December 06, 2019

Weekly Wrap Up

Week 49 (December 6)

This week the House presented the American people with its “Impeachment Inquiry Report,” which detailed allegations against the President.  Following the release of the report, the Speaker of the House directed the Judiciary Committee to draft Articles of Impeachment to defend our democracy under the Constitution. 

On the floor this week, the House passed a resolution supporting a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. House Democrats also passed the Insider Trading Prohibition Act, which creates a federal statutory prohibition of insider trading and provides the SEC with clearer rules of the road for bringing bad actors to justice. Additionally, House Democrats passed H.R. 4, the Voting Rights Advancement Act, to restore the strength of the Voting Rights Act to combat voter discrimination.

House Democrats have passed nearly 400 bills, including more than 275 with bipartisan support, that would raise wages, lower health care costs, and improve the lives of people all across the country. However, Senator Mitch McConnell refuses to take them up, denying Americans economic security and undermining the well-being of every family in every community. The American people deserve and demand action, and House Democrats will not back down until Senator McConnell gives our legislation a vote.

This Week’s Votes

H.R. 2534 – Insider Trading Prohibition Act – Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to prohibit certain securities trading and related communications by those who possess material, nonpublic information.

  • Represents the first clear statutory ban against insider trading and provides the SEC with clearer rules for bringing bad actors to justice.

  • Makes it unlawful for a person to trade while aware of material, nonpublic information if that person knows the information was obtained wrongfully, or that making a trade would constitute a wrongful use of information.

  • Prohibits those with material, nonpublic information from passing along that information if it is reasonably foreseeable that the recipient will trade on that information or pass it along to others who will.

H. Res. 326 – Promotes a negotiated two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that enhances security and stability to ensure Israel’s survival as a Jewish and democratic state and fulfill the aspirations of the Palestinian people for statehood.

  • Recognizes that while only the two parties can make the difficult choices necessary to end the conflict, the U.S. remains indispensable to any viable effort.

  • Advocates the U.S., with the support of regional and international partners, playing a constructive role toward ending the conflict by putting forward a two-state solution proposal to resolve final status issues in ways that recognize Palestinian self-determination and enhance Israel’s security and normalization.

  • Favors a U.S. proposal that discourages steps by either side that would put a peaceful end to the conflict further out of reach, including unilateral annexation of territory or efforts to achieve Palestinian statehood outside of negotiations with Israel. 

  • Reaffirms that it is in the U.S.’ interest to stand by the 2016 U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Understanding, which seeks to help Israel defend itself, and to resume the provision of foreign assistance to the Palestinians pursuant to U.S. law.

H.R. 4 – Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2019 – Restores the protections and enforcement of the Voting Rights Act to its former strength prior to the 2013 Shelby County v. Holder Supreme Court decision.

  • Seeks to restore Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act by developing a process to determine which states and localities with a recent history of voting rights violations over the last 25 years must preclear election changes with the Department of Justice.

  • Requires reasonable public notice for voting changes.

  • Allows the Attorney General to request federal observers to be present anywhere in the country where a serious threat to voter access and fair elections exists.

  • Sets rules for determining which states would become “covered jurisdictions” based on violations in the state in the past 25 years.

  • Known discriminatory practices include the creation of at-large districts, inadequate multilingual voting materials, and cut hours and locations of polling places.

Catch Us In The News

What We’re Reading

Looking Ahead

Next Monday, the House Judiciary Committee will continue impeachment inquiry. The House Homeland Security Committee will also hold a hearing on Wednesday regarding harassment in the Coast Guard.  

On the floor, House Democrats will continue to work towards lowering prescription drug prices, reaching a government funding agreement for 2020, and completing the USMCA. 

Check back next week to learn more about how Congressman Correa is fighting for Orange County.