🔎 New York Governor Kathy Hochul will be hiring an outside law firm to investigate claims of sexual harassment in the state government.

In a bid to "restore faith" in the government, Hochul pledged that the process to file a complaint will be eased so that Calcagni Kanefsky, LLP – a law firm that has been tapped by the governor's office – can then independently examine the claims.

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⚡️🇺🇸 US President Joe Biden will meet with his 🇫🇷 French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, on Friday during his trip to Italy for a G20 summit

The American leader will also have a video conference with 🇨🇳Chinese President Xi Jinping by the end of the year, the White House says

👮 A teenage Sudanese immigrant, who was charged with murder in a car crash that killed three people, has been released on bail.

The 17-year-old, Ahmedal Tayeb Elnouman Modawi, was placed under house arrest until his next court hearing in December. During this time, the young man will be permitted to attend school and church.

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📹: Dave Chappelle has spoken out about the controversy surrounding his latest special, which was branded "transphobic" by the LGBTQ+ community.

The comedian said that while he is not against the community, he is concerned about freedom of expression.

"I did not blame the LGBTQ community for any of this s**t. This has nothing to do with them. It's about corporate interests and what I can say and what I cannot say", he stated.

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😳 A New Jersey assistant teacher has been suspended after he allegedly told an Arab American student "we don't negotiate with terrorists" following the latter asking for some extra time during a math test.

Mohammed Zubi, 17, (in the photo) has told CNN that the incident happened last Wednesday at Ridgefield Memorial High School. Now Zubi is demanding a public apology for the remark which was heard by the entire class.

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👀💵 Joe Manchin and Bernie Sanders are negotiating the spending bill.

💰A $31 mln program in Chicago to assist low-income households will be considered by the City Council on Wednesday.

If passed by City Council, the 1 year monthly cash assistance program could provide $500 per month for up to 5,000 low-income households hard-hit by COVID-19, according to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot.

Critics, however, worry that guaranteed income programs will discourage people from finding jobs and drain the labor force.

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⚡️ Section of Biden's infrastructure bill for fighting climate change reportedly tops $500 billion

✈️United Airlines pilots are refusing to work with unvaccinated people, including fellow employees.

Flight attendants have expressed similar objections to working with unvaccinated colleagues.

While the majority of United's employees have been vaccinated against COVID-19, a small number of workers at the airline have refused to comply with the company mandate, forcing the company to place unvaccinated employees on leave.

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It was inevitable: A Biden inflation hurts Thanksgiving dinner

A thing that Americans won't be thankful for on this day is the higher cost of food, along with many other things, amid sharply rising inflation.

“This year’s Thanksgiving feast will wallop the wallet. Nearly every ingredient, from the turkey to the after-dinner coffee, is expected to cost more, for a host of reasons,” The New York Times reported.

Although the Farm Bureau - a multi-billion dollar US network of for-profit insurance companies - has not yet issued its current survey of the cost of a Thanksgiving dinner, the same metric by the lobbying group, during former US President Donald Trump’s term, claimed that the price was the lowest in 10 years: at $46.90 for a gathering of 10.

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💉 FDA panel recommends authorizing Pfizer COVID vaccine for use in children between the ages of 5 and 11

Texas became the latest US state to pass anti-LGBTQ law, banning trans girls from female sports.

The new law, which will take effect on January 18, 2022, will require student athletes to join gendered teams that correspond to the gender listed on their birth certificate at birth, as they are considered stronger than cisgender girls, who were assigned female at birth.

🗣“It's so very, very important that we protect everything that women have gained in the last 50 years,” Texas Republican Rep. Valoree Swanson said during a committee hearing.

WATCH | A pair of bear cubs spotted playing in a South Lake Tahoe yard.

Last chance to have fun before hibernation.

⚡️ Washington provides assurances to UK that Julian Assange can serve any US-imposed sentence in Australia

⚡️ Washington says it will guarantee medical aid to Assange in the event of his extradition and arrest in the US

WikiLeaks editor Kristinn Hrafnsson says "there can be only one decision here and that is no extradition", slamming US lawyers assurances that Assange will be fairly treated in prison as "worthless."

Check out some news you may have missed:

▪️The House 6 January committee will subpoena John Eastman, the lawyer who apparently advised Donald Trump to challenge Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 elections.

▪️Houston Texans Chairman Cal McNair has apologised for calling COVID-19 "the China virus".

▪️Hillary Clinton's closest aide, Huma Abedin, has reportedly claimed that she was sexually assaulted by a US senator in the mid-noughties.

▪️The FCC has banned China Telecom from operating in America over national security concerns.

▪️The recently-released sci-fi epic blockbuster "Dune" will be getting a sequel, expected to be released in the fall of 2023.

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🧑 The Department of State is set to announce the first US passport with an X gender – for a person who doesn't identify as male or female, AP has reported, citing an unnamed American official.

The source reportedly added that an option for nonbinary, gender-nonconforming, and intersex people will be offered early next year.

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⚡️ Capitol Police 'investigating bomb threat' at US Department of Health and Human Services

Capitol Police have reportedly closed down roads near the HHS building