115th Congressional Dumpster Fire/Archive/2017/April 2017

This is an archive of 115th Congressional Dumpster Fire Fark threads for the month of April, 2017 Click this link for the current month, or here for the rest of the archive.

=Fark Threads on the President's Address to Congress=

=Fark Threads on Legislation= To stare into the abyss that is the previous months of this circus, please click here (Don't say you weren't warned)

Repeal ESSA
Every Student Succeeds Act

Sell ISP information to advertisers
Senate Joint Resolution 34

Competitive Health Insurance Reform Act of 2017 (H.R. 372)
repeal McCarran-Ferguson special exemption from federal antitrust laws

Repeal of ACA

 * 1) Background
 * 2) Backlash
 * 3) Repeal
 * 4) Replacement
 * 5) "Repair"
 * 6) Rescinding coal miners health benefits
 * 1) Replacement
 * 2) "Repair"
 * 3) Rescinding coal miners health benefits
 * 1) "Repair"
 * 2) Rescinding coal miners health benefits
 * 1) Rescinding coal miners health benefits

repeal Alaska National Wildlife Refuges Rule
allows shooting bears and wolves from aircraft and killing cubs and pups in their dens, even during hibernation

TrumpCare
World's Greatest Healthcare Plan of 2017

GOP Vote on TrumpCare Leaning ...

 * 1) General


 * 1) Still On the Fence
 * 2) No
 * 3) Rep. Rod Blum (R IA 1st)
 * 4) Rep. Ted Budd (R NC 13th)
 * 5) Rep. Leonard Lance (R NJ 7th)

MAR-A-LAGO Act
Make Access Records Available to Lead American Government Openness Act

The HONEST Act
Honest and Open New EPA Science Treatment Act
 * would prohibit the EPA from writing any regulation that uses science that is not publicly available

College For All Act 2017


=Fark Threads on Congressional Oversight=

Trump Campaign contacts with Russia
To view all the Fark threads about Trump's connections to Russia, click here

FCC Oversight Hearing
on Net Neutrality

House Committee on Energy and Commerce
hearing on TrumpCare

Reports from Congressional Budget Office
cost of GOP healthcare misadventures

Federal student loans
Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development

House Agriculture Committee
hearing to discuss considering requiring SNAP beneficiaries to work

Rep. Nadler's "Resolution of Inquiry"
demanding Attorney General hand over “any document, record, memo, correspondence or other communication” pertaining to “criminal or counterintelligence investigations” related to Trump, White House staff or his business"

Trump-Russia Independent Commission
to investigate allegations of potential coordination between the Trump campaign and the Russians

Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
inquiry into the incident involving the dragging of passenger Dr. David Dao

House Armed Services Committee
hearing on Asia-Pacific Security
 * April 26, 2017
 * testimony from Admiral Harry Harris, Commander, US Pacific Command

=Fark Threads on Trump cabinet confirmation hearings=

Garrett for Chairman and President, Export-Import Bank

 * 1) former Rep. Scott Garrett (R NJ 5th) co-founded House Freedom Caucus, twice voted against reauthorizing the bank while in Congress

Bachus for Board of Export-Import Bank

 * 1) former Rep. Spencer T. Bachus III (R AL 6th) former chairman (2011–2013), House Financial Services Committee

Ricketts for Deputy Commerce Secretary
Chicago Cubs board member

=Fark Threads on Federal Judiciary Confirmation Hearings=

Gorsuch for Supreme Court Justice

 * 1) Nominated
 * 2) Nominated
 * 3) Nominated

The McConnell Rule
lower expectations to where your party already is

=Fark threads on Trump Ambassadorships=

Palin for Ambassador to Canada
soorry, eh

UN Ambassador for Food and Agriculture
=Fark Threads on Congresscritters=

Tuesday Group
informal caucus of about 50 moderate Republican representatives

Rep. Tom MacArthur (R NJ 3rd)
co-chair of the "Tuesday Group"

Full Senate to Meet at White House to Discuss North Korea
technically a Senate briefing called by Majority Leader McConnell

Montana

 * At-large Congressional District to fill seat of Ryan Zinke, who is now Secretary of the Interior
 * Greg Gianforte (R)
 * Rob Quist (D)

Georgia

 * 6th Congressional District to fill seat of Tom Price who is now Secretary of Health and Human Services
 * 5 dems (including Joel Ossoff)
 * 11 GOP
 * 1) {{drumpfft|4/18/2017|9556936|This is why you can't have nice things, Democrats||{{elec}}{{proj}}
 * 2) {{drumpfft|4/18/2017|9557103|Will Ossoff be on? Will Republicans get a peach of a Georgia rebuke? Will Trump face another humiliating defeat? Will media totally blow the call on this one too? It's your Official Georgia Special Election Discussion Thread|Live thread|elec}}
 * 3) {{drumpfft|4/18/2017|9556932|♫The devil went down to Georgia, he was looking for souls to steal, but he changed his mind, and swiped voting machines because THIS IS NOT NORMAL IN A DEMOCRACY|4 "ExpressPoll" computers meant for the Piedmont Rd precinct and used by poll workers (not voters) were stolen from a Cobb County election official's car; theft was reported 2 days later|elect}}
 * 4) {{drumpfft|4/18/2017|9557402|That Democrat who is supposed to win in Georgia today and send a powerful message to Trump that America will not tolerate this corruption? Yeah, he can't even vote for himself because he doesn't live in the district he's running in||elec}}{{bsabsvr}}
 * 5) {{drumpfft|4/19/2017|9558134|Democrats lose another election||elec}}
 * 6) {{drumpfft|4/19/2017|9558749|Democrats' Georgia blunder: 'Resist Trump' is not a winning strategy||fud}}{{cult}}
 * 7) {{drumpfft|4/19/2017|9558646|For the good of the country, hopefully never||elec}}{{fud}}
 * 8) {{drumpfft|4/19/2017|9559108|"Democrats' new challenge in Georgia: Sustaining the momentum" of yet another DLC boor with impossible-to-nail-down policy superpositions||elec}}{{spec}}
 * 9) {{drumpfft|4/18/2017|9556950|Sadly, the answer to a question in a headline is always "no"||elec}}
 * 10) {{drumpfft|4/21/2017|9561891|New poster boy for the Democrats couldn't even find the time to vote in the 2012 presidential election because he was studying broads over in Europe||bsabsvr}}{{taf}}{{fud}}
 * 11) {{drumpfft|4/21/2017|9561293|Georgia is trying to prevent newly registered voters from taking part in the 6th Congressional District runoff election because fark you|Lawyers? Committee for Civil Rights Under Law arguing that the state is violating the National Voter Registration Act; Georgia contends runoff is a continuation of the special election this week don?t have to allow newly registered voters to participate|voter}}{{votes}}
 * 1) {{drumpfft|4/19/2017|9559108|"Democrats' new challenge in Georgia: Sustaining the momentum" of yet another DLC boor with impossible-to-nail-down policy superpositions||elec}}{{spec}}
 * 2) {{drumpfft|4/18/2017|9556950|Sadly, the answer to a question in a headline is always "no"||elec}}
 * 3) {{drumpfft|4/21/2017|9561891|New poster boy for the Democrats couldn't even find the time to vote in the 2012 presidential election because he was studying broads over in Europe||bsabsvr}}{{taf}}{{fud}}
 * 4) {{drumpfft|4/21/2017|9561293|Georgia is trying to prevent newly registered voters from taking part in the 6th Congressional District runoff election because fark you|Lawyers? Committee for Civil Rights Under Law arguing that the state is violating the National Voter Registration Act; Georgia contends runoff is a continuation of the special election this week don?t have to allow newly registered voters to participate|voter}}{{votes}}

Kansas

 * 4th Congressional District to fill seat of Mike Pompeo who is now Director of the CIA
 * Kansas state GOP Treasurer Ron Estes (R)
 * Democrat James Thompson (D)
 * Chris Rockhold (L)

Rep. Paul Ryan (R WI 4th)
Speaker of the House

Senator Mitch McConnell (R KY)
Senate Majority Leader
 * 1) Nominated
 * 1) Nominated

Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R UT 3rd)
chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

Rep. Devin Nunes (R CA 22nd)
''chair, House Intelligence Committee ... for now''

Senator Luther Strange (R AL)
former Attorney General for Alabama during DMV closure scandal

Rep. Tom MacArthur (R NJ 3rd)
former insurance executive

Rep. Michael McCaul (R TX 10th)
chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee

WTF?
WTF!?

Senator Mitch McConnell (R KY)
Senate Majority Leader

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D CA 12th)
House minority leader

On The Fence
these Congresscritters aren't sure yet how their decisions will play politically, so they're not committing to anything publicly

Rep. Joseph Crowley (D NY 14th)
chair, House Democratic Caucus

Rep. Patrick McHenry (R NC 10)
chief deputy whip, GOP Caucus

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D CA 12th)
House Minority Leader

Senator Chuck Schumer (D NY)
Senate minority leader