Beyond Mars: The Biggest Federal Victories of the Summer

If the tone of this election cycle is to be believed, government has never been worse. Its efforts futile, its people corrupt and its funding a waste. Luckily, our politics has only but a loose connection to reality, as Tom Fox of the Partnership for Public Service and The Washington Post demonstrates in his Fedcoach column.

Last week, Fedcoach highlighted some of the federal government's biggest triumphs of the summer. Many of us can point to Mars Curiosity as an example of government at its best, but did you know about these little promoted victories in government?

• The Avengers-like teaming of the U.S. Forest Service, the Department of the Interior, Department of Defense and FEMA to combat wildfires in the West.
• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) new statistical model that improved hurricane forecasting. 
• The Department of Defense and the White House's initiative to employ veterans and military spouses that exceeded hiring goals. 
• The National Institutes of Health's (NIH) extraordinary battle against a deadly "superbug" bacteria.
• The National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) development of a new forensic standard that allows for the tracing of  empty bullet cases to specific firearms. 
• The Department of Education's new website, Studentaid.gov--a one stop shop for helping students and families navigate the financial aid process.  

Tom Fox's blog at Fedcoach has additional information on each story. What other stories should be on the list?