Year: 2025

  • Senate Armed Services Committee holds confirmation hearing for Pete Hegseth for secretary of defense

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    The Senate Armed Services Committee held a confirmation hearing for Pete Hegseth for secretary of defense on Jan. 14, 2025. At the time the hearing ended, the committee had not yet announced a date for a committee vote on Hegseth’s nomination. Hegseth must receive a majority approval vote in the committee before his nomination can…

  • Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee holds confirmation hearing for Chris Wright for secretary of energy

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    The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a confirmation hearing for Chris Wright for secretary of energy on Jan. 15, 2025. At the time the hearing ended, the committee had not yet scheduled a meeting to vote on Wright’s nomination. Wright must receive a majority approval vote in the committee before his nomination can…

  • Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee holds confirmation hearing for Sean Duffy for secretary of transportation

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    The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee held a confirmation hearing for Sean Duffy for secretary of transportation on Jan. 15, 2025. At the time the hearing ended, the committee had not yet scheduled a meeting to vote on Duffy’s nomination. Duffy must receive a majority approval vote in the committee before his nomination can…

  • Senate Foreign Relations Committee holds confirmation hearing for Marco Rubio for secretary of state

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    The Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a confirmation hearing for Marco Rubio for secretary of state on Jan. 15, 2025. At the time the hearing ended, the committee had scheduled a business meeting to consider Rubio’s nomination for January 20, 2025. Rubio must receive a majority approval vote in the committee before his nomination can…

  • Ballotpedia releases the state supreme court vacancies count for 2024

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    Twenty state supreme court justices vacated their seats before their term was scheduled to end in 2024. Of the 20 vacancies, 17 were caused by justices retiring, and three were caused by justices ascending to the chief justice position of the court. This is the first year since Ballotpedia started tracking state supreme court vacancies…

  • Hall Pass: Your Ticket to Understanding School Board Politics, Edition #139

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    Welcome to Hall Pass, a newsletter written to keep you plugged into the conversations driving  school board governance, the politics surrounding it, and education policy.  In today’s edition, you’ll find: Reply to this email to share reactions or story ideas! On the issues: The debate over Bible references in Texas’ elementary curriculum In this section,…

  • 77 officials were recalled in 2024 – higher than the 10-year average

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    Welcome to the Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025, Brew.  By: Lara Bonatesta Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: 77 officials were recalled in 2024 – higher than the 10-year average Seventy-seven officials were removed from office through recall elections in 2024. An average of about 55 officials were recalled between 2014…

  • Checks and Balances, January 2025

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    In this edition of Checks and Balances: Federal stories: State stories: Commentary: Regulatory Tally: In Washington U.S. House passes two administrative state bills What’s the story? The House of Representatives passed two administrative state bills in December—the Midnight Rules Relief Act and the Prove It Act. The bills proposed (1) allowing Congress to disapprove multiple…

  • BlackRock leaves net-zero alliance

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    In this week’s edition of Economy and Society: Around the world EU bank regulators release stricter ESG guidelines What’s the story? The European Banking Authority released new guidance last week outlining additional measures for banks to assess their climate risks. Why does it matter? The guidelines highlight the increasing divide between American and European banks.…

  • The Minnesota House of Representatives might convene on Jan. 14

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    A dispute between Democrats and Republicans over control of the Minnesota House of Representatives may delay the start of the 2025 session, which was scheduled to start on Jan. 14. Ahead of the Nov. 5 general elections, Democrats had a 68-64 majority in the chamber with two vacancies. After the Nov. 5 general elections, the…