Capitol Alert: California Fracking Bill Signed By Gov. Jerry Brown

“A federal judge in Kentucky on Thursday struck down President Biden’s effort to expand protections for transgender students and make other changes to the rules governing sex discrimination in schools, ruling that the Education Department had overstepped and violated teachers’ rights by requiring them to use students’ preferred pronouns,” the New York Times reports.

Charlie Cook: “The precarious Republican majority in the House, coupled with the much more secure Senate, makes for a very interesting dynamic. If the roles were reversed, it would be easy to see House Republicans hell-bent for leather, pushing through a very aggressive agenda, with Republicans in the Senate tapping the brakes to slow things down.” “But under the current circumstances, the Senate will be less of a saucer for cooling down what gets past the House—especially given the presence of Trump at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue with no reelection concerns to restrain him.”

“The Senate on Thursday overwhelmingly cleared a key procedural hurdle toward passing the Laken Riley Act, a bill aimed at curbing crime by migrants, in the first vote of the year by the chamber,” The Hill reports. “Senators cleared the first vote 84 to 9, with 33 Senate Democrats — including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) — joining with every Republican present to vote yes.”

New York Times: “Greenhouse gas emissions dropped just a fraction, 0.2 percent, compared to the year before, according to estimates published Thursday by the Rhodium Group.” “Despite continued rapid growth in solar and wind power, emissions levels stayed relatively flat last year because demand for electricity surged nationwide, which led to a spike in the amount of natural gas burned by power plants.”

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Danish news outlet DR claims that President-elect Donald Trump’s aides “bribed” homeless and poor people with dinners in return for acting as Trump supporters during Donald Trump Jr’s visit to Greenland this week.