Because Democracy is Not Free — we all have to work at it
We’re off to a good start. From the White House site, here are some short bios on the new MSPB Board nominees. ==================================== Susan Tsui Grundmann, Nominee for Chairman, Merit Systems Protection Board Since 2002, Susan Tsui Grundmann has served as General Counsel to the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE), which represents 100,000 federal [...]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 30, 2009 President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts WASHINGTON – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key administration posts: * Frank Kendall III, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology, Department of Defense * Daniel Werfel, Controller, Office of Federal Financial [...]
District court isn’t the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB). Facts count, and rules are obeyed. Yesterday’s Senate bill gives whistleblowers the right to a jury trial in district court. This is why the whistleblower bill is monumental. To be clear, whistleblower advocates still have a long way to go to get this new bill to become [...]
Hooray! Hurrah! Whistleblower Bill passes the Senate committee, and with almost everything that advocates have been pushing for. From USA Today: WASHINGTON (AP) — A Senate committee on Wednesday unanimously approved legislation to protect federal employees from being punished for blowing the whistle on waste and corruption.The bill allows many government workers to take reprisal [...]
I’d like to thank James for today’s piece: From the DOL.GOV WEBSITE TRANSCRIPT: From: James Q: I am a DOL employee and I understand the need for federal agencies, like DOL, to operate efficiently, and save money whenever possible. The associate commissioner for field operations (OFO) in the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Robert A. [...]
Once upon a time, I was Black. It wasn’t pleasant. Before I get to talking about how deeply I feel for Professor Gates and how I support Barack Obama’s obvious comment, Now, I don’t know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts what role race played in that, but I think it’s [...]
Simple answer: no. Complex answer: yes, but only when attached to an existing appeal under which the District Court has jurisdiction. Why do I bring this up? Because today’s Washington Post article reads: Whistleblower rights also were discussed for those on the last line of defense for air security, air marshals, at a hearing Thursday [...]
And so too, will fedhallofshame.com. In its place, will come something bigger and better — a federal service reform movement to capitalize on the momentum that each of you has helped to build. And you’ve helped make it happen too. I withdrew from your heartfelt donations to help pay for the new domain name — to [...]
From Bloomberg: WASHINGTON – President Obama picked Jacqueline A. Berrien, a lawyer with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational fund, as head of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. From the Associated Press: In a statement, Obama notes Berrien’s “passion and leadership” and says he’s confident she will make sure the EEOC lives up to its [...]
Yes, I know — I heard the same rumor you did. And here’s what I can tell you: One of the highlights in District Court is that the court has granted an appropriate amount of discovery. That’s not to say that the executive branch intends to comply, but at least the court has ordered the [...]