Also in the News: Davis takes parting shots

Retiring Republican representative critiques his party -- and Congress' inability to get things done -- in an interview with The New York Times.

Retiring Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.), whose interest in federal information technology and procurement policy issues has made him a standard-bearer in the federal IT community, is sharply critical of his party and Congress' inability to produce substantive accomplishments in an interview with The New York Times.

Davis, the former chairman of the House Government Reform Committee, is leaving office in just a few weeks frustrated by the partisan nature of congressional debates. "When you get the majority, the leadership team sits around the table, and the first question the winners ask, sitting in this ornate room, is ‘How do we stay in the majority?’ ” he told the Times. “Now the members, a lot of them, are willing to tackle these issues, but they elect leaders, and the leaders’ report card is: Do they get their members re-elected?"

In April, Davis talked to Federal Computer Week about the role of government and innovation, his personal plans and thoughts on the 2008 presidential election. You can read Davis' interview with FCW here.