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Cover-ups, conspiracies and why journalists should sometimes break the law

By Peter Wilby - 08 November

When he set up a committee on smog in 1952, Harold Macmillan, then the local government minister, said: “We cannot do very much, but we can seem to be very busy.” I suspect it is in the

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Barack Obama walks off the stage following his victory speech on election night.

Obama’s ground game, avoiding the fiscal cliff and thoughts of President Gore

By Douglas Alexander - 07 November

I arrived in Boston on the night of the third and last presidential debate – which focused solely on foreign policy.

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Education Secretary Michael Gove. Photograph: Getty Images.

The emerging Conservative world-view is more Goveism than Cameronism

By Rafael Behr - 07 November

British voters do not judge prime ministers according to their popularity abroad, which is lucky for David Cameron, who is pretty friendless right now.

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Ed Miliband meets with Hugh Grant at the Labour Party conference last year.

Ed’s in trouble with Leveson

By Dan Hodges - 31 October

Hugh Grant is starting to annoy people. “Who does the guy think he is?” one exasperated shadow cabinet member asked me.

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Barack Obama speaks at a campaign rally in Nashua, New Hampshire.

Leader: The world cannot afford a defeat for Barack Obama

By New Statesman - 31 October

If Barack Obama has fallen short of the expectations of many of his supporters, it is partly because they were so high to begin with.

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Barack Obama with Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

Making the world a more dangerous place – the eager role of Julia Gillard

By John Pilger - 25 October

The Australian parliament building reeks of floor polish. The wooden floors shine so virtuously they reflect the cartoon-like portraits of prime ministers, bewigged judges and viceroys.

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Clegg talks Double Dutch

By Kevin Maguire - 25 October

Mistrust is deepening between the Europhobic David Cameron and the Eurofanatic Nick Clegg.

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Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond. Photograph: Getty Images.

Will the referendum come too soon for Salmond, the SNP Pretender?

By Kevin McKenna - 24 October

Room number two of Perth’s Salutation Hotel is where Prince Charles Edward Stuart, the Young Pretender, stayed one night in 1745.

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Ed Miliband arrives on stage at Hyde Park to address a TUC anti-cuts rally.

Miliband is sneaking up on power without a plan for government

By Rafael Behr - 24 October

If there is such a thing as a good booing, Ed Miliband got one at an anti-austerity rally in London on 20 October.

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Prime Minister David Cameron leaves 10 Downing Street. Photograph: Getty Images.

Tory realism on Europe will not survive Cameron’s leadership

By Rafael Behr - 17 October

David Cameron will be remembered by history as, among other things, the last leader of the Conservative party to support British membership of the European Union.

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The Republicans finally wave goodbye to reality

By Nicholas Wapshott - 11 October

Until the 1980s, American conservatives used to pride themselves on being no-nonsense, hard-headed pragmatists with their feet firmly planted on the ground.

David Cameron delivering his conference speech. Photograph: Getty Images

Leader: The Conservatives remain the party of the English south

By New Statesman - 10 October

One of David Cameron’s earliest and best insights was that as long as the Conservatives appeared obsessed with issues such as Europe, immigration, “benefit scroungers” and cr