THE LONG GAME: Efforts to remove Trump ramp up; Georgia tips balance of power
Donald J. Trump could make history this week as the only U.S. president to be impeached twice. This follows his incitement of the mob that stormed the Capitol—one of the darkest moments in modern American history. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has scheduled bringing an article of impeachment to the House floor on Wednesday charging Trump with “incitement of insurrection.” On Tuesday, Pelosi plans to call for a vote on a resolution directing Vice President Pence and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th amendment to remove Trump. Unlike Trump's previous impeachment, this effort could realistically attract a handful of Republicans who are disgusted by Trump’s conduct. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) said that they wanted the president to resign from office. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), the current majority leader, has said that a Senate trial could not begin until January 19, just one day before President-elect Biden is sworn in. Still, many lawmakers feel a trial would be worthwhile even if Trump has already left office, since a conviction would allow Congress to prohibit him from seeking office again. Georgia voters altered the balance of power in the U.S. Senate when they elected two Democrats in run-off elections on Tuesday. Rafael Warnock and Jon Ossoff defeated Senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue. Democrats will hold a majority once Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is sworn in and is able to break tie votes. The move will elevate Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to Majority Leader and give Democrats the chairmanships of all committees. However, it is possible that the two sides will broker a “power-sharing” agreement, along the lines of the pact that was in place in 2001, the last time that the Senate split 50-50. Under that agreement, Republicans and Democrats had equal membership on committees (although the gavels were in Democrats’ hands) and the two sides forged compromises on the scheduling of votes and other matters.
Washington Watch is published weekly when Congress is in session. Published monthly during extended recess or adjournment.
Spotlight on Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico coronavirus statistics for January 11
According to the Puerto Rico Health Department, 142,340 people are believed to have been infected with COVID-19, an increase of 6,598 since January 4, when the total was 135,742.
Beginning on November 7, the Health Department changed the way it recorded cases, splitting them between confirmed cases (as determined by molecular diagnostic testing), probable cases (as determined by antigen testing) and suspicious cases (as determined by serological, non-diagnostic testing). Viewed through that prism, Puerto Rico has had 77,927 confirmed cases, 5,541 probable cases, and 58,872 suspicious cases, since the virus arrived on the Island. There are currently 392 people hospitalized due to COVID, a decrease of 29 since last week.
Last Friday, members of the Mayors’ Association met with the Puerto Rico Department of Health and the National Guard to coordinate the next stage of those efforts, which entails vaccinating the general retirement-age population, as well as teachers and first responders—groups that total some 760,000 people.
Prisons have consistently been sites of COVID-19 outbreaks; an outbreak at a Bayamón prison infected 167 people in the past week. Efforts to curtail the spread of the virus there have begun and its prisoners started being vaccinated last week.
Government seeks to have “Criollo Stimulus” ready for distribution by January 31
A new stimulus package for Puerto Rican small businesses will, if everything goes well, be ready to accept applications by January 31, according to appointed Economic Development and Commerce secretary Manuel Cidre. When approved, small and mid-sized businesses—ideally ones that are unable to obtain funds elsewhere—will be able to obtain subsidies to cover necessary expenses.
Although the size of this stimulus package has yet to be determined and the amount available to applicants remains unknown, Governor Pedro Pierluisi has instructed the Puerto Rico Department of Treasury to create a stimulus plan and identify a source of funding for it. However, the government has stated that the stimulus would provide a minimum of $230 million in assistance.
Georgia Senate elections change statehood dynamics for Puerto Rico
Although it might not seem so from the Boricua perspective, making Puerto Rico a state is a relatively straightforward process: all that is required is for a bill to be drafted by the U.S. Congress, passed, and signed into law. With statehood for Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico always on the backburner of Congress, the chief obstacle to the proposals has been the Republican majority in the U.S. Senate, capable of preventing any such bill from ever being voted on. With the Democratic victories in Georgia’s runoff elections last week, this obstacle has (for now) been removed, and the possibilty of statehood looks plausible.
The newest hurdle for any legislative statehood proposal is Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), the Democratic caucus’ most conservative member, and the upcoming chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, which like the House Natural Resources Committee, includes U.S. territories under its jurisdiction. When asked about statehood on CNN, he replied that he was “not convinced that's the way to go” for either D.C. or Puerto Rico.
However, even if there were a clear legislative path towards statehood for Puerto Rico, major underlying issues remain, including Puerto Ricans’ actual desires. President-Elect Joe Biden had expressed that Puerto Ricans must choose their own status, and incoming Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY), whose point of view mirrors Biden’s, has indicated that he believes the latest status referendum, in which the statehood option obtained 52% of the vote, did not represent a consensus.
Puerto Rico to receive $1.44 billion in education funds In two different statements, former U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced this week that Puerto Rico would receive $1.44 billion in education funds this year, thanks to the economic stimulus law passed in December. In her initial January 5th announcement, DeVos indicated that Puerto Rico would receive $1.32 billion in education funds, to be used to “provide a quality full time education to each student and identify and bring back up to speed students who have fallen behind.” Later in the week, hours before resigning from her position, DeVos announced that Puerto Rico would receive an additional $125 million, with the funds also coming from the December stimulus act. This $125 million will be managed by the Governor’s Office, and will finance the cleanup of education facilities, personal protection equipment, ventilation, and other measures to facilitate the resumption of in-person classes.
View From The White House
In a series of unsigned orders released Monday morning, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a bid by Trump and his allies to get the court to consider, on an expedited basis, challenges to the election results in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe announced that the Space Force would become the 18th member organization making up the U.S. intelligence community, which includes the CIA, FBI, NSA and multiple agencies in the Pentagon and the departments of Homeland Security, Treasury and Energy.
A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration’s latest attempt to change rules for asylum-seekers. The proposed rules—which would have taken effect Monday—would have broadened the grounds for judges to deem asylum applications “frivolous” and would have narrowed the types of persecution for which asylum would be granted.
In what is likely his last major personnel announcement prior to inauguration, President-elect Biden on Monday named career diplomat William J. Burns to become director of the CIA.
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