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NEWS ABOUT: Barbara Boxer

Panicky Dems Switch Tack

Party prepares to dig in for brutal midterm battles

(Newser) - Democrats shaken by the Massachusetts defeat are scrambling to find a strategy to avoid being swept out of office on a wave of populist anger this fall. Lawmakers agree that the party should switch its focus to jobs and the economy—but there's little consensus on the particulars. "Every... More »

Republicans Excited by 2010 Recruits

Party boasts diverse crop of candidates, but primaries loom

(Newser) - Republicans have reeled in a diverse and promising assortment of candidates for 2010, lured by the prospect of a “wave” election that will sweep them into power. “We’ve got candidates popping up all over the place,” Mitch McConnell tells the Washington Post , “and candidates that... More »

Military Drops Iraq Pregnancy Ban

Threat of court-martial 'defied comprehension,' critics charged

(Newser) - The US military's Christmas gift to soldiers serving in Iraq: an end to the harsh policy that threatens court-martial and jail time for getting pregnant—or getting someone else pregnant. Gen. Ray Odierno, the top US commander in the country, is revamping regulations, and the new orders, in effect Jan.... More »

Ben Nelson Deal May Give Reid 60 Votes

Bargaining session said to have yielded agreement on abortion

(AP) - Senate Dems appear within reach of the 60 votes needed to pass their health care bill after a final burst of deadline bargaining with holdout Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska. Emerging from marathon talks with Harry Reid and White House officials late last night, Nelson said "real progress" had... More »

McCain Gets His Fight On

Rebounds from 2008 as feisty, fired-up partisan

(Newser) - Barack Obama's old opponent is back, taking a leading roll in attacking his policies on health care and Afghanistan, but he's not the same John McCain the president defeated a year ago. McCain has pulled an Al Gore, bouncing back from an election he lost as a moderate to take... More »

Left, Right Assail Obama Plan

GOP faults timetable; Dems fault surge itself

(Newser) - There was a bipartisan show of unity after President Obama’s speech tonight on Afghanistan—though hardly the unity Obama was looking for, as negative reaction echoed from his leftmost supporters to his rightmost critics. The 30,000-troop buildup irked Democrats, the Wall Street Journal reports, despite Obama pairing that... More »

GOP Boycotts Climate Bill, Dems Get Bored

Climate hearing boycott ends with whimper

(Newser) - For a while yesterday, Democrats got to live the dream: a world without Republicans. The GOP made good on its promise to boycott the Senate environment committee’s hearing on its climate change bill, and Democrats had a good time lambasting them in absentia, calling them the party of “... More »

Carly Fiorina Launches Calif. Senate Bid

Ex-HP chief would face Dem incumbent Boxer

(AP) - Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina says she'll run for the US Senate seat held by California incumbent Barbara Boxer. Fiorina ended months of speculation today with an announcement in an opinion piece she wrote for the Orange County Register. She's scheduled to make a formal announcement later in the day.... More »

Let's Hope Baucus Doesn't 'Gum Up' Climate Bill

He's already trying to water down

(Newser) - Now that his committee is done with health care reform, Max Baucus has time to turn his attention to the climate bill. As a member of Barbara Boxer's environmental panel, "his ability to gum up the works is significant," writes Kate Sheppard . Essentially, he may do to the... More »

White House Probes Minn. Plane Stranding

Incident 'troubling': transportation sec.

(Newser) - The Obama administration is investigating last weekend’s 9-hour stranding of 47 passengers on a Minnesota airport tarmac, the AP reports. Transportation Secretary Ray Lahood says his department's general counsel is determining whether laws were broken in the case. “While we don't yet have all the facts, this incident... More »

Sen. Boxer: Don't Call Me 'Ma'am'

McCain spoofs scolding

(Newser) - Sen. Barbara Boxer wagged a finger at a military officer yesterday for calling her “ma’am,” the Christian Science Monitor reports. As the general discussed New Orleans, Boxer interrupted, saying “You know, do me a favor. Could you say ’senator’ instead of ‘ma’am?’ It’... More »

Gibbs: Don't Worry About Sotomayor on Abortion

Past rulings unrelated to her pro-choice stance

(Newser) - President Obama nominated a candidate for Supreme Court with almost no record on abortion. Now, reports the Washington Post, he’s in the unexpected position of defending Sonia Sotomayor to his party’s pro-choice base. Spokesman Robert Gibbs went out of his way yesterday to suggest that Obama—who didn't... More »

In DC, Powerful California Is the New Texas

State best represented in Congress, holds key Cabinet, Senate posts

(Newser) - California is set to take over Texas’ role as the state with most influence on the federal government, Politico reports. With Nancy Pelosi as House Speaker, the largest number of representatives—34—in the Democratic caucus, and one of the strongest presences by state in Barack Obama’s administration, the... More »

EPA Staffers Told to Keep Quiet in Memo

Environmental experts suspect politically charged 'gag order'

(Newser) - In what some officials fear is a sign of secrecy and political meddling, an email to Environmental Protection Agency staff asked that they not answer questions from journalists, the Government Accountability Office, or its own inspector general, CNN reports. In the email, which an environmental workers’ group called a “... More »

Cheney's Staff Cut Testimony on Climate: EPA Official

VP feared regulations on greenhouse gas

(Newser) - Aides to Vice President Dick Cheney censored congressional testimony on climate change by a top government official, a former official at the Environmental Protection Agency charges. Jason Burnett claims Cheney’s office, fearing testimony would lead to greater regulation of greenhouse gases, excised six pages of text regarding the health... More »

GOP Senators Block Bill on Climate Change

It will likely be pulled until next year

(Newser) - Republican senators blocked a landmark climate change bill today in a filibuster, making it likely that the carbon-capping legislation will be shelved until next year. After a debate over the economic costs of the bill—which would cut CO2 emissions by 71% by 2050—the Senate came up a dozen... More »

Senator Blasts 'Foot-Dragging' on Protecting Polar Bear

Feds delay decision due within 1 year

(Newser) - Three months after the deadline for declaring whether polar bears are a threatened species, the Interior Department hasn't issued a ruling, and Barbara Boxer wants to know why. The influential senator said yesterday she wants Secretary Dirk Kempthorne to appear before the environment committee and “answer questions about the... More »

Senate to Hold Drug Water Hearings

Lawmakers press EPA to establish task force on contaminants

(Newser) - Alarmed by an AP story, two top senators vowed yesterday to probe drug traces in US drinking water. Sen. Barbara Boxer and Sen. Frank Lautenberg plan to lead hearings next month to "protect our residents and clean up our water supply," Lautenberg said. The first of AP's three... More »

EPA Chief Ignored Staff on Calif. Ruling

Auto industry pushed White House to sway him, sources say

(Newser) - The EPA chief—under heavy pressure from the auto industry—rejected his own staff's advice in denying California’s request to set its own fuel economy standards, the Los Angeles Times reports. Stephen Johnson told the state that it’s request was unnecessary in the wake of the new energy... More »

Bush to Cut Anti-Terror Funding

Proposal to ax port, transit security sparks bipartisan ire

(Newser) - Bush plans to cut counterterror funds in half next year, nixing port and transit security plans altogether, the AP reports. The drop from $3.2 billion to $1.4 billion would slash police, fire, and rescue budgets nationwide—and run counter to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff's vow of less... More »

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