The Senate of the United States is the only legislative body in the world which cannot act when its majority is ready for action. A little group of willful men, representing no opinion but their own, have rendered the great government of the United States helpless and contemptible.

Woodrow Wilson, March 4, 1917

Whether or not a relatively small minority of the U.S. Senate should be able to block the policies put forward by the president and majorities in both houses of Congress has been a matter of great controversy in American politics since before the Civil War. Today, however, the tactical tools available to the minority are being used more aggressively than at any time in our history and the impact on the nature and quality of American government is greater than ever. On Friday, March 12 the Center for American Progress in cooperation with the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies of American University will sponsor a symposium the modern Senate and how current practices are impacting the quality of government.

Over the years, the United States Agency for International Development has been weakened both in terms of capacity and authorities. The Obama administration came into office with a conviction that global development is a key tenet of an effective, proactive foreign policy. As a result, there are two major global development reviews being conducted at the National Security Council and the State Department that look to strengthen and modernize U.S. development policy.

Please join us for a keynote by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman, Howard Berman, who will discuss the committee's plans for reform of U.S. foreign assistance laws and programs. Chairman Berman's remarks will be followed by a high-level panel of experts who will focus in on the Obama administration's evolving approach to defense, diplomacy, and development.

Now that the Obama administration has called for an end to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the change must be decided upon and implemented as quickly as possible. In doing so, it is critical that the repeal of the policy not be perceived as a complicated puzzle requiring complex solutions.

On March 23, the Center for American Progress Action Fund will host a panel of experts to discuss comprehensive changes that must be made to the military's internal regulations to ensure the new policy is implemented smoothly. The event will also serve as a release of the Center for American Progress's new report, "Implementing the Repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'"

As the workforce struggles to emerge from the recent recession, many Americans must rely on the antipoverty safety net for basic needs like food and shelter. Those struggling cannot afford to see our antipoverty dollars wasted on unnecessary operational costs, overly complex application processes, or on programs that simply do not work. Yet today's antipoverty safety net is not meeting this challenge.

A reform movement is now gathering steam. The Obama administration recently announced plans to create a new federal poverty measure. And states and municipalities, including New York City, are experimenting with programs that could grow into successful national efforts.

Please join the Center for American Progress's Doing What Works project and the Half in Ten campaign, a project of CAP Action, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and the Coalition on Human Needs, for a panel discussion on how innovative policymakers are already reshaping the antipoverty safety net, and what additional steps government must take to reform antipoverty programs.