Category: What We’re Reading

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

Public Impeachment Hearings: The House Intelligence Committee has been holding public hearings related to the impeachment inquiry. Key figures have had the chance to testify publicly regarding what they knew and heard in the events surrounding the infamous Ukraine call. The testimonies exclude classified information, but shed light on how career government officials interpreted President Trump’s behaviors. Live updates on CNN.

A Uniform Federal Grant Application: A report from the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs recommends a uniform federal grant application as a key tool to deter foreign influence. Supporters argue a single application would reduce administrative burden, and allow agencies to assess foreign threats against unified criteria. Full story at Science Magazine.

New Data on Study Abroad: A report from the Institute of International Education, which receives Department of State funding, shed light on the demographics of US college students who study abroad. In the last year, the total number has increased slightly, and about 16% of all college students study abroad at some point. Two-thirds of participants are women, and half study in Europe. STEM majors make up the majority of participants, at about 25%. Continue reading at Inside Higher Ed.

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

House Begins Public Impeachment Hearings: On Wednesday the House Intelligence Committee began public hearings in the impeachment inquiry into President Trump. The former US Chargé d’affaires in Ukraine Bill Taylor and the former US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affiars George Kent were the first to testify. Former Ambassador to Ukraine and career Senior Foreign Service Officer Marie Yovanovitch will testify today. More at CNN.

NIH Expanding Data Sharing Requirement: A new rule proposed by the NIH would require all investigators to make their data sets publicly available, not just those above a dollar threshold. Comments are open through January 2020, and NIH hopes to finalize the rule in the next year. More at Science Magazine.

Appeals Court Rules Against Sacred Heart University: The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit ruled that creditors can sue to have tuition returned when parents or guardians file for bankruptcy. Previously, lower court rulings were mixed and some opted to protect colleges. Now, creditors can seek payment directly from colleges when someone pays a tuition bill and then goes bankrupt. More at Wall Street Journal.

Italy Declares Emergency Over Venice Flooding: Flooding has caused significant damage in Venice, Italy, damaging historical structures and cutting power. The flooding is higher than normal, leading PM Giuseppe Conte to declare an emergency. More at BBC.

Secretary DeVos Narrowly Avoids Subpoena: The Department of Education handed over documents to the House Education Committee just hours before Chairman Bobby Scott (D-VA) was set to issue a subpoena. The House Education Committee asserts that they have been asking for documents since 2018. The documents are related to the Department of Education’s continued collection of loan payments from students who were defrauded by predatory for-profit colleges. This is the latest development in the saga which has been unfolding since last year. More at NPR.

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.

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

ISIS Leader Killed: President Trump announced that ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi was killed in a raid at the beginning of the week, and that his “likely replacement” was also killed, greatly weakening the terrorist organization. More at CBS.

American Colleges Top List of World’s Most Innovative: Reuters published their list of the world’s most innovative universities. American universities heavily dominated the list. The top five universities were all American, and included University of Washington. This represents the value of American education, and serves as a reminder of why investment in education is so important for our economy. Read more at Forbes.

House Votes on Impeachment Inquiry: The House has voted by a majority of 232-196 to formalize the rules governing an impeachment inquiry into President Trump. The inquiry is related to a whistleblower complaint and foreign policy towards Ukraine. The House has not voted to impeach President Trump. Although the new rules will allow for televised hearings and the release of witness testimony, Republicans still argue the process is unfair. More at Washington Post.

DoE Pushing AI: The Department of Energy has announced a major refocus on Artificial Intelligence, and that they will push for $3 billion-$4 billion in funding over the next decade. The goal is to keep US research as competitive as possible, and expedite further scientific discoveries. The full story is at Science Magazine.

China Convenes Gathering of Nobel Laureates: China has convened a four day gathering of Nobel Prize Laureates in Shanghai. The convention is supposedly meant to promote Chinese scientific ventures. More at The Economist.

Boeing CEO Testifies on 737 MAX: Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg testified before the House Transportation Committee on Wednesday. The testimony comes in the midst of accusations of mismanagement on the 737 MAX project. Leaked internal emails reveal that key personnel were aware of technical issues on the aircraft prior to fatal crashes in Ethiopia and Indonesia. Also this week, the union representing American Airlines flight attendants, the largest operator of the 737 MAX, published a letter demanding greater involvement before the aircraft is brought back online. More at The Hill.

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

Supreme Court Strikes Down Gerrymandering Case: The Supreme Court ruled that federal judges cannot interfere in the drawing of electoral maps, reversing a lower court decision that invalidated sections of the redrawn Michigan electoral map. The original case challenged the map as giving the GOP an unfair advantage. Full story at Roll Call.

President Trump Appoints Advisors to Science Panel: The President has made seven of sixteen appointments to the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). Almost all the nominees come from the private sector, although five hold doctoral degrees. One nominee comes directly from academia, and one nominee previously worked in the government, at the US Department of State and the National Institutes of Health. Full story at Science Magazine.

Both Sides are Unhappy about Syria Withdrawal: Bipartisan outcry over the withdrawal of US troops from Syria, which has allowed Turkey to invade Kurdish-controlled areas, is mounting. Although the President has authority over the armed forces, both chambers of Congress are preparing sanctions against Turkey as a form of condemnation. The House has already passed a resolution condemning the President’s actions. Meanwhile, Russia and Turkey have signed an agreement to control the northern Syrian border. More at Vox.

House Committee Approves Vaping Tax: In response to concerns about vaping-related deaths and illnesses, the House Ways and Means Committee approved a tax on vaping products. The tax is equal to that on tobacco and is estimated to raise $10 billion over a decade. The bill will now advance to the full House for a vote, before moving on to the Senate. See Bloomberg for more.

House Republicans Storm Secure Committee Room: As a form of protest, Republican members of Congress entered and occupied the Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) where a top Pentagon official was set to begin her deposition related to US policy towards Ukraine and the impeachment inquiry. A screaming match soon began between Republican protesters and Democrats on the committee. The Republicans accused the Democrats of conducting a sham investigation, while the Republicans stand accused of violating security protocols and trying to deflect attention away from mounting evidence against President Trump. The SCIF is designated for highly classified information, and the protesters took no apparent measures to protect any classified material in the room at the time, such as leaving electronic devices outside. More at Roll Call.

Education Secretary Held in Contempt: Federal Magistrate Judge Sallie Kim, of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, held Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos in contempt of court and issued a $100,000 fine. The Department of Education had continued to collect on loan payments made by students who attended a predatory, for-profit school, despite an order to cease collection. A group of the students are suing the Department of Education, Secretary DeVos, and the college. Full story at Politico.