TO BAN OR NOT TO BAN: It’s a ban. President Trump’s late night tweets hurt him again as he exclaimed that the visa restriction is, in fact, a travel ban. The temporary travel restriction from some Middle Eastern countries is being heard by the Supreme Court. The defense’s entire argument is that the “ban” part of it makes it unconstitutional. Trump couldn’t have helped them more. His base, however, loves it especially in light of the tragedies in London and Manchester. Recurrent terrorist attacks are likely to reduce foreign travel, bring attention to border security, and impact the tourism industry indirectly.
INFRASTRUCTURE WEEK: President Trump kicked off “infrastructure week” with Air Traffic Control (ATC) reform. Other aspects of his infrastructure package that the White House believes can be passed by year end 2017 despite what Congress has on their plate, will be rolled out this week. Democrats oppose the first portion of the package, privatizing ATC and separating it from the Federal Aviation Administration. But there will be little or no resistance from Republicans on the Transportation Committee led by Chairman Bill Shuster who has been proposing this for years. We think the privatization plan will mimic previous proposals suggesting ATC be funded by fees or through private public partnerships with airports. Increased travel means a growing economy, increased fees are likely to hurt (and be opposed by) the airlines.
NOMINATION FRUSTRATION: Of the over 500 political positions in the Trump Administration that require Senate approval only 63 have been nominated. That is just over 15% in five months compared to Obama at 39% and Bush at 32%. While the Administration is trying to reduce the size of federal government, the lack of political employees in the agency is making moving the president’s policy priorities harder. We mentioned in previous notes our concern that there are now only 30 days left before the August Congressional recess. Republicans need to gain momentum and move their agenda forward - not get bogged down in confirmation hearings.
QATAR LIFE CRISIS: Five Middle Eastern countries severed economic ties with Qatar and oil prices immediately spiked as uncertainty in the Middle East creates supply fears. The market fundamentals returned oil back to below $50/Bbl as oil supplies are still in surplus. Qatar is more known for its natural gas production though they only hold a small market share. Qatari ties with Iran is the main cause for the departure, but Iran is a much greater threat to oil markets.
HUNGRY FOR FUNDING: Approximately every 10 minutes a child dies from malnutrition. Food crises are on the rise in Africa and parts of the Middle East, threatening security. The UN made a massive funding request in January, but as of this week only raised 30% of its goal. Farmers in the U.S. used to struggle with getting their produce to cities, but with today’s transportation and logistics systems, technology has all but eliminated that problem. GMO technologies have also increased the quantity of goods tenfold. Analysts believe these technologies can help grow economies in third world countries all the while making significant strides to combat hunger.
IT'S A UNICORN! NO, IT'S A BIPARTISAN HEALTH CARE BILL: Our Senior Health Care Policy Analyst Emily Evans writes that this bill expands telehealth services; provides more incentives for expansion of Medicare Advantage Plans and continues push for home dialysis. You can read the full piece here
SINCLAIR-TRIBUNE: COURT ACTION CLOUDS DEAL OUTLOOK: Our Senior Telecomm/Cable analyst Paul Glenchur writes that a federal court modestly delays reinstatement of an FCC order easing broadcast station deals, clouding the deal's outlook. You can read the full piece here
