The Tap: Tuesday, January 3, 2017

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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 #47 of The Tap, which was published on January 7, 2017. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

Welcome to Congress

• The 115th Congress convened on January 3, and new members were sworn in. Seven newly elected senators were sworn in, two of whom previously served in the 114th Congress as representatives. In the House, 52 newly elected representatives took office alongside a new resident commissioner from Puerto Rico. Freshman representatives will make up 12.6 percent of the membership of the House. This is down slightly from the last two congresses. The 114th House was made up of 13.8 percent freshmen, while the 113th House was 16.1 percent freshmen.
  • House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) were easily re-elected to their leadership positions. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) was the only Republican who did not vote for Ryan, instead casting his vote for Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.). Pelosi won all but four votes from her Democratic colleagues. Reps. Jim Cooper (D-Tenn.) and Kathleen Rice (D-N.Y.) voted for Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio). Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.) voted for Cooper, and Rep. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) voted for Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.).

Congressional Ethics

• On January 2, 2017, the House Republican conference voted to give the House ethics committee oversight over the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE), a nonpartisan and independent federal office that investigates potential ethics violations by members of the House. The proposal sought to remove the OCE’s authority to disclose its reports to the public and prohibited the OCE from employing a spokesperson and pursuing investigations based on anonymous tips. On January 3, however, the conference nixed the changes after receiving criticism from both Democrats and Republicans—including President-elect Trump, who tweeted, “With all that Congress has to work on, do they really have to make the weakening of the Independent Ethics Watchdog, as unfair as it may be, their number one act and priority. Focus on tax reform, healthcare and so many other things of far greater importance!” Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), who proposed the changes, said in a statement on Monday, “The amendment ... improves upon due process rights for individuals under investigation, as well as witnesses called to testify. The OCE has a serious and important role in the House, and this amendment does nothing to impede their work.” Read more here.

You’re Hired

• Trump announced his intentions to nominate international trade lawyer Robert Lighthizer as U.S. trade representative (USTR). Created in 1962, the Office of USTR plays a direct role in U.S. trade policy by negotiating with foreign governments and businesses, resolving disputes, representing the country in international trade policy organizations, and advising the president. The position requires Senate confirmation. Lighthizer is currently an attorney at the firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher, and Flom, where he specializes in international trade. He has a background in government and politics. Under the Reagan administration, he served as a deputy USTR and was the chief of staff of the Senate finance committee. In 1996, he was the national treasurer for Republican Bob Dole’s 1996 presidential campaign. Read more about Lightizer and his views on international trade policy here.

The Affordable Care Act Battle

• Republican Sen. Mike Enzi (Wyo.) began the process of repealing the Affordable Care Act by introducing a budget resolution that would repeal parts of the law that deal with the budget or taxes. Republicans cannot simply repeal the law because they need 60 votes in the Senate to do so; they would need eight other members to vote with them for a full repeal of the law. The budget resolution would phase out Obamacare while giving Republican lawmakers time to find what they consider a suitable replacement.

You can see a list of proposed alternatives to Obamacare here.

SCOTUS WATCH

• In an interview with MSNBC, new Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) indicated that Senate Democrats would uniformly vote against any Trump nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court who was not what Schumer called mainstream. Schumer said, “We are not going to settle on a Supreme Court nominee. If they don’t appoint someone who’s really good, we’re gonna oppose him tooth and nail. … It’s hard for me to imagine a nominee that Donald Trump would choose that would get Republican support that we could support.” When asked if he would work to hold the seat open, Schumer replied, “Absolutely.”

Read on to see a full list of those Trump is considering for nomination to the Supreme Court.

You’re Hired

• Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt (R), President-elect Donald Trump's pick for Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator, met with Republican members of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, which will hold confirmation hearings and vote on Pruitt's nomination before he receives a full vote in the U.S. Senate. Pruitt met with Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), the outgoing committee chairman, and Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), the committee chairman for the 115th Congress (2017-2018). After speaking with Senate members, Pruitt told reporters the following about his approach to environmental policy: "Our environmental statutes have a very meaningful role for the EPA and a very meaningful role for the states and it's important that they work together to ensure the safety and health of our citizens." Inhofe and Barrasso, as well as Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), with whom Pruitt met on January 4, expressed their support for Pruitt's nomination. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) criticized Pruitt for his opposing views on the theory of human-caused climate change. For more information on the incoming Trump administration’s take on environmental regulations, click here.

State

New York Talks Free College Tuition

• New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced his plan to provide free college tuition at any state or city university in New York for any student whose family earns less than $125,000 per year. He made his announcement alongside Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who made free college tuition a main plank of his presidential platform. Such a plan would require approval of the state legislature, which is currently under divided rule. Democrats control the state Assembly, but a coalition of senators gives Republicans major authority in the state Senate. Official estimates from the administration say that free tuition would be available to about one million families with college-aged children or independent adults. Jim Malatras, a director of state operations, said that the actual number of people taking advantage of the program by its full phase in 2019 is likely to be about 200,000.

Kentucky Republicans’ Top Priority

• Republicans in the Kentucky House of Representatives announced that their top priority in the coming legislative session would be to end mandatory labor union membership. Speaker Jeffrey Hoover (R) is the primary sponsor of HB1, which would make Kentucky a right-to-work state. According to WKMS, Kentucky is the only southern state without a right-to-work law. Unions have criticized the bill for hurting their ability to bargain for better wages and benefits, while supporters of the bill say that it will recruit new businesses to the state. Hoover became the chamber’s new leader after Republicans gained control of the state House from Democrats in the 2016 elections. This made Kentucky one of 25 states controlled by a Republican trifecta, increasing the chances of Republican-sponsored legislation passing through the legislature.

Virginia Loses Longest-Serving State Senator

• Charles Colgan (D), the longest-serving member of the Virginia State Senate, died. Colgan served in the chamber for 40 years before his retirement in 2015 at the age of 89. Colgan was succeeded in the Senate by Jeremy McPike (D). Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) said in a statement that Colgan “was a champion in the Virginia Senate for the people of Prince William County and the entire Commonwealth. His passionate and bipartisan approach to getting things done should serve as an example for all of us as we continue the work he and so many undertook and passed forward to us.”

DACA & College Tuition in Georgia

• A judge in Georgia ruled that state residents who qualified for the Obama administration’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program are allowed to pay in-state college tuition. Under DACA, individuals who were brought to the United States as children may receive relief from being deported if they meet certain criteria. Georgia has a state law prohibiting in-state tuition rates for non-citizens who are residing in the country without legal permission, and the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia had held that DACA recipients did not meet the lawful presence requirement. Ten Georgia residents who had received deferred action sued the Board of Regents, arguing that under federal guidelines, DACA recipients are considered lawfully present. In her opinion, Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Gail Tusan agreed with the plaintiffs, writing that the Board of Regents was “hereby compelled to perform their duty in applying the federal definition of lawful presence as it relates to students who are DACA recipients and to grant them in-state tuition status.”

Eight States Start Their Sessions

• State legislative sessions are scheduled to begin in Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin. Of those eight states, Rhode Island is currently a Democratic trifecta, while Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Dakota, and Wisconsin are Republican trifectas. Kentucky is a new trifecta, becoming one when Republicans took control of the state House in 2016. Minnesota and Pennsylvania are currently under divided government. In total, 1,302 legislators will be back to work in those eight states. That number represents 17.6 percent of the 7,383 state legislators across the country.

Local

Wisconsin Filing Deadline Season in Swing

• FILING DEADLINE: The deadline passed to run for school board in Wisconsin. Ballotpedia covers Wisconsin’s 50 largest school districts by enrollment, which have 121 school board seats up for general election on April 4, 2017. If more than two candidates file for any school board seat up for election, the school district will hold a primary election on February 21, 2017. The largest Wisconsin school district holding elections this year is Milwaukee Public Schools, which served 77,316 students during the 2014-2015 school year—roughly 9 percent of all public school students in the state.
• FILING DEADLINE: The deadline passed to run for election to the Madison City Council in Wisconsin. The Madison City Council consists of 20 members who are elected from distinct geographical districts, and all 20 seats are up for election every two years. In 2017, the races in 15 of these districts are unopposed and feature the incumbent running for re-election. In each of the five opposed races (Districts 1, 8, 10, 11, and 14), only two candidates are competing for the seat. The general election will be held on April 4, 2017. Madison is the second-largest city in Wisconsin and the 83rd-largest city in the U.S. by population.
• FILING DEADLINE: The deadline passed to run for 48 circuit court seats across 27 counties in Wisconsin. The general election will be held on April 4, 2017. Four seats require primary elections, which will be held on February 21, 2017. The top two vote recipients for each seat will advance to the general election. Thirty-seven of the seats up for election in 2017 are unopposed.

Preview of the day

There were no items for this day in issue #46 of The Tap, which was published on December 17, 2016. See the "Review of the day" tab for more information.