Washington Report: Updates From the Capitol

Jobs Bill Fails in Senate

With the failure of the Senate to pass the Democrat-backed jobs bill that would maintain extended benefits for the unemployed beyond the standard 26 weeks, unemployed workers could lose their unemployment insurance benefits.

The 57-41 vote fell three short of the 60 need to withstand a filibuster by Republicans. The bill would also have provided $16 billion in new aid to states, preserving the jobs of thousands of state and local government workers and providing what White House officials called an insurance policy against a double-dip recession.

In related events on Capitol Hill, several members of the Congressional Black Caucus sharply criticized Republican senators at Wednesday for what they say is the shameful inaction on several pieces of legislation, but most egregiously, the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act, which includes funding for a summer jobs program and compensation for black farmers.

The overall African American unemployment rate for May dropped one percentage point to 15.5%, which CBC chair Rep. Barbara Lee of California said is still unacceptably high. The unemployment figure for black youth, aged 16-19, increased to 38% in May.

Black lawmakers have repeatedly expressed concern that young people will find trouble if they can’t find jobs. As an example to prove their point, Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Illinois) cited the past weekend in Chicago, which ended with a shocking 54 shootings that left 11 people dead. He argued that swift passage of the jobs package could prevent violence in communities around the nation.

“It’s Criminology 101: if you’re not in school and you’re not working, you’re getting into trouble,” added Rep. Corinne Brown (D-Florida), who laid blame on the entire upper chamber. “I’m not going to blame just the Republicans; this is a bipartisan failure.”

House Narrowly Passes Campaign Finance Law

Money talks, especially in politics, but black candidates and advocacy groups are almost always at a disadvantage because they cannot compete financially against large groups and candidates backed by fat cat donors. As a result, certain groups have had a disproportionate level of influence over the nation’s political process.

On Thursday the House narrowly passed by a vote of 219 to 206 the Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Election (DISCLOSE) Act, which would require corporations, trade associations, advocacy groups and unions that purchase campaign advertising to disclose top donors and other financial information about how ads and mailings are paid for. The bill was crafted to serve as an antidote to a controversial Supreme Court ruling in January that overturned previous limits on political ad spending.

To win support for the legislation, Democratic leadership carved out a controversial exemption from parts of the bill for large groups like the National Rifle Association and the Sierra Club, raising the ire of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Several CBC members argued that the exemption excluded

most black advocacy and civil rights groups, which leadership remedied. Some, like Rep. Maxine Waters (D-California), opposed the bill because of the National Rifle Association exemption and the Sierra Club, raising the ire of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Several CBC members argued that the exemption excluded most black advocacy and civil rights groups, which leadership remedied. Some, like Rep. Maxine Waters (D-California), opposed the bill because of the NRA exemption. That organization causes many of her constituents get killed, she told one lawmaker. Waters and 12 other CBC members voted against the bill.

That organization causes many of her constituents get killed, she told one lawmaker. Waters and 12 other CBC members voted against the bill.

Some black lawmakers voted for the measure despite reservations because they want curbs on spending that allows groups to have undue influence on issues that are important to their constituents or to attack a candidate who doesn’t have the means to fight back.

“Issue advocacy can be much more effective than advocating for a candidate and an issues ad that attacks a candidate can frankly do more damage than an ad that endorses a candidate. This is a real problem in American politics,” Rep. Artur Davis (D-Alabama), who supported the bill from the start.

White House Announces Strategy to End Homelessness

The White House unveiled on Tuesday a comprehensive strategy to end homelessness among veterans in five years, chronic homelessness in five

years, and family and youth homelessness in 10 years. The secretaries of Housing and Urban Development, Labor, Education, Health and Human Services and Veterans Affairs, under the aegis of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, are leading the initiative.

According to the National Association to End Homelessness, in 2008, African Americans represented a majority of the homeless population at 42% and 45% of all homeless veterans. White House statistics show that 634,000 people, including 107,000 veterans, experience homelessness each night.

“Homelessness is an issue that crosses all geographic regions and all races,” said White House Domestic Policy Council director Melody Barnes. “We believe that this plan sets the nation on a course to address homelessness and gives goals and timelines to that. It also brings together the resources of all of these secretaries and will relieve significant pressure by starting to move people out of homelessness and into housing programs, jobs and address their healthcare needs.”

“Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness” includes several projects on which federal agencies can collaborate with each other and with state and local governments. One project calls for HUD, HHS and Education to combine housing vouchers with other vital services to help keep families off the street.

It also calls for measures that would link health care with homeless assistance programs and housing to advance stability for youth aging out of systems such as foster care and juvenile

justice, and to improve discharge planning for people who have frequent contact with hospitals and criminal justice systems. Click here to watch a webcast of the plan’s release.What Will Washington be Talking About Next Week?

*Although the Senate failed once again to pass a bill that would provide summer jobs, fund the black farmers settlement and extend unemployment benefits, the pressure to do so will be even greater. Can Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid muster up the three votes he needs to bring the bill to a full vote?

*In a victory for President Barack Obama, the Wall Street reform bill conference committee struck an early morning deal and the bill should reach his desk for signature next week after the House and Senate hold final votes. “The finish line is in sight,” said Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner in a statement after the committee ended its all-nighter. “[The bill] represents the most sweeping set of financial reforms since those that followed the Great Depression. It establishes the greatest consumer financial protections in American history.”

*On June 29, Senate and House members of each party will don the uniform of their districts and home state for the annual congressional baseball game. The century-old tradition will raises funds for two worthy causes–The Washington Literacy Council, and The Boys and Girls Club of Greater Washington. Rachel Robinson, widow of baseball pioneer Jackie Robinson, will throw the ceremonial first pitch.