MORNING MESSAGE
Girding For The Education Fight Ahead
If
you want to get an idea of what kind of education policies to expect from a
Donald Trump administration, Wall St. has a clue for you. A report from BuzzFeed
explains, online charter schools are “gearing up for a boom during the Trump
administration, judging by where investors are placing their bets.” ... Online
charter schools operated by K12 have a particularly poor track record for
academic achievement ... A recent article in the Washington Post reports on a
study that finds these schools are so bad that students enrolled in them “lost
an average of about 72 days of learning in reading and 180 days of learning in
math during the course of a 180-day school year."
HOUSE GUTS ETHICS OFFICE
“With
No Warning, House Republicans Vote to Gut Independent Ethics Office” reports
NYT: “House Republicans, overriding their top leaders, voted on Monday to
significantly curtail the power of an independent ethics office … The move to
effectively kill the Office of Congressional Ethics was not made public until
late Monday … There was no advance notice or debate …”
HuffPost
adds: “The new group would no longer be able to release information to the
public, employ anyone ‘for a position involving communications with the public,’
or directly contact law enforcement without approval. It would also be
prohibited from investigating anonymous complaints.”
OBAMACARE REPEAL ON TAP AS NEW CONGRESS BEGINS TODAY
GOP
to move quickly on Obamacare repeal. WSJ: “The Senate’s opening move … will
be to initiate a controversial process to repeal parts of [Obamacare] … [But
some Republicans] are worried a repeal would yank the rug out from under
people’s coverage before a replacement is in effect … The first step would be to
introduce and start debate on a budget resolution for the 2017 fiscal year,
setting up passage by next week …”
But
budget rules could trip up GOP. W. Post: “Once the committees approve their
versions of repeal — something aides expect may happen in February or March —
the House would vote on the entire repeal package before sending it to the
Senate … The parliamentarian has the authority to throw out any elements that
violate budget rules before the bill comes up for another vote in the Senate. If
the parliamentarian rules against Republicans, it is at this point that
Democrats would probably have their best chance to defeat the measure or
otherwise alter it.”
Much
of Obamacare already embedded into the health care system. NYT: “Changes in
the delivery system already affect far more people than the law’s higher-profile
coverage gains … leaders have started moving away from fee-for-service medicine
… The emphasis now is on preventive care … Collaboration between doctors is
becoming a necessity … unlike Mr. Obama’s insurance coverage expansions, these
changes are not in jeopardy…”
GOP PREPARES TO ROLL BACK REGS
GOP
readies regulatory rollback. WSJ: “…the House this week plans a vote on a
bill … which would empower Congress to approve major new regulations written by
federal agencies. The House also plans to vote on a measure to allow Congress to
repeal a block of regulations at one time. Neither measure is expected to pass
Congress given procedural hurdles in the Senate. Congress also could use its
power under the 1996 Congressional Review Act to repeal newer regulations on a
simple majority vote … One possible target is an Interior Department rule issued
in November to cut methane emissions from oil and natural-gas operations on
federal lands … Another top target could be a regulation that expanded the
number of workers subject to overtime-pay rules.”
GOP
divided on tax reform. WSJ: “House and Senate Republicans say they are
aiming for a plan that doesn’t add to the deficit, after counting revenue from
faster economic growth. Mr. Trump, however, has proposed a tax cut that even his
campaign’s optimistic projections say doesn’t pay for itself … the House plan
relies on imposing the U.S. corporate tax on imports and exempting exports …
Senate Republicans haven’t warmed to that plan and Mr. Trump hasn’t embraced it
either.”
Sen.
Chuck Schumer steps into Senate Democratic leadership role. Politico:
“…Schumer, a seasoned D.C. dealmaker, has made clear he’s not interested in
blanket obstruction and signaled he will play ball with Trump when it can help
the working class … Ten Democratic incumbents from states Trump won, in some
cases resoundingly, will be on the [2018] ballot and Schumer needs to look out
for them …
Trump
planning SCOTUS picks. Politico: “Trump’s team wants to make filling the
seat held by the late Justice Antonin Scalia one of the earliest acts of his
presidency … in hopes of scoring an energizing and unifying victory for the
conservative movement … Trump, who relies heavily on instinct and his in-person
impressions, has still yet to meet with the finalists..”
TRUMP THREATENS GM
Trump
threatens GM with “border tax.” Politico: “‘General Motors is sending
Mexican made model of Chevy Cruze to U.S. car dealers-tax free across border.
Make in U.S.A. or pay big border tax!’ Trump wrote on Twitter Tuesday morning.
The president-elect promised throughout the campaign to punish American
companies that move jobs abroad by slapping them with a 35 percent tax on
imported goods.”
Trump
tariff plan unconstitutional, says Prof. Rebecca M. Kysar in NYT oped: “…
the path to imposing tariffs — along with taxes and other revenue-generating
measures — clearly begins with Congress, and in particular the House, through
the Origination Clause.”
USTR
pick Robert Lighthizer longtime China critic. Bloomberg: “Lighthizer has
previously accused China of unfair trade practices, in line with views held by
Peter Navarro, a China critic who Trump last month named to head a newly formed
White House National Trade Council.”
Trump’s
Commerce Secretary nominee used to defend China on trade. Politico:
“[Wilbur] Ross has become a devoted Sinophile. In addition to assembling a
formidable collection of Chinese art … he has partnered in shipping and energy
ventures with Chinese state-owned firms … ‘I think the China-bashing is wildly
overdone in this country,’ said Ross in [2012] … ‘The reality is that if
something were to happen that cost China jobs, like if they upwardly revalued
the currency a lot, those jobs aren’t going to come back to the U.S., they would
go to Vietnam, they would go to Thailand, they would go to whatever country was
the lowest cost, so it’s a fiction on both sides that those jobs will come
back.'”
BREAKFAST SIDES
The
Hill gauges the race for DNC chair: “…Democratic sources familiar with the
race believe [Rep. Keith Ellison] has close to 70 voting DNC members in his
corner, putting him more than a quarter of the way to the 224 votes he’ll need …
[Tom Perez] got a boost last week with endorsements from four of the nation’s 18
Democratic governors …”
Solar
power cheaper than coal in some places. Bloomberg: “…countries from Chile to
the United Arab Emirates broke records with deals to generate electricity from
sunshine for less than 3 cents a kilowatt-hour, half the average global cost of
coal power. Now, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Mexico are planning auctions and
tenders for this year, aiming to drop prices even further.”
Progressive
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