2010 Blog Archives


This "Lame Duck" Had Wings

After the November elections, members of Congress returned to Capitol Hill for their “lame duck” session with one huge piece of unfinished business – the Fiscal Year 2011 budget. And while they failed to complete work on the budget – the government is currently running on a “continuing resolution” that ...

On the Block: Energy Assistance Programs

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }a:link { } By Samantha Dana During the holiday season, many of us wish for a “White Christmas” while we “dream by the fire.” For others, the warmth of the season is illusive, with high heating costs and declining income leaving them vulnerable to the cold. ...

Forecast: Mostly Cloudy with a Chance of Shut Down

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }a:link { } By Samantha DanaWith the clock ticking away on the last session of the 111th Congress, the Democratic leadership in the House and Senate have a few bills they still need to get passed. The largest, most important one is the budget for the ...

(Not) On the Block: Free and Reduced Cost School Meals

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }a:link { } By Samantha Dana Yesterday, President Obama signed the Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act of 2010 into law with his wife, a strong anti-childhood obesity advocate, by his side. The law has two main goals: to increase the number of students who are able ...

DC Speak: Tax Cuts for Everybody!

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }a:link { } By Samantha Dana This week there was a lot of media coverage of the tentative agreement reached between the Obama Administration and congressional Republicans to extend the Bush-era tax cuts. The agreement came after the GOP leadership announced its intention to block any ...

I'll See Your "CR" and Raise You One "Omnibus"

In the topsy-turvy world that is Washington, D.C., these days, Congress is struggling to find a way to fulfill its primary function -- pass a budget.The government is currently being funded by a “continuing resolution.” The current fiscal year – FY 2011 – actually began on October 1, 2010, right ...

The Moment of Truth

Earlier today, the 18 members of the President's National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform voted to approve the final version of the proposal issued by the Commission's Co-Chairs, Sen. Alan Simpson and Erskine Bowles. The vote was 11-7, short of the 14 votes which, according to the panel's rules, ...

The Dollars and Sense of Nuclear Weapons

In Prague last April, President Obama raised the world’s hopes with his speech calling for a “nuclear free future.” Since then, his Administration has made non-proliferation – preventing the spread of nuclear weapons to other nations – a top national security priority. As part of this effort, U.S. officials negotiated ...

New NPP Series: “On The Block”

By Samantha DanaLast week Congress returned to Washington, D.C. for it's “lame duck” session and began their final weeks of law making before the holiday season and the new Congress is inaugurated. With none of the twelve annual appropriations for Fiscal Year 2011 (which began on October 1). that fund ...

All Hands on Debt: Entering the Critical Debate Over Federal Deficit Reduction

Last week the Co-Chairmen of the President's National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform -- former Wyoming Senator Alan Simpson and former White House Chief-of-Staff Erskine Bowles -- released their draft deficit reduction proposal. The Simpson-Bowles plan seeks to reduce the deficit by $372 billion in Fiscal Year 2015, more ...