July 19, 2019

12 Aug July 19, 2019

Top News

• Trump to nominate Eugene Scalia, the son of the late Supreme Court justice, as his next secretary of Labor. Washington Post
• Trump Administration, Congress Have Agreed on ‘Top-Line’ Spending Levels, Mnuchin Says. Wall Street Journal
• House condemns Trump’s ‘racist’ tweets targeting minority congresswomen. Politico
• Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, Who Led Liberal Wing, Dies at 99. New York Times
• The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics. Politico

Energy, Natural Resources, & Agriculture

• Top Trump officials tell Bureau of Land Management staff most of them must leave D.C. by end of next year. Washington Post
• USDA expected to lose two-thirds of research staff in move to Kansas City. The Hill
• Trump administration freezing fuel efficiency penalties. Reuters
• California’s Wildfires Are 500 Percent Larger Due to Climate Change. The Atlantic

Indian Affairs

• Oregon Reps See Signs Of Slow Progress At Troubled Chemawa Boarding School. Oregon Public Broadcasting
• Infrastructure in Indian Country needs to be ‘fair and equitable.’ Indian Country Today
• EPA speeds up tribal air approvals. E&E News

Labor

• House passes long-sought $15 minimum wage legislation. Washington Post
• Pricey pension rescue headed to House floor next week. Roll Call
• For Decoding Labor Market, Unemployment Rate May Not Do the Job. Wall Street Journal
• Uber and Lyft drivers were paid up to $100 to protest a bill that could make them employees. LA Times
• Court Delivers Blow to Federal Unions Fighting Trump’s Workforce Orders. Government Executive

Taxation, Trade, & Defense

• Lighthizer Charms Congress, but Struggles to Sell USMCA. Wall Street Journal
• House Votes to Repeal Obamacare Tax Once Seen as Key to Health Law. New York Times
• U.S., China Trade Negotiators Talk for Second Time Since Truce. Bloomberg

Technology

• Despite High Hopes, Self-Driving Cars Are ‘Way in the Future.’ New York Times
• Tesla floats fully self-driving cars as soon as this year. Many are worried about what that will unleash. Washington Post
• Why Electric Scooters Companies Are Getting Serious About Safety. CityLab

Transportation & Infrastructure

• A Runaway Train Explosion Killed 47, but Deadly Cargo Still Rides the Rails. New York Times
• Portland to Vancouver in two hours – by high-speed rail. SF Gate
• Startups Are Abandoning Suburbs for Cities With Good Transit. CityLab
• Trump admin holding back billions in transit funding, say congressional critics. Curbed
• Federal Inactivity Drives State Creativity With Infrastructure Funding. Transport Topics