The House and Senate are in session this week. The House will consider seven bills under suspension of the rules, including the Streamlining Energy Efficiency for Schools Act of 2019 (H.R. 762), which would create a clearinghouse at the Energy Department for schools to find information on federal programs for energy efficiency, small-scale energy generation, and retrofitting projects. The House will also vote on the For the People Act of 2019 (H.R. 1), a large legislative package designed to expand voting times, registration, campaign finance disclosures, and government ethics rules. Key provisions include: requiring presidential and vice presidential candidates to release their tax returns from the past ten years; directing states to use independent commissions to draw congressional district boundaries; establishing online and automatic voting registration; restoring felons' voting rights after they complete their sentences; authorizing federal grants for strengthening state election systems; and expanding donor and spending disclosure requirements for independent groups.
The Senate will vote on four nominations: Allison Rushing to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit; Chad Readler to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Sixth Circuit; Eric Murphy to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Sixth Circuit; and former Rep. John Fleming (R-LA) to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development. The Senate will also vote, either this week or the week of March 11, on the House-passed joint resolution (H.J. Res. 46) terminating President Trump's February 15 national emergency declaration "concerning the southern border of the United States." With Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Rand Paul (R-KY) supporting the resolution, along with all 47 members of the Senate Democratic Caucus, the measure is expected to pass with at least 51 votes. Trump is then anticipated to issue his first ever veto, at which point the House would vote on overriding his veto with at least a two-thirds vote required.
On Monday, President Trump will sign an executive order on "Supporting the Transition of Active Duty Service Members and Military Veterans into the Merchant Marine." He will also deliver remarks to the National Association of Attorneys General. On Wednesday, Trump will attend the inaugural meeting of the American Workforce Policy Advisory Board, which advises the National Council for the American Worker on how the federal government can encourage the private sector and educational institutions to combat the skills crisis by investing in and increasing demand-driven education, training, and re-training for American workers. On Thursday, he will meet with the Czech Republic Prime Minister Andrej Babis. On Friday, he will meet with officials at the Pentagon.
