Daily Intelligence 5/30/13

Around the Pentagon

“Hello, here’s your furlough notice.” – Thousands of Department of Defense employees received their furlough notices this week. The final number for defense department employees is 11, which will amount to one ‘day off’ between the months of July and September. While it might look like a great summer holiday, it also represents a 20 percent reduction in pay for defense employees. Most employees will not have the option of collecting unemployment benefits, because they’ll make more in their four working days than the government would allow.

That’s why Navy employees in Philadelphia are pushing to lump their furlough days into week-long stretches, which would allow them to collect benefits. This is the exception, not the rule – most federal workers won’t have that option, and labor lawyers say their chances of fighting the furlough notices are slim.

As we reported earlier, federal employees facing furlough should remain aware of employment restrictions. A message from the Office of Government and Ethics this spring emphasized that even with the extra time for outside employment, prohibited outside activities or outside employment still applies.

Defense Contracting

Defense contractors in the state of Virginia are building their own response to sequestration – exports. The Virginia Economic Development Partnership recently released a guide to help Virginia’s contractors grow their sales in foreign markets.

Beltway News

James Comey, a former Bush Administration official, is reported to be Obama’s pick for the next director of the FBI. Comey has been called a ‘perfect choice’ – he’s a Republican who’s against both warrantless wiretapping and enhanced interrogation techniques, which gives him a good shot of being an acceptable choice for both Republicans and Democrats when it comes time for confirmation hearings.

Retired Army Gen. David Petraeus has launched his come-back tour – and it looks like he’s cashing in with a new gig as chairman of the KKR Global Institute. Petreaus was serving as director of the CIA when an extramarital affair scandal (with a few weird internet twists) forced him into early retirement. Clearly he wasn’t up for sitting on the couch for long. The new position at KKR will have him using his global network to help investment teams and portfolio companies study new investments.

Did you miss last night’s contract announcements? Check them out here. 

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Lindy Kyzer is the director of content at ClearanceJobs.com. Have a conference, tip, or story idea to share? Email lindy.kyzer@clearancejobs.com. Interested in writing for ClearanceJobs.com? Learn more here.. @LindyKyzer