The Tap: Monday, September 19, 2016

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The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.

Review of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #35 of The Tap, which was published on September 24, 2015. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

• Donald Trump announced that he had appointed Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of the Susan B. Anthony List, as the chair of his national “Pro-Life Coalition.” In a letter to anti-abortion leaders, Trump announced the appointment and outlined his views on abortion, which included “Nominating pro-life justices to the U.S. Supreme Court, signing into law the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act … defunding Planned Parenthood … making the Hyde Amendment permanent law.” The Hyde Amendment restricts federal funding of abortions through Medicaid except in cases of rape, incest, or when the mother’s life is in danger. It is not a permanent law. Instead, it has been attached to appropriations bills as a rider and reauthorized every year since 1976.
  • See also: Trump on abortion

• Trump met with Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi during a special meeting of the United Nations General Assembly. According to a readout of the meeting released by the Trump campaign, Trump “thanked President el-Sisi and the Egyptian people for what they have done in defense of their country and for the betterment of the world over the last few years. He expressed great respect for Egypt’s history and the important leadership role it has played in the Middle East.” He also, “expressed to President el-Sisi his strong support for Egypt’s war on terrorism, and how under a Trump Administration, the United States of America will be a loyal friend, not simply an ally, that Egypt can count on in the days and years ahead.” El-Sisi discussed his meeting with Trump in an interview with CNN on Thursday. When asked if Trump would make a “strong leader,” el-Sisi said, “no doubt.” When asked if he thought Hillary Clinton would make a good president, he said, “Political parties in the United States would not allow candidates to reach that level unless they are qualified to lead a country the size of the United States of America.” El-Sisi also expressed skepticism that Trump would follow through with a plan for “extreme vetting” of individuals visiting the United States from Muslim countries. He said, “During election campaigns there is a perception based on a certain vision and a point of view. Then that vision or point of view gets corrected and develops as a result of experience, reports and advice from experts.” El-Sisi spoke through a translator.
  • See also: Trump on foreign affairs and ISIS and terrorism

• In a Fox News interview with Bill O’Reilly, Trump talked about his strategy for debating Hillary Clinton at the first debate on September 26. He said, “I can talk about her deleting emails after she gets a subpoena from Congress and lots of other things. I mean I can talk about her record which is a disaster. I can talk about all she's done to help ISIS become the terror that they've become and I will be doing that. So I mean we're going to go back and forth and she's got a lot of baggage.” Trump said he does not plan to talk about Clinton’s marriage to Bill Clinton. Regarding moderator Lester Holt, he said, “Lester is a professional, but we'll see what happens ... By the way, Lester is a Democrat. It's a phony system. They are all Democrats. It's a very unfair system. I've worked pretty well within the system.” (Holt has been a registered Republican in New York since 2003.) Trump commented on Holt again on Thursday, saying, “I think he has to be a moderator. I mean, if you’re debating somebody and if she makes a mistake or I make a mistake ... we’ll take each other on. But I certainly don’t think you want Candy Crowley again.” In a 2012 debate between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, Crowley, at the time a correspondent for CNN, fact checked the candidates in the middle of the debate.
  • See also: Presidential debates (2015-2016) and Presidential debate prep teams, 2016

• The Wall Street Journal reports that major Republican donors Sheldon Adelson and Joe Ricketts plan to spend at least $6 million together in support of Trump. Adelson is planning another $40 million for Republicans in Congress. Adelson had originally pledged to spend $100 million in support of Trump. In 2012, he spent close to $100 million, backing Republicans such as Newt Gingrich and eventually Republican nominee Mitt Romney. According to CNN, these commitments are Adelson’s “first major gifts of the entire 2016 cycle.” Ricketts donated $5.5 million to the anti-Trump group Our Principles PAC during the 2016 Republican primaries.

• A group of more than 50 former national security officials and experts released a letter calling on Trump to make public his international business relationships, arguing that it has become “increasingly clear that his overseas ties could well constitute significant conflicts of interest when it comes to charting US foreign policy.” The letter added that this is “unprecedented for a candidate for the nation’s highest office.” Several of the individuals who signed the letter, such as former Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff and former Deputy National Security Advisor Robert Blackwill, also signed onto a letter from Republican national security officials announcing their opposition to Trump.
  • Trump on foreign affairs and national security

• Bill Weld, the former governor of Massachusetts and running mate for Gary Johnson, addressed rumors that he might drop out of the race in order to prevent the Libertarian ticket from taking votes away from Hillary Clinton. On Facebook, he said, “I strongly believe that our Libertarian ticket of two former two-term Governors, fiscally responsible and socially inclusive, is the best bet for America in this year’s election. Gary Johnson and I will campaign with all our strength to make that case to the American people from now until November 8th. Under no circumstances will our energies be diverted from our goal of winning the election and serving our country.” Investigative journalist Carl Bernstein tweeted on September 16, “Bill Weld could be a hero--instead of a Nader--if he renounces his own Libertarian candidacy and endorses/campaigns for HRC. Stay tuned.” Bernstein also said on CNN that Weld is “thinking about dropping out of this race if it looks like he and Johnson might get Trump elected.”

• In an interview on Fox Business, Johnson said he would close the Department of Homeland Security. “I think it’s just another layer of bureaucracy. It’s just spending more money than we have to spend. Look, we should always be looking for ways to make government more efficient. Why is it that government makes the perfect choices and business doesn’t? Well, business doesn’t and they admit it. … It was the merging of 22 separate agencies. I just think it’s corporate reorg gone bad. I would just devolve those agencies back to where they came from in the first place. I think we can all recognize the FBI has been around a long time. They have a great reputation. Going forward, this would be FBI-driven.”
  • See also: Johnson on national security

• Donald Trump Jr. tweeted an image with a Trump/Pence logo on it that said, “If I had a bowl of skittles and I told you just three would kill you. Would you take a handful? That’s our Syrian refugee problem.” The tweet attracted both criticism and support. Mars Inc., Skittles’ parent company, tweeted “Skittles are candy; refugees are people. It’s an inappropriate analogy.” The Trump campaign addressed the tweet in a statement, saying, “Speaking the truth might upset those who would rather be politically correct than safe, but the American people want a change, and only Donald Trump will do what's needed to protect us.” Trump Jr. defended the tweet. He said, “If a metaphor offends someone, I can understand that and maybe that’s the world we live in today, but I’m not comparing someone to candy, I’m using it as a – it’s a statistical thing. We have to be careful who [we] let into this country. You’ve seen what’s going on in Europe – and this is not just about terrorists, it’s about the rape statistics that have gone on there.”

• Hillary Clinton briefly met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe where they discussed U.S.-Japan relations and Abe advocated for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Although she supported the trade deal as secretary of state, Clinton opposed the agreement in its final form because it would not adequately create jobs, raise wages, or advance national security, she said in an interview in October 2015.

• The Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general found that the United States government “mistakenly granted citizenship to at least 858 immigrants from countries of concern to national security or with high rates of immigration fraud who had pending deportation orders.” The report explained that some individuals who were initially slated for deportation re-applied for citizenship using different names and birthdates. They were then granted citizenship because their fingerprints were missing from government databases, and officials were unable to properly identify the individuals. According to The New York Times, “The United States Citizenship and Immigration Service, an agency within Homeland Security that oversees citizenship, is supposed to check the fingerprints of applicants for citizenship against a number of databases to make sure that they do not have criminal records or pose a threat. But since the fingerprint databases are incomplete, the report found that the agency had no way of knowing if the individuals were actually who they said they were.”

• Key vote: The Senate unanimously passed HR 5985—the Department of Veterans Affairs Expiring Authorities Act of 2016. The bill authorizes Veterans Affairs’ services through fiscal year 2017.

State

• California Governor Jerry Brown (D) signed a bill regulating flatulence from dairy cows and other animals, mandating a reduction in hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs, which are organic compounds used in refrigeration and aerosol), and requiring a reduction in soot at landfills. Under the new law, the California Air Resources Board is allowed to regulate bovine flatulence if there are “practical ways to reduce the cows’ belching and breaking wind.” The law is designed to get California to reduce the state’s methane emissions by 40 percent before the year 2030. Methane is a colorless, odorless, flammable, naturally occurring gas that is emitted from natural and human-made sources, including wildfires, volcanoes, livestock cultivation, and natural gas extraction. To justify the new law, Brown cited the theory of human-made climate change and the role that greenhouse gases such as methane may contribute to global warming. Additionally, the law would require a 50 percent reduction of HFCs by the year 2030. Supporters of the bill, including environmental groups, have argued that the law would help reduce pollution that harms human health. Opponents of the bill, including agricultural groups, have argued that the law would force dairy farms to close or move out of state, causing job losses.
• A federal judge ordered state officials in Texas to comply with the terms of a temporary agreement regarding the state's voter identification law. In July, the United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit ruled that Texas' voter ID law violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. In August, state officials and the law's opponents reached an agreement on how best to remedy the law in light of this ruling. Under the terms of the agreement, the list of acceptable forms of voter identification expanded to include non-photo identification. In early September, however, the federal government filed a motion in federal district court to enforce the agreement, arguing that state officials were misconstruing the terms of the agreement in voter education materials and imposing a harsher standard. Federal judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos agreed and ordered state officials to comply with the agreement and amend their voter education materials accordingly.

• The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit against Colorado’s Medicaid program for denying coverage of a class of costly but effective drugs for treating patients with hepatitis C. Like many other state Medicaid programs, the agency restricts coverage of the drugs to enrollees with at least moderate liver damage. The drugs in this class, called Direct Acting Antiviral medications or DAAs, have a cure rate of 90 percent or above, but cost tens of thousands of dollars per person. The ACLU argues that denying coverage of these drugs to Medicaid patients is illegal and seeks a permanent injunction against the policy. The state Medicaid agency said its policy is “reasonable” and that some hepatitis C patients never reach advanced liver damage. Since the introduction of DAAs in 2013, Colorado’s Medicaid program has approved coverage of the drug for 413 people at a cost of $35.8 million. About 14,400 Medicaid enrollees in the state have hepatitis C. The lawsuit is one of at least six that have been filed against state Medicaid agencies across the country, challenging similar policies.

• The Missouri Supreme Court declined to hear a challenge to the proposed Amendment 2, ensuring that the campaign finance-related measure will remain on the November statewide ballot. The lawsuit claimed that Amendment 2 would violate the state constitution by including a provision creating different contribution limits for investor-owned utilities and state chartered banks than for other corporations. Amendment 2 was designed to establish limits on campaign contributions to candidates for state or judicial office. A Cole County Circuit Court judge previously ruled that the proposal was constitutional and also stated that the amendment contained a clause that allowed other provisions to remain intact even if the provision targeted by the lawsuit was found unconstitutional at a later date. The regulations proposed by Amendment 2 have been upheld in Missouri Court of Appeals twice before this lawsuit.
  • Amendment 2 is one of six statewide ballot measures on the November ballot in Missouri. The other measures include two competing tobacco tax increases, two tax-related amendments, and an amendment to allow voter ID requirements.

• Ohio House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger (R) announced state Rep. Jeffrey McClain’s (R-87) resignation from the state House. McClain is resigning to take a position as director of tax and economic policy for the Ohio Chamber of Commerce. His resignation is effective October 2. The vacant seat is expected to be filled by appointment before the legislature’s lame duck session begins on November 15. Wes Goodman (R) is running unopposed in the November general election for McClain’s seat. Ohio is one of 23 Republican trifectas, meaning that the Republican Party has control over the governorship, the state House, and the state Senate.

• In March 2016, Pennsylvania state Rep. Leslie Acosta (D-197) pleaded guilty to federal felony charges related to an embezzlement scheme involving her former boss at a mental health clinic. Acosta’s conviction remained secret until September 16, 2016, when the Philadelphia Inquirer reported on it. The Pennsylvania House Democratic caucus announced on Monday that state Rep. Acosta was taking a leave of absence from the state House. Acosta is running unopposed in the November general election. She will not be sentenced until January 2017. U.S. Rep. Robert Brady (D) has called on Acosta to resign. Pennsylvania currently has a divided government, having a Democratic governor (Tom Wolf) but a Republican-controlled House and Senate.

• Opening arguments began in the trial against Bridget Anne Kelly—former aide to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R)—and Bill Baroni, the former deputy executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Kelly and Baroni were indicted on nine charges in April 2015 over allegations that the two conspired with former Port Authority executive David Wildstein to purposely create traffic jams on the George Washington Bridge. The traffic jams were allegedly intended as retaliation against the mayor of Fort Lee, New Jersey, for declining to endorse Christie's 2013 re-election bid. Wildstein pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit fraud in January 2015 and is the prosecution's star witness against Kelly and Baroni.
  • Both the prosecution and defense have alleged that Governor Christie became aware of the lane closures on the third day they were in effect and that he helped to shield those who instigated them from subsequent investigations in order to protect his 2016 presidential aspirations. No physical evidence linking Christie to the closures has emerged; the governor has consistently maintained that he was not aware of the closures until months after the fact. New Jersey currently has a divided government: Democrats hold majorities both chambers of the state legislature. Christie is term-limited and ineligible to run for re-election in 2017.

Local

• In Charlotte, North Carolina, Mayor Jennifer Roberts (D) announced that the city would not repeal its nondiscrimination ordinance. Republican legislative leaders stated they would repeal the Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act (HB2) if the city repeals its ordinance. Local business leaders have blamed the state law for recent economic damage to the city and state. Since the adoption of HB2, the NBA All-Star game and the championship games of both the Atlantic Coast Conference and NCAA have been pulled from Charlotte. Several business conferences and high-profile concerts have also canceled events in the city. The Charlotte Chamber of Commerce and the North Carolina Restaurant & Lodging Association expressed disappointment in the city’s decision, citing concerns of further economic damage. The legality of Roberts’ decision, however, was supported by the city attorney, who issued a memo stating that a repeal of the city's ordinance was not necessary for a repeal of the state law. The decision was also supported by state Attorney General Roy Cooper, who is running as the Democratic nominee in the November 2016 gubernatorial election against incumbent Gov. Pat McCrory (R). Gov. McCrory and Republican legislative leaders accused Mayor Roberts of “playing politics” and condemned the decision. Charlotte is the largest city in North Carolina and the 16th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
  • The complicated relationship between Charlotte’s nondiscrimination ordinance and HB2 began in February 2016.
    • The ordinance was passed by the Charlotte City Council in February 2016 by a 7-4 vote. It expanded nondiscrimination protections for LGBT people in the city and allowed transgender individuals to use the bathroom of the gender with which they identify.
    • The ordinance was nullified before it could take effect when the North Carolina State Legislature passed HB2. The bill was drafted in response to Charlotte’s city ordinance and prohibits transgender individuals from using a bathroom that does not match their gender at birth. HB2 was signed into law by Gov. McCrory in March 2016.
• A Miami neighborhood was declared free of the Zika virus by Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R). The Zika Zone designation was lifted from Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood, and Scott urged tourists to return to the area. Federal health officials, however, warned pregnant women and their partners to avoid any travel to Miami-Dade County. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) acknowledged the economic impact such travel bans can cause and announced that it would modify its travel warning directly after Scott’s press conference. On September 16, 2016, the Miami Herald filed a lawsuit against Miami-Dade County seeking the release of five locations where Zika-carrying mosquitoes had been identified since August 2016. Only one of the locations has been made public by the county. As of September 19, 2016, 219 cases of Zika were reported in Miami-Dade. Miami is the second-largest city in Florida and the 44th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
• Teachers in Yuba City, California, returned to school following a seven-day strike. After a year of compensation negotiations, teachers in the Yuba City Unified School District went on the strike starting on September 8, 2016, after the Yuba City Teachers Association rejected the district's most recent compensation offer. The union requested a 13 percent pay increase for teachers in order to bring compensation levels closer to the state's average. The average teacher salary for the district during the 2014-2015 school year was $64,165, while the average for the state during that school year was $74,090.

Preview of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #34 of The Tap, which was published on September 17, 2016. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

• The Senate is expected to vote on a continuing resolution to fund the government. The short-term funding bill is expected to last through December 9. Congress must pass legislation to fund the government by October 1 in order to avoid a shutdown.

State

• Opening arguments begin in the trial against Bridget Anne Kelly—former aide to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R)—and Bill Baroni, the former deputy executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Jury selection began last week. Kelly and Baroni were indicted on nine charges in April 2015, including conspiracy to commit fraud, over allegations that the two conspired with former Port Authority executive David Wildstein to purposely create traffic jams on the George Washington Bridge. The traffic jams were allegedly intended as retaliation against the mayor of Fort Lee, New Jersey, for declining to endorse Christie's 2013 re-election bid. Wildstein pleaded guilty to two charges of conspiracy in January 2015; both Kelly and Baroni have maintained their innocence.

• Governor Christie has also denied any involvement, stating that the employees acted alone and without his knowledge. However, Wildstein's lawyer has publicly stated that there is evidence that Christie did have prior knowledge of the plan. Christie told reporters in August 2016 that he would testify if subpoenaed; it is unclear if he will. Christie is term-limited from running for re-election in 2017.