FAA Chief Charged With Drunk Driving

UPDATE: FAA head Randy Babbitt has been placed on leave after his DWI arrest according to a statement released by the Department of Transportation. Deputy administrator Michael Huerta will serve as acting FAA leader

Story updated by Mike Hothi at 2:55p.m. EST…

WASHINGTON — At least he wasn’t flying a plane.

Randolph “Randy” Babbitt, the head of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was charged with drunk driving over the weekend.

Babbitt was arrested without incident on Saturday for driving on the wrong side of the road, according to The Washington Post. Fairfax City police spotted him on the Old Lee Highway.

Babbitt was reportedly released on his own recognizance. He faces a February 2 court date, a Fairfax City police spokesman told the Post.

President Obama nominated Babbitt to become the 16th FAA Administrator in 2009. Babbitt has previously served under President Bill Clinton as FAA Management Advisory Council.

Neither the FAA or Department of Transportation have issued statements on the arrest.

Obama Weighs In On Penn State Scandal

By Mike Hothi

President Obama weighed in on the Penn State sexual abuse scandal Sunday, accusing the school of putting too strong an emphasis on their own prestige.

“What happened at Penn State indicates that at a certain point, folks start thinking about systems and institutions and don’t think about individuals,” Obama said during a press conference in Hawaii

“Evil can thrive in the world just by good people standing by and doing nothing,” Obama added. “And all of us I think have occasion where we see something that’s wrong, we’ve got to make sure that we step up.”

The scandal is centered on Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, who allegedly sexually assaulted a child in a school locker room.

The incident was reported the it to head coach Joe Paterno the following day. Paterno then reported the assault to university administrators who dealt with the matter internally.

Amid allegations of a coverup, Paterno was fired last week and two of the University’s administrators resigned.

White House Tables Christmas Tree Tax

Fox News reported Wednesday that the Obama administration has suspended plans to impose a 15-cent tax on Christmas trees in order to finance a new federal board tasked with promoting the industry.

In the report, White House spokesman Matt Lehrich was quoted as saying that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has postponed the move.

“I can tell you unequivocally that the Obama administration is not taxing Christmas trees. What’s being talked about here is an industry group deciding to impose fees on itself to fund a promotional campaign, similar to how the dairy producers have created the ‘Got Milk?’ campaign,” Lehrich said. “That said, USDA is going to delay implementation and revisit this action.”

The tax, which was revealed yesterday, would’ve hit producers and importers of Christmas trees in order to fund the new Christmas Tree Promotion Board. The Fox report noted that the tax was supported by some in the industry, and would’ve generated an estimated $4.5 million in revenue for the industry.

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U.S. Chamber Of Commerce Upset At Reach Of New Offshore Drilling Plan

By Mike Hothi

President and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for 21st Century Energy Karen Harbert expressed disappointment with the Obama administration’s announcement that the newest installation of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Leasing Program neglects the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.

“Today the administration’s proposed leasing plan rejected the opportunity to create hundreds of thousands of new jobs in this country by taking yet another step to constrain options for increased domestic energy production,” Harbert said in a statement.

Harbert believes the proposal does not provide much hope for oil and natural gas production on federal lands.

“We are disappointed that the administration is once again forgoing an opportunity to make our energy future more secure and our economy more competitive.”

The President’s proposal would provide offshore oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico and off the coast of Alaska but Halbert argued that, by neglecting new exploration and development on the Atlantic or Pacific coastlines, the proposal does not go far enough to create jobs for the country. 

Obama Scolds GOP After Jobs Bill Provision Stalls

By Adrianna McGinley

The Senate blocked a $35 billion piece of the American Jobs Act Thursday night aimed at putting teachers and first responders back to work, but the President says he’s not done trying. 

“Our fight isn’t over,” Obama said in a statement Thursday. “We will keep working with Congress to bring up the American Jobs Act piece by piece, and give Republicans another chance to put country before party.”

In a 50-50 vote Thursday, far short of the 60 votes needed to break a filibuster, every Senate Republican and three Democrats voted against the legislation that would delegate billions to states and local governments to hire teachers and first responders. 

“That’s unacceptable,” Obama said. “Every Senate Republican voted to block a bill that would help middle class families and keep hundreds of thousands of firefighters on the job, police officers on the streets, and teachers in the classroom … Those Americans deserve an explanation as to why they don’t deserve those jobs.”