Obama To Sign Bill Reducing Penalties For Crack Cocaine

The House and the Senate have passed a bill that would make penatlies for carrying crack cocaine and powder cocaine more similar. Currently the law requirs any person arrested with crack cocaine must serve at least 5 years in federal prison. With powder cocaine, a person needs to be arrested with 500 grams of cocaine to receive 5 years in prison. For more on this story, click here

-Rob Sanna

Republicans Stall Small Business Vote In The Senate

Democrats failed to get the 60 votes needed to overcome a Republican filibuster, and pass a bill aimed at freeing up $30 billion in federal funds to small businesses. Republicans contend that the bill does not properly address issues that are facing small businesses, such as the upcoming expiration of the Bush tax cuts. Currently, Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) are working on a possible agreement to pass the bill before the August recess. For more information, click here…

-Rob Sanna

Rangel To Face 13 Charges From Ethics Subcommittee

The House ethics subcommittee investigating Rep. Charles Rangel has unveiled 13 ethics charges, saying there is “substantial reason” to believe Rangel violated several House ethics laws and federal regulations. My colleague Robert Hune-Kalter has the full story…

-Rob Sanna

Senate Wants Answers On Mismarked Graves In Arlington National Cemetary

There may be as many as 6,600 mismarked graves in Arlington National Cemetary, according to Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.). A Senate investigation found that the management team at Arlington was largely unsupervised and operated under no oversight. Army Secretary John McHugh said solutions to the problem may include identifying remains by exhuming graves and allowing family members to identity caskets, or personal belongings in caskets. My colleague Philip Bunnell has more on this…

-Rob Sanna

Report Shows Congress Circumventing 'No Earmarks' Pledge

The organization Citizens Against Government Waste released research this week showing that several House members are finding ways to get around a self-imposed moratorium on earmark spending. Specifically, Republicans and Democrats alike are funnelling earmark requests to their counterparts in the Senate. Click here for more…