I guess they've just been screwing around...
The Dems have simply done nothing but obstruct.
The 115th Congress is flying by, and it can be hard enough to keep track of what Congress did last week, let alone two months ago. To make things easier, we've compiled links to each week's schedule and an overview of what happened for you below.
Week of June 5, 2017: The House passed an overhaul of financial industry regulations that repeals and reforms parts of the Dodd-Frank Act, along with a bill to let certain law enforcement officers and veterans bypass polygraph tests for Customs and Border Protection. The Senate passed a bill to increase accountability at the Dept. of Veterans Affairs and protect whistleblowers who report misconduct.
Week of May 22, 2017: The House passed a number of bills aimed at improving the services of the Dept. of Veterans Affairs and preventing the sexual abuse of children. The Senate confirmed former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad to be Ambassador to China, Anul Thapar to be a judge on the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and John Sullivan to be Deputy Secretary of State.
Week of May 15, 2017: The House passed legislation aimed at preventing attacks against law enforcement by making the murder or attempted murder of first responders an aggravating factor in federal death penalty cases. It also passed new sanctions on supporters of the Assad regime in Syria. The Senate confirmed nominees to be deputy secretary of transportation and associate attorney general.
Week of May 8, 2017: The Senate was the sole chamber of Congress in session, as the House was on a recess. It confirmed several nominees to positions in the executive branch, including Robert Lighthizer as U.S. trade representative, Scott Gottlieb as FDA Commissioner, and Heather Wilson as Secretary of the Air Force.
Week of May 1, 2017: Congress passed a $1.1 trillion omnibus spending package to fund the federal government through the end of September. The House also passed its bill to repeal and replace Obamacare, the American Health Care Act, and a new package of sanctions on North Korea.
Week of April 24, 2017: Congress returned from a two week recess to pass a seven-day continuing resolution to fund the government and avoid a shutdown. The Senate confirmed the last two members of President Trump's Cabinet, Sonny Perdue and Alexander Acost, the secretaries of agriculture and labor, respectively.
Week of April 3, 2017: The Senate confirmed Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court after deploying the "nuclear option." The House passed bills to brand North Korea as a state sponsor of terror, reform bankruptcy law for big financial firms, and protect small businesses' ability to self-insure their workforce.
Week of March 27, 2017: Congress sent bills repealing an internet privacy rule and blocking family planning grants from going to abortion providers to President Trump's desk. The House passed bills requiring the EPA to only use public science in its rulemaking and reforming the agency's science advisory board.
Week of March 20, 2017: The House cancelled a planned vote on the American Health Care Act but passed bills to apply federal anti-trust law to the health insurance industry and let small businesses pool together to buy their employees health insurance. The Senate debated the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, and approved bills repealing regulations related to hunting predators in Alaskan wildlife refuges, workplace safety recordkeeping, and internet data privacy.
Week of March 13, 2017: The Senate confirmed two Trump nominees — Seema Verma to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Dan Coats as Director of National Intelligence — and voted to let states determine whether recipients of unemployment benefits should be drug tested. The House worked a shortened week because of a snowstorm, but approved bills reforming personnel practices as the Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA).
Week of March 6, 2017: The House passed a defense spending package for fiscal year 2017 in addition to several lawsuit reform bills. The Senate sent bills blocking rules related to teacher preparation, state accountability plans for education, and Bureau of Land Management planning to President Trump's desk.
Week of February 27, 2017: The Senate gave final approval to President Trump's nominees to lead the Depts. of Commerce, the Interior, Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and Energy. The House passed bills to make more information about pending regulations public and require that high-cost regulations to be reviewed by an independent commission.
Week of February 13, 2017: The House passed bills aimed at improving claims processing at the Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA) before passing five bills repealing various Obama-era regulations. The Senate confirmed President Trump's picks to lead the VA, the Treasury, the Office of Management and Budget, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Week of February 6, 2017: The House passed an email privacy bill along with legislation blocking Obama era regulations on state education accountability plans, teacher preparation, and a Bureau of Land Management planning rule. The Senate confirmed three of Trump's cabinet nominees — Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education, Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) as Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) as Attorney General.
Week of January 30, 2017: The Senate confirmed Trump's pick to lead the Dept. of Transporation, Elaine Chao, and Rex Tillerson as his Secretary of State, in addition to passing a bill to block the Obama era "Stream Protection Rule." The House had passed that bill and other regulatory disapproval bills earlier in the week, including a rule that blocked people considered "mental defectives" by Social Security from buying guns.
Week of January 23, 2017: The House passed legislation that would make the Hyde Amendment, which bars federal funding from being used to fund abortions except in extreme situations, into a permanent law and several communications-related bills. The Senate confirmed Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) as the Trump administration's CIA Director and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley as Ambassador to the United Nations.
Week of January 17, 2017: President Donald Trump's inauguration on Friday shortened this congressional work week, as the House wasn't in session and the Senate focused on holding confirmation hearings for Trump's nominees.
Week of January 9, 2017: The House and Senate both approved a budget resolution that starts the process of repealing the Affordable Care Act (commonly known as Obamacare) through the process of reconciliation. Congress also passed legislation to grant a waiver to retired Marine Corps General Jim Mattis so that he could serve as Secretary of Defense. Aside from that, the House focused on regulatory reform bills while the Senate held hearings for President-elect Donald Trump's nominees.
Week of January 3, 2017: The 115th Congress officially convenes! The House re-elected Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) as Speaker of the House, adopted its rules and passed regulatory reform bills and a condemnation of a U.N. Security Council Resolution related to Israeli settlements in the contested West Bank. The Senate took care of its own administrative tasks, and spent Friday formally counting the votes of the Electoral College.
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