Capitol Hill Update, 6 July, 2015

Capitol Hill Update, 22 June, 2015

FreedomWorks has joined the following coalition letter in opposition to the new internet sales tax bill, the Remote Transactions Parity Act. The letter was lead by the R Street Institute.

Capitol Hill Update, 15 June, 2015

FreedomWorks has joined the Sunlight Foundation and Demand Progress in publishing a coalition letter in support of the Massie amendment to stop warrantless spying on American citizens. The letter is signed by 26 organizations from across the political spectrum.

Capitol Hill Update, 8 June, 2015

At the end of June, the U.S. Supreme Court will rule on a case – King v. Burwell – that could shake ObamaCare to its foundations. If the case goes the way of the plaintiffs – upholding the plain text of the Affordable Care Act as passed by Congress – the health insurance subsidies flowing to millions of Americans in states which did not opt into ObamaCare would cease. Congress will have no choice but to reopen President Obama’s signature law to address this legal difficulty. How our legislative branch handles the situation will have a profound impact on the prospects for free-market health care reforms in the future.

After sometimes-dramatic and often-tense several weeks, the USA Freedom Act finally passed the Senate. The act’s passage brings the government’s telephone data surveillance program under Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act back from its brief retirement, but with reforms that stop its worst abuses. Although the USA Freedom Act was certainly not the level of reform that many had hoped for, it passage nevertheless sent a clear signal that the days of Congress simply rubber-stamping endless surveillance programs are over.

Capitol Hill Update, 1 June, 2015

Congress can officially pencil another issue into a full June calendar – reauthorizing the U.S. Export-Import Bank. Senator McConnell confirmed last week that he will bring Ex-Im reauthorization to the floor before the end of June as part of his deal to pass the fast-track trade bill on Friday.