Trump-free Friday politics roundup: Jan. 26

Government shutdowns, immigration drama, the Russian investigation and more rear their heads in this week’s politics roundup.

Shutdown happens, then ends

Over the weekend, the federal government went into a shutdown after Congress couldn’t agree on how to address immigration. It was preceded by long negotiations, in which both Republicans and Democrats gained demerits.

In particular, a short-term spending bill was up for vote. It will fund the government through Feb. 8 and includes six years of funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Funding for CHIP had lapsed in September after Congress failed to address it in a bill. However, the spending did not address issues of immigration, especially the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program championed by many Democrats.

As a result, Democrats threatened to hold back their votes, which resulted in the shutdown. However, suspending many of the government’s operations and furloughing the majority of federal employees is not exactly a good look.

Therefore, on Monday, Senate Democrats agreed to vote in favor of the spending bill. The House quickly followed suit. Now, everyone is pointing fingers at everyone else, as is standard.

Now that the government is out of its latest shutdown, what’s going to happen next? As part of this deal, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has promised that Congress will vote on immigration issues soon. This sets the stage for an even bigger battle.

White House proposes an immigration deal

On Thursday, the White House offered up a compromise on immigration, which it framed as a “dramatic concession”. As part of this proposal, the approximately 700,000 DACA recipients would be able to continue their path to becoming U.S. citizens. Moreover, individuals who were eligible for DACA but did not sign up for the program would be able to join.

The catch? The U.S. only has to spend about $25 billion on border-related infrastructure, including the much-talked about border wall. Family immigration sponsorships would be limited to only spouses and minor children. This proposal, if adopted, would also allow the government to deport more immigrants, specifically those who are undocumented.

White House officials, however, are unclear as to how this proposal will fare in Congress and beyond. It’s very possible that both the Senate and the House will produce their own versions of the bill, a la the multiple attempts at health care overhaul in 2017.

Those on the left end of the political spectrum are likely to look askance at the tightened immigration rules. Meanwhile, conservatives could balk at the support for DACA and other immigrants. Everyone will probably clutch at their chests when they read a $25 billion invoice of sorts.

Senate Judiciary Committee to release interview transcripts about Russia

The Senate Judiciary Committee, one of the Congressional panels involved in investigating Russian interference with the 2016 elections, is set to release transcripts of its interviews. Not just any interviews, however. These will be witness interviews with people who attended a June 2016 meeting with a Russian lawyer in New York.

However, presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner and former campaign manager Paul Manafort were not interviewed by the Judiciary Committee.

Kushner is reportedly “spooked” and will now prove to be difficult to interview. Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has blamed Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) for releasing transcripts of an interview with Fusion GPS founder Glenn Simpson.

“As a result,” he said, “it looks like our chances of getting a voluntary interview with Mr. Kushner have been shot. He has already provided his account to the Intelligence Committee.”

It’s not clear when, exactly, we’ll get to see these transcripts. According to Grassley, the transcripts must be reviewed and redacted as necessary. Two of them will also require legal review before their release.

Russia investigation interviews cabinet member Sessions

Last week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions was questioned by investigators for special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III. Mueller is heading the investigations into Russian tampering in the 2016 election, as well as possible collusion between members of the U.S. government and Russian officials. The Justice Department confirmed this interview on Tuesday.

Sessions is the first member of the White House cabinet to be questioned by the investigation. This follows increasing speculation that Mueller and his team are focusing more and more on officials who are close to the president. Coupled with Mueller’s other focus on possible obstruction of the investigation, this is significant.

Pennsylvania lawmakers also bad at making maps

Pennsylvania now joins Wisconsin and North Carolina in a dubious distinction: partisan gerrymandering.

Gerrymandering is the practice of redrawing voting districts in order to lend favor to one party. For instance, a map could excise neighborhoods or populations that may not vote in favor of a party, or could include other areas in order to increase a party’s advantage. Though it’s widely considered illegal, enforcement has been lax.

That is to say, lax enforcement has been the rule until recently. Federal panels have already struck down district maps in the state legislatures of North Carolina and Wisconsin. Now, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has invalidated the district map for the state’s House of Representatives.

Assuming that this case does not make it to the federal Supreme Court, Pennsylvania lawmakers will be able to draw a new map in time for the 2018 midterm elections. Given the intense politics and razor-thin electoral margins, this could be very consequential.

And, finally, your palate cleanser

Acclaimed sci-fi author Ursula K. Le Guin has died. Her books presented a vision of the future that was very different from the Flash Gordon-style tales of masculine adventure.

Le Guin instead chose to focus on societal issues, like politics (The Dispossessed) and gender (The Left Hand of Darkness). For her beautiful and passionately argued work, she became a towering figure not only in science fiction, but throughout the entire literary world.

Her speech at the 2014 National Book Awards is, all at once, funny, meaningful, and far-seeing. It is an important and ardent defense of her artistic ideals and work.

Next: 20 female masters of science fiction to add to your reading list

If nothing else, this is an occasion to read her work, whether it’s the first time or a beloved revisiting. The Guardian has a few good starting points for newbies. Meanwhile The New Yorker and The Washington Post (the latter article was written by Margaret Atwood) both present moving retrospectives of her life and work.