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How much gets spent on the legislative branch?

January 31, 2020  ·  Kevin Kosar
The FirstBranch Forecast has done yeoman’s work to cull “all of the spending bills for the last quarter-century and lined up the spending items in a downloadable spreadsheet. Now… Read More

Precedents! Precedents! Get your FREE precedents!

January 30, 2020  ·  Kevin Kosar
As the Senate conducts its impeachment trial, there appears to be growing interest in Senate rules – particularly Senate precedents.  Is the Chief Justice allowed to cast tie-breaking votes when presiding… Read More

The chief justice doesn’t rule the Senate

January 28, 2020  ·  James Wallner
Source: ABCNews.com The Senate’s impeachment trial of President Trump has entered its second week. Some of the president’s critics have concerns with how it’s going—and they want Chief Justice… Read More

Congress rebuked but not reimagined

January 28, 2020  ·  Philip Wallach
Source: CNN.com “If we break this contract, throw us out. We mean it.” So pronounced the bottom line of a Republican National Committee ad, which laid out the Contract… Read More

Making motions In impeachment trials

January 27, 2020  ·  James Wallner
Now that the House managers have completed their presentation of the articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump, counsel for the president has up to 24 hours over three days… Read More

Can the vice president vote in a presidential impeachment trial?

January 27, 2020  ·  James Wallner
Up to now, the Senate’s impeachment trial of President Donald Trump has unfolded along party lines. All but one of the votes that senators cast earlier this… Read More

ICYMI: Senate leaders do not make the rules

January 25, 2020  ·  James Wallner
After several weeks of uncertainty surrounding President Trump’s impeachment, the Senate is ready to proceed. This week, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, … Read More

What happened in the Senate on Monday night

January 22, 2020  ·  James Wallner
Yesterday, President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial finally got underway in the Senate. Senators’ first order of business was to decide whether to adopt a package of supplementary rules (… Read More

McConnell’s impeachment rules advantage McConnell

January 21, 2020  ·  Joshua Huder
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell released the Senate impeachment rules last night. He previously stated the impeachment rules for Trump will follow the Clinton rules. And in a strict… Read More

APSA congressional reform task force report

January 21, 2020  ·  Kevin Kosar
Download the report. Read More