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Director’s Desk: April 24, 2014
When asked what they remember as the most significant event of 1994, people tend to be divided between the massive 6.7 magnitude Northridge earthquake that devastated Los Angeles and the arrest of O.J. Simpson on murder charges following the infamous slow motion car chase in the white Bronco. Some of us, however, also remember 1994
Appropriations Bills, No Return to 1994
When asked what they remember as the most significant event of 1994, people tend to be divided between the massive 6.7 magnitude Northridge earthquake that devastated Los Angeles and the arrest of O.J. Simpson on murder charges following the infamous slow motion car chase in the white Bronco. Some of us, however, also remember 1994
If Congressional Oversight Is to Be Taken Seriously, It Shouldn’t Be Packaged as a Comic Book
This post originally appeared as an op-ed in Roll Call. In December, Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma issued his annual “Wastebook” that purports to highlight unnecessary and wasteful government spending both by Congress and by federal agencies. In this year’s edition, he’s especially critical of the 16-day federal government shutdown. Interestingly, he levels considerably
Director’s Desk: March 6, 2014
On Tuesday the FY15 congressional budget process officially began with President Obama submitting his FY15 budget request to Congress. The discretionary portion of the president’s $3.9 trillion request stays within the caps agreed to in last year’s omnibus appropriations bill, but also contains a $56 billion supplemental “wish list” of additional spending to be divided
Director’s Desk: February 12, 2014
Congress has avoided going over yet another fiscal cliff, with the House passing a “clean” debt limit bill yesterday, and Senate passage expected later today. This will mark the fourth major piece of bipartisan legislation passed since last October’s 16-day government shutdown that includes the two-year Ryan-Murray budget agreement, the FY14 omnibus appropriations bill, and
Director’s Desk: January 13, 2014
With the January 15 deadline to pass the FY14 appropriations bills fast approaching, on Friday House Appropriations Chair Harold Rogers (R-KY) filed a “clean” three-day extension of the current continuing resolution, which is expected to pass both chambers by Wednesday. Both sides continue to report good progress on the $1.012 trillion omnibus bill, with Chairman
The Good News is Congress Just Agreed…
Just this afternoon, the Washington Post ran a story on their web site titled “Senate Moves to Extend Jobless Benefits.” Most readers would surmise that the chamber had in fact voted to extend the emergency legislation that provided unemployment benefits beyond the traditional 26 weeks to the 1.3 million Americans whose payments were cut off
Director’s Desk: December 20, 2013
Late Wednesday the Senate passed the budget agreement that had passed the House last week, generating considerable speculation as to whether the bipartisan deal would herald a new era of bipartisan functionality, or whether its limited scope simply confirmed Congress’s inability to get big things done. In either case, it marks an end of four
Director’s Desk: November 22, 2013
Although yesterday’s historic Senate vote to eliminate the filibuster for most presidential nominees grabbed most of the headlines, there was a second Senate vote, later in the day, that was perhaps equally historic. If there was any doubt over whether finally exercising the “nuclear option” would lead to even greater divisiveness in the upper chamber,
Can Boehner Be Removed From Office?
If Speaker Boehner allows the House to vote on a “clean” continuing resolution with the idea of allowing it to pass with a majority of Democratic votes, can he be removed as Speaker in the 113th Congress? As of this writing it appears that a government shutdown is inevitable. The only realistic, albeit remote possibility of