: News

Filed Under:

Congressional Panel Looks Into Fake Letters Sent To Congress Members

October 14, 2009
Play associated audio
comments

A congressional panel is looking into fake letters sent to Rep. Tom Perriello (D-Va.), urging him to vote against a landmark clean-energy bill.

Perriello, a Democrat representing Virginia's 5th district, received 13 of the bogus letters. They went to two other congressmen as well. The letters were falsified to appear as though they were sent by community groups, including a local chapter of the NAACP and a seniors group among others.

But the Charlottesville Daily Progress newspaper reports the actual sender was working for a lobbying firm hired by the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, a coal-industry group. The firm, Bonner and Associates, has said the temporary staffer responsible was fired immediately after the forgeries were discovered.

The letters urged opposition to the American Clean Energy and Security Act, the so-called cap and trade bill. It wound up passing in the House by a slim margin. The hearing before the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming is set for Thursday.

Matt McCleskey reports...

Arts & Culture

NPR

A Read Down Memory Lane: Lessons From Your Former Self

Writings from childhood — cards, stories and other notes — can hide for decades, like time capsules tucked away in boxes, old bedrooms, attics and journals. Writer Jim Sollisch talks about how old thank you notes from his youth foreshadowed his adult life.

Food

NPR

Inside A Tart Cherry Revival: 'Somebody Needs To Do This!'

The revival is partly based on the humble sour fruit's growing reputation as a superfood. And in Michigan, a scientist is on a quest to introduce a whole new world of hardier, tastier tart cherries by breeding American trees with ancestral varieties from Eastern Europe.

Politics

NPR

Srinivasan's Confirmation First For D.C. Circuit In 7 Years

The partisan war over judicial nominees has accelerated in recent years. It took nearly a year to win Senate confirmation for Sri Srinivasan to the important federal appeals court for the District of Columbia, though he had no formal opposition.

Technology

NPR

3-D Printer Makes Life-Saving Splint For Baby Boy's Airway

A 3-D printer is being credited with helping to save an Ohio baby's life, after doctors "printed" a tube to support a weak airway that caused him to stop breathing. The innovative procedure has allowed Kaiba Gionfriddo, of Youngstown, Ohio, to stay off a ventilator for more than a year.

Leave a Comment

Help keep the conversation civil. Please refer to our Terms of Use and Code of Conduct before posting your comments.