Disaster Aid
A $13.5 billion disaster supplemental continued to stall in the Senate this week as Democrats press for more funds for Puerto Rico’s hurricane recovery efforts, failing twice to attract the 60 votes needed to move forward.
House Judiciary Authorizes Subpoena
On the other side of the Capitol, the House Judiciary Committee voted along party lines on Wednesday to authorize Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-NY) to issue a subpoena to obtain the full report prepared by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Nadler does not plan to use that authority right away, saying he instead prefers to work with Attorney General Bill Barr to make the report public without resorting to a subpoena.
NATO
Members of the House and Senate convened on Wednesday to hear from North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. President Trump also hosted Stoltenberg at the White House for a bilateral meeting.
VAWA
Today, the House voted 263-158 to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which lapsed in February.
President Signs Memorandum Combating Trafficking in Counterfeit and Pirated Goods
Yesterday, the President signed a presidential memorandum on combating trafficking in counterfeit and pirated goods. Citing a lack of government resources, the memorandum is intended to place more responsibility on the private sector, including online marketplaces and intermediaries and others in the supply chain, to combat the sale of counterfeit goods. The Departments of Commerce, Homeland Security, and Justice are also tasked with compiling a report on the sale of counterfeit products online, which the administration will rely on to provide further policy changes.
The President announced last Friday that Administrator Linda McMahon is stepping down from the Small Business Administration on April 12 to transition to a political group supporting his reelection bid.
Read more in our Emerging Technologies Washington Update.