Congressional Quarterly, Inc., or CQ, refers to part of a privately owned publishing company called CQ Roll Call that produces a number of publications reporting primarily on the United States Congress. CQ was acquired by the Economist Group and combined with Roll Call to form CQ Roll Call in 2009. As of 2009, CQ ceased to exist as a separate entity.

CQ was founded in 1945 by Nelson Poynter and his wife, Henrietta Poynter, with the aim of providing a link between local newspapers and the complex politics within Washington D.C. CQ has the largest news team covering Capitol Hill, with more than 100 reporters, editors and researchers. CQ's readership includes 95 percent of the members of Congress, academic and media outlets, as well as members of business and nonprofit organizations, government affairs and the executive branch.

Thomas N. Schroth, who had been managing editor of The Brooklyn Eagle, was elected in October 1955 as executive editor and vice president. Schroth built the publication's impartial coverage, with annual revenue growing during his tenure from $150,000 when he started to $1.8 million. In addition to adding a book division, Schroth added many staff members who achieved future journalistic success, including David S. Broder and Elizabeth Drew. He was fired from Congressional Quarterly in 1969 after festering disagreements with Poynter over editorial policy at the publication and Schroth's efforts to advocate "more imaginative ways of doing things" reached a boil.

James Warren "Jim" DeMint (born September 2, 1951) is the junior United States Senator from South Carolina, serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party and a leading member in the Tea Party movement. He previously served as the United States Representative for South Carolina's 4th congressional district from 1999 to 2005.

DeMint was born in Greenville, South Carolina, one of four children. His parents, Betty W. (née Rawlings) and Thomas Eugene DeMint, divorced when he was five years old. Following the divorce, Betty DeMint operated a dance studio out of the family's home.

DeMint was educated at Christ Church Episcopal School and Wade Hampton High School in Greenville. DeMint played drums for a cover band called Salt & Pepper. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of Tennessee, where he was a part of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity, and received a MBA from Clemson University.

DeMint worked in the field of market research. In 1983 he founded The Demint Group, a research firm based in Greenville, and ran the company until 1998 when he entered Congress.

The Latino vote or the Hispanic vote is a catchphrase that in American culture and American politics refers to the voting trends during elections in the United States by eligible voters of Latino or Hispanic background. This phrase is usually mentioned by the media as a way to label voters of this ethnicity, and to opine that this demographic group could potentially tilt the outcome of an election, and how candidates have pandered or not to that specific ethnic group.

In the United States the Latino or Hispanic vote is usually covered by the media, almost always in reference to immigration issues such as immigration reform, immigration enforcement and amnesty for undocumented immigrants, usually with images of Mexican illegal immigrants crossing the border or being arrested by the border patrol, despite the fact that in many cases immigration could be an issue no more important than unemployment or the economy for many of Hispanic American citizens.

Craig Crawford (born 1956) is a writer and television political commentator based in Washington, D.C., a columnist for Congressional Quarterly, and the author of Listen Up Mr. President: Everything You Always Wanted Your President to Know and Do (with co-author Helen Thomas), The Politics of Life: 25 Rules for Survival in a Brutal and Manipulative World, and Attack the Messenger: How Politicians Turn You Against the Media.

Craig Crawford was born in Owensboro, Kentucky. During his childhood, Crawford moved with his family to Orlando, Florida, where he attended Pineloch Elementary School and Oak Ridge High School. His parents, Tabitha and Bill Crawford, encouraged his interest in public affairs. When he was nine years old, Crawford had the opportunity to meet President Lyndon B. Johnson. While still in high school, Crawford served as a page to Republican Senator Ed Gurney. In 1974, while attending Stetson University, he worked on Jimmy Carter's presidential campaign. After the 1976 election, Crawford transferred to American University in Washington to intern in the Carter White House press office. Crawford graduated from Stetson University (1978) and Stetson University College of Law (1981). He has been a member of the Florida Bar since 1982.

Cenk Kadir Uygur (Turkish pronunciation: [ˈdʒɛŋk ˈujɡur]; born March 21, 1970), is the main host and co-founder of the progressive Internet and talk radio show, The Young Turks (TYT). A naturalized U.S. citizen, Uygur was born in Turkey and raised from age eight in the United States. He worked as an attorney in Washington D.C. and New York before beginning his career as a political commentator. Originally a moderate Republican, he has since become a staunch critic of both the Republican and Democratic parties and has adopted more progressive and liberal views.

In addition to hosting TYT, Uygur appeared on MSNBC as a political commentator in 2010, later hosting a weeknight commentary show on the channel for nearly six months—until the time slot was given to Al Sharpton. Shortly after leaving MSNBC, Uygur secured a show on Current TV that began airing on December 5, 2011 before Countdown with Keith Olbermann.

Uygur was born in Istanbul, Turkey and emigrated with his family to the United States when he was eight years old. He grew up in East Brunswick Township, New Jersey and graduated from East Brunswick High School. He attended the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania where he majored in management and was on the Student Activities Council representing the Turkish Students Association. He also earned a J.D. from Columbia Law School and worked as an associate attorney at the law firms of Drinker Biddle & Reath in Washington, D.C. and Hayes & Liebman in New York City.