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THIS (LAST) WEEK IN CONGRESS: Last Week In The Shadow Of Roe & NEW 1 [1]
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Date: 2022-06-28 00:00:00
Must Watch TV!
This Last Week In Congress ( T LWIC)
Your One Stop Shop For Learning What Our Congress Critters Are Up To!
Every week Congress is in session (usually on Sunday evening or Monday morning) I recap the previous week’s important legislative and committee activity and look ahead to what Congress has planned for the coming week, with my 2 cents of opinion from time to time of course. Of course there is no Congressional activity going on this week due to the impending Independence Day holiday, except for the SURPRISE 1/6 HEARING, so I will mainly cover what happened last week. I will try to catch you up on what the Congress did in the shadow of the Roe SCOTUS decision, as well as speculate on the new 1/6 Hearing. But yes, I will touch upon Roe a bit with respect to Congress, since it’s hard to ignore the elephant in the room.
Hope you find it both informative and worthy of recommending and discussion in the comments section.
Sorry for the late post (I know it’s not Monday) But I’m on vacation.
Here Are The Previous Week’s Headlines :
House & Senate Pass Bipartisan Safer Communities Act!
__________________________________________________________________________________
Jan. 6 Committee — HEARINGS #4 & #5! - Trump Pressure On State Election Folks & DoJ, LORDY There’s Trump Video Tapes, Johnson In Trouble & DoJ Kicks It Into High Gear!
Legislative Activity -
House :
1. 6/22/22 — House Resolution 6538 (H.R. 6538) - Vote on Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass, as Amended H.R.6538 - Active Shooter Alert Act of 2022 — This bill requires a designated officer of the Department of Justice to act as the national coordinator of an Active Shooter Alert Communications Network regarding an emergency involving an active shooter.
The bill sets forth duties of the coordinator, including to work with state, tribal, and local governments to encourage coordination of various elements of the network. The coordinator must also encourage federal, state, local, and tribal government agencies to establish procedures for responding to active shooters.
Finally, the bill requires the Government Accountability Office to study and report on state and local responses to active shooters and situations requiring the issuance of a public alert or warning. (You can read the Full Text of this Bill HERE.)
Democrats- 215 Yes 1 No 0 Present 3 Not Voting
Republicans- 44 Yes 161 No 0 Present 5 Not Voting
Independents- 0 Yes 0 No 0 Present 0 Not Voting
Totals- 259 Yes 162 No 0 Present 8 Not Voting
FAILED (2/3s Required For Passage)
Voting Details HERE.
2. 6/24/22 — Senate Resolution 2938 (S. 2938) - Vote on Concurring in the Senate Amendments to the House Amendment to S.2938 - Bipartisan Safer Communities Act — This bill provides:
SUPPORT FOR STATE CRISIS INTERVENTION ORDERS
PROTECTIONS FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE (Closes Boyfriend Loophole)
CLARIFIED DEFINITION OF 'FEDERALLY LICENSED FIREARMS DEALER'
UNDER 21 ENHANCED REVIEW PROCESS (Enhance Background Checks)
PENALTIES FOR 'STRAW PURCHASING'
VIOLENCE INTERRUPTION FUNDING
INVESTMENT IN CHILDREN AND FAMILY MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES and
INCREASED FUNDING FOR SCHOOLS
Senator Chris Murphy has posted a more complete 3 page summary of the Bill which you can access HERE. (You can read the Full text of the Bill containing the Senate Amendment HERE.)
Democrats- 220 Yes 0 No 0 Present 1 Not Voting
Republicans- 14 Yes 193 No 0 Present 3 Not Voting
Independents- 0 Yes 0 No 0 Present 0 Not Voting
Totals- 234 Yes 193 No 0 Present 3 Not Voting
PASSED
Voting Details HERE.
Details & Commentary —
- H.R.6538 - Active Shooter Alert Act — This Bill really has nothing to do with the “right” to bare arms at all, but it does have the word “shooting” in the title which is all most Republicans need to hear about a Bill generated by Democrats (if Democrats came up with a Bill dealing with shooting, it must be bad). The Bill would simply provide Federal expertise to State, Local and Tribal Officials on to deal with mass shootings when they occur, and to help them develop plans on how to handle them in advance. It is simply a Bill to help prevent the law enforcement debacle that happened in Uvalde from happening again. You would think everyone would want that, Everyone but 161 Republicans and 1 Democrat, (I’ll get to that later). Maybe it had some obscure gun safety measure hidden in the Bill that the Republicans considered NRA poison, or maybe they just don’t want the Federal government meddling in local police matters, or maybe it was just their knee jerk reaction to the Democrats’ “Shooting” Bill. I don’t know. But since the Bill was brought up under suspension of the rules (a way to fast-track a Bill through the House) and as such required a 2/3s majority to pass, it can be brought up later under “regular order” and passed by a simple majority. BTW, the sole Democrat who voted “no” on this Bill was Mr. Kind of Wisconsin, for reasons?
- S.2938 - Bipartisan Safer Communities Act — So the House concurred with the Senate’s Gun Safety/Mental Health Bill (more on the Bill itself below under the Senate section) as if they had a choice. While the vote was unanimous among House Democrats, 193 Republicans voted against it and 14 Republicans voted for it. I keep vacillating between whether I should be appalled that 193 Republicans voted against this highly watered down gun safety Bill or amazed that 14 Republicans actually voted for it.
Senate :
Legislation —
1. 6/23/22 — Senate Resolution 2938 (S. 2938) - Vote on the Motion to Concur in the House amendment to S. 2938 with an amendment (Amdt. No. 5099); An act to make our communities safer. — This amended bill provides:
SUPPORT FOR STATE CRISIS INTERVENTION ORDERS
PROTECTIONS FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE (Closes Boyfriend Loophole)
CLARIFIED DEFINITION OF 'FEDERALLY LICENSED FIREARMS DEALER'
UNDER 21 ENHANCED REVIEW PROCESS (Enhance Background Checks)
PENALTIES FOR 'STRAW PURCHASING'
VIOLENCE INTERRUPTION FUNDING
INVESTMENT IN CHILDREN AND FAMILY MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES and
INCREASED FUNDING FOR SCHOOLS
Senator Chris Murphy has posted a more complete 3 page summary of the Bill which you can access HERE. (You can read the Full text of the Bill containing the Senate Amendment HERE.)
Democrats- 48 Yes 0 No 0 Present 0 Not Voting
Republicans- 15 Yes 33 No 0 Present 2 Not Voting
Independents- 2 Yes 0 No 0 Present 0 Not Voting
Totals- 65 Yes 33 No 0 Present 2 Not Voting
PASSED
Voting Details HERE.
Details & Commentary —
- S.2938 - Bipartisan Safer Communities Act — Well after a 65 to 34 Cloture Vote (60 votes needed to end limit debate) the Senate passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act with little fanfare that ended up being totally overshadowed by the SCOTUS Roe decision. Looking at the contents of the Bill, I find myself feeling both pessimistic and optimistic at the same time.
The pessimistic part of me focuses on the fact that this Bill only contains only a smattering of gun safety provisions (none of which is any type of assault weapons ban or large magazine limits) which are not likely to put a significant dent in frequency/severity of mass shootings in this Country. Furthermore, it seems unlikely to me that this SCOTUS will let even these minor gun safety provisions stand when the NRA inevitably challenges the law in court on behalf of the Gun Industry.
However, the optimistic part of me feels good is that for the first time in over a decade we were finally able to push and embarrass enough Senate Republicans into supporting any sort of Gun Safety legislation to get this minor Bill passed. It also makes me feel good that we got some important mental health aid through, which Republicans saw as the only solution to our mass shooting problem. Also, I guess there is some political benefit for the mid-terms from the fact that there is still a lot of majorly important gun safety issues left to run on (e.g., assault weapons ban, large magazine limits, etc.).
So in the end, I end up feeling that something is better than nothing, but we can’t let the Republicans paint this as the end of gun reform, when from our perspective and in reality this is only the beginning of the legislation needed to prevent mass shootings.
Nominations — There were two (2) Biden nominee confirmed last week.
1. Confirmation: Ana Isabel de Alba, of California, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of California — Vote 53-45.
2. Confirmation: Mary T. Boyle, of Maryland, to be a Commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety Commission — Vote 50-48.
Committee Activity :
House :
House Jan. 6 Select Committee : More Bombshells go off from the Committee’s two Public Hearings this week. Since most, if not all of you either watched the two Hearings in their entirety or watched highlighted clips and/or read numerous articles and DK Posts detailing the Hearings, I have nothing more to add that you have not already heard. So instead of me writing gobs and gobs about what happened in these Hearings, I will just post links to various DK Posts on these two Hearings that I think present a decent summary and/or raise important points, followed by my take-a-ways from the two Hearings. So here we go….
- 6/21/22 — Public Hearing #4 — In case you missed it or would just like to view it again, here is the C-Span Link to the June 21 Hearing. Now onto the DK Posts:
1. LIVE: Follow along with the Jan. 6 committee for its fourth day of hearings
2. Jan. 6 committee unpacks fake electors and pressure lobbed on state officials for fourth hearing
3. LIVE: Follow along with the Jan. 6 committee for its fourth day of hearings, #2
4. Ex-Watergate prosecutor: Trump's infamous call to Brad Raffensperger is enough to send him to prison
5. Arizona Speaker describes how Trump’s Big Lie caused his family to be harassed as daughter was dying
6. Former election worker Shaye Moss' Jan. 6 testimony reveals terrifying consequences of Big Lie
7. Witnesses help tie Trump directly to bogus elector scheme during day of intense testimony
8. Abbreviated Pundit Roundup: Another hearing, another day of compelling testimony
9. Ruby Freeman and daughter Shaye Moss were defamed and berated. Trump, Giuliani are to blame
My Take-A-Ways From The 6/21 Hearing —
1. Georgia Officials — Although much of what Brad Raffensperger testified to we already knew, I couldn’t help but wonder if we were hearing more or less or the same as what Raffensperger and other Georgia Election Officials told the Grand Jury empaneled in Fulton County. I expect less, because these Georgia Officials spent hours/days in front of the Grand Jury not just a couple hours as was the case in front of the Committee. So I would guess we got the highlights while the Grand Jury got all the gory details. I also wonder if the Jury members were barred from watching this Hearing, and if so, whether any watched it anyway out of sheer curiosity?
2. Arizona Speaker — We learned for the first time how Arizona state Speaker of the House Russell “Rusty” Bowers, a staunch conservative Republican, was ferociously harassed by MAGA Thugs outside his home while his daughter lie inside, gravely ill. MAGA Thugs who were motivated to harass this poor man and his family by Trump. I was very disgusted.
3. Ruby & Shay — Two innocent Election Workers (earning next to nothing for their public service) who unbelievably had their lives upended and destroyed over a component of the BIG LIE! The ramifications on getting honest future poll workers like these two fine women struck me as a potential major problem going forward.
- 6/23/22 — Public Hearing #5 — In case you missed it or would just like to view it again, here is the C-Span Link to the June 23 Hearing. Now onto the DK Posts:
Other “Non-Hearing” Committee Related News (with links) :
- Lordy, Lordy just like in Watergate THERE BE TAPES! — Documentary filmmaker agrees to provide Trump interviews and unseen footage from Jan. 6
Tapes like in the Nixon’s case Trump stupidly authorized. But unlike Nixon, these are not just audio, but video tapes. Looking forward to seeing them soon!
— Senator Ron Johnson in Hot Water — Jan. 6 committee opens can of worms for Republican senator and
Sen. Ron Johnson seems to have been caught red-handed by Jan. 6 committee with fraudulent docs
— DoJ On The Move — Fake Trump electors who signed onto Jan. 6 scheme get rewarded with subpoenas from the FBI
DOJ moves on multiple fronts as FBI hands out subpoenas and searches home of Jeffrey Clark
FBI Seizes Eastman’s Phone
DoJ who was seemingly doing little or nothing a month ago with respect to going after higher ups in the plot, has apparently suddenly shifted into high gear. Why? Who knows? But they have definitely picked up the pace considerably. Could this mean indictments of higher ups before the mid-terms? A few weeks ago I would have said that definitely was not in the cards, but now I’m not too sure.
Senate : No significant Committee activity last week.
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