Politics

Budget Bill Passes Without Protections for Dreamers

Early Friday morning, a contentious Congress passed a two-year budget bill that did not include protections for Dreamers, ending the litany of short-term spending bills that have threatened government shutdowns every few weeks since September, but that Democrats have also been using as leverage in the immigration debate.

Global Reproductive Rights

Repeal of Global Gag Rule Included in Senate FY 2018 Foreign Relations Budget Bill

Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed a 2018 foreign relations budget bill which includes an amendment that would increase funding for family planning worldwide and repeal Trump’s Global Gag Rule which prohibits any non-governmental organization that receives U.S. family planning funding from offering abortion services or referrals. The amendment received bipartisan support, with Senators Collins […]

Politics

What to Expect as Congress Heads Back to Washington

Members of Congress returned to Washington yesterday after a month long August recess and there is a long agenda on the docket, but their first priority will be to pass a budget bill that will fund the government for fiscal year 2018. If they do not pass a budget bill by September 30, the federal […]

Labor Rights

Trump Budget Proposal Aims to Reduce Civil Rights Enforcement Throughout Federal Agencies

According to the White House’s proposed budget for the 2018 fiscal year, the Trump administration is set to disband the Labor Department division that has been tasked with policing discrimination among federal contractors for nearly forty years. Such budget cuts are not limited to the Labor Department, but are also seen in the budgets of a wide array of agencies as part of efforts to limit federal government programs that promote and protect civil rights.

Politics

Congress Expected to Vote on Bi-Partisan Budget Agreement

Congress is expected to vote this week on a budget agreement that will keep the government funded through September, and that contains very few of the big ticket items the President had requested. The bill would be considered the first piece of bi-partisan legislation to move forward in the Congress since Trump took office.

Uncategorized

Budget Talks Begin

Today President Obama and top Congressional Leaders began to discuss compromises needed to reach an agreement between the White House and Congress for next year’s budget. If an agreement between the two is not met by the end of the year, taxes on all Americans will increase. “We have to make sure that taxes don’t […]

Economy Politics

Republican House Leaders Launch New War on Women

Republicans propose massive cuts in programs that benefit women as they propose increases in Defense spending of $8.1 billion. The House begins consideration of the Continuing Resolution (CR) for funding FY 2011 without which the government will shut down on March 4. Republicans would eliminate Title X domestic family planning programs with a massive cut […]

Abortion Politics

Crisis of Deception: Fake Clinics Spread Misinformation on the Federal Dime

The powerful House Appropriations Labor Health and Human Services (HHS) Committee conducted hearings on its FY 2010 spending bill. President Obama has made his intentions clear. The President’s FY 2010 budget calls for a return to science-based initiatives and an end to federal funding for abstinence-only education programs. The question is will Congress follow his […]