Below is a selection of articles the Federal Relations team has read this week.
US and China to Rollback Tariffs: The US and China have entered “extensive and serious discussions” to rollback tariffs. This would be done in phases, and is expected to greatly improve global economic output. More at Politico.
Republicans Seek Whistleblower Testimony: House Republicans are expected to request the “Ukraine call” whistleblower to testify publicly. This comes after Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) called for the media to “print the name” of the whistleblower. Whistleblowers are protected from retaliation, and there are concerns that exposing the identity of the whistleblower would put them in harms’ way. House Intelligence Committee Democrats can deny the Republican request to call the whistleblower for testimony. More at CNN.
Bolivia Protests Turn Violent: Protests continue following the Bolivian Presidential Elections on October 20th. Supporters of the opposition party accuse the sitting President Evo Morales of rigging the vote to win another five year term. Three people have died so far. The Organization of American States (OAS), of which the US is a member, is expected to audit the elections. More at BBC.
Ex-Twitter Employees Accused of Spying for Saudi Arabia: The US has accused two former Twitter employees, including one Saudi citizen, of accessing personal information of Twitter users at the request of the Saudi Government. This is the first time Saudi Arabia has been publicly accused of espionage within the United States. It is believed that Saudi Arabia wanted to unveil dissidents who use anonymous accounts to criticize the government. More at Washington Post.
State of Emergency in South Sudan: Serious flooding in South Sudan has displaced over a million people, and also caused major crop failure and unsanitary conditions. President Salva Kiir declared a state of emergency in response. See Voice of America for more.
Federal Government Sues Gilead: The Trump Administration has filed a lawsuit against Gilead, a company making HIV-prevention drugs. The lawsuit argues that Gilead is infringing on patents owned by the Department of Health and Human Services, and accuses Gilead of price gouging on drugs which were the result of taxpayer-funded research. More at New York Times.