Week of July 4, 2016
Mississippi River Basin News
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This Week in Washington
With one week to go before starting its summer recess, Congress returned to Washington from the Independence Day holiday with plenty left to finish before leaving again. Unfortunately, any enthusiasm for getting work done was again overridden by political wrangling.

The House did pass a financial services appropriation, and was able to include an amendment that chips away at climate regulations in the process. The big fight however, appears to be next week when the Interior and Environment appropriation will likely see floor time. Traditionally contentious, it was the Interior and Environment bill that sent the entire appropriations process into the ditch last year with debate over confederate flags in cemeteries. This year's version of the appropriation must find a way to deal with the 159 amendments filed by the deadline yesterday.

Meanwhile in the Senate, debate over a bill mandating GMO labeling overcame protesters in the gallery and the bill was passed, sending it to the House. While the ag interests in the lower chamber would prefer a voluntary labeling bill, they recognize that such measures stand no chance in the Senate and might pass the Senate's version if they can get to it.

Finally, negotiations continued between Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Maria Cantwell over going to conference with the House to send an energy reform package to the President. While any hope of real talks between conferees before the recess died long ago, the two sides continue to inch closer to each other, like continental drift, but with lobbyists. Energy and Natural Resources Chair Murkowski even missed a meeting with her party's presumed nominee for president, Donald Trump, to meet with Ranking Member Cantwell, leaving a slew of possible conclusions to draw. Signs of hope that a vote in the Senate to name conferees and go to conference may come next week began to filter out late in the week.

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