Monday’s Political Roundup

The following is political activity for Monday, September 27, 2010, going on in Washington and across the nation. It is courtesy of Scott Wilk, Community Organizer, and Anchor Consulting group. The Beacon will be posting these daily as they become available.

IN THE HOUSE

• No votes are scheduled in the House.
• Steny Hoyer rips Stephen Colbert’s appearance on Hill -  An irate House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said on Sunday that comedian Stephen Colbert should not have appeared before a House subcommittee last week, blasting the move as “an embarrassment.” (Politico)

 IN THE SENATE

• The Senate convenes at 2pm; morning business is scheduled until 3pm with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each.
• Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to Calendar #578, S.3816, a bill to create American jobs and to prevent the offshoring of such jobs.
• Senators should expect a live quorum at approximately 7pm on Monday.
• Senator presses for more help on Mexico border  -  The Obama administration should provide additional resources to help Mexico as the two countries try to root out drug traffickers along their shared border, according to a senior Senate Republican. (Reuters)

OTHER NEWS

• Education Department Sets Timeline for Rules  -  The U.S. Department of Education will delay the publication of a controversial rule that could strip a number of higher-education programs of access to federal student aid, but said implementation of the rule is still set for mid-2012. (Wall Street Journal)
•  Job Loss Looms as Part of Stimulus Act Expires  -  Tens of thousands of people will lose their jobs within weeks unless Congress extends one of the more effective job-creating programs in the $787 billion stimulus act: a $1 billion New Deal-style program that directly paid the salaries of unemployed people so they could get jobs in government, at nonprofit organizations and at many small businesses. (New York Times)
• Payroll departments brace for congressional verdict on tax cuts  -  The decision by Senate Democratic leaders to delay a vote on the Bush-era tax cuts until after the election has put the payroll industry on high alert. (The Hill)
• Justice Kagan faces first Supreme Court test Monday  -  For months before she became a Supreme Court justice, Elena Kagan, then the U.S. solicitor general, was nearly as much a fixture in the majestic courtroom as the nine justices. (USA Today)
• An anonymous group tries to ignite a sleepy congressional race  -  Even in this anti-Washington political climate, 12-term Democratic Rep. Peter DeFazio had not been on anyone’s endangered list. He generally breezes to re-election in his southwestern Oregon district by 60 percent or better. (Washington Post)

FEDERAL GRANT OF THE DAY

• Computing Education for the 21st Century- The Computing Education for the 21st Century (CE21) program aims to build a computationally savvy 21st century workforce that positions the US to demonstrate a leadership role in the global economy.   Innovations in computing and more broadly, information technology (IT), drive our economy, underlie many new advances in science and engineering, and contribute to our national security. Projected job growth in IT is very strong. Despite these very positive indicators, student interest in computing has declined dramatically over the last decade.  The CE21 program seeks to reverse this troubling trend by engaging larger numbers of students, teachers, and educators in computing education and learning at earlier stages in the education pipeline.  While interventions in primary education are within scope, the CE21 program focuses special attention on activities targeted at the middle and high school levels (i.e., secondary education) and in early undergraduate education.  The program seeks to increase computational competencies for all students, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, disability status, or socioeconomic status, and regardless, too, of eventual career choices.  By promoting and enhancing computing K-14 education, the CE21 program seeks to increase interest in computing as a field in its own right, and also to better prepare students for successful careers in other computing-intensive fields. For more information, see NSF. Application deadline: April 27, 2011

 TODAY IN HISTORY

• September 27, 1964- On this day, the Warren Commission issued a report concluding that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in assassinating President John F. Kennedy.

Source and thanks to www.anchor-consult.com / For more information, contact Anchor Consulting at 703-333-6013