An update on Syrian policy

Plus: Kentucky Gov. Bevin vetoes bills, says teacher walkout would be irresponsible and illegal + Learn about the Guidance Out of Darkness Act Federal policy on Syria: Update On April 4, President Donald Trump announced after consulting with U.S. military commanders that he would keep U.S. troops in Syria until the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is completely defeated. He said that he expected the operation to defeat ISIS to end in months, not years. On Tuesday, Trump said that he wanted to bring members of the military serving in Syria home. He said, “I want to get out. I want to bring our troops back home. I want to start rebuilding our nation. … Seven trillion dollars in the Middle East over the last 17 years, we get nothing out of it … except death and destruction. It’s a horrible thing.” As of April 2018, there were about 2,000 U.S. service members in Syria working on advising and assisting local forces fighting ISIS. U.S. troops, Iraqi security forces, and Syrian opposition groups have liberated 90 percent of the territory once held by ISIS. In the past few weeks, more than 70 people have been killed and hundreds more have been sickened by a suspected chemical attack in Douma, Syria. The White Helmets, a Syrian aid group, accused the Syrian government of carrying out the attack. On April 9, Trump blamed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the Iranian regime for the attack and said that senior military officials were considering a response to it. [Learn more]( [Forward This](mailto:?&cc=info@Ballotpedia.org&subject=Check out this info I found from Ballotpedia&body= [blank][Tweet This]( [blank][blank][Send to Facebook]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [blank] Kentucky Gov. Bevin vetoes bills, says teacher walkout would be irresponsible and illegal Republican Gov. Matt Bevin vetoed a budget proposal the Kentucky General Assembly approved on April 2, saying it was not balanced and "ignore[d] fiscal reality." Bevin also vetoed a bill that would change the state tax code (HB 366) in its entirety. In his veto letter, Bevin said the bill had positive features but preserved "several extremely bad taxes that harm Kentucky's competitiveness" and added that it "fails to address many inequities in the tax code that currently favor government over free enterprise." The Jefferson County teachers union called Bevin's veto of HB 366 "nothing short of reprehensible" and said it would harm Kentucky educators. The union called on lawmakers to override Bevin's veto. It also encouraged teachers who were able to take personal days to protest at the state capitol on April 13. In response, Bevin said that a teacher walkout would be irresponsible and illegal. [Learn more→]( --------------------------------------------------------------- The GOOD kind of guidance Yesterday, we discussed regulatory guidance. Now, read the following to learn more about the GOOD Act. Guidance Out of Darkness Act (GOOD Act) In January, Senator Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Representative Mark Walker (R-N.C.) introduced companion bills in Congress called the Guidance Out of Darkness Act or GOOD Act. As of March 20, both bills had been approved by a committee and were eligible for floor action. If passed into law, the legislation would require that, "On the date on which an agency issues a guidance document, the agency shall publish the guidance document on the Internet website of the agency." Agencies would be required to have a single, public website location for all their guidance documents and to maintain online copies of any canceled documents. [Learn more→]( --------------------------------------------------------------- How can we help you stay informed? Would you like this email to be:  �      �      Ballotpedia depends on the support of our readers. The Lucy Burns Institute, publisher of Ballotpedia, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. All donations are tax deductible to the extent of the law. Donations to the Lucy Burns Institute or Ballotpedia do not support any candidates or campaigns. [Please click here to support our work→]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Follow on Twitter]( [Friend on Facebook]( Copyright © 2018, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Ballotpedia 8383 Greenway Blvd Suite 600 Middleton, WI 53562 Decide which emails you want from Ballotpedia. [Unsubscribe]( or [update subscription preferences](.