Politics

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People stroll on the National Mall in Washington on Monday, July 4, 2011. (Rod Lamkey Jr./The Washington Times)

Deryk Jeter (left) plays catch with his 10-year-old son, Henry (right), while his 4-year-old daughter, Margaret, grabs onto his leg as they celebrate Independence Day on the National Mall in Washington on Monday, July 4, 2011. (Rod Lamkey Jr./The Washington Times)

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"Is it healthy to do these things in secret, drop them in on Aug. 1st and say it's got to be passed by Aug. 2nd? I don't think that's good," Sen. Jeff Sessions, Alabama Republican, said last Wednesday during a CNN interview. "This is really wrong and I object to it." (Associated Press)

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The control tower at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport includes flight progress strips. The Federal Aviation Administration is creating a revolutionary air traffic system, but various factors have delayed the program. (Associated Press)

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Yingluck Shinawatra (center), leader of Thailand's Phue Thai opposition party, waves to supporters after a press conference at the party headquarters in Bangkok on Sunday, July 3, 2011. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichkorn)

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Former Bosnian Serb military chief Ratko Mladic waves in the courtroom during a hearing at the U.N.'s International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague on Monday, July 4, 2011. (AP Photo/ Valerie Kuypers, Pool)

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Flames rise near El-Arish, Egypt, 30 miles from the border with Israel, on Monday, July 4, 2011, after unidentified assailants blew up the Egyptian pipeline that carries gas to Israel and Jordan. (AP Photo)

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North Koreans shout slogans during a massive rally in Kim Il-sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Monday, July 4, 2011, to denounce the conservative government of South Korean President Lee Myung-bak as a "group of unparalleled traitors." (AP Photo/Korean Central News Agency via Korea News Service)

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A Syrian family shouts slogans against Syrian President Bashar Asssad as they wear Syrian independence flags during a protest outside the Arab League headquarters in Cairo on Sunday, July 3, 2011. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

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** FILE ** Sen. Jon Kyl, Arizona Republican, talks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sunday, July 3, 2011. (Associated Press)

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Members of the Old Guard Presidential Salute Battery move a cannon into position on the National Mall near the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Sunday, July 3, 2011, in preparation for Monday's Fourth of July celebration. (Drew Angerer/The Washington Times)

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This cannon will be fired by members of the Old Guard Presidential Salute Battery on the Fourth of July during celebrations at the U.S. Capitol and on the National Mall. (Drew Angerer/The Washington Times)

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The cannon will be fired during Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture" at the close of the "A Capitol Fourth 2011" concert on Monday, July 4, 2011. (Drew Angerer/The Washington Times)

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Members of the Old Guard Presidential Salute Battery move a cannon into position near the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Sunday, July 3, 2011, in preparation for Monday's Fourth of July celebration on the National Mall. (Drew Angerer/The Washington Times)

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Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn, a Democrat, wants to cancel raises for state employees to help cope with the state's budget crisis. Skipping the 2 percent raises would save the state $77 million. (Associated Press)

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Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann (left) speaks with Sheila Reiland of Iowa City, Iowa, during a breakfast chat at the Bluebird Diner on Saturday in Iowa City. The event kicked off Bachmann's Iowa Bus Tour. (Associated Press)

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ASSOCIATED PRESS "I think I'm pretty good at it, but I like it. That's the bottom line. I love being a soldier and I love being around soldiers," says Army Command Sgt. Major Jeffery Mellinger, 58, who was drafted during the Vietnam War and decided to remain in military service. The Army believes he's the last draftee to retire.