A new proposal by the Obama administration to expand drilling to half of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A) has attracted criticism from the oil industry, as the plan still leaves a broad area off limits to new oil development. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said new development will be permitted in an 11.8 million-acre geographical area, which purportedly holds about 549 million barrels of oil, while coastal regions such as Kasegaluk Lagoon and Peard Bay — where there is a higher concentration of seals and polar bears — will receive “special protection.”

In an effort to curb “high priority” environmental problems along the U.S.-Mexico border, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) worked with Mexican officials last week to launch the "Border 2020 U.S.-Mexico Environmental Program." But while the program seeks to abridge pollution in many areas, it neglects to mention the 1,000 tons of trash abandoned by illegal immigrants crossing the border into the United States.

The red ink on the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) accounting books is flowing more steadily, as the agency reported Thursday a $5.2-billion net loss for the third quarter, boosting its fiscal year-to-date loss to a startling $11.6 billion. After factoring in the 274 days comprising the first three quarters of fiscal 2012, the debt-ridden agency has lost an average of $42,335,766 per day this year.

Republican critics and presumed GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney are slamming President Obama for reversing a landmark welfare reform law instituted in 1996 under the Clinton administration. The 1996 law enacted a number of reforms, including a time limit on how long families could receive aid, a requirement that recipients must eventually find work, and a provision that replaced a federal entitlement with grants to the states.

As congressional Republicans continue their assault on President Obama’s seemingly failed “green” agenda, the White House announced August 7 it will expedite seven federal wind and solar projects across four western states. The programs, which will be grounded in Nevada, Arizona, California, and Wyoming, will generate enough power to run 1.5 million homes, the White House said in a press release.

A top advisor to President Obama received $100,000 in speaking fees in 2010 from a company doing business with Iran, the Washington Post reported earlier this week. David Plouffe, who also served as Obama’s 2008 campaign manager, accepted the payment from a firm tied to the Iranian government.

Federal subsidies distributed to the private sector in Fiscal Year 2012 cost American taxpayers nearly $100 billion, according to a startling new report by the libertarian Cato Institute. “That includes direct and indirect subsidies to small businesses, large corporations, and industry organizations,” the think tank stated in its policy analysis.

Congressional lawmakers have launched an investigation into potential taxpayer abuse carried out by the General Services Administration (GSA), a federal agency already charged with spending millions of dollars on lavish conferences and for other alleged financial misconduct. The embattled government department is being probed for 77 conferences and award ceremonies over the years as new information came to light over an exorbitant one-day event in Crystal City, Virginia that cost more than $250,000.

Speaking at a congressional hearing, Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.) said the GSA’s Office of Inspector General and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure are looking into potential taxpayer waste actualized by the agency, which manages federal contracting and oversees government real estate.

As President Obama’s landmark healthcare law penetrates deeper into implementation, signs of medical rationing are sprouting, as 16 states have enacted a limit on the number prescription drugs they will insure for Medicaid recipients. 

Moving forward with President Obama’s environmental agenda, the White House is expected to authorize new federal auto standards in the coming weeks that will nearly double fuel economy requirements for vehicles by 2025. The regulations require “fleet wide” gas mileage of 54.4 miles per gallon, or the average fuel economy for all cars, vans, trucks and other vehicles.