Congressional Oversight

Today the Revolving Door Project and Fight For The Future released Congressional Appropriators & Big Tech, a special report detailing financial ties, revolving door moves, and other conflicts of interest between congressional appropriators (and their staff) and monopolistic companies like the Big Tech giants.

Coverage of presidential elections typically hones in on contestants’ competing legislative visions, which in truth, tend to morph considerably when hit by the reality of an intransigent Congress. This prompts an important question: are presidential elections overrated? Well, before drawing that conclusion, consider one of the underrated consequences of a federal election: the potential for a new administration to alter the management of the federal workforce and the operations of individual departments within the executive branch. Although journalists eschew reporting of these consequences in favor of (legislatively focused) policy platforms and rallies, there is a wide body of academic research which investigates the impact of presidential administrations on the federal executive branch’s ability and capacity to fulfill its roles and responsibilities. 

The patent system exists to promote scientific innovation to benefit the public, not to enrich private interests regardless of the merits of their scientific contributions. Yet that is precisely what PERA and PREVAIL would do by granting Big Pharma even more sweeping government monopolies and associated price-gouging power.

Today, the Revolving Door Project, Take Back the Court Action Fund, People’s Parity Project, Freedom BLOC and the George Mason University chapter of the American Association of University Professors sent a letter to members of the Virginia General Assembly calling on them to investigate Leonard Leo in regard to his undue influence on George Mason University. The groups called on the state legislature to investigate what Leo-tied activities are taking place under the aegis of a state school.

Uncovering Crow’s and Leo’s full relationships with the Court is precisely the sort of scenario for which Congress has subpoena powers in the first place. As of now, these plutocrats have been able to scoff at the will of elected leaders. Durbin’s actions, or lack thereof, will inform whether history remembers this Congress as stepping up or shrugging off one of the greatest threats to the American legal system in our lifetimes.

Letter Co-Signed By 80+ Lawmakers Underscores Louis DeJoy’s Destructive Continued Leadership 

Learning about the federal government’s budget process can be daunting. Here are a few key terms to help better understand of the federal budget process as of late.

Demetrios Kouzoukas’s nomination battle offers the perfect opportunity for Democrats to prove themselves to voters.

These corporate shills are not “positive pragmatists”, no matter what the mainstream media tells you.

The Court wrote a new ethics code for itself. It’s all but meaningless.

Josh Gottheimer, Joe Manchin, Henry Cuellar, and Dean Phillips are among the many Democrats to receive campaign donations from Clarence Thomas’ billionaire benefactor.