Federal Drive with Tom Temin

The United States is not as sharp at diplomacy as it needs to be. That's the chief finding of the American Academy of Diplomacy. Earlier this year it published a series of policy and practice recommendations for the State Department. They focus on the idea of multilateral diplomacy. For highlights, we turn to two long-serving former ambassadors. Marc Grossman is vice chairman of the Cohen Group. Marcie Reis is now a national security consultant. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 10th annual survey of inspectors general changed in two major ways. First, the Association of Government Accountants focused entirely on the impact of the pandemic on the oversight community. Second, AGA brought in more state and local oversight executives because of how closely they worked with federal officials over the last two years. Ann Ebberts, the CEO of the Association of Government Accountants, said the biggest challenge that emerged from the survey was about data sharing across the different organizations. She said the recognition that federal, state and local auditors could work faster and smarter if agencies and Congress removed some of the major roadblocks to sharing data. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Office of Management and Budget last week released what it called a learning agenda for federal agencies. It's the research they need to do to answer big questions. Federal Drive host Tom Temin spoke with someone who wonders whether the learning agenda actually gets to the root challenge of agency performance: Bob Tobias, professor in the Key Executive Leadership Program at American University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For several years, the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress has been developing ideas for just that: Updating a whole branch of government. Recently it held its final hearing. Earlier in September it introduced a resolution to advance 32 recommendations the committee itself endorsed. For a summary and what comes next, Federal Drive host Tom Temin spoke with committee chairman Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.) and vice chair Rep. William Timmons (R-S.C.). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2022, recruiting has been a very tough business for all the military services, and the Department of the Air Force is no exception. It met its goals for the active duty force this fiscal year, but it had to pull out all the stops to do so. The Air National Guard and Reserve, meanwhile, are thousands of troops short, and officials say 2023 looks to be at least as difficult as this year was. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If the widely touted fifth generation communications network is to fulfill its promise, it needs a better antenna. Now researchers at the Los Alamos National Laboratory have developed an antenna they call a game changer for 5G and military communications. Federal Drive host Tom Temin found out some more about it with John Singleton, an electrical engineer and fellow at Los Alamos. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If the widely touted fifth generation communications network is to fulfill its promise, it needs a better antenna. Now researchers at the Los Alamos National Laboratory have developed an antenna they call a game changer for 5G and military communications. Federal Drive host Tom Temin found out some more about it with John Singleton, an electrical engineer and fellow at Los Alamos. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We know telehealth expanded a lot during the pandemic. Now we know how much. The Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General has pulled together data showing that in the first year (2020) more than 28 million Medicare beneficiaries received telehealth services. To find out more, Federal Drive host Tom Temin talked with Andrew VanLandingham, the IG's senior counselor for Medicaid policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Inflation has seeped into every area of the economy, both goods and labor. For federal contractors, operating under fixed-priced contractors, and for the Defense Department, the pressure is real. Now the National Defense Industrial Association has completed a detailed look at just how inflation has affected budgets. Federal Drive host got the highlights from the association's chairman, retired Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Arnold Punaro. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Preventing a Patronage System Act cleared the full House in a vote of 225-204, showcasing an effort to prevent the possible return of the Trump-era Schedule F executive order. The bill would prohibit future White House administrations from creating any new federal job classification without congressional approval, but the timing on the Senate’s version of the legislation remains uncertain. Senate Democrats, led by Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), introduced a companion bill in August and applauded the passage of the bill in the House on Sept. 15. The lawmakers added that they will be pushing to follow suit in the Senate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Federal Acquisition Regulation is clear, fixed-price contracts are just that: Fixed price. There's no provision for adjustments because of inflation. Or is there? A memo last week from the Defense Pricing and Contracting office offers some hope. Federal Drive host spoke with someone who has studied the memo closely: Zach Prince, a partner at Smith Pachter McWhorter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Federal Acquisition Regulation is clear, fixed-price contracts are just that: Fixed price. There's no provision for adjustments because of inflation. Or is there? A memo last week from the Defense Pricing and Contracting office offers some hope. Federal Drive host spoke with someone who has studied the memo closely: Zach Prince, a partner at Smith Pachter McWhorter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Twice postponed launches of its big new rocket may indicate deep problems with NASA's Artemis program, as it makes plans to get back to the moon and eventually to Mars. The basic guidance the agency uses to manage Artemis may not be suited to such a complex enterprise, at least according to the Government Accountability Office. For more on this, Federal Drive host Tom Temin spoke with Bill Russell, the GAO's director of contracting and national security acquisitions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Federal Labor Relations Authority has to hear an unprecedented case, in for review. Normally, once a federal union is certified, no decertification vote can occur for at least a year. The question is: Can a decertification vote take place within a year, if the original certification occurred without a vote in the first place? Federal Drive host Tom Temin talked about that with Mark Mix, the President of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Federal Labor Relations Authority has to hear an unprecedented case, in for review. Normally, once a federal union is certified, no decertification vote can occur for at least a year. The question is: Can a decertification vote take place within a year, if the original certification occurred without a vote in the first place? Federal Drive host Tom Temin talked about that with Mark Mix, the President of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices