Democratic Policy and Communications Center. Sen. Dick Durbin was re-elected as
Senate Democratic Whip; while Sens. Bernie Sanders, Tammy Baldwin and Joe
Manchin will join Sens. Amy Klobuchar, Elizabeth Warren and Mark Warner to complete
the leadership team.
Senate Republican Leadership Elections: Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was
re-elected as the chamber's Republican leader. McConnell's leadership team in the
115th Congress will largely remain the same following the 2016 elections that
maintained Republicans control of the Senate. Sens. John Cornyn and John Barrasso
were re-elected to their roles on the GOP leadership team, as Republican Whip and
Party Chairman, respectively. Sen. Cory Gardner was elected the new Chairman of the
National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), succeeding Sen. Roger Wicker who
was term limited.
Committee Updates: Stay tuned for updates on changes to House and Senate
committee assignments that are relevant to NATCA. So far, it's worth noting that Sen.
Patrick Leahy of Vermont will become the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations
Committee next year.
INTRODUCTION TO 115TH CONGRESS
Members newly elected to Congress are in Washington, D.C. for their New Member
Orientation during the weeks of Nov. 14 and 28. The new 115th Congress will convene
on January 3, 2017 with President-Elect Donald Trump entering the White House. There
will be many new faces in Congress, with both the House and Senate remaining in
Republican control. The 115th House of Representatives will consist of at least 238
Republicans and 193 Democrats, a net gain of seven seats for Democrats (the final tally
will be determined once the remaining races mentioned above are called). The 115th
Senate will consist of 52 Republicans and 48 democrats, a gain of two seats for
Democrats (Louisiana is largely expected to remain a Republican seat.)
COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT
STAT OF THE WEEK: 27 million passengers – a record – will fly in the National
Airspace System during the Thanksgiving travel period (Nov. 18-29), according to
Airlines for America. We are grateful to our members for the incredible work they do to
ensure the safety of every flight, every day!
LINK OF THE WEEK
The current Priority Placement Tool (PPT). Data is current as of Nov. 21, 2016. Please
click here to access our NCEPT page. The PPT is located in the "Resources" section
near the bottom of the page.
ATTENTION FACREPS – UPDATED AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT/INCIDENT CHECKLIST
We updated our "Emergency" section of the Members Center to include the new aircraft
accident/incident checklist from the ASI Committee.
HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK – NTSB MOST WANTED LIST
The Most Wanted List for 2017-18 represents the NTSB's advocacy priorities. It is
designed to increase awareness of, and support for, the most critical changes needed to
reduce transportation accidents and save lives. While the list covers the entire
transportation spectrum, several "most wanted" items relate to aviation.
