In This Issue:

- DOMESTIC POLICY MATTERS

Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 Budget/Appropriations. The House Appropriations Subcommittees on Defense and Military Construction/Veterans Affairs both advanced FY 2013 spending bills on Tuesday. The bills are expected to come before the full House Appropriations Committee next week. On Wednesday, the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee advanced its FY 2013 spending bill. After days of debate on amendments, including a 206-204 vote to restore $126 million to the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant program, the House passed (247-163) the FY 2013 Commerce Justice-Science appropriations bill on Thursday. The $51.1 billion bill appropriates about $1.6 billion less than FY 2012 and $730 million less than the President’s request. The White House has threatened a veto because the bill aligns with a top-line spending limit below the amount agreed to in last summer’s Budget Control Act....

- FOREIGN POLICY MATTERS

On Monday, the Associated Press reported the Central Intelligence Agency, working with Saudi Arabian intelligence, had successfully thwarted a bomb plot by al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula operatives in Yemen. While the intelligence operation was lauded by numerous lawmakers, House Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Michigan) said Wednesday the Committee has opened a preliminary investigation into the possibility that classified information was leaked to the Associated Press...

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