Orszag to join Council on Foreign Relations
Washington (CNN) - White House Office of Management and Budget Director Peter Orszag will join the Council on Foreign Relations as a distinguished visiting fellow after his July 30 departure from the Obama administration, according to OMB Communications Director Kenneth Baer.
A stimulus program even a Republican can love
New York (CNNMoney.com) - There's at least one stimulus program that's creating jobs and winning praise from both sides of the political aisle.
A little-known Recovery Act initiative is expected to put more than 200,000 unemployed people back to work in 32 states and the District of Columbia. It's called the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Emergency Fund, and it subsidizes jobs with private companies, nonprofits and government agencies.
But the $5 billion it receives runs out on Sept. 30, even though employers and state officials administering the money say there's lots more demand out there.
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Defense spending: Slaying the sacred cow
New York (CNNMoney.com) - It was once sacrosanct. But no more.
A growing chorus of politicians and citizens is calling for defense spending to be scrutinized as much as any other federal program when it comes time to tighten the nation's fiscal belt.
The United States spends more on defense than any other country, and about five times more than China, which ranks second on the list.
Defense spending is a big ticket in Washington. At $689 billion this year, it accounts for about 20% of the entire federal budget. And it makes up 50% of the so-called discretionary budget, which pays for everything but entitlement programs and interest on the debt. In other words, all federal funding for education, infrastructure, transportation, the arts, and scientific research, to name a few.
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Reid name politically toxic in Nevada?
Washington (CNN) - As President Obama campaigned for Rory Reid's famous and powerful father in Nevada, the son was hundreds of miles away campaigning for governor.
While there's no animosity between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and his son, the younger Reid's use of his first name on his campaign's website and television ads is telling, a veteran political observer in Nevada said.
"Obviously he's trying to downplay his last name," said Jon Ralston, a columnist for the Las Vegas Sun and publisher of the Ralston Report. "In so obviously downplaying it, he's called even more attention to it."
Federal appeals panel denies government bid to reinstate drilling ban
A federal appeals panel upheld a district judge's order to block the ban on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. (PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images)
New Orleans, Louisiana (CNN) - A federal appeals panel on Thursday upheld a district judge's order to block the Obama administration's six-month ban on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.
In a brief ruling just a few hours after the hearing, the three-judge appellate panel denied the government's request to reinstate the moratorium while the full appeal of the case continues.
The government declared the moratorium in response to the April 20 explosion and fire on a deepwater rig that led to the Gulf oil disaster, with millions of gallons gushing into the ocean and oil giant BP unable to stop it.
Obama to talk about the economy in Las Vegas
Washington (CNN) - President Barack Obama will wrap up a two-state campaign swing Friday, talking about the economy during an event at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.
White House spokesmen Bill Burton said the president will "talk about how we grow the economy, what sort of investments the government can make, working with private industry to leverage as much growth and jobs as we can through things like renewable energy."
Nevada currently has the highest state unemployment rate in the nation at 14 percent.
Judge rules federal same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional
(CNN) - A federal judge in Boston, Massachusetts, has ruled that the federal ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional, because it interferes with an individual state's right to define marriage.
The ruling gives same-sex married couples in Massachusetts the same right to federal benefits that heterosexual couples enjoy.
U.S. District Judge Joseph Tauro ruled that "as irrational prejudice plainly never constitutes a legitimate government interest," the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) violates the protection under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.
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POLITICAL HOT TOPICS: Friday, July 9, 2010
The CNN Washington Bureau’s morning speed read of the top stories making news from around the country and the world.
WASHINGTON/POLITICAL
For the latest political news: www.CNNPolitics.com
CNN: Positions meet practicality for Tea Party candidates
The handful of Tea Party-backed candidates who've had successful primary wins now face an ideological dilemma - and potential backlash - as they retool for a general election campaign. Do they stick to their far-right agenda and trust that their conservative credentials will carry them to victory in November, or do they move ahead with a more mainstream, politically expedient message?
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