Keep up with what’s happening in DC. Below is a selection of articles the Federal Relations team read this week.
Breonna Taylor: Protests erupted across the US after a grand jury declined to indict three Louisville police officers following in the death of Breonna Taylor in her home. One officer, Brett Hankinson, was charged with wanton endangerment for firing shots into another apartment. Live updates.
DeVos Under Investigation: It was reported that Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos is under investigation by the US Office of the Special Counsel for violating the Hatch Act by using government resources to campaign for the President. Inquiries were prompted after Department officials distributed a clip of the Secretary criticizing Presidential candidate Joe Biden as part of official communications. More here.
RBG: Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was the first woman ever to lie in state on Friday at the US Capitol. Read here.
Supreme Court Nominee: Amy Coney Barrett was nominated by the President to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Supreme Court vacancy. After Senator Romney (R-UT) backed a floor vote on a new SCOTUS nominee, Majority Leader McConnell now has enough votes to proceed, potentially before the election. Only two Members, Sen. Murkowski (R-AK) and Sen. Collins (R-ME) said they would not support a vote before the election, in recognition that Republicans blocked a vote during the last Presidential election year. Barrett will still have to undergo a confirmation hearing and vote. Updates here.
Census: US District Judge for the Northern District of California Lucy Koh ordered the census to continue counting until the original October 31st deadline. Full story.