MoveOn: Senate Should End Blanche’s Nomination, Not Just Delay It

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to the Senate Judiciary Committee postponing its vote on Trump’s unqualified personal lawyer Todd Blanche’s nomination for attorney general, MoveOn Political Action Chief Communications Officer Joel Payne released the following statement: “Todd Blanche’s nomination is stalled because his record is corrupt and indefensible. He has spent his career proving that there is no legal principle he will not bend and no institution he will not compromise in service of Donald Trump. His blind loyalty, willingness to use the justice system to protect the president, and…

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After delay, Trump signs agreement with Biden White House to begin formal transition handoff

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday reached a required agreement with President Joe Biden’s White House to allow his transition staff to coordinate with the existing federal workforce before taking office on Jan. 20. The congressionally mandated agreement allows transition aides to work with federal agencies and access non-public information and gives a green light to government workers to talk to the transition team. But Trump has declined to sign a separate agreement with the General Services Administration that would have given his team access to secure government…

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Senators delay federal telework bill to consider adding work-from-home supervision

A few senators on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee are digging in their heels on a federal telework bill, calling for more “accountability” of teleworking employees governmentwide. On a list of bills HSGAC considered for advancement Wednesday morning, the Telework Transparency Act aims to paint a clearer picture of telework across agencies. But during the committee’s consideration of the legislation, more questions than answers came up among members. There appeared to be at least some agreement among committee members on the intent of the legislation, but pushback from several…

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Turkey, Hungary unmoved as U.S. presses Sweden’s NATO bid ‘without delay’

The White House stepped up its lobbying for Sweden’s pending membership in NATO on Wednesday as objections from Turkey and Hungary cast doubt on whether the Scandinavian country can join the military alliance before Mr. Biden and other NATO leaders meet in Lithuania in mid-July. The Washington Times stories: White House

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After four year delay, agencies to get 21st Century IDEA Act guidance this summer

First, there as the pandemic. Then, there was the change in administration. At the same time, there were several high profile cyber threats to deal with. But the time has come to put the 21st Century IDEA Act, passed and signed into law in 2018, to the front of the priority list. The Office of Management and Budget finally is ready to issue implementation guidance for the nearly four-plus-year-old law. Federal Chief Information Officer Clare Martorana said yesterday the new guidance will hopefully come out this summer, following a similar…

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House Democrats again delay infrastructure vote amid party divisions – CNN

House Democrats again delay infrastructure vote amid party divisions  CNN Hannity: Nancy Pelosi can’t seem to unite Democrats  Fox News Dozens of U.S. House progressives oppose quick infrastructure vote, Jayapal says  Yahoo News House delays infrastructure bill vote as progressives dig in – as it happened  The Guardian “us democrats” – Google News

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