Keeping Government on a Short Leash

by U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley

The health of the U.S. economy typically serves as a good yardstick to gauge the public's approval or disapproval towards Washington. This year, the public's distaste for Washington's appetite to tax, spend and borrow our way back to prosperity exposes a major disconnect between the political leadership and the grassroots.

Inch by inch, Washington's cure for fixing health care, the economy, the environment, higher education, housing, Wall Street and Detroit has involved unprecedented taxpayer bailouts and unrealistic promises.

Many Iowans share how fed up they are with this Washington-knows-best approach to governance. From mandating individuals to buy health insurance to phasing out conventional light bulbs and shutting local lenders out of the school loan market, Washington is taking American consumers out of the decision-making process.

A Washington-knows-best philosophy undermines personal responsibility and weakens genuine accountability and effective transparency that are fundamental to upholding our government "of, by and for the people."

I work to keep Washington on a short leash.  It's not always popular, but I relish my job as a watchdog in Washington. It demands long haul oversight work that I have pursued as a representative for Iowa in the U.S. Senate. Holding the federal bureaucracy accountable, protecting the integrity of hard-earned tax dollars and keeping the people's business open to the public are non-negotiable principles.

Recently, I've focused my oversight work on several federal agencies to give voice to the concerns of Iowa farmers, retirees, taxpayers and investors, including:

·         The EPA's proposed federal rule that would dictate how much dust could reach beyond the ditch to the roadside when farmers harvest their crops;

·         Inadequate scrutiny of health care contractors by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Fraudulent claims and improper payments paid by Medicare siphons scarce tax dollars and further weakens the long-term solvency of this important health insurance program for retirees and disabled individuals. Consider one example in which a durable medical equipment supplier in Florida was ordered by a federal court in February to repay $445 million to the U.S. government. I want to know why CMS failed to detect suspicious billing activity (the investigation was launched by the FBI) and have serious concerns regarding how many cases of fraud go undetected.

·         The internal auditors at the Department of Defense are failing to follow the "money trail" and conduct full-scale contract audits. Unless the Inspector General commits to returning to the core mission of connecting the dots between a contract and a payment, the taxpaying public and military readiness risk losing even more to waste, fraud and abuse.

I also use legislative tools to establish accountability and transparency in government.

·         More than a decade ago, I secured passage of the landmark "Congressional Accountability Act" which holds the legislative branch of the federal government to the same civil rights, workplace safety and employment laws as the rest of the country.

·         My bipartisan effort to end the practice of so-called "secret holds" would end the ability of a single lawmaker to anonymously hold the people's business hostage by preventing a nomination or bill from coming to a vote on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

·         My Witness Sunshine Resolution would require individuals who testify before Senate committees to disclose outside affiliations and financial interests in organizations which have ties to the issue under consideration. The public deserves to know about special interests witnesses might have that could influence the outcome of public policy.

·         The president signed into law my bipartisan legislation to repeal blanket exemptions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for the Securities and Exchange Commission. Considering the SEC's failure to investigate the ponzi scheme cooked up by Bernard Madoff, it's obvious the American public deserves more disclosure, not less.

It's pretty clear that Washington sticks to the adage "if you give an inch, it'll take a mile."  Considering the $13 trillion national debt and fragile economic recovery, it's more important than ever to make sure the federal government measures up to the highest standards of service, integrity and accountability.

Friday, October 15, 2010

ROCK ISLAND, IL (10/14/2010)(readMedia)-- Music enthusiasts are invited to join the Augustana Symphony Orchestra for their free fall concert on Saturday, October 16, at 8 p.m. in Centennial Hall (3703 7th Ave.). The concert will feature the debut performance of contemporary composer James Romig's "Percussion Concerto," as well as classical pieces by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy and Maurice Ravel.

The orchestra's first piece, "Symphony in 'Italian' Op. 90," was inspired by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy's trip to Italy in the early 1830s. Today, it is considered one of Mendelssohn's most famous and fascinating works. Culver says, "This piece is perfect for the orchestra because the complexity requires such musical discipline."

For their second piece, the Symphony Orchestra will debut James Romig's newly composed "Percussion Concerto." The piece features a highly intricate percussion solo, which will be performed by professional percussionist and Augustana music faculty member Tony Oliver. Romig, who is an associate professor at Western Illinois University, will attend the concert to celebrate the official launching of his new piece.

The final piece of the concert will be the colorful "Ma Mère L'Oye," composed by nineteenth century French musician Maurice Ravel. The piece's title, which translates to "Mother Goose," gives a hint at its style and theme; each of the five movements is based on a different children's fairy tale. Ravel originally composed the piece as a piano duet for his children and developed it into a full orchestra piece several years after.

Symphony Orchestra members participating in the fall concert from our area include :

Nicholas Kendell from Davenport, IA. Kendell is a first year majoring in liberal studies.

Abigail Jones from Milan, IL. Jones is a first year majoring in liberal studies.

P.J. Wiese from Davenport, IA. Wiese is a sophomore majoring in psychology and mathematics.

Anne Van Speybroek from Rock Island, IL. Van Speybroek is a sophomore majoring in liberal studies.

Guy Iaccarino from Davenport, IA. Iaccarino is a junior majoring in music general and anthropology.

Martha Ade from Moline, IL. Ade is a junior majoring in music general and English.

The Augustana Symphony Orchestra is a full-size orchestra, which performs several classical concerts throughout the year under the direction of Dr. Daniel Culver. Culver received his doctorate in orchestral conducting from the University of Iowa. In addition to conducting the Symphony Orchestra, he teaches and serves as the co-chair in the Department of Music.

About Augustana: Founded in 1860 and situated on a 115-acre campus near the Mississippi River, Augustana College is a private, liberal arts institution affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The college enrolls 2,500 students from diverse geographic, social, ethnic and religious backgrounds and offers more than 70 majors and related areas of study. Augustana employs 287 faculty members and has a student-faculty ratio of 11:1. Augustana continues to do what it has always done: challenge and prepare students for lives of leadership and service in our complex, ever-changing world.

Green Energy Commitment Part of 10-10-10 Global Work Party

SPRINGFIELD - October 10, 2010.  Governor Quinn today announced plans to install solar panels at the executive mansion in Springfield as part of the 10/10/10 Global Work Party. The Global Work Party, which takes place on Oct. 10, is a day of action to fight climate change. Established by 350.org, the celebration unites more than 7,000 events in 183 different countries to help find solutions to climate change.

"I am pleased to announce plans to bring the Illinois Governor's Mansion into the 21st  century with a new set of solar panels", said Governor Quinn. "We must do everything we can to increase our use of solar energy, which will help us protect natural resources and reduce our reliance on traditional energy sources."

The solar panels to be installed were donated by WindFree Energy Company in Chicago and BYD America in Arlington Heights. The racking and bracketing was provided by B. Weinstein Engineering in Highland Park. The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 193 is donating the labor to install this project.

It is estimated that the new, one kilowatt solar array will reduce green house gas emissions by 30 tons of CO2 over the next 25 years, which is equivalent to approximately 100,000 car miles or the planting of 1,100 trees.
Much of the equipment for the solar panels will be manufactured in the U.S. with many of the components manufactured in Illinois. Today's news follows the recent announcement that a solar array will be installed on the White House in Washington, DC.

Governor Quinn previously installed energy efficient LED lighting, rain barrels, and most recently a community vegetable garden to make the executive mansion greener and more sustainable.

For more information about Governor Quinn's sustainability initiatives, please visit Green.Illinois.gov. For more information and photos of the Global Work Party, visit www.350.org.

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Nearly $260 Million in Federal Assistance Already Approved for July Floods; Largest Amount of Disaster Assistance in State History

SPRINGFIELD - October 14, 2010. Governor Pat Quinn today urged people affected by the July floods to apply for federal disaster assistance to help them recover from the storms. The deadline for registration was extended this week to Nov. 17 after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved Governor Quinn's extension request.

"With more than 1,000 applications for assistance still coming in each day, this extension will help ensure that everyone who was affected by the July floods has a chance to apply for aid," said Governor Quinn. "This disaster has impacted more people than any other in our state's history and already a historic level of federal assistance has been approved for people who were affected."

Nearly $260 million in federal assistance has already been approved to help flood victims recover, and that figure continues to increase as more applications are approved. That amount is greater than federal assistance for any other disaster in Illinois history. According to FEMA, this is also the biggest federal disaster in the history of FEMA's Region V, which includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin.

On Oct. 6, Governor Quinn asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to extend the registration period to Nov. 17. This 30-day extension of the original Oct. 18 deadline will ensure that everyone needing help has an opportunity to apply for the aid. Since Aug. 19, when FEMA approved Governor Quinn's request for federal assistance for people and businesses affected by the floods, more than 123,000 applications have been received and nearly $260 million in assistance has been approved.

"In most cases, the number of applications dwindles considerably as the deadline nears," said Joe Klinger, Interim Director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency. "But with so many people applying each day, we know that the need for assistance is still great. This extension will enable more people to get the help they need."

Counties included in the federal declaration for assistance to people and businesses include Cook, Carroll, DuPage, Jo Daviess, Ogle, Stephenson and Winnebago.

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