New documents show political appointees sought to influence at least 13 reports as they ignored warnings from career officials: “The House panel probing the Trump administration’s coronavirus response released new documents detailing political appointees’ extensive efforts to modify or scuttle scientific Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports, as it also ordered top Trump health… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Congress
LC – New “Past Presentations” Webpage in Legal Research Institute
In Custodia Legis – [December 15, 2020] marks the last webinar of 2020 for the Law Library, but don’t fear! We have created a new webpage so that you will be able to enjoy a selection of our past presentations again and again! We have expanded our previous “webinar archive” to include many of our… Continue Reading
SolarWinds Attack—No Easy Fix
CRS Insight, December 15, 2020. SolarWinds Attack—No Easy Fix: “On December 13, 2020, the cybersecurity firm FireEye published research that a malicious actor was exploiting a supply chain vulnerability in SolarWinds products to hack into government and private sector information technology (IT) networks. SolarWinds confirmed the security incident.The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued… Continue Reading
LC Complete Digitization of 23 Early Presidential Collections
Library of Congress Blog: “The Library of Congress has completed a more than two decade-long initiative to digitize the papers of nearly two dozen early presidents. The Library holds the papers of 23 presidents from George Washington to Calvin Coolidge, all of which have been digitized and are now available online. The Library plans to… Continue Reading
Tracking Federal Awards: USAspending.gov and Other Data Sources
CRS report via LC – Tracking Federal Awards: USAspending.gov and Other Data Sources, Updated December 16, 2020: “USAspending.gov, available at https://www.USAspending.gov, is a government source for data on federal awards by state, congressional district (CD), county, city, and zip code. The awards data in USAspending.gov are provided by federal agencies and represent contracts, grants, loans,… Continue Reading
Resources for Tracking Federal COVID-19 Spending
CRS report via LC – Resources for Tracking Federal COVID-19 Spending, Updated December 16, 2020: “Congress has responded to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic with supplemental appropriations measures providing relief and assistance to individuals and families, state and local governments, businesses, health care providers, and other entities. For more information, see CRS Report R46474,… Continue Reading
“Court Packing”: Legislative Control over the Size of the Supreme Court
CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress – “Court Packing”: Legislative Control over the Size of the Supreme Court, December 14, 2020: “In the past year, legal commentators, policymakers, and the national press have devoted significant attention to proposals to increase the size of the Supreme Court, sometimes colloquially called“court packing.” Many… Continue Reading
The First Day of a New Congress: A Guide to Proceedings on the House Floor
CRS Report – The First Day of a New Congress: A Guide to Proceedings on the House Floor, Updated December 7, 2020: “Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution set sa term of office of two years for all Members of the House. One House ends at the conclusion of each two-year Congress, and the… Continue Reading
Most Republicans Approve of Trump’s Post-election Messaging, but About a Third Say It Has Been Wrong
Partisans differ on whether social media companies’ decisions had a major impact on the election – “In this starkly atypical year, the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election has been similarly out of the ordinary – with President Donald Trump thus far refusing to concede to President-elect Joe Biden (as of publication on Dec. 15). But a new… Continue Reading
The Electoral College: A 2020 Presidential Election Timeline
The Electoral College: A 2020 Presidential Election Timeline, CRS In Focus, October 22, 2020.”Every four years, the election process for President and Vice President follows a familiar timeline of events. At the same time, a related series of procedures governing electoral college actions proceeds on a parallel track.This report focuses on the electoral college timeline… Continue Reading
Counting Electoral Votes: An Overview of Procedures at the Joint Session, Including Objections by Members of Congress
CRS report via LC – Counting Electoral Votes: An Overview of Procedures at the Joint Session, Including Objections by Members of Congress, Updated December 8, 2020: “The Constitution and federal law establish a detailed timetable following the presidential election during which time the members of the electoral college convene in the 50 state capitals and… Continue Reading
Archive, Historians, CREW Sue White House, Seek to Preserve Presidential Records During the Transition
National Security Archive – “The National Security Archive, the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations, the American Historical Association, and the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington today filed suit against President Donald Trump in his official capacity, seeking to enforce the Presidential Records Act and prevent any destruction of records during the… Continue Reading
