Gay rights groups and supportive Democratic lawmakers spent the weekend striking back at Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen and their request that Congress not vote to repeal the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy until after the Pentagon finishes a review of a potential repeal.Read… Read more »
Happy Friday! In a not-so-subtle jab at bureaucratic language often found in U.S. Code or the Federal Register (“in witness thereof,” “notwithstanding” and “directive,” among other classics), the Center for Plain Language awarded its National ClearMark Awards on Thursday for the best and worst examples of language in government, business and the nonprofit community. TheRead… Read more »
The new Washington Post-ABC News poll spells trouble for incumbents and once again finds that most Americans favor a smaller government with fewer services. Fifty six percent of respondents favor a smaller government with fewer services while 40 percent would prefer a larger government with more services. Those figures essentially mirror our findings dating backRead… Read more »
Happy Wednesday! The Pew Internet and American Life Project have published a fantastic study of how Americans use the Internet to learn about all levels of government. Let’s dive right into the highlights: • 82 percent of all Web users in the survey (representing 61 percent of all American adults) looked for information or completedRead… Read more »
None of the Securities and Exchange Commission employees caught using government computers to view pornographic images has been fired, according to the agency. The SEC inspector general investigated 28 employees and five contractors for accessing inappropriate images and Web sites, according to a report released late last week. Of the employees, eight resigned and sixRead… Read more »
Six Obama administration officials will serve as the honorary co-chairs of this year’s Public Service Recognition Week, the first time that government officials have led the annual series of events to honor and thank public sector workers at the federal, state and local level. The festivities begin next Tuesday with a Senate hearing on attractingRead… Read more »
A new investigation by Securities and Exchange Commission watchdogs finds that dozens of agency employees used government computers to look at explicit images in the last five years, the AP scoops. The SEC inspector general conducted 33 probes of employees looking at the images and said 31 of those occurred in the 2 1/2 yearsRead… Read more »
Happy Thursday! A leading Republican lawmaker is raising concerns that potential whistleblowers at the Transportation Security Administration aren’t getting the help they need, after his office tried several times to reach agency officials that are supposed to deal with such issues. Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) reached out to TSA officials on Thursday, saying he’sRead… Read more »
Seventeen of the nation’s top business executives will soon start advising the Obama administration how to better manage the federal government. President Obama signed an executive order on Monday establishing the President’s Management Advisory Board, which will provide tips on productivity, customer service and the use of technology. The board will be chaired by OfficeRead… Read more »
A new major national poll regarding Americans’ trust in government finds that favorable opinions of seven federal agencies have dropped significantly since the last time the survey was conducted in the late 1990s. The poll, “Distrust, Discontent, Anger and Partisan Rancor,” by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press surveyed more thanRead… Read more »