International Affairs
Trump Defends Russian Diesel Deal as Bipartisan Criticism Mounts
A reported diesel deal under which Russia would supply more than 300,000 metric tons has drawn criticism from lawmakers in both parties, and President...
And The Winner Is..
SLF PAC, with $209.87 million in 2026 outside spending, holding first place from the prior period. Its largest support outlays back Jon Husted in the Ohio...
Ranked-Choice Voting Faces Bans and Mandates in Congress
Federal courts have uniformly upheld ranked-choice voting (RCV) as constitutional, while Maine's state courts have twice found it conflicts with the state...
State and Local Election Rules Face Federal Pressure and Court Blocks
Federal executive branch measures issued under the Trump administration would reshape how state and local officials conduct elections, from voter...
House Panel Will Examine School Choice Tax Credit
School choice has moved from a state-level debate to a federal policy question with real fiscal stakes. On Oct. 1, the Treasury Department and the IRS...
Congress Weighs Taiwan Defense and Cross-Strait Conflict
A central tension in U.S.-Taiwan policy centers on how the United States can support Taiwan's defense without triggering a cross-Strait conflict. A...
AI May Reshape Military Workforce, Key Questions Unresolved
How the Pentagon adopts artificial intelligence could reshape who serves, in what roles, and in what numbers, but the answers remain unsettled. A...
Ivan Torrez Moves From House to Senate
Ivan Torrez has joined Sen. Peter Welch's (D-VT) Senate office as a legislative assistant as of September 1.
No Going Back PAC spends $154M this cycle
No Going Back PAC Inc. has spent more than $154 million this cycle on candidates, including more than $20 million opposing Sherrod Brown and more than $7.6...
Grace Higgins Named National Security Adviser for Sen. Lankford
Grace Higgins has been named national security adviser in the office of Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), effective September 1.
Emma Royle Moves Up to Legislative Correspondent for Rep. Walberg
Emma Royle has moved into the legislative correspondent role in the office of Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI-5), effective July 1. She previously served as a staff...
Springer Nature Expands Federal Lobbying With Outside Firm
Scientific publisher Springer Nature America Inc. has expanded its federal lobbying operation by hiring, for the first time on record, an outside lobbying...
Visa Interview Wait Times Surge as State Department Staffing Falls
Nonimmigrant visa interview wait times have risen nearly eightfold since before the pandemic, while State Department staffing shortages have contributed to...
Election and Voting Law Resources for Congress
Federal election and voting law draws on the U.S. Constitution, federal and state statutes, regulations, and court cases, and a new Congressional Research...
Supreme Court Ruling Raises Questions About GAO's Executive Powers
A recent Supreme Court ruling on presidential control over executive officials could raise new constitutional challenges to certain powers exercised by the...
Congress Examines Oversight of Thousands of GAO Recommendations
Federal watchdogs have tracked more than 17,000 unresolved recommendations to improve government operations but generally cannot compel agencies to...
Maha Capital, Ballard Partners Lobby Venezuelan Oil Approvals
Ballard Partners LLC has reported more than $200,000 in lobbying fees from Maha Capital for work related to Venezuelan oil acquisitions and operations amid...
GAO Finds Gaps in $126M U.S. Effort to Stop Gun Trafficking to Mexico
Federal agencies spending roughly $126 million to combat firearms trafficking to Mexico cannot demonstrate whether that money is working, according to a new...