Cabinet chiefs head to Mexico for border talks
Feds urge against delay in Menendez trial
Also in today’s edition of ‘Regular Order’ for December 27, 2023:
A push for a Radio Free Africa.
The FAA avoids a shutdown.
A legal win for ex-Rep. Jeff Fortenberry.
BORDER. With the surge in migrants across the southern border continuing, the Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas head to Mexico City today to hold talks on immigration with Mexico’s President. The high-level talks in Mexico City come as the Biden Administration struggles to deal with a flood of people that doesn’t seem to stop.
STATE. "Secretary Blinken will discuss unprecedented irregular migration in the Western Hemisphere and identify ways Mexico and the United States will address border security challenges," said State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.
ANSWERS. The problem is that neither country has come up with any lasting answers to deal with the surge of migrants - as more than 2 million people have made it across the U.S. border in each of the past two years.
DOMESTIC POLITICS. The mission to Mexico comes as a group of Senators have been trying to hash out new policy plans to tighten controls at the border. Few details have emerged from those talks, as key Senators have remained tight-lipped during the holiday break.
GOP. Republicans in Congress were not impressed with the latest diplomatic effort. "Instead of going to Mexico’s President for help with the border, Administration officials should tell our own President to undo his executive orders that created this unsustainable mess," said Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY).
REFRAIN. For President Biden, not much has changed in the past 12 months when it comes to the border. A year ago at this time, the White House was about to unveil a series of enforcement steps to help with border security needs. It sort of worked for a couple of months - but migrant numbers hit a high of 269,735 people in September. December might be even higher.
ARIZONA. You can definitely sense the political pressure on Democrats in Arizona right now over this border surge. Before Christmas, Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) ordered the National Guard to the border to help - and she wasn't mincing words when it came to the Biden Administration.
HOBBS. "Yet again, the federal government is refusing to do its job to secure our border and keep our communities safe," Hobbs said, calling out the White House for not answering her request for federal aid to deal with the huge number of migrants coming into southern Arizona.
HOUSE. "An emergency declaration is needed to manage the humanitarian and security needs along Arizona’s border," added Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ). "Our state, especially border communities and local law enforcement, should not be left to respond to this surge alone."
SINEMA. What makes the current situation all the more interesting politically is that Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) - whom Gallego is challenging for U.S. Senate - is one of the three Senators currently negotiating a border security deal. This is not only an issue for the presidential campaign, but also in Congress.
WEEK AHEAD. After returning yesterday from a Christmas weekend at Camp David, President Biden won’t be sticking around for long - as the Bidens head to St. Croix this morning. They will stay in that U.S. territory through New Year’s.
BILLS. The President signed into law a temporary authorization extension for the FAA yesterday - that will keep the nation's airports operating normally through March 8, 2024. The plan had originally been held up in the Senate in the continuing political fight that's delayed aid for Israel and Ukraine.
VETO. Lost in the pre-Christmas rush was the ninth veto issued by President Biden in 2023. What’s interesting is that none of his vetoes have been against what most of us would refer to as 'bills.' Instead, all nine have rejected special resolutions to repeal specific federal rules or laws passed by the District of Columbia government.
S.J. RES. 32. The ninth veto stopped a GOP effort to block a new federal rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. You can read the veto message at this link.
PROCESS. Why are these kinds of resolutions getting to the President's desk and not typical bills? Because these repeal resolutions operate under special expedited rules in the Senate, which do not allow a filibuster.
MENENDEZ. Federal prosecutors have told a judge in New York that they oppose an effort by Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) to delay his corruption trial until July. In documents filed on Tuesday, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said the original May 6, 2024 trial date helps insure a speedy trial.
BRIEF. "The current schedule set by the Court is expedited, but reasonable. The defendants should be required to proceed on that schedule, as the Government has," Williams wrote.
POLLS. Menendez continues to receive some of the lowest poll numbers that I've ever seen for a sitting U.S. Senator. His favorable rating in a Rutgers University poll from just before Thanksgiving was just 6 percent.
PRIMARY. Menendez faces a June 4 primary in the Garden State. His main two challengers are Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ), and Tammy Murphy, the wife of Gov. Phil Murphy (D).
SANTOS. Unlike what happened in the House with ex-Rep. George Santos (R-NY), I don’t expect any Senate effort to try to expel Menendez. It seems like Democratic leaders are hoping the voters give him the boot - and Republicans remain absolutely silent about the situation.
DEFENSE BILL. I wrote on Tuesday about some of the details in a 1,627 page defense policy bill signed into law before Christmas by President Biden. Let’s take a look at one legislative extra which deals with the Legislative Branch.
ARCHITECT. One unrelated plan is the 'Architect of the Capitol Appointment Act.' You might remember the controversy from earlier this year about the former Architect - who is in charge of the physical plant of the Capitol complex.
PROCESS. Instead of being nominated by the President, the Architect will now be chosen by a group of key lawmakers from the House and Senate, who will have the power to hire and fire that official.
YEAR IN REVIEW. Amid charges of financial wrongdoing, ex-Architect, J. Brett Blanton, was fired by President Biden back in February - but it took a while to get Blanton to leave. One story that still amazes me - Blanton was at home on Jan. 6 - and never even tried to get to the Capitol that day.
RADIO FREE. A big chunk of the defense bill deals with policy authorizations for the State Department. One provision would look at possibly setting up two new organizations to provide 'accurate, uncensored, and reliable news and information' for Africa, and for Latin America and the Caribbean.
STUDY. Modeled after Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Liberty - which once broadcast programming to those living behind the Iron Curtain in Europe - these organizations would produce what's referred to in the defense bill as 'Radio Free Africa' and 'Radio Free Americas.'
DX'ING. This idea seems a bit ironic, given that the U.S. Government has cut way back on its shortwave radio broadcast efforts through the Voice of America, shifting much of its work to the internet.
TARGET AUDIENCE. Why would the U.S. need to set up a special radio broadcast to Africa, or to Central America, or to the Caribbean? No answer really jumps off the page for me. We'll see if this goes anywhere.
FORT REPORT. A federal appeals court judge in California has tossed out the conviction of ex-Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE), who was found guilty in 2022 over charges related to illegal foreign campaign contributions. The judge said the case should not have been tried in California - but instead either in his home state of Nebraska, or in Washington, D.C.
BLUF. It could mean that Fortenberry - who resigned from the U.S. House in 2022 - could get a new trial. But it seems rather unlikely right now that the Nebraska Republican might be able to make it back to Congress.
RAP SHEET. A Michigan man - who suffered injuries when he fell off a wall at the Capitol - has now been charged with crimes for his actions on Jan. 6. Curtis Pulaski is yet another rioter who had been accused online by Trump supporters of being a federal agent - but as with all of those claims - it was false.
ON BREAK. Like the Congress, the federal courts are taking a holiday break this week. Jan. 6 defendants will be back in court next week. The three year anniversary of the attack is a week from Saturday.
MUSE OF HISTORY. December 27, 1861. On this date, Rep. Alfred Ely of New York returned to Washington, D.C., over six months after being captured by Confederate troops in the Battle of Bull Run. "An immense crowd of people thronged every avenue," Ely wrote of his arrival at the Willard Hotel, as he spoke to well wishers from the balcony. "I was once more a free man, receiving the kind welcome of my friends, in the capital of my own country," said Ely, who had been held at the notorious Libby Prison in Richmond.
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:
The House next has votes on January 9.
The Senate has votes on January 8.
Check President Biden’s schedule.
Follow me on Twitter @jamiedupree.
Email me at jamiedupree@substack.com
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When you mentioned the 3rd anniversary of J6 I immediately thought, what is the statute of limitations. I should ask Jamie. Then since I was on the internet I googled it instead. Take the day off today and spend some time with your family. I got this. “ The statute of limitations for most federal crimes is five years, meaning most Capitol attack defendants would have to be charged by Jan. 6, 2026.”
I'm impressed you linked that page in the 600-page defense bill dealing with Radio Free Africa and Radio Free Americas. As a ham radio buff you must run a word search for "radio" on documents like that just in case something like that is tucked away somewhere.
It occurred to me that those two programs could be valuable assets addressing the challenge of migration from the global South to both Europe and North America. Wide-spread accurate information might not stop the flow but it would definitely make the trip safer and better coordinated. People from other countries could apply for schools, employment or relocation in America with family or sponsors. Properly-staffed, well-trained immigration specialists in US embassies would save huge costs for both applicants and officials and those "Radio Free" channels would be a valuable resource.