Ethics and Influence

Accountability and Oversight, Congressional Security, Continuity and Resiliency, Ethics and Influence, Modernization, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for September 19, 2022: Fixing Congress

By DanielSchuman September 19, 2022 17 min read

TOP LINE The Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress held its final hearing last Wednesday, aptly on how Congress should continue its work. The Committee has issued 177 recommendations over its three-and-a-half year tenure and likely will surpass the 200 mark before its work concludes at the end of this Congress. By its own […]

Tags: Office of Legal Counsel, Freedom of Information Act, Modernization, Staff Clearances, January 6, ethics, Continuity

Accountability and Oversight, Congressional Security, Ethics and Influence, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for August 22, 2022: The Executive Strikes Back

By DanielSchuman August 22, 2022 12 min read

TOP LINE It’s still recess, with two weeks until the Senate reconvenes and the House has a committee work week. House and Senate Security Manuals are now publicly available thanks to litigation brought by journalist Shawn Musgrave. The House and Senate resisted the effort, brought under a common law right of access, and only ceded ground after it […]

Tags: Office of Legal Counsel, Staff Clearances

Appropriations, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Ethics and Influence, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for August 8, 2022: It’s recess?

By DanielSchuman August 8, 2022 8 min read

TOP LINE This week. It’s recess-ish. The Senate passed the Inflation Reduction Act reconciliation package over the weekend and the House is expected to briefly reconvene on Friday, August 12 to pass that legislation and perhaps a few other bills. The events of the past week highlight that normal spending processes rarely go by the book; that ethics and […]

Tags: Congressional Unionization, ethics, debt limit, Earmarks, War Powers

Appropriations, Congressional Security, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Ethics and Influence, Modernization, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for July 18, 2022: Accumulation of Facts

By DanielSchuman July 18, 2022 14 min read

TOP LINE Happy House Union Day to all those who celebrate! Today is the day House staff can join a labor union under protection of law. It’s a historic occasion a quarter-century in the making. And yet, some Senate staff cannot collectively bargain until the Senate approves regulations adopted by the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights and some joint […]

Tags: Office of Legal Counsel, Staff Pay, Congressional Unionization, Diversity and Inclusion, US Capitol Police, NDAA

Appropriations, Congressional Security, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Ethics and Influence, Modernization, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for July 11, 2022: The Plot Thickens

By DanielSchuman July 11, 2022 19 min read

TOP LINE This week. There are just a few weeks left until August recess — three in the House, four in the Senate — which means everything’s accelerating. • They’re back. The Senate is back on Monday and the House is back on Tuesday. It’s NDAA week in the House (amendments are here); Senate Dems appear to be lining up another […]

Tags: Staff Pay, Diversity and Inclusion, January 6, Earmarks, Political Violence

Appropriations, Congressional Security, Ethics and Influence, Modernization, Appropriation Tracking, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for June 13, 2022: Everything at once

By DanielSchuman June 13, 2022 13 min read

TOP LINE As hearings into the Trump insurrection start, we join the #CapitolStrong community in recognizing that this can bring up strong feelings among the Members, staff, employees, journalists, and others who work on Capitol Hill or are close to those who do. Some mental health resources are available on the coalition website. This week. The House is […]

Tags: Appropriations, Staff Pay, US Capitol Police, January 6, SCOTUS

Appropriations, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Ethics and Influence, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for May 16, 2022: A better Congress

By DanielSchuman May 16, 2022 22 min read

TOP LINE This week. The Senate is in today as is the House. Next week is a House committee-only work week, followed by the Memorial Day break in both chambers. On suspension on the House floor is a bill to strengthen the VA IG. The committee schedule is filled with appropriations hearings, but we also note that the House Judiciary Cmte […]

Tags: Judicial Security and Privacy Act, Congressional Unionization, SCOTUS, Budget Justifications

Accountability and Oversight, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Ethics and Influence, Appropriation Tracking, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for May 2, 2022: A real coup

By DanielSchuman May 2, 2022 7 min read

TOP LINE This week. The Senate is in; the House is out until May 10. We are sending an abbreviated First Branch Forecast because we are tired. Don’t worry, we’ll have the highlights from the gazillion hearings this past week, including 3 Leg Branch, 2 CJS, and House Judiciary and ModCom hearings. TREATING STAFF LIKE PEOPLE No one noticed, but […]

Tags: Office of Legal Counsel, Appropriations, PLUM Act, Staff Pay, SCOTUS, Statements of Disbursements

Appropriations, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Ethics and Influence, Appropriation Tracking, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast: April 25, 2022

By DanielSchuman April 25, 2022 21 min read

TOP LINE This week. The Senate is in today; the House is in tomorrow. This week, we’ll be glued to another round of Leg branch approps hearings on the Library of Congress, GPO, & the AOC; a CJS approps double-header with the Justice Department, a ModCom hearing on modernizing the legislative process; and a House Judiciary hearing on […]

Tags: Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress, Appropriations, Congressional Unionization, US Capitol Police, SCOTUS

Accountability and Oversight, Appropriations, Congressional Security, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Continuity and Resiliency, Ethics and Influence, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for April 11, 2022: Fox on Stocks

By DanielSchuman April 11, 2022 28 min read

TOP LINE This week. The House and Senate are in recess for two weeks and not a moment too soon, with many Members of Congress reporting they’ve tested positive for COVID-19 and, we suspect, many others failing to make a public announcement. Mandatory mask wearing should return to the halls of Congress, positive tests should be recorded and […]

Tags: Government Accountability Office, Staff Pay, Staff Clearances, Congressional Unionization, Foreign Lobbying, House Ethics Committee, US Capitol Police, SCOTUS, PRESS Act, Earmarks, Budget Justifications, Office of Congressional Workplace Rights, Cybersecurity

Accountability and Oversight, Congressional Security, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Ethics and Influence, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for April 4, 2022: 4/04 Resolution Not Found

By DanielSchuman April 4, 2022 19 min read

TOP LINE On the calendar. The Senate and House are in today. The week before recess is often a whirlwind of activity and this week is no exception. In the committees, we have four — four! — House Leg branch appropriations hearings, a ModCom hearing on Continuity of Congress, a House Admin STOCK Act hearing, and … the Congressional Hackathon […]

Tags: Staff Clearances, Office of Legal Counsel, PLUM Act, Freedom of Information Act, Government Accountability Office, Congressional Unionization, US Capitol Police, Earmarks, Legislation, Office of Congressional Workplace Rights

Appropriations, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Ethics and Influence, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for March 28, 2022: Statler and Waldorf

By DanielSchuman March 28, 2022 10 min read

TOP LINE This week. The Senate is in today; the House is in tomorrow. We’ll be watching Tuesday’s much-anticipated Senate Judiciary Cmte FOIA hearing, which we hope covers strengthening the law and asking whether AG Garland’s long overdue FOIA memorandum goes far enough? (No.) The Capitol Police’s budget will be the focus of a first-of-the-season House Leg Branch Approps hearing on Wednesday; […]

Tags: Staff Pay, House Ethics Committee, Whistleblower Protections

First Branch Forecast for September 19, 2022: Fixing Congress

First Branch Forecast for August 22, 2022: The Executive Strikes Back

First Branch Forecast for August 8, 2022: It’s recess?

First Branch Forecast for July 18, 2022: Accumulation of Facts

First Branch Forecast for July 11, 2022: The Plot Thickens

First Branch Forecast for June 13, 2022: Everything at once

First Branch Forecast for May 16, 2022: A better Congress

First Branch Forecast for May 2, 2022: A real coup

First Branch Forecast: April 25, 2022

First Branch Forecast for April 11, 2022: Fox on Stocks

First Branch Forecast for April 4, 2022: 4/04 Resolution Not Found

First Branch Forecast for March 28, 2022: Statler and Waldorf

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