Looking Ahead
Near Term
Further Out
The Week in Review
Both chambers were able to clear significant items off their to-do list before breaking for a brief recess this week. For the Senate, that work entailed confirming Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State, which was finalized on Thursday by a 57-42 margin. The former congressman and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director faced some skepticism from both sides of the aisle before being confirmed by a relatively comfortable margin. He will be facing a busy period as the State Department ramps up for talks with North Korea and the rumored American withdrawal from the nuclear deal with Iran.
For Immediate Release
Contact: Dan Bates, (503) 927-2032
Thorn Run Partners (TRP) announced today the promotion of Elizabeth Remley to Partner. Remley is part of the firm’s Portland, OR office where she has led state legislative efforts for numerous firm clients since 2012. Remley specializes in Oregon government relations services with well over a decade of deep relationships in the Legislative and Executive Branches.
Continue reading “Thorn Run Promotes Elizabeth Remley to Partner”
Looking Ahead
Near Term
The House is out today, but both chambers will be in action this week. The Senate will reconvene this afternoon for a cloture vote on the nomination of Stuart Duncan to join the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
The Week in Review
The Senate saw a relatively busy week in floor action after passing a resolution to undo guidance from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and narrowly confirming President Trump’s nominee to lead the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Meanwhile, the House approved a set of measures to guard against fraud before taking an extended weekend starting Thursday.
It’s setting up to be a quiet day on Capitol Hill after the House cleared their legislative decks yesterday and have left town for an extended weekend. In the upper chamber, Senate lawmakers only have one vote scheduled, a final up-or-down vote on the nomination of James Bridenstine to lead the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Bridenstine’s confirmation was briefly in jeopardy yesterday when Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) initially voted no on cloture for the nomination, but he was acquiesced and switched his vote when promised additional time to speak to Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo. While Democrats oppose Bridenstine over his lack of hard science credentials and skepticism of climate change, the NASA nominee is expected to be confirmed today in a party-line vote.It’s setting up to be a quiet day on Capitol Hill after the House cleared their legislative decks yesterday and have left town for an extended weekend. In the upper chamber, Senate lawmakers only have one vote scheduled, a final up-or-down vote on the nomination of James Bridenstine to lead the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Bridenstine’s confirmation was briefly in jeopardy yesterday when Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) initially voted no on cloture for the nomination, but he was acquiesced and switched his vote when promised additional time to speak to Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo. While Democrats oppose Bridenstine over his lack of hard science credentials and skepticism of climate change, the NASA nominee is expected to be confirmed today in a party-line vote.
Our Take
Much has been made over the past few weeks about the stock market’s volatility. While the market seemed to spend much of 2017 in a straight upward trajectory, since January the major indices have been marked by tremendous swings in both directions, with some analysts attributing the instability to the ad hoc nature of the current Administration’s policy making. Although the unpredictable nature of the Administration has become somewhat predictable, and therefore to an extent, manageable, last week saw a major shift as Congress was rocked by similar volatility by the announcement that Paul Ryan wouldn’t run for re-election in 2018.
Both chambers of Congress will be in session this week, although the House may break early with a scheduled three-day weekend starting on Friday. The lower chamber’s docket features three bills that will be considered pursuant to a rule, namely (1) a bill (H.R. 5192) that would provide fraud protection for vulnerable populations such as minors and recent immigrants; (2) a bill (H.R. 5444) that seeks to modernize and improve the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); and (3) a bill (H.R. 5445) that would improve cybersecurity and taxpayer identity protection and modernize information technology at the IRS. Today’s voting schedule will see six suspension votes on bills primarily related to Department of Interior issues.
The Week in Review
An eventful week in Washington culminated with the news Friday night that British, French and U.S. forces struck Syria with more than 100 missiles, the first coordinated attack by Western countries against the government led by President Bashar al-Assad. The military action was in response to an alleged poison gas attack by the Syrian government. President Donald Trump announced the military action from the White House, saying the three countries "marshaled their righteous power against barbarism and brutality."
