This past week in the Russia investigations, news was dominated by previously undisclosed actions taken by special counsel Robert Mueller: first, that he convened a Washington, DC grand jury to review evidence gathered by his investigation; and later in the week that he had directed the FBI to conduct a raid last month on a home…
Search Results
Scott Pruitt Reverses Decision to Delay Ozone Regulation
On August 2, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt reversed the agency’s June announcement to delay implementation of a 2015 Obama-era ozone regulation for another year. The reversal came one day after 15 states and DC filed a lawsuit against the EPA Administrator over the delay. While the reversal was a win for health and environmental…
Chicago Sues to Remain a Sanctuary City
On Monday, July 7th the city of Chicago’s sued the Department of Justice, over its threat to withhold federal funds to Sanctuary Cities. Specifically, the DOJ threatened to withhold funds from the Byrne JAG grant program, which provides federal funds for local police forces. (I go into greater detail about this action in my previous…
Congress Advances Health Care Efforts
After another GOP failure on the health care front, members of Congress resorted to more incremental legislation. Congress is working across the aisle to counter President Trump’s threats to encourage the implosion of Obamacare and cut off subsidies for health insurers known as cost-sharing reduction payments. Without these…
State Department Approves Sale of Fighter Jets to Nigeria
On Wednesday, August 2nd, the State Department notified Congress that it approved the sale of twelve A-29 fighter jets to the Nigerian military. The jets are commonly used for counter-insurgency and reconnaissance, and the U.S. government hopes these planes will help Nigeria fight Boko Haram –an extremist group that…
Trump Supports Bill to Cut Legal Immigration by Half
On August 2nd Trump announced his support for a Senate Bill titled: Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy Act (RAISE Act). The most devastating consequence of the RAISE Act would be a 50% reduction in legal immigration to the United States. This drop would occur as the bill would scrap the current U.S. immigration…
Trump Signs Sanctions Bill
On August 2nd, President Trump signed a bipartisan effort to punish Iran, North Korea, and Russia. It imposes harsh sanctions and also requires the President to submit a report explaining any desire to remove them. Upon receiving this report, Congress would hold hearings and decide whether to allow or reject this proposal. The bill passed…
Department of the Interior Starts to Rescind Fracking Rules
On July 25, the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management published a rescission of an Obama-era hydraulic fracturing rule. The “fracking” rule was specifically targeted by Trump’s Energy Executive Order, which directed agency heads to eliminate all policies which burden the development of energy resources. The regulation…
Attorney General Sessions’ Reinstatement of “Federal Adoption” Technique in DoJ Asset Forfeiture Program
On July 19, 2017, Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued an order that sought to reinstate and expand an asset seizure technique, which is known as “federal adoption.” This technique applies to assets and property seized by local law enforcement officers. State and local governments first seize…
Infrastructure Panel
One of President Trump’s major campaign promises was a refurbished infrastructure plan to replace our aging infrastructure. As a result, Trump has convened a board to develop the new infrastructure plan. A group has filed a law suit against this council claiming that it was illegally convened as it goes against the Federal Advisory…