Government

Aware that most Americans would like to dump them all, members of Congress hope to regain some sense of trust by subjecting themselves to tougher penalties for insider trading and requiring they disclose stock transactions within 30 days.

Despite the din from the Occupy Wall Street crowd, not everybody dislikes financial institutions -- at least, not their own. A new poll shows a much higher approval rating for our banks than we give to the folks in Washington.

As the debt ceiling insanity in Washington goes on, all that's certain is that the government is rapidly running low on cash to pay the bills. The amount left is now roughly $73.8 billion -- which sounds like a lot, until you realize that Apple's cash reserves are $2 billion more than that.

Major cellular carriers will soon begin to carry emergency text alerts for the U.S. government in the event of major disasters, turning the mobile devices of 250 million people into emergency alert devices.

Approximately 60% of first-year U.S. senators and 40% of House of Representatives freshmen are worth at least $1 million, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. That makes them far richer than most of the Americans they represent: Just 1% of the country's population has reached the $1 million mark.

As wages and benefits shrink, state workers are retiring in droves. On top of all the layoffs, these retirements amount to a huge brain drain, and the problem will only get worse given the yawning budget gaps of states from coast to coast.

The notion that somehow public workers' pay packages are breaking the state budget just don't hold up. These workers' entire compensation package -- salary, health care, pensions, etc. -- make up a tiny fraction of Wisconsin's spending.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has made autism services a priority in his proposed budget for the 2012 fiscal year. But some services may still suffer cuts: nonprofit Autism NJ says it's set to lose a state contract -- and Medicaid cuts also could reduce autism services, activists say.

Since the 1930s, when the National Labor Relations Board was established, no state has ever sought to prohibit workers from organizing. But in Wisconsin, collective-bargaining rights are under "assault," in President Obama's words. And other states are watching.

Approval ratings for both President Barack Obama and Congress have reached their highest levels in more than a year, according to a Harris Interactive poll released Monday.