Here’s a selection of articles the Federal Relations team is enjoying this leap week.
S-T-O-P – Two days after Super Tuesday, the GOP establishment’s knives are once again out for Donald Trump — whether it’s Mitt Romney’s speech today, tonight’s debate in Michigan, or the new TV ads targeting Trump. And here’s the reality: The opportunity to stop Trump is real. After the Super Tuesday results, it’s clear that Trump had a good (though hardly great) night. Despite winning seven out of the 11 contests, Trump holds just a 23-delegate lead over Ted Cruz from the Super Tuesday delegates. Read more at NBC.
Security Checks – Many low-income students and children of undocumented parents are having a harder time finishing their financial aid applications this year. That’s because of a new system that’s meant to protect sensitive financial information but in practice keeps out already-disadvantaged populations. Californians must submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by midnight Wednesday to be eligible for the biggest pot of state college funds, the Cal Grant. Officials are asking students to submit even an incomplete FAFSA immediately, so that they make the deadline but can fill in more information later. Read more in the LA Times.
He Speaks – After a decade of silence on the court, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas asked a question. Read more in The New York Times.
Broken Crown? – Dozens of students, parents, educators and activists are urging the U.S. Senate not to confirm John King, President Obama’s choice to succeed Arne Duncan as education secretary, because he pushed education policies when he was education commissioner of New York State that they say were “ineffective and destructive.” Read more in The Washington Post.
He’s BAAACK! – Astronaut Scott Kelly has landed after a year in space, and he . Kelly, an identical twin, spent a year in space to help NASA study the effects of zero gravity on the human body, while his twin stayed terrestrial as a control subject. Read more at Voxx.