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Hosts Tom Temin and Emily Kopp bring you the latest news affecting the federal community each weekday morning. Be up-to-date before you step in the office.

Thursday morning federal headlines - Feb. 14, 2013

The Morning Federal Newscast is a daily compilation of the stories you hear Federal Drive hosts Tom Temin and Emily Kopp discuss throughout the show each day. The Newscast is designed to give FederalNewsRadio.com users more information about the stories you hear on the air.

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DHS, NIST lynchpins helping cyber order succeed

The newly issued Executive Order gives NIST, DHS several goals and corresponding deadlines over the next year. NIST will work with industry to create a cybersecurity framework. DHS is expanding the information sharing program so industry can receive classified and unclassified cyber threat data more easily and more quickly.

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Boehner voices skepticism on budget prospects

House Speaker John Boehner expressed doubts Wednesday that the Republican-led House and Democratic-controlled Senate could reach agreement on a budget and avoid automatic spending cuts that could jeopardize economic growth.

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Boehner: Up to Democrats to prevent budget cuts

Boehner: Up to Democrats to prevent budget cuts; 'hard to imagine' broader budget pact

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Feds roll out cyber plan as Hill vows legislation

Administration officials and lawmakers say America is losing an aggressive cyber-espionage campaign waged from China.Both sides agreed to push legislation that would make it easier for the government and industry to share information about who is getting hacked and what to do about it.

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Obama again nominates pair to labor board

President Barack Obama has again nominated two members of the National Labor Relations Board whose appointments last year were disputed by a federal appeals court.

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Pay freeze bill heading for House vote

The House Rules Committee voted to fast-track legislation extending the pay freeze for federal employees through the end of the fiscal year. Federal workers are now slated to get a 0.5 percent pay increase in March when a stopgap continuing resolution expired. However, the measure approved by the House Rules Committee, introduced by Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.), would block that increase.

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Pentagon creates new medal for cyber, drone wars

They fight the war from computer consoles and video screens.Now their battlefield contributions may be recognized with the first new combat-related medal to be created in decades.

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USPS makes case for ending Saturday delivery as postal reform push continues

The U.S. Postal Service's worsening financial situation led Postmaster General Pat Donahoe to announce last week the agency would end Saturday mail delivery beginning in August. But lawmakers on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee were divided over Donahoe's announcement. The postmaster general told the committee during a hearing Wednesday the decision was necessary to save $2 billion a year and to begin shoring up the service's funding shortfalls.

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Employee unions march on Capitol Hill to stop sequestration

AFGE, AFSCME rally against the potential cuts from sequestration as part of their week-long legislative conference. Union members are meeting with lawmakers to ensure they understand the broader impact cuts due to sequestration would have on the nation and the economy.

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Federal Drive Interviews -- Feb. 13, 2013

Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) talks about his plans as the new chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. Greg Kutz of TIGTA discusses new progress being made by the IRS in recruitment and hiring. Jennifer Martinez, staff writer at The Hill newspaper, discusses the new Executive Order on cybersecurity. Don Kettl of the University of Maryland's School of Public Policy offers insight on the State of the Union speech.

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Wednesday morning federal headlines - Feb. 13, 2013

The Morning Federal Newscast is a daily compilation of the stories you hear Federal Drive hosts Tom Temin and Emily Kopp discuss throughout the show each day. The Newscast is designed to give FederalNewsRadio.com users more information about the stories you hear on the air. In today's news, the Senate takes its first crack at immigration reform and the Federal Housing Administration chief will try to convince a House panel today that the agency does not need a bailout.

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Military issues dire warnings of readiness crisis, decries political gridlock

Among the warnings the military's top uniformed officers delivered to the Senate Tuesday: Half of Marine Corps units will fall below readiness standards by the end of the year, the Army will have to curtail training for 80 percent of its ground forces and shipyards are already becoming short-staffed because of DoD's hiring freeze.

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Senate panel approves Hagel for Pentagon chief

Divided Senate panel approves Obama nomination of Chuck Hagel to be defense secretary

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White House issues cyber order, giving NIST, DHS lead roles

Senior administration officials say the Executive Order is not a replacement for comprehensive cybersecurity legislation, but the start of a new conversation for how best to protect the nation's critical infrastructure. NIST released an RFI Tuesday as part of its effort to create a voluntary, flexible framework. And DHS will expand the number of companies the government shares classified and unclassified cyber threat information with through the Defense Industrial Base pilot.

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Obama calls on Congress to stop sequestration, pass cyber bill

President Obama used his State of the Union speech Tuesday night to reiterate common management themes that have been part of the administration's push over the last four years.

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Likely Treasury chief Lew faces early budget tests

Likely Treasury chief Lew will need to fight budget battles with Congress in early months

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Top officers issue urgent warning over budget cuts

US military's top leaders says looming spending cuts may leave troops unprepared for combat

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Are contractors exaggerating sequestration impact?

As sequestration draws nearer, contractor groups have pointed to alarming studies that show the 9 percent in across-the-board Defense cuts would throw at least 1 million people out of work and potentially cripple the defense and aerospace industries. But in a new report, the Center for International Policy, a nonprofit group which advocates reducing military spending, presented evidence that far fewer defense-sector jobs would be lost than industry has claimed and that defense companies would likely be able to absorb the defense cuts.

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Lawmaker: Cyberattacks against US getting worse

House Intelligence Committee head worries about US vulnerability to devastating cyberattacks

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