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brooklynite

brooklynite's Journal
brooklynite's Journal
January 3, 2021

The House of Representatives, 117th Congress, begins today...

Members are sworn in, and votes on Leadership begin at 12 noon.

January 1, 2021

Trump vetoes bipartisan driftnet fishing bill

Source: The Hill

President Trump on Friday vetoed a bill that would gradually eliminate the use of large-scale driftnet fishing in federal waters off the coast of California.

“By forcing the West Coast drift gillnet fishery to use alternative gear that has not been proven to be an economically viable substitute for gillnets, the Congress is effectively terminating the fishery,” the president said in a statement. “As a result, an estimated 30 fishing vessels, all of which are operated by family-owned small businesses, will no longer be able to bring their bounty to shore.”

The measure passed both houses of Congress with bipartisan support in last month It was authored in the Senate by Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and by Reps. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) in the house.

“The recreational fishing and boating community has long advocated for transitioning away from large-mesh drift gillnets which needlessly kill non-target species including sportfish,” Jeff Angers, president of the Center for Sportfishing Policy, said in a statement at the time. “Today marks a significant victory for marine conservation, and we are grateful for the bipartisan effort to get the Driftnet Modernization and Bycatch Reduction Act across the finish line.”




Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/532337-trump-vetoes-bipartisan-driftnet-fishing-bill
January 1, 2021

Pence may choose 2020 election winner 'as he sees fit,' Gohmert says in court filing

Source: Politico

Vice President Mike Pence has the unilateral power to decide the outcome of the 2020 election, according to the latest filing in a lawsuit brought by Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) and other Republicans mounting a last-ditch bid to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

“Under the Constitution, he has the authority to conduct that proceeding as he sees fit,” Gohmert argues. “He may count elector votes certified by a state’s executive, or he can prefer a competing slate of duly qualified electors. He may ignore all electors from a certain state. That is the power bestowed upon him by the Constitution.”

Gohmert’s new brief contends that the Constitution effectively makes Pence the sole arbiter of which electoral votes to count when he presides over a Jan. 6 session of Congress meant to count electoral votes and certify the 2020 election. The Constitution’s Twelfth Amendment, he says, “unequivocally entrusts to him all the prerogatives and rights to determine what electoral votes to count.”

It’s the latest, and likely last, piece of a desperate effort by President Donald Trump and his allies to cling to power in the face of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. In his suit, Gohmert indicates he expects more than 140 members of the House to join in challenging Biden’s victory on Jan. 6. He also noted that House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy and GOP Whip Steve Scalise dissented from the House’s legal arguments against Gohmert’s lawsuit.




Read more: https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/01/pence-2020-election-winner-gohmert-453259

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Name: Chris Bastian
Gender: Male
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Home country: USA
Member since: 2002
Number of posts: 94,452
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