Publications

House Hearing Asks Interior: Entangled in Politics, or Enlightened by Science?

In a May 9 hearing, the House Committee on Natural Resources heard witnesses discuss the extent to which Interior Department officials have manipulated scientific assessments when implementing the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The hearing came on the heels of the resignation of a top-ranking official and the release of a departmental investigation that found rules violations and intimidation of agency scientists.

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Muslim Charity Files Libel Suit over Allegations of Terrorist Ties

KinderUSA, a U.S. charity that provides humanitarian aid to children in war zones, including Palestine, filed suit April 26 against the author and publishers of a book that ties the group to terrorist organizations. The libel suit, which seeks $500,000 in damages and other relief, was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court after the publishers refused a request to discontinue distribution.

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BudgetBlog - Now in RSS!

May 4, 2007 by Craig Jennings

If you use a newsreader, you can subscribe the BudgetBlog. You can find the feed here. RSS? What's that?

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Watcher: May 1, 2007

May 2, 2007 by Matt Lewis

Mapping out the Post-Veto Supplemental Landscape President George W. Bush and Congress are continuing their power struggle over policies related to the war in Iraq, with a war funding bill containing a "goal" timeline for withdrawal of soldiers headed for an almost certain veto. Senate Still Without Strong Earmark Disclosure ProvisionsWhile the House passed earmark disclosure provisions in its initial rules package in January, a stronger proposal for earmark disclosure passed by the Senate as part of a larger lobbying and ethics reform bill has languished for months.

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Supreme Court Hears Oral Argument in Grassroots Lobbying Case

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument on April 25 in Wisconsin Right to Life's (WRTL) challenge to the constitutionality of a campaign finance law that limits certain broadcasts, including grassroots lobbying messages, during federal campaigns. The issue before the Court is whether the law is unconstitutional as applied to the facts of WRTL's 2004 grassroots lobbying radio ads. Much of the argument addressed what standard should be used to define "genuine issue ads" entitled to constitutional protection.

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OMB Watch Executive Director Gary D. Bass Comments on USDA's Private Information Breach

On April 20, the New York Times broke a story about the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) disclosing personally identifiable information (Social Security numbers and taxpayer ID numbers) of some people who have received financial assistance from the department. The practice, which, according to USDA, affected 38,700 people, has been going on for roughly a decade. The problem was discovered a week earlier by a user of OMB Watch's FedSpending.org, a website providing easy access to information about government spending.

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Intelligence Agencies' Contracting Practices Remain a Secret

The government refuses to release the findings of a comprehensive study on contracting at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), National Security Agency, and other federal intelligence agencies on the grounds that it is classified information and is sensitive to national security. The amount spent on federal contracts government-wide has doubled, from $209 billion in FY 2000 to $384 billion in FY 2005, but this does not include money spent on intelligence contractors, the figures for which are unknown to the public.

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House Bill Seeks Accountability for Anti-Terrorist Financing Programs

Legislation was recently introduced in the House that would require the Departments of State and Treasury to adopt recommendations of an October 2005 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, which addressed the effectiveness of the U.S. government's efforts to assist other countries in the war on terrorism. Among other things, the bill would require the Treasury Department to submit in an annual report to Congress more complete information on how the agency tracks and blocks terrorist assets.

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The Entitlement Crisis That Isn't

On April 23, the Social Security and Medicare Board of Trustees released its annual reports on the two programs. These reports reveal there is not, in fact, an "entitlement" crisis, and that the alarmist language often placing blame on entitlements is generally a pernicious shorthand that glosses over the complicated fiscal challenges facing an aging society with rapidly rising health care costs.

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Mapping out the Post-Veto Supplemental Landscape

President George W. Bush and Congress are continuing their power struggle over policies related to the war in Iraq and a war funding bill containing a "goal" timeline for withdrawal of soldiers. Congress sent the funding bill to the president on May 1, the fourth anniversary of Bush's "mission accomplished" visit aboard an aircraft carrier, and he promptly vetoed it shortly thereafter. With the House unlikely to override a veto, Democrats in Congress are faced with the difficult task of finding a compromise in the next month.

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