House to EPA - No More Secrets; Senate Dems Stop Blocking Human Trafficking Bill

Today in Washington, D.C. - March 19, 2015

The House reconvened 9 AM.  The House may considering the following bills:
S.J. Res. 8 — "Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the National Labor Relations Board relating to representation case procedures." Passage of S.J. Res. 8, legislation would prevent the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) from implementing its ambush elections rule that drastically shortens the time frame for union elections and compromises the privacy of American workers.
H. Res. 132 — "Providing for the expenses of certain committees of the House of Representatives in the One Hundred Fourteenth Congress."
The House is expected to adjourn early today until 12 PM on Monday, March 23.
Yesterday the House passed (241-175) H.R. 1030 — The Secret Science Reform Act: "To prohibit the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from proposing, finalizing, or disseminating regulations or assessments based upon science that is not transparent or reproducible."

Speaker John Boehner commented after passage of H.R. 1030, "“There’s no better, more blatant example of bureaucracy run amok than the EPA. It puts the screws to small businesses, hardworking taxpayers, and entire industries every day, and it does so without adhering to the most basic standards of transparency. Chairman Lamar Smith’s bill requires the EPA to release all the data on which its regulations are based, and if it won’t, then it can’t issue those regulations. No more secrets – it’s that simple. This will be good for American jobs, and it will rein in a serial offender against the public’s right to know what goes on in its government.”

The Senate reconvened at 11 AM and resumed consideration of S. 178, the bipartisan Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015.

At noon, the Senate again began a vote on cloture on the committee-reported substitute amendment to S.178. If that cloture vote fails, there will be another cloture vote on the underlying bill immediately following.

Yesterday, Democrats filibustered the anti-trafficking bill, S. 178, for a third time.

The House may considering the following bills:
S.J. Res. 8 — "Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the National Labor Relations Board relating to representation case procedures." Passage of S.J. Res. 8, legislation would prevent the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) from implementing its ambush elections rule that drastically shortens the time frame for union elections and compromises the privacy of American workers.
H. Res. 132 — "Providing for the expenses of certain committees of the House of Representatives in the One Hundred Fourteenth Congress."

Late yesterday, the AP reported, “Senate Democrats blocked debate on stalled human trafficking legislation for a second day Wednesday as a Democratic senator's office belatedly conceded that a staff aide knew weeks ago that the measure included a controversial abortion-related provision.

“Democrats have said for more than a week that their side of the aisle was not aware of the provision until a few days ago, nearly two months after the legislation was made public and long after a bipartisan vote in the Judiciary Committee on Feb. 24. Several Democrats have accused Republicans of sneaking it into the measure without their discovering it.

“But Julia Krahe, a spokeswoman for Sen. Amy Klobuchar, said an aide to the Minnesota Democrat ‘had seen the language’ relating to abortion before the committee voted. The aide ‘did not inform the senator. The senator takes responsibility for the work of her office and missing the provision and she is focused on moving forward to find a way to fix the bill and protect victims of trafficking,’ Krahe added. Her disclosure came in an email Tuesday evening in response to an inquiry first made a week ago. Klobuchar is a leading Democratic advocate for the trafficking bill.”

In a speech on the floor this morning, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said, “Throughout Democrats’ filibuster of anti-slavery legislation, this is basically what they’ve been telling us: We don’t read legislation we vote on.

“Even so, It was always a stretch to believe that not a single one of the 13 original Democrat cosponsors of this bill — nor the many Democrats who voted for this bill in committee, nor their well-educated staffs — could not have been bothered to make it to page four before deciding to support it. Well, support it, at least until far-left lobbyists told them they couldn’t anymore.

“So yesterday’s revelation — that the Democratic side was indeed aware of the language in question — could hardly have surprised anyone. It also makes clear that Democrats decided to yank their support for an anti-slavery bill for one simple reason: because far-left lobbyists said so.

“Not because the American people said so. Nearly 70% of Americans support the kind of bipartisan provisions Democrats now claim they object to. And many Democrats have voted for similar bipartisan Hyde language many times before, in both appropriations and authorizing legislation.

“So our Democratic colleagues obviously lack a rationale for this continued filibustering of anti-slavery legislation.”

Today, they have yet another opportunity to put victims of trafficking ahead of left-wing lobbying groups. So far, though, Democrats have voted against doing that.

As the Chicago Tribune editors said, “Democrats, swallow your pride. Vote to move forward with the human trafficking bill. … And Democrats can resolve never again to vote for a bill they haven't read.”

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