Along with this week’s roll call votes, the Senate also passed a bill (S. Res. 318), to support the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and the Sixth Replenishment; the Support for Veterans in Effective Apprenticeships Act (S. 760), to enable registered apprenticeship programs to better serve veterans; and the FUTURE Act (H.R. 2486), to reauthorize mandatory funding programs for historically black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions.

The House also passed the Citizenship for Children of Military Members and Civil Servants Act (H.R. 4803), to facilitate the automatic acquisition of citizenship for lawful permanent resident children of military and federal government personnel residing abroad; the End Neglected Tropical Diseases Act (H.R. 3460), to facilitate effective research on and treatment of neglected tropical diseases through coordinated international efforts; and a bill (H. Res. 585), reaffirming support for the Good Friday Agreement and other agreements to ensure a lasting peace in Northern Ireland.

HOUSE VOTES

RUSSIA AND G-7 SUMMITS: The House has passed a resolution (H. Res. 546), sponsored by Rep. Albio Sires, D-N.J., to disapprove of Russia’s inclusion in future Group of Seven summits until it reverses its annexation of Crimea and invasion of parts of eastern Ukraine, and adheres to the standards of democratic societies. Sires said: “If we do not stand firm against Russian aggression and allow them to participate in future G-7 summits, we will be rewarding Putin for his attacks on our country and our allies and that will damage our partnerships and alliances around the world.” The vote, on Dec. 3, was 339 yeas to 71 nays.
YEAS: Chellie Pingree, D-1st District; Jared Golden, D-2nd District

CHINESE TURKIC MUSLIMS: The House has passed the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act (S. 178), sponsored by Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., to condemn China for human rights violations of Uyghurs, a group of ethnic Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang province, and require various government agencies to report to Congress on the violations. A supporter, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called the bill “a critical step to counter Beijing’s horrific human rights abuses against Uyghurs.” The vote, on Dec. 3, was 407 yeas to 1 nay.
YEAS: Pingree, Golden

PENALIZING ROBOCALLS: The House has passed the Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act (S. 151), sponsored by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D. The bill would implement financial penalties for making robocalls, require the adoption by telecommunications companies of call authentication technologies in order to prevent robocalls, and require the Federal Communications Commission to adopt rules for reducing robocalls. A supporter, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., said it “takes critical steps to give consumers control of their phones again.” The vote, on Dec. 4, was 417 yeas to 3 nays.
YEAS: Pingree, Golden

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FINANCIAL MARKET INSIDER TRADING: The House has passed the Insider Trading Prohibition Act (H.R. 2534), sponsored by Rep. James A. Himes, D-Conn., to establish a statutory definition of the illegal insider trading of corporate securities. Himes said the definition, by clarifying the nature of insider trading law, would help ensure that the average American can invest “on a level playing field, not competing with people who may have an inside advantage” on financial markets. The vote, on Dec. 5, was 410 yeas to 13 nays.
YEAS: Pingree, Golden

SENATE VOTES

ENERGY SECRETARY: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Dan R. Brouillette to serve as Energy Secretary. Brouillette, who had been Deputy Energy Secretary since August 2017, was previously a House energy committee aide and private-sector executive with Ford Motor and USAA. A supporter, Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said Brouillette had effectively managed key Energy programs in his time as deputy secretary. An opponent, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., faulted Brouillette for failing to give Congress substantive answers to key questions about Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s dealings with Ukraine’s state-owned energy company, Naftogaz. The vote, on Dec. 2, was 70 yeas to 15 nays.
YEAS: Susan Collins, R-Maine; Angus King, I-Maine

NEW YORK DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Eric Ross Komitee to serve as a judge on the U.S. district court for the eastern district of New York. Komitee was an assistant U.S. attorney in the district from 2000 to 2008, then for a decade was general counsel at the Viking Global Investors firm in New York City. The vote, on Dec. 3, was 86 yeas to 4 nays.
YEAS: Collins, King

SECOND NEW YORK DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of John L. Sinatra Jr. to serve as a judge on the U.S. district court for the western district of New York. Sinatra has been a partner at a Buffalo law firm since 2008, and before that was a Commerce Department lawyer for a year and a private practice lawyer in Cleveland. The vote, on Dec. 4, was 75 yeas to 18 nays.
YEAS: Collins, King

MISSOURI DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Sarah E. Pitlyk to serve as a judge on the U.S. district court for the eastern district of Missouri. Pitlyk has been a private practice civil litigation lawyer in St. Louis and special counsel for the Thomas More Society, a public interest law firm, since 2013. An opponent, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., cited her not qualified ranking from the American Bar Association and lack of experience in trials and criminal cases, and said “she has spent much of her legal career advocating against reproductive rights.” The vote, on Dec. 4, was 49 yeas to 44 nays.
NAYS: Collins, King

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OHIO DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Douglas Russell Cole to serve as a judge on the U.S. district court for the southern district of Ohio. Cole has been a private practice lawyer in Columbus since 2006, and before that was Ohio’s state solicitor and an Ohio State University law professor. The vote, on Dec. 4, was 64 yeas to 29 nays.
YEAS: Collins, King

ALABAMA DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of R. Austin Huffaker Jr. to serve as a judge on the U.S. district court for the middle district of Alabama. Huffaker has been a private practice lawyer in Montgomery since 1999, specializing in civil litigation, including product liability, commercial law, and professional malpractice. The vote, on Dec. 4, was 89 yeas to 4 nays.
YEAS: Collins, King

UTAH DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of David B. Barlow to serve as a judge on the U.S. district court for the Utah district. Barlow was the U.S. attorney for Utah from 2011 to 2014, and from 1998 to 2010 and 2014 onward, has been a private practice lawyer in Salt Lake City and Chicago. The vote, on Dec. 4, was 88 yeas to 4 nays.
YEAS: Collins, King

NORTH CAROLINA DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Richard Ernest Myers II to serve as a judge on the U.S. district court for the eastern district of North Carolina. Myers has been a University of North Carolina law professor since 2004, and was an assistant U.S. attorney in the district and in California from 2002 to 2004. A supporter, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said Myers “has shown his commitment to the principles of truth, of justice, and of wisdom” throughout his career. The vote, on Dec. 5, was 68 yeas to 21 nays.
YEAS: Collins, King

SOUTH CAROLINA DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Sherri A. Lydon to serve as a judge on the U.S. district court for South Carolina. Lydon has been variously a U.S. attorney for South Carolina, private practice criminal defense lawyer in Columbia, and prosecutor for South Carolina’s state government during a three-decade legal career. The vote, on Dec. 5, was 76 yeas to 13 nays.
YEAS: Collins, King

POSTAL SERVICE GOVERNOR: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Robert M. Duncan to serve as a governor of the U.S. Postal Service for a 10-year term. Duncan has been chairman of the Postal Service’s board since September 2018, and previously was on the board of the Tennessee Valley Authority from 2006 to 2011. The vote, on Dec. 5, was unanimous with 89 yeas.
YEAS: Collins, King

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