A federal appellate judge expressed skepticism about weighing in on a dispute between Congress and the White House over the constitutionality of recess appointments by President Obama. “Why drag us into it?” Judge Thomas Griffith asked during oral arguments before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
FALSE CLAIMS RECORD
U.S. Justice Department officials said that the nearly $5 billion in settlements and judgments the government has collected under the False Claims Act this year topped last year’s then-record of $3.2 billion. Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West said the bulk of the recoveries flowed from health care fraud initiatives. Mortgage, housing and procurement fraud also contributed to the increase.
