Year-end Crunch, New Year Plans
Washington, DC is a unique city with a rhythm all its own, from slow to frenetic depending on the season, and especially when Congress is in town or not. Even though members come from all over the country, they often commute, flying in on Monday and out on Thursday afternoons, creating short weeks for actually doing business. There are also all kinds of recesses during the year, and always a year-end crunch to finish crucial things like keeping the government open. They’re still working on that.
Presidential election years have a rhythm all their own, starting with the long fall recess to campaign, then the results which determine control of the national agenda, certification of the results, the inauguration, hearings on Cabinet nominees, a flurry of Executive Orders, and lots of political chaos that typically lasts for a few months before things settle down. When a new Administration comes in, virtually all regulatory activity stops for a time as well.
In short, relative to the priorities of the wine industry, we don’t expect much to get done in the near future, but that will allow us to educate new members of Congress and Administration officials. That’s the wheelhouse of Executive Vice President and Director of Government Affairs Michael Kaiser.