Mitt Romney

Walter Reuther, the United Auto Workers union's greatest leader, has been dead for forty-five years now, killed in a plane crash outside Pellston, a few years before oil shocks and a flood of foreign imports began to drastically change the industry. Several years ago, soon after the union agreed to accept a two-tier wage system in which new hires would be paid less, I asked Doug Fraser, perhaps the last of his successors to know Reuther well, what Walter would have thought about that. I...

It's clear that our grossly gerrymandered legislature is painfully out of touch with the needs and desires of Michigan citizens. This shows up first in a partisan sense; both houses of the legislature have top-heavy Republican majorities even in years when a majority of the people vote Democratic. But that's not the main problem. The boundaries are drawn in a way to ensure that virtually all districts are completely safe for one party. This means that we get the worst of all possible...

Watch Video | Listen to the AudioJUDY WOODRUFF: Race relations return to the forefront after deadly violence in South Carolina. The head of the Catholic Church takes a stance on climate change. And two more candidates leap into the race for 2016. For all that and more, we turn to the analysis of Shields and Brooks. Thats syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks. Welcome, gentlemen. MARK SHIELDS: Judy. JUDY WOODRUFF: So, another terrible race-related story...

I have decided I owe it to my listeners to announce today that I am not running for President. I am indeed old enough and have no felony convictions, but I have decided not to run, for a number of reasons. One of which is that I don't have access to the billion dollars anyone nowadays needs. There is also the minor drawback that I can't imagine anybody in either party voting for me, and one major one, which is that the woman I live with would leave me and take the dog. But the real problem...

Romney landed near the top of 11.5 million entries in ESPN's Tournament Challenge. He had a perfect Final Four — finally beating President Obama, who, by the way, had Kentucky winning it all.

Watch Video | Listen to the AudioRELATED LINKSShields and Brooks on fighting Islamic extremism, Giuliani on Obama Shields and Brooks on Obama’s war authority request, Islamic State’s threat Shields and Brooks on the politics of vaccination, using religion to justify evil acts JUDY WOODRUFF: And with that, we turn to the analysis of Shields and Brooks. Thats syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks. Welcome, gentlemen. So, Mark, CPAC, the gathering,...

Listen to Amy Davidsons comment on Mitt Romney, Pope Francis, Republicans, and what religion means for 2016.

After flirting with a third run for president, Mitt Romney now says he won't run in 2016. What does that mean for the rest of the GOP field?

Some potential Republican candidates, such as Mitt Romney and Jeb Bush, stayed away from the event in Des Moines. Was that a smart move?

Watch Video | Listen to the AudioRELATED LINKSSupreme Court to consider whether all states must recognize same-sex marriage Shields and Brooks on same-sex right to marry, Romney run resistance Elite circle of lawyers finds repeat success getting cases to the Supreme Court JUDY WOODRUFF: It was a day of decisions and argument at the U.S. Supreme Court. Justices ruled in favor of an Arkansas prisoner who wanted to grow a beard for religious reasons, but had been barred from doing so because...

As you probably know, Governor Snyder gives his State of the State speech tonight, two hours before President Obama gives his annual State of the Union address. We also know that America will get a new president exactly two years from today.And there are those who have been speculating that maybe, just maybe, the State of the Union speech two years from now might be given by a President named Rick Snyder.Long shot? Sure. But you might say — hey. Who thought in January 2007 that the next...

Watch Video | Listen to the AudioRELATED LINKSShields and Brooks on Paris terrorism and tolerance, GOP takeover in Congress Shields and Gerson on 2015’s foreign policy issues, Mario Cuomo’s legacy Shields and Gerson on cyber-attacks after Sony, Obama’s year ahead JUDY WOODRUFF: This week, congressional Republicans met to plot next steps with their newfound power in Washington. And there were more steps taken by potential 2016 presidential candidates, as they gear up to run for the White...

President Obama presses for paid sick and parental leave for federal workers. Congress passes a bill to defund White House immigration protections. And Mitt Romney hints at a possible third presidential run. A panel of journalists joins guest host Susan Page for analysis of the week's top national news stories.

Stories from this broadcast: Boston Plans To Confront Climate Change; How Would Another Romney White House Run Play In New Hampshire?; Cambridge Writer Unites Children Of AIDS Victims On Recollectors Website; Boston Celebrates 23-Year-Old Band With Guster Day

The latest person to seriously consider throwing his hat in the ring is Mitt Romney, who had said he would not run again. What does his apparent change of heart mean for the GOP nominating battle?

Watch Video | Listen to the AudioRELATED LINKSWhat does Jeb Bush’s campaign curiosity mean for other possible candidates? What campaign funding trends will carry over to 2016? What midterm lessons politicians can learn for 2016 GWEN IFILL: Just in the past seven days, the 2016 race for president has moved from mostly theoretical to quite substantial. In a minute, we will analyze that campaign landscape, but, first, a brief look at the action of just the past week and where things stand at...

Watch Video | Listen to the AudioRELATED LINKSAfter election, McConnell promises end to gridlock and dysfunction Can Washington be productive in Obama’s final year’s? Former GOP leader Bob Dole tells lawmakers to ‘get together’ JUDY WOODRUFF: Well, now that the president and congressional leaders are getting down to business, we thought it was a good time to check in with voters about what they expect from Washington right now. We picked a Midwestern state you hear a lot about in...

Melissa Block speaks with Patrick O'Connor, political reporter for the Wall Street Journal about Mitt Romney telling donors he wants to run again for president in 2016.

Watch Video | Listen to the AudioJUDY WOODRUFF: Here in the U.S., the economy closed out 2014 on a strong note, and made it the best year for hiring since 1999. December data from the Labor Department today showed a net gain of 252,000 jobs during the month. The report also added another 50,000 positions to the totals for October and November. That made a gain of nearly three million jobs for the year as a whole. In addition, the unemployment rate in December fell to 5.6 percent. But the...

Watch Video | Listen to the AudioRELATED LINKSWhat campaign funding trends will carry over to 2016? What midterm lessons politicians can learn for 2016 GOP’s big election night fuels shift toward 2016 JUDY WOODRUFF: A man whose family is no stranger to politics got an early start shaking up the 2016 election. In the first major salvo in the fight for the White House, Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor, turned to social media to say he is actively exploring a run for president. If he runs,...