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TOP HEADLINES
Congress strikes deal on water bill with Flint aid:
The water legislation, which authorizes dozens of infrastructure projects around the country, includes $170 million in authorizing language for the Flint drinking water crisis — with the goal of appropriating the money in a continuing resolution (CR) [The Hill].
Oklahoma political waters get murky in 2018 after Trump win:
With all but one statewide elected office in Oklahoma to be an open seat in 2018, the election cycle already was shaping up to be one of the most highly anticipated and hotly contested in recent history. But now with several of the state’s rising GOP stars jockeying for spots in the new Donald Trump administration, the political waters are becoming even murkier [AP].
FEDERAL
Lawmakers reach deal for California drought relief:
Farmers in California’s drought-stricken Central Valley could get additional irrigation water in coming years under bipartisan provisions included in a congressional agreement to reauthorize water projects [Agri-Pulse].
Lawmakers ready budget stopgap, eye leaving by end of week:
Lawmakers plan to head home for the holidays by the end of the week, concluding the 114th Congress with a final kick-the-can exercise to fund the government into the spring [Politico].
Carson is new sign Trump plans to govern from the right:
President-elect Donald J. Trump is moving to repudiate vast parts of President Obama’s domestic agenda as he fills his cabinet with conservatives who have long records opposing the current administration on social programs, wages, public lands, veterans and the environment [New York Times].
Transition official: Trump will not rip up NAFTA:
Anthony Scaramucci, a senior advisor on the Trump transition team, told a group of business leaders convened at a bipartisan meeting by the group No Labels that President-elect Donald Trump is a free-trader who is looking to make trade deals more fair, not scrap them [The Hill].
US extends its bumper crop of farm exports, but will that continue under Trump?:
The U.S. has exported more than $1 trillion in agricultural products since 2009, according to the USDA [Food Dive].
REGULATORY
Pruitt one of five potential Trump EPA picks:
Pruitt has made a name for himself as a top challenger in the courts of President Obama’s environmental agenda. He has sued the Obama EPA to stop regulations on carbon dioxide, ozone and mercury, the Clean Water Rule and more [The Hill].
McCarthy confident EPA’s mission will survive:
EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy continued her farewell tour today, telling an audience in Washington, D.C., that she’s confident her successor will understand the importance of the agency’s mission to protect the nation’s air, water and land [Agri-Pulse].
Senators ask for cease in new regulations:
A group of Republican Senators is hoping that the Obama administration might be swayed by a letter asking for a cease in new regulations [Agri-Pulse].
STATE
How would Todd Lamb govern?:
If Gov. Mary Fallin joins President-elect Donald Trump’s administration, Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb will step in to finish the two years left in her term. The question is, would that mean status quo in policies since both are Republicans, or would Lamb’s half-term, combined with a big crop of new legislators, bring significant changes [Oklahoma Watch]?
Rep. Jim Bridenstine meets with Trump transition team:
Bridenstine, a Tulsa Republican, has been mentioned as a potential NASA director or Air Force secretary in the new administration [Tulsa World].
