In the News

Foreign policy issues as well as a continuing resolution to fund the government through mid-December were the main topics of discussion this week in the nation’s capital, with Arkansas lawmakers discussing the issues. The following is a breakdown of the week that was in the nation’s capital: SYRIA/IRAN News this week of Russian forces bombing anti-Syrian rebels brought a stinging rebuke from the state’s junior senator. U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who serves on the Senate Intelligence Committee... Read more

LITTLE ROCK — Legislation to avoid a government shutdown cleared the House and Senate on Wednesday with the support of only one member of Arkansas’ congressional delegation. Rep. Steve Womack, R-Rogers, voted for the continuing resolution to keep federal agencies funded through Dec. 11. The bill passed 277-155 in the House after the Senate approved it earlier in the day in a 78-20 vote. Some Republicans in Congress opposed the measure because it contained funding for Planned Parenthood, which ha... Read more

NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals has renewed its call for passage of HR 3192, legislation directing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to provide for a "hold harmless" period until the end of 2015 for companies that make a good-faith effort to comply with the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosures (TRID). In response to questioning at a Sept. 29, 2015, Committee on Financial Services Hearing, CFPB Director Richard Cordray stated that any enforcement action on TRID would be ... Read more

While most of the world had to watch Pope Francis’ historic address to a joint session of Congress Sept. 24 from afar, Msgr. Lawrence Frederick had what broadcasters called a “coveted” seat inside the gallery thanks to a former student. Each representative of Congress was allowed to invite one person into the gallery to view the pope’s address and U.S. Rep. French Hill, a Catholic who graduated from Catholic High School in 1975, invited his former teacher, Msgr. Frederick, who has taught at Cath... Read more

Cong. French Hill, R-Little Rock, awarded his monthly Golden Fleece award to the unions that represent federal government employees. The award highlights what the Second District Republican Congressman sees as government waste, fraud or abuse. Hill has previously awarded the Golden Fleece award to the Veterans Administration, the Social Security Administration and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Hill said that government employee unions cost “American taxpayers hundreds of ... Read more

With hours to spare, Congress approved a stopgap spending bill Wednesday to keep the federal government open, at least until December. Democrats helped House Republican leaders pass the measure by 277-151 after the Senate approved it by a 78-20 tally earlier in the day. President Barack Obama signed the bill Wednesday evening. Click here to read more. Read more

Congress voted to avoid a government shutdown on Wednesday with all but one of Arkansas’s all-Republican congressional delegation voting in the minority. Arkansas’s members opposed the inclusion of funding for Planned Parenthood in the short-term, stopgap spending measure. The Senate passed the spending resolution 78-20. U.S. Senators John Boozman and Tom Cotton’s opposition to the government funding bill placed them at odds with the majority and their own party. 32 Republican senators voted “ye... Read more

U.S. Rep. French Hill wants Congress to assure banks and title companies that the government will be lenient as they work under new rules starting Saturday that will affect people purchasing or refinancing homes. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rules were proposed more than two years ago. They require that homebuyers receive easier-to-understand disclosure forms that clearly lay out the terms of a mortgage and also require title loan companies to prove they are following certain best pr... Read more

Arkansas’ federal lawmakers faced the resignation of House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, received a visit from Pope Francis and criticized a federal agency’s response to a disaster in the Animas River. The following is a breakdown of events that happened in the nation’s capital this past week: BOEHNER RESIGNS The announcement of the resignation of House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, drew surprises as the Speaker faced increased scrutiny from conservatives over policy issues. Boehner made the ann... Read more

On Wednesday, U.S. Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., and other House members visited the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba on a trip organized by the Army. "In my view, [Guantanamo] offers our Nation a safe and secure facility for the custody of perpetrators of terror including ruthless killers, bomb makers, the bomber of the USS Cole, and the 9/11 Five. Further, we have invested in state-of-the-art secure courtroom facilities that enable the proper adjudication of the detainees by military comm... Read more