These days, Cabinet meetings are mostly for show, and generally designed to promote the idea that all departments are behind some aspect of the president's agenda. Today's meeting was a case in point. President Obama welcomed Karen Mills, administrator of the Small Business Administration, to the Cabinet, and emphasized that other agencies would be pitching in to help people who want to start their own businesses -- even some you might not expect.

Here's what the president said:

In addition, we've got all the Cabinet agencies, who are here represented. They are putting forward their own initiatives to enhance the ability of entrepreneurs to get up and running. So, for example, the Department of Homeland Security, my understanding is we're going to be talking about how we can improve the visa process for those who are interested in investing in the United States and starting businesses here in the United States.

I know that the Department of Commerce, Energy, and Education, as well as the SBA, are all launching complementary initiatives to support entrepreneurship as well. And so what we want to do is to make sure that every single agency, even as they're tending to their energy initiatives or providing homeland security or transportation or defense, that we're also thinking about how are we advancing the cause of giving small businesses and entrepreneurs opportunities to start creating the next Google or the next Apple or the next innovative company that's going to create jobs and improve our economy.

It's that kind of all-hands-on-deck approach that is really going to make a difference. And we're looking forward to hearing additional ideas from our business council and from those who are involved in startups that can help to promote this agenda.

(Official White House photo by Pete Souza)

Sunstein highlighted progress by individual agencies, noting that the Federal Communications Commission alone has eliminated 190 regulations. Others he singled out include the Commerce, State, Health and Human Services, Agriculture, Labor, Homeland Security and Transportation departments, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

What is officially called the Defense Base Closure and Realignment process takes the acronym BRAC -- even officially -- which logically would stand for Base Realignment and Closure, reversing the priorities and, one guesses, making the word more pronounceable.

Lt. Col. Melinda Morgan, a spokeswoman of the Office of the Defense Secretary, has an explanation.

"The 1988 authorizing act was the `Defense Authorization Amendments and Base Closure and Realignment Act' (PL 100-526), and although it did not formally name the commission, it referred to it as the Commission on Base Realignment and Closure," she told Government Executive in an email.

"The 1990 authorizing act (Public Law 101-510) -- which created the process for the 1991, 1993, 1995, and 2005 rounds -- was the `Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990,'" she continued. "At some point early in the process, folks began referring to the process and the commission as BRAC, even though the letters were out of order, and it stuck. We suspect the term BRAC is a remnant of the phrasing used in the 1988 act."

Interestingly, the BRAC Transition Center in Arlington, Va., one of the jurisdictions most affected by the 2005 round of cuts, continues to define BRAC as Base Realignment and Closure.

The Smoking Gun reports that a New York City clothing designer, Joseph Mbeh, tried to obtain a trademark for "Blue Ivy Carter NYC" for use on baby and toddler clothing. Not at all coincidentally, Blue Ivy Carter is the name of Beyonce and Jay-Z's newborn daughter.

A PTO attorney looked askance at the trademark request, noting that little Blue Ivy is a "famous infant," and that consumers would likely conclude that a clothing line in her name was somehow connected to her even more famous parents. Mbeh then thought better of the idea, and withdrew his application.

Apparently, though, PTO attorneys can expect to continue to have to deal with such applications. Another New York firm already has tried to trademark "Blue Ivy Carter Glory IV" for use on such products as fragrances and body glitter. Good luck with that.

(Photo: Evan Agostini/AP)

So perhaps the Government Accountability Office should be applauded for releasing on Thursday its Performance and Accountability report.

"In fiscal year 2011," GAO analysts wrote, "we met or exceeded 13 of our 15 annual performance targets by, for example, identifying $45.7 billion in financial benefits for the federal government -- a return of $81 for every dollar we spent -- and 1,318 improvements in broad program and operational areas across the government."

An impressive 80 percent of GAO's recommendations were implemented by agencies or Congress last year, and staff testified some 174 times before Congress.

The watchdog agency's 3,200 employees will continue to focus on three main challenges, their colleagues wrote: physical security, information security and human capital. They've also made "significant progress" on design of a new performance system. And, wrote Comptroller General Gene Dodaro, "We met or exceeded six of the targets for our seven people measures -- retention rate (with and without retirements), staff development, staff utilization, effective leadership by supervisors and organizational climate."

On Thursday, officials from HHS' new Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation gathered in Washington with some 1,000 medical professionals to showcase at least six new innovations authored by health care organizations. They include techniques for reversing the trend in diabetes, advances in treatment and prevention of Alzheimer's disease, and tools for improved resistance to HIV/AIDS.

"The Affordable Care Act gives us tremendous new tools to innovate and improve our health care system," said Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. "We'll discuss how we can work together to make innovative ideas a reality in communities across the country."

Added innovation center director Dr. Richard Gilfillan, "The fact that all of these disparate interests share the aim of better health care and are willing to work for it not only means that we're going to have the best ideas on the table, but also that we're going to have the expertise and the resources that will ultimately ensure better health at a lower cost will be within the reach of every American."

The Care Innovations Summit is being hosted jointly by HHS' Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the San Diego-based nonprofit West Wireless Health Institute and the peer-reviewed journal Health Affairs.

We're excited about our fresh new look. But the changes are more than a facelift. We're adding key new elements to the user experience, making the site a critical all-day resource:

• We'll be faster, posting not only our own breaking stories, but aggregating news and information from our technology-focused site, Nextgov.com, and our sister publications, The Atlantic and National Journal. Key articles and features will be highlighted at the top of the page.
• The site will be more social and more interactive, with new and easier ways for users to share our content on Twitter, Facebook and other networks. And each article will include an updated comments section, enabling discussion around all of the subjects we cover.
• Voices, a section featured front and center, will highlight our daily columns and blogs. It will provide in-depth analysis on subjects ranging from management to politics to leadership.
• As major events develop, we'll create special reports pulling together key news coverage and additional resources.
• Soon, we'll have a special version of the site designed to optimize the user experience on mobile devices.
• A new organizational structure will organize information into the categories our users have indicated are most important to them: Management, Oversight, Defense, Technology, Contracting, Pay and Benefits, and Retirement. Each section will have a drop-down menu at the top of the page highlighting the latest news and analysis. And each will feature other resources tailored to the specific subject areas.

Of course, the key features of the site our readers have come to count on, from our Gimme My Discount feature to Tammy Flanagan's Retirement Planning column, will remain.

That assignment may have given him more time to prepare for his department's big event on Wednesday, the rollout in Fairfax, Va., with First Lady Michelle Obama, of new federal standards for school meals affecting 32 million school children.

The standards, which were last revised 15 years ago, are designed so that students are offered both fruits and vegetables daily; that they are served more grain-rich foods; that they drink fat-free or low-fat milk; that their total calories are limited depending on a child's age; and that they consume less saturated fat, trans fats and sodium.

"Improving the quality of the school meals is a critical step in building a healthy future for our kids," said Vilsack. "When it comes to our children, we must do everything possible to provide them the nutrition they need to be healthy, active and ready to face the future - today we take an important step towards that goal."

And that's a wrap. For the record, here are all of the segments of the speech I could find that addressed government operations, new entities, management reforms, etc:

"I'm announcing the creation of a Trade Enforcement Unit that will be charged with investigating unfair trade practices in countries like China. There will be more inspections to prevent counterfeit or unsafe goods from crossing our borders."

"I want to cut through the maze of confusing training programs, so that from now on, people ... have one program, one website, and one place to go for all the information and help they need."

"My administration has put more boots on the border than ever before."

"I'm proud to announce that the Department of Defense, the world's largest consumer of energy, will make one of the largest commitments to clean energy in history - with the Navy purchasing enough capacity to power a quarter of a million homes a year."

"In the next few weeks, I will sign an executive order clearing away the red tape that slows down too many construction projects. But you need to fund these projects. Take the money we're no longer spending at war, use half of it to pay down our debt, and use the rest to do some nation-building right here at home."

"I've ordered every federal agency to eliminate rules that don't make sense. We've already announced over 500 reforms, and just a fraction of them will save business and citizens more than $10 billion over the next five years. We got rid of one rule from 40 years ago that could have forced some dairy farmers to spend $10,000 a year proving that they could contain a spill - because milk was somehow classified as an oil. With a rule like that, I guess it was worth crying over spilled milk. I'm confident a farmer can contain a milk spill without a federal agency looking over his shoulder."

"We will also establish a Financial Crimes Unit of highly trained investigators to crack down on large-scale fraud and protect people's investments."

"I ask the Senate to pass a rule that all judicial and public service nominations receive a simple up or down vote within 90 days."

"The executive branch also needs to change. Too often, it's inefficient, outdated and remote. That's why I've asked this Congress to grant me the authority to consolidate the federal bureaucracy so that our Government is leaner, quicker, and more responsive to the needs of the American people. "

"I believe what Republican Abraham Lincoln believed: That government should do for people only what they cannot do better by themselves, and no more."

"Even my Republican friends who complain the most about Government spending have supported federally-financed roads, and clean energy projects, and federal offices for the folks back home. The point is, we should all want a smarter, more effective government. And while we may not be able to bridge our biggest philosophical differences this year, we can make real progress."

"Working with our military leaders, I have proposed a new defense strategy that ensures we maintain the finest military in the world, while saving nearly half a trillion dollars in our budget. To stay one step ahead of our adversaries, I have already sent this Congress legislation that will secure our country from the growing danger of cyber threats."

"Above all, our freedom endures because of the men and women in uniform who defend it. As they come home, we must serve them as well as they served us. That includes giving them the care and benefits they have earned - which is why we've increased annual VA spending every year I've been president. And it means enlisting our veterans in the work of rebuilding our nation."

"With the bipartisan support of this Congress, we are providing new tax credits to companies that hire vets. Michelle and Jill Biden have worked with American businesses to secure a pledge of 135,000 jobs for veterans and their families. And tonight, I'm proposing a Veterans Job Corps that will help our communities hire veterans as cops and firefighters, so that America is as strong as those who defend her."

10:11 p.m.

A quick reference to Defense cuts, amidst all the praise for the military's achievements: "Working with our military leaders, I have proposed a new defense strategy that ensures we maintain the finest military in the world, while saving nearly half a trillion dollars in our budget." (Note the "working with military leaders" part. Obama wants to make sure everybody knows they signed off on this.)

10:05 p.m.

Even Republicans, Obama jibes, "want federal offices for the folks back home. ... We should all want a smarter, more effective government."

10:02 p.m.

And there's the expected pitch for reorganization authority: "The executive branch also needs to change. Too often, it's inefficient, outdated and remote. That's why I've asked this Congress to grant me the authority to consolidate the federal bureaucracy so that our government is leaner, quicker, and more responsive to the needs of the American people."

10:01 p.m.

First reference to public service: "I ask the Senate to pass a rule that all judicial and public service nominations receive a simple up or down vote within 90 days."

9:59 p.m.

President Obama has visited a couple of different agencies recently, and has gone out of his way to praise federal employees. But not tonight.

9:52 p.m.

Another new federal entity: "a Financial Crimes Unit of highly trained investigators to crack down on large-scale fraud and protect people's investments." Also, "I am asking my attorney general to create a special unit of federal prosecutors and leading state attorneys general to expand our investigations into the abusive lending and packaging of risky mortgages that led to the housing crisis."

9:50 p.m.

On regulatory reform: "We got rid of one rule from 40 years ago that could have forced some dairy farmers to spend $10,000 a year proving that they could contain a spill - because milk was somehow classified as an oil. With a rule like that, I guess it was worth crying over spilled milk. I'm confident a farmer can contain a milk spill without a federal agency looking over his shoulder." The joke was literally greeted with groans.

9:47 p.m.

First reference to red tape: "In the next few weeks, I will sign an executive order clearing away the red tape that slows down too many construction projects." Every president's gotta be a bureaucracy-buster, right?

9:38 p.m.

On border enforcement: "My administration has put more boots on the border than ever before."

There are already a lot of calls for very energetic government in this speech: trade enforcement unit, job training, border security. And there's more to come.

9:28 p.m.

First new government entity mentioned in the speech: "a Trade Enforcement Unit that will be charged with investigating unfair trade practices in countries like China." Quickly followed by first management initiative: "I want to cut through the maze of confusing training programs, so that from now on, people ... have one program, one website, and one place to go for all the information and help they need."

9:19 p.m.

"The state of our union is getting stronger...I intend to fight obstruction with action."

9:16 p.m.

Here are some themes that are coming, according to an advance draft of the speech sent out by the White House: reorganization, "smarter government," regulatory reform, streamlined nominations, veterans' hiring, new defense strategy.

9:11 p.m.

And...we're under way.

8:39 p.m.

It's clear that "outsourcing" will be one of the themes in the address, but feds shouldn't get too overly excited -- or concerned. It appears Obama is talking about sending American jobs overseas, not contracting out government work.

8:29 p.m.

Ed O'Keefe of the Washington Post is reporting, via Twitter, that Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is the designated Cabinet official who will stay away from tonight's address, just in case a worst-case scenario unfolds.

6:20 p.m.

I'll be watching the State of the Union address tonight, and sharing some thoughts in this space. In the meantime, here are some exceprts from the prepared text of the speech, just released by the White House:

"Think about the America within our reach: A country that leads the world in educating its people. An America that attracts a new generation of high-tech manufacturing and high-paying jobs. A future where we're in control of our own energy, and our security and prosperity aren't so tied to unstable parts of the world. An economy built to last, where hard work pays off, and responsibility is rewarded. "

"....The defining issue of our time is how to keep that promise alive. No challenge is more urgent. No debate is more important. We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well, while a growing number of Americans barely get by. Or we can restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same set of rules. What's at stake are not Democratic values or Republican values, but American values. We have to reclaim them."

"As long as I'm President, I will work with anyone in this chamber to build on this momentum. But I intend to fight obstruction with action, and I will oppose any effort to return to the very same policies that brought on this economic crisis in the first place. No, we will not go back to an economy weakened by outsourcing, bad debt, and phony financial profits. Tonight, I want to speak about how we move forward, and lay out a blueprint for an economy that's built to last - an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy, skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values."

"Let's never forget: Millions of Americans who work hard and play by the rules every day deserve a government and a financial system that do the same. It's time to apply the same rules from top to bottom: No bailouts, no handouts, and no copouts. An America built to last insists on responsibility from everybody."

The Washington Post's Joe Davidson reports today that the Army is warning its civilians who are nearing retirement that they could face longer delays in getting interim payments while OPM sorts out the details of their benefits. The Army says it could take six to eight weeks for OPM to place retirees in interim status after they officially retire.

OPM says that statement is "not accurate."

Retirees are placed in interim status while OPM formally processes their retirement applications. It can take up to a year for the agency to approve final benefits.

In a recent column, our Retirement Planning columnist, Tammy Flanagan of the National Institute for Transition Planning, outlined what you can expect in the weeks and months after you retire from government. Right now, the picture isn't pretty.

Last winter, both the Office of Management and Budget and Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Calif., offered proposals for a new BRAC-like body to tap private-sector expertise for selling off excess federal properties. In November the Energy Department's inspector general proposed a BRAC-like body to "to rationalize DOE's research and development laboratories."

On Thursday, the Center for American Progress, a think tank with the ear of the Obama administration, packaged a set of papers on how to reorganize the government's business, trade and science functions to maximize economic growth and job creation. In familiar language, it called upon the "administration and Congress to create a bipartisan commission to consider and then implement these kinds of reforms to our federal science and economic competitiveness programs. The new commission, modeled after the so-called Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission that enabled the Department of Defense to restructure our military bases so effectively, would be able to overcome congressional and executive branch inertia to retool our innovation engine for competitiveness in the 21st century."