Amtrak Announces $7 Billion Major Expansion to DC’s Union Station
Washington, DC – Today Amtrak announced a $7 billion project Andy Kunz with DC Planning Director Harriet Tregoning & Chip Akridge for a major renovation to DC’s iconic Union Station with the goal of tripling the passenger capacity of the already busy rail station in the heart of the nation’s capital. A central part of the announcement is Burnham Place, the large mixed use real estate project set to begin over the tracks behind the station being led by Akridge, a leading DC d
Universities Lobby for a Seat at the Table in Washington
WASHINGTON, July 20 (UPI) — In academia it takes more than prestigious faculty and ground-breaking research to win the attention of lawmakers. From 2002-11, the 10 universities that spent the most in Washington paid a combined $84.4 million to either hire lobbyists or pay for in-house federal relations staff, data from the Center for Responsive Politics indicate. In 2011, those 10 schools spent $7.7 million, a 24 percent increase from $6.2 million a decade ago. Universities h
One-on-One with President Obama
RICHMOND, Va. (WAVY) – This is a transcript of President Barack Obama’s exclusive interview with WAVY.com’s Andy Fox: Q: How important is Virginia in this election? President: “If we win Virginia then we will win the election. I believe that.” Q: You want to cut the military and that means jobs lost and that hurts Hampton Roads, where I come from. What do you want to say about that? President Obama: “Well the truth is, actually, the military has gone up enormously since 2001,
Making a Case for Congressional Earmarks
In an interesting article for Defense News last week, Kate Brannen rightly points out, that although earmarks are becoming more difficult to come across, they’re by no means extinct. Affectionately known as “pork,” earmarks are used by a lawmaker to steer appropriations directly into projects that he or she finds particularly important. The funds come directly from a certain committee’s budget, and can be used for just about anything, from university research to military tech
Congressional Earmark Ban Changes Business on Capitol Hill
While the U.S. congressional earmark ban has not eliminated earmarks, it has changed the way business is done on Capitol Hill, moving it into the shadows and making it difficult for watchdog groups and lobbyists to figure out what’s going on. “I don’t think people realize how much the earmark ban has changed the way things operate on Capitol Hill,” said Michael Herson, president of American Defense International, a Washington defense lobbying firm. It has increased the power
Romney Camp Sides with Obama that Health Insurance Mandate is Not Tax
Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign on Monday rejected a Republican attack on the Affordable Care Act, repudiating a contention made in last week’s Supreme Court decision that the law’s requirement that individuals carry medical coverage amounts to a tax. The Romney team’s refusal to invoke the word “tax” with regard to the individual mandate puts the candidate at odds with others in his party at a moment when Republicans are attempting to capitalize on the Supreme Court’s
