70+ votes for immigration reform in the Senate? That sounds rather crazy, but John McCain thinks “it’s doable.” There’s a feeling amongst some of the senators working on the legislation that if the bill gains majority support from both parties in the Senate, the House won’t have any choice but to put it to a vote. We are skeptical that either of those things will happen, let alone both. source
Finally, Congress will reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act: The legislation, dreamed up and championed in 1994 by then-Senator Joe Biden, died in the House last year when the Republican leadership refused to put it to a vote (it had already passed the Senate). The problem, if you want to put it that way, was that Senate Democrats had modified the legislation to add protections for LGBT women, Native Americans and undocumented immigrants. John Boehner and company objected to these additions so strongly that they refused to let the House vote on it, despite indications that it would pass if they did. Today, Boehner relented, and will allow the House to vote on the bill. It’s expected to pass and will likely land on the President’s desk at the end of the week. (Photo: Getty images) source
Because the sequester is (and is likely to continue to be) very ill-defined in the minds of most Americans, the politics of it will devolve into a popularity contest between the major players. Which gets us to the fact that Obama is at (or close to) his high-water mark in terms of job approval, while Congress sits in political reporter/used car salesman territory.The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza, theorizing that there’s no way possible way Congress can win the sequester battle against President Obama. The thinking here is is based on three premises: One, that Obama believes the sequester ultimately will not be avoided, because Congress is dysfunctional and if they could have struck a deal on these cuts, there wouldn’t have been a sequester to begin with; two, that effects of the sequestered cuts will be felt by many Americans once they come into effect; and three, that Obama is significantly more popular than Congress. Given these three assumptions, it seems reasonable enough to conclude that if the sequester happens, Congress—and the GOP-led House of Representatives—will be blamed by the American public. It’s not a bad theory, though it’s still quite speculative given the assumptions. More information on the sequester here. source
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor tweeting in support of Dream Act during State of the Union.
This seems rather significant, no?
I need this job like I need a hole in the head.House Speaker John Boehner - WSJ (via brooklynmutt)
Meet U.S. Representative Kyrsten Sinema, from Arizona’s 9th district. Labeled by her Republican opponent as an anti-American “pagan hippie,” Sinema is both the first openly bisexual member of Congress and the first member of Congress to publicly describe her religion as “none.”
Sinema, a former social worker and criminal defense lawyer, proves that honesty about one’s beliefs and identity does not doom one to political irrelevance.
This, in 2012, seemed both long overdue and increasingly inevitable. A lot of really big, really important “firsts” in our politics last year, in the forms of some very worthy and exciting new figures.
House is currently voting on Fiscal Cliff legislation. It’s like watching grass grow. It’s mesmerizing. (In case you’re wondering, though there were some rumbles of changing things earlier, it’s a straight vote on the Senate legislation.)
UPDATE: The bill passed. Image has been updated to show the moment where it hit a majority.
The US House will miss the midnight Monday deadline lawmakers set for voting to avoid the “fiscal cliff.”
House Republicans notified lawmakers that the chamber will vote Monday evening on other bills. They say that will be their only votes of the day, the Associated Press and others reported.
It remained unclear whether the Senate would vote Monday.
Congress could pass later legislation retroactively blocking the tax hikes and spending cuts.
More from the Associated Press here.
As we predicted, the ball already dropped. No need to watch TV tonight. Dick Clark (RIP) won’t be on anyway, sadly. :(
The Republican Study Committee, a caucus of Republicans in the House of Representatives, has told staffer Derek Khanna that he will be out of a job when Congress re-convenes in January. The incoming chairman of the RSC, Steve Scalise (R-LA) was approached by several Republican members of Congress who were upset about a memo Khanna wrote advocating reform of copyright law. They asked that Khanna not be retained, and Scalise agreed to their request.
The release and subsequent retraction of Khanna’s memo has made waves in tech policy circles. The document argues that the copyright regime has become too favorable to the interests of copyright holders and does not adequately serve the public interest. It advocates several key reforms, including reducing copyright terms and limiting the draconian “statutory damages” that can reach as high as $150,000 per infringing work.
Mind you, tech scholars and the public thought this idea was great. But content groups? They said no, and now this dude is out of a job. Ouch.
An extraordinary picture of a house in the middle of a newly built road in Wenling, Zhejiang province, China. An elderly couple refused to sign an agreement to allow their house to be demolished. They say that compensation offered is not enough to cover rebuilding costs. This and all the best news images from Thursday here: Photograph: China Daily/Reuters
Don’t be surprised if this image becomes iconic among U.S. opponents of eminent domain.
I can’t add much to what’s already been (and will be) ...
One of the perks of being an early employee...
Over the last 90 days, the Digg...
#FMMDI (at 30 Rockefeller Plaza)
Thanks. I guess my thoughts are as follows:
1. I think...
Of course she’s not stepping down: Nancy Pelosi announced today that she will run for Minority Leader in the House next session, thus perpetuating her reign as one of the most powerful Democrats in the country. There was a bit of doubt that she’d stick around, really, this wasn’t terribly unexpected. source
Crowded cities test micro apartments
(Photo: Nightly News)
Cities such as New York and San Francisco are developing living spaces that are 200 to 300 square feet for residents willing to pare down to the bare essentials. NBC’s Kristen Dahlgren reports.
Would you consider living in a micro apartment?
True story: The first apartment I looked at when moving to DC was about this big. It also cost $1,400 a month.
Rates were set to double at the end of the month, but a huge package negotiated by Democrats and Republicans will retain the low(er) rates for another year (this only applies to federally-backed loans). The legislation passed the House and Senate today, and the White House has indicated that President Obama will sign it. So, yay! There’s a lot more policy in the bill, too, including extensions of federal highway programs and national flood insurance.
Eric Holder facing contempt resolution: With the ongoing “Fast and Furious” gun-trafficking saga reaching a head in Congress, Holder will likely face a contempt resolution from the the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform — the one led by Rep. Darrell Issa, one of the harshest “Fast and Furious” critics. Holder knows what’s coming — he sent a letter to Obama asking the president to claim executive privilege on the documents in the case, which the president granted (though the committee hasn’t received). Problem is, the committee is still moving forward — in particular, Issa won’t back down. Sweat, meet brow. (photo by Ryan J. Reilly) source
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