Dems Dig in Against Spending Cuts to Clean-Energy Programs

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Democrats are digging in against cuts to clean-energy research as lawmakers again face a deadline to replace billions of dollars in spending reductions from sequestration.

The “fiscal cliff” deal that lawmakers struck this week delayed the sequestered budget cuts until March, buying Congress a few more weeks to negotiate an agreement to stop them.

Both Republicans and Democrats agree that the across-the-board cut from sequestration should be stopped, but remain deadlocked about what programs should get the ax instead.

The stakes are high for the Energy Department (DOE), which would see its budget slashed 8.2 percent if sequestration were allowed to take effect.

Democrats are vowing to protect funding for clean-energy research in a sequestration deal, arguing the spending is critical for the environment and the country’s economic future. Democrats are also vowing to protect programs in DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).

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Former Ethics Officer Says NLRB Inspector General ‘Improperly’ Cleared Obama Appointee of Wrongdoing

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A former senior National Labor Relations Board ethics officer testified in a sworn affidavit that the agency’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) incorrectly failed to recommend civil or criminal action against NLRB general counsel Lafe Solomon in a conflict of interest investigation.

The OIG acts as an independent body to investigate claims of ethical misconduct against NLRB members. It launched an investigation in 2012 into Solomon’s conduct in a potential NLRB lawsuit against Wal-Mart, according to legal documents obtained by the Daily Caller.

Solomon’s alleged misconduct in the Wal-Mart case stemmed from his ownership of stock in the company, which he inherited from his mother when she died in July 2011.

The OIG concluded that Solomon, whom President Barack Obama appointed NLRB’s Acting General Counsel in June 2010, violated conflict of interest law, but that “extenuating and mitigating circumstances” — including an adversarial relationship with a co-worker — should shield him from criminal prosecution.

That co-worker, former NLRB Designated Agency Ethics Official (DAEO) Gloria Joseph, strongly disagreed with the OIG’s recommendation to allow Solomon to avoid responsibility, according to her sworn affidavit dated November 29, 2012.

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‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Dischargees to Receive Full Back Pay from DoD

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In a landmark settlement, the Pentagon has agreed to give full back pay to U.S. service members who were discharged due to their sexual orientation under the military’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.

The payouts will be granted to service members dismissed from the military under the now-repealed policy on or after November 2004.

“This means so much to those of us who dedicated ourselves to the military, only to be forced out against our will for being who we are,” former Air Force Staff Sgt. Richard Collins said in a statement from the American Civil Liberties Union, which brought the lawsuit.

Under “Don’t ask,” service members who were honorably discharged automatically had their separation pay cut in half.

The ACLU of New Mexico sued the Pentagon on behalf of 181 service members who were dismissed under the policy to recover their full pay.

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Michael Savage: America Needs New ‘Nationalist’ Party

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During an interview on “Aaron Klein Investigative Radio” on Sunday, conservative radio host Michael Savage said that the United States needs a third, nationalist party.

“There is no Republican Party,” he said in remarks first carried by the WND political news site. “It’s an appendage of the Democrat machine, as we’ve all just seen.”

Savage criticized the current leaders of the Republican and Democratic parties, calling Speaker John Boehner “drunk” and President Obama a “quasi-pseudo-crypto Marxist,” according to BuzzFeed.

During the interview, Savage pointed to the tea party as a candidate should there be a “charismatic leader” as well as party restructuring.

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Pelosi Urges Obama to Sidestep Congress, Use 14th Amendment to Raise Debt Ceiling (+video)

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(Daily Caller) House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi shared her own idea Sunday on how to avoid a government shutdown should the Republican House and President Barack Obama find themselves unable to reach an agreement on raising the debt ceiling: invoke the 14th Amendment to the Constitution.

Pelosi started the discussion on CBS’ “Face the Nation” by saying she didn’t believe raising the debt ceiling should be tied to spending cuts.

“I don’t think these two things should be related,” Pelosi said.

“I think that we should subject every dollar we spend, every taxpayer dollar, whether it’s defense or domestic, to the harshest scrutiny. Is the taxpayer getting his or her dollar’s worth for that spending? But on the other hand, that is a judgment that we have to make as we make cuts to reduce spending — but having nothing to do with whether the full faith and credit of the United States of America should be placed in jeopardy” . . .

Pelosi’s solution to the impasse is for the president to — as some scholars have proposed — bypass Congress and invoke the 14th Amendment, which states that “[t]he validity of the public debt … shall not be questioned.”

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Sen. Graham Blasts Likely Hagel Selection as ‘In-Your-Face Nomination’ from Obama

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Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Sunday expressed dismay at reports President Obama would tap former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) for Secretary of Defense, calling it an “in your face” selection.

“I like Chuck Hagel. He served with distinction in Vietnam as an enlisted man — two Purple Hearts. But quite frankly Chuck Hagel is out of the mainstream of thinking on most issues regarding foreign policy,” said Graham in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

“He has long severed his ties with the Republican party. This is an in your face nomination of the president to all of us who are supportive of Israel,” he added. “I don’t know what his management experience is in regards to the Pentagon or global if anyway, so I think it’s an extremely controversial choice.”

Reports Sunday said that Obama had decided to name Hagel to replace current Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta as early as Monday.

The selection of Hagel is likely to set off a fierce confirmation battle with many conservative lawmakers already signaling opposition to their former colleague.

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Boehner Coup Attempt Larger Than First Thought

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A concerted effort to unseat Speaker John A. Boehner was under way the day of his re-election to the position, but participants called it off 30 minutes before the House floor vote, CQ Roll Call has learned.

A group of disaffected conservatives had agreed to vote against the Ohio lawmaker if they could get at least 25 members to join the effort. But one member, whose identity could not be verified, rescinded his or her participation the morning of the vote, leaving the group one person short of its self-imposed 25-member threshold. Only 17 votes against Boehner were required to force a second ballot, but the group wanted to have insurance.

Even with 24 members, the group would easily have been able to force a second ballot round, but the effort was aborted in frenetic discussions on the House floor.

“There was an effort to get to a particular number,” said one Republican member who voted for Boehner but was familiar with the effort to oust him.

Republican Reps. Justin Amash of Michigan, Mick Mulvaney of South Carolina and Raúl R. Labrador of Idaho played key roles in organizing the plot. But participants describe its origin as organic and not led by any particular member, despite the suggestion by at least one House Republican that Amash was the ringleader.

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Individual Health Insurance Premiums Skyrocket After Obamacare

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Health insurance companies across the country are seeking and winning double-digit increases in premiums for some customers, even though one of the biggest objectives of the Obama administration’s health care law was to stem the rapid rise in insurance costs for consumers.

Particularly vulnerable to the high rates are small businesses and people who do not have employer-provided insurance and must buy it on their own.

In California, Aetna is proposing rate increases of as much as 22 percent, Anthem Blue Cross 26 percent and Blue Shield of California 20 percent for some of those policy holders, according to the insurers’ filings with the state for 2013. These rate requests are all the more striking after a 39 percent rise sought by Anthem Blue Cross in 2010 helped give impetus to the law, known as the Affordable Care Act, which was passed the same year and will not be fully in effect until 2014.

In other states, like Florida and Ohio, insurers have been able to raise rates by at least 20 percent for some policy holders. The rate increases can amount to several hundred dollars a month.

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Nuclear Security Helicopters Testing Radiation Levels Above DC Area

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WASHINGTON – Helicopters have been conducting radiation tests above portions of the Washington, D.C. area using remote gamma radiation sensing technology.

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has been flying the radiation missions since Dec. 27, 2012 and they will continue until next Friday, Jan. 11. The flights have been conducted during daylight only, and the pilots fly about 80 miles per hour at 150 feet above the approximately 70-square mile radiation assessment area.

Naturally-occurring radiation is measured so that baseline levels can be established and used in security and emergency preparedness, reads a statement from the NNSA.

In addition to monitoring radiation levels and responding to radiological emergencies on the home front, the agency provides the U.S. Navy with nuclear propulsion and works to reduce the global danger of weapons of mass destruction, according to a release issued by the agency.

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Karl Rove’s Super PAC Promised IRS It Would Spend ‘Limited’ Money on Elections

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In a confidential 2010 filing, Crossroads GPS — the dark money group that spent more than $70 million from anonymous donors on the 2012 election — told the Internal Revenue Service that its efforts would focus on public education, research and shaping legislation and policy.

The group’s application for recognition as a social welfare nonprofit acknowledged that it would spend money to influence elections, but said “any such activity will be limited in amount, and will not constitute the organization’s primary purpose.”

Political insiders and campaign-finance watchdogs have long questioned how Crossroads, the brainchild of GOP strategist Karl Rove, had characterized its intentions to the IRS.

Now, for the first time, ProPublica has obtained the group’s application for recognition of tax-exempt status, filed in September 2010. The IRS has not yet recognized Crossroads GPS as exempt, causing some tax experts to speculate that the agency is giving the application extra scrutiny. If Crossroads GPS is ultimately not recognized, it could be forced to reveal the identities of its donors.

The tax code allows groups like Crossroads to spend money on political campaigns — and to keep their donors private — as long as their primary purpose is enhancing social welfare.

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