Congress Tries to Govern, Biden Goes to Mexico, Harris Meets with Climate Leaders
What's on the horizon the week of January 9
After losing an embarrassing 14 votes and a near fist fight on the floor of the House of Representatives, Rep Kevin McCarthy was sworn in as Speaker of the House just after midnight on Friday night. Throughout the bruising process, McCarthy made a slew of steep concessions to the hard right including coveted committee assignments for Freedom Caucus members and rules changes that would give more power to hardliners in the House Republican Caucus.
After a full week of not having a sitting Congress, in their first full day in session, Republicans took up resolutions on pressing topics like the H.R. 27, the Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act; H.R. 7., the “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2023;” and H. Con. Resolution, “Expressing support for the Nation’s law enforcement agencies and condemning any efforts to defund or dismantle law enforcement agencies.”
McCarthy will face his first big test as speaker tonight sometime after 5pm when the House reconvenes to vote on a controversial rules package that would allow a single member to call a vote to oust the sitting speaker, gut the house ethics committee, and transform the way that spending bills are introduced. The hard liners that held up McCarthy’s election as speaker are certainly happy with the new rules, but it’s unclear if any of the moderates who raised concerns about McCarthy giving up too much will raise objections to the rules package.
Biden Heads to Mexico for the North American Leaders Summit
President Biden is in Mexico City this week for the North American Leaders Summit. First the President will meet bilaterally with Mexican President President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, before the two are joined by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
While the three leaders have a full agenda of economic issues, the topic that will be covered most widely in the United States is the US-Mexico border. Last week Biden rolled out a set of harsh border policies that would expand the use of Title 42 expulsions and force asylum seekers to apply for refugee status before they reach the southern border.
Biden will be back in DC for the memorial service for former Secretary of Defense Ash Carter on Wednesday and he’ll be hosting Japanese Prime Minister Fumikok Kishida at the White House on Friday.
VP Harris Has Something Brewing on Climate Policy
Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to meet with a set of un-named “climate and environmental leaders” on Wednesday, January 11 as “the Biden-Harris Administration builds on the historic success of the last two years.” The next day Harris will travel to Ann Arbor, Michigan to discuss the administration’s work to combat the climate crisis.
It’s unclear what Harris has planned or who she will be meeting with, but putting two back-to-back climate events on the table is a sign that the administration has something brewing. Notably, the EPA will be holding a high-stakes public hearing on the Renewable Fuel Standards starting at 9am on Tuesday, January 10.
Bad Guys on Trial
It’s a busy week at the E. Barrett Prettyman Courthouse. The jury trial of Richard Barnett, the guy who was photographed with his feet on Nancy Pelosi’s desk during the January 6 attack on the Capitol started at 9:30am on Monday, January 9.
Then, on Wednesday, January 11, jury selection is scheduled to begin in the trial former Trump advisor Peter Navarro. Navarro faces charges for contempt of congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena from the January 6 Committee. He faces one count of not providing documents and one count of refusing to testify.
Policy Wonks Talk About War
Policy wonks around Washington have a busy week of discussions this week about sending other peoples’ kids to war.
The Surface Navy Association will hold its annual symposium at the Hyatt Regency in Crystal City on January 10 and 11. Reps Joe Courtney (CT-02) and Rob Wittman (VA-01) are scheduled to address the symposium at 9am on January 11.
The Atlantic Council will hold a talk on whether Ukrane should retake Crimea starting at 8am on January 11th. The virtual talk will include energy analyst Debra Cagan, retired General Wes Clark, Russian opposition politician Leonid Gomez, and former Ukrainian Defense Minister Andriy Zagorodnyuk
Rep Adam Smith will be at the Brookings Institute at 4pm on Jan 11 to give a talk on “Reflections of US Defense Policy.”
DC Police, Mayor Face Calls for Transparency After Murder of 13-Year-Old Boy
Early Saturday morning a grown man left his house on the 1000 block of Quincy St. NE to shoot and kill a 13-year-old boy he thought was breaking into cars on his street. MPD officers immediately released the name of the boy who was killed - Karon Blake - and put out a look out for two other youths who were thought to be with him but. But officers did not arrest or charge the shooter and they are currently withholding the shooter’s identity.
Mayor Bowser, who has called violence involving youth an “emergency” and DC Police are facing calls for transparency from Council Members and Community organizations. Newly elected Ward 5 Council Member Zachary Parker told Fox News 5, “I’m at a loss for words as to what would possess a resident to take matters into their own hands and take the life of a young person… I’m joining with neighbors and calling on MPD to release information and hold the individual accountable.”
The DC Safety Squad and Harriet’s Wildest Dreams has called on neighbors to come forward with information and video footage of the crime.
Mayor Bowser says she’ll be holding a closed-door summit with public and charter school principals and other educators on Wednesday.
The Supreme Court In Session
The Supreme Court is in Session this week and scheduled to hear oral arguments in four cases:
In re Grand Jury, No. 21-1397 [Arg: 1.9.2023] Issue(s): Whether a communication involving both legal and non-legal advice is protected by attorney-client privilege when obtaining or providing legal advice was one of the significant purposes behind the communication.
Ohio Adjutant General’s Department v. Federal Labor Relations Authority, No. 21-1454 [Arg: 1.9.2023] Issue(s): Whether the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, which empowers the Federal Labor Relations Authority to regulate the labor practices of federal agencies only, empower it to regulate the labor practices of state militias.
Glacier Northwest v. Int'l Brotherhood of Teamsters, No. 21-1449 [Arg: 1.10.2023] Issue(s): Whether the National Labor Relations Act impliedly preempts a state tort claim against a union for intentionally destroying an employer's property in the course of a labor dispute.
Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico v. Centro de Periodismo Investigativo, No. 22-96 [Arg: 1.11.2023] Issue(s): Whether the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act’s general grant of jurisdiction to the federal courts over claims against the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico and claims otherwise arising under PROMESA abrogate the Board’s sovereign immunity with respect to all federal and territorial claims.