The Bellevue Compass

If there’s a topic you’re interested in our analysis of, feel free to drop us a line. We’ll be doing deeper dives on the big stuff as it happens, but we’re always happy to hear what you want to know.

Welcome back to The Bellevue Compass. Congress is out this week, so we’re breaking down everything that happened last week before they left town. 

The Congressional Breakdown

The one thing everyone is talking about? The $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund” announced by the DOJ. Senators told NPR they were “blindsided” by the announcement, and some are withholding their support for the reconciliation bill entirely until the unrelated fund is removed. 

Similarly, the $1 billion earmark for the Secret Service to fund security upgrades to the White House ballroom was struck, a blow to Trump’s agenda. Though the vote on the reconciliation measure was scheduled for Thursday, the Senate canceled its plans to vote and vowed to pick up where they left off, leaving town for recess after the votes ended that evening.  

Every sign points to the anti-weaponization fund as the reason the Senate sought to delay voting on the measure. A source told Politico, “Senators are still solidly behind the ICE and Border Patrol funding. A number of concerns remain about the anti-weaponization fund. Those need to get worked out.” 

The situation unfolded like this: Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche did not make any guarantees during his testimony last week that settlements would not be granted to anyone who assaulted police during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Riot. But—he told GOP Senate leaders in a meeting on Wednesday, after the fund’s announcement, that funds would not be used for January 6th rioters. In the memo circulated by the Justice Department to Senate GOP offices, the details of that promise were omitted. Though the two may seem unrelated, the immigration enforcement bill involves Justice Department funding and is put together in part by the Judiciary Committee. As such, the Senate has a path to add language related to the fund into the bill, though it’s not explicitly included at the moment—and based on the reactions, not likely to get through without a fight. 

Two police officers who defended the U.S. Capitol on January 6th have filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration, arguing that the “Anti-Weaponization Fund” is illegal and dangerous, according to NPR. 

Outside of the mess that is the fund, Congress saw a surprising win in their repeated attempts to overrule a 1989 law meant to keep their salaries apace with inflation, and fix their yearly pay at $174,000. U.S. Court of Federal Claims Judge Eric Bruggink wrote that voting to overrule the amendment goes against the 27th Amendment, which states that any adjustment to congressional pay cannot apply until after an intervening election. Congress has argued that their pay cap is not high enough and “isn’t enough to compete with private-sector opportunities for high-achieving Americans”. 

Since 2009, Congress has repeatedly voted against giving itself raises. While Bruggink’s ruling was preliminary, it’s a win for a bipartisan group of past and current lawmakers who are seeking back pay for years of missed salary increases, according to Politico. Some members, however, remain wary of the political implications of raising their salaries, while the average American’s salary has failed to keep pace with inflation. The lawsuit will likely continue for a few months, so we’ll keep an eye on where it goes. 

On Saturday, a person opened fire at a White House security checkpoint in the area of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue shortly after 6 pm. The officers returned fire and hit the suspect, who died in the hospital. The investigation is still ongoing, but we do know the suspect had previous run-ins with the Secret Service. 

The Latest on Iran

The U.S. conducted “self-defense strikes in southern Iran” on Monday, according to U.S. Central Command. Iran accused the U.S of a “grave violation” of the ceasefire after the overnight strikes, as peace talks between the countries progressed at a snail’s pace. Secretary Mark Rubio maintains that an agreement with Iran is still possible, but a major condition of the agreement—Iran’s nuclear program—is a sticky point. 

President Trump said on Monday that Iran’s enriched uranium “will either be immediately turned over to the United States to be brought home and destroyed” or “destroyed in place” in Iran or at another acceptable location, adding that the Atomic Energy Commission “or its equivalent” should oversee the process.

It remains to be seen how peace talks will continue, if at all, in the coming weeks. 

The Sector Breakdown

The Pennsylvania Impact

Last week’s announcement of the anti-weaponization fund saw a subsequent removal of hundreds of pages from the Justice Department’s website, detailing prosecutions and convictions of people involved in the January 6th riot—many of which were from the Philadelphia region and Pennsylvania. 

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-01) is leading a bipartisan effort in the House to squash the anti-weaponization fund, and along with Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.) plans to unveil the text soon, likely once legislators return to session next week. Fitzpatrick, like most of Congress, is calling on Acting Attorney General Blanche to provide more transparency around the fund and how it will be used. 

As Pennsylvania legislators reckon with the fund's future, they’re also still talking about data centers. The pope’s encyclical has opened the door to many more questions regarding AI regulation and legislation, and legislators still seem to be ironing out where they stand on the complicated topic. There is still an ever-growing number of data centers popping up in PA as companies try to build housing for the immense power needed to fuel AI. 

In healthcare, Planned Parenthood’s announcement is likely to make its way into Pennsylvania politics in some capacity. Governor Shapiro has long sought to codify access to abortion into state law.  

Otherwise, last week’s election results are definitive, and it’s shaping up to be a high-stakes race in November. Could Democrats be poised to flip the House in swing districts? We’ll see.

In case you missed it, here’s our handy infographic that covers the hotly contested races in Pennsylvania. 

What We’re Watching

Did you know? Pennsylvania has almost 300,000 acres of state parks, with a state park system made up of 121 individual state parks. The first of them was designated in 1893.

Till next time,