Nightly Brief

Your Wednesday night briefing from the staff of Courthouse News

Top CNS stories for today including the House of Representatives approving the final version of the Republican tax reform package, fulfilling a Republican promise to complete the tax code rewrite by the end of the year; a three-judge state court panel declined to certify the recount of a key Virginia House race, concluding a questionable ballot should be counted in favor of the Republican and tying a race that Democrats had thought they won by a single vote; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a draft plan to protect prairie dogs, corrected an action on leopards, and found that five petitions, including one on Venus fly traps, merit more study; Uber’s business model sustained a major blow with the EU’s highest court ruling that the ride-hailing app must be regulated by individual member states as a transportation service, and more.

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1.) In National news the House of Representatives approved the final version of the Republican tax reform package on Wednesday afternoon, fulfilling a Republican promise to complete the tax code rewrite by the end of the year.

2.) A three-judge state court panel on Wednesday declined to certify the recount of a key Virginia House race, concluding a questionable ballot should be counted in favor of the Republican and tying a race that Democrats had thought they won by a single vote.

3.) The New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ and other major stock exchanges are not immune to claims they cheated investors by giving high-speed traders special access to stock market information, allowing them to manipulate the markets and make billions at the expense of ordinary investors, the Second Circuit ruled.

4.) Despite the successful passage of a Republican tax bill through Congress, President Donald Trump’s approval rating has reached an all-time low of just 35 percent, according to a CNN poll released.

5.) In Environmental news, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a draft plan Tuesday to protect prairie dogs, corrected an action on leopards, and found that five petitions, including one on Venus fly traps, merit more study.

6.) From the world of Research, comes a new survey that indicates that while the calendar may say 2018 is dawning, the United States remains firmly set in the 1950s: Over half of all Americans believe private businesses have the right to deny service to same-sex couples – and nearly 40 percent feel the same about interracial couples.

7.) In International news, Uber’s business model sustained a major blow with the EU’s highest court ruling that the ride-hailing app must be regulated by individual member states as a transportation service.

8.) Just in time for the new year, the European Court of Justice ruled Wednesday that a “champagne sorbet” sold by the discount supermarket Aldi does not infringe the protected designation of France’s prestigious sparkling wine.

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