Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) lost her seat on the House Financial Services Committee after House Democratic leaders on Thursday rejected her request for a waiver to serve on the Financial Services panel and other committees simultaneously, two House Democratic sources told The Hill.

The Financial Services Committee is one of five House panels deemed “exclusive” by Democratic leaders under caucus rules adopted in July 2020.

Democrats on exclusive committees are barred by caucus rules from serving on any other committee without a waiver from the party’s steering committee, a panel of several dozen lawmakers chaired by Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiTrump seeks to freeze .4 billion of programs in final week of presidency Dozens on FBI’s terrorist watchlist were in DC day of Capitol riot Porter loses seat on House panel overseeing financial sector MORE (D-Calif.) that determines committee assignments.

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Porter, a former financial law professor known for dressing down administration officials and executives in hearings, was appointed to the Financial Services Committee and received a waiver to serve on the House Oversight and Reform Committee during her first term.

In a Nov. 30 letter to Pelosi, Porter asked to be considered for seats on the Oversight and Reform, Natural Resources, and Financial Services committees — in that order — in the new Congress that began on Jan. 3.

Porter also asked Pelosi to “prioritize” her spot on the Oversight Committee and asked to rejoin the Financial Services Committee on a waiver.

Porter will hold onto her seat on the Oversight Committee and join the Natural Resources Committee this year, the Democratic aides said. Both committees are non-exclusive, meaning a member can serve on several.

“Under House Dem rules, a member is allowed to serve on two non-exclusive committees. Mine are Oversight and Natural Resources. One can ask for a waiver for a third committee. I asked. Others in same situ got waivers. I did not. I play by the rules,” Porter said in a tweet.

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A senior Democratic aide familiar with the steering committee decision said it was risky for Porter to prioritize spots on other committees while asking for a waiver to retain her spot on Financial Services after Democrats lost seats in the 2020 election. A smaller Democratic majority means Democrats have a smaller ratio of seats per committee.

The senior Democratic aide said Porter was given spots on Oversight and Natural Resources panels per her November request to Pelosi before the steering committee decided who should be granted waivers to join other committees.

The senior aide also said that Rep. Jennifer WextonJennifer Lynn WextonPorter loses seat on House panel overseeing financial sector Democratic lawmakers call for Pence to invoke 25th Amendment, remove Trump from office 7 surprise moments from a tumultuous year in politics MORE (D-Va.) was also denied a waiver to stay on the Financial Services Committee after she was granted a spot on the House Appropriations Committee in December.

Porter’s departure from the Financial Services panel will likely mean fewer headaches for the bank executives, financial regulators and industry advocates that often appear before the panel.

Before joining Congress, Porter was a law professor at the University of California, Irvine and was appointed in 2012 by then-California Attorney General Kamala HarrisKamala HarrisBiden calls for swift action while outlining .9 trillion virus relief package Porter loses seat on House panel overseeing financial sector The Hill’s 12:30 Report: Trump’s growing isolation as administration comes to an end MORE to oversee the state’s $25 billion settlement with mortgage servicers involved in the 2007 financial crisis and housing market collapse.

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Porter is frequently compared by both supporters and critics to Sen. Elizabeth WarrenElizabeth WarrenPorter loses seat on House panel overseeing financial sector OVERNIGHT ENERGY: Nine, including former Michigan governor, charged over Flint water crisis | Regulator finalizes rule forcing banks to serve oil, gun companies | Trump admin adds hurdle to increase efficiency standards for furnaces, water heaters DeVos mulled unilateral student loan forgiveness as COVID-19 wracked economy: memo MORE (D-Mass.), her former professor at Harvard Law School.

Porter emphasized her legal experience and perspective as the only single mother of school-age children in the Democratic Caucus in a Jan. 6 letter to Pelosi asking for a waiver to rejoin the Financial Services panel.

“From growing up in Iowa during the farm credit crisis, to raising young children as a single mother, I have lived through economic upheavals that limit many Americans from reaching or remaining in the middle class,” Porter wrote.

“Because of my work as a lawyer and consumer advocate, I also have a rigorous understanding of the 2008 financial crisis, which decimated family finances and helped cause the huge economic inequality that we face today,” she added.

Updated at 9:10 p.m.

President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenConfirmation hearing for Biden’s DNI pick postponed Biden’s Sunday inauguration rehearsal postponed due to security concerns: report Murkowski says it would be ‘appropriate’ to bar Trump from holding office again MORE is set Thursday to roll out a sweeping COVID-19 relief plan that includes more than $10 billion in funding to boost the nation’s cybersecurity and information technology after a massive Russian cyberattack.

In the proposal, billed as an “American rescue package,” Biden calls on Congress to approve a major investment in IT and cybersecurity for the federal government, describing it as “an urgent national security issue that cannot wait.” Biden is set to detail the plan during a speech later Thursday. 

The plan includes a $9 billion investment for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the General Services Administration (GSA) to launch new cybersecurity and IT shared services.

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A further $200 million is proposed to help with “rapid” hiring of technology experts for the federal Chief Information Security Officer and U.S. Digital Service, while $300 million would go toward funding further technology programs at the GSA. The plan also designates $690 million to CISA to improve security monitoring and incident response.

The inclusion of proposed funding for federal cybersecurity and IT comes as the government continues to grapple with the fallout of a Russian cyberattack on IT company SolarWinds, which counted as clients the majority of federal agencies and U.S. Fortune 500 companies. 

Agencies including the Commerce, Defense, Homeland Security, Justice, State, and Treasury departments have confirmed they were victims of the hack, which has been ongoing for much of the past year but was first discovered in December. 

“In addition to the COVID-19 crisis, we also face a crisis when it comes to the nation’s cybersecurity,” the Biden plan reads. “The recent cybersecurity breaches of federal government data systems underscore the importance and urgency of strengthening U.S. cybersecurity capabilities. President-elect Biden is calling on Congress to launch the most ambitious effort ever to modernize and secure federal IT and networks.”

Biden said during a speech in December that the SolarWinds hack constituted a “grave threat to national security,” and later in the month separately pushed for modernization of the nation’s defenses to address new and evolving risks.

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“We have to be able to innovate and reimagine our defenses against growing threats in new realms like cyberspace,” Biden said.

State and local officials have repeatedly sounded the alarm over the lack of funds for IT and cybersecurity priorities over the past year, as COVID-19 has sapped funds and hackers have stepped up targeting of more vulnerable government systems. All state and local support was left out of the most recent COVID-19 relief package. 

The proposed cybersecurity and IT funds are part of a larger $1.9 trillion plan that mainly addresses COVID-19 relief, including new direct payments and raising the minimum wage.

Inspectors general across four government agencies plan to review the government’s response to the riots on January 6, examining how poor communication and planning led to a siege on the Capitol.

Investigators at the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, Defense and Interior each plan to review their agencies’ response amid questions about delays in calling for assistance as U.S. Capitol Police were outnumbered by pro-Trump rioters.

“The DOJ OIG review will include examining information relevant to the January 6 events that was available to DOJ and its components in advance of January 6; the extent to which such information was shared by DOJ and its components with the U.S. Capitol Police and other federal, state, and local agencies; and the role of DOJ personnel in responding to the events at the U.S. Capitol on January 6,” Michael Horowitz, the Justice Department’s inspector general, announced on Friday.

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“The DOJ OIG also will assess whether there are any weaknesses in DOJ protocols, policies, or procedures that adversely affected the ability of DOJ or its components to prepare effectively for and respond to the events at the U.S. Capitol on January 6,” the statement read. 

The Defense Department inspector general said that it has put together a “multidisciplinary team” to review the Pentagon’s role and actions in responding to both the planned protest and the violent aftermath. Specifically, the investigation will cover requests for support from the Pentagon leading up to the protest and will examine whether the department’s actions were lawful. 

The review comes as lawmakers question delays in asking for National Guard assistance for the riots.

Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund, who stepped down in the days after the riots, told The Washington Post he asked for additional backup on six separate occasions but was ignored by House and Senate security officials.

The agencies involved in the review hold various law enforcement responsibilities. DOJ oversees the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which has been questioned about intelligence sharing ahead of the event. The Interior Department oversees Park Police forces that are charged with security on the mall.  DoD, among its many security duties, is also tasked with calling in the National Guard within the district. 

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The DHS inspector general’s office said its review would examine the department’s intelligence office and its role in supplying law enforcement with information. The DHS inspector general said it would also likely examine the department’s law enforcement components in connection with the review.

Congress has also announced its own probe of the events.

“To ensure the safety of those who work and visit here, we must get to the bottom of these breakdowns and prevent them from ever happening again. The Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee, which funds the Capitol Police, is robustly investigating yesterday’s events, including with hearings to directly question key leaders about what went wrong,” Rep. Tim RyanTimothy (Tim) RyanSecurity concerns mount ahead of Biden inauguration Lawmakers briefed on ‘horrifying,’ ‘chilling’ security threats ahead of inauguration The Hill’s Morning Report – House to impeach Trump on Wednesday MORE (D-Ohio) who chairs the House Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee, said in a release last week.

“There’s no other way to say it: what happened last Wednesday was an epic failure of intelligence and preparation. Not only must we get to the bottom of why and how this was allowed to happen, but we must ensure it can never ever happen again.”

And in the Senate, both the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and the Rules Committee have announced investigations.

“Let us be clear: An attack on the Capitol Building is an attack on every American. We plan to conduct oversight and hold bipartisan hearings on these horrific events, and work together to make the necessary reforms to ensure this never happens again,” leaders of the two committees said in a joint statement.

Rebecca Kheel contributed.

Amazon is urging a judge to keep the social media platform Parler offline, citing a series of death threats against top tech executives and elected officials posted to the site ahead of last week’s deadly Capitol riot, according to a court filing from Tuesday. 

Parler sued Amazon on Monday, alleging Amazon Web Services (AWS) violated antitrust law and breached the companies’ contractual arrangement when the tech giant removed the platform that is popular with conservatives because of its hands-off approach to content moderation.

Attorneys for Amazon defended the company’s move on Tuesday, saying Parler demonstrated an “unwillingness and inability” to remove content that “threatens the public safety, such as by inciting and planning the rape, torture, and assassination of named public officials and private citizens.”

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The court filing went on to say that Amazon “repeatedly” notified Parler that its content violated the parties’ agreement and requested removal, “only to determine that Parler was both unwilling and unable to do so.”

Amazon said Parler’s suspension was a “last resort to prevent further access to such content,” including plans for violence surrounding President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenCotton: Senate lacks authority to hold impeachment trial once Trump leaves office Marjorie Taylor Greene says she will introduce impeachment articles against Biden ICE acting director resigns weeks after assuming post MORE’s inauguration on Jan. 20.

Parler saw a boost in popularity after the Nov. 3 presidential election, with disinformation spreading widely across the platform. The app saw another surge after the riot at the Capitol, with about 825,000 installs from the Apple and Google stores between Jan. 6 and Jan. 10, a more than 1,000 percent increase from the same period a week earlier, according to data from Sensor Tower.

Attorneys for Amazon said the company has notified Parler’s chief policy officer about more than 100 pieces of content advocating violence on the platform since mid-November.

The examples cited in the court filing included death threats, directed generally at tech executives and Democratic lawmakers, as well as posts naming Democrats like Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiUnions ask Pelosi and Schumer for T in emergency aid for state and local governments GOP senators call for commission to investigate Capitol attack Graham urging Biden to get Pelosi to ‘call off’ impeachment proceedings MORE (Calif.), Senate Minority Leader Charles SchumerChuck SchumerTrump calls for ‘NO violence’ amid concerns of threats around inauguration Amazon cites death threats in push to keep Parler offline ‘I saw my life flash before my eyes’: An oral history of the Capitol attack MORE (N.Y.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-CortezAlexandria Ocasio-CortezPressley’s chief of staff said her office’s panic buttons ‘had been torn out’ before Capitol riot Ocasio-Cortez: Congress looking into ways to rein in ‘disinformation’ The Hill’s 12:30 Report: House moves toward second impeachment MORE (N.Y.).

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Other posts targeted Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Facebook CEO Mark ZuckerbergMark Elliot ZuckerbergAmazon cites death threats in push to keep Parler offline Trump hits social media companies after they banned his accounts Facebook tells employees not to wear company shirts in public: report MORE and Google CEO Sundar Pichai with death threats, according to the court filing.

Asked for comment, a spokesperson for Parler said “In regards to legal action, our filings will speak on our behalf.“

After last week’s deadly riot at the Capitol, tech companies have taken steps to remove and restrict content that could incite more violence.

Trump supporters and right-wing extremists used platforms like Parler, as well as some mainstream social media sites, to organize ahead of the mob attack on the Capitol. Across some fringe sites, extremists are posting about potentially violent demonstrations for this weekend and Inauguration Day.

Mainstream social media sites have also taken action to limit Trump’s presence on their platforms. Facebook indefinitely banned Trump at least until Biden’s inauguration, and Twitter has permanently banned the president’s account. YouTube said it would temporarily suspend the president due to the “ongoing potential for violence.”

Updated at 1:20 p.m.

A United Nations report determined that Iran is taking steps to produce uranium metal, a key component of nuclear warheads, in violation of the nuclear agreement with several countries. 

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) issued a report on Wednesday obtained by The Wall Street Journal that said Iran told the agency it has started developing equipment to produce uranium metal in Isfahan in the next few months.

The U.N.’s watchdog confirmed the discovery, saying that Iran said its work on uranium metal production is part of its “declared aim to design an improved type of fuel,” according to The Associated Press.

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The IAEA said Iran did not indicate its timeline for developing uranium metal, which the country hasn’t done before, senior Western officials told the Journal. 

The agency had visited the Isfahan site where Tehran plans to generate uranium metal on Sunday. Then, Iranian officials told the IAEA on Wednesday that “modification and installation of the relevant equipment for the mentioned R&D activities have been already started,” according to the AP. 

Kazem Gharib Abadi, Iran’s ambassador to the IAEA, said on Twitter that Iran plans to produce uranium metal to create fuel for the civilian research reactor, saying that “natural uranium will be used to produce uranium metal in the first stage.” He said the project will put Iran in line with “progressive nations in production of new fuels,” according to the AP.

Iranian officials said they expect the installation of equipment to create uranium powder to take four to five months before that powder is used to make uranium metal.

The production of uranium metal would violate the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal, which the United Kingdom, France, Germany, China and Russia remain a part of but the U.S. pulled out of in 2018.

As the U.S. instituted sanctions against Iran, the country has moved forward in expanding its nuclear activities, according to reports. 

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The killing of top Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh last year prompted Iran’s parliament to request the government enrich uranium up to 20 percent purity and develop uranium metal within five months if the U.S. didn’t end sanctions.

In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of the U.K., France and Germany said the activity “has no credible civil justification” and the enrichment “further hollows out the agreement.”

Wednesday’s report was issued in the days before President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenConfirmation hearing for Biden’s DNI pick postponed Biden’s Sunday inauguration rehearsal postponed due to security concerns: report Murkowski says it would be ‘appropriate’ to bar Trump from holding office again MORE’s inauguration and is likely to complicate his plans with Iran. Biden has previously indicated he would like to rejoin the nuclear deal and recover the diplomatic relationship between the countries. 

After developing uranium metal, Iran would still have several steps to complete before creating a nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile, which experts told the Journal may still take years.

President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenConfirmation hearing for Biden’s DNI pick postponed Biden’s Sunday inauguration rehearsal postponed due to security concerns: report Murkowski says it would be ‘appropriate’ to bar Trump from holding office again MORE has selected Deanne Criswell to lead the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). 

Criswell is the first woman nominated to lead the agency, which is primarily responsible for responding to natural disasters that have increased in both number and intensity amid climate change.

She currently serves as the Commissioner of the New York City Emergency Management Department, leading the coordination of the city’s response to pandemic and other emergencies.

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Criswell previously worked at FEMA under much of the Obama administration, where she was both the Federal Coordinating Officer and a lead on the national incident management team.

“In these roles, she served as the primary federal representative responsible for leading the agency’s response to and recover from emergencies and major disasters,” the transition team said in a release.

Criswell also previously served as the head of the Office of Emergency Management for the city of Aurora, Colorado. She was also a member of the Colorado National Guard, serving 21 years as a firefighter and deputy fire chief. 

In 2001, she deployed to Kuwait to serve as a fire officer, and in 2010, she deployed to Qatar, Afghanistan, and Iraq to advise on fire protection for military bases. 

Between leaving the Obama administration and heading to New York, Criswell worked as a consultant in the homeland security sector of the Cadmus Group LLC.

The Supreme Court on Monday denied President TrumpDonald TrumpHouse GOP leader tells members to quit spreading lies on riot, antifa DC attorney general says Trump Organization improperly paid K bill incurred during inauguration 70K QAnon Twitter accounts suspended in the wake of Capitol riot MORE‘s request to fast-track consideration of several lawsuits challenging the election results in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin and rebuffed similar suits brought by pro-Trump attorneys.

The court announced its decision in an unsigned order that did not disclose the justices’ voting breakdown or rationale, which is how the Supreme Court typically handles denials of such requests.

The move all but guarantees the justices will not take up the cases prior to President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenCapitol Police confirm investigation into some officers’ behavior during riot GOP lawmakers told Trump takes some responsibility for Capitol riot Director of Army Staff disputes Capitol Police chief account of National Guard deployment MORE’s inauguration on Jan. 20, and represents a final nail in the coffin in Trump’s voluminous and failed post-election legal effort.

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The Supreme Court’s order comes several days after a riot at the Capitol that temporarily disrupted lawmakers from finalizing President Trump’s electoral loss and has since been linked to five deaths.

The court last week also rejected a last-ditch bid by Rep. Louie GohmertLouis (Louie) Buller GohmertSupreme Court won’t fast-track review of Trump election lawsuits Supreme Court rejects Gohmert’s last-ditch election suit against Pence READ: The Republicans who voted to challenge election results MORE (R-Texas) that sought to expand Vice President Pence’s legal authority to effectively overturn Biden’s electoral win during the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress. Pence had made clear he would uphold his statutory duty to certify Biden’s win.

These recent Supreme Court developments effectively bring an end to the scattershot attempt by Trump and his allies to overturn the election, while racking up an abysmal record in court and promoting a disproven conspiracy theory that the vote had been rigged in Biden’s favor.  

By some estimates, Trump and his allies lost more than 60 rounds in court, while chalking up only a single, narrow victory in a Pennsylvania court that successfully disqualified a tiny sliver of votes.

The court’s order Monday rejected suits targeting Pennsylvania, Georgia and Wisconsin that were brought or represented by the Trump campaign, as well as pro-Trump attorneys Lin Wood and Sidney Powell. 

Updated at 11:24 a.m.

A coalition of 17 states and New York City are suing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over its decision not to tighten major air pollution standards. 

The petition for review of the decision to retain current standards for fine particulate matter didn’t detail the states’ legal arguments. 

However, a press release from California Attorney General Xavier BecerraXavier BecerraOVERNIGHT ENERGY: Emails show Interior ethics officials raised concerns over video promoting Trump | Endangered Species rollback faced early pushback within administration | 17 states sue EPA for declining to tighten air pollution standards 17 states sue EPA for declining to tighten air pollution standards Biden selects Gina Raimondo for Commerce chief: reports MORE’s (D) office said that they are arguing that the EPA “conducted a flawed and unlawfully biased review” and that “the available science clearly demonstrates the need for the EPA to strengthen the [standard].”

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“Study after study shows the negative health impacts of particulate matter pollution to our most vulnerable communities,” Becerra, whom President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenCotton: Senate lacks authority to hold impeachment trial once Trump leaves office Marjorie Taylor Greene says she will introduce impeachment articles against Biden ICE acting director resigns weeks after assuming post MORE plans to nominate as Health and Human Services secretary, said in the release. “History books will record unkindly the Trump Administration’s callous disregard for their lives and the willful denial of science and the law.”

The EPA in December finalized a decision to retain the standards set by the Obama administration in 2012 for both fine and coarse forms of particulate matter, commonly known as soot. 

Findings reviewed by the agency in its decision-making have linked long-term exposure to fine particle pollution to tens of thousands of deaths and suggested that stricter standards could save thousands of lives. 

Exposure to particulate matter has been linked to heart and lung issues.

An EPA spokesperson declined to offer a reaction the lawsuit, saying that the agency doesn’t comment on pending litigation. 

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When the agency first proposed retaining the current standard of 12 micrograms per cubic meter in April, EPA Administrator Andrew WheelerAndrew Wheeler17 states sue EPA for declining to tighten air pollution standards Overnight Energy: EPA rule exempts many polluting industries from future air regulations | Ex-Michigan governor to be charged over Flint water crisis: report | Officials ousted from White House after papers casting doubt on climate science EPA rule exempts many polluting industries from future air regulations MORE said “we believe that the current standard is protective of public health.” 

However, last year, agency staffers cast doubt on whether the current standards are adequate. 

They determined that scientific evidence and air quality analyses “can reasonably be viewed as calling into question the adequacy of the public health protection afforded by the combination of the current … standards” for fine particulate matter.

“A conclusion that the current … standards do provide adequate public health protection would place little weight on the broad body of epidemiologic evidence reporting generally positive and statistically significant health effect associations,” they wrote. 

Wheeler has criticized those findings, saying they contained “uncertainties” and other limitations.

HAPPY WEDNESDAY! Welcome to Overnight Energy, The Hill’s roundup of the latest energy and environment news. Please send tips and comments to Rebecca Beitsch at rbeitsch@thehill.com. Follow her on Twitter: @rebeccabeitsch. Reach Rachel Frazin at rfrazin@thehill.com or follow her on Twitter: @RachelFrazin.

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TODAY’S THEME IS: EMAILS. EMAILS, BROUGHT TO YOU BY FOIA.

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-At Interior… Ethics officials at the Interior Department warned communications staff about posting a video in October touting President TrumpDonald TrumpCotton: Senate lacks authority to hold impeachment trial once Trump leaves office Marjorie Taylor Greene says she will introduce impeachment articles against Biden ICE acting director resigns weeks after assuming post MORE’s conservation record that critics characterized as propaganda, according to emails obtained by The Hill.

The video in question praises the “Trump administration conservation record” and was shared by Interior Secretary David Bernhardt, who tagged President Trump in his Twitter post.

The video drew swift criticism from watchdog groups that said it may have violated ethics laws and the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from electioneering at work.

Newly revealed emails shared with The Hill show that Interior’s own ethics staff raised similar concerns before the video was made public.

Heather Gottry, director of Interior’s Departmental Ethics Office, wrote in one email that she wanted to “flag some concerns for further consideration,” noting the video focused on past actions of the department rather than a new initiative as they would prefer.

“In context, a tweet and video highlighting the ‘Trump Administration Conservation Record’ published one week before election day where President Trump is a candidate for reelection, may be perceived by outside stakeholders as a ‘closing argument’ for the President’s reelection as opposed to an official communication announcing a specific government activity or achievement,” Gottry wrote, noting that it did not directly violate the Hatch Act.

“Given the proximity to the election, the overall tone and tenor of the video may be viewed by outside stakeholders as similar to campaign or other partisan political advocacy videos, and as a result may prompt questions or concerns to be raised with the U.S. Office of the Special Counsel,” she added.

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Interior communications director Nick Goodwin appeared to take that as a green light for distribution, thanking Gottry in an email for the review and “confirming that the video/tweet is in compliance and not a violation.”

A separate set of documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) show Goodwin wanted to “push back” after an Obama-era Interior employee criticized the video and said he would have been fired for posting similar content.

“This is a propaganda video created with your tax dollars meant to bolster the President’s chances of being re-elected. This is way outside the lines,” Tim Fullerton, former digital strategy director at Interior, tweeted at the time.

The emails, along with texts obtained by CREW, suggest Goodwin was involved with the department’s Twitter response to Fullerton.

“I want to push back on this,” an Interior employee wrote to Goodwin via text.

“Our tweets are approved by career ethics attorneys and thankfully no longer overseen by you. @Interior increased the number of ethics staff by 250% to remove the rotten stench from the blatant failure of the prior administration to invest in the ethics program,” the agency employee wrote.

Goodwin gave the go-ahead, and that line was later tweeted by the Interior press office.

The emails are part of a broader pattern of promoting Trump.

The emails obtained by CREW also show Goodwin wanted more promotion of Trump in agency tweets.

Goodwin pushed employees at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), part of the Interior Department, to use Trump’s Twitter handle in posts, even as they raised concerns over legal issues, the documents show.

“This is an inadequate post. In comparison to other tweets that USGS puts out, it’s clear that the effort was lacking,” Goodwin wrote in late September, in discussing how to share on social media an op-ed written by the head of USGS.

“Mentioning that the President (and using his official @realDonaldTrump handle) signed this legislation into law authorizing USGS to establish the National Volcano Early Warning System to better protect communities would have been a good option as illustrated by the director,” he wrote.

Those efforts clearly alarmed USGS communications director Gavin Shire, who flagged them as a potential violation of the Hatch Act.

Read more about his concerns here.

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-At Fish and Wildlife… The U.S. agency responsible for marine fisheries considered pulling out of a recent Trump administration rollback of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) over a disagreement with political appointees at the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), according to emails obtained by The Hill.

The emails from a Freedom of Information Act request show that during last year’s rulemaking process, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) considered withdrawing its support for a joint rule with FWS that makes it harder for areas to receive critical habitat protections.

The emails, though heavily redacted, reveal that NMFS officials were concerned with the “course” chosen by Trump officials at FWS in pursuing the rollback.

NMFS, a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), appeared ready to back out in April.

“We appear to be at a fork in the road,” FWS assistant director for ecological services Gary Frazer wrote to agency director Aurelia Skipwith.

The next paragraph in the email was redacted, but Frazer added that NMFS and NOAA would “stay on board” if FWS was open to working through White House Office of Management and Budget comments and “willing to consider substantive changes to the draft.”

A day later, Frazer wrote to FWS colleagues that he “heard back from the director” and that “she and the rest of the political team understand that this course may cause NMFS and NOAA to withdraw from this rulemaking.”

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Spokespeople for NMFS and FWS, which is part of the Interior Department, declined to provide specifics on what caused the dispute.

Critics say the emails indicate that efforts by Interior Secretary David Bernhardt to roll back the ESA have encountered pushback, even within the administration.

Read more about the exchange here. 

SEE YOU IN COURT: A coalition of 17 states and New York City are suing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over its decision not to tighten major air pollution standards. 

The petition for review of the decision to retain current standards for fine particulate matter didn’t detail the states’ legal arguments. 

However, a press release from California Attorney General Xavier BecerraXavier BecerraOVERNIGHT ENERGY: Emails show Interior ethics officials raised concerns over video promoting Trump | Endangered Species rollback faced early pushback within administration | 17 states sue EPA for declining to tighten air pollution standards 17 states sue EPA for declining to tighten air pollution standards Biden selects Gina Raimondo for Commerce chief: reports MORE’s (D) office said that they are arguing that the EPA “conducted a flawed and unlawfully biased review” and that “the available science clearly demonstrates the need for the EPA to strengthen the [standard].”

“Study after study shows the negative health impacts of particulate matter pollution to our most vulnerable communities,” Becerra, whom President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenCotton: Senate lacks authority to hold impeachment trial once Trump leaves office Marjorie Taylor Greene says she will introduce impeachment articles against Biden ICE acting director resigns weeks after assuming post MORE plans to nominate as Health and Human Services secretary, said in the release. “History books will record unkindly the Trump Administration’s callous disregard for their lives and the willful denial of science and the law.”

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The EPA in December finalized a decision to retain the standards set by the Obama administration in 2012 for both fine and coarse forms of particulate matter, commonly known as soot. 

Findings reviewed by the agency in its decision-making have linked long-term exposure to fine particle pollution to tens of thousands of deaths and suggested that stricter standards could save thousands of lives. 

Read more on the suit here. 

POSSIBLE CONSEQUENCE: The American Petroleum Institute (API), a leading oil and gas lobbying group will consider last week’s attack on the Capitol in its decisions to make political contributions, the group’s president said Wednesday. 

“API supports candidates that support our mission of supplying reliable and affordable and cleaner energy to the world. What happened on January 6, will be a factor in how we consider our political giving going forward,” API president and CEO Mike Sommers told reporters. 

Sommers declined to answer questions about which lawmakers could be impacted, saying he didn’t want to “speculate.”

Some oil companies have also announced that they’d be suspending their political contributions in the wake of the event, which left five people dead. 

WHAT WE’RE READING:

Trump’s EPA team overrules career scientists on toxic chemical, Politico reports

Female scientists focus on a secret weapon to fight climate change: Moms, The Washington Post reports

Cuomo promotes new efforts to expand renewable energy in New York, The Buffalo News reports

Japanese officials extended a coronavirus state of emergency to seven more districts on Wednesday as the country surpassed 300,000 total confirmed cases. 

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced that the order would be extended to much of the country’s main island, specifically to Osaka, Kyoto, Hyogo, Aichi, Gifu, Tochigi and Fukuoka prefectures, according to CNN.

In total, 11 districts are now under emergency orders, after one was previously declared for Tokyo and its three nearby prefectures: Chiba, Saitama and Kanagawa, set to last until Feb. 7.

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The emergency order instructs companies to urge employees to work from home with a goal of decreasing office populations by 70 percent. Residents in the district are told to not leave their homes for nonessential reasons, while restaurants will end alcohol service by 7 p.m. and close by 8 p.m.

“I hope people to understand that this is an indispensable measure to improve this difficult situation,” Suga said during a press conference, CNN reported. “We will do everything we need to do. I apologize for the inconvenience caused your life with many restrictions, but we must overcome this.”

“I would like to ask for the cooperation of the people,” he added.

Japan recorded 4,527 new COVID-19 cases and 51 fatalities on Tuesday, with more than 61,500 patients hospitalized due to the virus. Tokyo, which has been considered one of Japan’s hot spots, counted 970 cases on Tuesday, the first day with fewer than 1,000 new cases in more than a week, according to CNN.

The country has confirmed more than 304,000 cases and 4,059 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Like officials around the world, Japanese authorities are struggling to balance attempts to contain the virus with the economic impacts of locking down. The Olympics were supposed to be held in Tokyo last year but were postponed to this year due to the pandemic. The games are scheduled to start on July 23.