Today's Hill Action:
THE SENATE:
The Senate will convene at 2:00 p.m.
SENATE COMMITTEES:
No meetings scheduled for today.
No meeting scheduled for today.
HOUSE COMMITTEES:
No meetings scheduled for today.
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Pelosi, US lawmakers in Iraq for talks with PM
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki called for greater cooperation with Washington after a US army pullout from Iraq at the end of 2011, in talks Saturday with US Democratic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.
Pelosi arrived in Iraq Saturday morning with eight other US lawmakers -- seven from her Democratic party and a Republican -- in the latest visit to Iraq by a top US official with just months to go before all American troops leave under the terms of a bilateral security pact.
"I call for more cooperation in all the areas that were addressed in the Strategic Framework Agreement," Maliki said in a statement released by his office, referring to a bilateral document between Iraq and the United States detailing areas where the two countries would work together.
Pelosi's arrival follows trips by Defence Secretary Robert Gates, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen, House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner and Army Chief of Staff General Martin Dempsey in April.
US officials have been pressing Iraqi leaders to decide on whether or not they want an extended American military presence beyond the end of the year.
No major Iraqi leader has yet publicly voiced support for US troops staying beyond 2011.
Pelosi's office in Washington said in a statement that she and other representatives arrived "to assess progress on redeployment (of US troops), and to meet with Iraqi and US officials."
"The delegation will meet... Maliki in addition to members of the Iraqi parliament, and will be briefed by US security and diplomatic officials," it added.
Some 45,000 US troops remain stationed in Iraq, but they must all withdraw by year-end.
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Senate prepares to go after Big Oil
Senate Democrats are looking to bring to the floor next week a plan to strike billions of dollars in annual tax incentives for the five biggest oil companies.
"That's what we're thinking," a Senate Democratic leadership aide told POLITICO Thursday evening, adding there won't likely be a vote on the measure next week.
Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) will also hold a hearing next Thursday on gas prices and oil tax incentives for the biggest oil companies - including ExxonMobil, BP, Chevron, Shell and ConocoPhillips.
One major question for the Senate leaders: how any money saved from reducing the tax incentives would ultimately be used. Many Democrats are pushing for the money to go toward deficit reduction, the leadership aide said.
Many Republicans - and some Democrats - have viewed the idea of singling out even the biggest and most profitable oil and gas companies with, at best, a skeptical eye. It is unclear whether chances would improve if the money were diverted solely for reducing the debt, a hot topic on Capitol Hill.
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) sent a letter to colleagues Wednesday saying they were looking to offer something that "maximizes our chances of garnering bipartisan appeal."
Baucus is drafting a bill that follows a blueprint he released last week that would exempt oil and gas companies from the Section 199 deduction for domestic manufacturers, reduce the tax credit for royalty payments to foreign governments and impose an excise tax on certain Gulf of Mexico leases.
His blueprint would target the saved federal dollars toward programs to reduce oil use. These include incentives to "encourage increased production of cleaner and more affordable domestically-produced fuel by making it easier for manufacturers to produce and for consumers to purchase."
Baucus is also proposing to provide incentives for the purchasing and manufacturing of "the most fuel efficient vehicles" and for infrastructure such as alternative energy fueling stations.
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Democratic Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, the state that is home to the Navy SEALs who killed Osama bin Laden, is giving visitors to his website a chance to thank the elite but anonymous warriors.
"These Navy commandos can never be celebrated at parades, press conferences or photo ops. But I believe a lot of Virginians, and many Americans, would like to say 'thank you,'" Warner said.
"Through their intensive training, extreme precision and the quiet effectiveness that has always been their trademark, these Navy SEALs succeeded in an extraordinary mission. I am proud of them, and I look forward to sharing these messages of support with members of our Navy SEAL community," he said.
As of 10:05 am (1405 GMT) Friday, 338 commenters had left their thoughts at http://warner.senate.gov/public//index.cfm?p=thanks-to-navy-seals.
"You are either amazingly brave or amazing crazy, or both, to do what you do, but I am thankful for your service and sacrifice," said one reader who went by the online name Ewilliamson6, citing the SEALs' inhumanly grueling training.
"What a great idea...these brave individuals are faceless and nameless at this time. i want to thank you for what you accomplished," said another commenter, Ann Schroeder Williams. "You are all brave men and we are eternally grateful for all the missions you undertake to help protect the usa. thank you senator warner for creating a way for us to thank our soldiers," that person added.
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