FRIDAY, MAY 28, 2010
KLMNO
S
Politics & The Nation
The developments jeopardized
Associated Press
A $23 billion payout to save thousands of educators’ jobs fal- tered Thursday — perhaps for good — to election-year jitters among moderate Democrats over deficit spending and only lukewarm support from the White House. The proposal’s chief advocate in the House abruptly canceled a committee meeting to put the money in a war spending bill. Its lead sponsor in the Senate gave up trying to do it, acknowledging that he lacked the necessary votes.
what liberals in Congress and some members of the Obama ad- ministration had described as a life raft for 100,000 to 300,000 teachers and other school per- sonnel whose billions of dollars in salary subsidies, paid through federal stimulus funding, will run out this fall. Outside the Beltway, educators said it was unclear how big a hit they will take if more federal
money does not come through. “The specter of layoffs is
there,” said Bill Reinhard, a spokesman for the Maryland De- partment of Education. “The economy has not totally turned around yet.” Maureen Dinnen, a retired teacher and school board mem- ber in Broward County, Fla., said 800 teaching jobs are in jeopardy there. The limbo, she said, wakes her up at night.
“I think to myself, ‘The future of our schools, that’s just as im- portant as the auto industry or the financial interests,’ ” she said. “That’s our lifeblood for the future.”
But voters have been telling politicians for months to hold down government spending — even the kind intended to spur the nation’s economic recovery. Some Democrats complained privately that the effort cried out
for presidential advocacy. Presi- dent Obama did not request the money in his budget; Education Secretary Arne Duncan seemed to be the only member of the ad- ministration making a strong case for it. On Thursday, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs re- leased a statement that called for some emergency funding for teachers, but he stopped short of saying how much.
A5
Payout to save teacher jobs gets mild support from White House
“There are thousands of teach- ers who will receive pink slips in the coming months,” Gibbs said. “The president strongly supports targeted aid focused on prevent- ing these teacher layoffs in order to stem the education crisis.” Rep. David R. Obey (D-Wis.), chairman of the House Appropri- ations Committee, on Thursday canceled a meeting of his panel, which was to have considered re- viving the measure.
Ethics office seeks probe of lobby firm’s client roster
by Carol D. Leonnig
A congressional ethics office
asked the Justice Department on Thursday to review documents that it said suggested companies are providing campaign cash to lawmakers for no-bid contracts, and to consider a criminal probe of the matter. The Office of Congressional Ethics’ investigation focused on companies that were clients of the once-powerful lobby firm PMA Group and sought ear- marked contracts from lawmak- ers who sat on the House Appro- priations Committee. The refer- ral to federal prosecutors was an end run around the House ethics committee, which earlier this year declined to investigate fur- ther and said it found no substan- tiation that lawmakers were en- gaged in a quid pro quo with cor- porations that had been generous contributors. The referral focuses on docu-
ments in which company exec- utives privately discussed the im- portance of giving specific mem- bers of Congress money in connection with those members steering lucrative contracts their way. In one e-mail exchange, a
McLean defense contractor seek- ing an earmark complained that he didn’t want to go to a wine- tasting fundraiser hosted by PMA for Rep. James P. Moran Jr. (D- Va.) because he didn’t drink. His boss responded: “You don’t have to drink. You just have to pay.” The e-mails were among the
documents reviewed by congres- sional ethics investigators over nine months in a wide-ranging earmarks probe. The investiga- tion by the Office of Congression- al Ethics uncovered dozens of examples of lobbyists and corpo- rate officers expressing their be- lief that donations would help them.
When PMA lobbyists talked to
defense clients, they often urged them to give to powerful mem- bers of the Appropriations sub- committee on defense — and oc- casionally reminded the clients about earmarks won or being sought from those lawmakers. In fiscal 2008, the seven law-
makers under scrutiny sponsored $112 million worth of earmarks for clients of PMA while accept- ing more than $350,000 in con- tributions from the firm’s lobby- ists and its clients, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense, a watchdog group. But the House ethics commit- tee ruled in February that the sev- en lawmakers had not violated any rules or laws. The PMA Group folded last
year after an FBI raid on its Ar- lington offices, part of an in- vestigation into whether its founder and staff directed illegal campaign contributions to law- makers who helped clients obtain earmarks.
leonnigc@washpost.com
Take the quest for cleaner air in our cities. We have created a fuel oil that can cut soot emissions from factories. That should help people breathe a little easier.
Customers at our service stations want to play their part, too. They want fuels that are more efficient. We’ve responded with new blends that help drivers save fuel with every fill-up. And we’re working with transport companies, combining the latest fuels and lubricants with satellite technology to reduce fuel consumption.
GEYOU CAN’TT THE DEALSIF YOU CAN’T FIND THE SALES.
IF THERE’S A SALE OUT THERE, IT’S IN HERE.
If you don’t get it, you don’t get it.
SF612 1x3
Low-carbon biofuels are another way to meet rising expectations. They can help reduce emissions from road transport right now. We’re already the world’s largest distributor of biofuels and are pursuing plans for large-scale production. We’re also working with technical partners to develop future biofuels from nonfood sources, such as crop residue and even algae.
LET'S DELIVER ENERGY FOR A CHANGINGWORLD.
LET'S GO.
Today’s consumers are smarter than ever about energy. Naturally they want it to heat, cool and light their homes, get them to work, and power their mobile phones. But they are also keen to help build an energy system that sustains the lives of future generations. They want their energy to come from cleaner sources. They want to get the most out of every drop. And they want to see positive results now.
At Shell, we’re listening. Consumers’ raised expectations inspire us to come up with ever more innovative products and services.
Of course, our customers’ horizons stretch beyond transport to more responsible living, whether through cleaner electricity or more energy-efficient homes and offices.
That’s why we are boosting production of cleaner-burning natural gas, which emits less than half the carbon dioxide of coal when used to generate electricity. And why we are investing in vital technology to capture emissions from power plants and other industrial sites and store it safely underground.
Despite all this change, one thing remains the same. After more than a century, our customers still expect reliable and affordable energy every day.
With global energy demand set to double by mid-century, that will be a challenge. But together with our partners we will continue unlocking energy from hard- to-reach places like frozen Siberia and delivering it to customers around the world.
At Shell, we’re grateful to have millions of customers asking for better energy. They demand as much of us as we ask of ourselves.
Together, let'sgothe extramile.
www.shell.us/letsgo
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128