Today on the Hill: #SOTU, Audit the Fed, Strip Mining, North Korea Sanctions

President Obama will provide an overview of his record in office as he attempts to burnish his legacy tonight during his final State of the Union address. The speech to a joint session of Congress will give Obama a chance to sell the public – and, to a lesser extent, lawmakers – on his legislative priorities, including gun control and approval of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal. Also look for the president to make the case for revamping sentences for street-level drug crimes, an effort that is hitting an impasse over crimes committed in corporate suites. Delivering the Republican response will be South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who has criticized President Obama on labor and healthcare policies and the resettlement of Syrian refugees. Haley most recently garnered national attention when she led the removal of the Confederate battle flag from statehouse grounds following the June mass shooting at a Charleston church. 

The speech also comes just before Republican lawmakers convene a joint legislative retreat in Baltimore to form their legislative agenda for the year. House Freedom Caucus Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) has said that his members will use the retreat to prod House leaders to develop and vote on a comprehensive tax overhaul this year, as well as push for a vote on an ACA replacement bill, welfare overhaul, and impeachment of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner John Koskinen over the tax-collection agency’s alleged targeting of conservative groups. 

On the floor today, the Senate has scheduled a procedural vote on legislation to require a Governmental Accountability Office (GAO) audit of the Federal Reserve – a top priority of presidential candidate Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY). The bill (S.2232) would allow auditors to examine the Fed’s interest-rate-setting deliberations and lending activities. Democrats will try to block advancement of the measure, saying that it would lead to politicization of core central-bank activities. Three Senate Democrats are still undecided about whether to vote against allowing Republicans to proceed to the bill, Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) said yesterday. Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT), who is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, has already told leaders he supports the bill. Democrats, who control 46 seats, need 41 votes to block cloture on the motion to proceed. Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) took the floor yesterday to urge his colleagues to vote against the measure. The legislation has been a key issue in Sen. Paul’s libertarian tack, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) decision to bring it up for a vote is a nod to Paul’s struggling bid for the Republican presidential nomination.

Meanwhile, the House plans to consider legislation (H.R. 1644) today to block a proposed strip-mining stream-buffer rule. Under the bill, the Interior Department’s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement would be blocked from taking final action on its proposed update to the stream-buffer zone rule until one year after completing a study on effectiveness of the current rule. The scientific analysis that the department relied on would have to be made publicly available online for 90 days before any proposed or final rule under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act could be published. Coal mining companies, particularly those active in Appalachia, could benefit from a delay in the proposed rule. The White House has threatened to veto the measure.

The House also plans to vote on legislation that would target North Korea following its claim – disputed by Western powers – to have tested a hydrogen bomb. Under the bill, the president would be authorized to apply sanctions to individuals, foreign governments and financial institutions involved in prohibited transactions with North Korea. Sanctions would apply to entities and individuals that engage in transactions with or provide financial services to North Korea and its financial institutions without adequate safeguards to protect against illicit activities, including proliferating weapons of mass destruction and conducting cyber-attacks. 

‘Today on the Hill’ includes updates provided by the House and Senate majority leaders, as well information derived from publications including Bloomberg Government, The Hill, Politico, Roll Call, and National Journal.