Topic: U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

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How five websites are protesting SOPA

Five major websites will go dark on Wednesday protesting two Congressional bills, which critics argue could curtail Internet and free speech. If passed, The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and its Senate counterpart, the Protect IP Act or PIPA, would allow the US government to seek a court order and even shut down websites that contain content or links to unauthorized copyrighted content. Moreover, advertisers and Internet service providers would be banned from doing business with transgressors.Proponents of the legislation include companies that are trying to protect their copyrights, such as the Motion Picture Association of America, The NBA, Pfizer, Nike, L'Oreal, as well as the US Chamber of Commerce, the Fraternal Order of Police, and the US Conference of Mayors.However, voices of opposition include Internet giants Google, Yahoo!, Facebook, Twitter, eBay, Mozilla, and Wikipedia – who say that the proposed laws constitute a First Amendment violation, promote censorship, and harm the democratic flow of information. Check out how five major websites plan to protest SOPA and PIPA:

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Decoder Wire IRS official Lois Lerner invokes Fifth Amendment. Why won't she talk? (+video)

Lawmakers have plenty of questions for Lois Lerner, the IRS official who ordered the targeting of conservative groups to stop, concerning her past statements. She said she did nothing wrong, but invoked her Fifth Amendment rights.
Officials seize AP's phone logs: What are they looking for?

The Associated Press is now in the news as well as covering it: Justice Department officials secretly obtained two months of telephone records from AP reporters and editors.
Robert Gates: Obama made right decisions night of Benghazi attack

Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates says those urging a military response the night of the Benghazi attack have 'a cartoonish impression of military capabilities.' Republicans in Congress want to grill former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as part of a special inquiry.
Vox News Rush Limbaugh blame game: Are falling ad revenues his fault?

Rush Limbaugh says declining ad revenue at talk radio stations that carry his programming isn't a sign that a boycott against him is working. It may have more to do with an expiring contract.
Republicans pursue probe of Benghazi attacks, name witnesses for hearing

Witnesses at a May 8 hearing 'have critical information' about terrorist attack that killed the US ambassador and three other Americans in Benghazi, Libya, last year, says Rep. Darrell Issa. He says others might testify if they can overcome fear of retaliation by superiors.
USPS Saturday mail delivery is sticking around, for now

USPS Saturday mail: The Postal Service has given up on trying to get rid of Saturday mail delivery as one way to help control runaway costs at the government agency. So, USPS Saturday mail will continue coming to your home or business, for the time being.
Tax VOX Why welfare, food stamps, and other programs often discourage work

Food stamps, welfare, Medicaid and other tax and transfer systems can sometimes penalize people for earning that extra dollar of income, Steuerle writes.
Focus Drugs in sports: Who is winning the doping war?

As scientists close the gap on doping detection, athletes bent on cheating can still game the system. Stricter enforcement from league authorities is critical to redeeming sports scandalized by doping – cycling, baseball, and potentially the NFL.
Will Saturday cuts save the Postal Service?

Postmaster General Patrick R. Donahoe announced plans to reduce Saturday deliveries beginning in August. The Postal Service says the changes will save $2 billion annually. Though The Postal Service lost $15.9 billion last fiscal year, some in Congress and elsewhere oppose the Saturday cutbacks.
Aaron Swartz and Motel Caswell: Book ends to prosecutorial reform?

A judge this week dismissed a drug forfeiture case involving a motel owner. The prosecutor, US Attorney Carmen Ortiz, is also facing criticism for her role in the prosecution of Internet hacker Aaron Swartz, who committed suicide earlier this month.
Post Office record loss hits $15.9 billion. Retiree benefits to blame.

Post office record loss reached $15.9 billion for the year, with more losses expected in 2013. Heath benefits for retirees accounted for the bulk of the post office record loss.
Backchannels IssaLeaks: More fallout from the Benghazi killings

Was it a good idea to release a lot of un-redacted State Department memos from Libya? Probably not.
Why the Benghazi terrorist attack still dogs Obama

When it comes up in the presidential candidates’ foreign policy debate Monday night, President Obama will have some serious explaining to do about the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya, last month that killed the US Ambassador and three other Americans.
House hearing: ‘weak’ security drawn down further before Benghazi attack

The State Department had refused to extend a 16-member ‘site security team’ in Libya, a security officer told the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday.
Libya consulate security was too weak, says former military team chief (+video)

Lt. Col, Andrew Wood, the head of a 16-member military team in Libya, said that diplomatic security was unusually weak at the US consulate in Benghazi, where the US ambassador and three other Americans were killed in a September terrorist attack.
State Department admits it knew Libya attack was terrorism

Despite statements after the September 11 killings of four American diplomats that the attack was related to an incendiary anti-Muslim video, the State Department is now acknowledging that it suspected from the beginning that the ambush was pre-planned.
Backchannels The politics around the Benghazi consulate attack? Plenty of spin to go around

No one looks great two weeks after the murder of US Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens and three other Americans in Benghazi. Not the Obama Administration. And not its critics.
US Postal Service defaults. Fate lies with Congress.

US Postal Service defaults on $5.6 million payment to US Treasury. Having squeezed costs, postmaster general says future of US Postal Service depends on Congress.
Univision: The untold story of what 'Fast and Furious' wrought in Mexico

Sunday evening, Univision airs an investigative report on how the botched 'Fast and Furious' program resulted in a deadly toll in Mexico when US authorities allowed guns to 'walk' across the border.
US Postal Service to default on multi-billion dollar payment. Again.

The US Postal Service to default on a $5.6 billion debt it can't afford to pay. The US Postal Service default is its second missed multi-billion dollar payment in just as many months.
Ron Paul's last hurrah: a big, bipartisan vote to 'Audit the Fed'

Today's vote marks a high point for Paul, who is retires at the end of the year. His signature bill requires a full audit of the Federal Reserve – a move that critics, including Fed chair Ben Bernanke, dub 'nightmarish.'
House holds Eric Holder in contempt: What happens to him now? (+video)

Republicans say Attorney General Eric Holder is withholding documents that could show a coverup. Democrats say the investigation is a witch hunt. The outcome? Likely, more delay.
Is Eric Holder contempt vote over Fast and Furious about race?

Eric Holder on Thursday became the first US attorney general to be held in contempt of Congress. The story of how race became entwined in the debate over the Fast and Furious gun-running scandal is a parable of the Obama presidency.
What 'conspiracy' lies behind Eric Holder and 'Fast and Furious'?

Whether or not a botched government gun interdiction scheme known as ‘Fast and Furious’ was tied into White House gun policy is roiling the right – and a cause for scoffing on the left.
Decoder Wire 'Fast and Furious' probe: Obama's Watergate, or a waste of time? (+video)

The political fight over 'Fast and Furious' has escalated dramatically. Republicans say it could be as serious as the Watergate break-in 40 years ago that brought down Richard Nixon. Democrats call it a politically motivated fishing expedition designed to embarrass Obama.