Federal Eye: February 8, 2009 - February 14, 2009
How Obama Picks Nominees
White House deputy chief of staff Jim Messina today provided some insight into the process through which the president and his aides choose and vet nominees for Cabinet posts and other top government positions. "Typically [the office of] personnel...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 13, 2009; 4:40 PM ET |
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Administration, Revolving Door, Video Report
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Clinton-Era Census Director Coming Back?
Former Census Director Kenneth Prewitt may be headed back to his old job. Updated 2:07 p.m. ET Dr. Kenneth Prewitt, who served as director of the U.S. Census Bureau from 1998 to 2001, is a leading candidate to serve...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 13, 2009; 11:35 AM ET |
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Administration, Revolving Door
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Eye Opener: Feb. 13, 2009
Happy Friday! For a good laugh, watch Dana Milbank's latest Washington "Video" Sketch about an Obama ally not honoring the president's calls for openness and transparency. This is last Eye Opener until Monday Feb. 23 as The Eye and...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 13, 2009; 8:18 AM ET |
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Eye Opener
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Ask Your Government: Whistleblowing Tips
This week's "Ask Your Government" question comes from Google Moderator user Veritas: "Has any federal agency set up an online system so that any of their employees can report on government waste in a totally anonymous way so that...
By
Ed O'Keefe
| February 13, 2009; 5:00 AM ET |
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Ask Your Government, Oversight
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Gregg Links Withdrawal to Census Concerns
Updated 5:34 p.m. ET Sen. Judd Gregg said today that his decision to withdraw from consideration for commerce secretary was due in part to his concern with the Obama administration’s decision to have the next Census director report to senior...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 12, 2009; 4:59 PM ET |
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Administration, Agencies and Departments, Congress
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Judd Gregg Withdraws: Full Statement
Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) has withdrawn his name from consideration for commerce secretary -- the second person nominated for the position to do so. Here's his full statement: Senator Gregg Statement on His Withdrawal for Consideration of U.S. Commerce Secretary...
By
Ed O'Keefe
| February 12, 2009; 4:21 PM ET |
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Administration, Revolving Door
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Cabinet Secretaries Mark Lincoln's Birthday
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar marked Lincoln's 200th birthday earlier today at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. President Obama attended the reopening of Ford's Theatre, a Capitol Hill event and will visit Springfield, Ill., but several of his cabinet...
By
Ed O'Keefe
| February 12, 2009; 3:45 PM ET |
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Administration
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Seattle-Area Nominees in The News
Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske (right) is reportedly in line to serve as Obama's "drug czar." A loyal Eye reader based in the Emerald City has passed on a few local news items on one definite and one still-unconfirmed...
By
Ed O'Keefe
| February 12, 2009; 1:20 PM ET |
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Revolving Door
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Eye Opener: Feb. 12, 2009
Happy Thursday! Hilda Solis is one step closer to serving as labor secretary, following a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee vote yesterday afternoon. "A scheduled committee vote was abruptly called off last week after news surfaced that...
By
Ed O'Keefe
| February 12, 2009; 7:56 AM ET |
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Republicans Continue to Hammer White House Over Census
House Republicans will hold a news conference today to announce the formation of a census task force as they continue to urge President Obama to reconsider his plans to have the director of the Census Bureau report to senior White...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 12, 2009; 5:00 AM ET |
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Administration, Congress
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Stimulus Provision Means 'New Bureaucracy' for Health IT
Following up on a post from this morning, The Eye spoke with Betsy McCaughey, the author of an op-ed that raises concerns about a provision in the stimulus package dealing with the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology at the...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 11, 2009; 2:32 PM ET |
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Congress, Oversight
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Eye Opener: Feb. 11, 2009
Happy Wednesday! The Obama nomination train has slowed, but is still far ahead of the Bush administration at this point in its existence, according to the Kamen/Rucker "In the Loop" tag team. "At this point, three departments -- Labor,...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 11, 2009; 7:36 AM ET |
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Eye Opener
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Stimulus Debate Shines Light on Health IT Job
Former New York lieutenant governor Betsy McCaughey has caused a stir with a Bloomberg op-ed that raises questions about parts of the economic stimulus package concerning health care and the Department of Health and Human Services. McCaughey writes that "One...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 11, 2009; 6:30 AM ET |
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Agencies and Departments
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Another Look at Stimulus Funding
The folks at ProPublica have circulated a helpful link that compares spending differences in the House and Senate versions of the stimulus bill. It's a very easy-to-read side-by-side comparison of the two proposals, much easier to digest than the documents...
By
Ed O'Keefe
| February 10, 2009; 10:35 AM ET |
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Agencies and Departments, Congress, FY-Eye
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Eye Opener: Feb. 10, 2009
Happy Tuesday! No matter what type of economic stimulus package passes the House and Senate later this week (or next?), federal agencies and departments will benefit. "Taken together, [the House and Senate proposals] could lead to more spending for...
By
Ed O'Keefe
| February 10, 2009; 5:00 AM ET |
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Long-Serving Interior Staff Take Stage With Obama
First Lady Michelle Obama appeared on stage at the Interior Department today with several of the department's longest-serving employees seated behind her. (Photo by Reuters) Several long-serving Interior Department staffers sat on stage behind Michelle Obama during her visit...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 9, 2009; 4:40 PM ET |
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Agencies and Departments, Workplace Issues
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Michelle Obama Visits Interior Dept.
First lady Michelle Obama continued her tour of federal agencies and departments today at the Interior Department, where she announced that President Obama will soon appoint an adviser to senior White House staff on Native American issues. The first...
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Ed O'Keefe
| February 9, 2009; 3:10 PM ET |
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Administration, Agencies and Departments, Video Report
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FY-Eye: Astronaut's NASA Spoof
NPR's "Morning Edition" reported today on a YouTube video making the rounds in the broader NASA community, raising concerns that the Space agency has squashed innovation and dissenting opinions. As NPR's Nell Greenfieldboyce reports, "four-time space flier Andrew Thomas...
By
Ed O'Keefe
| February 9, 2009; 11:35 AM ET |
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FY-Eye
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Eye Opener: Feb. 9, 2009
Happy Monday! While President Obama heads to Indiana, First Lady Michelle Obama continues her tour of federal agencies and departments. The Eye will be there... follow his Twitter feed for updates. Have you lost track of Obama's cabinet nominees?...
By
Ed O'Keefe
| February 9, 2009; 7:36 AM ET |
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