Indeed, price controls are one of the most pernicious kinds of government regulation. In an ironic twist, they often lead to higher consumer prices over time because they build inefficiencies into economic transactions and decision-making that end up costing consumers more money in the long run.

The federal government is a powerful entity, but try as it might it cannot repeal the laws of supply and demand. So don’t blame the drug makers or the banks; blame the politicians in Washington and their inability to see that price "controls" can’t control the larger market.

In the case of Sen. Drubin's comparison of Guantanamo Bayto the murderers of three evil despotic regimes, expressing outrage is not enough. Sen. Durbin must be censured now.

Barack Obama, once in opposition of the Kyl-Lieberman amendment, which labels Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps as terrorists, now favorsit.

CEDAW contains many worthy and indeed noble declarations, but its key provisions are 1970s feminism preserved in diplomatic amber. Releasing those aged provisions in 21st-century America would be strange at best, and at worst they could seriously compromise the privacy, well-being, and basic freedoms of Americans.

It is important that an intense Senate minority has some weapons at its disposal to make high-handed majority actions suffer consequences, but due to the misuse of the filibuster, the way the Senate operates now is dysfunctional and costly.

In the next month, Obama will set a tone for Washington that will likely endure as long as he does.

Michael Lewis's best-selling book The Big Short raises questions about the validity of the ideas underpinning the financial regulation legislation Congress is now considering.