The New York Times reports: Just over two years after Donald J. Trump’s accounts were suspended from Facebook and Instagram, Meta, the owner of the platforms, said on Wednesday that it would reinstate the former president’s access to the social media services. Mr. Trump, who had the most followed account on Facebook when he was barred, will in the coming …

Asheville’s ABC affiliate reports: A former pastor of a church in Black Mountain has pleaded guilty after being accused of sexual offense with a minor. District Attorney Todd Williams said Trent Brandon Holbert, formerly the pastor of The Ridge Church in Black Mountain, pled guilty Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023, to felony attempted statutory sexual offense. The minor was a 15-year-old …

The New York Daily News reports: New research on LGBTQ parents in Florida found that a majority of those surveyed considered leaving the state over its controversial law restricting classroom instruction on LGBTQ issues before the fourth grade. Nearly six out of 10 parents surveyed by the Williams Institute said that the enacting of the legislation commonly known as “Don’t …

From the Facebook page of the Colorado Springs brewery co-owned by Rich Fierro, one of the heroes in the Club Q mass shooting: First and foremost, we are grateful to all of you who have genuinely supported us! We would like to address the timeline in regards to the orders. The Club Q incident happened the night of Nov.19. We …

Mediaite reports: Fox News got duped into taking an obvious joke about a root beer company’s beloved mascot and turning it into fodder for the endless culture war. A Fox Business article bore the headline “A&W Root Beer puts pants on ‘polarizing’ mascot bear Rooty after M&Ms ‘pauses’ spokescandies.” Fox News also promoted the article on social media by describing …

The Hill reports: Two Democratic House members from New York called on Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Wednesday to restrict Rep. George Santos’s (R-N.Y.) access to classified information during his congressional term. Reps. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.) and Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) sent a letter to McCarthy detailing their “serious” concerns about whether it’s “appropriate” for Santos to access classified information. Saying …

Richmond’s ABC affiliate reports: A bill adding language in the state code legalizing same-sex marriage passed in the Virginia Senate with a bipartisan vote. The bill introduced by state Sens. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) and Jennifer Boysko (D-Loudoun) would give religious organizations and clergy members the right to refuse to perform any marriage. The 40-member chamber voted 25-12 to pass the …

The Associated Press reports: A Mississippi doctor who leads a group of physicians opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates has filed paperwork to challenge Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves in the state’s Republican primary. Dr. John Witcher is the only Republican other than Reeves who has entered the gubernatorial primary so far. He’s best known for founding Mississippi Against Mandates, a group …

NBC News reports: House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said today that while he stands by Rep. George Santos, the freshman congressman from New York would be removed from office if the Ethics Committee finds he broke the law after he admitted fabricating parts of his background. Asked whether he is standing by Santos because his resignation would cut into the House …

The Miami Herald reports: Almost a million Floridians are slated to lose their Medicaid coverage starting in April once the federal COVID-19 emergency comes to an end. Florida is one of 11 states that did not expand Medicaid through the Affordable Care Act, which means tens of thousands of Florida families are expected to fall into the Medicaid access gap. …

Vice News reports: Mike Lindell is running for the chairmanship of the Republican National Committee. But no one involved in the RNC, which is gathering for its winter meetings in California this week, seems to know why—or who’s backing him. Iowa Republican Party Chairman Jeff Kaufmann told VICE News that Lindell was running a “pseudo-campaign” that didn’t amount to more …

The Washington Post reports: George Santos graciously welcomed his three guests to Il Bacco Ristorante in Queens. Restaurant staff took their coats at the door and escorted them to a private dining room upstairs. Santos had with him business cards from Harbor City Capital. He was ready to make his pitch. Over wine and caprese salad, Santos laid out a …

The LGBTQ news site Qburgh Magazine reports: Republican Pennsylvania State Senator Doug Mastriano plans to introduce legislation that would ban drag shows on public property or in areas where minors could see, effectively banning Pride events across Pennsylvania, including Pittsburgh Pride. In a memo published Tuesday, Mastriano plans to categorize drag shows as “adult-oriented business” which would put restrictions such …

The Associated Press reports: A Virginia teacher who was shot by a 6-year-old student during class will sue the school district, the teacher’s attorney announced Wednesday. Diane Toscano, a lawyer for Abigail Zwerner, said Wednesday that on the day of the shooting, concerned teachers and employees warned administrators three times that the boy had a gun on him and was …

The Daily Beast reports: Negotiations hit a standstill on Tuesday between DirecTV and conservative cable channel Newsmax, prompting the pay-TV provider to cut loose the pro-Trump network from its lineup. On the surface, this should have been a typical cable package negotiation in an era of cord-cutting, shrinking subscription numbers, and reduced television revenues. Instead, it looks like it will …

The Huffington Post reports: Twitter reinstated and then quickly re-banned the account of Nick Fuentes, the prominent white supremacist who most recently made headlines for joining the antisemitic presidential campaign of rapper Ye. After a year-and-a-half exile from the platform, Fuentes’ account returned Tuesday morning. By Wednesday, it was banned again. Twitter representatives have not yet explained the reinstatement nor …

New York City’s ABC affiliate reports: The wait is over for many commuters, as the LIRR finally begins service at Grand Central Terminal on Wednesday. The station itself is called Grand Central Madison and it is built 17 stories below street level. That means it takes a few minutes to get there. From the street, most riders will travel down …

NBC News reports: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is angling to be Donald Trump’s running mate in 2024, according to two people who have spoken to the firebrand second-term congresswoman about her ambitions. “This is no shrinking violet, she’s ambitious — she’s not shy about that, nor should she be,” said Steve Bannon, the former top Trump aide who hosts …

Reuters reports: Advertising spend on Twitter Inc dropped by 71% in December, data from an advertising research firm showed, as top advertisers slashed their spending on the social-media platform after Elon Musk’s takeover. The recent data by Standard Media Index comes (SMI) as Twitter is moving to reverse the advertiser exodus. It has introduced a slew of initiatives to win …

CNN reports: More than 8 in 10 Americans approve of the appointment of a special counsel to investigate classified documents found at President Joe Biden’s Delaware residence and an office he used after serving as vice president, according to a new CNN Poll conducted by SSRS. The poll finds broad approval across party lines for the appointment, with 88% of …