Welcome to the weekend! Check out the highlights from this week below. For a more thorough account of the week, click through to read the full edition of The Federal Tap.

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Garcia defeats Smith in special election in California's 25th Congressional District

Mike Garcia (R) won the May 12, 2020, special election for California's 25th Congressional District after Christy Smith (D) conceded on May 13. Garcia’s win changes the party control of the seat from Democratic to Republican. The last Republican to represent the district was Steve Knight, who held office from 2015 to 2019.

• He will fill the U.S. House vacancy left by Katie Hill (D), who resigned the seat on November 1, 2019, amid allegations of extramarital relationships with staffers. The remainder of the term will expire on January 3, 2021. 
• Smith and Garcia will run again in a regular general election on November 3, 2020, for a full two-year term. At the time Smith conceded, Garcia had 56% of the vote to Smith's 44%.
• Six special elections have been held during the 116th U.S. Congress—the current meeting of the Senate and House of Representatives. Three were held in 2019, and three more are scheduled during the rest of this year.

FBI investigates Burr, Feinstein over stock sales; Burr steps down as Senate Intelligence Committee chairman

The FBI continued its investigation of alleged insider trading leading up to the coronavirus pandemic, with federal agents investigating the stock sales of U.S. Senators Richard Burr (R-NC) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). Both Burr and Feinstein are members of the Senate Intelligence Committee and participated in an intelligence briefing related to the effect the coronavirus outbreak would have on the American economy.

• Burr temporarily stepped down as chairman of the committee pending the investigation, effective at the end of the day on May 15. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that he and Burr agreed that “this decision would be in the best interests of the committee.” 
• The announcement came one day after the FBI served Burr a search warrant at his residence in the Washington, D.C. area. The search resulted in the seizure of Burr’s phone. Burr initially responded to allegations of wrongdoing by saying that he relied only on publicly available information to make the 33 trades being investigated. 
• Feinstein sold between $1,500,000 and $6,000,000 in stocks following the intelligence committee briefing. Her office responded to the allegations by saying that Feinstein’s husband, Richard Blum, made most of the sales without involving her.
• A spokesperson from Feinstein’s office stated that she voluntarily answered questions from federal agents and provided “additional documents [to the FBI] to show that she had no involvement in her husband’s transactions.”

Sen. Alexander self-quarantines after staffer tests positive for coronavirus

Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) announced that he would self-quarantine in Tennessee after a  member of his staff tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. 

• Alexander chairs the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. He tested negative for COVID-19 on May 7.

Katie Miller, Vice President Mike Pence’s (R) press secretary, tested positive for COVID-19. Miller is the second White House staffer to test positive for the virus in the last week. One of President Trump’s (R) military valets tested positive for the virus earlier in the week. 

• Both Pence and Trump have tested negative for the virus. 
• The White House on Monday, May 11, ordered staff to wear masks at all times within the building.

Biden, Trump win Nebraska presidential primaries; Sasse wins Senate primary

The statewide primary for Nebraska took place on May 12, 2020. Candidates competed to advance to the general election scheduled for November 3, 2020.

• Former Vice President Joe Biden won Nebraska’s Democratic presidential primary with approximately 77% of the vote, receiving 29 pledged delegates. In the Republican primary, President Donald Trump received approximately 91% of the vote and 36 pledged delegates.
• Candidates ran in primaries for the following offices: 
  • U.S. Senate: Incumbent Ben Sasse (R) faced one challenger and received 75% of the vote, advancing to the general election. Chris Janicek (D) won the Democratic primary after facing six challengers, advancing to the general election with 31% of the vote.
  • All three U.S. House seats
    • U.S. House District 1: Incumbent Jeffrey Fortenberry (R), Kate Bolz (D), and Dennis Grace (L) advanced to the general election. 
    • U.S. House District 2: Incumbent Don Bacon (R), Kara Eastman (D), and Tyler Schaeffer (L) advanced to the general election. Schaeffer was the only winner to run unopposed.
      • Eastman defeated Ann Ashford and Gladys Harrison in the Democratic primary for the 2nd District. Eastman received 61.8% of the vote, followed by Ashford with 31.6% and Harrison with 6.6%. 
      • In the 2018 general election, Bacon defeated Eastman 51% to 49%. 
  • U.S. House District 3: Incumbent Adrian Smith (R), Mark Elworth Jr. (D), and Dustin Hobbs (L) advanced to the general election.

U.S. House was expected to vote on coronavirus stimulus legislation

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives were expected to vote on legislation related to the coronavirus pandemic that proposes over $3 trillion in stimulus funds for state and local governments. 

• The bill was titled the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act, or the HEROES Act. It includes provisions for a second round of direct stimulus payments to individuals and families, including to immigrants who did not qualify for direct stimulus payments under the CARES Act; $200 billion in hazard pay for healthcare workers; increased funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, previously known as Food Stamps); $75 billion for coronavirus testing and contact tracing efforts; and increased funding for the United States Postal Service, among other measures.
• The bill would also expand absentee voting to all voters in the November 2020 general elections.
• If passed, the legislation would go to the majority-Republican Senate for a vote. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) has said about the bill, “This is not a time for aspirational legislation.” Other Republican members of the Senate have said that they believe the bill attempts to advance legislative priorities of the Democratic party that are unrelated to the bill’s stated objective of providing economic relief during the pandemic.

Supreme Court issues ruling in trademark infringement case

Lucky Brand Dungarees v. Marcel Fashion Group concerned trademark infringement and three legal challenges between apparel companies Marcel Fashion Group, Inc. ("Marcel") and Lucky Brand Dungarees, Inc. ("Lucky Brand"). The case originated in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit and was argued on January 13, 2020.

• The case: Marcel and Lucky Brand filed lawsuits for trademark infringement in 2003, 2005, and 2011. In the 2011 action, Marcel sued Lucky Brand for trademark infringement. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled in favor of Lucky Brand, holding that the 2003 lawsuit barred Marcel from suing Lucky Brand.
• On appeal, the 2nd Circuit reversed the decision and remanded the case. On remand, Lucky Brand moved to dismiss the suit, arguing a settlement agreement resulting from the 2003 lawsuit prevented Marcel from suing Lucky Brand. Marcel countered that Lucky Brand could not use this argument because Lucky Brand could have pursued this defense in the 2005 lawsuit but did not. The district court granted Lucky Brand's motion to dismiss. Marcel appealed again to the 2nd Circuit, which vacated the lower court's ruling. Lucky Brand appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing the 2nd Circuit's decision conflicted with decisions from other circuit courts on similar issues.
• The outcome: The court reversed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit's judgment and remanded the case. In a unanimous opinion written by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the court held that Marcel cannot prevent Lucky Brand from raising new defense arguments in the case because the 2003 and 2005 lawsuits challenged different actions involving different trademarks occurring at different times.

Republican Tiffany wins congressional special election in Wisconsin’s 7th

Tom Tiffany (R) defeated Tricia Zunker (D) in the special election for Wisconsin's 7th Congressional District. Tiffany received 57% of the vote to Zunker's 43%.

• Tiffany will serve in the U.S. House of Representatives until January 2021. To remain in office, he will need to win a partisan primary on Aug. 11 and the district’s regular election on Nov. 3, 2020.
• The special election was called to fill the vacancy left by former Rep. Sean Duffy (R), who left office in September 2019 in anticipation of the birth of a child with health complications.

Voters to decide congressional primaries in Oregon

The congressional primary in Oregon will be held on May 19. The filing deadline to run passed on March 10. Candidates are running in elections for the following offices: 

• U.S. Senate (one seat)
• U.S. House District 1
• U.S. House District 2
• U.S. House District 3
• U.S. House District 4
• U.S. House District 5

Candidates are competing to advance to the general election scheduled for November 3, 2020.

• Oregon’s primary is the 10th to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next primary is on June 2, 2020. 
• Heading into the November 3 election, the Democratic Party holds four of the five congressional seats from Oregon.

Note: The congressional primary in the state of Idaho was previously scheduled to be held on May 19. The election was postponed in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Supreme Court hears oral arguments in six cases via teleconference

The U.S. Supreme Court heard six hours of oral arguments over three days. The court used new procedures, conducting oral arguments via conference call after it postponed hearing these cases in March and April due to the coronavirus outbreak.

• The case: McGirt v. Oklahoma concerns the Indian Major Crimes Act and was heard on May 11.

• • The issue (from SCOTUSblog): "Whether the prosecution of an enrolled member of the Creek Tribe for crimes committed within the historical Creek boundaries is subject to exclusive federal jurisdiction."

• The case: Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru concerns how courts should decide when an employee is a "minister" for purposes of the "ministerial exception" recognized under Hosanna-Tabor Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC (2012). It is consolidated with St. James School v. Biel. The court heard arguments on May 11.

• • The issue: "Whether the First Amendment's religion clauses prevent civil courts from adjudicating employment-discrimination claims brought by an employee against her religious employer, when the employee carried out important religious functions."

• The case: Trump v. Mazars USA concerns Congress' right to issue subpoenas to the president's accountants and creditors. It is consolidated with Trump v. Deutsche Bank AG and was heard on May 12.

• • The issue: "Whether the U.S. House Oversight and Reform Committee, Financial Services Committee, and Intelligence Committee have the 'constitutional and statutory authority to issue' subpoenas to President Trump's accountant and to the president's creditors 'demanding private financial records belonging to the president."

• The case: Trump v. Vance concerns the question of presidential immunity. It was heard on May 12.

• • The issue: "Whether a grand-jury subpoena served on a custodian of the president’s personal records, demanding production of nearly 10 years' worth of the president’s financial papers and his tax returns, violates Article II and the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution."
    
    Article II of the U.S. Constitution details the executive branch of the government. The Supremacy Clause (Article VI, Paragraph 2 of the U.S. Constitution) provides that the Constitution and federal law take precedence over state constitutions and laws.

• The case: Chiafalo v. Washington concerns a Washington state law on presidential electors who vote contrary to state laws. It was heard on May 13.

• • The issue (from SCOTUSblog): "Whether enforcement of a Washington state law that threatens a fine for presidential electors who vote contrary to how the law directs is unconstitutional because a state has no power to legally enforce how a presidential elector casts his or her ballot and a state penalizing an elector for exercising his or her constitutional discretion to vote violates the First Amendment."

• The case: Colorado Department of State v. Baca concerns a Colorado state law on presidential electors who vote contrary to state laws. It was heard on May 13.
  • The issues:
    (1) Whether a presidential elector who isn't allowed to cast an Electoral College ballot contrary to state law has the right to sue their appointing state.
  • (2) Does Article II or the 12th Amendment forbid a state from requiring its presidential electors to follow the state's popular vote when casting their Electoral College ballots?

Filing deadline passes to run for Washington's U.S. House districts

On May 15, 2020, the filing deadline passed to run for congressional offices in Washington. Candidates filed for each of Washington’s 10 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. 

• The primary is scheduled for August 4, 2020, and the general election is scheduled for November 3, 2020. 
• Washington’s statewide filing deadline was the 38th to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next statewide filing deadline is on May 28 in Vermont.   
• Heading into the 2020 election, Washington’s congressional delegation includes seven Democrats and three Republicans. As of May 5, 2020, the partisan composition of the U.S. House was 233 Democrats, 196 Republicans, one Libertarian, and five vacancies. All 435 seats are up for election. A majority in the chamber requires 218 seats.

Is Congress in session?

Where was the president last week?

• On Monday, Trump met with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and held a press briefing on COVID-19 testing.
• On Tuesday, Trump met with Republican members of the United States Senate.
• On Wednesday, Trump held a meeting with Governor of Colorado Jared Polis and Governor of North Dakota Doug Burgum.
• On Thursday, Trump visited an Owens & Minor, Inc. PPE manufacturing facility in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
• On Friday, Trump delivered remarks from the Rose Garden on coronavirus vaccine development and departed the White House to Camp David.

Federal judiciary update

• 83 federal judicial vacancies
• 47 pending nominations
• 6 future federal judicial vacancies

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