WATCH: Impassioned Rep. Schweikert Helps House Pass "Secret Science Reform Act" Addressing EPA Regulations; Calls ASU "Next Smartest School In the Nation" (behind MIT)

Arizona Rep. David Schweikert (R-CD6) gave the most impassioned speech of the day in favor of the Secret Science Reform Act of 2015.  The measure, chiefly addressing EPA regulations, later passed the House on a party line vote.

Calling the Democrats' debating points against the measure "intellectually vacuous........because we're not saying things that are true," Schweikert noted that the measure simply requires "public policy made by public data, public data by public policy."  (He also had to tell the Democrats that he was not calling them intellectually vacuous: "No, Madam Ranking Member!  No, you're not!")

Schweikert was the primary sponsor of this measure last year, when it passed the House but stalled in the Senate.  Though he is not the named sponsor this year, he still took to the Floor and made the case for it. (Schweikert's Deputy Chief of Staff Beau Brunson tells Arizona's Politics that he did not sponsor the measure this year because he is no longer Chair of the Environment Subcommittee.*)

The House voted 241-175** to send it to the Senate, where the new Republican majority is more likely to take it up.  However, the White House issued twin veto threats against it and the companion bill passed yesterday.

The text of the Secret Science Reform Act is as follows:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Secret Science Reform Act of 2015'.

SEC. 2. DATA TRANSPARENCY.

Section 6(b) of the Environmental Research, Development, and Demonstration Authorization Act of 1978 (42 U.S.C. 4363 note) is amended to read as follows:

`(b)(1) The Administrator shall not propose, finalize, or disseminate a covered action unless all scientific and technical information relied on to support such covered action is--

`(A) the best available science;

`(B) specifically identified; and

`(C) publicly available online in a manner that is sufficient for independent analysis and substantial reproduction of research results.

`(2) Nothing in the subsection shall be construed as--

`(A) requiring the Administrator to disseminate scientific and technical information; or

`(B) superseding any nondiscretionary statutory requirement.

`(3) In this subsection--

`(A) the term `covered action' means a risk, exposure, or hazard assessment, criteria document, standard, limitation, regulation, regulatory impact analysis, or guidance; and

`(B) the term `scientific and technical information' includes--

`(i) materials, data, and associated protocols necessary to understand, assess, and extend conclusions;

`(ii) computer codes and models involved in the creation and analysis of such information;

`(iii) recorded factual materials; and

`(iv) detailed descriptions of how to access and use such information.

`(4) The Administrator shall carry out this subsection in a manner that does not exceed $1,000,000 per fiscal year, to be derived from amounts otherwise authorized to be appropriated.'.

Schweikert also gave props to Arizona State University in his talk. After somewhat-facetiously acknowledging that the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is "where all the really smart kids are, right," he said that ASU, the "next smartest school in the nation" should be able to take EPA studies and "bounce them up" against their research.

* In fact, Schweikert is no longer a member of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee.

** Only 4 Democrats voted "aye", and one Republican voted "nay". Arizona's delegation voted along party lines.


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Sen. McCain Takes Email Harvesting To Court, With An Assist From ESPN and the NCAA

Arizona Senator John McCain has made it to his own Final Four.  Final Two, actually, in 2008.  Now, he is using the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament (sorry, ASU women) to "challenge" supporters and potential supporters.

The email (shown below in its entirety) has the simple subject line "I Challenge YOU!", and gives people a chance to click on the picture:

The landing page asks you to input your name, email address and zip code - although it does not indicate it, only the email is "required".  You then have to use an ESPN account before you can enter your picks for the tournament, and compare them to McCain's.

Arizona tips off play on Thursday, the lone representative from the state in the field of 64 68.  As McCain, who is expected to run for reelection next year, will likely say, "Bear Down!"

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WATCH: McSally Memorializing Tucson Shooting Victim Bill Badger

Bill Badger, one of the people who helped stop Tucson mass shooting four years ago (and was himself grazed by a bullet, passed away this past week.  Rep. Martha McSally (R-CD2) memorialized the hero on the floor of the House today.

Here is the video:


Six people were killed on January 8, 2011, and 13 more were wounded.  Retired-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was the intended target of Jared Loughner.

After the attempted assassination and mass shooting, Badger spoke out against the raffle of a Glock by his fellow Republicans in Tucson, and in favor of measures that would help prevent weapons from being purchased by mentally ill individuals such as Loughner.


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UPDATED: McSally Only AZ Republicans Funding Homeland Security; Arizona's Republican Members Can't Keep House From Funding Homeland Security...

...without the provisions de-funding Obama's immigration-related executive actions.

The measure passed, 257-167, and funds DHS through September 30.

Arizona's Rep. Martha McSally (R-CD2) was the only Republican in the House to vote "aye".

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SHUTTING DOWN: Arizona Delegation Crosses Party Lines, Votes 6-3 Against Stopgap DHS Funding Bill (AZ Senators Vote "Aye")

Congressional Republicans tried to avert a midnight shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security today by passing a three-week funding bill.  Most of Arizona's Republican Congressmembers voted with Democrats in thwarting the stopgap measure.

Earlier today, the Senate overwhelmingly stripped the anti-Obama immigration executive action riders out of the bill and passed the DHS funding through September.  The 68-31 vote included Arizona Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake (both Republicans) voting "aye".

The drama was in the House, however.  Knowing that the stripped version would not fly there, Speaker John Boehner and Republican leadership put forward the three-week stopgap, and tried to get their colleagues to vote for it.

Three of Arizona's five Republicans withstood the pressure, and helped vote it down, 203-224.  Reps. Paul Gosar (R-CD4), Matt Salmon (R-CD5) and Trent Franks (R-CD8) were among the 52 Republicans to vote "nay".

On the flip side, House Democratic leadership applied a lot of pressure on its members to also oppose the three-week can-kicking.  However, Arizona's Rep. Kyrsten Sinema (D-CD9) joined 11 other Democrats in voting "aye".

Barring last minute developments, the Department will shut down tonight. "Non-essential" employees will be furloughed and the majority of DHS employees who are deemed "essential" will be required to continue working without a paycheck until a funding measure is passed.


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WATCH: Sen. Flake Announces Commitment From AG-To-Be Lynch To Abide By Injunction (Pending Appeal) Stopping DACA/DAPA

As the Senate Judiciary Committee met this morning and announced their intentions on whether or not to support Loretta Lynch as the next Attorney General, Arizona Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ) announced that he (and two fellow Republicans) had just obtained a written commitment that Lynch would abide by the injunction against President Obama's immigration-related executive actions... at least until the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court reversed the decision.

According to Flake, the commitment is significant because of some question as to whether the injunction only applied in Texas or nationwide.

Flake and Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) sent the letter to Lynch yesterday, and received a written reply.

The three Senators were then the only members of their party to vote to send the nomination to the floor of the Senate.  The vote was thus 12-8.


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WATCH: The McCain-Graham Anti-Obama Colloquy of the Day (aka, McCain AOCOTD)

Arizona Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and chamber buddy Lindsey Graham (R-SC) took their anti-Obama roadshow to the floor of the Senate today to continue blasting President Barack Obama for mishandling foreign affairs in numerous places around the world.

From Iran to Ukraine to Islamic extremism, the two took turns sharing credit for having predicted the problems that would result from previous Presidential actions.

The colloquy lasts nearly 28 minutes, and ended with McCain promising Ukrainians that he will "never give up, ever" until that nation is (again) free (from Putin) and democratic.


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WATCH THOSE BARBS: McSally Goes National In Border, Immigration Fence-Straddling; Favors Clean DHS Funding Bill... Or, Does She? (Answer: She Does.)

Arizona freshman Rep. Martha McSally (R-CD2) took (border) fence-straddling to the national stage today, as Congress shuffles towards a possible shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security.

She authored an op-ed column in the USA Today today* which seemed to make it pretty clear that she supported separating the DHS funding bill from the provisions to defund President Obama's immigration-related executive actions.  Here is her 2nd paragraph:

Now that he has defied even his own logic, the president's actions should be reversed, but not by withholding funding from the men and women who put their lives on the line to keep our country safe. 

McSally did blur the issue a bit toward the conclusion of her column by discussing the need for immigration reform. But even there, she ends by saying "Instead of playing games with the men and women who defend our homeland, Congress needs to get to work and do its job. That means securing our border and fixing our broken immigration system." (emphasis added)

Pretty clear, right?

No. when the Tucson Weekly's Jim Nintzel re-questioned McSally's spokesman about how the Congresswoman would vote if the House is presented with a stripped-down DHS funding bill.  Communications Director Patrick Ptak could only say that he "will keep you updated."

Of course, it would be VERY surprising if the House does face a DHS funding bill without the GOP's efforts to defund DACA/DAPA (aka Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents) and McSally were to vote against it.

After all, as Arizona's Politics reported last month, McSally was one of only 26 Republicans to vote against attaching the immigration riders to the funding bill in the first place.  At that time, she did not acknowledge that vote; in fact, her statement made it appear that she was all for it.

Does McSally think that the immigration hardliners in the Republican party (and her swing district) do not keep track of her more moderate votes or op-eds?  Or, that "establishment Republicans" and Democrats will look the other way as she continues to play footsie with the more conservative wing?

Refusing to acknowledge her obvious vote on the stripped-down bill that is going to be sent back to the House from the Senate is too cute by half.  And, it would be a shame if the barbs on that fence that she is straddling ripped her clothes.


* Even after 30+ years, I have not tired of using the "in the USA Today today" line. It is just fun to say aloud.

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