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• Lawmaker blasts DHH secretary for not being at hearing Play Video

  March 26, 2013 10:32 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A state representative said it was "very irresponsible" that the head of the Department of Health and Hospitals was not at a budget hearing today to answer questions about a controversial Medicaid contract cancelled last week. Rep. Jim Fannin, the chair of the House Appropriations Committee,... more »

• Senator vows to block Labor Dept. nominee

  March 18, 2013 3:47 PM

  WASHINGTON - Republican Sen. David Vitter says he will block President Barack Obama's nominee to head the Labor Department until he gets a response to his letter complaining about the enforcement of voting rights laws in his home state of Louisiana. Vitter's comments came just hours after Obama formally nominated... more »

• Shaw Founder: "I am under consideration" for Energy Secretary Post

  February 1, 2013 2:00 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Shaw Group Founder Jim Bernhard told News 2 today he is up for consideration to replace Stephen Chu as the Secretary of the Department of Energy. He also said there are other names out there to become the country's next Secretary of Energy. Bernhard recently... more »

• US taps pension fund to avoid passing debt limit

  January 15, 2013 5:46 PM

  WASHINGTON - Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner says the government has begun borrowing from the federal employee pension fund to keep operating without surpassing its debt limit. Geithner says in a letter to congressional leaders that the move will free up $156 billion in borrowing authority while Congress debates increasing the... more »

• Geithner: Gov't could pass debt limit by mid-Feb.

  January 14, 2013 4:08 PM

  WASHINGTON - Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is telling congressional leaders that the U.S. government will exhaust its borrowing limit as soon as mid-February, earlier than expected. The government reached its $16.4 trillion borrowing limit on Dec. 31, but began using bookkeeping maneuvers to keep from surpassing it. In a letter... more »

• Gov. Jindal names new press secretary

  January 11, 2013 5:42 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Gov. Bobby Jindal has recruited his latest press secretary from Wisconsin. Jindal announced Friday that he's hired Sean Lansing for the $65,000-a-year position. The move comes as the Republican governor has started unveiling proposals to rewrite Louisiana's tax code and ramping up efforts to sell the ideas... more »

• Clinton to testify on Libya assault Jan. 22

  January 8, 2013 1:06 PM

  WASHINGTON - The top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee says Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will testify on the deadly Sept. 11 assault in Libya on Jan. 22. That's the day after President Barack Obama's inauguration and the first day the Senate returns to Washington after a... more »

• Obama: Hagel 'leader our troops deserve'

  January 7, 2013 5:44 PM

  WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama says Chuck Hagel, his choice as the new secretary of defense, is "the leader that our troops deserve." Obama formally announced his choice of Hagel in the White House East Room on Monday even as critics questioned the pick over issues including Hagel's views on... more »

• Kerry prepping for secretary of state confirmation

  January 3, 2013 1:25 PM

  WASHINGTON - The State Department says Sen. John Kerry, who President Barack Obama has nominated to be the next secretary of state, has started meeting with diplomatic staff to prepare for his confirmation. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland says Kerry was at the department's Foggy Bottom headquarters Wednesday. She says... more »

• Clinton leaves hospital after treatment for clot

  January 2, 2013 5:50 PM

  WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has been released from a New York hospital where she was treated for a blood clot in her head. Clinton spokesman Philippe Reines says her doctors advised her that she has been making progress on all fronts and are confident she will... more »

• Clinton talking to staff as she recovers from clot

  January 2, 2013 2:52 PM

  WASHINGTON - Doctors say they expect Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to make a full recovery from a blood clot in her head. They also say there has been no neurological damage from the clot, which apparently developed when Clinton fainted and fell at her home. A stomach virus... more »

• Doctors: Blood clot located in Clinton's head

  December 31, 2012 4:21 PM

  WASHINGTON - Doctors treating Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton for a blood clot say the clot formed in her head but they stress that they are confident she will make a full recovery. In an update Monday on Clinton's condition, her doctors say the blood clot did not result... more »

• Kerry believed to be new Secy. of State choice

  December 14, 2012 10:59 AM

  WASHINGTON - He wasn't successful in his presidential bid eight years ago, but John Kerry may now be getting another job he's been hoping for. The Massachusetts senator is now considered the front-runner to replace Hillary Rodham Clinton as secretary of state. This, after U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice dropped out... more »

• Rice removes name from consideration to be secretary of State

  December 13, 2012 3:54 PM

  WASHINGTON - Susan Rice has withdrawn her name from consideration to be the next secretary of state after the embattled U.N. ambassador ran into a standoff with Republicans over an attack on Americans in Libya. President Barack Obama, in a statement, said he accepted Rice's decision to remove her name... more »

• Quote on MLK Memorial to be removed

  December 11, 2012 2:39 PM

  WASHINGTON - Interior Secretary Ken Salazar is endorsing a plan to remove an inscription from the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, rather than cut into the granite to replace it with a fuller quotation. Salazar will announce plans Tuesday to remove a paraphrase from King's "Drum Major" speech by carving... more »

• Runoff elections tomorrow in Louisiana

  December 7, 2012 12:26 PM

  BATON ROUGE - The Secretary of State's office isn't expecting a high turnout for tomorrow's runoff elections. Not all parishes have a lot on the ballot, and so far more than 50,000 people voted early statewide. In Baton Rouge, voters will decide who takes an open seat on... more »

• Clinton defends Rice as 'stalwart' UN ambassador

  December 6, 2012 12:14 PM

  DUBLIN - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is defending U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice as a "stalwart colleague." Speaking Thursday in Dublin, Clinton said Rice has done a "great job" at the U.N. and that criticism of her initial explanation of the Sept. 11 attack on... more »

• Early voting begins Nov. 24

  November 23, 2012 10:31 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Early voting for the Dec. 8 election begins this weekend, according to the Louisiana Secretary of State's office. Early voting in the state runs from Nov. 24 to Dec. 1 from 8:30 a.m. To 6 p.m. excluding this Sunday, Nov. 25. "We saw a very... more »

• Panetta: Aircraft not close to stop Libya attack

  November 9, 2012 2:19 PM

  WASHINGTON - Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is telling Congress that the military did not have armed aircraft near Libya that could have helped defend against the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. Consulate that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans. In a letter to Republican Sen. John McCain... more »

• Schedler: Skip the "refresh" on election results

  November 6, 2012 10:33 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Secretary of State Tom Schedler is asking people to go easy on the "refresh" button when they're checking election results on his website. Schedler's office will post Tuesday's results at www.geauxvote.com . He says that the site has an automatic refresher and too many people trying to... more »

• New revenue secretary starts as executive counsel

  October 9, 2012 5:25 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Gov. Bobby Jindal's new revenue secretary Tim Barfield is on the job - but not officially as the secretary. Barfield has started working as executive counsel at the Louisiana Department of Revenue until the state Senate confirms his appointment as secretary, a move that won't happen until... more »

• La. health secretary says cuts expected by Friday

  July 11, 2012 7:33 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Health and Hospitals Secretary Bruce Greenstein says he expects to announce by Friday how he'll divvy up $859 million in cuts to Louisiana's Medicaid program. The cut is tied to a congressional reduction in Louisiana's federal Medicaid financing rate. Greenstein didn't offer details Tuesday about... more »

• La. health secretary says cuts expected by Friday

  July 10, 2012 6:29 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Health and Hospitals Secretary Bruce Greenstein says he expects to announce by Friday how he'll divvy up $859 million in cuts to Louisiana's Medicaid program. The cut is tied to a congressional reduction in Louisiana's federal Medicaid financing rate. Greenstein didn't offer details Tuesday about what will... more »

• Jindal's former revenue secretary headed to California

  June 28, 2012 2:57 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Gov. Bobby Jindal's former revenue secretary, who abruptly resigned after a dispute over a tax break interpretation, has a new job in California. Cynthia Bridges has been named the executive director of the California State Board of Equalization, an elected body that administers sales and use taxes... more »

• Former secretary pleads guilty to embezzling $1.9M

  June 25, 2012 12:34 PM

  AMITE - A former secretary and clek pleaded guilty today in Amite to embezzling nearly $1.9 million from a juvenile justice program. Brenda Bickford, 61, of Hammond pleaded guilty to theft and fraud charges in district court. She admitted she took the money from the Florida Parishes Juvenile Justice... more »

• Bryson resigning as US commerce secretary

  June 21, 2012 10:42 AM

  WASHINGTON - Commerce Secretary John Bryson says he is resigning after suffering a seizure earlier this month in the Los Angeles area. President Barack Obama says in a statement that he has accepted the resignation and thanks Bryson for the "invaluable experience and expertise" he brought to the administration. Bryson... more »

• Revenue secretary resigns after tax credit controversy Play Video

  June 15, 2012 6:21 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Gov. Jindal announced that the Secretary of Revenue, Cynthia Bridges, resigned abruptly today. This comes after Jindal announced he was putting the brakes on the expansion of a controversial tax credit for alternate fuel vehicles. In April, the Department of Revenue issued an emergency ruling... more »

• Schedler sworn in as La. secretary of state

  November 1, 2011 3:29 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Tom Schedler has been sworn in as secretary of state. Schedler, a Republican former state senator, defeated GOP House Speaker Jim Tucker to complete the remaining unexpired term of former Secretary of State Jay Dardenne, as well as the next four-year term that starts in January.... more »

• Schedler has early lead for secretary of state

  October 22, 2011 9:48 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Secretary of State Tom Schedler has grabbed an early lead in his bid to fend off a challenge by House Speaker Jim Tucker. With more than 13 percent of the precincts counted Saturday, Schedler had about 53 percent of the votes. Tucker had roughly 47 percent.... more »

• Secretary of State candidates diverge on funding

  October 18, 2011 2:30 PM

  BATON ROUGE, La.- In office less than a year, Secretary of State Tom Schedler isn't guaranteed to keep his spot come January. Schedler is heading into the final days of a tough fight to hold onto the job, in an election battle with the politically-seasoned and term-limited speaker of... more »

• DHH Secretary contract controversy

  June 8, 2011 5:57 PM

  BATON ROUGE- State Department of Health and Hospitals Secretary Bruce Greenstein's confirmation hearing today resulted in a major debate with lawmakers. As part of the hearing lawmakers blasted him for withholding an announcement involving the state Medicaid contract. He later released the information in the meeting, confirming that the... more »

• US education chief calls in La. superintendent search

  May 18, 2011 11:49 AM

  BATON ROUGE, La. - U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan has inserted himself into Louisiana's debate over its next school superintendent. At least two state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education members say they have received calls from Duncan about John White, the newly hired leader of the Recovery School... more »

• Dardenne heads to New York to promote tourism

  November 13, 2010 11:01 AM

  BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Lt. Gov.-elect Jay Dardenne is traveling to New York next week with a group of Louisiana businessmen to promote tourism and economic development. The trip from Nov. 16-18 is in connection with the nonprofit Committee of 100 for Economic Development Inc. Dardenne's office says a... more »

• Dardenne lays out transition to Lt. Governor

  November 3, 2010 11:02 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Secretary of State Jay Dardenne held a press conference this morning to explain how he would transition from his current position to Lieutenant Governor, after defeating Caroline Fayard last night. Dardenne told reporters that First Assistant Tom Schedler will take over running the office, and plans... more »

• Medicaid managed care program stalled for now

  October 25, 2010 2:36 PM

  The state's health secretary says he doesn't have a new timeline for when the Jindal administration plans to begin changes to the way Louisiana delivers health care to the poor through the Medicaid program. Concerns by health providers and lawmakers stalled the pilot program, which was supposed to begin in... more »

• U. S. Commerce chief says Gulf seafood safe to eat

  October 5, 2010 3:28 PM

  U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said Tuesday he has complete confidence in the safety of seafood caught in Gulf of Mexico waters that have been reopened since BP's underwater well blew out, spewing millions of gallons of oil into the sea. However, he recognizes the region has an ongoing image... more »

• Commerce Secretary Locke to tour seafood lab

  October 5, 2010 10:26 AM

  U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke will tour a federal lab in Mississippi where seafood caught in the Gulf of Mexico is being tested to determine if it is tainted by oil. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration lab is the first stop for seafood being prepared for analysis as federal... more »

• Gates retiring as U. S. Defense Secretary

  August 16, 2010 11:37 AM

  Defense Secretary Robert Gates says he plans to leave his job next year. A Republican and holdover from the Bush administration, Gates had agreed to stay on at the request of President Barack Obama. The move was intended to maintain stability at a time of two wars, although Gates has... more »

• DHH Secretary Levine to step down

  July 9, 2010 2:21 PM

  Governor Bobby Jindal has announced Alan Levine will step down as Secretary of the Department of Health and Hospitals. Levine is known for his leadership during two major hurricanes, management of the state's response to the H1N1 pandemic and the implementation of privatization of efforts and institutional downsizing that... more »

• DHH Secretary talks about food, air concerns

  May 4, 2010 5:10 PM

  La. Department of Health and Hospitals Secretary Alan Levine sat down with Sylvia Weatherspoon on News 2 at 4 to talk about food and air concerns relating to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. more »

• HHS secretary tours New Orleans clinic

  April 26, 2010 2:30 PM

  U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius took a tour of a nonprofit health clinic in New Orleans - and was lobbied for more federal help to get hospitals operating in under-served areas of the city. Sebelius accompanied Mayor-elect Mitch Landrieu and Congressman Joseph Cao on Monday's tour... more »

• DOTD secretary William Anker resigns

  February 5, 2010 5:41 PM

  Department of Transportation and Development Secretary William D. Ankner resigned Friday afternoon. Ankner was on the hot seat with lawmakers earlier this week over an interstate construction project. The project was awarded to Boh Bros. using a new value formula, despite the fact the company put in the highest... more »