## GOP Vermont State Senator Sam Douglass Resigns Over Hate-Filled Group Chat

Authored by commondreams.org

Vermont state Sen. Sam Douglass is set to step down Monday after being exposed as a participant in a Young Republican group chat in which members—including at least one Trump administration official—exchanged hate-filled messages.

Douglass, a Republican, said in a statement Friday: “I must resign.

I know that this decision will upset many, and delight others, but in this political climate I must keep my family safe.”.

“I love my state, my people, and I am deeply sorry for the offense this caused and that our state was dragged into this," Douglass added.

Group chat participants included Michael Bartels, a senior adviser in the office of general counsel at the US Small Business Administration.

The chat included one message in which Douglass equated being Indian with poor hygiene, and another exchange in which his wife, Vermont Young Republican national committee member Brianna Douglass, admonishes the organization for “expecting the Jew to be honest.”.

The fallout from the group chat leak has cost a majority of participants in the Telegram chat their jobs or employment offers. »

### Supreme Court will consider whether people who regularly smoke pot can legally own guns

Authored by apnews.com

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court said on Monday that it will consider whether people who regularly smoke marijuana can legally own guns, the latest firearm case to come before the court since its 2022 decision expanding gun rights.

The Justice Department appealed after a lower court largely struck down a law that bars people who use any illegal drugs from having guns.

Circuit Court of Appeals found that the blanket ban is unconstitutional under the Supreme Court’s expanded view of gun rights. »

### Russia’s Coal Collapse Marks The End Of Fossil Fuel Post-War Illusion

Authored by forbes.com

Russia’s coal collapse marks the breaking point of the fossil era.

If Russia’s coal collapse marks the end of one energy era, batteries mark the beginning of the next.

Russia’s Coal Collapse, America’s failed coal auctions, and the unstoppable rise of clean energy all tell the same story: the market has moved. »

### Houthi rebels detain 20 UN staff in Yemen

Authored by theguardian.com

Houthi rebels have detained 20 employees at a UN facility in Sana’a, the capital of Yemen.

A second UN official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the rebels confiscated all communications equipment from the facility, including phones, servers and computers.

The rebels have alleged without evidence that detained UN staffers and those working with other international groups and foreign embassies were spies. »

### Mike Johnson exploits the shutdown to hide the Epstein files

Authored by salon.com

Now Johnson has found another excuse to block a House vote to release the Epstein files: The government shutdown.

Grijalva has pledged to be the deciding vote on a discharge petition to release the Epstein files.

Hiding the Epstein files appears to be Johnson’s first priority, even above reopening the government so federal employees can be paid. »

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