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Legislative leaders announced this week who will chair committees in the next session, appointments that will shape the tenor of debate in the Minnesota House that will almost certainly be evenly divided in a rare tie between DFLers and Republicans. Bills are typically debated and amended in at least one committee before going before the full House for a vote. In a typical year, bills could pass out of committee on a partisan vote. But the two caucus leaders, Rep. Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park and Rep. Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, say committees will consist of 14 representatives, seven from each party. And next year’s rules will require eight votes for a bill to pass out of committee — not just a majority of the representatives present. “So that we’re not playing the ‘who went to the bathroom’ game or, ‘whose car got stuck in the snow’” Hortman said. “That was part of the problem they encountered in 1979,” the last year the House was tied. Instead of trying to find a partisan advantage at any opportunity, Hortman and Demuth said they both want to work on a bipartisan basis. When a bill comes out of committee, Hortman said, it will already have bipartisan support. She compared the process of finding bipartisan agreement on a bill in committee to conference committees during divided government. When the DFL controlled the House and Republicans controlled the Senate from 2019 to 2022, she said, Republicans and Democrats had to come to agreements on bills. She and Demuth are confident that can happen again. Who is leading committees? In a normal year with one party in the majority, the majority party would appoint representatives to run committees. But this year, each committee will have two co-chairs, one from each party. Hortman said the plan is for the Republican and Democratic co-chairs to each lead about half of the committee meetings, setting the agenda for the day. Maybe that will mean a week of DFL-run meetings followed by a week of Republican-run meetings, she said, but more likely the partisan co-chairs will just alternate days. Demuth and Hortman said they worked together to decide how many committees there would be and which subjects they would work on. The caucuses appointed committee co-chairs independent of each other. Demuth said she was focused on seniority and subject-area expertise. One exception to seniority is the Rules and Legislative Administration committee. The Republican co-chair of that committee is Rep. Harry Niska, R-Ramsey, who was just elected to his second term this month. Demuth explained that Niska will chair that committee because the Republican caucus elected him their deputy leader. The Rules committee will be co-chaired by one of the more powerful Democrats in the House. Rep. Jamie Long, DFL-Minneapolis, the Rules DFL co-chair, is one of three representatives on the DFL’s “organizational team” working just under Hortman. What could this mean? With the two parties unlikely to find much common ground on policy legislation, most expect the main action of the 2025 legislative session will be the biennial budget, with a chance to pass a bonding bill to borrow for major one-time spending. Because Minnesota requires a 60% supermajority to pass a bonding bill, the process is typically more bipartisan. Recommendations for bonding go through the Capital Investment Committee, which will be co-chaired by Rep. Mary Franson, R-Alexandria, and Rep. Fue Lee, DFL-Minneapolis. Lee chaired the capital investment committee last session, and Franson was also a member. “The legislative process is all about finding compromise that can work,” Hortman said. “We are ready to get to work,” added Demuth.What is the future of Trump's legal cases?By CHRIS MEGERIAN and COLLEEN LONG WASHINGTON (AP) — In the two weeks since Donald Trump won the presidency, he’s tried to demonstrate his dominance by naming loyalists for top administration positions, even though many lack expertise and some face sexual misconduct accusations. It often seems like he’s daring Congress to oppose his decisions. But on Thursday, Trump’s attempt to act with impunity showed a crack as Matt Gaetz , his choice for attorney general, withdrew from consideration. Trump had named Gaetz, a Florida congressman, to be the country’s top law enforcement official even though he was widely disliked by his colleagues, has little legal experience and was accused of having sex with an underage girl, an allegation he denied. After being plagued by investigations during his first presidency, Trump wanted a devoted ally in charge of the Justice Department during his second. However, it was never obvious that Gaetz could win enough support from lawmakers to get confirmed as attorney general. Trump chose for a replacement Pam Bondi, a former Florida attorney general who defended him during his first impeachment trial and supported his false claims of voter fraud. Now the question is whether Gaetz was uniquely unpalatable, or if Trump’s other picks might exceed his party’s willingness to overlook concerns that would have sunk nominees in a prior political era. The next test will likely be Pete Hegseth, who Trump wants to lead the Pentagon despite an allegation of sexual assault that he’s denied. So far, Republicans are rallying around Hegseth , an Army veteran and former Fox News host. Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said the controversy over Gaetz would have little bearing on Trump’s other choices. He said they would be considered “one at a time.” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, suggested otherwise, claiming “the dominoes are falling.” “The drip drip of evidence and truth is going to eventually doom some others,” he said. Trump’s election victory was a sign that there may not be many red lines left in American politics. He won the presidential race despite authoritarian, racist and misogynist rhetoric, not to mention years of lies about election fraud and his role in sparking the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. He was also criminally convicted of falsifying business records to pay hush money, and he was found liable for sexual abuse in a civil case. Empowered by voters who looked past his misconduct and saw him as a powerful agent of change, Trump has shown no deference to Washington norms while working to fill his second administration . The transition team hasn’t pursued federal background checks for Trump’s personnel choices. While some of his selections have extensive experience in the areas they’ve been chosen to lead, others are personal friends and Fox News personalities who have impressed and flattered Trump over the years. Several have faced allegations involving sexual misconduct . Related Articles Hegseth is facing the most scrutiny after Gaetz. Once Trump announced Hegseth as his nominee for Pentagon chief, allegations emerged that he sexually assaulted a woman in California in 2017. The woman said he took her phone, blocked the door to the hotel room and refused to let her leave, according to a police report made public this week. Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing, the report said. However, he paid the woman a confidential settlement in 2023. Hegseth’s lawyer said the payment was made to head off the threat of a baseless lawsuit. Trump’s choice for secretary of health and human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has faced allegations of misconduct too. A woman who babysat for him and his second wife told Vanity Fair magazine that Kennedy groped her in the late 1990s, when she was 23. Kennedy did not deny the allegation and texted an apology to the woman after the article was published. That isn’t the only hurdle for Kennedy; he’s spent years spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories about vaccines, raising fears about making him a top health official in the new administration. Linda McMahon, chosen by Trump to be education secretary, is fighting a lawsuit connected to her former company, World Wrestling Entertainment. She’s accused of knowingly enabling sexual exploitation of children by an employee as early as the 1980s, and she denies the allegations. Tulsi Gabbard is another person who could face a difficult confirmation battle, but for very different reasons. The former Democratic representative from Hawaii has been a vocal Trump ally, and he chose her to be national intelligence director. But there’s grave concern by lawmakers and national security officials over Gabbard’s history of echoing Russian propaganda. Critics said she would endanger relationships with U.S. allies. Gaetz was investigated by federal law enforcement for sex trafficking, but the case was closed without charges and Republicans have blocked the release of a related report from the House Ethics Committee. However, some allegations leaked out, including that Gaetz paid women for sex. One of the women testified to the committee that she saw Gaetz having sex with a 17-year-old girl, according to a lawyer for the woman. As Gaetz met with senators this week, it became clear that he would face stubborn resistance from lawmakers who were concerned about his behavior and believed he was unqualified to run the Justice Department. “While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction,” Gaetz wrote on social media when announcing his withdrawal. Sen. Mike Braun, an Indiana Republican, said he believed there were four to six members of the caucus who would have voted against Gaetz, likely dooming his nomination, and “the math got too hard.” He said some of the issues and allegations around Gaetz were “maybe beyond the pale.” “I think there were just too many things, it was like a leaky dike, and you know, it broke,” Braun said. Trump thanked Gaetz in a post on Truth Social, his social media website, without addressing the substance of the allegations against him. “He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has much respect,” Trump wrote. Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick, Stephen Groves and Lisa Macaro contributed from Washington. Jill Colvin in New York and Adriana Gomez Licon in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, also contributed.

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Brooklyn families got into the holiday spirit during the 15th annual Gift of Giving Holiday Celebration, held on Dec. 16 at Dyker Beach Golf Course . More than 200 children and their families were invited to delight in the holiday festivities and participate in various activities, including a surprise visit from everyone’s favorite North Pole resident. Santa Claus was available for photo ops, and his elves performed an entertaining show for the attendees. Get the Full Story The venue, located just below the Verrazano Bridge at 1030 86th St., supplied event-goers with a hot buffet and refreshments. With support from the Gift of Giving LLC and the Brooklyn Sunset Park Lions Club , each child received a colorfully wrapped Christmas present to take home. One lucky student from P.S. 180 The SEEALL Academy, walked away with a new bicycle donated by Mr. C’s Cycles . Kids of all ages gather around the Christmas tree, eagerly waiting for their turn to receive a gift. Photo by Arthur de Gaeta Excited children hold their new toys, each a gift from the generous community support behind the event. Photo by Arthur de Gaeta The Gift of Giving Holiday Celebration was born from a shared goal between co-founders Carlo Lenzi, an event director at the golf course, and Cynthia Felix Jeffers of the Brooklyn Sunset Park Lions Club, who hoped to extend holiday festivities to less fortunate families. Lenzi died on Dec. 17 — just one day after this year’s Gift of Giving — but “his legacy will live on through this beloved event, which he worked tirelessly to create and nurture,” Felix Jeffers said. Last year, more than 950 toys were distributed, helping to spread Christmas cheer to families and hospital-bound children. “This event is all about making the day special for the children and families. We love the collaboration with the high school students, as it teaches them the importance of giving back and what it means to help those in need,” Felix Jeffers said. “It’s truly a magical day that embodies the gift of giving!” High School of Telecommunications Arts & Technology students led the charge this holiday season, collecting and distributing gifts to families in need. They tirelessly wrapped over 700 gifts, all donated from local businesses and community members. In addition to the Gift of Giving event, donated toys were distributed to several local family shelters, the Family Health Centers at NYU Langone-Brooklyn, and the Three Kings Celebration. The toy drive was a collaborative effort supported by the High School of Telecommunication Arts and Technology’s Student Government Organization, Dyker Heights Golf Club, Casper’s Cuts, the Brooklyn Sunset Park Lions Club, Gift of Giving LLC, CVS Health, Mr. C’s Cycles, Soleewavey LLC, Jetlagg LLC, Jeffrey Gaskins/414 Hicks St., 5 Boro Overland New York City, Beast Coast Adventures, Mud Kings Mafia, Gomammut, BTB Renovations, The Custom Shop, and IC Mechanical.

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