Media

From the Judiciary Committee:

House Judiciary Committee Responds to Addington Letter

(Washington, DC)- Today, the Vice President's office sent a letter to the House Judiciary Committee regarding the Committee's request for testimony from David Addington, Chief of Staff to the Vice President. The letter is attached.

A committee spokeswoman had the following response: "We acknowledge the Office of the Vice President's response. Pursuant to their request, we expect the committee to meet next week to authorize a subpoena. We look forward to coming up with a mutually acceptable date for Mr. Addington's testimony."

See Addington's letter (pdf) >>

From Rep. George Miller's (CA-07) office:

REP. MILLER: NEW WHITE HOUSE 'MISSION ACCOMPLISHED' CLAIM IS REPREHENSIBLE

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- May 1, 2008 -- U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Democratic Policy Committee, issued the following statement today in response to White House Press Secretary Dana Perino's comment yesterday that the "Mission Accomplished" banner hung from the USS Abraham Lincoln in 2003 did not really mean that the Iraq war "mission" had been accomplished.

"This latest White House comment is reprehensible and should be repudiated. Yet again, the Bush Administration, faced with its own failures in Iraq, is trying to rewrite history rather than write a new policy to end the war and bring our troops home in a timely and responsible manner.

The House has just concurred in Senate amendments to H.R. 493, Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act by a vote of 414-1. This landmark bill would prohibit health insurance companies and employers from discriminating against people on the basis of genetic test results. By prohibiting the improper use of genetic information, this bill encourages Americans to undergo testing necessary for early treatment and prevention of genetic-based diseases. House passage today sends this bill to the President's desk for his signature. The House originally passed the bill by a vote of 420 to 3 on April 25, 2007. The Senate passed the bill with relatively minor amendments and clarifications on April 24, 2008 by a vote of 95 to 0.

"This legislation prevents health insurers from adverse coverage or pricing decisions based on a person's genetic predisposition toward a disease. It ensures an employer cannot make adverse employment decisions based on what is in a person's genetic code. It also makes it illegal for an insurer or employer to request or demand a gene test."