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In addition to Ben Joravsky's piece on Rod Blagojevich, we have two more pieces on the main site today. Brentin Mock argues for better fuel-efficiency standards for all car companies, not just the big three:
As heads of the Big Three automotive corporations go before Congress looking for at least $15 billion in bridge loans, they come with greener promises. The automakers and members of Congress have offered greater fuel efficiency, even going so far as to pledge working toward a 45-miles-per-gallon threshold (much higher than the "35 miles per gallon by 2020" requirement called for in the energy bill).And Sarah Posner has the latest on the religious right:
Last week the Brookings Institution released a report, co-authored by Washington Post columnist and Brookings fellow E.J. Dionne and Melissa Rogers, director of the center for Religion and Public Affairs at Wake Forest University Divinity School, suggesting 16 reforms of President Bush's Office of Faith-Based Initiatives should Barack Obama carry through with his campaign promise to institute his own version of the program.The recommendations are based on the premise that it's a good idea to have faith-based groups partner with the government to provide needed social services -- something to which church-state separation advocates object. That said, if we're going to have faith-based initiatives, the reforms suggested are certainly steps in the direction of improving Bush's program. The recommendations included greater accountability to prevent cronyism and political patronage, not using the initiatives as replacements for a government social safety net, the formation of nonprofits separate from houses of worship to receive taxpayer funds, and improvements in monitoring compliance with church-state separation safeguards.
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--The Editors
