AM Feed - August 15: Another Round of Questions for DHS
Hot Topics
- The Bush administration wasted little time attempting to latch onto the coattails of the major intelligence victory in Britain last week – but the administration has also been quietly working to redirect $6 million in federal funding originally set aside for developing new technology to detect explosives. Congressional leaders blocked the maneuver and raised yet another round of questions about the operations of the Department of Homeland Security. The department has already failed to spend hundreds of millions of dollars designated for research and development. [link]
- Embattled Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH) has formally asked for his name to be removed from the ballot for the upcoming election, thereby leading to a special primary election to fill the slot. Ney, who earlier stepped aside as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee amid rumblings of corruption, announced his withdrawal from the race last week. Ney’s former chief of staff Neil Volz has already pleaded guilty in connection to the Abramoff-related corruption issue. The special primary election is expected to be held in mid-September. [link]
- The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found that allegations of wrongdoing by military recruiters leapt 50 percent from 2004 to 2005, and criminal acts like falsifying documents more than doubled in that same time period. The Defense Department does not have an oversight system in place to track such abuses, so documentation is difficult. The GAO’s report found that military recruiters were under tremendous strain to maintain troop levels. [link]
Quote of the Day
“This fellow here, over here with the yellow shirt, macaca, or whatever his name is. He’s with my opponent. He’s following us around everywhere. And it’s just great … Let’s give a welcome to macaca, here. Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia.” – Sen. George Allen, speaking about S.R. Sidarth, a volunteer for the James Webb campaign of Indian descent. Allen has since apologized.
Morning Snark
- Now that Bob “Freedom Fries” Ney is stepping aside, he really should take a nice, relaxing vacation (as long as he pays for it himself). We hear Paris is lovely this time of year.
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