Weekly Round Up

Catch Up on the Week at CAP: January 19 - 23, 2009

REGULATION

Midnight Regulations and a New Agenda

The months before Tuesday's inauguration saw a flurry of last-minute regulations from the Bush administration. Two reports were released at an event on Thursday co-hosted by OMB Watch. "After Midnight" by Reece Rushing and OMB Watch looks at the Bush legacy of deregulation and what Obama can do. And "Cleaning Up and Launching Ahead" by Anne Joseph O'Connell details what President Obama can learn from previous administrations in establishing his regulatory agenda.

GUANTANAMO

Closing Guantánamo, Restoring American Values

In one of his first actions as president, Barack Obama announced Thursday that he will close the prison at Guantánamo. Ken Gude provided analysis of President Obama's executive order, building on his report, "How to Close Guantánamo" and "Closing Guantánamo 101."

ECONOMY

Recovery and Reinvestment

Ruy Teixeira took a look at public opinion polls this week and found that the public is giving a very friendly reception to the economic stimulus plan proposed by the incoming Obama administration. What's more, an interactive map released today shows how much money the House recovery and reinvestment bill will give to states to distribute. The map kicks off a series of interactive maps on the recovery plan that will continue through next week.

WOMEN'S RIGHTS

Milestones for Equality

This week saw two milestones for women's rights. Thursday we celebrated the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Jessica Arons and Shira Saperstein commemorated the date and explained why this year might see shifting ground on women's health. The same day, the Senate passed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and Heather Boushey released a report showing that more men are jobless and women are earning less for equal work.

APPOINTMENTS

Better, Faster Appointments

President Obama kicked the political appointment process into high gear this week. CAP last week released a report on what the Obama administration can learn from previous administrations in making politcal appointments. This week, we followed it up with a by-the-numbers look at presidentoal appointments and six ways the Obama administration can improve the political appointment process.