Good morning, it’s Monday, February 9, 2026. In today’s edition, governors take on social media fight; White House snubs Dem governors; judge blocks Trump admin from freezing blue state child care funds:
Top Stories
SOCIAL MEDIA: Governors are taking over the state-level push for social media regulations. At least eight chief executives have mentioned youth online safety or social media’s impacts on teens in State of the State or inaugural addresses. The Democratic governors of Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York have all declared social media safety a top priority this year. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) signed first-in-the-nation legislation in 2023 requiring parental permission for teen social media use. (Pluribus News)
MORE: The Alabama Senate unanimously approved legislation requiring app stores to verify user ages. The bill also requires app stores to allow parents to be notified when children download a new product, and to protect minors’ data. (Alabama Reflector)
CHILD CARE: A U.S. District Court judge in New York has blocked the Trump administration from freezing funds flowing to child care programs in five Democratic-controlled states. The preliminary injunction will keep money flowing to California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York as the case makes its way through the courts. (Associated Press)
IMMIGRATION: Maryland lawmakers have advanced legislation banning local law enforcement from entering into agreements with federal immigration authorities. House and Senate committees last week voted to advance the bills to the floor, where they earned initial approval. The bills could be on Gov. Wes Moore’s (D) desk this week. (Maryland Matters)
AID IN DYING: New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) on Friday signed legislation allowing those who are terminally ill to end their lives with the assistance of licensed medical providers. Hochul had announced her decision to sign the bill in December. New York joins a dozen other states and the District of Columbia in allowing aid in dying. (Albany Times Union)
ENERGY: New York Sen. Liz Kruger (D) has introduced legislation to place a three-year moratorium on data center construction to allow state agencies time to undergo due diligence. The Public Service Commission would be tasked with reporting on the cost impacts of data centers on other ratepayers. (State of Politics)
GUN POLITICS: The New Mexico Senate has approved legislation requiring licensed gun dealers to keep inventory records and implement security measures similar to those required of state-licensed cannabis dispensaries. The bill would also ban the sale or possession of some “military-grade” weapons. Four Democrats voted with Republicans against the bill. (Albuquerque Journal)
ELECTIONS: The Rhode Island House advanced legislation last week to allow the disabled, military and overseas voters to cast ballots online. The bill makes permanent a temporary e-voting system first adopted in 2026. About 1,870 voters used an electronic portal to submit ballots in 2024, the state said. (Rhode Island Current)
In Politics & Business
GOVERNORS: President Trump will not invite Democratic governors to the White House for a traditional bipartisan working session when the National Governors Association meets next weekend in Washington. Maryland Gov. Moore and Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) have been disinvited from a traditional dinner at the White House the following night. (Washington Post)
Democrats we were talking to over the weekend were bemused: California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) get invited to the White House, but not Moore and Polis?
NEW YORK: Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman (R) will tap Fulton County Sheriff Richard Giardino (R) as his lieutenant governor running mate. Giardino has served as an elected district attorney, Supreme Court judge and sheriff. (New York Post)
CALIFORNIA: Supporters of San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan’s (D) run for governor dropped $1.4 million on a Super Bowl ad backing his campaign. Silicon Valley venture capitalists are funding the outside group backing Mahan’s bid. Entrepreneur Tom Steyer (D) spent his own money on an ad during Animal Planet’s “Puppy Bowl.” (Los Angeles Times)
ALASKA: U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R) will not run for governor, she said Sunday. Murkowski cited her seniority in the Senate. (Alaska Watchman)
VIRGINIA: The legislature’s proposed budget would move this year’s primary elections from June to Aug. 4, in anticipation of a voter referendum on redistricting to be held April 21. The state Supreme Court still has to hear arguments in the case after a lower court judge ruled the legislature violated its own rules by advancing the redistricting referendum plan. (Cardinal News)
By The Numbers
Slightly over 3.6 million: The number of births reported in the United States in 2025, according to the CDC. That’s down 24,000 from the previous year. (Associated Press)
As high as 80%: The share of Hawaiian snail populations that have gone extinct, according to a new study from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. The Hawaiian islands were once home to at least 750 known species of snails. (Hawaii News Now)
0.5%: The estimated decline in greenhouse gas emissions Nevada is expected to achieve by 2030, nearly 25% less than lawmakers hoped for when they approved emission reduction targets in 2019. (Associated Press)
Off The Wall
The Seattle Seahawks beat the New England Patriots 29-13 on Sunday to win Super Bowl LX — making U.S. Sen. Jim Justice’s (R-W.Va.) English bulldog Babydog look like an oracle. Justice said his pooch predicted a 28-13 Seahawks victory last week, submitting a photo of Babydog in a Seahawks jersey with a crystal ball. (WVNews)
The Washington legislature is debating a bill to name the Pediocactus nigrispinus — also called the Columbia Plateau cactus or the snowball cactus — as the official state cactus. The bill passed the Senate with two no votes. One dissenter was Sen. Mike Chapman (D), who represents Sequim on the Olympic Peninsula. Chapman said his district is home to the brittle prickly pear, the only cactus native to Western Washington. (Spokane Spokesman Review)
Talk about a thorny issue. Ugh, even we’re groaning at that joke.
Quote of the Day
“It’s kind of like the wild, wild west.”
— Paul Tarbox, director of public policy and communications at the Connecticut Center on Problem Gambling, after bettors wagered $150,000 on proposition bets related to Gov. Ned Lamont’s (D) State of the State address on the prediction market Kalshi. (CT Insider)