- Tue. Jul 8, 2008
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Grassley: Congress Has Votes To Override A Farm Bill Veto
Senate Finance ranking member Charles Grassley said today he has signed the farm bill conference report and will work to override a likely presidential veto, predicting that both chambers have enough support for an override.
Senate OKs Flood Insurance Bill With Stronger Watchdog
The Senate passed legislation today that would reauthorize the federal government's flood insurance program, after adopting language that would give a new ombudsman office greater power to investigate abuses by private insurers that write such policies.
Senate Rebuffs White House On Petroleum Reserve
By a 97-1 vote, the Senate rebuffed the Bush administration today and approved an amendment calling for a halt of deposit of light sweet crude oil into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for the rest of the year.
Nursing Home Groups Question Long-Term Care Proposal
Nursing home advocates made their case today that a Medicare regulation proposed this month to cut certain long-term care puts services in jeopardy and would have a negative economic impact of $4.5 billion in FY09.
TSA Gets Cheers, Jeers During Senate Commerce Hearing
The Transportation Security Administration received an unusually positive review from GAO today but then got aggressive questioning from Senate Commerce Committee members, particularly over its plans to impose a passenger fee increase to pay for additional baggage screening technology.
Resources Panel Warned On Dissolving Coastal Lands
With rising sea levels and sinking coastlines in the Gulf of Mexico states, the nation's energy breadbasket is facing serious threats of disaster from sunken infrastructure and transportation losses, according to testimony today to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
EPA Says Agency Will Stay Course On Cap-And-Trade
A top EPA official told informed a Senate committee today that the agency has no intention of backing off its cap-and-trade plan for limiting emissions from coal power plants, despite a federal appeals court decision in February rejecting it as a violation of the Clean Air Act.
Lieberman Seeks Better Treatment Of Detained Immigrants
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Chairman Joseph Lieberman plans to introduce legislation to improve the way the Homeland Security Department treats detained immigrants, saying the department has not followed through on promised changes.
DCCC Flyer Seeks To Tie Mississippi Candidate To KKK
A Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee flyer that accuses Republican Greg Davis of being willing to erect a statue of the founder of the Ku Klux Klan in the Mississippi town he serves as mayor was criticized by Republicans today as "despicable."
Aides Say Presidential Candidates Will Push Health Care
The three senators running for president are determined to change the nation's healthcare system soon after taking office, their aides said today, even as CBO Director Peter Orszag expressed concern that other issues might crowd out health care from the agenda. The possibility of dealing with expiring tax cuts, climate change and -- if the economy continues to falter -- additional stimulus measures would leave little time for healthcare initiatives, Orszag said at the conference organized by the journal Health Affairs.
HILL BRIEFS
House Panel Markup On 'Tax Extenders' Set For Thursday
Taxes. The House Ways and Means Committee today announced it will mark up a package of tax break extensions Thursday, including energy incentives for wind, solar, geothermal and other alternative sources.
McNulty Accepts Blame For House Vote Controversy
House. Rep. Michael McNulty, D-N.Y., continued to accept responsibility for prematurely closing the vote in August on a motion to recommit the FY08 Agriculture appropriations bill that Republicans appeared to win.
Measure Allowing First Responders Unionize Survives Procedural Motion
Homeland Security. The Senate today invoked cloture on the motion to procede to legislation to give all police, firefighters and other first-responders the right to collective bargaining. The 69-29 vote proves the bill would survive any filibuster attempt.
Transportation Dept. Saluted For Performance Report
Government Operations. Awards went out today for the best government agency performance report and the Transportation Department topped the list for the second year in a row.
North Korean Nuclear Documents Appear Complete
Foreign Affairs. A preliminary review of nuclear documents turned over to the United States by North Korea shows that the papers appear to be a complete accounting of that country's plutonium production, the Associated Press reported.
Dorgan Targets Tax-Avoiding Contractors In Supplemental
Government Operations. Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., will offer an amendment Thursday to the Bush administration's request for supplemental war funds to stop payments to U.S. contractors that use offshore subsidiaries to avoid taxes.
Correction
Correction: A story in the May 12 edition of CongressDailyPM misstated the estimated cost of a tuition assistance program for veterans. The estimated cost over 10 years is $51.8 billion.
POLITICAL ROUNDUP
Donnelly, Two Other Superdelegates Back Obama
National. Rep. Joe Donnelly, D-Ind., announced today he is backing Sen. Barack Obama for president, saying he believes the Illinois senator can help move the country past the politics of stalemate and gridlock, the Associated Press reported.
Oregon Open Seat GOP Primary Takes A Nasty Turn
Oregon. The hard-fought battle for the seat Rep. Darlene Hooley, D-Ore., will vacate has taken a nasty turn with a candidate in the Republican primary, Kevin Mannix, accusing his opponent, businessman Mike Erickson, of impregnating a young woman in 2000, then dropping her off at a clinic to have an abortion, the Associated Press reported.
5/13/2008 PM Contents
- Grassley: Congress Has Votes To Override A Farm Bill Veto
- Senate OKs Flood Insurance Bill With Stronger Watchdog
- Senate Rebuffs White House On Petroleum Reserve
- Nursing Home Groups Question Long-Term Care Proposal
- TSA Gets Cheers, Jeers During Senate Commerce Hearing
- Resources Panel Warned On Dissolving Coastal Lands
- EPA Says Agency Will Stay Course On Cap-And-Trade
- Lieberman Seeks Better Treatment Of Detained Immigrants
- DCCC Flyer Seeks To Tie Mississippi Candidate To KKK
- Aides Say Presidential Candidates Will Push Health Care
HILL BRIEFS
- House Panel Markup On 'Tax Extenders' Set For Thursday
- McNulty Accepts Blame For House Vote Controversy
- Measure Allowing First Responders Unionize Survives Procedural Motion
- Transportation Dept. Saluted For Performance Report
- North Korean Nuclear Documents Appear Complete
- Dorgan Targets Tax-Avoiding Contractors In Supplemental
- Correction
