When the "People's Branch" of government takes up the Defense Appropriations bill later this week they will abandon a long-held tradition of debating the bill under an "open rule," which would allow any amendment to be brought to the floor that does not seek to change the language of the underlying bill. Traditionally, any amendment limiting or striking funds for any particular program was allowed to the floor under the "five minute rule," i.e. the Member had five minutes to introduce and make...

The US House of Representatives passed a new farm bill (H.R.2642) Thursday afternoon that would remove the US government prohibition on colleges and universities growing industrial hemp for research purposes in compliance with state laws. The partial removal of the US government prohibition on growing hemp included in H.R.2642 is the same as in Rep. Jared Polis's amendment that won a majority floor vote for inclusion in a previous House farm bill (H.R.1947) before that farm bill was voted down...

Sen. John McCain is promoting the so-called immigration bill (S.744) in the United States Senate by emphasizing it will create "the most militarized border since the fall of the Berlin Wall." Apparently, McCain believes this argument will convince other senators to vote for the legislation. The "border-industrial complex" we have been warned about is out in the open.By the way, the militarization for "border security" goes far beyond the immediate border. The American Civil Liberties Union...

House sources tell RPI that Representative Thomas Massie (R-KY) is preparing to introduce legislation to forbid the president from providing military assistance to any of the combatant groups in the current Syrian conflict. Absent a Congressional declaration of war, the legislation asserts, the president may not expend money appropriated by Congress for the purposes of arming any side in Syria. While not explicitly prohibiting provision of so-called “humanitarian assistance,” which often...

The so-called immigration bill the United States Senate is considering this week (S.744) is about much more than immigration laws. As Ted Hesson explains at ABC News, the bill would significantly expand the US Border Patrol's already large role in the US government's war on drugs. Putting the legislation in context, San Antonio Express-News columnist O. Ricardo Pimental advises that the legislation advances what he calls the "growing border-industrial complex," which operates much like the...