Skip to content
News and updates

News and updates

Yes, But How Much Progress?

Posted on

The Senate might see some thawing on the appropriations front later this week, but how much thawing remains to be seen.

In an attempt to break through on the appropriations impasse that has faced the Senate for weeks, the Republican leadership in the chamber plans to file a cloture motion on a package of four spending bills that had near unanimous support in committee.  Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) will file a motion to invoke cloture on a House-passed legislative package of bills.  Should the vote be successful, the Senate would then seek to replace the House-approved measure with its own bundle of bills:  Agriculture, Commerce-Justice-Science, Interior and Environment, and Transportation-Housing and Urban Development.  If and when the Senate approves its substitute, things will likely get trickier.

Senate Republicans hope that agreement on the first package will allow for movement on a second bundle of appropriations measures, a combination of bills much more controversial because of the partisan fights on issues like funding for the border wall and language on abortion policy.  After agreeing to the first “minibus” of bills, the Republican goal is to move to the floor the Defense, Labor-HHS-Education, Homeland Security, and Military Construction-Veterans Affairs measures.  The Democrats have signaled that, at this point, this may be a bridge too far.

Stay tuned.

House Democrats Introduce HEA Legislation

Posted on

As expected, the House Democrats introduced last week their version of the legislation to reauthorize the Higher Education Act (HEA). The 1,100-page College Affordability Act is likely to be marked up by the Education and Labor Committee next week.  Unlike the Senate bill that was introduced in late September by HELP Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN), the House legislation represents a comprehensive look at the underlying HEA.

The legislation covers a wide-range of issues in the HEA, from an increase of $500 in the Pell Grant maximum award to proposed changes in how outcome standards are determined for accreditation purposes and topics in between, such as the elimination of loan repayment programs currently in place and the creation of two new loan repayment options for new loans.

Read more about the legislation here.  We will provide further updates.

What We’re Reading this Week (October 14th-18th, 2019)

Posted on

Here is a selection of articles the Federal Relations team has read this week.

Courts Block Green Card Restrictions: Federal Judges in three states, including Washington, blocked an immigration rule which would have gone into effect on October 15th. The “public charge rule” would expand how public benefit usage is factored into permanent residency determinations.  Although “public policy charges” have been part of immigration law for over a century, the expanded rule would penalize applicants for using a much broader range of services. The nationwide injunction, issued by Judge Rosanna Malouf Peterson of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, determined the Department of Homeland Security acted outside its’ authority as delegated by Congress. Read more at NPR.

Congressman Elijah Cummings: Congressman Elijah Cummings (D-MD) passed away in hospital on Thursday, October 17th due to what was described as “longstanding health challenges”. Rep. Cummings was a highly regarded Congressman and powerful figure in the Democratic caucus, serving as Chair of the House Oversight Committee. He was in Congress for over twenty years. Read more at Politico.

EU/UK Brexit Deal: The EU and UK announced they have reached a deal on Brexit, which will now have to pass both the EU and UK parliament. Time is running out on Prime Minister Borris’ plan to leave the EU by October 31st. Read more at BBC.

Diplomatic Spat Over Death of UK Citizen: Relations between the US and UK have been strained after the wife of a US Official was involved in a fatal car accident in the UK.  While driving on the wrong side of the road, Anne Sacoolas struck and killed Harry Dunn, who was riding a motorcycle. Sacoolas, married to a US Official based in England, claimed diplomatic immunity and left the UK some weeks after the incident. The Dunn family has embarked on a campaign urging the US to extradite Sacoolas to face charges in the UK. President Trump supposedly attempted to set up a surprise meeting between the two families in the White House, further complicating the situation and offending the grieving family. Read more at Vox.

Senate Fails to Halt Border Emergency: Congress passed a measure,  S.J. Res. 54 (116), which would have stopped President Trump from diverting billions of dollars in federal funds to construct a border wall. However, President Trump vetoed the measure, sending it back to the Senate. The Senate was unable to override the veto by a 2/3 vote, meaning the border emergency declaration will remain in place. Read more at Politico.

Science Integrity Bill Moves Forward: H.R. 1709, a House bill which aims to protect science from political influence, has advanced after gaining enough bipartisan support in the Science Committee. Initially, there had been push back over how closely Federal agencies’ media policies would be regulated. Now that the bill has passed in the House Science Committee, it will move to the full House for a vote. Read more at Science Magazine.

What We’re Reading this Week (October 7th-11th, 2019)

Posted on

Here is a selection of articles the Federal Relations team has read this week.

Impeachment Saga: UW Federal Relations continues to monitor the impeachment inquiry, especially as Congress prepares to return from recess next week. The Government is currently operating on a Continuing Resolution due to expire on November 21st, meaning appropriations are still an urgent concern. However, focus has primarily been on the whistleblower complaint against President Trump and his actions towards Ukraine. The White House is resolved not to cooperate, which will drag out the inquiry. For the latest updates, you can visit the Washington Post (or any other major news outlet, really).

NIH Examining Racial Bias in Grant Awards: A 2011 study by economist Dr. Donna Ginther revealed proposals authored by Black researchers were significantly less likely to receive NIH funding. Since then, NIH has been examining how this phenomenon occurs, although they have yet to produce solid answers. Some likely factors include that grant reviewers must be awardees, meaning if less Black applicants are awarded, less Black scholars will sit on the review boards. Additionally, the research suggested biases in favor of the topics which tended to be proposed by White researchers. You can read the full story at Science Magazine.

Middle East Studies Program Continues: The Duke-UNC Middle East Studies Consortium will continue to receive federal funding, after being ordered to revise its curriculum by the Department of Education. The Education Department accused the University of promoting a “positive view of Islam” and not including enough perspectives on Christianity and Judaism, leading to anti-Semitic bias. The Department did say, however, that they will continue to closely monitor Middle East studies programs throughout the country which receive federal funding. The full story is available from the Washington Post.

Ethiopian Prime Minister wins Nobel Peace Prize: Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of Ethiopia was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize today for his efforts restoring diplomatic relations with Eritrea after years of hostilities, improving Ethiopian civil society, and empowering women. Relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea have been riddled with border conflict and ongoing tensions. Restoring diplomatic relations allows for families to reunite, and for greater cooperation between the neighbor countries on a variety of issues. Prime Minister Ahmed also lifted Ethiopia’s state of emergency, removed censorships on the media, and granted amnesty to thousands of political prisoners. Experts hope Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki will institute similar positive reforms, including reintroducing the Eritrean Constitution. Full story at the New York Times.

Turkey Begins Offensive in Syria: Despite global outcry, including bipartisan condemnation from the US, Turkey began its assault on Kurdish-controlled parts of northern Syria this week. Turkey considers the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which controls the area, to be a terrorist organization. Previously, US troops in Syria worked closely with the SDF in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS). However, President Trump has now withdrawn all US forces from Syria, allowing Turkey to move forward with an offensive against the SDF and Kurdish groups in the area. Many members of the international community are also concerned with what will happen to ISIS prisoners, who are being held in the area. Members of both parties have warned of serious national security implications, and have urged President Trump to take corrective action to protect Kurds in Syria. For the latest developments, visit BBC.

A Primer on Impeachment

Posted on

In late September, Speaker of the House, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), announced a formal impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. Impeachment is when a legislative body levels charges against a government official. Similar to an indictment, it is the first step in the process of removing a government official from office because they have committed particularly offensive crimes, such as treason or bribery.

President Trump is accused of trying to solicit personal favors by threatening to withhold foreign aid to Ukraine. This was brought to attention through a whistleblower complaint from an Intelligence Community employee.

Only two previous Presidents have ever been impeached. President Andrew Johnson was impeached in 1868, but was acquitted in the Senate. President Bill Clinton was impeached in 1998, and was also acquitted in the Senate. Articles of impeachment were approved against President Richard Nixon in 1974 following the Watergate Scandal, although he resigned before the full House could vote to impeach him. No prior President has ever been removed from office as a direct result of impeachment.

The last government official to be impeached, found guilty, and removed from office was Judge G. Thomas Porteous Jr. Formerly a Judge in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Porteous was found guilty of perjury by the Senate in 2010 and was removed from office.

For Congress to impeach the President, here are the steps of impeachment, in a nutshell.

  • First, the House opens an inquiry. Power of impeachment rests with the House of Representatives, and is enshrined in Article II, Section II of the United States Constitution.
    • One area of contention in this inquiry has been voting. Under statute, the House is not required to follow any specific procedure to conduct an impeachment inquiry. In the past, a vote in the committee was required to issue subpoenas. Now, as a result of rule changes which occurred 2015, Democratic Committee Chairpersons have unilateral subpoena power (as the majority party). A vote would give Republicans the potential to seek unilateral subpoena power for the Ranking Members of the Committees (Republicans), allowing them to call their own witnesses and potentially change the direction of the inquiry. Speaker Pelosi asserts that the House Committee Chairpersons have all the necessary tools to conduct an inquiry, making a vote redundant.
  • Next, various House committees investigate. The Committees may seek evidence through calling witnesses, issuing subpoenas, and reviewing records. They will determine whether impeachable offenses occurred. The current inquiry is centered in the House Intelligence Committee, due to the nature of the whistleblower complaint, however multiple committees, including the House Oversight and Government Reform and House Judiciary Committee, are involved in the investigation.
    • In this inquiry, the White House has instructed the Department of State not to turn over evidence to House investigators, and has forbidden Department of State employees from testifying before the House. State Department employees are ultimately lead by President Trump, creating a sticky legal dilemma. The House Committees would have to initiate legal action in a federal court to obtain evidence.
  • Afterwards, the House Judiciary Committee reviews the findings. This is done after the various Committees have reviewed their evidence. The Judiciary Committee may recommend the entire House vote on articles of impeachment. To impeach a President, the entire House of Representatives must vote by simple majority. Voting is an involved process in and of itself, as the House must agree on voting method, when to vote, etc.
  • Impeaching a President doesn’t mean they are removed from office. The Senate must hold a trial overseen by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The current Chief Justice is John Roberts. A trial can be lengthy because the Senate will need to establish procedures, review evidence, and actually agree to hold a vote. The President would then be removed if 2/3 of Senators vote in favor of removal. In this Congress, a 2/3 vote would require 12 Republican Senators, and all Democratic Senators, to vote in favor of impeachment.

Currently, the House and Senate are controlled by opposing parties. As a result, it is unlikely the Democratic-controlled House and Republican-controlled Senate would both reach the same conclusion. The inquiry has also become highly partisan, with each side accusing the other of corruption and abuse of power. However, not all evidence has been reviewed or made publicly available. As of October 8th, the White House is refusing to cooperate with the inquiry. It is unclear what will happen next, but it is important to keep in mind impeachment is an extremely difficult and lengthy process.

Edit: This post originally stated that President Richard Nixon was impeached. While the House Judiciary Committee approved three articles of impeachment, Nixon resigned before there was a vote in the House to adopt the articles. The post has been updated to reflect this.

Edit: This post originally stated that President Andrew Jackson was impeached instead of President Andrew Johnson.