WASHINGTON IN BRIEF
Tuesday, April 3, 2007; Page A04
Army to Cut Short Some Units' Breaks From Iraq
The Army is sending large units back to Iraq this summer without giving them at least one year of rest at home between deployments, officials said yesterday.
The Pentagon said its decision to deploy 9,000 service members would allow commanders to maintain heightened force levels in Baghdad through at least August.
The 4th Infantry Division headquarters unit from Fort Hood, Tex., will return to Iraq after a little more than seven months at home -- the largest break to date from the Army's goal of giving units a year's rest after every year deployed. The 1st Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division, based at Fort Drum, N.Y., will go back to Iraq after 10 1/2 months at home.
Official Leaves HHS to Accept Consulting Job
Wade Horn, the Bush administration's point man for welfare reform, Head Start and sexual abstinence education, resigned yesterday as the Department of Health and Human Services' assistant secretary for children and families.
Horn said that he would work as a consultant for Deloitte & Touche LLP, an accounting firm. His resignation is effective Sunday.
He oversaw a $46 billion budget and 65 programs that serve vulnerable children and families. He is best known for his work on issues embraced by social conservatives.
Horn said that he considered the reauthorization of welfare reform last year and the implementation of a mentoring program for children of prisoners as signature achievements.
NASA Taps Nobel Winner for Science Program
NASA created a new office for Nobel laureate John Mather, naming the staff astrophysicist as its chief scientist.
Mather, 60, shared the Nobel Prize in physics last October for his work supporting the big-bang theory of cosmic creation. He will offer advice on "all aspects of the NASA science program," Alan Stern, associate administrator for the science mission directorate, said in a statement.
While NASA has appointed previous chief scientists with agency-wide focus, Mather and a staff will concentrate on science, a spokesman said.
House Panel Pursues Drug-Safety Details
A House committee, citing concerns about the accuracy of testimony by Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Andrew C. von Eschenbach in a hearing, is seeking documents used to prepare his comments.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee also wants to interview staff of the FDA or the Department of Health and Human Services who helped prepare von Eschenbach's testimony for the March 22 congressional hearing, according to a letter from two panel members, including Chairman John D. Dingell (D-Mich.).
Von Eschenbach testified about the FDA's oversight of drug safety, including its handling of Ketek, an antibiotic linked to fatal side effects. During the hearing, some lawmakers questioned the accuracy of von Eschenbach's written testimony on Ketek.
-- From News Services
