Good morning, it’s Wednesday, February 4, 2026. In today’s edition, Dems seek to disqualify ICE agents from future work; Hochul leads New York poll; wealthy donor scrambles Georgia governor’s race:
Top Stories
IMMIGRATION: Democratic lawmakers in at least four states have introduced bills that would ban state and local law enforcement agencies from hiring anyone who began working for Immigration and Customs Enforcement during the Trump administration. The bills in Maryland, Illinois, California and Washington would specifically disqualify individuals who joined ICE after Jan. 20, 2025, when President Trump returned to office. (Pluribus News)
MORE: New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) will deploy legal observers to monitor federal immigration enforcement actions in the state. James said the observers will act as neutral witnesses to identify violations of the law, but will not interfere with enforcement activity. (Associated Press) The Virginia Senate advanced a bill limiting immigration enforcement officials from operating inside courthouses. (Virginia Scope)
REDISTRICTING: A three-judge panel of the U.S. District Court in Tampa has dismissed a lawsuit from Florida Republicans challenging the results of the 2020 Census, in an effort to redraw state congressional district map lines. The judges allowed plaintiffs — state Republicans and U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds (R) — to amend and refile their complaint. (Associated Press)
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: The Ohio House Technology and Innovation Committee is considering legislation to penalize AI chatbots that instruct young people to harm themselves. The bill would allow the state Attorney General’s office to investigate chatbots. (State Affairs)
ENVIRONMENT: The Alabama Senate has approved legislation limiting the state’s ability to set environmental rules. The bill would prohibit state agencies from implementing environmental rules that are more restrictive than those set by federal agencies. (AL.com)
ENERGY: The West Virginia Legislative Rule-Making Review Committee has adopted a new rule keeping confidential basic information about proposed high impact data center projects. The rule builds on a law passed last year aimed at making it easier for data centers to be built over the objections of local communities. (WV Gazette Mail)
TRANSPORTATION: New York and New Jersey have sued the Trump administration over $16 billion in frozen federal funding for a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River. The administration froze funds in September during the government shutdown. Construction could halt as early as Friday without a resolution. (Associated Press)
In Politics & Business
NEW YORK: Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) leads Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado (D) in a new Siena College poll of Democratic voters, 64% to 11%. In a general election matchup, Hochul leads Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman (R) 54% to 28%, virtually identical to her lead in December’s survey. (Siena)
GEORGIA: Health care business owner Rick Jackson (R) will enter the race for governor, he said Tuesday, pledging to spend $50 million of his own money. He joins Lt. Gov. Burt Jones (R), Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) and Attorney General Chris Carr (R) in the GOP field. (Associated Press)
Jackson, a major GOP donor, has supported Raffensperger, Carr and former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan — now running for governor as a Democrat — in previous elections.
MINNESOTA: House Speaker Lisa Demuth (R) led the state Republican Party’s gubernatorial straw poll late Tuesday with 4,255 votes, leading frequent candidate Kendall Qualls (R) at 3,552 and MyPillow founder Mike Lindell (R) at 2,357. About 71% of precincts were reporting as of 8:15 a.m. ET. (MN GOP)
RHODE ISLAND: House Speaker Joe Shekarchi (D) will not run for governor, he said Tuesday. That leaves Gov. Dan McKee (D) to face former CVS executive Helena Foulkes (D) in the Democratic primary. Shekarchi declined to endorse either candidate. (WPRI)
Foulkes came within 3,500 votes of ousting McKee in the 2022 primary.
By The Numbers
Almost $190,000: The amount Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Mike Lindell’s (R) campaign has spent on copies of his self-published autobiography, according to campaign finance reports. That represents the campaign’s biggest expense so far. (Minnesota Star Tribune)
$27 million: The amount billionaire investor Tom Steyer (D) has spent on his California gubernatorial campaign so far. The next-highest spender is businessman Steve Hilton (R), who has spent $3.8 million. (Sacramento Bee)
33: The number of athletes on the U.S. Winter Olympics team who hail from Colorado, the most-represented state in Milan Cortina. (Colorado Sun) California is sending the second-most athletes, 21, while Utah is sending 17. (Team USA)
Off The Wall
Missouri Rep. Chad Perkins (R) has filed legislation to end the state’s use of Kansas City Chiefs-branded license plates, after nearly 20 years in circulation. The bill comes as the Chiefs prepare to build a new stadium across the river in Kansas, abandoning Arrowhead Stadium in Missouri. (Kansas City Star)
Arkansas meteorologist Todd Yakoubian is going viral after posting a photo of snakes on a frozen ditch on Faulkner Lake in North Little Rock. The snakes are apparently water snakes that got caught out in last week’s winter storm. (Arkansas Times)
Well you can just rock us to sleep tonight.
Quote of the Day
“Cal was robbed.”
— Washington Sen. Mark Schoesler (R), on his resolution honoring Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, who finished second in last year’s Most Valuable Player vote. The resolution passed easily. (Washington State Standard)