May 17, 2019

Top News

• Mayor Bill de Blasio Enters 2020 Race for President.
• Phillip Swagel Named Next Congressional Budget Office Director.
• Trump’s Immigration Plan Gets a Rose Garden Rollout and a Cool Reception. New York Times
• House passes drug pricing bills paired with Obamacare fixes
• Haven’t been following the abortion-ban news? Here’s everything you need to know.
• The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics

Energy, Natural Resources, & Agriculture

• Interior secretary mum on whether Utah will be new home to BLM headquarters
• Trump readies up to $20B more in aid to rescue farmers from trade war.
• The biggest breakthrough in agriculture to help feed the planet may come from outer space
• PG&E Transmission Lines Caused California’s Deadliest Wildfire, State Officials Say
• Chairman Peterson Threatens to Sue USDA Over CRP
• Investigators Urge E.P.A. to Pursue Scott Pruitt for $124,000 in ‘Excessive’ Travel Costs

Indian Affairs

• Congressional Hearing On Chemawa Lays Out Possible Fixes To ‘Total Crisis.’
• House passes tribal casino bill one week after Trump urged GOP to oppose it.
• US bill calls for DOJ review of Indian Country probes
• Deb Haaland announces U.S. House version of Savanna’s Act and addresses efforts for MMIW
• Under new Washington law, state will invest more in improving Native American tribal members’ health.

Labor

• Labor Law Safeguards for Worker Lawsuits Imperiled at NLRB
• Sara Nelson’s Art of War
• Mayors Score Win in Lawsuit Over Troubled Retirement Plan Endorsement Deal
• Work in America Is Greedy. But It Doesn’t Have to Be

Taxation, Trade, & Defense

• U.S. reaches deal with Canada, Mexico to lift steel, aluminum tariffs, clearing key obstacle to passage of Trump’s new trade deal.
• How Xi’s Last-Minute Switch on U.S.-China Trade Deal Upended It
• Trump Set to Delay Auto Tariffs Amid EU, Japan Trade Talks.
• Democrats Seek Review of Russian Investment in Kentucky

Technology

• Senate Commerce chair to renew push for regs on self-driving vehicles
• As Commercial Spaceflight Takes Off, The Aviation Industry Get Protective of Airspace
• Self-driving buses come to Providence
• Communities Are Fighting 5G, Permit by Permit.
• Facebook’s A.I. Whiz Now Faces the Task of Cleaning It Up. Sometimes That Brings Him to Tears

Transportation & Infrastructure

• Pelosi and Schumer expected to meet with Trump for second round of infrastructure talks
• House Democrats Unveil A Broad Infrastructure Package Targeting Climate Change.
• House lawmakers introduce bill to protect U.S. rail-car manufacturers
• Trump Administration Cancels Nearly $1 Billion In California High-Speed Rail Funding.
• New Federal Funding Targets ‘More Efficient, Cleaner Transportation.’
• Federal Infrastructure Funding is Good, but Local Governments Want Flexibility Too. Route Fifty

Transportation Experts, Government Leaders Stress Human Factor of Infrastructure