Congressional Delegations Travel to Argentina, Brazil and U.K.

The House and Senate are in a two-week recess, set to return to Washington the week of April 29. In the meantime, a congressional delegation visited Argentina and Brazil this week for bilateral discussions on issues of mutual interest. House Minority Leader McCarthy (R-CA), House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Thornberry (R-TX), House Homeland Security Committee Ranking Member Rogers (R-AL), as well as Senator Scott (R-SC), were among those who made the trip. Separately, Speaker Pelosi (D-CA) and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Neal (D-MA) led a delegation to London for meetings with U.K. leaders to discuss issues ranging from Brexit to Northern Ireland and NATO.

Pelosi Calls for Reexamination of the Communications Decency Act

On the heels of last week’s House Democratic policy retreat, Speaker Pelosi (D-CA) said in an interview with Recode that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act should be reexamined, suggesting that it is not out of the question that it may be done away with altogether. “It is a gift to them and I don’t think that they are treating it with the respect that they should…I do think that for the privilege of 230, there has to be a bigger sense of responsibility…and it is not out of the question that it could be removed,” she said.

Internet Exchange Act

Before leaving Washington, Senators Blackburn (R-TN) and Baldwin (D-WI) introduced the Internet Exchange Act, which aims to improve access to the internet, especially in rural communities. Specifically, the bill authorizes the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to make matching grants to establish or expand internet exchanges in areas in which none or few exist.

President Exercises Veto Power

The President kicked off the week at a roundtable on the economy and tax in Burnsville, Minnesota. On Tuesday, he vetoed a joint resolution aimed at ending US support for Saudi-led forces engaged in Yemen’s civil war. Returning the measure to Congress, the President called the resolution “an unnecessary, dangerous attempt to weaken my constitutional authorities, endangering the lives of American citizens and brave service members, both today and in the future.” It is unlikely that Congress will be able to override the veto; the Senate adopted the measure 54-46, short of the two-thirds required.

This morning, the Attorney General Bill Barr held a press conference alongside outgoing Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein several hours before releasing a redacted version of the Mueller report to Congress and the public.