Julie Novkov

I'd like to talk about the Government Accountability Office, a little known but important federal government agency. Headed by the US Comptroller General, it was established in the Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 as a congressional watchdog to investigate public spending.

Funny how reverence for the Founding stops as soon as it becomes inconvenient. And again, I would like to speak to the managers who told me that posse comitatus was never going to be in play.

This was one of those quiet policy changes that made a huge difference on a basic humanitarian level. I am devastated by this reversal of course.

If I went to a protest with a sign that said "Let the dormant commerce clause stay dormant!", would anyone cheer for me?

I am so old that I remember when it was possible to argue that not wasting gas was a patriotic duty and it was more than fine to shoot dirty looks at people sitting in parking lots in their cars with their engines idling.

Another situation that requires thorough investigation and accountability.

Not good enough. He needs to be out now. He has no place in Congress. Imagine someone relentlessly harassing a subordinate in your workplace with fatal consequences and your HR department saying, "yeah, well, we kinda need you for the next year, so please stay til then."

We must demand accountability if, as seems increasingly likely, the US military conducted the horrific strike on the school. Thank you to the investigators who are pursuing the truth.

This is the sort of thing that keeps me on social media even in anxious times.

UAlbany is doing our March Matchness fundraising drive! While I'd be thrilled if anyone out there with connections to Rockefeller College would help hand me bragging rights over my fellow deans, I also want to highlight another opportunity to make a difference. give.albany.edu/march-matchn...

I'm seriously considering replying to every social media post that starts "I asked ChatGPT" or "I asked Claude" with, "well I asked MY MOM!"

I know Bear Braumoeller would be devastated to see what is going on right now, but I sure wish he were still here to help us make sense of it.

A really important story as we head into spring/summer storm and fire seasons with less help anticipated from FEMA.