Government Executive - Authors - Ben Schreckinger

Welcome to the Future: Congress Takes on 3-D Printing

Ben Schreckinger, National Journal — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 16:09:00 -0500

Last month, Congress entered the brave new world of 3-D printing after gun enthusiast Cody Wilson uploaded a video of himself on YouTube firing a semiautomatic rifle loaded with a homemade high-capacity magazine. The plastic magazine, manufactured on a 3-D printer, was designed to send a message: Congress, and the Obama administration, can try to ban such magazines, but technology is outpacing efforts at gun control.

Within days, Rep. Steve Israel, D-N.Y., proposed banning 3-D printed gun magazines and firearms that could evade metal detectors as part of a renewal of the Undetectable Firearms Act. “We have this new technology that allows criminals and terrorists to buy cheap 3-D printers, use them to literally manufacture firearm components that can fire bullets, and bring them onto airplanes,” he said. “I want to make it harder for the bad guys.”

This may be the first time 3-D printing is the subject of legislation, but it certainly won’t be the last. The technology, which has more than once been anointed the driver of a “third industrial revolution,” allows for the production of objects by depositing thin layers of materials. The process is called additive manufacturing, which stands in opposition to subtractive manufacturing, the traditional process in which objects are produced at factories by making small parts out of larger pieces of material, like sheets of metal. By allowing for the on-demand production of single, customized items, the technology promises to end the system of large factories and long supply chains in the markets for many goods—and to transform the global economy.

Currently, the executive branch is well ahead of Congress in anticipating the disruptive effects of 3-D printing. In August, the White House announced the formation of the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute in Ohio with an initial investment of $30 million from five federal agencies. The Commerce Department is working to develop universal standards for many aspects of additive manufacturing processes by next year. And the Army has already deployed 3-D printers in the field in Afghanistan. But Congress will likely find itself in on the action soon enough.

One area in which there’s already a specific policy proposal taking shape is intellectual property, where the rapid pace of innovation expected in 3-D printing could require a more agile form of protection. Attorney William Cass suggests the U.S. could adopt a European-style “utility model” as an option for inventors. The utility model offers all of the rights and protections of a patent but can be obtained more quickly and cheaply, and it only undergoes exhaustive evaluation if challenged in court. The House and Senate Judiciary committees could see the utility model on their agendas in the future: Adoption of the model would require an act of Congress, according to Cass.

3-D printing also holds implications for the half-trillion dollars in annual defense appropriations. Banning Garrett, director of the Atlantic Council’s Strategic Foresight Initiative, predicts that rather than purchasing physical equipment and replacement parts, much military spending will be redirected to the purchase of designs. Spare parts will be printed at the point of use as the need arises. “That’s going to hugely reduce the long-term costs of weapons systems,” Garrett said.

Members of the House Ways and Means Committee and Senate Finance Committee are likely to be hearing a lot about the technology, too. It appears poised to bring about a global trade rebalancing, as the new economics of manufacturing reward high-skill workforces like that of the U.S. and make supplies of cheap labor in countries like China less relevant. The committees will also have to adapt U.S. policy to the changing physical footprint of the global trade in goods and parts. “Instead of pushing molecules around, we’re going be pushing bits around,” said Tom Campbell, a professor at Virginia Tech who studies additive manufacturing and coauthored a 2011 Atlantic Council paper with Garrett on the future of the technology.

Campbell would like to see Congress take a largely hands-off approach to 3-D printing itself. “The last thing I want to do is have the government clamp down on new rules or laws that impede innovation,” he said. But he does believe countries such as Germany are gaining a competitive edge in certain aspects of the technology, and he sees a need for more government funding for basic research on applications of additive manufacturing that remain in the theoretical stage. Already, scientists are working to develop methods for printing human organs and for printing meat, advances that would come with policy implications of their own.

If all that isn’t mind-bending enough, separate reports surfaced this week of efforts to develop the means to 3-D print meals in space and to print a moon base with moon dust. Congress, welcome to the future.

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Panetta orders officer ethics review

Ben Schreckinger, National Journal — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 09:21:17 -0500

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta announced on Thursday that he is ordering a review of the ethical training for senior officers in the wake of the investigation that led to the resignation of former CIA Director David Patraeus and is threatening the career of Gen. John Allen, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan.

Pentagon officials said that the review had been planned before Petraeus's extramarital affair was uncovered, prompting his resignation. In the last year, several other high-ranking officers, including two generals and an admiral, have faced accusations of sexual misconduct and other ethical lapses.

Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also sent a letter to all four-star admirals and generals outlining concerns about recent ethical breaches. “We, as the senior leaders of the military, should fundamentally take charge of our own profession and overcome the challenges that have been posed to us,” he told The New York Times.

Patraeus resigned on Friday after an FBI investigation into threatening emails sent to a Tampa, Florida, woman uncovered an extramarital affair between him and his biographer, Paula Broadwell. Allen is under investigation for exchanging “potentially inappropriate” emails with the Tampa woman, Jill Kelley.

The White House has expressed support for Allen as he undergoes the probe.

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SEAL Team Six members reprimanded in video game consulting deal

Ben Schreckinger, National Journal — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 09:05:51 -0500

reports.

The SEAL’s revealed the secret information in the course of their work as consultants for EA’s “Medal of Honor: Warfighter” game, which boasts of its high level of realism thanks to input from current and former soldiers, according to CBS.

One of the disciplined SEALs participated in the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden, though that mission is not portrayed in the game, according to CBS. Four former members of the team who remain in the armed services are also under investigation, CBS reported.

The letters of reprimand can make it difficult to get promoted.]]>

Obama, Romney in tight race for newspaper endorsements

Ben Schreckinger, National Journal — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 09:14:37 -0400

In an election cycle marked by Internet and cable information saturation and the use of micro-targeting to tailor messages to tiny slices of the electorate, the importance of the newspaper endorsement is unclear. But the campaigns think enough of their value to put their candidates before editorial boards in swing states.

So far, the race for endorsements is shaping up to look much like the presidential campaign itself — President Obama enjoys a slight lead, but has lost ground since 2008. He leads Mitt Romney 17 to 15 in major newspaper endorsements so far, but four of Romney’s 15 endorsements come from papers that supported Obama four years ago.

But according to data on the 100 largest U.S. newspapers compiled by the University of California-Santa Barbara’s American Presidency Project, Romney enjoys a slight lead in swing-state endorsements (counting Pennsylvania, Michigan, and North Carolina) from major papers, landing seven so far to Obama’s six. The four biggest swing-state papers -- The Denver Post, The Philadelphia Inquirer, the Tampa Bay Times, and The Plain Dealer of Cleveland -- have all endorsed the president.

It’s still early, though, and about two-thirds of major papers have not issued their endorsements. TheMilwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, and The Miami Herald, all with circulations above 150,000, have yet to make recommendations to their swing-state readerships. All three endorsed Obama in 2008.

So far, the biggest coup has come in Florida, where The Orlando Sentinel endorsed Romney on Oct. 19.The Sentinel endorsed Obama in 2008, but cited disappointment with the president’s performance in turning around the economy to explain its choice of Romney.

Notably, The Detroit News, which endorsed Sen. John McCain in 2008, is sticking with the GOP in 2012, despite Romney’s opposition to the auto bailout, which has been credited with saving the American auto industry. The paper thanks Obama for his leadership on the bailout, but writes, “Despite his wrong-headedness on the auto bailout, we believe Romney when he proclaims himself a ‘car guy.’”

Though it’s not likely to help the president get to 270 electoral votes, he can take solace in an Oct. 19 endorsement from the San Antonio Express-News. The paper is the only one of the top 100 so far that has shifted its support to the president after endorsing McCain in 2008. According to the endorsement’s headline, “Obama has earned a second term.”

For a paper that endorsed Obama’s opponent when the Democrat was riding a wave of optimism four years ago, the Express-News endorsement stands out even more for the solidly positive review it gives Obama’s first term.

Even The Washington Post’s editorial board, which has consistently supported the president, mentions in the fourth paragraph of its endorsement “the disappointments of Mr. Obama’s first term,” before going on to paint Romney as an untrustworthy political opportunist.

The Express-News though, touts Obama’s record on the financial crisis, banking regulation, the housing market, the auto bailout, Iraq, Afghanistan, and other issues before discussing its disappointments with his first term and qualifying them: “These shortcomings, however, don’t justify a change in leadership.”

Major papers endorsing the president so far have a combined circulation of 4,084,000, while papers endorsing Romney have a combined circulation of 3,333,000. The country’s two biggest papers, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal, generally do not endorse candidates.

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Mother of slain SEAL condemns Romney

Ben Schreckinger, National Journal — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 15:52:12 -0400

The mother of a Navy SEAL killed in the attack on the U.S. consulate in Libya criticized Mitt Romney for mentioning her son on the campaign trail, Boston’s WHDH-7 reports.

“I don’t trust Romney,” said Barbara Doherty, mother of slain SEAL Glen Doherty. “He shouldn't make my son’s death part of his political agenda. It’s wrong to use these brave young men, who wanted freedom for all, to degrade [President] Obama.”

Romney, who reportedly met Glen Doherty at a Christmas party, spoke at a campaign event about his sadness upon learning of Doherty’s death. The Romney campaign said Thursday he would stop mentioning Doherty publicly.

Romney has criticized the Obama administration’s handling of security at the consulate before the attack, as well as the administration’s response to to the attack, making it a major campaign issue.

Sarah Huisenga contributed to this story.

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Obama says Romney shoots first, aims later

Ben Schreckinger, National Journal — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 17:57:53 -0400

In an interview with 60 Minutes' Steve Kroft on Wednesday, President Obama said Republican challenger Mitt Romney’s condemnation of his administration’s response to violence against American embassy workers in Libya and protests in Cairo showed a lack of necessary caution.

“Governor Romney seems to have a tendency to shoot first and aim later,” Obama said. “And as president, one of the things I’ve learned is you can’t do that — that it’s important for you to make sure that the statements you make are backed up by the facts, and that you’ve thought through the ramifications before you make them.”

When asked if Romney’s statement was irresponsible, the president responded, “I’ll let the American people judge that.”

CBS News aired an excerpt from Kroft's interview with Obama Wednesday afternoon.

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Summing up Biden, Pew finds 'good' edges out 'idiot'

Ben Schreckinger, National Journal — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 17:23:11 -0400

Americans asked to sum up Vice President Joe Biden in a word had two favorites: "good" and "idiot."

At 43 and 40 responses respectively, those two words cropped up twice as frequently as their closest rivals, "ok" and "vice president," in a Pew survey of 1,008 Americans.

Overall, more respondents offered a negative descriptor, 38 percent, than a positive one, 28 percent.

Even Democrats were cool on Biden. They were slightly more likely to describe him with a neutral word than with a good one.

And in another recent Pew survey, Paul Ryan was slightly more likely to provoke a positive word (37 percent) than a negative one (35 percent).

But just because many Americans don't think much of Biden's intelligence (buffoon, stupid, clown and incompentent all registered several responses), doesn't mean they don't like him. Only five respondents ventured that Biden was "bad."

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On NBC, Romney drops one small hint about veep choice

Ben Schreckinger, National Journal — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 09:52:00 -0400

Nightly News with Brian Williams. But he did drop one small hint.

“I don't think I have anything for you on the VP running mate,” Romney said. “Other than I certainly expect to have a person that has a strength of character, a vision for the country that adds something to the political discourse about the direction of the country.”

Though it’s not much, Romney’s answer could point to Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., whose budget plan has become a rallying cry for conservative intellectuals and has greatly influenced the fiscal side of his party’s platform.

The rest of White House correspondent Chuck Todd’s interview with Romney will be used for a documentary that will air on MSNBC on Aug. 24.]]>