[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 64 (Wednesday, April 29, 2009)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D468-D470]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
WOUNDED WARRIORS
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel concluded a 
hearing to examine the implementation of Wounded Warrior policies and 
programs, after receiving testimony from Randall B. Williamson, 
Director, Health Care, Valerie C. Melvin, Director, Human Capital and 
Management, Information Systems Issues, and Daniel Bertoni, Director, 
Education, Workforce, and Income Security Issues, all of the Government 
Accountability Office; Gail H. McGinn, Deputy Under Secretary for 
Plans, Ellen P. Embrey, Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for 
Health Affairs, Major General Keith W. Meurlin, USAF, Director, Office 
of Transition Policy and Care Coordination, and Rear Admiral Gregory A. 
Timberlake, USN, Director, Interagency Program Office, all of the 
Department of Defense; and Roger Dimsdale, Executive Director, 
Department of Veterans Affairs/Department of Defense Collaboration, 
Office of Policy and Planning, and Karen S. Guice, Executive Director 
of the Federal Recovery Coordination Program, both of the Department of 
Veterans Affairs; Lieutenant Colonel Gregory D. Gadson, USA, Lieutenant 
Colonel Raymond T.

[[Page D469]]

Rivas, USA (Ret.), Colleen O. Rivas, Kimberly R. Noss, and First 
Lieutenant Andrew K. Kinard, USMC (Ret.).
HEALTH CARE DELIVERY SYSTEM
Committee on Finance: Committee met in closed session to discuss 
transforming the health care delivery system, focusing on proposals to 
improve patient care and reduce health care costs.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to 
examine the nominations of Johnnie Carson, of Illinois, to be Assistant 
Secretary for African Affairs, who was introduced by Representatives 
Royce and Payne, and Luis C. de Baca, of Virginia, to be Director of 
the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, who was introduced by 
Senator Harkin and Representative Conyers, both of the Department of 
State, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own 
behalf.
SWINE FLU
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee 
concluded a hearing to examine swine flu, focusing on coordinating the 
federal response, after receiving testimony from Janet Napolitano, 
Secretary of Homeland Security; and Anne Schuchat, Acting Deputy 
Director for Science and Program, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention, Assistant Surgeon General, United States Public Health 
Service, Department of Health and Human Services.
INFORMED FINANCIAL DECISIONS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee 
on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the 
District of Columbia concluded a hearing to examine the federal 
government's role in empowering Americans to make informed financial 
decisions, after receiving testimony from John Berry, Director, Office 
of Personnel Management; James H. Shelton III, Assistant Deputy 
Secretary for Innovation and Improvement, Department of Education; 
Arthur J. Meyers, Acting Deputy Secretary for Military Community and 
Family Policy, Department of Defense; Sandra F. Braunstein, Director, 
Division of Consumer and Community Affairs, Board of Governors of the 
Federal Reserve System; Richard J. Hillman, Managing Director, 
Financial Markets and Community Investment, Government Accountability 
Office; Robert F. Duvall, Council for Economic Education, New York, New 
York; and Dallas L. Salisbury, Employee Benefit Research Institute, 
Washington, D.C.
SWINE FLU EPIDEMIC
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee 
concluded a hearing to examine the swine flu epidemic, focusing on the 
public health and medical response, after receiving testimony from 
Richard E. Besser, Acting Director, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention, and Anthony Fauci, Director, National Institute for Allergy 
and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, both of the 
Department of Health and Human Services.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee ordered 
favorably reported the nominations of Russlynn Ali, of California, to 
be Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Carmel Martin, of Maryland, to 
be Assistant Secretary for Planning, Evaluation, and Policy 
Development, Charles P. Rose, of Illinois, to be General Counsel, Peter 
Cunningham, of Illinois, to be Assistant Secretary for Communications 
and Outreach, and Gabriella Cecilia Gomez, of California, to be 
Assistant Secretary for Legislation and Congressional Affairs, all of 
the Department of Education, Brian Kennedy, of Virginia, to be 
Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs, 
and T. Michael Kerr, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant 
Secretary for Administration and Management, both of the Department of 
Labor, and Thomasina Rogers, of Maryland, to be a Member of the 
Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
CRACK-POWDER COCAINE FEDERAL SENTENCING
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs concluded a 
hearing to examine restoring fairness to federal sentencing, focusing 
on addressing the crack-powder disparity, after receiving testimony 
from Lanny Breuer, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, 
Department of Justice; Judge Reggie B. Walton, United States District 
Court for the District of Columbia, on behalf of the Judicial 
Conference of the United States; Ricardo H. Hinojosa, Acting Chair, 
United States Sentencing Commission; Asa Hutchinson, former 
Administrator of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, 
Rogers, Arkansas; John F. Timoney, Chief of Police, City of Miami 
Police Department, Miami, Florida; and Cedric Parker, Alton, Illinois.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine 
the nominations of Andre M. Davis, of Maryland, to be United States 
Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit, who was introduced by Senator 
Mikulski and former Senator Sarbanes, David

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F. Hamilton, of Indiana, to be United States Circuit Judge for the 
Seventh Circuit, and Thomas E. Perez, of Maryland, to be Assistant 
Attorney General, Civil Rights Division, Department of Justice, after 
the nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
BENEFITS LEGISLATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to 
examine pending benefits legislation, after receiving testimony from 
Bradley G. Mayes, Director, Compensation and Pension Service, Veterans 
Benefits Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs; R. Chuck 
Mason, Legislative Attorney, American Law Division, Congressional 
Research Service, Library of Congress; Robert Jackson, Veterans of 
Foreign Wars of the United States, and Ian DePlanque, American Legion, 
both of Washington, D.C.; Raymond Kelley, AMVETS, Lanham, Maryland; and 
Rebecca Poynter, Annapolis, Maryland.
LIFE SETTLEMENT MARKET
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine 
the life settlement market, focusing on what is at stake for seniors, 
after receiving testimony from Mary Beth Senkewicz, Florida Deputy 
Insurance Commissioner, Office of Insurance Regulation, Tallahassee; 
Michael T. McRaith, Illinois Director of Insurance, Chicago; Fred J. 
Joseph, Colorado Securities Commissioner, Denver, on behalf of the 
North American Securities Administrators Association, Inc., Stephan R. 
Leimberg, Leimberg Information Services, Inc., Havertown, Pennsylvania; 
James J. Avery, Individual Life Insurance, Prudential Financial, 
Newark, New Jersey, on behalf of the American Council of Life Insurers; 
Scott Peden, Life Partners, Inc., Waco, Texas; and Michael Freedman, 
Coventry First LLC, Fort Washington, Pennsylvania.