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President Obama to Appoint Veteran Secret Service Official to Oversee Agency
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com President Obama plans to appoint a veteran Secret Service official to oversee the agency, Reuters reports. David O’Connor, a former assistant director of investigations who retired last year, is Obama’s pick for the post, which protects the president and other top federal officials, Reuters wrote. Senate confirmation is not required. Reuters wrote…
Lead FBI Agent in Rep.William Jefferson Case Speaks Out About the Victories and Near Misses
By Gordon Russell New Orleans Times-Picayune NEW ORLEANS — Were it not for Virginia businesswoman Lori Mody’s skillful undercover work, William Jefferson would probably still be representing Louisiana’s 2nd Congressional District in Washington, according to the FBI agent who oversaw the case against the longtime Democratic congressman. It was Mody who first brought Jefferson’s corruption…
FBI Investigates Special Agent After Police Say He Used Badge to Avoid Arrest
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com The FBI is investigating one of its own after he allegedly used his badge to avoid arrest for drunken driving in Georgia, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reports. Fort Oglethorpe police say Special Agent Ken Hillman received special treatment after getting pulled over for drinking and driving. For the first time, the…
Homeland Security Reaches 10th Anniversary But Has its Trials
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks revealed flaws in the U.S.’s national security. So on March 1, 2003, Congress passed the Homeland Security Act, which created the Homeland Security Department. Homeland Security Director Janet Napolitano described it as “the largest reorganization of the federal government since the Department of Defense,” wrote Fox News. The…
The Homeland Security Department Stands to Lose $3.2 billion Because of Sequestration
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com If sequestration cuts aren’t restored, they will cost the Homeland Security Department about $3.2 billion this fiscal year, Fierce Homeland Security reports. To make up for the lost money, the department, which reached 10 years old March 1, would need to cut more than 5% across the board. Other federal agencies face…
Former DEA Officials: Go After States That Legalized Pot for Recreational Use
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com If the federal government doesn’t act soon, it may lose the chance to stamp out recreational pot laws in Colorado and Washington, cautioned eight former DEA officials, the Associated Press reports. Although voters legalized small amounts of possession last year in those states, the law still conflicts with a federal ban on…
Young Typist Denied White House Job in 1945 Because of Antiwar Support
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com A 26-year-old typist for the Treasury Department was denied a work pass for the White House in 1945 but she never knew why. Turns out, the Secret Service reported that Frances Levy may be a communist, according to a four-page report from an archivist, the Washington Post reports. Levy’s family said she…
Opinion: FBI Headquarters Should Stay in Washington D.C.
Garrett M. Graff Washington Post The FBI lists its official address as 935 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, as if one could wander by the angular, concrete, block-size headquarters without noticing the J. Edgar Hoover Building. The aging 11-story monstrosity — an especially ugly example of the Brutalist movement in architecture — is nearing the end of its…