The DeMint Earmark Amendment – It Fails
Update: DeMint Earmark Video can be found here.
Well, after many hours of waiting and some creative politicking by those on the left, the DeMint Earmark Amendment finally made its way to the floor.
In an early surprise, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John McCain all made their way back to the floor to cast their votes.
The very fact that they came back for this vote should serve as a wakeup call to those who have remained on the fence regarding how they should have voted on this amendment.
Addressing some procedural issues, the Senate had to vote to temporarily waive a portion of the Budget Act. This waiver was needed to prevent a point of order from being raised that would inevitably cause the bill to fail, as someone could/would site that it was in violation of the Budget Act of 1974.
Unfortunately, it was this maneuver that killed the amendment right away.
However, this fight is far from over. The fact that all three presidential candidates signed on to the DeMint Amendment confirms that this will be a major campaign issue.
With this amendment being killed with little debate, pledges like the “No Earmark Pledge” being circulated by FreedomWorks, could and should have a great deal of weight in the upcoming House, Senate, and Presidential campaigns.
While this might seem like a significant blow to the fight against things like “monuments to me” and the “bridge to nowhere,” I think that this fight is just starting to heat up.
Also check out CNN’s coverage.
Update: McCain, Obama, and Clinton all on the floor
Update: The DeMint Earmark Amendment – It Fails
Despite Harry Reid’s best efforts, all three of the Presidential candidates, John McCain, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have returned to the floor to cast their vote for the DeMint Earmark Amendment.
This could get interesting.
Update: Obama and Clinton on the Floor for Earmark Vote
I’m actually quite surprised by this, but they’re on the floor!
Update: The DeMint Earmark Amendment – It Fails
Bush Responds to Chinese Counter Attacks
I made a post a few days ago about Chinese hackers successfully breaking into some Pentagon computers and the incredible risk that it posed to US security. While I knew that the White House would address this in a timely fashion, I didn’t expect something to come this quickly.
From USA Today:
WASHINGTON — A sudden spike in the number of successful attacks against federal government information systems and databases has led President Bush to propose a multibillion-dollar response.
The number of incidents reported to the Department of Homeland Security rose by 152% last year, to nearly 13,000, according to a new government report. The security breaches, more than 4,000 of which remain under investigation, ranged from the work of random hackers to organized crime and foreign governments, says Tim Bennett, president of the Cyber Security Industry Alliance.
The increase and severity of data breaches prompted Bush to recommend a 10% increase in cybersecurity funding for the coming fiscal year, to $7.3 billion. That’s a 73% increase since 2004.
“The president’s put a lot of emphasis on this recently,” says Robert Jamison, undersecretary for national protection and programs at the Department of Homeland Security. “We’re concerned that the threats are real and growing. … We’re more vulnerable as a nation.”
Members of Congress and experts in the private sector say the government’s new is overdue.
Luckily, this seems like one security item that the Democrat majority wont vote against, though I wouldn’t put it past them to call for a compromise and throw in some completely unrelated project or try and tie in some FISA stipulations.
In the article there was some positive response from some key Democrats on this issue:
“There are more and more bad guys out there,” says Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., who chaired a Senate Homeland Security subcommittee hearing this week on government information security risks. In 31% of the infiltrations, he says, “agencies do not know who took the information or how much information was taken.”
Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I., who chairs the House Homeland Security subcommittee with jurisdiction over the issue, says the Bush administration “has not paid nearly enough attention to cybersecurity” until this year. Now, he says, “they’re at least trying to move in the right direction.”
While I’m hopeful that this will go through with no problems, I wouldn’t put it past Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid to use some muscle and make things complicated.
Finally, this article closed with some pretty cool simulations that the government is trying to explore its security threats:
Practicing for attacks
To test security against about 100 possible attacks, the Department of Homeland Security today is completing a week-long series of simulations called “Cyber Storm II.” The event presumed a coordinated cyberattack on information technology, communication, chemical and transportation systems. Participants from five countries, nine states, 18 federal agencies and more than 40 private companies participated.
“They remarked somewhat sheepishly how much of a stretch this has been for them,” Greg Garcia, assistant secretary for cybersecurity at the Homeland Security Department, said Thursday during a tour of the event at Secret Service headquarters here.
Karen Evans, administrator for electronic government and information technology at the Office of Management and Budget, says part of the 152% increase in security breaches in 2007 was due to more accurate reporting, but she acknowledges that much of it represents a real rise.
Industry officials want a greater government role in preventing cyberattacks.
Bennett says, “With global attacks on data networks increasing at an alarming rate, in a more organized and sophisticated manner, and often originating from state-sponsored sources, there is precious little time to lose.”
Jack Kevorkian for Congress?
I don’t think that I ever would have saw this one coming:
PONTIAC, Mich. (AP) — Assisted suicide advocate Jack Kevorkian plans to run for Congress, complicating a Michigan race that is expected to be among the most competitive in the nation.
The so-called “Dr. Death,” who was released from prison last year and remains on parole, will run as a candidate with no party affiliation for a congressional seat representing Detroit’s suburbs, an associate said.
“Jack is in great spirits, and he intends to do this. He just hopes for some honesty in government,” said Ruth Holmes, Kevorkian’s longtime jury consultant.
Kevorkian plans to focus on prison reform and bringing integrity to the government, Holmes said. She said the retired pathologist was not available for an interview and would make a formal announcement next week.
Kevorkian told The Oakland Press of Pontiac, Mich., which first reported his plans on Wednesday, that his campaign was in a “formative stage” and that he was running because “we need some honesty and sincerity instead of corrupt government in Washington.”
Does it seem odd that a felon can’t vote for federal office, but apparently can run for it?