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TechCongress @congressfellows.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

📣 Applications are OPEN for @congressfellows.bsky.social's 2027 Congressional Innovation Fellowship! Technologists: bring your technical expertise to the policymaking process in Congress. U.S. citizens & DACA recipients eligible. Apply by June 25 ➡️ techcongress.io/apply

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Jennifer N. Victor @jenvictor.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

Not the main point here, but I do not ever recall a federal agency making significant programmatic and personnel changes as a result of the PRESIDENT'S BUDGET PROPOSAL, which does not change any law or funding allocations. Congress hasn't acted yet. What are we doing here?

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

The best thing I read today. Undermining and firing feds weakens us for so many efforts; great thread on diplomatic capacity.

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

New “Congress Two Beers In” podcast- @joshhuder.bsky.social , @mattglassman312.bsky.social and I talk appropriations, the SAVE Act, and tariffs. Chadha critique ahead… podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

podcasts.apple.com

The Spending Deal, SAVE Act, and Tariffs

Podcast Episode · The Government Affairs Institute · February 26 · 49m

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 22/12/2025

GAI’s December “On the Hill” newsletter, “American Scientific Research Depends on Congress” by @abankston.bsky.social , has important insights on how instrumental federal support has been to building American scientific dominance, as well as current challenges. gai.georgetown.edu/american-sci...

gai.georgetown.edu

American Scientific Leadership Depends on Congress - The Government Affairs Institute

Guest Post by Dr. Adriana Bankston, 2024-2025 AAAS-ASGCT Congressional Policy Fellow*This has not been a typical year for science in America. Going beyond the headlines is important to understand what...

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 28/09/2025

Absolute pleasure being on @c-span.bsky.social Washington Journal this morning to talk about the (likely) government shutdown, what’s happened before, what shutdowns look like, and the ways this time is different

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 12/06/2025

Passing the $9.4 B rescissions package requested by the White House, the extent of the cuts approved, and the individual cuts themselves, is a telling action for the House. Congress decides to rescind money regularly, but approving Presidential requests is far more rare.

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 19/05/2025

www.nytimes.com/live/2025/05... The fractured House GOP that denied their Speakers a procedural majority last Congress is getting in line. Still plenty of hurdles ahead…

nytimes.com

Trump Live Updates: Key House Panel Approves Trump’s Megabill After Conservatives Relent

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Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 04/04/2025

JFC. So far, Trump has caused markets to lose about 14%. Here's how the same period to date looks under other recent presidential terms

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 05/03/2025

An extensive section praising tariffs on the very day that introduced tariffs caused markets to drop significantly (& as the US Economic Policy Uncertainty Index had just risen higher than both the pandemic and Great Recession) is remarkable & commits to pursue policy irrespective of economic effect

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 05/03/2025

First mention of asking Congress for legislation in the joint session to Congress is a) revealing: comes an hour in, in a speech showing an executive shedding boundaries and b) asks for tax cuts, the Republican policy über alles

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Vanessa Williamson @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social · 04/03/2025

The NYT is reporting that the Trump Administration is planning to cut the IRS workforce in half. To do so would cripple the revenue service and therefore the functioning of the U.S. government.

nytimes.com

Trump Administration Pushes to Slash I.R.S. Work Force in Half

Losing half of its employees would severely strap the I.R.S., meaning Americans may have to wait longer to receive tax refunds.

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 04/03/2025

Just gave a talk on floor procedure, am too depressed to add this as an example in future talks. Would love more ridiculous but harmless behavior, a Traficant hairdo and a “beam me up” (ok, bad example given the corruption charges; still)

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 04/03/2025

@stephencolbert.bsky.social Please do a “better know a federal agency” series. So much material; maybe start with @altusaid.altgov.info

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The Upshot @upshot.nytimes.com · 04/03/2025

Our visual examination of what DOGE has been mostly targeting and mostly leaving alone. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 06/01/2025

New GAI “On The Hill” newsletter piece: my two cents on Jimmy Carter. Carter is both more nuanced & more relevant to today than is usually emphasized: in many ways he presages & hurries the turn towards Reaganism gai.georgetown.edu/signaling-th...

gai.georgetown.edu

Signaling the Right Turn: How to Understand Jimmy Carter | The Government Affairs Institute

Many political narratives on the late 1970s are incomplete, simplifying a politically complex legacy of President Carter, who died on December 29. Carter is both more nuanced and more relevant to Amer...

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 03/01/2025

Continuing to enjoy the regular @mattngreen.bsky.social Speaker election/opening a new Congress commentary. Never change, CSPAN.

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 12/12/2024

New GAI On The Hill Newsletter piece out: @loreleikelly.bsky.social writes on the mission and successes of the Modernization Committee—and promising potential next steps. gai.georgetown.edu/modernizatio... This was a pleasure to edit & inspiring to watch my friend Lorelei work on these issues.

gai.georgetown.edu

Modernization in Congress: Keeping the Momentum Going | The Government Affairs Institute

Guest Post by Lorelei Kelly , Research Faculty Lead on Congressional Modernization at GeoDES, Georgetown Democracy, Education + Service, McCourt School of Public Policy Hidden beneath divisive campaig...

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 07/11/2024

Just wrote this for work. Trump’s unusual control of the GOP, the weakening of the GOP/its old gatekeepers & the disconnect between econ performance and electoral fortunes (& the public’s misunderstanding of econ policy) undergird this election & the future. gai.georgetown.edu/the-governme...

gai.georgetown.edu

The Government We Deserve? | The Government Affairs Institute

Election Day 2024 is behind us. The country is taking stock of who we are and where we might be going. The final calls on some congressional races are still forthcoming, as predicted. There are many w...

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Jennifer N. Victor @jenvictor.bsky.social · 07/11/2024

Postmortem election analysis lecture from my GMU classroom today now available. Slide deck and very amateur recording linked below. Instructors feel free to use these materials with attribution. jvictor.gmu.edu/wp-content/u...

jvictor.gmu.edu

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 02/10/2024

Vance’s claim that Trump protected the ACA and worked to make it better is nothing short of Orwellian. My husband had pancreatic cancer as Trump and Republicans in Congress were trying to repeal and replace the legislation keeping him alive.

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 23/08/2024

Dems missed a Chicago nominating convention comparison: 1916, but for the Republican convention. 5,000 women staged a protest for suffrage. This pic from Jill Lepore’s book on Wonder Woman, noting the advantage Wilson gained from women voters already enfranchised

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 15/03/2024

I put this piece out earlier this week, on the shift to suspension of the rules and the disarming of the Speaker since 2023: gai.georgetown.edu/disarming-th... Fun fact: 2023 was the least legislatively productive year (metric: # public laws passed per calendar year) since 1851.

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Sarah Binder @sarahbinder.bsky.social · 09/01/2024

New features launched 🚀🚀at Good Authority— including “Good to Know” explainer posts. We welcome proposals for Good to Know explainers via the link below. Eager to hear from political scientists interested in contributing in this way to @goodauth.bsky.social Polisky docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 25/10/2023

Side by side coverage of the high heel race in dupont this evening and the House Republican conference voting is the news I want to watch, complete with interviews on policy positions.

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 13/10/2023

Dems will regret not voting to table or voting present on MTV. Did not see Scalise leaving the race this early, though. A Jordan speakership boggles the mind- Congress passes aid to Israel and little else?

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 11/10/2023

My thoughts on how Israel puts pressure on the speakership election, for @theconversationus.bsky.social . The congressional consensus is that the speaker pro tem is limited: no bringing up bills. Who fills the position and how quickly will have consequences. theconversation.com/why-the-cris...

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Laura Blessing @leblessing.bsky.social · 30/09/2023

I wrote about what's funded in a shutdown, what isn't, and why--and what's different this time around.

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