Wednesday morning federal headlines – June 13, 2012
Today's newscast includes GOP lawmakers
challenging Attorney General Eric Holder's
decision to use two politically appointed
prosecutors to investigate natio...
The Morning Federal Newscast is a daily compilation of the stories you hear Federal Drive hosts Tom Temin and Emily Kopp discuss throughout the show each day. The Newscast is designed to give FederalNewsRadio.com users more information about the stories you hear on the air.
Some lawmakers may be hearing the IRS’ cries for help. Senate appropriators have recommended giving the agency a 6 percent increase in funding. They say the money would restore two years of severe cuts to services and enforcement. The agency has cut about 5,000 positions. An IRS oversight board report shows more calls to the agency’s toll-free help line go unanswered. The Senate subcommittee recommendation is much more than the House has approved, but 2 percent less than the IRS had requested. (National Treasury Employees Union)
The rift between Attorney General Eric Holder and Senate Republicans has deepened. Senators Lindsey Graham and Chuck Grassley urge Holder to appoint an outside special prosecutor to investigate recent national security leaks. Holder has resisted that call. Instead, he named two politically appointed prosecutors to oversee the FBI’s probe of the leaks. One of the prosecutors was appointed by President George W. Bush. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.)introduced a non-binding resolution calling for a special counsel. (Federal News Radio)
Two senators say the government’s acquisition isn’t broken, it just needs more of the right people. Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) is chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. He says cuts by DoD to its acquisition workforce in the 1990s went too deep. Ranking member Susan Collins (R-Maine) tells Federal News Radio fellow members of Congress need to focus more on federal workforce issues. They point to success of the Navy’s Virginia Class submarine- building program as an example of what’s possible. The boats are ahead of schedule and under budget. Collins said she’s concerned about the Obama administration’s plan to make political contributions part of a company’s response to a government request for proposals. She called the plan truly outrageous. (Federal News Radio)
The leading senator on the Armed Services Committee says raising taxes, even in an election year, may be necessary to preserve the military’s budget. Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) says everything, including taxes and cuts to entitlement programs, should be on the table. Lawmakers are trying to avert sequestration, the across-the-board cuts dictated by last year’s Budget Control Act, which will kick in unless Congress passes a new law by January. Levin says Congress should let the George W. Bush tax cuts on the wealthiest Americans expire and close various tax loopholes like offshore tax havens. Otherwise, he says sequestration would force cuts in 3 thousand military programs. GOP lawmakers are also speaking out against the dangers of cuts to the military but have not mentioned raising taxes. (Federal News Radio)
The Justice Department has sued Florida over a plan to remove non-citizens from voter rolls. Florida is suing the Homeland Security Department for access to the federal database of immigrants. The New York Times reports, Florida removed 2,600 people from its voter rolls, saying they are ineligible to vote in upcoming state primaries. Justice says that’s too soon before the election. It says Florida’s list of potential ineligible voters is out of date. Justice is claiming jurisdiction over how Florida administers its election registration laws. (New York Times)
Presidential candidate Mitt Romney is fighting back against claims that he doesn’t care about government workers. President Barack Obama’s campaign laid the charges while touting the president’s stalled jobs bill. They point to a Romney speech last week, during which he said Obama needed to “get the message in Wisconsin” that it’s time for government cutbacks. But Romney told Fox News on Tuesday that the claim he doesn’t care is absurd…since teachers, firefighters and police officers are hired at the local and state level. He says the federal government doesn’t pay for them. But, as GovExec points out, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has shown that funds from the 2009 stimulus bill were used to keep cops, teachers and firefighters on the payroll. (GovExec)
Around the world, people do not like the United States’ increasing use of unmanned drones to kill terror suspects. The Pew Research Center survey 21 countries from Britain to Brazil. In 17 of them, more than half of the respondents disapprove of U.S. Drone strikes. The researchers say that reflects a perception that the United States goes it alone and does not consider other countries’ interests. As the military draws down overseas…the White House is ramping up its use of unmanned drones. In contrast to the global results…the poll finds most Americans — 62 percent — approve of drone strikes to kill terror suspects. (Pew Global)
Yesterday, AFFIRM awarded its leadership awards. Among, the recipients were Rep. Gerry Gonnolly (D-Va.) in the category for leadership in service to the government IT community. Darren Ash, CIO of NRC and president of AFFIRM, hands the leadership award to Rep. Gerry Connolly, assisted by VA’s Horace Blackman, a member of AFFIRM’s awards planning committee. (Photo by Henry Brattlie)
