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| Wed, 24 May 2006 14:00:00 EST Expect more backups in Pentagon security clearance |
| There's no shortage of bad news for the Defense Department's problem-plagued security clearance program. Last month, it put a hold on processing new applications, blaming an overwhelming backlog of requests and a lack of funding. Then last week, the Government Accountability Office issued a tough report on the program, citing inexperienced investigators and communication problems between DOD and the Office of Personnel Management. |
| Wed, 24 May 2006 14:00:00 EST Official secrets |
| The Washington Post had a thoughtful editorial yesterday entitled "Official Secrets" and subtitled "Be careful what you read." The nub of the Post's argument is in this paragraph. |
| Wed, 24 May 2006 14:00:00 EST Kudos for Nancy Pelosi |
| House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi deserves praise for depoliticizing the House ethics process. Yesterday Pelosi called for an ethics committee investigation of her Democratic colleague Rep. William Jefferson of Louisiana, who has been accused of taking bribes. Some Republicans will be inclined to dismiss this on the grounds that she had little choice–that it was an easy call. That's probably right. But I think it should be considered in light of the fact that after Alan Mollohan stepped down as ranking Democrat on the ethics committee—a move that Pelosi or other Democratic leaders may well have urged on him—Pelosi replaced him with her California colleague Howard Berman. Berman has served in that usually thankless position before. In my judgment, Berman is an absolute straight shooter who can be counted on to decide ethics issues on the facts and the rules, without regard to partisan fallout. |
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