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The Assembly Agenda: This week in Washington, D.C. – December 18, 2014
By Taniel Koushakjian (@Taniel_Shant)
AAANews Blog
December 18, 2014
Welcome to the last Assembly Agenda of 2014! Below is a full recap of what
went down on Capitol Hill when the 113th Congress came to a close this
week. While I explain the `Cromnibus,’ new ambassadors head to Armenia and
Azerbaijan, retiring Congressman Moran looks to line his pockets with Azeri
petro-dollars, and Jeb Bush leans in, here’s the Assembly Agenda: your
go-to source for Armenian American issues in Washington, DC.
HOUSE: Last Friday, the House of Representatives adjourned for the year
after passing a $1.1 trillion budget bill known as the `CRomnibus,’ for
Fiscal Year (FY) 2015. Part continuing resolution, or `CR,’ and part
`omnibus,’ the legislation establishes new funding levels for the entire
federal government through September 30, 2015, except for the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS). The DHS will be funded at FY14 levels through
March 30, 2015, which will allow the incoming Republican Congress a chance
to debate and potentially make changes to the department that are critical
to enforcing President Obama’s post-election executive order on
immigration, which was what caused the delays in the lame-duck budget
process in the first place. In 2014 the House passed 11 out of 12
appropriations bills, nearly completing the process, whereas the Senate
passed none. These 11 funding bills are the `omnibus’ portion of the
massive spending bill, while the `CR’ part refers to the continuation of
FY14 funding for DHS, hence the term `CRomnibus.’
While specific funding levels were not delineated for Armenia, Karabakh,
and Azerbaijan in the cromnibus, the bill provides approximately $49
billion for State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPS) for
FY15 overall, and $1.9 billion less than the President’s request. US aid to
Armenia in the cromnibus will follow President Obama’s request for
a total
of $24.7 million in FY15. The President’s request maintains military aid
parity between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Also, the cromnibus includes
language adopted by the Senate on Nagorno Karabakh and maintained Section
907 of the Freedom Support Act. For a break down of the numbers, see here:
– WHAT ABOUT PRO-ARMENIAN LEGISLATION? In the 113th Congress, two
pro-Armenian measures were introduced in the U.S. House of
Representatives: H.R.
4347, the Turkey Christian Churches Accountability Act, and H. Res. 227,
the Armenian Genocide Truth & Justice Resolution.
Under Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), H.R. 4347 passed the House Foreign
Affairs Committee (HFAC) on June 26, 2014 However,
the Churches Bill was not scheduled for a vote on the House floor before
adjourning for the year.
The Armenian Genocide Truth & Justice Resolution, H. Res. 227, was not
brought up in committee. Given the divergence of this bill from previous
Armenian Genocide bills, and the problems Chairman Royce and HFAC Ranking
Member Elliot Engel (D-NY) encountered when passing the Churches Bill, H.
Res. 227 languished, garnering fewer cosponsors than resolutions adopted by
HFAC in past Congresses.
SENATE: Like the House, the Senate finally passed the cromnibus bill and
sent it to President Obama late Saturday night. Outgoing Senate Majority
Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) had hoped to finish his chambers work shortly
after the House wrapped up, however, a last-ditch effort by Senator Ted
Cruz (R-TX) in opposition to the spending measure forced the Senate to
continue working through the weekend. Cruz’s actions did two things: First,
it opened up floor time for Reid to begin moving Obama’s pending
appointments earlier than originally planned; Second, it caused Senators to
scrap their weekend plans and return to the Capitol to vote on the
cromnibus. Senator Kelly Ayote (R-NH) was already at the airport when she
got the call to come back, missing her daughter’s ballet performance, while
incoming Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker (R-TN)
had to cancel his planned trip to Iraq, Turkey, and Pakistan. Eventually,
Cruz’s point of order would be defeated and the Senate ultimately passed
the cromnibus spending package and sent it to the President for his
signature.
– I’M LEAVING ON A JET PLANE: Following the budget vote in the Senate,
Reid set up confirmation votes on a slew of President Obama’s nominees on
Monday and Tuesday. Several vacancies were filled, including ambassador
posts in Yerevan and Baku. As expected, the Senate easily confirmed Richard
M. Mills, Jr. and Robert F. Cekuta, as the next US ambassador to Armenia
and Azerbaijan, respectively. For some background on Mills see here
and for more on Cekuta see here
– PENDING LEGISLATION: On April 10th, the SFRC passed S. Res. 410, the
Armenian Genocide resolution Introduced by Chairman
Menendez, it had 10 cosponsors, but didn’t make it to the Senate floor.
Outgoing Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), a long time advocate of
Armenian American issues, was a cosponsor of S. Res. 410. However, he did
not bring the resolution up for a vote. The Senate operates under different
rules than the House, making it much more difficult to pass an Armenian
Genocide resolution. A single Senator can place a hold on the measure,
effectively blocking its passage.
This year’s committee passage was historic as an Armenian Genocide
resolution had not passed a Senate committee in almost 25 years. That bill,
in 1990, was brought to the floor under the leadership of then-Senate
Majority Leader Robert Dole (R-KS), but failed two cloture votes after
being filibustered by Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV).
TURKISH, AZERBAIJANI, GEORGIAN FOREIGN MINISTERS MEET: Also this week,
the foreign ministers of Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Georgia met in the Turkish
city of Kars. The tri-lateral meeting is the fourth such meeting since the
three began regular negotiations in this format in 2012
The meeting is timely, given Russia’s decision the
week prior to scrap the planed South Stream pipeline for an alternate
pipeline that would deliver Russian natural gas to Europe via Turkey
MORAN TO LOBBY FOR AZERBAIJAN: Not even out of office, retiring Rep. Jim
Moran (D-VA) has informed the House Ethics Committee that he is pursuing
new employment for his post-Congress life. According to a report from the
Sunlight Foundation, Moran has entered into negotiations to work for the
Assembly of Friends of Azerbaijan (AFAZ). “This is true that retiring
Congressman Jim Moran and Assembly of the Friends of Azerbaijan entered the
negotiations for employment,” Kemal Oksuz, president of AFAZ said. “He will
provide consulting and advising services to AFAZ in its activities in the
United States.”
WHAT WILL THE NEXT CONGRESS LOOK LIKE?: The last outstanding races of the
2014 midterm elections have finally been called. In Louisiana, incumbent
Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) lost reelection to Congressman Bill Cassidy
(R-LA). Cassidy was a member of the Azerbaijan Caucus during his time in
the House, giving them another friend in the Senate. Two open seat
Congressional races in the Bayou State also went to Republicans.
In Arizona, Republican Martha McSally defeated Democratic incumbent Ron
Barber in Arizona’s 2nd Congressional district. The seat was formerly held
by Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ), who voted YES on the Armenian Genocide
resolution in the HFAC in 2007. Barber, a former staffer of Giffords’,
succeeded her after she resigned following the attack on her life in 2011.
Unknown to most Armenian Americans, Turkish PACs had been targeting this
seat since the 2008 election cycle, funneling thousands of dollars to
Giffords’ opponent.
With the final races called, the House will now have a Republican majority
of 247-188 Democrat, the largest House majority for Republicans since the
Hoover Administration.
The Senate will also now hold a Republican Majority of 54 seats, while
Democrats will hold 46 (2 Independents caucus with Democrats). It is
unclear if the incoming Senate Republicans will overturn the `nuclear
option,’ a rule change made by Reid in the 113th Congress to expedite
presidential nominees by lowering the confirmation threshold of 60 votes to
a simple majority of 51.
Also, Rep. Ed Royce will continue to chair HFAC, while Senator Corker takes
the gavel of the SFRC from Senator Menendez.
THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN BEGINS:
– BUSH 45?: No, I’m not talking about beer. I’m talking about the
possibility of a third President Bush. On Tuesday, former Governor of
Florida Jeb Bush (1999-2007) announced that he is `actively exploring the
possibility of running’ for President of the United States in 2016.
Essentially what this means is that he has formed a political action
committee (PAC) to begin fundraising. While this sounds like big news, it
really only brings him up to speed with other potential Republican
candidates like Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Ted
Cruz (R-TX) who already have their own leadership PACs.
For Armenian Americans, it’s important to note that in 2006 Governor Jeb
Bush issued a proclamation recognizing the Armenian Genocide
– Days until the Iowa caucuses: 396; Days until the 2016 election: 691
UPCOMING ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY EVENTS:
– LOS ANGELES, CA: The Armenian Assembly’s California office is hosting a
Summer Intern Alumni Happy Hour tonight at The Griffin in Los Angeles from
6:00 – 9:00 PM. For more info check out the event page on Facebook
here
– BOCA RATON, FL: The Armenian Assembly South Florida Regional Council
will host a 2015 Kick Off Reception at the Waterstone Resort in Boca Raton
on Saturday, January 3, 2015 from 8:00 – 10:00 PM. You can download the
invitation here
– LOS ANGELES, CA: On Saturday, January 17, the Assembly’s Southern
California Regional Council will host its annual New Year Gathering at the
home of Mr. & Mrs. Krikor and Marlene Yerevanian in Tarzana from 6:00 =80`
9:00 PM. Click here to download the flyer
ARMENIAN CONGRESSIONAL TRIVIA: Congratulations to Hagop Koushakjian and
Peter Melkonian who both correctly answered that Edward Djerejian is
another prominent Armenian American currently working at a university in
Texas. Hagop gets bonus points for answering that Djerejian is the founder
and director of the James Baker Institute of Public Policy at Rice
University in Houston. As I hinted, Djerejian served as US Ambassador to
Syria under President Ronald Reagan, and as US Ambassador to Israel under
President Bill Clinton. For more on Djerejian and his role at Rice, see
here:
Thanks for reading Peter, and glad to know my dad is keeping up with my
columns, too!
Peter has this week’s question: Name an Armenian American politician from
Long Island, New York. Hint: this person served as supervisor of one of the
island’s cities. Bonus points if you can name the city and extra points for
naming the company this person founded.
Send tips, suggestions, comments, complaints and corrections to
taniel@aaainc.org. If you don’t already, please follow me on Twitter
@Taniel_Shant, and follow the Armenian Assembly of America @ARAMAC_DC and
@ARAMAC_CA.
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