GovernmentExecutive.com

Three Democratic senators--Daniel Akaka of Hawaii, Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey and Tom Carper of Delaware--have a message for the Bush administration: Go ahead and fill the political ranks of most federal agencies with hacks and cronies, but Homeland Security must be run by people who actually know something about their jobs. Yesterday, the trio introduced the Department of Homeland Security Qualified Leaders Act, which, they said, would "establish minimum qualification standards for most Senate-confirmed positions" in the department.