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Democrats' gain of Senate majority gives party new tools to reverse Trump policies

11 January 2021
 Dan Ackermann

The Georgia runoff results adding a majority in the Senate to the one Democrats already had in the House gave the party a fresh tool to reverse Trump administration policies.

Why it matters: The Congressional Review Act (CRA) empowers a majority in Congress to undo recent rules issued by federal agencies — including immigration restrictions, environmental rollbacks and labor regulations.

  • The power can be used in tandem with executive orders from the White House. President-elect Biden told reporters Friday one of his first priorities will be to use his executive orders to "countermand" those issued by President Trump.

How it works: Any rule enacted in the last 60 working days of a Congress — in this case since Aug. 21 — can be reviewed by the next Congress, according to Daniel Pérez. He's studied the CRA as a senior policy analyst at George Washington University's Regulatory Studies Center.

  • At least 1,354 rules would technically qualify for this review, according to the Federal Register.
  • A targeted rule could be blocked with simple majority votes in both the House and Senate.
  • A practical restraint comes from the mechanics: Congress can't start its review until the 15th working day after it's seated, and it only has 60 days to complete its work.
  • In addition, each regulation must be debated and voted upon individually in each chamber. That's a potentially time-consuming process in the face of other pressing congressional business.

Flashback: Republicans made unprecedented use of the CRA at the start of the Trump administration. It had been successfully used only once before, but they blocked 16 Obama-era agency rules.

But, but, but: While it is one of the most efficient ways to undo agency regs, the CRA can be a blunt tool. Rules can't be modified — only rejected completely. And if rejected, a similar rule can't be issued.

  • Some of Trump's biggest policies, such as those related to immigration, are already being challenged in the courts. Experts say it may be easier to simply let those legal fights play out.
  • Rules also can be undone or amended through the full regulatory process, although that can take months.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.