Document qmeN2EYO2NEVwzLyGoDYkQ5JK

To: Dravis, Samantha[dravis.samantha@epa.gov] From: POLITICO Pro Energy Sent: Mon 10/30/2017 9:43:11 AM Subject: Morning Energy: Controversial Whitefish contract axed but questions linger -- Pruitt floats RIN program reforms -- Beyer to federal employees: Hang in there By Anthony Adragna | 10/30/2017 05:42 AM EDT WHITEFISH CONTRACT CANNED: Hours after Gov. Ricardo Rossello called for its immediate termination, Puerto Rico's utility axed a $300 million grid repair contract awarded to two-year-old Montana-based Whitefish Energy. "It's an enormous distraction," Ricardo Ramos, CEO of Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, said at a Sunday press conference, according to the Associated Press. "This was negatively impacting the work we're already doing." Ramos said the contract's cancellation will result in delays of 10 to 12 weeks, though the company will complete work it's already started. In a statement, Whitefish said it was "very disappointed" by the decision and claimed it would "delay what the people of Puerto Rico want and deserve - to have the power restored quickly in the same manner their fellow citizens on the mainland experience after a natural disaster." During an interview with NBC News on Saturday, Whitefish CEO Andy Techmanski welcomed an audit into the contract and said his company had "nothing to hide." Doubt this is the end of the story: Multiple congressional committees, government watchdogs and others are still going to want to answers to why the island's bankrupt utility awarded the massive contract in the first place to the tiny company from Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's hometown. Just Friday, the top Democrat and Republican on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs panel asked DHS to review the contract to determine whether FEMA could be responsible for reimbursing the island's power company for Whitefish's work. Hearings starting this week: Expect the Whitefish scandal to dominate two congressional hearings on the government's response to a string of recent hurricanes this week. Homeland Security ranking member Claire McCaskill said the contract "raises every red flag in the book" and told federal officials they had "better be ready to answer tough questions" during a Tuesday hearing. A House Energy and Commerce subcommittee holds its own session Thursday on response efforts. ICYMI: Both the White House and Zinke on Friday denied playing any role in Whitefish landing the contract after a meeting between the Interior secretary and President Donald Trump where the topic came up, POLITICO'S Cristiano Lima and Ben Lefebvre report. Just don't say climate change: After returning from a bipartisan trip to the island, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy called on the government to think about resiliency as it rebuilds the island's infrastructure. "Their grid system is probably the oldest, least efficient, and one that we need to not rebuild as is but put a new 21st century grid system in there," he said on "Fox News ." "When we go back and make investments there, we should prepare ourselves there will be a future hurricane some time in the future. It's happened before and it will happen again but we should prepare ourselves, so we're not repaying for the exact same thing." ME would Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00001 gently remind everyone that's exactly what the Obama-era flood standard that Trump rolled back earlier this year sought to address. Side note: Sen. Bernie Sanders also visited the island on Friday and met with San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz. "The level of destruction in Puerto Rico is unprecedented. Rebuilding will require significant resources over a long period of time," he tweeted. For the record: More than a month after the hurricane hit, 70 percent of the island lacks power and more than 20 percent of people still don't have drinking water, according to government figures. WELCOME TO MONDAY! I'm your host Anthony Adragna, and the Liberty Square Group's Jim Leahy was first to identify California, New York, Florida and Texas as the four states with the most congressional seats. For today: Who was the first president to decorate the White House for Halloween? Send your tips, energy gossip and comments to aadragna@politico.com, or follow us on Twitter @AnthonyAdragna, @Morning Energy and @POLITICOPro. TAX REFORM 101: How does our tax system really work? Who pays what--and how does it all add up? And how does the America tax system compare to international competitors? POLITICO'S new explainer video series has you covered. Tax Reform with Bernie Becker is the first of an issue based animated video series that pairs expert reporters with Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist, Matt Wuerker, to provide you with a new way of digesting the news. Click HERE to watch. PRUITT WANTS RIN FRAUD CRACKDOWN: EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt called for "some reforms" to the program under the Renewable Fuel Standard through which companies buy credits to comply with biofuels mandates during a Sunday radio interview . "There's lots of fraud endemic to the RIN program," Pruitt told New York radio host John Catsimatidis. "There needs to be efforts to address that and that's what the discussion will continue to be as we look at that statute." Remember that even the rumbling that Pruitt was considering tweaking the program by making biofuel exports eligible for RINs pushed Midwest Republicans to threaten to withhold votes for EPA nominees, so treading carefully seems warranted. FOREST BILL HITS THE FLOOR: The House is expected to this week consider legislation H R. 2936 (115) from Rep. Bruce Westerman that would overhaul a host of forest management activities and that sponsors claim will address fire-borrowing, streamline environmental review processes and minimize litigation. Critics say it undermines crucial environmental protections by using "the specter of wildfire to facilitate commercial logging on national forests shielded from public scrutiny and environmental review." The House Rules Committee meets on the measure Halloween at 5 p.m. Confirmation hearing watch: Over in the Senate, the Commerce Committee gavels in Wednesday at 10 a.m. to consider the nomination of Rep. Jim. Bri.densti.ne to run NASA. At the same time, the Banking Committee mulls former Rep. Scott Garrett's selection to run the Export Import Bank, which has been sharply criticized by the business community. Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00002 ME INTERVIEW -- Virginia Democrat Rep. Don Beyer: The second-term member of the Natural Resources and Science committees is deeply discouraged by the first months of the Trump administration on the environment, but preparing to offer a carbon dividend bill he hopes will attract Republican support and form the basis for future action to address climate change. His warning to Republicans: Beyer thinks the GOP may regret allowing Trump officials to ignore oversight letters and skip testifying regularly. "If you end up with a President Biden or a President McAuliffe in 2021,1 can't imagine [Republicans] are going to want to think 'all the letters I write the next few years aren't going to be returned or even acknowledged.' And [that] none of their Cabinet secretaries are going to be willing to come testify before us. It's just not the right way to run the government." His message to the demoralized federal workforce: "Please hang in there. We especially need them to stay to offset the Pruitts of the world." MAIL CALL! BECAUSE EVERYBODY'S HEARD ABOUT THE BIRD? Seven Democratic senators, led by Colorado's Michael Bennet, asked Zinke in a Friday letter to extend the comment period by 45 days as Interior mulls changes to how it and states implement conservation plans for the sage grouse in the West. "Given the importance and complexity of the proposed rule, and the intersection with BLM's resource management plans, it is essential that all stakeholders have sufficient opportunity to prepare and provide feedback," they wrote. Please CC me on that: Ten senators, led by Florida's Marco Rubio, asked 0MB in a letter to send them copies of each agency's funding request as the administration prepares to request billions more in disaster relief funding. Greens oppose Eid nomination: Ahead of a flurry of circuit court confirmations by the Senate this week, the League of Conservation Voters sent a letter urging lawmakers to oppose the nomination of Allison Eid to sit on the Denver-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit. "Based on her record, if Eid is confirmed to serve a lifetime appointment on the federal bench, it could prove disastrous for environmental laws and regulations," the group wrote. It's the Maine attraction: Maine Sens. Angus King and Susan Collins sent a letter to Zinke urging him to consider alternative solutions to address the national parks maintenance backlog rather than dramatically increasing fees at 17 parks nationwide, including Acadia National Park in their state. NEW CAMPAIGN ON ENERGY LAUNCHES: The Consumer Energy Alliance, whose members include major manufacturers, oil and gas companies, utilities and other business groups, is launching a new push across 12 key states today to tout the benefits of energy production. In a. letter to members of Congress, CEA President David Holt says the group's Campaign for America's Energy "will recognize and promote what anti-energy groups have failed to acknowledge: American energy and a healthy environment do AND must go hand-in hand." Holt's letter does not mention climate change at all, nor outline any specific policies the campaign is supporting. Sample site from the campaign here. Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00003 LCV UP FOR BALDWIN: The League of Conservation is out with a $300,000 ad buy today thanking Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin for her support of the Great Lakes. "Baldwin worked with both parties to ensure less pollution, cleaner water, and safer lakes for Wisconsin families," the ad says. SHORING UP: The European Union is taking steps to fortify its biggest tool for cutting greenhouse gases -- the Emissions Trading System -- from severe damage if Britain breaks away without a deal on its relationship with the bloc in 2019, POLITICO Europe's Sara Stefanini reports. But the moves would hit the UK hardest since its government -- and others -- would be left holding unusable junk permits. MOVERS, SHAKERS: House Science Chairman Lamar Smith named Chris Wydler his deputy chief of staff for policy and legislation. Ashley Smith becomes deputy chief of staff for strategy and operations. Both previously worked in other roles on the committee. QUICK HITS -- Accused DAPL protester moved to Fargo jail. Bismarck Tribune. -- Pollution limits in Spokane River prompt city officials to seek reprieve from EPA. Spokesman-Review. -- Report: Los Alamos lab comes up short on emergency drills. AP. -- Green energy vs. coal: A secret campaign to convince Ohioans that wind and solar would kill jobs. Inside Climate News. -- Stenehjem: Meeting with Pruitt did not violate meetings law. AP. -- How a 672,000-Gallon Oil Spill Was Nearly Invisible. New York Times. HAPPENING THIS WEEK MONDAY 8:00 a.m. -- Carbon Dioxide Removal/Negative Emissions workshop, Environmental & Energy Management Institute, 800 22nd St NW Washington, Room SEH B1270 12:45 p.m. -- A Conversation with Dr. Hoesung Lee, Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Resources for the Future, 1616 P St NW TUESDAY 10:00 a.m. -- "2017 Hurricane Season: Oversight of the Federal Response," Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Dirksen 342 Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00004 10:00 a.m. -- "Full Committee Hearing to Examine Opportunities for Efficiency in Building Management and Control Systems," Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Dirksen 366 10:00 a.m. -- Former FERC commissioners and stakeholders discuss the Grid Rule, Sofitel Washington DC Lafeyette Square, Paris Ballroom, 806 15th Street NW 11:00 a.m. -- "Geopolitics of Energy: The Nexus of Russia, Saudi Arabia and the Global Oil Market." Daniel Morgan Graduate School, 1620 L St. NW WEDNESDAY 10:00 a.m. -- Senate Commerce Committee confirmation hearing for Commerce and NASA nominees, Russell 253 12:30 p.m. -- "A Practitioner's Approach to Financing Energy Efficiency in Emerging Market," Bemstein-Offit Building, 1717 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Room 500 3:00 p.m. -- "Developi v Carbon Economies in Latin America," The Wilson Center, One Woodrow Wilson Plaza, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW THURSDAY 9:30 a.m. --" Exploration ," Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Dirksen 366 10:00 a.m. -- "The lurricane Season: A Review of Emergency Response and Energy Infrastructure Recovery Efforts," House Energy and Commerce Energy Subcommittee, Raybum 2123 10:00 a.m. -- Legislative hearing on trio of water bills, House Natural Resources Water, Power and Oceans Subcommittee, Longworth 1324 FRIDAY 12:30 p.m. -- "Dr. Ben Zaitchik on Water, Food, and Energy in the Eastern Nile Basin," Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies ,1619 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Rome Auditorium THAT'S ALL FOR ME! To view online'. https://www.politicopro.com/tipsheets/morning-energy/201 7/1O/controversial-whitefish-contractaxed-but-questions-linger-025277 Stories from POLITICO Pro Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00005 Puerto Rico utility cancels controversial energy contract Back By Colin Wilhelm | 10/29/2017 02:20 PM EDT Puerto Rico's Electric Power Authority canceled its $300 million contract with Whitefish Energy, a Montana-based company, after additional scrutiny surrounding the repair contract worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The move comes after Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello called for the cancellation of the contract this morning. Rossello's public call to the federal oversight board of Puerto Rico happened after days of resisting any change to the contract, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. A spokesperson for the governor did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Rossello publicly objected last week to the oversight board's installation of an emergency chief transformation officer to oversee the recovery of PREPA, Puerto Rico's beleaguered governmentbacked power utility, after the board filed in court to do so last week. That board-installed officer is placed above PREPA's Executive Director Ricardo Ramos, who signed off on the Whitefish contract. That contract uses federal funds overseen by the utility to repair Puerto Rico's electrical grid, most of which remains offline weeks after Hurricane Maria hit the island. The law passed by Congress last year allows the board to act as trustee for any Puerto Rico government entities that seek to reorganize their debt in court, a process similar to bankruptcy. A judge overseeing the restructuring of Puerto Rico's debt granted the request, according to a court document. Several congressional committees sent investigative inquiries about the contract last week, and members of the House Natural Resources Committee also sought information as to why Rossello did not seek to activate "mutual aid" agreements with nearby states to increase the number of work crews available, an action Rossello ultimately took today. "Transparent accountability at PREPA is necessary for an effective and sustained recovery in Puerto Rico," said Parish Braden, a spokesperson for that committee, in an email to POLITICO. "Immediate actions must also be responsibly aligned with long-term rebuilding and revitalization efforts. Success depends on the cooperation and coordination of the Governor, the Oversight Board, PREPA's Chief Transformation Officer and federal partners." In a press conference Sunday, Rossello urged the immediate end of an agreement between the commonwealth's electric utility, PREPA, and Whitefish Energy, a two-year-old Montana-based company whose selection for a no-bid contract worth hundreds of millions of dollars has drawn intense political scrutiny. Rossello also criticized the federal government for a delay in sending brigades of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In a news release sent Sunday, Rossello said his comments were "intended to reaffirm our Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00006 commitment to transparency in the contracting process in the government of Puerto Rico and to achieve the highest degree of efficiency possible in the restoration of the power grid of our island, in the shortest amount of time possible." "The goals I established are aimed at achieving 30 percent of the power generation capacity. I am grateful for the effort that the PREPA staff is doing together with the contracted companies," Rossello said in the release. "At the moment, PREPA and its contractors have 404 brigades working on the island, while the [Army Corps of Engineers] has seven." Earlier this month the Washington Post reported that Whitefish had previously employed the son of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and that the company was selected despite having no experience in large-scale electrical repairs and with only two full-time employees. The company has subcontracted out its work on the island. Since then the contract, initiated by PREPA using federal emergency funds, has come under congressional scrutiny and put Zinke on the defensive. Zinke on Friday said he had "absolutely nothing to do" with the awarding of the contract to Whitefish, which is from his hometown. "Any attempts by the dishonest media or political operatives to tie me to awarding or influencing any contract involving Whitefish are completely baseless. Only in elitist Washington, D.C., would being from a small town be considered a crime," Zinke wrote in a statement. To view online click here. Back Zinke says he had 'absolutely nothing to do with' Puerto Rico contract Back By Cristiano Lima and Ben Lefebvre | 10/27/2017 03:53 PM EDT Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Friday said he had "absolutely nothing to do" with Puerto Rico awarding a small, for-profit company from his hometown a $300 million contract to repair the island's electrical grid in the wake of Hurricane Maria. "Any attempts by the dishonest media or political operatives to tie me to awarding of influencing any contract involving Whitefish [Energy Holdings] are completely baseless. Only in elitist Washington, D.C., would being from a small town be considered a crime," Zinke wrote in a statement. "Neither myself nor anyone in my office has advocated for this company in anyway (sic)," he continued. "After the initial contract was awarded, I was contacted by the company, on which I took no action. All records, which are being made available to appropriate officials, will prove no involvement." Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00007 Zinke's statement came after the White House denied any role by the federal government in the deal between Whitefish Energy and the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority. "This is a contract that was determined by the local authorities in Puerto Rico, not something that the federal government played a role in," White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said at Friday's briefing. Sanders added: "But as we understand, there is an ongoing audit and we'll look forward to seeing the results of that later." Sanders said President Donald Trump and Zinke discussed the controversy during their meeting on Friday and that the interior secretary said he had no involvement in the contract being awarded to company. Zinke "reiterated once again that we have no role, the federal government, specifically he had no role in that contract," Sanders said. Multiple congressional committees are probing the controversial contract, which awarded the task of restoring transmission and distribution lines damaged or destroyed by the powerful Hurricane to a small, 2-year-old company that had only two full-time employees on its payroll as the storm hit in September. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee late Friday became the latest panel to probe the business deal. Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and ranking member Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) asked the Department of Homeland Security to review the contract to determine whether the Federal Emergency Management Agency will be responsible for reimbursing PREPA the cost of Whitefish Energy's work. Sanders' and Zinke's comments distancing the Trump administration from the decision to solicit Whitefish's services echo a statement released earlier Friday by FEMA. "The decision to award a contract to Whitefish Energy was made exclusively by Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA)," the agency said in a statement. "FEMA was not involved in the selection." FEMA added it had "significant concerns" with how officials in Puerto Rico acquired the company's services and that it had not yet confirmed "whether the contract prices are reasonable." Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello said Friday, according to ABC, that there will be "hell to pay" if any wrongdoing is discovered in the contract being awarded to Whitefish. To view online click here. Back Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00008 Trump to roll back climate-focused flood standard Back By Annie Snider | 08/15/2017 12:41 PM EDT President Donald Trump will roll back a flood standard designed to protect federal investments from stronger storms as part of an executive order set to be signed this afternoon, according to a White House source. The Federal Flood Risk Management Standard was established under an executive order issued by President Barack Obama in 2015. It requires that new federally funded projects -- from government buildings like Veterans Administrations hospitals to bridges and schools funded by federal grants -- be built to withstand the stronger storms and additional flooding projected to occur as the climate changes. It does not apply to the National Flood Insurance Program. The Obama administration's standard offers multiple options for achieving greater flood protection, but generally requires construction to withstand a 500-year storm. The previous standard, on the books for more than four decades, required construction to take place outside of the 100-year floodplain. The new standard has not actually taken effect yet; each federal agency is tasked with developing its own regulation for implementing the standard, and none have yet been finalized. Industry groups objected to the standard, arguing it was developed behind closed doors and could greatly increase costs. Environmental groups have objected to efforts to repeal the standard. "Ninety percent of all natural disasters in the United States involve flooding. These events claim lives and strain the capacity of government agencies and local communities to adequately respond and provide relief," Laura Lightbody with the Pew Charitable Trusts said in a statement. WHAT'S NEXT: Trump is slated to sign an executive order on infrastructure containing the roll back of the Federal Flood Risk Management standard at 3 p.m. today. To view online click here. Back Interior to reverse Obama sage grouse land protection, reconsider pacts with states Back By Esther Whieldon | 10/05/2017 01:57 PM EDT The Interior Department says it is terminating the Obama administration's proposal to block mining on about 10 million acres of sage grouse habitat in the West, and it announced plans to alter the land-use plans the agency put in place in 2015. Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00009 In notices posted on its website that will be published in the Federal Register, the Bureau of Land Management terminated its plans set out under the Obama administration for an environmental impact statement that would have potentially led to the agency withdrawing land in so-called sagebrush focal areas in Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming. "The BLM has determined that the lands are no longer needed in connection with the proposed withdrawal," the notice says. The agency is also asking for comment on changing the nearly 100 land-use plans BLM put in place under an agreement with states in lieu of listing the bird as either endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act. BLM said it is re-opening the plans to comply with to a court decision earlier this year that held the agency did not adequately evaluate the designation of sagebrush focal areas in its 2015 greater sage-grouse plan amendment for Nevada. WHAT'S NEXT: BLM will accept comments on the land use plan changes for 45 days after the notice is published in the Federal Register. To view online click here. Back McConnell preps judicial confirmation frenzy Back By Seung Min Kim and Josh Gerstein | 10/26/2017 01:53 PM EDT Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is launching a circuit court confirmation blitz. The top Senate Republican on Thursday teed up votes to install four nominees to the powerful appellate courts, which give the final word on the vast majority of cases that don't reach the Supreme Court. The nominees are Allison Eid for the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals; Stephanos Bibas for the 3rd Circuit; Joan Larsen for the 6th Circuit; and Amy Coney Barrett for the 7th Circuit. Eid and Larsen are among the names Donald Trump floated during the presidential campaign last year as potential Supreme Court picks, adding more significance to their confirmations to the appellate courts. "By confirming these nominees we can take a big step toward restoring our nation's courts to their proper role: interpreting and applying the law based on what it actually says, not what a judge wishes it might say," McConnell said on the Senate floor. "It's quite a departure from the last administration's philosophy when it came to selecting judicial nominees." Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00010 Eid and Bibas were reported to have advanced out of the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier Thursday. Nominees typically have to wait a day after a committee vote before they can be considered on the floor, but Democratic senators gave consent to speed up the process in exchange for not working on a Friday, a McConnell spokesman said. Nonetheless, Senate Democrats say the nominees are being rushed to the floor, leaving senators little time to vet the candidates. "I think it's awful fast to move," said California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee. "I think members have to read the writings, members have to take a look at their qualifications, members are leaving today. We found about it today, and it's on the floor next week." Feinstein used a committee meeting earlier Thursday to highlight the fact that two of the court vacancies the panel moved to fill Thursday were open for Trump only because Republicans used the "blue slip" process to block President Barack Obama's nominees for the same slots. The committee had advanced six judicial nominees other than Eid and Bibas, as well as three U.S. attorney candidates to the Senate floor. "Last year, the Obama administration nominated different people to these same vacancies," Feinstein noted, referring to slots on the 3rd Circuit and the district court in South Carolina. "Those nominees didn't get blue slips from their home state senators, so their nominations didn't proceed.... Not returning blue slips is the right of home-state senators." Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley didn't address the blue slip issue directly, but said Democrats should be wary about blocking female nominees in particular. "I was disheartened by colleagues who voted against the two female nominees last week," Grassley said. "When the Republicans voted against female circuit court nominees in 2013, Democrats called it 'unjust.' I won't do that here to my friends, but I also don't want to see a double standard for qualified female nominees from different presidents." While Republicans and Democrats split along party lines over four of the judicial nominees, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) singled out Bibas for unusually blunt criticism. The Senate minority whip said an article Bibas authored in 2009 promoting electric shock and other forms of corporal punishment for criminals should keep him from the bench. "I believe what Prof. Bibas wrote ... disqualifies him from a lifetime appointment to the secondhighest court in the land," Durbin said. "This man is outside the mainstream of American legal thinking. I believe he's outside the mainstream of conservative political thinking. Who has stepped forward on the Republican side and called for what this professor has called for? Durbin continued: "Democrat or Republican, seriously, are we going to vote this man into this position?" Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00011 The panel ultimately split 11-9 on Bibas' nomination, as well as Eid's to the 10th Circuit, Liles Burke to a district court seat in Alabama, and Michael Juneau to a district court judgeship in Louisiana. The transformation of the federal judiciary has been one of the enduring early successes of Trump's presidency, particularly because he entered office with an unusually high number of vacancies in the district and circuit courts. Conservative advocacy groups have been pressuring McConnell to confirm judicial nominees more quickly, although Trump already has gotten more judges installed at this point in his presidency than his predecessor. To view online click here. Back Was this Pro content helpful? Tell us what you think in one click. Yes, very Somewhat Neutral Not really Not at all You received this POLITICO Pro content because your customized settings include: Morning Energy. To change your alert settings, please go to https://www.politicopro.com/settings This email was sent to dravis.samantha@epa.gov by: POLITICO, LLC 1000 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA, 22209, USA Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005879-00012 To: Dravis, Samantha[dravis.samantha@epa.gov] From: Center for a New American Security Sent: Wed 10/18/2017 1:20:04 PM Subject: Press Release: CNAS and 21st Century Fox Launch National Security Film & Television Series Contact: Neal Urwitz nurwitz@cnas.orq (202) 457-9409 CNAS PRESS RELEASE CNAS and 21st Century Fox Launch National Security Film & Washington, October 18 - The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) and 21st Century Fox (21CF) are pleased to announce the launch of the CNAS-21CF Film Series. The series will feature panel discussions with policy experts and elected officials around screenings of upcoming 21st Century Fox films and television programs that address national security and veterans issues. The first event in the series will focus on National Geographic's new miniseries Home, based on ABC News Chief Global Affairs Correspondent Martha Raddatz's eponymous book. In addition to a screening of the first two episodes in the miniseries, the event will feature a roundtable discussion with Raddatz; CNAS' Phillip Carter; Gen. Peter Chiarelli, USA (Ret); Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ); and Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN). CNAS and 21st Century Fox will announce other "So much of how we think about war, the struggles of veterans returning home, and how America makes decisions to put our troops in harm's way are informed by what we see on TV and in the movies," said CNAS CEO Michle Flournoy. "From Patton to The Longest Day to Courage Under Fire, films often expose us to the most complicated and critical issues in national security. For an American citizenry increasingly removed from the experiences of men and women in uniform, movies and TV shows provide one of the best ways for people to understand the sacrifices of those Chip Smith, Executive Vice President of Public Affairs at 21st Century Fox, agreed with Flournoy's assessment. "At 21st Century Fox, our goal is produce content that not only entertains, but also educates and inspires audiences around the world. Through this partnership with CNAS, we hope to use our programming to shine a spotlight on issues of war and peace that most Americans would otherwise never confront and spur substantive discussion of real policy solutions to improve our For more information, please contact Neal Urwitz at nurwitz@cnas.org or call 202-457-9409. Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005885-00001 The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) is an independent and nonpartisan research institution that develops strong, pragmatic and principled national security and defense policies. CNAS leads efforts to help inform and prepare the national security leaders of today and Face book | Twitter | Podcasts | Videos | Photos | Website Preferences ! Unsubscribe Sierra Club v. EPA, 1:17-cv-01906 ED_001523_00005885-00002