If all goes as expected, Michigan is poised to become the 24th state to implement right-to-work laws which would give employees the option of not contributing a portion of their paychecks for unions to negotiate on their behalf. The plan is seen to be a major setback to organized labor and has Democratic legislators making intimidating comments.

"There will be blood, there will be repercussions," State Democratic Rep. Douglas Geiss, speaking on the House floor on Tuesday, warned ahead of the votes.

The State Senate passed the plan earlier this year, prompting the House to take up the measure Tuesday under a cloud of intensive union pressure. Gov. Rick Snyder says he will sign the measures into law as early as Wednesday. However, Democrats say they will use parliamentary tactics to delay the bills as long as possible. more >>

Dinesh D'Souza's documentary "2016: Obama's America" failed to earn an Oscar nomination despite earning $33.4 million at the box office, and becoming the fourth highest grossing documentary in history. Of course, there isn't much an outcry inside liberal Hollywood. However, D'Souza didn't keep quiet about the Academy Awards committee snub.

"I want to thank the Academy for not nominating our film," D'Souza joked, according to the Hollywood Reporter. "By ignoring 2016, the top-performing box-office hit of 2012, and pretending that films like 'Searching for Sugar Man' and 'This Is Not a Film' are more deserving of an Oscar, our friends in Hollywood have removed any doubt average Americans may have had that liberal political ideology, not excellence, is the true standard of what receives awards."

The film's producer, Gerald Molen, isn't keeping silent either. more >>

Political insiders say there could be more to South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint's decision to resign his seat than just a bigger paycheck at a coveted Washington policy organization. Even some legislators on the hill are pointing out that GOP leaders are relegating their tea party types to the backbench and that is making them seek additional outlets to advance their cause.

Conservatives pay high accolades to DeMint for helping to recruit conservative candidates, oftentimes getting them through crowded primaries before setting the stage for general election victories.

Jenny Beth Martin, national coordinator for Tea Party Patriots, praised DeMint for bringing other conservatives to the Senate such as Sens. Marco Rubio (Fla.), Rand Paul (Ky.), Mike Lee (Utah) and newly elected Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas). more >>

Since the Republicans lost both the White House and any chance of gaining control of the U.S. Senate for the foreseeable future, party leaders are licking their wounds and trying to determine how to attract Hispanic voters. Now Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is saying that goal will be a "challenge."

"The challenge for the conservative movement, the challenge for every movement in America … is applying [our] principles to the 21st century," he said to Politico's Mike Allen at Wednesday's Playbook Breakfast. "We applied them to the 20th century, but now we have to apply them to the 21st century."

However, Rubio does think there is a decent chance of immigration reform being passed before the end of President Obama's second term, including a path to citizenship. more >>

Former Rep. Dick Armey, the battle-scarred majority leader who served under Newt Gingrich, has left the chairman's role at FreedomWorks, one of the first tea party type groups to advocate the principles of individual liberty. Armey said he was leaving because of "serious concerns about the ethical and moral behavior of the senior leadership."

Armey served in Congress from 1985 to 2003 and was known for his brash and outspoken style, especially after Republicans took control of the House in 1994. However, his departure from FreedomWorks with an $8 million parachute has brought an unwanted spotlight on the politically powerful organization.

"I left there because I had serious concerns about the ethical and moral behavior of the senior leadership," Armey said on Fox Business Network's Cavuto on Wednesday. "I don't particularly want to discuss that at length. I think it will be resolved. I am consoled by my certain knowledge that time wounds all heals." more >>

The Public Religion Research Institute confirmed that the religiously unaffiliated and minority Christian vote largely went to President Obama while Mitt Romney attracted most of the white, evangelical vote in November. The group's recent surveys highlight the challenge the GOP has in attracting minority voters.

According to the surveys, 25 percent of religiously unaffiliated voters supported Obama, with Romney winning only 7 percent of the same group. However, 40 percent of white, evangelical Protestants supported Romney while Obama received only 8 percent of that vote.

Each candidate received equal support from white, Catholic voters. more >>