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Article authored by John Bresnahan and Jake Sherman and appeared on Politico. Article is courtesy of politico.com
Congressional leaders in both parties are engaged in high-level, confidential talks about exempting lawmakers and Capitol Hill aides from the insurance exchanges they are mandated to join as part of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, sources in both parties said. [Read more...]
Article appeared as an Editorial in the Poughkeepsie Journal. Article is courtesy of poughkeepsiejournal.com
The Supreme Court heard arguments on a case Monday that puts a massive spotlight on ways to lower the cost of medicine for people.
But, regardless of how the high court rules, the main responsibility rests with Congress to fix this problem, and it has steadfastly refused to buck a major lobbying force to do so. [Read more...]
Article authored by Eliana Johnson and appeared on The National Review. Article is courtesy of nationalreview.c0m
Asked whether there’s room for a presidential candidate with his seemingly unorthodox political views, Kentucky senator Rand Paul was unequivocal in his response. Calling the country’s left-right political spectrum “confusing,” Paul argued that the GOP needs a candidate capable of appealing “across the left-right paradigm.” [Read more...]
Article authored by Anita Kumar and appeared in McClatchy Newspapers. Article is courtesy of mcclatchydc.com
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama came into office four years ago skeptical of pushing the power of the White House to the limit, especially if it appeared to be circumventing Congress.
Now, as he launches his second term, Obama has grown more comfortable wielding power to try to move his own agenda forward, particularly when a deeply fractured, often-hostile Congress gets in his way. [Read more...]
Article authored by Mike Lillis and appeared on The Hill. Article is courtesy of thehill.com
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Thursday that she opposes a cut in congressional pay because it would diminish the dignity of lawmakers’ jobs.
“I don’t think we should do it; I think we should respect the work we do,” Pelosi told reporters in the Capitol. “I think it’s necessary for us to have the dignity of the job that we have rewarded.” [Read more...]
Article authored by Jonathan Strong and appeared on “Roll Call.” Article is courtesy of rollcall.com
A concerted effort to unseat Speaker John A. Boehner was under way the day of his re-election to the position, but participants called it off 30 minutes before the House floor vote, CQ Roll Call has learned.
A group of disaffected conservatives had agreed to vote against the Ohio lawmaker if they could get at least 25 members to join the effort. But one member, whose identity could not be verified, rescinded his or her participation the morning of the vote, leaving the group one person short of its self-imposed 25-member threshold. Only 17 votes against Boehner were required to force a second ballot, but the group wanted to have insurance. [Read more...]
Article authored by Daniel Halper and appeared on The Weekly Standard. Article is courtesy of weeklystandard.com
President Barack Obama issued an executive order to end the pay freeze on federal employees, in effect giving some federal workers a raise. One federal worker now to receive a pay increase is Vice President Joe Biden.
According to disclosure forms, Biden made a cool $225,521 last year. After the pay increase, he’ll now make $231,900 per year.
Members of Congress, from the House and Senate, also will receive a little bump, as their annual salary will go from $174,000 to 174,900. Leadership in Congress, including the speaker of the House, will likewise get an increase.
Here’s the list of new wages, as attached to President Obama’s executive order: [Read more...]
Article authored by Stephen Dinan and appeared in The Washington Times. Article is courtesy of washingtontimes.com
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Thursday he plans to send his chamber home for Christmas and then reconvene on Dec. 27 to try to work through the “fiscal cliff” — even as House Republicans said they’ll keep their troops in town to try to strike a deal.
The moves come as both sides jockey for the upper hand in trying to avoid blame for a possible breakdown in the budget talks to avoid the fiscal cliff. House Republicans are poised to pass a bill Thursday that would prevent spending cuts and most tax increases, and have said they’ll stay here to get a deal done. But there won’t be anyone on the other side of the table — at least not until next week. [Read more...]
Article authored by Kevin Freking and appeared via Associated Press. Article appears courtesy of Yahoo News.
WASHINGTON (AP) — American consumers have shown about as much appetite for the $1 coin as kids do their spinach. They may not know what’s best for them either. Congressional auditors say doing away with dollar bills entirely and replacing them with dollar coins could save taxpayers some $4.4 billion over the next 30 years.
Vending machine operators have long championed the use of $1 coins because they don’t jam the machines, cutting down on repair costs and lost sales. But most people don’t seem to like carrying them. In the past five years, the U.S. Mint has produced 2.4 billion Presidential $1 coins. Most are stored by the Federal Reserve, and production was suspended about a year ago. [Read more...]
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