August 21, 2015

The House and Senate were in recess this week.

Senate Democrats Request Budget Negotiations

When the House and Senate return September 8, they will only be in session at the same time for 10 days before the fiscal year ends on September 30. With this tight timeline, all 46 members of the Democratic caucus in the Senate (Democrats and Independents) sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) this week urging him to schedule bipartisan budget negotiations as soon as possible. “With the existence of a clear and urgent deadline for action, we believe it would be unwise to wait until after the Congress returns from the August state work period – just 23 days before the end of the fiscal year – to begin talks on a path forward.”

Text of the letter:

http://www.dpcc.senate.gov/?p=issue&id=460

OMB Report on FY16 Appropriations Bills and Sequestration Caps

The Office of Management and Budget said in a report this week that the 12 FY16 spending bills passed or marked up in the House this year exceed the statutory cap on non-defense spending by $1.8B and the defense cap by $3M. In the Senate the FY16 bills exceed the cap on defense spending by $1M, but are in compliance with the current 2016 limit for the non-defense category. The caps are currently set at $493.5B for non-defense and $523B for defense spending. In order to avoid triggering a sequester, which would result in across-the-board cuts in programs, the House and Senate would have to cut funding in those bills before they are enacted into law. Or the House, Senate, and White House could agree to a new budget deal that would raise the caps.

Link to the OMB Report:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/assets/legislative_reports/sequestration/sequestration_update_august2015.pdf

Political Updates

Former Rep. Louis Stokes (D-OH), the first African-American congressman from Ohio died this week after being diagnosed with lung and brain cancer in July. He retired in 1999 and was 90 years old at the time of his death. Stokes was a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus, and was the chairman of the House Select Committee on Assassinations, which investigated the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.

Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-PA) pleaded not guilty to multiple charges in a federal racketeering case this week and was released on $100,000 bail.

Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) hired veteran Senate campaign fundraiser Ashley Martens this week raising speculation that Cummings may run for the Democratic Senate nomination. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Rep. Donna Edwards (D-MD) have already announced their candidacies for replacing retiring Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD).

U.S. Coast Guard Vice Admiral Charles Michel formally assumed the role of Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard during a ceremony at the U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters. As Vice Commandant, Michel will oversee the Coast Guard’s operations, strategic development, organizational governance, and management of the service’s more than 58,000 employees and 30,000 volunteers.

Cheri Tyner has been appointed to the Senior Executive Service and has been assigned as Director of the Acquisition Directorate at the Department of Defense. Tyner previously served as Deputy Director in the Office of Acquisition Management, Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the Department of Homeland Security. Maureen Higgins has been assigned as the assistant Director of Human Capital and Resource Management in the Defense Contract Audit Agency at the Department of Defense.  Higgins previously served as the Deputy Director of the Center for Leadership Development in the Office of Personnel Management.

FBI Director James Comey has named James Trainor, Jr. as Assistant Director of the Cyber Division at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C.  Trainor most recently served as Deputy Assistant Director of the Cyber Operations Branch.

Next Week

The House and Senate are in recess until September 8.

August 14, 2015

The House and Senate were in recess this week.

DHS Cybersecurity Announcements

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson announced this week that he was elevating the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC) within the Department’s structure with an incident reporting line directly to the Secretary. Johnson also directed the National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD) to develop a reorganization plan that will ensure that the NCCIC is focused on strengthening DHS’ operational capabilities for mitigating and responding to cyber incidents. As part of this reorganization, Dr. Andy Ozment, Assistant Secretary of the Office of Cybersecurity and Communications, assumed overall and direct responsibility for the NCCIC, and John Felkner, formerly the Director of Cyber and Intelligence Strategy for HP Enterprise Services, joined DHS as the new NCCIC Director of Operations. Felker replaces Larry Zelvin, who departed last summer.

And earlier this month, Secretary Johnson tasked his Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC) to establish a subcommittee entitled Cybersecurity Subcommittee. A notice in today’s Federal Register announced that the subcommittee was officially established. The Cybersecurity subcommittee will provide actionable findings and recommendations to the HSAC on best practices sourced from industry, state and local government, academic experts, and community leaders. It will also address the following: (1) Identify the readiness of the Department’s lifeline sectors to meet the emerging cyber threat and provide recommendations for building cross-sector capabilities to rapidly restore critical functions and services following a significant cyber event; and (2) How can the Department provide a more unified approach to support State, Local, Tribal and Territorial cybersecurity? The subcommittee’s findings and recommendations will be submitted to the HSAC for their deliberation and vote during a public meeting. Once the report is voted on by the HSAC, it will be sent to the Secretary for his review and acceptance.

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-08-14/html/2015-20034.htm

CBO Report on Eliminating Budget Control Act Caps

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a report this week that concludes that eliminating the Budget Control Act of 2011 caps on discretionary budget authority for FY16 and FY17 would make GDP larger than predicted under current law and increase full-time-equivalent employment. The report, “The Macroeconomic Effects of Eliminating Automatic Reductions to Discretionary Spending Caps,” was requested by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Fully eliminating the automatic reductions would allow for an increase of $90B in FY16 and $91B in FY17. In FY16, CBO estimates that elimination of the caps would make real GDP 0.4% larger and would increase full-time-equivalent employment by 0.5 million. In FY17, the results would be smaller as CBO estimates that elimination of the caps would make real GDP 0.2% larger and would increase full-time-equivalent employment by 0.3 million. CBO warns, though, that while eliminating the reductions to the spending caps for FY16 and FY17 would increase output and employment over the next few years, the resulting increases in federal deficits would, in the longer term, make the nation’s output and income lower than they would be otherwise.

https://www.cbo.gov/publication/50725?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=812526&utm_campaign=Hourly_2015-08-11_15:00

NIST Proposed International Cybersecurity Standards

The National Security Council’s (NSC) Cyber Interagency Policy Committee’s International Cybersecurity Standardization Working Group drafted a report that sets out proposed US Government strategic objectives for pursuing the development and use of international standards for cybersecurity, and makes recommendations to achieve those objectives. The Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2014 requires the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to work with relevant Federal agencies to ensure interagency coordination “in the development of international technical standards related to information system security,” and develop and transmit to Congress a plan for ensuring such coordination within one year of enactment. This NSC report will also serve as the basis of this required report to Congress.

The draft document proposes four broad objectives for the government’s pursuit of international standards in cyberspace:

1. Improve national and economic security;
2. Ensure standards are technically sound;
3. Support standards that promote international trade; and
4. Develop standards in tandem with industry to boost innovation.

The public comment period is August 10 – September 24.

http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/drafts/nistir-8074/nistir_8074_vol1_draft_report.pdf

Proposed Guidance for Strengthening Cybersecurity in Federal Acquisitions

The threats facing Federal information systems have dramatically increased as agencies provide more services online, digitally store data, and rely on contractors for a variety of these information technology services. The Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014 (FISMA), Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance, and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards provide agencies with a framework for securing their information and information systems regardless of where this information is stored. This information can be on government information systems, contractor information systems, and contractor information systems that are part of an Information Technology (IT) service operated on behalf of the government. The increase in threats facing Federal information systems demand that certain issues regarding security of information on these systems is clearly, effectively, and consistently addressed in Federal contracts.

The Federal Chief Information Officers Council, the Chief Acquisition Officers Council, and Office of Management and Budget released draft guidance this week on how agencies should write acquisition policies and contracts to strengthen cybersecurity in Federal acquisitions. The guidance also defines who is responsible in the event of a breach, how incidents should be reported, and how systems operated by companies on behalf of the government should be assessed and monitored. The General Services Administration has 90 days to review the guidance and make recommendations on a baseline for better business due diligence to support risk management throughout the entire lifespan of an outsourced capability. The public has less than 30 days to provide their comments and recommendations for making the guidance more meaningful and effective. The draft guidance is posted on the open source platform GitHub and comments are due by September 10. Comments will be reviewed using an iterative approach.

Once the guidance is finalized, the Federal Acquisition Regulation will be amended for inclusion of contract clauses that address, as appropriate, the guidance covered in key sections of the new rules. After publication, federal agencies’ chief information officers, chief acquisition officers, chief information security officers, senior privacy officers, and other relevant officials shall immediately begin working together to apply the guidance.

https://policy.cio.gov

GSA Cybersecurity Special Item Number

The General Services Administration (GSA) issued a request for information (RFI) this week in which they said that they are considering adding a special item number (SIN) for cybersecurity and information assurance (CyberIA) to IT Schedule 70. The goal is to make it faster and easier for agencies to buy security tools and services. GSA is looking for feedback on the CyberIA SIN from companies whose products and services would be listed there.

The proposed SIN would include hardware, software and services in eight categories:

1. Information Assurance
2. Virus Detection
3. Intrusion Detection and Prevention
4. Network Management
5. Situational Awareness and Incident Response
6. Secure Web Hosting
7. Backup and Security Services
8. Communications Security

The RFI is looking for industry feedback on how companies sell cybersecurity products and services, general opinions on creating a cybersecurity SIN, and thoughts on the eight proposed categories. Responses are due by 4 PM on September 11.

https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&tab=core&id=68e1e8b5cc17539fc9d4d8ee53189344

Political Updates

Stanley Lowe, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Information Security at the Veterans Affairs Department announced last week that he is retiring effective August 22 after 25 years in federal service.

Former Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH) announced this week that she will run for her old congressional seat challenging Rep. Frank Guinta (R-NH). This will be Shea-Porter’s sixth campaign for the seat, which she won in 2006, 2008, and 2012. Guinta is currently facing a campaign finance scandal after signing a conciliation agreement with the Federal Election Commission, which found that in 2010 Guinta loaned his campaign $355,000 in contributions that came from his parents. While Guinta agreed to pay a $15,000 fine and return the money, several Republicans in New Hampshire have called for his resignation including Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH). Guinta has refused to resign and has said he may seek re-election in 2016.

“Little House on the Prairie” actress Melissa Gilbert announced this week that she’ll run for Congress against freshman Rep. Mike Bishop (R-MI) who succeeded Mike Rogers when he retired in 2014. The congressional district is considered a competitive district with Obama winning it in 2008 and Romney carrying it in 2012.

Next Week

The House and Senate are in recess until September 8.

August 7, 2015

The House was in recess this week. The Senate failed to invoke cloture on a motion to proceed on a measure to cut off federal funding for Planned Parenthood (S 1881). Planned Parenthood received $528.4M from the federal government in FY2014. The motion failed by a vote of 53 to 46. The Senate then called up S 754, the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act, but set it aside when they could not reach agreement on amendments. The Senate confirmed General Mark Milley to be Chief of Staff of the Army, Admiral John Richardson to be Chief of Naval Operations, and Lieutenant General Robert Neller to be Commandant of the Marine Corps. The Senate also confirmed Marie Therese Dominguez to be Administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Monica Regalbuto to be Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management at the Department of Energy, Jonathan Elkind to be Assistant Secretary of International Affairs at the Department of Energy, and Joyce Connery and Joseph Hamilton to be Board Members of the Defense Nuclear Facility Safety Board.

Fiscal Year 2016 Appropriations

There are only 15 legislative days scheduled for the Senate and 12 for the House before the end of the fiscal year and government funding expires. The House and Senate Appropriations Committees have passed all of their FY16 spending bills, but floor action on the bills has been stalled in both chambers. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said this week that he would not attach language cutting federal funding for Planned Parenthood to a continuing resolution. He also reiterated that Republicans will not shut down the government nor default on the national debt.

Status of FY16 Appropriations Bills

Cybersecurity

The Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) (S 754) was brought up on the Senate floor this week, but set aside after Senators could not come to agreement on which amendments to consider. Under a deal struck before the Senate recessed, the bill will come up again in September and 21 amendments will receive votes (11 Democratic and 10 Republican).

Department of Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas responded to a July 1 letter from Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) to DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson in which Franken asked for information on how private entities share cyber threat information with the federal government, concerns the CISA legislation raises with respect to information sharing, and DHS’ policies for removing personally identifiable information. Mayorkas took the opportunity in his response letter to raise the concerns DHS has with the CISA bill.  A copy of Mayorkas’ letter to Sen. Franken can be found at:http://www.franken.senate.gov/files/documents/150731DHSresponse.pdf

Political Updates

CNN will host the first Democratic presidential debate in Nevada on October 13, with the exact location to be unveiled in the coming weeks. And the next Republican presidential debate will also be hosted by CNN on September 16 in California.

The President nominated Richard Otto Buckius to be Deputy Director of the National Science Foundation, Thomas Darling III to be Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Linda Etim to be Assistant Administrator for the Bureau of Africa at the US Agency for International Development, Marcel Lettre II to be Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence, former congressman Patrick Murphy to be Under Secretary of the Army at the Department of Defense, and Cherry Ann Murray to be Director of the Office of Science at the Department of Energy.

Stephen Warren, the Department of Veterans Affairs Deputy Chief Information Officer, announced this week that he will leave the agency effective Aug. 28 to become the Office of the Comptroller of Currency’s CIO. The VA has yet to pick a successor to Warren. The U.S. Secret Service appointed George Mulligan, a former director of the White House Military Office, as its first Chief Operating Officer. Mulligan comes from the Department of Defense, where he spent 29 years as both a senior civilian executive and a former naval officer. As COO, Mulligan will be the principal administrator for planning and directing all business and programming activities for the agency. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper announced that he selected Dr. Jason Matheny to be the next director of the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity, effective immediately. Dr. Matheny had been serving as Director of IARPA’s new office for Anticipating Surprise overseeing research efforts to develop new capabilities to deliver timely and accurate forecasts for a range of events relevant to national security. He served concurrently as the program manager for the Open Source Indicators program, the Foresight and Understanding from Scientific Exposition program, and the Forecasting Science and Technology program. Dr. Matheny is succeeding Dr. Peter Highnam, who moved to a position at the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency in July. Glenn Gerstell was sworn in as the General Counsel of the NSA. Gerstell is a leading legal expert in technology and cybersecurity matters. He practiced for nearly 40 years at the international law firm of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP, where he served for 18 years as the managing partner of Milbank’s Washington, D.C., office. Gerstell recently served on the D.C. Homeland Security Commission, was appointed by President Obama as a member of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council, is a Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and was an elected member of the American Academy of Diplomacy.

Next Week

The House and Senate are in recess until September 8. The Senate will resume consideration of S 754, the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act when it reconvenes in September. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) have also reached an agreement to start consideration of the Iran deal when they return in September. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said that when the House returns in September they will vote on a resolution disapproving of the Iran Nuclear Agreement. The disapproval resolution was introduced by Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA) this week.

July 31, 2015

The House passed HR 1994, the VA Accountability Act; HR 427, the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2015; HR 675, the Veterans Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2015; HR 2770, the Keeping our Travelers Safe and Secure Act; HR 1656, the Secret Service Improvements Act of 2015; and S 1482, the Need-Based Educational Aid Act of 2015. The House and Senate passed HR 3236, the Surface Transportation and Veterans Health Care Choice Improvement Act of 2015. The bill authorizes appropriations for federal-aid highway programs through Oct. 29, which were set to expire on July 31. The measure also provides the Veterans Affairs Department with $3 billion to cover a shortfall. The bill now goes to the President for his signature. The Senate also passed a six-year highway authorization, voting 65 to 34 on HR 22. And the Senate passed HR 23, the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Act Reauthorization of 2015; HR 2499, the Veteran Entrepreneurship Act; S 1599, the Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act of 2015; and HR 1626, the DHS IT Duplication Reduction Act of 2015. The Senate confirmed Marine Corps General Joseph Dunford Jr. to be the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General Paul Selva to be Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Jeffrey Michael Prieto to be General Counsel of the Department of Agriculture, Allison Beck to be Federal Mediation and Conciliation Director, and Carol Fortine Ochoa to be Inspector General at the General Services Administration.

Fiscal Year 2016 Appropriations

There are only 20 legislative days scheduled for the Senate and 12 for the House before the end of the fiscal year and government funding expires. The House and Senate Appropriations Committees have passed all of their FY16 spending bills, but floor action on the bills has been stalled in both chambers. House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) recently said that Congress is going to have to pass a continuing resolution (CR) in order to avoid a shutdown. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), however, has said that they have not begun to talk about a CR yet. Further complicating the CR process is a push by House conservatives to include in the CR a provision to defund Planned Parenthood. How long a CR would last and how many would be needed until Congress and the Administration can negotiate a broader budget deal is unclear at this point in time. Talks are not likely to begin before mid-September, right before the end of the fiscal year.

Status of FY16 Appropriations Bills

House Appropriations Committee Chairmanship

House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) is in his fifth year as chairman of the committee and is unlikely to seek a waiver to continue as chairman at the end of the 114th Congress in 2016. Speculation is now centered on three contenders for the leadership position (assuming Republicans retain control of the House after the 2016 elections) – Reps. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ), Robert Aderholt (R-AL), and Kay Granger (R-TX). Frelinghuysen is currently chair of the Defense subcommittee, Aderholt is chair of the Agriculture subcommittee, and Granger is chair of the State Foreign Operations subcommittee. Frelinghuysen is considered the frontrunner at this point in time. If he succeeds Rogers it would free up the Defense subcommittee chair, which is a position Granger has expressed interest in.

Debt Ceiling

Treasury Secretary Jack Lew sent a letter to Congress this week regarding the extraordinary measures the Department of the Treasury is taking to avoid default. On March 16, 2015, the outstanding debt of the US reached the statutory limit. At that time, Treasury had to begin employing extraordinary measures to continue to finance the government on a temporary basis. These measures include a debt issuance suspension period with respect to investments of the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund and a suspension of the daily reinvestment of Treasury securities held by the Government Securities Investment Fund of the Federal Employees’ Retirement System Thrift Savings Plan. The debt issuance suspension period was originally through July 30. Secretary Lew informed lawmakers that he was extending the period through October 30. Lew wrote that his best estimate is that the measures would last for at least through the end of October and maybe for a “brief additional period of time.” Some independent economists have estimated that the measures will prevent default into December giving Congress some more time to determine how they are going to deal with raising the debt limit.

Treasury Secretary Lew Letter to Congress:

http://www.treasury.gov/connect/blog/Pages/Treasury-Sends-Debt-Limit-Letter-to-Congress.aspx

FY16 National Defense Authorization Act

House and Senate conferees on FY16 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) did not complete their negotiations before the August recess. Differences over military pay benefits (increases to Tricare pharmacy co-pays and troops’ out-of-pocket housing costs), closing the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, and acquisition reform stalled the conference process. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-AZ) said that despite not being in DC in August, negotiations would continue during the recess over the phone and other communication methods. The House and Senate Ranking Democrats, Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) and Jack Reed (D-RI) are apparently in agreement with McCain on including the Senate provision for phasing in increases in the Tricare pharmacy copays.

Cybersecurity

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee marked up and reported out of committee this week S 1869, the Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015. The bill would mandate that federal agencies implement several cybersecurity controls and best practices, including two-factor authentication for access to sensitive systems and database encryption. The bill would also formally authorize and accelerate deployment of the EINSTEIN 3 Accelerated program, a federal intrusion detection and prevention system. If the bill is signed into law, all federal agencies will be required to adopt EINSTEIN 3. And federal agencies would have to provide annual status reports of the EINSTEIN programs. House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) introduced a similar bill this week HR 3313, the Cyber Defense of Federal Networks Act of 2015. McCaul commended the Senate for their quick action and encouraged his peers in the House to take action.

S 1869 Bill Text:

http://www.ronjohnson.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/39cfd76e-8084-4216-9f2a-e6a3d589243f/s.-1869.pdf

HR 3313 Bill Text:

http://homeland.house.gov/sites/homeland.house.gov/files/documents/072915-HR3313.pdf

In other cybersecurity news, the Senate may take up S 754, the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) next week on the Senate floor. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that the Senate would first vote on a bill to defund Planned Parenthood. If that vote fails, McConnell said that the Senate would then turn to the cybersecurity bill. However, some Senators oppose CISA and could try to filibuster the legislation. The Electronic Frontier Foundation, ACLU, Sunlight Foundation, the Center for Democracy and Technology, and others have lined up against the bill because of privacy and civil liberties concerns. Their opposition and some Republican Senators desire for robust debate on the bill allowing for several amendments may push its consideration until after the August recess.

Political Updates

One more Republican candidate threw his hat into the ring for the 2016 Presidential race – Former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore. He joins the already crowded Republican field that includes Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Ohio Governor John Kasich, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, former Texas Governor Rick Perry, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, former HP CEO Carly Fiorina, businessman Donald Trump, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, former NY Governor George Pataki, and former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA). The first Republican debate is next Thursday August 6, with the top 10 candidates on at 9 pm and the remaining seven candidates on at 5 pm. On the Democrat side, the field includes former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, former Rhode Island Governor and Senator (and former Republican) Lincoln Chaffee, and former Virginia Senator Jim Webb.

Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-PA) was indicted by federal prosecutors this week on 29 counts including racketeering conspiracy, bribery, and wire fraud. Fattah stepped down from his position as ranking Democrat on the House Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations subcommittee. He has also stepped aside from his chairmanship of the board of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. Fattah maintains his innocence and has vowed to run for re-election in 2016.

Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) filed a motion to try to force House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) from his leadership post. The move, called a motion to vacate the chair, represents a new level of opposition to GOP leadership from the conservative wing of the House Republican Conference. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) tweeted that he cosponsored Meadows’ resolution. The motion was referred to the House Rules Committee, which is packed with supporters of the Speaker so the motion is unlikely to go any further.

Peter Cook has been appointed as the Deputy Assistant to the Secretary of Defense (press secretary), Office of the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs in the Pentagon. Cook previously served as the chief Washington correspondent for Bloomberg Television in Washington, DC. Susan Yarwood has been assigned as the Deputy Director in the Washington Headquarters Services in Washington, DC. Yarwood previously served as the Director of the Human Resources Directorate in the Washington Headquarters Services.

Retired Navy Rear Admiral Earl Gay withdrew himself from consideration after being nominated by the President for the position of Deputy Director at the Office of Personnel Management. Gay’s nomination had been blocked by Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) since January over an OPM-issued Obamacare exemption.

Former Rep. Mike Michaud (D-ME) was nominated by the President to be the Labor Department’s Assistant Secretary for Veterans’ Employment and Training. During his time in Congress, Michaud was the ranking member on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee. The President also nominated Darryl DePriest to be Chief Counsel for Advocacy at the Small Business Administration, Victoria Wassmer to be Under Secretary of Energy at the Department of Energy, Beverly Scott to be a member of the National Transportation Safety Board, Michael Suarez to be a member of the National Council on the Humanities, Brigadier General Richard Kaiser to be Commissioner of the Mississippi River Commission, Major General Michael Wehr to be President of the Mississippi River Commission, and Judith Kimble to be Chairman of the President’s Committee on the National Medal of Science.

Next Week

The House is in recess until September 8. The Senate will be in session next week and is scheduled to vote on a procedural motion on a measure to defund Planned Parenthood (S 1881). If they are not successful on that vote, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that S 754, the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act would be up next.