Policy

Democrat Tammy Duckworth writes letter to TSA calling on agency to reinstate the shoes-off airport security policyNine months after US airports allowed passengers to pass through scanners without taking off their shoes, rescinding the stringent policy after almost two decades, a top senator claimed the “reckless” move could put passengers in danger.The policy amounts to a “potentially catastrophic security deficiency”, according to Tammy Duckworth, Democrat for Illinois, and ranking member of the Senate commerce, science and transportation (CST) aviation subcommittee. Continue reading...

Sacking of Simon Dudley is latest distraction at a time when party is keen to show it is serious contender for governmentIt was a week that started with a candid admission from Nigel Farage when asked if his party’s vetting process was now finally up to scratch. “I accept that at the last general election, basically there was no vetting really,” the Reform UK leader said after the latest of what a senior colleague had described as a “series of abhorrent incidents”.The latest had involved a Welsh Senedd candidate, Corey Edwards, who was forced to step down after a picture of him appearing to do a Nazi salute surfaced online. Continue reading...

• The White House issued 'A National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence,' outlining legislative recommendations to advance U.S. AI priorities. • This follows the July 2025 'America’s AI Action Plan' with over 90 policy actions across innovation, infrastructure, and international security, seeking business input on slowing regulations. • The framework may limit funding to states with AI-restrictive rules, positioning the U.S. as the global AI leader.

• The White House issued its National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence on March 20, 2026, guiding U.S. AI development. • CSIS experts Navin Girishankar and Aalok Mehta discussed the framework's implications in a rapid round-up. • The policy shapes U.S. AI leadership, influencing industry investments and regulations.

• Tech giants including Meta and Google spent over $39 million in 2025 to influence California politics on AI and crypto, per CalMatters analysis released March 27, 2026. • Meta alone invested $4.6 million lobbying against AI regulations, its highest ever since 2010. • This surge precedes high-stakes 2026 elections, including California's open governor race, signaling intensified Big Tech political engagement.

• Costa Rica signed a pact on March 27, 2026, to accept 25 migrants deported from the US each week, as part of President Trump's third-country deportation initiative overseen by special envoy Christine Noim. • The agreement advances the Shield of the Americas policy amid broader US immigration enforcement tied to geopolitical pressures. • This development supports US efforts to manage migration flows during escalating Middle East conflicts.

• Health plans' reliance on downcoding programs to cut physician reimbursements prompts state-level reforms highlighted in AMA's March 27, 2026 State Advocacy Update. • These practices harm doctors' earnings and patient care quality, leading policymakers to intervene for fairer payment systems. • The update covers top advocacy stories from March 2026, emphasizing protections for physicians amid ongoing reimbursement battles.

• On March 20, 2026, the White House issued a four-page National Policy Framework on Artificial Intelligence, recommending Congress preempt state laws interfering with a minimally burdensome federal standard while protecting children and consumers. • The framework prioritizes seven areas, including stronger parental controls for kids, letting courts decide AI training on copyrighted works, and requiring companies to cover data center energy costs without raising residential bills. • It references the March 2026 Ratepayer Protection Pledge by tech firms and calls for streamlined permitting and resources for small businesses; Democrats responded with the GUARDRAILS Act to block a related Trump executive order.

• On March 20, 2026, the White House issued the National Policy Framework for AI, urging Congress to preempt state laws and promote innovation. • Framework emphasizes five principles: child safety, communities, creators, censorship prevention, and U.S. competitiveness, building on December 2025 executive order. • Recommendations include protections against AI scams, workforce training via land-grant institutions, and free speech safeguards for AI outputs.

• NASA released initiatives on March 24, 2026, to advance America's National Space Policy, including an RFI for payloads supporting 2027-2028 lunar flights and the Rosalind Franklin Rover launch to Mars in 2028 with a mass spectrometer for organic matter analysis. • A new Earth science mission launching next year will measure convective storm dynamics to predict extreme weather up to six hours in advance; near-term lunar payloads include VIPER rover and LuSEE-Night, with up to 30 robotic landings from 2027. • These efforts ensure U.S. presence in low Earth orbit, expedite lunar science via commercial partnerships, and release new Saturn images from James Webb and Hubble telescopes, underpinning future Moon and Mars exploration.