Congress – News Stories About Congress - Page 87

Site Discloses Salaries, Riles Capitol Aides

Apr 9, 2008 12:22 PM CDT

Site Discloses Salaries, Riles Capitol Aides

Congressional staffers protest personal data being published

(Newser) - A site posting the financial records of highly paid Congressional staffers is coming under fire on Capitol Hill. LegiStorm publishes salaries, travel logs, and personal data on aides with six-figure federal incomes—a matter of public record, the Washington Post reports. But some charge the site crossed the line when...

Petraeus Foils
Senators Seeking Exit

ANALYSIS

Apr 9, 2008 7:09 AM CDT

Petraeus Foils Senators Seeking Exit

General, Crocker continue testimony on Capitol Hill today

(Newser) - David Petraeus and Ryan Crocker head back to Capitol Hill this morning after a grueling day of testimony that was short on substance and clear goals, writes the Washington Post. Pressed repeatedly yesterday to describe what "conditions" they would like to see before recommending a troop withdrawal, the general...

Congress Prods Justice Dept.
on Secrecy

Apr 8, 2008 10:38 AM CDT

Congress Prods Justice Dept. on Secrecy

Dems accuse Mukasey, underlings of stalling on requests

(Newser) - Congress is redoubling its efforts to get info from the Justice Department, the Washington Post reports. Requests for classified documents have languished for as long as 3 years, and the contretemps between Congress and Alberto Gonzales over their disclosure has improved little under the new AG, Michael Mukasey. "We...

FAA Too Cozy With Airlines, Whistle-Blowers Say

Apr 4, 2008 2:50 PM CDT

FAA Too Cozy With Airlines, Whistle-Blowers Say

Lawmakers cite agency's 'complacency' in letting safety risks fly

(Newser) - An overly cozy relationship between airlines and the federal agency tasked with inspecting them has lawmakers worried in the wake of hearings yesterday on Capitol Hill, the Chicago Tribune reports. Federal Aviation Administration officials let serious safety issues fly, ignoring maintenance and inspection regulations, safety specialists, government overseers and whistle-blowers...

Dems Blast Secret Iraq Report

Apr 4, 2008 5:20 AM CDT

Dems Blast Secret Iraq Report

Rosy picture aims to bolster White House, they charge

(Newser) - A new, top-secret intelligence report asserts that conditions on the ground in Iraq have markedly improved, reports the Wall Street Journal. Only a select number of House and Senate members have seen the report, but top Democrats are already blasting the document as an effort to bolster the administration's Iraq...

Pork Watchdog Taps Byrd

Apr 2, 2008 2:03 PM CDT

Pork Watchdog Taps Byrd

W.Va. rules the roost in earmarks as $2.8B in tasty meat comes under scrutiny

(Newser) - Fiscal responsibility and vegetarianism took a hit today with the release of the 2008 Oinkers, awarded by a Washington watchdog group for the "most egregious and blatant examples of pork." Sen. Robert Byrd landed the top award for earmarking $386 million for West Virginia, but Alaska was the...

Lawmakers
Go Bipartisan
on Housing

Apr 2, 2008 10:45 AM CDT

Lawmakers Go Bipartisan on Housing

It wasn't April Fool's Day, it was 2 weeks with voters that did it

(Newser) - Lawmakers are suddenly coming together on housing, with Republicans supporting a bill they left for dead two weeks ago, and Democrats cooling the political rhetoric for a change. The difference: those two weeks were spent back home with constituents, Politico notes. “Unless every member of the Senate was in...

Bernanke: Adjustment Is Mostly Over

Apr 2, 2008 10:24 AM CDT

Bernanke: Adjustment Is Mostly Over

But admits economy could contract, possibility of recession

(Newser) - Ben Bernanke for the first time acknowledged the possibility of a US recession, but he also voiced optimism that “much” of the adjustment period was over, the Wall Street Journal reports. His testimony before Congress seemed to suggest an end to aggressive stimulus measures—noting that rates had already...

Congress Grills Oil Execs Over Skyrocketing Prices

Apr 1, 2008 5:21 PM CDT

Congress Grills Oil Execs Over Skyrocketing Prices

Honchos place some blame at legislators' feet

(Newser) - Top oil executives faced a panel of angry lawmakers on Capitol Hill today, as Congress fumed over the disparity between the companies’ hefty profits and soaring prices, the Washington Post reports. Said one rep, “I believe the laws of supply and demand when it comes to oil and gas...

Supreme Court Stands Pat on FBI Raid of Rep's Office

Mar 31, 2008 1:24 PM CDT

Supreme Court Stands Pat on FBI Raid of Rep's Office

Separation of powers violated, appeals ruled

(Newser) - The Supreme Court declined today to hear an appeal of a ruling that the FBI violated separation-of-powers law in a 2006 raid on the office of Rep. William Jefferson, the New York Times reports. Though the raid itself was not unconstitutional, an appeals court found, the FBI went too far...

CIA's Legal Troubles Grow Over Tapes' Destruction

Mar 28, 2008 9:24 AM CDT

CIA's Legal Troubles Grow Over Tapes' Destruction

Agency faces growing number of challenges from detainees

(Newser) - The CIA's decision to destroy interrogation videotapes to save itself legal trouble is backfiring in a big way, the New York Times reports. Lawyers for more than a dozen detainees have filed challenges citing the destruction of evidence, putting terrorism cases on shaky ground and jeopardizing future prosecutions as well,...

Mass. Rep Vows to Legalize Pot

Mar 23, 2008 4:44 PM CDT

Mass. Rep Vows to Legalize Pot

Barney Frank says public is ready for change

(Newser) - Rep. Barney Frank will move to legalize “small amounts” of marijuana, Politico reports, citing Americans who think use of the drug is no big deal. “It's time for the politicians to catch up to the public,” said the Massachusetts Democrat on "Real Time with Bill Maher....

Lawmakers Gird for Battle Over Wall Street Reforms

Mar 23, 2008 8:04 AM CDT

Lawmakers Gird for Battle Over Wall Street Reforms

Dems, GOP split over regulation

(Newser) - Lawmakers are debating how to regulate and oversee financial institutions to prevent another Bear Stearns near-catastrophe. But exactly what that solution should look like depends on who's doing the proposing. President Bush and Wall Street say that Washington's heavy hand could hamstring the industry’s ability to innovate, reports the...

In the Works:
Wireless Bill of Rights

Mar 21, 2008 3:33 PM CDT

In the Works: Wireless Bill of Rights

States fight feds over who will regulate

(Newser) - Wireless carriers seem to have angered a few too many consumers with hidden fees and surprise charges. Politicians in 22 states are considering various versions of a wireless consumers’ bill of rights, reports BusinessWeek. But the wireless industry, daunted at facing different regulations in every state, is throwing its weight...

Economy in Trouble: Bush

Mar 14, 2008 3:00 PM CDT

Economy in Trouble: Bush

President warns of overreaction to housing, credit crises

(Newser) - The economy is experiencing difficulties, but President Bush said today he is certain a recovery will come soon, the AP reports. “In a free-market economy there will be good times and bad times” he said in a speech to the Economic Club of New York. “We’re going...

US Needs More Visas, Gates Tells Congress

Mar 12, 2008 5:14 PM CDT

US Needs More Visas, Gates Tells Congress

America's status as tech leader is in jeopardy, he says

(Newser) - Bill Gates exhorted Congress today to increase the number of available H-1B visas for highly skilled foreigners, and invest more in domestic education in science and technology, cNet reports. "It makes no sense to educate people in our universities, often subsidized by US taxpayers, and then insist they return...

Dr. Death Set to
Make House Call

Mar 12, 2008 2:28 PM CDT

Dr. Death Set to Make House Call

Kevorkian plans to run for Congress as a Michigan independent

(Newser) - Jack Kevorkian, the Michigan doctor who says he's helped at least 130 die and who's been convicted of second-degree murder in one such assisted suicide, says he plans to run for Congress in a Detroit suburb, the Oakland (Mich.) Press reports. Kevorkian, 79, will make an independent bid against...

Oil-Rich Iraq Should Fund Reconstruction, Say Senators

Mar 9, 2008 2:34 PM CDT

Oil-Rich Iraq Should Fund Reconstruction, Say Senators

US taxpayers are footing bill instead

(Newser) - Why isn't an Iraq that's rolling in oil dollars funding its own reconstruction? senators Carl Levin of Michigan and John Warner of Virginia want to know. The Armed Services' Committee honchos wrote the Government Accountability Office saying Iraq is doing little to help itself despite a projected $100 billion in...

Montana Gov Rips Real ID Law

Mar 9, 2008 8:19 AM CDT

Montana Gov Rips Real ID Law

Calls scheme 'kooky' and 'hare-brained'

(Newser) - NPR Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer and every single state legislator have refused to implement the Real ID Act, a congressional mandate to create standardized identification documents. Schweitzer tells NPR the law is "kooky" and "hare-brained," asserting that half a dozen high school students and a Kinko's are...

Dem Physicist Nails House Seat in Ill. GOP Stronghold

Mar 9, 2008 7:00 AM CDT

Dem Physicist Nails House Seat in Ill. GOP Stronghold

Foster wins Hastert's spot in special election

(Newser) - Little-known Democratic physicist Bill Foster beat Illinois Republican Jim Oberweis yesterday in a special election to fill Dennis Hastert's vacated seat in Congress. The Democrat's victory in the GOP suburban stronghold west of Chicago may herald more trouble for Republicans during fall elections, writes the Chicago Tribune. "Voters are...