Congressional Dish

The Internet is a powerful international communications tool; how does the 114th Congress plan to change how it's governed? In this episode, learn about the bills that are moving through Congress that could have a direct effect on the future of the Internet. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a m...

Two defense contractors went on a podcast and everything they said was true. In this episode, discover the shocking extent to which our government has privatized wartime operations. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a monthly subscription Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode...

Health: Is there anything more important? In this episode, we examine three bills that moved through Congress in 2016 which would have a direct effect on the health of American citizens. Would the changes benefit you? This episode is dedicated to the loving memory of Nathan Brightbill. He will be forever loved and missed. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or B...

In the wake of the Brussels bombings, which attacked the heart of the European Union, we examine the history of the European Union and how this terrorist attack may affect its future. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a monthly subscription Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episo...

Stop the laws! In this episode, learn the details of three bills that passed the House of Representatives in January which would make enforcing laws more difficult for Federal agencies. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a monthly subscription Click here to support Congressional Dish for each epi...

CISA is law; all private companies have immunity for sharing data with the government for "cybersecurity", so what happens now? In this episode, we examine the plans being discussed and implemented by Congress to secure the data stored by the U.S. Government. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a...

Good news! A new law was signed that creates the Angel Watch Center within the Department of Homeland Security, which will coordinate travel monitoring of convicted sex offenders. In this episode, Jen discusses the new law with Tim Ballard, the Founder and CEO of Operation Underground Railroad, which is an organization dedicated to saving children from international sex slavery. Please support Con...

In this special episode, we take a look at the different rules for getting on the ballot for the House of Representatives in all fifty States, and take a look at how some States made it way too hard for Independents to qualify. Executive Producer: Nickolas Zacharias Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to cr...

War ahead! While the country was busy preparing for a giant snowstorm, the leader of the Senate quietly made an Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) eligible for a vote in the Senate, fast tracking it through normal Senate process. In this episode, take a look at the details of this AUMF and find out what the war mongers in charge might be planning to do with it. To get the most out...

In the third and final episode in our Trans-Pacific Partnership series, we take a look at the TPP Environment Chapter; would the treaty actually improve enforcement of environmental laws around the world? Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a monthly subscription Click here to support Congressiona...

Need drugs? The Trans-Pacific Partnership is an international treaty that Congress needs to approve. In this episode, find out how the TPP would affect your access to medicine. Would this treaty provide you access to life-saving drugs or would it provide the pharmaceutical industry excessive profits? Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayP...

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is finished and will be eligible for a vote in Congress in February 2016. In December, the Democrats held a hearing on the Investment chapter of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. In this episode, highlights from that hearing and a summary of the provisions in one of the TPP's most important chapters. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal...

Cybersecurity or surveillance? What does the language attached at the last minute to the 2,009 page omnibus government funding bill actually authorize? In this episode, we take a close look at what just became law. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make it Monthly" checkbox to create a monthly subscription Click here to support Co...

Available for less than 3 days before the votes, the 2,009 page "omnibus" government funding bill was signed into law. History will not look kindly upon provisions that give private companies immunity for forwarding data to the government, make policing political contributions illegal, repeal a food labeling law, restrict international travel, and allow environmental damage. Please support Congres...

Three months of Congress condensed into under one hour. In this episode, we take a look at our new laws, some controversial bills, and the most interesting hearings from September, October, and November. This episode is also a call for feedback: Which hearings sound most interesting to you? Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal "Make i...

Government shutdown ahead! On December 11th, the government is scheduled to run out of money. In this episode, hear the story of how we ended up on the brink of a shutdown (again) and what you can expect in the next few weeks (hint: A huge must-sign bill that includes lots of corporate favors). We also take a look at the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, signed into law in November, which raised the...

Cara Santa Maria joins Jen to discuss a House of Representatives passed bill which creates a national system for labeling genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and prohibits states from enacting their own GMO labeling laws. Follow Cara on Twitter: @CaraSantaMaria Like Cara on Facebook: ScienceCara Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the PayPal...

Syria: We're told we're at war to fight ISIS/ISIL/Islamic State but in a Congressional hearing that took place the week before the Paris attacks, State Department officials were talking about a different goal. In this episode, highlights from that House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing. What are we really doing in Syria? Executive Producer: Anonymous Please support Congressional Dish: Click here...

Good news can be found in this episode! In July, eight bills were signed into law and none of them will make you want to flee the country. Topics covered include veterans and their health care, product warranties, transportation funding, and more. At the end of the episode, Jen shares some happy news. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute with PayPal or Bitcoin; click the Pay...

CISA - the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act - has officially passed the Senate. While Congress is busy merging CISA with two other so-called cybersecurity bills that passed the House of Representatives, in this episode, by taking an in-depth look at the contents of all three bills, we discover that these bills are not what you're being lead to believe. Please support Congressional Dish: Click...

In July, the House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill that would allow expiring anthrax vaccines to be given to civilian emergency responders within the United States. The question: Is that vaccine safe? In this episode, we look at the history of the anthrax vaccine and the results of the investigation into the only anthrax attack on the United States: The anthrax laced letters which wer...

A special announcement about the future of Congressional Dish; good things are coming soon!

More bills than anyone could possible read were passed by a branch of Congress in June, including the 994 page National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), four government funding bills, and thirty bills governing a wide range of topics, including Wall Street, MediCare, fishing, carbon dioxide emissions, stolen art, chemical storage, taxes, and more. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to...

Do you want to know where your food comes from? Well, Congress is in the process of repealing our Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) law because the World Trade Organization says our meat labels are internationally illegal. In this special episode, we take a look at the World Trade Organization: What is it? Where did it come from? How is it possible that it is determining our laws? Executive Produc...

Lots of new laws! Hear all about the final version of fast track and other trade related dingleberries, new measures to combat human trafficking, and new benefits for veterans. In this episode, you'll also learn about the bills that passed at least one branch of Congress in May, which include a poisonous scientific research funding bill, an anti-abortion bill, lots of bills to funnel taxpayer mone...