Jacqueline Klimas

Pentagon: Sexual assault claims drop among military women

A Pentagon-commissioned Internet survey shows a drop in the number of military women who say they were the victims of sexual assault.

December 4, 2014

Buck McKeon tearfully says goodbye to Congress

Retiring Rep. Buck McKeon gave a tearful farewell to Congress Thursday ahead of a vote on his final annual defense bill as chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.

December 4, 2014

Rand Paul forces Iraq war debate, but Boehner says House will wait until next year

Even as Sen. Rand Paul was advancing plans to force a vote on declaring war on the Islamic State, House Speaker John A. Boehner said Thursday that it's President Obama's job, not Congress's responsibility, to write a war authorization.

December 4, 2014

Rand Paul to push ISIS war talk with water-bill amendment

Sen. Rand Paul said Thursday he will try to force a debate on going to war against the Islamic State terrorists by offering a war declaration as an amendment to a separate water bill.

December 4, 2014

Fort Hood shooting victims will soon be eligible to receive Purple Heart

Victims of the Fort Hood shooting will soon be eligible to receive the Purple Heart, with Congress pushing ahead with a policy change that would officially recognize domestic terrorism as an issue, rather than the "workplace violence" designation the Obama administration had used.

December 3, 2014

Defense bill compromise would authorize two years of training Syrian rebels

The annual defense policy bill will authorize the administration to train and equip Syrian rebels in the fight against the Islamic State for two more years, a senior staff member who worked on the bill said Tuesday.

December 2, 2014

Kirsten Gillibrand again pushes for reforming military justice system

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, New York Democrat, said Tuesday that she is re-introducing her proposal to reform the military justice system after seeing no improvements since her last bid failed almost a year ago.

December 2, 2014

Carl Levin: Annual defense-policy bill keeps Guantanamo Bay restrictions

Congressional negotiators have reached a deal on the annual defense policy bill, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee said Monday evening, adding that he lost his bid to loosen restrictions on transferring detainees from Guantanamo Bay prison.

December 1, 2014

VA 5-day firing notice too long for Congress, too short for lawyers

The Department of Veterans Affairs and Congress are battling over whether the VA is firing employees fast enough as part of a major management overhaul, but legal analysts say even the five-day notice the administration has settled on is too short and employees who have been fired could sue to get their jobs back — with taxpayers on the hook for back pay.

November 30, 2014

Ethnic groups wary of proposed census changes

Civil rights groups warned Monday that a possible change to how the Census Bureau asks about race and ethnicity in 2020 would end up clouding the picture more than it helps, and could skew the way the government distributes aid or enforces discrimination laws.

November 24, 2014

VA fires Sharon Helman, head of Phoenix hospital at center of scandal

The Veterans Affairs Department removed the head of its Phoenix hospital facility Monday, more than six months after whistleblowers said veterans were dying while on secret lists waiting for care at the center.

November 24, 2014

Sen. Lindsey Graham: Benghazi report is “full of crap”

Sen. Lindsey Graham said Sunday that a report on the Benghazi attack released late last week is "full of crap."

November 23, 2014

Giuliani: I would have kept state of emergency quiet in Ferguson

Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani questioned why Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon publicly declared a state of emergency in Ferguson ahead of a grand jury decision in the Michael Brown shooting.

November 23, 2014

Michael Brown’s family attorney says grand jury proceeding is unfair

The lead attorney for Michael Brown's family said Sunday that having a grand jury decide whether or not to indict the Ferguson police officer who shot Mr. Brown earlier this year is unfair.

November 23, 2014

Sen. Jeff Flake says executive action will make further immigration reform difficult

Sen. Jeff Flake, Arizona Republican, said Sunday that he approved of the actions in the president's immigration executive order — it's the way the president issued the changes that could make compromise more difficult in Washington.

November 23, 2014

GOP says Dems wouldn’t like Republican president rewriting laws

Former Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum said Democrats should be just as angry as Republicans about the president's executive order on immigration because it sets a precedent for future presidents to singlehandedly rewrite the law.

November 23, 2014

Lindsey Graham: House Benghazi report is ‘full of crap’

Sen. Lindsey Graham said Sunday that a report on the Benghazi attack released late last week is "full of crap."

November 23, 2014

VFW changes charter to be more inclusive of women vets

Veterans of Foreign Wars announced Friday a change to its charter that makes it more inclusive of women's growing role in the military.

November 21, 2014

House Dems reject vet for top VA committee spot, pick rarely-seen Corrine Brown

Democrats scrambled Wednesday to tamp down anger among veterans groups who said the party appeared to be ousting its sole vet on the House Veterans Affairs Committee, moving to keep Rep. Tim Walz on the panel — though he will not be the ranking Democrat.

November 19, 2014

Senate: Mental-health needs should be high-priority for VA

Lawmakers talked Wednesday about the challenges facing the VA in treating mental-health issues, including not enough money, not enough doctors, and not enough time left in the legislative year.

November 19, 2014