It was a notable the other day when Attorney General Eric Holder announced that he would not devote federal resources to pursuing marijuana dispensaries in the many states that have legalized medical marijuana.
On the heels of that announcement, several members of Congress introduced H.R. 3939, the Truth in Trials Act. The bill would provide [...]
Just in time to be too late for this week’s email newsletter, the Congressional Budget Office has come out with cost estimates for two of the bills being debated this week.
H.R. 1913, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009 comes in at about nine cents per U.S. family.
And H.R. 627, the Credit [...]
When a commenter uses the handle “BrokenHearted Dad,” you can’t help but care about his story. He doesn’t tell it, but for him we should all take a second look at H.R. 1529, The Second Chance for Ex-Offenders Act.
Here’s the current vote on the bill. Click to read the comments, learn more, comment yourself, [...]
Word on the street is that Congress will come back in on November 17th to do some post-election business. The respite gives us time to look at some of the bills hustled across the House floor while we were concentrating on the big stuff.
Though there might be more silliness when Congress comes back, this [...]
Of all the threats facing our nation today, you probably weren’t aware of this one: submarines. No, we’re not talking Soviet nuclear subs or German U-boats. These are privately owned and used for transporting drugs.
Not to worry, though, your Congress is on the case, with no less than four – count [...]
I’m always interested by the personal stories that show up in the comments here on WashingtonWatch.com. It’s a window onto people’s experiences in some of their most difficult times. Here’s a sampling.
On H.R. 261, The Federal Prison Bureau Nonviolent Offender Relief Act of 2007, a thirteen-year-old shares the sadness of having a father [...]
I wrote here six weeks ago about how the telecommunications subsidy programs run by the Federal Communications Commission were poorly run and subject to waste, fraud, and abuse.
Well, evidently, the FCC got the message and has cleaned up its act! Or started to . . . . Or at least they did something.
Today, [...]
The Congressional Budget Office came out with a cost estimate today for S. 3297, the Advancing America’s Priorities Act, which has also been called the “Coburn Omnibus.” It combines 36 pieces of federal legislation into one.
Yesterday, adding up all the pieces of the Coburn Omnibus, we came up with about $65 per U.S. family. [...]
Republican Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma didn’t come to Washington, D.C. to grow the government.
A long time critic of federal spending and power, he has made prolific use of “holds” to prevent legislation he doesn’t like from moving forward.
Now Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has reached his wit’s end. [...]
So, we all want human smuggling stopped, right? H.R. 6468, the “Putting the Brakes on Human Smuggling Act,” seeks to do precisely that. (The Senate version is S. 3250.)
If human smugglers and drug smugglers used commercial vehicles in their crimes, the bill would bar them from holding commercial drivers’ licenses. [...]