Keystone & NSA Bills Fail; Housing Starts Fall
November 19, 2014
Keystone XL Pipeline and NSA Data Program Reform Bills Fail in Senate; Housing Starts Down 2.8% in October
Policy Watch
- A Senate bill for the Keystone XL Pipeline failed to pass on Tuesday, missing the necessary 60 vote threshold by one vote (59-41). The charge for the bill was led by Senator John Hoeven of North Dakota and Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana. Republicans are promising to bring a vote on the pipeline back in 2015. The President has indicated that he does not support the bill, but he continues to wait on the conclusions of a State Department report on the issue. [Politico]
- Also on Tuesday, the Senate also fell two votes short of passing a bill supported by major tech companies and the White House that would have reformed the NSA’s bulk data program. Among other things, the bill would have prevented the NSA from holding onto American phone records, forcing the agency to obtain a court order before accessing any available records maintained by phone companies. Debate over the issue of the NSA’s data programs will likely resume in 2015 ahead of the expiration in June of the Patriot Act provision facilitating the program. [NYT]
- Senator Harry Reid indicated in comments that confirmation of Loretta Lynch, President Obama’s pick to succeed Eric Holder as Attorney General, will likely be put off until next year. [WSJ]
Economic Indicators & News
- Housing starts for the month of October declined by 2.8% according to data released by the Census Bureau on Wednesday. Multifamily housing starts played a major part in driving down overall housing starts. Housing completions were also down by 8.8% for October, though building permits climbed by 4.8%. [Census]