Congresspedia's "Congress in the News" updates, Feb. 8-Mar. 1, 2007
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- Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) announced his intention to seek the presidency in 2008. (Election Central story)
- House Republicans announced that they would attempt to block a bill that would appoint Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.) to the House Committee on Homeland Security. (The Hill story)
- A $2.3 billion loan request from the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad company was denied by Congress allegedly because of ties to Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), who was once a lobbyist for the company. (Washington Post story)
- House leadership agreed to not fight subpoenas relating to the investigations surrounding former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Calif.). (The Hill story)
- June 19th was set as the special election date to replace recently deceased Rep. Charlie Norwood (R-Ga.). (Washington Post story)
- Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said that the Justice Department's release of performance evaluations of six U.S. attorneys further validates concerns that the attorneys were dismissed for political purposes, not performance problems. (The Hill story)
- Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Mass.), head of the Ethics Task Force, said the group will begin by holding private weekly meetings rather than public hearings. (The Hill story)
- William Heaton, former chief of staff to then-Rep. Bob Ney (R-Ohio), has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit fraud. Heaton’s plea agreement comes just days before Ney is scheduled to enter federal prison. (The Hill story)
- The Senate Committee on Armed Services announced that it would launch an investigation into the events and actions surrounding Walter Reed Army Medical Center falling into a state of "neglect." (TPMmuckraker story)
- The House Ethics Committee is asking for a $6.1 million operating budget for the 110th Congress, a 43% increase from the previous Congress. (Roll Call story)
- According to a recent poll, Americans trust Congress more than President George W. Bush when it comes to the issue of Iraq. (TPM Cafe story)
- Former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack (D) will drop out of the 2008 presidential race (Washington Post story)
- House Judiciary Committee Chair John Conyers (D-Mich.) and his newly created task force on antitrust issues will begin Feb. 28 with a hearing featuring Sirius Satellite Radio CEO Mel Karmazin. (National Journal story)
- Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) criticized the Pentagon for submitting a funding request to Congress that included items he claimed are not necessary for the war effort in Iraq. (Hill News story)
- The Peru free-trade agreement (FTA) is coming under attack by Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), who has national security concerns. (Hill News story)
- Christine Jennings, the 2006 Democratic candidate in Florida's Thirteenth District, has filed a brief in Florida courts seeking a review of Sarasota County electronic voting systems. Jennings lost to Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) by less than 1,000 votes. (Hill News story)
- Sens. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) are sponsoring a bill that would "improve the lives of recovering veterans at Walter Reed" in response to a ''Washington Post'' report describing the Army Medical Center as being in a state of neglect. (The Hill story)
- The House Ethics Committee and Senate Select Committee on Ethics passed guidelines that would define the travel permitted for members of Congress funded by lobbyists. (The Hill story)
- Sen. Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) was discharged from the hospital yesterday, and will continue his recovery from brain surgery in a "private rehabilitation facility." (The Hill story)
- Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Col.) criticized the commissioner of the NFL, Roger Goodell, for his refusal to play a Border Patrol advertisement during the Super Bowl. (Hill News story)
- Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) delivered scathing criticism of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, calling him "one of the worst secretaries of defense in history." (New York Times story)
- Senate Republicans again filibustered a vote on a non-binding resolution condemning a troop "surge" in Iraq. (Hill News story)
- President Bush signed a $464 billion spending bill which will continue to fund the federal government at levels similar to FY 2006 through the remainder of FY 2007 (Sept. 30). (The Hill story)
- Five more representatives have threatened to quit the Congressional Hispanic Caucus if Rep. Joe Baca (D-Calif.) does not apologize for allegedly calling Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) a "whore." (The Hill story)
- Republican senators on the Judiciary Committee voted against the passage of the U.S. Attorneys Bill in order to allegedly vie for the passage of Republican-backed amendments. (The Hill story)
- Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) is sponsoring a bill that would raise the cap on presidential campaign spending of candidates who accept public funds. (The Hill story)
- Former Rep. Jim Gibbons (R-Nev.), who left Congress after he was elected governor of Nevada last November, is under investigation by the FBI for accepting unreported gifts/payments (and possibly bribes) from Warren Trepp, a Nevada software entrepreneur. (TPM Muckraker story)
- The Federal Election Commission is reviewing whether Rep. Jerry Lewis’s (R-Calif.) campaign committee violated election laws by failing to disclose contributions within a 48-hour deadline. This scrutiny follows the FBI’s reported investigation of Lewis concerning links between campaign contributions and congressional earmarks. Lewis is one of many members of Congress currently under investigation. (The Hill story)
- Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has confirmed that he will enter the 2008 presidential race. (CBS News story)
- Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) introduced a bill that would grant the District of Columbia legislative autonomy by ending congressional review of the District’s civil and criminal laws. (The Hill story)
- Defense contractor Brent Wilkes and Kyle “Dusty” Foggo have been indicted on eleven felonies for their involvement in the "Duke" Cunningham bribery scandal. (Hill News story)
- Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Oversight Committee, requested that Secretary of Defense Robert Gates hand over relevant documents in an ongoing investigation of cronyism in the Department of Defense. (TPMmuckraker story)
- Rep. Charlie Norwood (R-Ga.) died after a long battle with cancer. Preparations for a special election to fill his vacancy are under way. (The Hill story)
- Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald (D-Calif.), chair of the House Administration Committee, has taken the lead on election reform by urging the House Appropriations Committee to fully fund the administration of elections. (The Hill story)
- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) intends to push ethics reform legislation that would place strict limits on executive-branch officials. The proposed measures exceed the limits that the House adopted for itself last month. (The Hill story)
- Hostilities have heightened again between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) after an aide in Pelosi’s office said that Hoyer had been "getting out in front" of a prevailing consensus against allowing Republicans to introduce an alternative resolution on the Iraq war. (The Hill story)
- Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney officially announced his candidacy for the 2008 presidential race. (Washington Post story)
- Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) has submitted a bill requiring television coverage of oral arguments in the Supreme Court. (Washington Post story)
- Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-Pa.) has been accused of reappropriating contributions for his exploratory committee to his campaign for mayor of Philadelphia. (Philadelphia Daily News story)
- House Ways and Means Committee Chair Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) and Ranking Member Jim McCrery (R-La.) announced that they would introduce a bill proposing small business tax cuts packaged with the minimum wage increase. (The Hill story)
- Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) exchanged criticism with Australian Prime Minister John Howard over Iraq policy. (New York Times story)
- Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) announced that he will seek the Democratic nomination for president in 2008. (Washington Post story)
- Sen. Tim Johnson (D-S.D.), who underwent emergency brain surgery two months ago, has begun to do light work from the hospital where he is recovering. (Fox News story)
- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said that he will postpone another attempt to address a non-binding resolution on President Bush's proposed Iraq troop "surge" until after the congressional break. (Roll Call story)
- In the fallout of the dismissal of eight U.S. attorneys, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has begun an initiative to stop unconfirmed appointments of interim U.S. attorneys by the executive branch. (The Hill story)
- White House Press Secretary Tony Snow defended Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on the issue of her receiving an Air Force plane for transportation. Snow claimed that the criticism was "unfair to the speaker." (CNN story)
- The Senate has confirmed Gen. George Casey as the new army chief of staff, despite opposition from Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.). Casey has spoken out against an increase in troops in Iraq. (Hill News story)
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