Prevent Navigation Standstill on Mississippi River

With 2012 drought conditions leaving very low water levels on both the Missouri and Mississippi rivers, there needs to be a coordinated effort to make sure navigation isn’t brought to a halt altogether on the Mississippi River. A major interruption in commercial barge traffic would impact jobs in Iowa and throughout the country. Steps can and should be taken to prevent it. I’m part of a bipartisan group of U.S. senators representing states along the Missouri and Mississippi rivers asking the President... Read more

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Limiting Taxpayer Support for Contractor Salaries

Legislation expected to pass the U.S. Senate this week includes reforms that would dramatically lower the compensation cap on taxpayer reimbursements for top executives of government contractors. The changes also would apply limits for the first time to all contractor employees, not just a few at the top, and require an independent assessment of previous reforms achieved by the senators in this area. These reforms are part of the Senate’s version of the National Defense Authorization Act, which must be passed each... Read more

Why Public Securities Markets Matter

The federal Securities and Exchange Commission has a broader reach than many of us might think. The most obvious connection is to those who directly own stock in publicly traded companies. Anyone who invests money in these firms and counts on shares to rise also counts on the SEC to maintain fair, orderly markets. An emerging business that needs investors to get off the ground relies on the market to organize investors and so relies on the commission to help maintain the flow of capital. But many individuals have... Read more

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Justice Department Bargains Away Chance to Recoup Tax Dollars

With all eyes and ears directed towards Washington’s so-called fiscal cliff, there’s talk of striking a “grand bargain” between the White House and Capitol Hill to finesse a solution for the impending spending cuts and tax hikes slated to take effect January 1, 2013. While high-stakes negotiations will likely continue through the end of the year and feed the 24-hour news cycle, I’ve also got my oversight eye aimed at a much different kind of bargain brokered between officials at the Justice Department and the city of St. Paul, Minn. As President Obama launches a campaign to squeeze trillions more tax dollars out of the economy over the next decade, the Department of Justice appears to have made a tit-for-tat arrangement earlier this year that could have returned... Read more