indicators come out this week, and Charlie Herman, economics editor for The Takeaway and WNYC, looks at the upcoming third quarter GDP numbers due out Wednesday, along with existing home sales numbers, and new home sales numbers on Thursday.

A lot happened on Capitol Hill last night.

The House stayed late to vote on the compromise tax package that President Obama negotiated with Republicans. Before the vote, Democratic House majority leader Steny Hoyer commented, "There probably is nobody on this floor who likes this bill, therefore the judgment is, is it's better than doing nothing."

And in a major setback to Democrats, Republicans managed to halt Senate progress on an omnibus government funding bill, forcing Democrats to consider GOP demands or face shutting down the federal government. Majority Leader Harry Reid will likely bring a shorter duration bill to fund government through January, when a Republican-controlled House can put its imprimatur on spending requests. Reid has scheduled votes over the weekend to enact the "Dream Act" and attempt, again, to repeal "don't ask, don't tell." Meanwhile, the House passed the nearly $1 trillion tax cut bill despite a loud minority of critics in both parties. 

The House looks likely to pass a stripped-down bill repealing "don't ask, don't tell," and will move on to the controversial tax cuts and unemployment bill which passed in the Senate yesterday. Wrangling between Senate Democrats and Republicans over the timing of the START agreement with Russia continues, and the end of year recess ticks ever closer. Todd Zwillich, Takeaway Washington correspondent, walks us through all the last minute votes and politicking, including Harry Reid threatening to keep the Senate working right up through Christmas. 

As this Congress's lame duck period winds on, the last Democratic priorities come to the chambers' floors for consideration. With guarded encouragement from Senate centrists, the House of Representatives plans to take up a simple bill to repeal the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy, while the Senate considers confirming the START agreement with Russia. Todd Zwillich joins us to talk about the chances of these bills in the House and Senate. 

Today a new political movement is launching in New York City called “No Labels.” It’s ambitious. It’s inclusive. The crème de la crème of analysts and strategists are on board, as are former and current politicians of both parties as well as independent. But what exactly is "No Labels?"

The Senate is scheduled to vote on President Obama's tax cuts bill today, most people are confident it will pass. The real battle will then come as the bill heads to the House, where many Democrats have staked out a clear position against the deal.  Some House Democrats support the bill, however, including Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), who represents the 28th District of Texas. He shares with us his reasons for supporting the bill, and what he thinks is the likelihood of it passing.

Senate Republicans blocked what may have been one of the last real attempts to repeal the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy before Republicans take control of the House next year. But all is not lost for those supporting repeal. Yesterday outgoing speaker Nancy Pelosi tweeted: "An army of allies stands ready to pass standalone repeal in House." Currently, Democrats need only two GOP Senators to reach the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster. In January, they will need the support of at least seven Republicans. Washington correspondent Todd Zwillich explains why this is such a crucial moment for Democrats to push through a repeal of the policy.

Are we seeing the start of a Democratic insurrection? Our conversation this morning with Oregon Democrat Rep. Peter DeFazio suggests we are. Here's how he responded to John's question this morning about whether he'd support a Democratic challenge to Obama in 2012: "I'm going to withhold my support until I see who's on the ballot."

House Democrats rebelled Thursday against President Barack Obama's tax cut deal with Republicans, threatening to keep it off the floor. This comes after the House Democratic Caucus met yesterday and approved a motion to reject the provisions of the compromises — most notably the provisions related to the estate tax. Currently the deal struck between the President and Republicans would extend Bush-era tax cuts for the super-rich, and drastically ease the estate tax burden. We speak with the man leading the charge in the House Democratic caucus, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.). He also weighs in on whether President Obama can count on his support in 2012. 

The White House and Senate Republicans reached a tentative agreement yesterday that would see a GOP priority, Bush-era tax cuts extended for rich and poor alike, accepted in return for a Democratic priority: extending unemployment benefits to help keep the economy moving. Takeaway Washington correspondent Todd Zwillich watched the deal in the making.