America’s oldest mountains are being decimated, and after decades of abetment, Congress is finally watching with more critical eyes.
In a Senate hearing on mountaintop mining last week, lawmakers called for an end to the popular and lucrative practice of topping the Appalachian Mountains to tap the coal inside.
That More…
Earlier this year, as the violence on the Mexican border had crescendoed into national headlines, the state of California contacted federal firearms officials with a seemingly innocuous request: Would the federal government lend state law enforcers details on the thousands of crime guns seized in Mexico and traced to California More…
The absence of required background checks for private firearm sales, like those made at gun shows, have helped fuel the steady flow of U.S. firearms to Mexico, where thousands of trafficked weapons are ending up in the hands of violent drug cartels, U.S. government investigators revealed last week.
The news More…
President Obama has taken a good deal of heat from the business community and other special interest groups for his strict ban on lobbyists attending fundraisers where the president himself will appear. But it seems that some congressional lawmakers are none too happy with the restrictions either. Politico More…
A federal requirement that most international food aid be grown domestically — a boon for America’s farmers — is also hobbling efforts to feed the world’s hungry, according to a new government report released Thursday.
International aid programs that purchased food close to those in need not only spent much More…
The stories emerge periodically to spark mild scandal: A powerful congressman funnels tens of millions of dollars to his largest campaign contributors. A White House cabinet nominee steps down over an investigation into his campaign finances. A seven-term senator More…
Liberals love it. Conservatives hate it. Moderates have proposed some compromises, and the Obama administration is weighing ways to appease all camps. Whatever battles are brewing in this year’s looming health care reform debate, none is likely to reach the intensity of that over a government-sponsored insurance plan.
Supporters of More…
From Roxana Tiron at The Hill:
Federal law enforcement officials have subpoenaed the congressional and campaign offices of Rep. Pete Visclosky (D-Ind.) to get information about a former defense lobby firm raided by the FBI, according to Visclosky.
When U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan announced last week that first-time homebuyers soon will be permitted to turn their $8,000 tax credit for purchasing a property into downpayment money, he called the development “exciting” and “a real win for everyone.”
But his enthusiasm isn’t More…
Even if he doesn’t raise a dime from his political allies, Dick Cheney is well positioned to continue speaking out against the Obama administration’s national security agenda, according to the former vice president’s 2009 financial records.
Cheney filed his final financial disclosure form as a public official, known as his More…
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