Mar. 1, 2023: A bipartisan response to East Palestine

A bipartisan group of six senators today will introduce the Railway Safety Act of 2023, legislation aimed at preventing a repeat of the toxic firestorm in East Palestine, Ohio, that followed the Feb. 4 derailment of a chemical train.

According to a summary we saw last night, the legislation would: 1) require rail carriers to give advance notice to state emergency response officials before running trains carrying hazardous materials; 2) mandate trains run with at least two-person crews; 3) require better monitoring of railcar wheel bearings — which overheated in the Ohio train accident, according to the NTSB, and likely caused the train to jump the tracks — and 4) increase penalties for wrongdoing in the industry. AP’s Julie Carr Smyth with the scoop

And as House Republicans ramp up their investigation into alleged politicization at the Justice Department, Attorney General Merrick Garland will use his opening statement at a congressional hearing today to defend the integrity of his workforce.

Speaking at the Senate Judiciary Committee, Garland will emphasize how DOJ officials have worked to combat violent crime and hate crimes, to assist Ukraine officials in defending democracy and to “protect reproductive freedom,” according to an excerpt shared with Playbook.

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Raghu Manavalan is the host and senior editor of POLITICO's Playbook Daily Briefing.
Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO Audio.