This report discusses the National Security Strategy (NSS), a document released by the Obama Administration which states that its purpose is to "set out the principles and priorities to guide the use of American power and influence in the world."

Some press reports have suggested that the full Senate could vote in relation to the nomination of Merrick B. Garland to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, even if the Senate Judiciary Committee does not act on the nomination. This report addresses questions concerning the exact nature of such a vote; it also explains the procedural steps that could be necessary to bring the nomination to a direct vote on the floor.

This report summarizes the issues the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) encountered when developing regulations for "carbon pollution" from existing power plants as part of the Clean Power Plan. The report describes how the EPA resolved these issues.

This report provides background information and issues for Congress on the Navy's Littoral Combat Ship (LCS)/Frigate program, a program to procure a large number of LCSs and modified LCSs. Congress's decisions on the LCS/Frigate program will affect Navy capabilities and funding requirements, and the shipbuilding industrial base.

This report provides background information and potential oversight issues for Congress on the Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) class aircraft carrier program. Congress's decisions on the CVN-78 program could substantially affect Navy capabilities and funding requirements and the shipbuilding industrial base.

This report discusses the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) which provides economic assistance through a competitive selection process to developing nations that demonstrate positive performance in three areas: ruling justly, investing in people, and fostering economic freedom.

This report provides background information and potential oversight issues for Congress on the Ohio replacement program (ORP), a program to design and build a new class of 12 ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) to replace the Navy's current force of 14 Ohio-class SSBNs.

This report focuses on identification numbers for government acquisition and acquisition-related purposes that government contractors, generally, are required to have. The federal government uses a proprietary system, Dun & Bradstreet's (D&B's) Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS), to uniquely identify the entities with which it does business. It does not address taxpayer identification numbers (TINs) or other types of recipients of federal money (e.g., grant award recipients) who are required to obtain DUNS numbers.

This report focuses on some of the major issues associated with trade and trade agreements and the impact of trade on the U.S. economy. Discussions of trade and trade agreements often focus on a number of issues, including the role that trade plays in the U.S. economy, the impact of trade agreements on employment gains and losses, and the size of the U.S. trade deficit.

This report discusses various issues surrounding the M-1 Abrams Tank, the M-2/M-3 Bradley Fighting Vehicle (BFV), and the M-1126 Stryker Combat Vehicle, centerpieces of the Army's Armored Brigade Combat Teams (ABCTs) and Stryker Brigade Combat Teams (SBCTs).

This report provides data and analysis related to Supreme Court vacancies since 1797 that arose during one presidency and were filled during a different presidency.

This report briefly discusses the implications of a recent announcement from Al Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, Jabhat al Nusra, stating that it was reconstituting itself as an independent group.

This report provides an overview of recent global trends and U.S. foreign policy responses to address human trafficking. The report focuses in particular on efforts conducted by the State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (J/TIP) and the President's Interagency Task Force (PITF) on human trafficking, as well as discussion of the 2016 TIP Report.

The amount of "slack" in the labor market--jobless or underemployed workers--has consequences for the appropriate stance of monetary policy, the future path of the budget deficit, and counter-cyclical spending on programs such as unemployment insurance. This report briefly examines this concept in the context of the current economy.

This report discusses the 10th annual North American Leaders' Summit (NALS), in which Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hosted President Barack Obama and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

This report discusses legal rules governing the ability of the President to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement and other similar agreements.

This report discusses the Obama Administration's recent request for over $1 billion in foreign assistance during FY2016 to support a whole-of-government "U.S. Strategy for Engagement in Central America."

This report examines (1) the extent to which the Department of Defense (DOD) effectively uses data to inform decisionmaking, (2) some of the critical elements needed for DOD to use data more effectively, (3) recent efforts to improve DOD's use of data, and (4) potential questions for Congress. This report focuses primarily (but not exclusively) on defense acquisitions as a case study.

This report discusses the federal role in freight system planning. The U.S. freight system is a complex network including four principal modes of transportation: The National Truck Network, railroads, barge and ship lines, and air carriers.

This report discusses the kingdom of Saudi Arabia's relations with the United States; its stability, and its future trajectory are subjects of continuing congressional interest.

This report discusses the the National Commission on the Future of the Army (NCFA), which was established to conduct a comprehensive study of the structure of the Army. The NCFA reported its findings to Congress and the Administration on January 28, 2016, and made a number of recommendations that may or may not be acted upon.

This report summarizes the language related to the Affordable Care (ACA) that was added to annual appropriations legislation by congressional appropriators since the ACA was signed into law. The information is presented in a table. While a detailed examination of the ACA itself is beyond the scope of this report, a brief overview of the ACA's core provisions and its impact on federal spending is provided as context for the material in the table. Congress remains deeply divided over implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which President Obama signed into law in March 2010.

This report briefly discusses the foreign operations appropriations legislation generally and then provides a short description of the various funding accounts as they appear in Division K, "Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2016," of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 (P.L. 114-113). The State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs appropriations legislation provides annual funding for almost all of the international affairs programs.

This report discusses the legislative and oversight issues regarding water quality, as well as wastewater treatment funding issues.