Bold promises, but thin agenda so far for Ryan-led House

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Paul Ryan promises a bold, election-year agenda of replacing the health care law and fighting poverty.

[...] it's the BRICK Act.

Wednesday's legislation, passed 406-0, sought to ensure health care providers terminated from a state's Medicaid and children's health insurance programs can't keep doing business in other states.

"There's not a single priority issue," said No. 2 House Democrat Steny Hoyer of Maryland, citing issues absent from the floor such as renewal of federal aviation programs, financial relief for Puerto Rico, aid to Flint, Michigan as it grapples with tainted drinking water and funds to combat the Zika virus.

Another was an amalgam of provisions billed as boosting the rights of sportsmen, including allowing the importation of about 40 banned polar bear hides and heads from Canada and making sure the government doesn't restrict lead content in ammunition.

While debate on the budget resolution — a nonbinding measure setting out tax and spending goals for the upcoming decade — usually only takes a couple of days or so, passage of the measure clears the way for action on follow-up spending bills.