Today’s weekly Washington update comes to you live from the Marriott Marquis in Downtown D.C. where I’m attending the America First Policy Institute’s America First Agenda Summit — along with several dozen members of Congress, former Trump admin appointees and President Trump himself, who is scheduled to give the summit’s keynote address at 3:00 p.m. ET this afternoon. Trump’s address is an important one, as it is the former president’s first time back in Washington since leaving the White House last January.
If you missed any of the action from the conference yesterday, check out my Twitter thread with highlights from Monday’s panels.
Also, be sure to follow me for live updates throughout the day.
Outside of this conference, here are a few more things that you should know about that are going on in Washington right now. If all weeks in Congress were as productive as Democrats are trying to make this last week before the August recess in a midterm election year, they might not have the lowest approval of any institution in the country — but I digress.
House Lines Up More Gun Control Moves
The House of Representatives has lined up more gun control moves this week.
Here’s more on the proposed actions:
The House Oversight Committee is hosting a hearing with gun manufacturers titled “Examining the Practices and Profits of Gun Manufacturers.” The hearing was originally set for last week (which we previewed then) but was moved to this week and will take place on Wednesday morning (tomorrow) at 10 a.m.
The Assault Weapons Ban — as well as a potential repeal of the PLCAA (which “protects firearms manufacturers and dealers from being held liable when crimes have been committed with their products”) — are scheduled to be debated in the House Rules Committee this week as well.
Last week, Indiana Congresswoman Victoria Spartz (R) put the repeal bill into plain language that anyone can understand — and highlighted why the repeal of the PLCAA would be ludicrous — the left loves to say that gun manufacturers get special protections for the outcomes out of the misusage of their products, but Spartz outlines just how silly their arguments are in a line of questioning from last week’s markup that can be seen here.
CHIPS Act – Bringing Semiconductor Production Back to U.S. From China
The debate over the CHIPS Act seems to have split Republicans, both in D.C. and across the country, but first here is a bit more on the bill from The Hill:
“The House and Senate this week are awaiting movement on a highly anticipated bill to bolster the domestic semiconductor industry, which lawmakers say will improve the United States’ competitiveness with China.
The bill, which advanced in the Senate with bipartisan support last week, would allocate tens of billions of dollars to increase computer chip manufacturing in the U.S., and provide tax credits for investments in semiconductor manufacturing.
The Senate is expected to hold a final vote this week on the legislation — Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) for America Act — sending it to the House for consideration.”
Conservatives seem to be split on the issue and here’s why: We all agree that we need to be less dependent on China, but some are opposed to giving a blank check to any industry — even one as crucial to national security as this one.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott was one Republican who urged Congress to pass the legislation:
However, the conservative Heritage Foundation revealed its opposition to the legislation:
Also related to this bill, as I covered last week, Nancy Pelosi’s husband also came under fire recently making for big buys of stocks a semiconductor company, re-upping the debate over insider trading and whether or not members of Congress and their spouses should even be allowed to hold and trade individual stocks. (RELATED: Pelosi’s Husband’s Stock Trades Ahead of Key Vote ‘Stinks to High Heaven’)
On a closing note, there is currently a curious uptick in COVID-19 cases around D.C. President Biden has it, as do Senators Joe Manchin and Lisa Murkowski. Senate Majority Leader Schumer had it last week. Will these absences swing any crucial votes this week? Tune in next week to find out.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
Ramming agenda through now vs past years
Should all the biden crime family, be subject to a special grand jury prosecutor, appointed by Congress, to expose all the truth? Since the FBI AND DOJ are trying to sweep all under the rug like the Pelosi family.