More Cabinet Positions, House Works on Reg Repeal

Posted on February 13, 2017February 13, 2017

Steven Mnuchin, Trump’s nominee for Treasury Secretary, will get a vote around 7 p.m. tonight in what’s become a drawn-out process in the Senate. Following the final vote on Mnunchin there will a procedural vote on on David Shulkin to be Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

Mnunchin is expected to pass and once he does the Treasury Secretary is expected take on a big lift immediately as President Trump has promised to unveil a big tax-cutting plan in coming weeks. Whatever is reveals, it is sure to set off a partisan firestorm. It will fall to Mnuchin to translate the President’s campaign promises on tax relief for all individuals and corporations into legislation that might be approved by a politically polarized Congress.

As early as this week, the Senate is also likely to confirm Rep. Mick Mulvaney as the new White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director. Mulvaney, a founding member of the hardline conservative House Freedom Caucus, is also sure to rankle defense hawks worried about military spending.

Trump has promised to increase defense spending to boost a military force, so even if Mulvaney supports reining in all federal spending, the defense budget is likely to increase by tens of billions of dollars above current levels in each of the next few years. The Pentagon is expect to seek tens of billions of dollars from Congress to implement Trump’s vow to rebuild the military.

It is expected that the Senate will vote on at least on other nominee this week — either Perry, Pruitt, or Zinke — but no other nominees have not been scheduled for a vote thus far.

Meanwhile, the next big nomination fight over President Trump’s Cabinet nominees is moving from Betsy DeVos to Andrew Puzder, who will appear before the Senate HELP Committee on Thursday. The hearing has been delayed four times while the Office of Government Ethics awaited paperwork. It took some time to work out a plan to divest holdings in CKE Restaurants, the fast-food company (parent to the Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s chains) of which Puzder is chairman.

On the other side of the Hill, the House convenes at noon to consider a bill on surveying the boundary along the Red River in Oklahoma and Texas. Later this week, the House is expected to take up five “disapproval resolutions” to roll back rules undertaken during the Obama Administration including two Labor Department rules on savings arrangements for non-governmental employees and a resolution that would disapprove the District of Columbia Council’s approving the Death with Dignity Act of 2016.

What We’re Reading This Week, February 6 -10

Posted on February 10, 2017February 13, 2017

Here’s a selection of articles the Federal Relations team is reading this week.

Nominees – As Trump’s cabinet moves on through the Senate to be confirmed, it is confusing as to who has been confirmed when. Read about the status in The Washington Post.

Whither Funding? – The appropriations process this year will be a tough slog and there are many variables. There have been accounts of particular concern, like the EPA and NASA Earth Science. How will the House Appropriators handle some of these programs given the rhetoric coming from the Trump Administration? One senior Republican House Appropriator, Rep. John Culberson (R-TX), has committed support to NASA Earth Science. Read more in Science Policy.

No Mas Sanctuary – Cities refusing to help enforce US immigration law are already under pressure from the Trump Administration, which has threatened to pull federal funding. Now, some could lose state money as well. A Texas bill that would require local municipalities to comply with federal immigration authorities cleared a major hurdle Wednesday when it passed a final Senate vote on party lines…and this isn’t the only state legislature looking at bills like this. Read more in The Wall Street Journal.

Indivisible Rocking Republicans – Dubbed the liberal version of the Tea Party, the group called “Indivisible” is rocking Republicans through their highly organized tactics and efforts. The group is helping local protesters storm local Congressional offices through physical visits and clogging phone lines (both from constituents and out of state activists). Members are beefing up their physical protection from demonstrators. Founded by former Democratic staffers, who saw first-hand the impact of the Tea Party on the Obama agenda, they are organized, they are strategic, and they are getting Member’s attention. Read more in Politico.

Crashed – Following remarks by Trump Senior Advisor Kellyann Conway in support of Ivanka Trump’s clothing brand, the Government Ethics website was crashed and was down for several hours on Thursday after it reported a surge in contacts from members of the public. Read more in The Hill.

Republicans 4 Climate Change – A group of Republican elder statesmen are calling for a tax on carbon emissions to fight climate change. The group, led by former Secretary of State James A. Baker III, with former Secretary of State George P. Shultz and Henry M. Paulson Jr., a former Secretary of the Treasury, says that taxing carbon pollution produced by burning fossil fuels is “a conservative climate solution” based on free-market principles. Mr. Baker is scheduled to meet on Wednesday with White House officials, including Vice President Mike Pence, Jared Kushner , the senior adviser to the president, and Gary D. Cohn, director of the National Economic Council, as well as Ivanka Trump. Read more in The New York Times.

Fissures and Cracks – Congressional Republicans are divided over how best to repeal and replace Obamacare, a discussion that highlighted the vast divisions among the GOP rank-in-file as pressure mounts to develop repeal and replacement strategies and mechanisms. Read more in Politico.

Farm Bust – Soon there will be fewer than two million farms in America for the first time since pioneers moved westward after the Louisiana Purchase. Across the heartland, a multiyear slump in prices for corn, wheat and other farm commodities brought on by a glut of grain world-wide is pushing many farmers further into debt. Some are shutting down, raising concerns that the next few years could bring the biggest wave of farm closures since the 1980s. Read more in The Wall Street Journal.

DeVos on Higher Ed – As Education Secretary Betsy DeVos began her first full day on the job Wednesday, college leaders and analysts were watching for signs of where the Trump administration stands on student debt, for-profit regulations and other higher education issues. DeVos, whom the Senate narrowly confirmed Tuesday, has been somewhat vague about her vision for higher ed, although that sector accounts for a significant share of the work of the Education Department. Read more from in The Washington Post.

GOP Gets Bolder – Congressional Republicans are becoming more critical of President Trump amid the shaky rollout of his executive order on immigration and the lack of clear progress on his legislative agenda. Read more in The Hill.

Appeals Court Upholds Decision on Travel Ban

Posted on February 10, 2017

A three-judge panel in the Ninth Circuit of Appeals kept in place Thursday a temporary restraining order against the Trump Administration executive order that sought, among other things, to bar visa holders from seven nations from entering the United States. The original order was issued by a federal district judge in Western Washington after a suit against the ban was filed by the states of Washington and Minnesota. The initial suit by Washington and Minnesota included declarations from a number of educational entities, including the University of Washington and Washington State University.

The decision primarily focused on the question of whether the ban should be blocked while the legality of the policy behind the ban is examined. The judges ruled unanimously against the various arguments offered by the Administration.

The Administration is now weighing its next steps in the process.

Price Confirmed, Mnuchin Next

Posted on February 10, 2017February 10, 2017

In the wee hours of the morning (just after 2 am), the Senate voted 52-47 to approve the nomination of Rep. Tom Price as Secretary of Health and Human Services. Price had solid backing from Senate Republicans. The chamber’s Democrats delayed the final vote by holding the floor for the full 30 hours permitted to them under Senate rules, continuing a tactic they utilized for two other Cabinet nominations this week.

The former Republican House Budget Committee Chairman is expected to move quickly to help Republicans substantially revise the ACA.

Shortly after, the Senate voted to limit debate on Treasury Secretary nominee Steven Mnchin by a 53-46 vote. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) broke ranks and voted with the Republicans, while Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) sat out the vote. The vote to limit debate on Mnuchin’s nomination moves him one step closer to confirmation. As with all other nominees, Senate Democrats now have the right to debate for 30 hours before moving to a final vote.

Senate Democrats have fiercely opposed Mnuchin’s nomination. They refused to show up to the committee-level vote on his confirmation after arguing that the nominee provided insufficient answers to their questions on foreclosures by the bank he once led, OneWest. Republicans slammed Democrats as being obstructionists. The Senate is expected to have a final vote on Monday.

On February 16, the Senate Finance Committee also will hold its first hearing on the nomination of Seema Verma to become the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

DeVos’ First Day

Posted on February 9, 2017February 9, 2017

Wednesday was the first day for newly confirmed Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos. She spent her first day meeting staffers and touring the department as well as addressing all staff. In her address, DeVos sought to move beyond the contentious confirmation process and unite the department, which she acknowledged likely has some staffers who disagree with her on issues. She pledged to listen fully and respect their professional opinion.

Read the full remarks here.

No word yet on an Under Secretary of Education nominee or an agenda for the higher education task force led by Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr.