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The Tap: Tuesday, May 10, 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 #16 of The Tap, which was published on May 14, 2016. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

  • Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said it was a "stupid" idea for conservative Republicans to draft someone to challenge Donald Trump. When asked if he had spoken with conservative leaders about challenging Trump, Priebus said, "No, I have not talked to Mitt Romney or [Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska]. I don't believe it for a second. And you know what, in some ways, maybe I should talk to them about it, but on the other hand, ... I'm not gonna give any gas to that fire. … All it will do is ensure a liberal Supreme Court for generations. I think that people will understand pretty shortly that this isn't a game. This is about the future of the country and we need to make sure that we have the White House."
  • Nicopure Labs LLC filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging an FDA rule that allows the agency to regulate “all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, cigars, hookah tobacco and pipe tobacco, among others” under the 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. Nicopure, which produces e-liquids but is not affiliated with any tobacco company, alleges in its filing that the FDA’s rulemaking process violated the Administrative Procedure Act and that the regulation itself violates the First Amendment.
  • Hillary Clinton proposed allowing Americans to buy into Medicare before the age of 65, the current age to receive healthcare coverage under the program. Clinton said, “I’m also in favor of what’s called the public option, so that people can buy into Medicare at a certain age.” She added that “people 55 or 50 and up” could pay to join the program voluntarily.
  • The White House announced that President Obama will visit Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park on May 27, 2016. He will be the first sitting president to do so. According to the press release, Obama “will share his reflections on the significance of the site and the events that occurred there. He will not revisit the decision to use the atomic bomb at the end of World War II. Instead, he will offer a forward-looking vision focused on our shared future.”
  • The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Oklahoma, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Texas filed briefs supporting TransCanada's lawsuit against the Obama administration’s decision to reject the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. On January 6, 2016, TransCanada Corp. filed a lawsuit in a Houston federal court accusing Obama of exceeding his authority by blocking the pipeline, and they filed an international petition under the North American Free Trade Agreement’s (NAFTA) investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provision, which is an international arbitration procedure included in bilateral investment treaties to resolve conflicts when one party believes that provisions of a treaty have been breached. TransCanada is seeking to recover “$15 billion in costs and damages related to the pipeline,” according to The Hill.
  • The U.S. Department of Education announced “a competition to award $65 million in grants to as many as 20 Charter Management Organizations (CMOs) across the country to create and expand charter schools that support students from underserved communities,” according to a press release. Applications are due by June 20, 2016, and can be found here.
  • The U.S. Department of Justice announced that it will not seek the death penalty against Ahmed Abu Khattala. He has been charged in the Benghazi massacre of September 11, 2012, in which Ambassador Christopher Stevens, IT expert Sean Smith, and former U.S. Navy SEALs Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods were killed. According to ABC News, “Assuming it doesn't resolve through a plea agreement, a trial of Abu Khattala would represent one of the most significant terrorism prosecutions in recent years and also an illustration of the Obama administration's commitment to prosecuting suspected militants captured overseas in U.S. civilian courts.”
  • Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee Chairman John Thune (R-S.D.) sent a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg asking him to explain how news articles are selected for its “trending” list after a report showed that staff members intentionally suppressed articles from conservative sources.
    • Debbie Frost, Facebook’s vice president for international and policy communications, responded to the inquiry in the following statement: “Trending Topics is designed to surface popular conversations — no matter where they fall on the political spectrum — and our guidelines require the review team members to allow all points of view.” She added that the company will address all of Sen. Thune’s questions.
  • The Washington Post reported that Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski was overseeing the team in charge of surveying and vetting potential vice presidential candidates. Armstrong Williams, business manager for former presidential candidate Ben Carson, told Talking Points Memo that Carson was no longer part of the vice presidential search for Donald Trump's campaign. Williams said, "He asked for his recommendations, he made them and now it's time to move on."
  • Roger Stone, an informal advisor to Donald Trump, criticized campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, saying Lewandowski "seems to be on a course of self-aggrandizement." Stone was referring to Lewandowski leading the team vetting and selecting a vice presidential candidate. Stone continued, "I've been in nine presidential campaigns I have some sense of how this works. I'd just like to see [Lewandowski] serve his candidate better."
  • Former Mexican President Vicente Fox criticized presidential candidates Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders. According to CNN, Fox "cast both of the candidates as out of touch with economic reality and wrongly opposed to free trade." He went on to further critique Trump's proposal to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexican border, saying, "I'm not going to pay for that f---ing wall."
  • The following legislation was passed by unanimous consent in the Senate: S 1352 - the Children of Fallen Heroes Scholarship Act; HR 4923 - the American Manufacturing Competitiveness Act of 2016; HR 4336 - An act to amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the inurnment in Arlington National Cemetery of the cremated remains of certain persons whose service has been determined to be active service; and S Res 418 - A resolution recognizing Hafsat Abiola, Khanim Latif, Yoani Sanchez, and Akanksha Hazari for their selflessness and dedication to their respective causes, and for other purposes.
  • The House passed HR 5052 - the Opioid Program Evaluation Act or OPEN Act by a vote of 410-1. The legislation proposes directing federal agencies to evaluate the effectiveness of federal grant programs designed to alleviate “problems pertaining to opioid abuse.”
  • The House unanimously passed HR 4957 - To designate the Federal building located at 99 New York Avenue, N.E., in the District of Columbia as the "Ariel Rios Federal Building."
  • The following legislation was passed by voice vote in the House: S 2755 - the Fallen Heroes Flag Act of 2016; HR 4063 - To improve the use by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs of opioids in treating veterans, and for other purposes; HR 4985 - the Kingpin Designation Improvement Act of 2016; S 32 - the Transnational Drug Trafficking Act of 2015; HR 5048 - the Good Samaritan Assessment Act of 2016; S 125 - the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program Reauthorization Act of 2015; HR 2137 - the Federal Law Enforcement Self-Defense and Protection Act of 2015; and HR 3209 - the Recovering Missing Children Act.

State

  • Primary election: Nebraska
    • State Legislature: Twenty-five of the 49 seats in the state Senate are up for election in 2016. All 11 incumbents not running for re-election in 2016 were barred by term limits. Just under three-fourths of incumbents, 10 of 14 incumbents, advanced past the primary without opposition. One incumbent, Nicole Fox of District 7, was defeated by a former state senator as well as a member of the Omaha Board of Education. Fox was appointed in August 2015.
    • State executives: Incumbents Gerald L. Vap (R) and Rod Johnson (R) were both defending their seats on the Public Service Commission against Republican challengers. While Johnson easily won the nomination, Vap was edged out by challenger Mary Ridder by a shockingly narrow margin of 57 votes. No Democrats filed to run; barring any independent or third-party filings, Ridder and Johnson will run unopposed in the November general election.
  • Two days after being violently attacked at a cookout, Richard Ojeda defeated incumbent Sen. Art Kirkendoll in the Democratic primary for District 7 of the West Virginia State Senate by a 55-to-45 margin. Jonathan Porter allegedly lured Ojeda away from the cookout to place bumper stickers on his car and then proceeded to attack the candidate. Ojeda ended up in the hospital with eight bone fractures and multiple lacerations to his face. The police have not revealed a motive for the attack, but Ojeda has alleged that it is politically motivated. From his hospital bed, Ojeda told the Daily News, “I would honestly bet everything that I own that somebody put this boy [Porter] up to this.” Incumbent Kirkendoll insists that he had nothing to do with the attack.
  • Pennsylvania State Senator Larry Farnese (D) was indicted in a $6,000 vote-buying scheme. Farnese and Ellen Chapman were charged with conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud, and violations of the Travel Act. Prosecutors allege that Farnese offered Chapman a bribe to gain her support in the 2011 election for Democratic ward leader of Philadelphia’s eighth ward. The scheme involved Farnese paying $6,000 toward a study-abroad program for Chapman’s daughter; in exchange, Chapman, who was a member of the eighth ward Democratic committee at the time, agreed to use her position to support Farnese’s candidacy for Democratic ward leader of the eighth ward. According to prosecutors, Chapman initially supported another candidate but switched her vote to Farnese. Mark B. Sheppard, Farnese’s attorney, said that his client is “100 percent innocent.”
  • Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker approved a rule revising the state's voter identification process. Beginning May 13, voters who are attempting to obtain the required identification but who are unable to produce the requisite documentation can petition for an exception to the requirement. The voter will then be issued a receipt, which will be considered a valid form of identification at the polls. The rule change comes as a federal trial concerning the law is scheduled to begin on May 16. The law's challengers allege that the requirement makes it too difficult for individuals to obtain the proper identification. Upon announcing the rule change, Walker said, "The more we can do to improve the [voter identification] process, the more likely it is that it will be upheld in a federal court." Currently, 33 states enforced voter ID requirements; in 19 of those states, voters are required to present photo IDs.
  • The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) settled with a Wyoming farmer who constructed a pond on his property. The farmer, Andy Johnson, who was represented by the conservative Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF), sued the EPA in 2015 after the agency imposed nearly $16 million in fines on Johnson for constructing a pond on his property without an EPA permit. The agency argued that the pond’s construction was subject to regulation under the Clean Water Act. Under the settlement, Johnson is not required to pay the fines but is required to protect the ground from erosion and install a fence. The case is seen by property rights groups, such as the PLF, as the most recent example of the EPA’s encroachment on private property rights. Though the case was handled under existing federal regulations, it could have implications for the EPA’s Waters of the United States rule, which targets previously unregulated bodies of water.

Special elections

Local

  • The San Jose City Council is on the verge of repealing Measure B, a local pension reform measure that was overwhelmingly approved by voters in 2012. The city council voted 10-1 to repeal the measure, claiming it should be overturned because city leaders didn’t fully negotiate with union leaders in an attempt to reach a compromise before putting the measure on the ballot. Supporters of the measure, including former city council member Pete Constant, are fighting the repeal in court. They believe any changes to Measure B should go before the voters who approved it. On May 11, an appellate court temporarily halted the city council’s repeal attempts and gave both sides until May 23 to submit their respective arguments. Mayor Sam Liccardo, a one-time supporter of Measure B, has sided with the city council in its attempt to repeal the measure, an about-face from his previous position on the measure.
  • In Texas, the Corpus Christi City Council voted to reject an ordinance to allow Uber and Lyft ridesharing service drivers to operate without fingerprinting and background checks. In response, the group that proposed the ordinance, Citizens of Corpus Christi, announced its intention to put a referendum on the public ballot on November 8, 2016. Petition signatures for such a referendum must be submitted by August 2, 2016, in order to make the November ballot. The city council’s approval of regulations on the ridesharing services resulted in both companies withdrawing from the city. Beginning May 16, 2016, ridesharing service drivers must complete fingerprinting and background checks in order to receive a permit to operate within the city. Mayor Nelda Martinez (D) supported the regulations and stated, "This to me is about reducing risk.” Corpus Christi is the eighth-largest city in Texas and the 60th-largest city in the United States by population.
    • The Corpus Christi City Council vote was preceded by the defeat of Proposition 1 in Austin, Texas, on May 7, 2016. The referendum, which was rejected by 56 percent of voters, would have overturned a city law requiring ridesharing drivers to undergo fingerprinting and background checks. Proposition 1 would have also allowed traffic lane pickups, required ridesharing drivers to add a visual symbol to their car for identification, and instituted an annual transportation tax for ridesharing drivers. Uber and Lyft spent a combined total of more than $8 million to promote the referendum. After its failure, both ceased their operations in the city. Austin is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 11th-largest city in the United States by population.
  • West Virginia held general elections for 277 county judgeships across the state. Incumbents sought re-election for 79.7 percent of the seats, and 55.5 percent of all seats were won by unopposed candidates. Incumbents in contested races had a 74.2 percent success rate. This election was the first nonpartisan election for the state's judicial seats since it received statehood status in 1863. West Virginia circuit court judges are elected to eight-year terms, family court judges are elected to six-year terms for their initial term and then eight-year terms after that, and magistrate court judges are elected to four-year terms.
  • Some of the largest school districts in Delaware, Nebraska, and West Virginia held elections for school board positions:
    • Delaware: All six of the state’s largest school districts were scheduled to hold general elections for a total of nine school board seats, but only one district actually held an election. Elections for eight of the seats were canceled after only one candidate filed to run for each seat. In seven of the eight cases, incumbents ran unopposed to retain their seats. The only contested election was in District F of the Christina School District, which featured incumbent Elizabeth Paige defeating challenger Desiree Brady by a narrow margin of 21 out of 837 votes.
    • Nebraska: Five districts held primary elections for a total of 18 seats. This included the state’s largest school district, Omaha Public Schools, which served 51,069 students during the 2013-2014 school year and had five of its nine board seats up for election. The general election for Nebraska school districts will be on November 8, 2016.
    • West Virginia: All nine of the state’s largest school districts held general elections for a total of 18 school board seats. Incumbents had an 80 percent success rate, which was similar to the 81.37 percent success rate they experienced in 2014. The state’s largest school district, Kanawha County Schools, had two of five seats up for election and served 28,378 students during the 2013-2014 school year. In the district’s at-large election, incumbent Jim Crawford Sr. faced three challengers for the two seats. Although Mercer County Schools held its regular general election for two of five board seats, the district will also hold a special election for one seat on November 8, 2016.

Preview of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #15 of The Tap, which was published on May 7, 2016. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

State

  • Primary election: West Virginia
    • One seat on the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals is up for general election. For the first time, due to a law passed in 2015, West Virginia’s state supreme court elections will be nonpartisan. The court currently has a 5-3 Democratic majority. Incumbent Justice Brent Benjamin, originally elected as a Republican, is running to keep his seat. He is being challenged by Republican Beth Walker, Democrat Wayne King, former Justice and former state Attorney General Darrell McGraw (D), and Democrat William Wooton. This is the general election for this high court seat. There will be no primary and no runoff. The winner could be elected with 21 percent of the vote.
    • There are 18 state Senate seats and 100 state House seats up for election. Both chambers flipped to Republican control in the 2014 election, and a Ballotpedia analysis identifies the Senate as one of 20 partisan battlegrounds in 2016. Forty-one incumbents, 19 Democrats and 22 Republicans, are facing primary competition. West Virginia is one of 20 states that are under divided government.
    • State executives: Six seats are up for election in 2016, including an open race for governor. State Senate President Bill Cole (R) is unopposed in the Republican primary contest, and three candidates will compete for the Democratic nomination to challenge him in the November general election. Incumbents are seeking re-election in all other races except for state auditor as incumbent Auditor Glen Gainer (D) announced his resignation effective May 14. There is speculation that Governor Earl Ray Tomblin (D), who is term limited and not seeking re-election, would appoint the winner of the Democratic primary contest as interim treasurer, which would give the Democratic nominee an incumbency advantage and effectively block Republican efforts to win control of the auditor seat. Three candidates are vying for the Democratic nomination while State Rep. John B. McCuskey is unopposed in the Republican primary contest.
    • Notable state races: Ballotpedia has identified six notable state legislative primary races. The notable primary contests, three Republican and three Democratic, feature open seats vacated by incumbents. The Democratic primary contest in state House District 32 has 11 Democrats competing for the nomination. The Republican primary contest in state House District 35 has seven Republicans competing for the nomination.
  • Primary election: Nebraska
    • State legislature: Twenty-five of the 49 seats in the state Senate are up for election in 2016. All 11 incumbents not running for re-election in 2016 were barred by term limits. Just under three-fourths of incumbents, 10 of 14 incumbents, will advance past the primary without opposition.
    • Notable state races: Ballotpedia has identified four notable state legislative primary races. Three primary contests feature candidates vying for open seats left by incumbents; one contest features a Republican incumbent appointed in 2015 running for a full term in a mostly Democratic district. Healthcare, property taxes, and education emerged as major policy issues in the primary.

Special elections

Local

  • West Virginia will hold general elections for 277 county judgeships across the state. Incumbents are seeking re-election for 79.7 percent of the seats, and 55.5 percent of all seats will be won by unopposed candidates. This election is the first nonpartisan election for the state's judicial seats since it received statehood status in 1863. West Virginia circuit court judges are elected to eight-year terms, family court judges are elected to six-year terms for their initial term and then eight-year terms after that, and magistrate court judges are elected to four-year terms.
  • Some of the largest school districts in Delaware, Nebraska, and West Virginia are holding elections for school board positions:
    • Delaware: All six of the state’s largest school districts are scheduled to hold general elections for a total of nine school board seats, but only one district will actually hold an election. Elections for eight of the seats were canceled after only one candidate filed to run for each seat. In seven of the eight cases, incumbents ran unopposed to retain their seats. The only contested election is in District F of the Christina School District, which features incumbent Elizabeth Paige facing challenger Desiree Brady.
    • Nebraska: Five districts will hold primary elections for a total of 18 seats. This includes the state’s largest school district, Omaha Public Schools, which served 51,069 students during the 2013-2014 school year and has five of its nine board seats up for election. The general election for Nebraska school districts will be on November 8, 2016.
    • West Virginia: All nine of the state’s largest school districts are scheduled to hold general elections for a total of 18 school board seats. The state’s largest school district, Kanawha County Schools, has two of five seats up for election and served 28,378 students during the 2013-2014 school year. In the district’s at-large election, incumbent Jim Crawford Sr. is facing three challengers for the two seats. Although Mercer County Schools will hold its regular general election for two of five board seats on this date, the district will also hold a special election for one seat on November 8, 2016.



The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.
March: 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
April: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
May: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
June: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
July: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
August: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
September: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
October: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7• 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
November: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
December: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 31
January: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
February: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17
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