If you’re killing time before the inauguration and looking for a laugh, head on over to Nancy Pelosi’s official YouTube page. The highlighted video, which we’ve embedded below, appears to be a parody of the Bush administration’s Barney Cam videos. But this one has a twist that we’re never gonna give up.
Browsing: Congress
Politicians can’t get enough of squawking about the debacle that is the Bowl Championship Series. First President-elect Barack Obama bemoaned the system of selecting a national “champion” for college football. (Unsure how the BCS works? Click here.) Now Congress is looking to get in on the action (because, you know, there’s not much else going on right now). Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, may have some bitter feelings about Texas being shut out of the BCS title game, because he introduced HR 390 in the House last week. Let’s read the bill’s description: “A bill to prohibit, as an unfair and…
Thought the presidential race was over? Not quite. The House and Senate met today in a joint session to count and certify the Electoral College votes, formally declaring Barack Obama the 44th president. With Vice President Dick Cheney presiding in one of his last official duties, four pages carried in the two gleaming wooden boxes containing the certificates from each state plus the District of Columbia. California was the first state read in alphabetical order to give votes to Obama, leading to a roar of applause in the House Chamber. When Obama was announced as the winner, the entire Congress…
Former Sen. Tom Daschle’s appearance before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee today marked the first confirmation hearing for the slate of Senate confirmable nominees named by President-elect Barack Obama over the past two months. During the hearing, which marked Chairman Edward Kennedy’s return to Capitol Hill after treatment for a brain tumor, Daschle repeatedly emphasized his commitment to improving efficiency and innovating America’s health care system. Senators also challenged him to improve civil servants’ morale within HHS and to make the department more effective and accountable. Daschle spoke of the health crisis facing Native Americans, citing that…
That’s the word on the Hill and in today’s newspapers, and CNN has all but confirmed that its medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, will be President-elect Barack Obama’s choice for surgeon general. When word spread yesterday that Obama had discussed the position with Gupta, it led to a lot of head scratching and “really?” comments on the Hill. Though a distinguished Atlanta neurosurgeon and professor, Gupta is best known to most Americans as a prolific television commentator. However, he served as an adviser to the Clinton White House, helping craft health care speeches and policy for Hillary Clinton. According to…
Sens. Mary Landrieu and Olympia Snowe will be the top Democrat and Republican leaders of a Senate committee when the new Congress convenes in January. Landrieu, D-La., will become chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, while Snowe, R-Maine, will remain the ranking member. Landrieu is replacing John Kerry, D-Mass., as the committee’s chair. In a press release, Landrieu said she will push for opportunities for women- and minority-owned small businesses, and Snowe concurred. “As a vital voice for women entrepreneurs in Congress, we will advance an ambitious policy agenda targeted toward renewing the federal government’s commitment…
Wondering how the next Congress is going to approach acquisition issues? Answer: More oversight. That’s what Cathy Garman, a professional staff member for the House Armed Services Committee, said today at a panel discussion hosted by Venable, a Washington, D.C. law firm. The discussion centered on the acquisition management priorities of the next Congress and the next administration. Garman noted that Congress approved several changes to procurement regulations and procedures through the Defense authorization bills in recent years. The 111th Congress is going to make sure those changes have been enacted. Among the congressionally mandated changes topping the oversight list:…
Apparently the grape is the key to economic recovery for western New York. That’s according to a news release from the office of Sen. Charles Schumer, who has pledged to fight for federal funding for the Grape Heritage Discovery Center in Westfield, N.Y. The release states that the center would promote wine tourism in New York and showcase Chautauqua County’s grape and wine industry, creating jobs through increased tourism. It will be patterned after the Wisconsin Cranberry Discovery Center, which the release says attracts tens of thousands of visitors a year. Schumer, a Democrat, said he’ll push for funding through…
We all know that the Capitol Visitor Center was three years behind schedule and nearly $400 million over budget. But for all that extra time and money, you would have thought someone would have made sure Congress got its facts straight. Engraved in the center’s walls is the saying “E Pluribus Unum,†Latin for “from many, one.†The carving is described as the national motto, but it’s not. A 1956 act of Congress made the nation’s official motto “In God We Trust.†Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., has raised a ruckus over the failure to include the nation’s official motto and the Pledge…
And that’s just what he wanted. The California Democratic’s gamble to take the reins of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee chairmanship paid off today when the Democratic caucus voted 137-122 to replace existing Chairman John Dingell of Michigan with Waxman. Dingell has chaired the energy committee since 1981, and Waxman’s challenge of a sitting same-party chairman struck many lawmakers as daring or even arrogrant, depending on who you talked to. Waxman argued that chairmanships should not be permanent institutions. “Seniority is important, but it should not be a grant of property rights to be chairman for three decades…