Congressional Delegations

Former Rep. Howard Berman is joining Covington & Burling, which last week also landed former Sen. Kyl.

"An open hearing on intelligence matters is something of a contradiction in terms," said Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.

Former Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) is joining the American Enterprise Institute, the conservative think tank announced Monday.

The suspension of many overseas tips by lawmakers, known as codels, depends on automatic budget cuts taking effect March 1.

Your morning global affairs speed-read

Rising Republican star and 2016 presidential hopeful Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), fresh from a trip to the Middle East, presents his views on how to handle the region's crises during an appearance this afternoon at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Watch it live here.

World traveler: Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Italian and Baltic leaders in Rome today on the fourth stop of his first overseas trip. He met with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius earlier in the day to talk about the U.S.-backed French intervention in Mali and the civil war in Syria.

Lots happening on Capitol Hill today: The House Foreign Affairs panel on human rights holds a hearing on the rising threat of anti-Semitism this morning, while the Europe and terrorism panels hold a joint hearing this afternoon on Islamist militant threats in Eurasia.

In a 58-41 vote, the Senate confirmed Hagel as Defense chief and ended a contentious confirmation fight.

The Afghan president published photos that purport to show him discussing the “fight against corruption” with Sen. Robert Menendez.

President Obama's ambassador to NATO, Ivo Daalder, has been tapped to lead the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, the think tank announced Wednesday.

Daalder, who was nominated in 2009, will take over as president on July 1. His successor as ambassador hasn't been named yet.

"My experience as NATO ambassador has reinforced the importance of organizations such as The Chicago Council,” Daalder said in a statement. "This is precisely the position I had hoped to find at this point in my career. Working closely with the Board, I am confident we can further increase the intellectual capital and the local, national and international visibility of The Chicago Council.”

When President Obama delivers his State of the Union Tuesday night, the world's eyes and ears will be in the House chamber with him — literally.

The annual speech is a can't-miss event for the Capitol's ambassadors and other heads of mission, dating back to when Woodrow Wilson restarted the tradition — discontinued under Thomas Jefferson — of having the president come to Congress and deliver the speech in person in 1913. The number of independent nations has grown exponentially since then, and almost 150 nations are expected to be represented Tuesday.

“145 chiefs of mission representing nations on six continents are expected to be in attendance tonight,” said Amb. Capricia Penavic Marshall, the Chief of Protocol of the United States. “It’s a wonderful tradition, and it’s an honor to accompany these esteemed diplomats to the Capitol for this moment of great significance for our nation.”

As is custom, Marshall will be escorting the dean of the Diplomatic Corps, Djibouti Ambassador Roble Olhaye, onto the House floor. The diplomats won't get to greet the president — lawmakers hoping for five seconds of face time have to wait in aisle seats for hours — but they'll have a chance to be part of what's become a Washington “spectacle.”

“By December of 1913, when [Wilson] gave his State of the Union message ... everybody wanted to be in the room for the event,” said Senate historian Donald Ritchie, and Congress “had their accommodations for the diplomatic corps in particular.”

A successful vote by the panel could bring a motion to confirm Hagel to the floor by Thursday.