Capitol Hill will return to a regular schedule this week after
delaying legislative business last week in the wake of the shooting of
Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.).
Meanwhile, at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue, President Obama
will host China’s President Hu Jintao at the White House.
{mosads}The Senate will be out this week, but the House promises to provide
plenty of excitement as it votes to repeal the healthcare bill passed
last year. Repealing healthcare was one of the Republicans’ successful
campaign planks and, while the repeal is expected to pass in the
GOP-controlled House, it will face a tougher time in the
Democratic Senate.
As the Republicans attempt to dismantle healthcare, Obama’s focus will
be on his meeting with his Chinese counterpart. The White House said the
visit will spotlight the two nations’ growing cooperation “on
bilateral, regional and global issues.” In recent months, the Obama
administration has become increasingly vocal about its concern that
China keeps it currency artificially low, a sensitive subject for
Beijing. Hu and Obama will also likely talk about North Korea, an
issue important to both countries. China is part of the six-party
talks and is the major power in the region.
After their meetings Wednesday, the Obamas will host a state dinner for Hu.
Monday, Jan. 17
President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama celebrate Martin Luther
King Jr. Day by participating in service projects. Several members
of the administration will be holding service projects on Monday and
throughout the week.
Vice President Biden and Jill Biden will participate in a service
project in Wilmington, Del.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan will keynote at a breakfast with the Rev.
Al Sharpton and the National Action Network in the morning and will
participate in a service project with City Year at Kramer Middle
School in the afternoon.
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson will attend the breakfast with
Sharpton, followed by a Kid Power Inc. Citizen Farm Community Service
Event at Tubman Elementary School.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and White House Domestic Policy
Council Director Melody Barnes will join Department of Transportation
employees at Ballou Senior High School, where they will help paint
murals, cover up graffiti and clean up around the school.
Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki will serve meals at So Others
Might Eat.
Tuesday, Jan. 18
The House returns to session at 2 p.m. with votes expected after 6:30 p.m.
House Armed Services Committee member Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.)
plans to roll out a bill aimed at slowing repeal of the military’s
policy on openly gay troops.
Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa); Ken Hoagland, chairman of Repeal It Now.org;
and Jenny Beth Martin of the Tea Party Patriots hold a news conference
“to receive petitions calling for repeal of ObamaCare,” House
Triangle, 3 p.m.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will speak at
the opening convocation of the Howard School of Divinity. Her remarks
will focus on the Affordable Care Act as a victory for civil rights.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu will host a Martin Luther King Jr. Day
celebration in the auditorium at the Department of Energy. Students
from McKinley Technology High school will be in attendance.
U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk will deliver remarks at a Martin
Luther King Jr. reception at the World Bank.
Wednesday, Jan. 19
The House is scheduled to vote on repealing the healthcare law.
It will be a busy day at the White House. Chinese President Hu arrives
in the morning and both he and Obama will make remarks. Later in the
day the two will hold a bilateral meeting, followed by a joint press
conference and, that evening, the Obamas will host the Hus at a state
dinner.
Michelle Obama will deliver remarks at Howard University before a
group of high school and college students to discuss the China state visit, and the importance of young Americans engaging people around
the world, 10:30 a.m.
The U.S. Conference of Mayors begins its 79th winter meeting, which
starts Wednesday and runs through Friday at the Capital Hilton Hotel,
1001 16th Street NW.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka delivers an address on “America’s
Choices: Why the Conventional Wisdom is Wrong” and details the choices
elected leaders across the country are facing. National Press
Club, 9 a.m.
The House Armed Services Committee is scheduled to hold its opening
meeting of the 112th Congress. The committtee will clear up some
internal business, including taking up a subcommittee reorganization
proposal.
The House Judiciary Committee will hold its first meeting to organize for
the new Congress; 2141 Rayburn House Office Building, 3 p.m.
Thursday, Jan. 20
Chinese President Hu addresses leaders from the private and public
sectors at a lunch co-hosted by the U.S.-China Business Council and
the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. Former Secretary of
State Henry Kissinger will be among the participants, Marriott Wardman
Park, 2660 Woodley Road NW, 12:30 p.m.
Michelle Obama will join business leaders for a major announcement affecting food formulation, availability and affordability.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) addresses the U.S.
Conference of Mayors at 10 a.m. while Sen. Mark Begich (D-Alaska)
delivers the lunch address at noon; Capital Hilton Hotel, 1001 16th
St. NW.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee will formally get rolling with
an organizational meeting.
The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing on the costs
imposed on families, employers and the economy at large by the
current structure of the federal income tax, 1100 Longworth House
Office Building, 9 a.m.
Education Secretary Duncan and Treasury Secretary Timothy
Geithner deliver remarks on the American Opportunity Tax Credit Act,
Wilson High School, 4340 Connecticut Ave. NW, noon.
The D.C. Department of Health holds a summit to discuss bed-bug prevention
and eradication; Old City Council Chambers, 441 Fourth St. NW,
First Floor South Lobby, 9 a.m.
Friday, Jan. 21
Obama will host a reception for mayors at the White House in the
morning and then travel to Schenectady, N.Y., to tour a General
Electric factory. This trip was postponed from last week in the wake
of the Tucson shootings. Obama will talk about the importance of
growing the economy and making America more competitive by investing
in jobs, innovation and clean energy.
The president will also address House Democrats at their annual
retreat in Cambridge, Md., that evening.
The Justice Department holds a ceremony to commemorate the 50th
anniversary of Robert F. Kennedy’s swearing-in as attorney general.
Participants include Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), Attorney General Eric
Holder and former Maryland Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend. The
event begins at 2:30 p.m.
Emily Goodin and John Bennett contributed to this article.