The House and Senate Cloakrooms: Dec. 14 – 18

Dan Holler / December 13, 2009

The House Cloakroom by Dan Ziegler

Analysis:

The House will be busy next week trying to wrap up business for the year before going on break. The main piece of legislation on their plate will be finishing up the last appropriations spending bill, which will be used to tack on so called “job creating measures” like unemployment benefits, food stamp programs, and COBRA health insurance subsidies. Make sure to watch Minority Whip Eric Cantor’s (R-VA) speech at Heritage last week where he laid out his “No Cost Stimulus” plan. Also likely to be a controversy next week will be a $1.8 trillion increase to the debt limit attached to the same Defense Appropriations spending bill. Lastly expect a bill to impose sanctions on companies who supply Iran with gas or support their efforts for domestic production.

Major Floor Action:

· Defense Appropriations spending bill with a Christmas tree full of extra tag on bills like extensions of unemployment benefits, food stamp programs, and COBRA health insurance subsidies, as well as a $1.8 trillion increase in the debt limit. An extension of the Patriot Act could also be included.

· H.R. 2194 Iran Refined Petroleum Sanctions Act of 2009

Major Committee Action:

· Heritage Analyst Sally McNamara will testify on Tuesday afternoon in front of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe concerning “The Lisbon Treaty: Implications for Future Relations Between the European Union and the United States.” See her research on this subject here.

· Defense Secretary Gates and Secretary Clinton of the State Department will continue their rounds of hearings on Afghanistan on Tuesday at a joint hearing of the House Appropriations Subcommittees on Defense and State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs. (more…)