This week was dominated by the absolute circus that is the Senate Judiciary Committee. If you only had minutes each day to glance at the news, like so many do, you may have thought nothing else happened in Washington all week. Unfortunately, that was not the case, as the House scrambles to pass as much garbage as they can as the clock expires on the 115th Congress. Nine bills were passed this week, including an FAA reauthorization bill and a Patriot Act-esque bill that received zero coverage outside of Justin Amash’s Twitter.
Kavanaugh
The Kavanaugh hearings were drawn out over the course of the week, but he finally received his positive referral from the committee that two weeks ago was taken for granted. Senator Flake (R-AZ) cast the deciding vote after a long day of testimony from Judge Brett Kavanaugh and his accuser, Dr. Ford, but on the condition that the FBI investigate more fully Ford and others’ claims. Flake and other Republicans at least had the common sense to limit the investigation to a week, to prevent further stalling, but all but three Republicans (Flake, Collins, Murkowski) really did not want an investigation. Hopefully, the final votes will be cast by this time next week, and we can focus on more important news like Kanye changing his name to “Ye.”
House Bill After House Bill
The House of Representatives passed seven bills (and one meaningless resolution) this week, most of which sucked. The good news first, three of those bills were tax cuts. The Protecting Family and Small Business Tax Cuts Act of 2018 would solidify many of the tax cuts passed this year that would otherwise expire in 2025. If Republicans could pass this bill, it would be huge, because the odds of passing it next year are slim if they can’t hold on to the House. It passed 220-191, with three Democrats and ten Republicans dissenting from party lines. The American Innovation Act of 2018 passed by a much wider margin, 260-156, with 31 Democrats and zero Republicans dissenting. The bill mostly addresses easing taxation on new businesses, by raising the number of deductions a new business can take for its expenses. This bill has a good chance at getting through the Senate before it is killed at the end of this session, so long as Majority Leader McConnell gives it a floor vote. The Family Savings Act of 2018 passed the House 240-177, with 10 Democrats and zero Republicans dissenting, and it would have the most impact of the three bills if it can pass the Senate. It allows much more freedom for individuals to save their own money through expansions and deregulations of savings accounts, including retirement and education especially.
For every good thing the House did this week, they did something awful. A reauthorization of the FAA passed 398-23, with dissent coming from 20 Republicans and three Democrats. The FDR Historic Preservation Act passed 294-15, with all noes coming from Republicans. If every word in that title didn’t give you a hint, that bill sucks. Republicans also supported a meaningless referendum to say, essentially, that illegal immigrants shouldn’t vote, in response to the San Francisco School Board.
The worst thing Congress did this week was the Empowering Financial Institutions to Fight Human Trafficking Act. While inconspicuously named, this bill borrowed language from the Patriot Act, and in essence, can allow the federal government to strong-arm financial institutions to handover privileged information without the knowledge or consent of the subject, and without a warrant. This bill received no press coverage, and no debate. It was passed 297-124, with 95 noes coming from Democrats, and 29 from Republicans. The bill will probably fly through the Senate, as well, with no press coverage. This is a great reminder to always check behind the curtain. The Kavanaugh hearings may not intentionally be a cover, but they are certainly serving as one.
Musk
In other news, Elon Musk has been forced away from Tesla. He was also ordered to pay millions to the SEC as restitution for tweeting about taking Tesla private. His tweets certainly indicated that he had the funding secured to do that, and whipped stockholders into a frenzy, but apparently, he only said it to impress his girlfriend, and had no such funding. Needless to say, it was a tough week for the greatest supervillain of a generation. This will also likely delay his plans to conquer Mars and grow his superhuman army there.
You can read more from Ian Scar on Think Liberty here.