New rules take effect for agencies buying from AbilityOne contractors

New rules have taken effect for procurement from AbilityOne contractors. Those are the companies, mostly non-profits, whose employees have disabilities. The rules were ordered by Congress back in 2017 and they bring more competition to the program. For details, The Federal Drive with Tom Temin talked with the Executive Director of the AbilityOne Commission, Kim Zeich. Interview Transcript:  Kim Zeich The AbilityOne program provides employment opportunities to individuals who are blind or have significant disabilities through the Federal Acquisition System. Historically, the AbilityOne program has been an exception to competition…

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DoD’s budget challenges will take years to fix, but reform commission says now’s the time to start

The expert panel Congress assembled to find fixes to the Pentagon’s archaic planning and budgeting process won’t deliver its final prescription for reform until next spring. But its members say there are at least some steps the Defense Department and Congress should start taking right now, particularly in light of the fact that fixing what’s wrong is certain to be a years-long effort. The Commission on Planning, Programming, Budgeting and Execution (PPBE) Reform published an interim report this week, previewing 10 of the possible recommendations it might make in its…

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Mall of America Security Order Man to Take Off ‘Jesus Saves’ T-shirt or Leave Mall

Mall security guards at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, ordered a man to remove his “Jesus Saves” t-shirt or leave the mall, footage shows. “I didn’t do anything,” the man, Paul Shoro, told The Daily Signal in a Facebook message on Tuesday. “They forced me to take off my shirt.” The mall later said security later allowed Shoro to remain in the mall while wearing the shirt. Bystander Kameko Rawls took footage of the incident, which has since gone viral on social media. In the video of the…

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A Former Prosecutor’s Take on the Rittenhouse Trial and Verdict

Could Kyle Rittenhouse face another trial? Does Rittenhouse have grounds to sue media outlets for defamation? What about the behavior of the prosecutors during the trial? The Heritage Foundation’s Zack Smith, a former prosecutor, joins Tim Doescher of “Heritage Explains” to answer these questions and more. Watch the full interview here or read, below, an edited and abridged transcript. Tim Doescher: The [Kyle] Rittenhouse verdict is in. Not guilty on all charges. Not guilty. Not guilty. Zack Smith: Good. Doescher: I did it right. OK, good. Yeah, that’s right. All…

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Schumer urges Biden to take skyrocketing gasoline prices seriously: ‘We need immediate relief’

Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer is demanding that President Biden take unilateral action to lower gasoline prices, warning the White House is not taking seriously enough the consumer angst when filling up. Mr. Schumer, New York Democrat, said that skyrocketing prices at the pump were a consequence of the … The Washington Times stories: White House

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