Ruth Conniff

Ruth Conniff is the Political Editor of the Progressive Magazine. A native of Madison, WIsconsin, she first joined the magazine when she was hired as a summer intern by the late Erwin Knoll after her sophomore year at Yale. Shortly after graduating from college in 1990, she came to work as Associate Editor for the Progressive, becoming Washington Editor and opening the Progressive's Washington, DC, office in 1997. During the 1990s, Conniff covered welfare reform in Wisconsin and around the country, as well as the drug war in Colombia, and other topics, including women's sports (an avid runner, Conniff coached her old high school track and cross-country teams at Madison East High School for many years).
In Washington, Conniff became a regular on TV pundit shows on CNN, Fox News, and PBS. She still appears frequently on PBS's To The Contrary and on the Ed Schultz Show on MSNBC.
Conniff was the recipient of an "Editor's Choice" award from Madison Magazine for her coverage of the Wisconsin Uprising in 2011. Her Progressive Magazine feature story on school privatization is a chapter in the book "It Happened in Wisconsin" recently published by Verso.
Today Conniff lives in Madison with her husband and three daughters, who marched on the Capitol with their teachers from the Madison Public Schools.
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Right to Work: As Goes Michigan, So Goes The Nation »

By Ruth Conniff, December 11, 2012

Republicans, the Chamber of Commerce, and a coalition of now-familiar rightwing millionaires are assaulting the cradle of the union movement.read more

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Good News on Guns: The NRA Is a Paper Tiger »

By Ruth Conniff, December 5, 2012

The mythic power of the NRA to punish any elected official who dares to stray from the no-gun-control-ever line is wildly exaggerated.read more

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Ian’s Pizza Owner Sticks Up for Health Care »

By Ruth Conniff, November 29, 2012

Unlike Denny's and Papa John's, Ian's Pizza is the perfect example of an employer with decent values.read more

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Massive Nationwide Protest By Walmart Workers on Black Friday »

By Ruth Conniff, November 20, 2012

Bring a picket sign to a Walmart near you.read more

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Dean Baker: On Fiscal Cliff, Best Deal Might Be No Deal »

By Ruth Conniff, November 16, 2012

“The Democrats didn't run on cutting Social Security and Medicare—it seems a little less than honest to come in right after the election and cut Social Security and Medicare a week later.”read more

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"Numbers Guy" Paul Ryan Still Misleading His Party »

By Ruth Conniff, November 13, 2012

He spins an ugly fiction about why he and Romney lost, and Obama shouldn’t let him push us off the fiscal cliff.read more

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Tammy Baldwin's Victory Caps Historic Night »

By Ruth Conniff, November 7, 2012

"But I didn't run to make history," she said. "I ran to make a difference."read more

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Voter Intimidation a No-Show in Wisconsin »

By Ruth Conniff, November 6, 2012

In Wisconsin, at least, voter intimidation by True the Vote and other Republican-affiliated election observers has not materialized on Election Day.read more

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Tammy Baldwin Gets a Lift from Obama »

By Ruth Conniff, November 5, 2012

Obama will most likely win Wisconsin. But the biggest bet of all will be on Tammy Tuesday night.read more

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Romney Voter Fraud in Wisconsin »

By Ruth Conniff, October 30, 2012

In Wisconsin and nationally, Republicans are engaging in dirty tricks.read more

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Romney and Obama Campaigns Both Claim Wisconsin »

By Ruth Conniff, October 27, 2012

Both campaigns put their own spin on why they will win Wisconsin.read more

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Paul Wellstone's Legacy, Ten Years Later »

By Ruth Conniff, October 25, 2012

“Paul Wellstone was the embodiment of the idea that if you're authentic and speak from the heart, you can create a deep level of trust with voters.”read more

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Conservatives Forgive Mitt's Me-Too Debate Performance »

By Ruth Conniff, October 23, 2012

For them, any Mitt will do, as long as it seems like he can beat Obama.read more

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The War on the Middle Class »

By Ruth Conniff, October 2012 issue

Ruth Conniff reviews The Betrayal of the American Dream, by Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele.read more

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Fireworks at the Second Tammy/Tommy Debate  »

By Ruth Conniff, October 19, 2012

Tommy Thompson took a page from Mitt Romney in his second debate with Tammy Baldwin in Wisconsin race for U.S. Senate, jumping in, interrupting, even scoffing as Tammy Baldwin talked in her soft-spoken, detailed way.read more

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