NEWS ROUNDUP:

• The still nascent Slovenian Pirate Party, founded with a focus on digital issues, may have an opportunity to compete sooner than they expected. Protests against austerity measures and rampant political corruption have swept the nation, leading some to call for new elections. (Tech President)
• The Vietnamese government admitted to supporting up to 1,000 bloggers and “online tastemakers” to work as propaganda agents and push Communist policies online. The country, with a poor record of freedom of expression, has seen internet use explode over the past decade.  (Tech President)
• After a month of silence from its K Street representatives, the NRA has started sending in its lobbying muscle to fight President Obama’s gun control proposals. They’ll be armed with a new argument; guns create jobs. (Politico)
• Did you download the app created for President Obama’s second inauguration? You might want to check out the terms of service, which apparently gives the Presidential Inaugural Committee permission to share data with a variety of political organizations. (Politico)
• The gun control law passed in New York this week appears to limit access to previously public information about gun permits, giving gun owners the option to remove their names from a statewide database. (New York Times)
• State revolving door laws vary widely across the country and at least 15 have no laws that would stop a legislator from resigning on Monday and registering as a lobbyist on Tuesday. (Public Integrity)
• The White House quadrupled the threshold for a petition filed via its We The People website to get an official answer. New petitions will have to get 100,000 signatures in 30 days to be acknowledged by the White House. (The Hill)

RELEVANT BILLS INTRODUCED:

HAPPENING TODAY 1/17: 

• Transparency in the Obama Administration – A Fourth Year Assessment.  AU WCL. Thurs.  9:30 am – 6:00 pm. 4801 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016, WCL Room 603.