The details: While proposing an unprecedented amount of “economic stimulus” spending, incoming president Barack Obama at least appointed a respected “professional efficiency expert,” Nancy Killefer, to identify failing federal programs for elimination and to improve the effectiveness of others by setting performance and accountability standards.

Open process at the RNC

2| Multiple forums for Republican chairmanship

The details: Finally moving party politics out of the proverbial back rooms, the six candidates for chairman of the Republican National Committee participated in two forums and one wide-open public debate last week, encouraging ordinary Republicans to follow, and weigh in on, the upcoming RNC election.

High court to hear race case

3| Chance to stop presuming states guilty

The details: On Friday, the Supreme Court noted an intention to hear a redistricting case out of Texas challenging a section of the Voting Rights Act that bars certain states from making any changes in election procedures without prior approval of the Justice Department. Those states are effectively presumed guilty until proved innocent. By all American traditions, that’s backwards – and it rightly merits review.

Transparency on “stimulus”

4| Spending programs put online

The details: Obama is promising to put online, with a “Google-like search function,” every program funded by his economic stimulus spending package. It’s not clear how this will be different from the existing USASpending.gov site that tracks most federal spending.

Eliminating the bad guys

5| CIA weakens al-Qaeda

The details: A Jan. 1 CIA missile strike in northern Pakistan killed two long-sought top al-Qaeda operatives – a reminder that the Bush administration’s war on terrorists continues to succeed at keeping us safe. Unfortunately, Osama bin Laden was not one of the two killed.

Around the Washington Region:

Adult sentences for teen killers…

6| But not in an adult prison

The Details: Prince George’s State’s Attorney Glenn Ivey says he will work with defense attorneys to find a safe place to incarcerate four 15-year-olds who admitted beating Aboubacar Camara, a 56-year-old West African immigrant, to death over a cigarette last May. The four members of the “Skull Crushers” gang entered guilty pleas in adult court last Monday. Prosecutors say they will ask for 18-year prison terms when the four are sentenced in March, but will try to keep them separated from the adult inmate population.

School report card

7| Council chairman wants independent evaluators

The Details: District Council chairman Vincent Gray applied Ronald Reagan’s motto – “Trust, but verify” – when he called for a truly independent evaluation of Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s efforts to transform the city’s public school system after Deputy Mayor for Education Victor Reinoso recommended two experts with close ties to Mayor Adrian Fenty’s administration.  Fenty took over control of the schools in 2007, but is required to provide council members with an annual report on how things are going.

Incentive to volunteer

8| D.C. considers mentor tax credit

The Details: District Council members Tommy Wells and Michael Brown have proposed a standard $2,000 income tax deduction for any city resident who spends over a hundred hours mentoring local youngsters in a city-approved program. Kids who are mentored are 52 less likely to skip school, 46 less likely to do drugs, and 27 percent less likely to drink alcohol.

Late school starts

9| No-cost opening bell delay proposed

The Details: An economic crisis does tend to clarify things. Fairfax County Public School officials reversed their previous position and decided that it wouldn’t cost anything to change high school start times from the current 7:20 am to 8:30 am to allow drowsy teenagers more time to sleep. Previous estimates of what it would cost to rearrange bus schedules ranged from $4 million to $40 million, but FCPS suddenly figured out a way to make the changes without costing taxpayers another dime.