All Over Albany

Schumer casts doubt on Gorsuch, local school districts oppose DeVos, Schneiderman joins ACLU suit against immigration restrictions, Momentive workers take strike to Capitol

Gorsuch
Chuck Schumer on Donald Trump's nominee for the Supreme Court, Neil Gorsuch:
"Judge Gorsuch has repeatedly sided with corporations over working people, demonstrated a hostility toward women's rights and, most troubling, hewed to an ideological approach to jurisprudence that makes me skeptical that he can be a strong, independent justice on the court.'' [Gazette]

DeVos
Capital Region school boards in Albany, Bethlehem and Schenectady have gone public with their opposition to Betsy DeVos' for Education Secretary cleared the Senate.]TU]

In Schenectady, one parent was angered by an anti-DeVos flier sent home with her child this week. [Gazette]

Schneiderman joins ACLU suit over immigration
Eric Schneiderman will join the American Civil Liberties Union and others in their lawsuit against Donald Trump's recent executive order on immigration. [TU]

Driver's licenses for undocumented New Yorkers
Donald Trump's executive order restricting immigration has reignited the debate over issuing driver's licenses for undocumented New Yorkers -- legislation that failed in the state ten years ago. [TWCN][TU]

JCC receives more bomb threats
The Albany Jewish Community Center received another bomb threat on Tuesday. It was one of 14 threats called in to Jewish community centers in 10 states on Tuesday. [WNYT][TU]

Kaloyeros
Alain Kaloyeros wants SUNY Poly's nonprofit development arms to cover his legal bills in his court battle against state and federal corruption charges. [TU]

Schenectady police sergeant resigns amid fraud charges
The Schenectady police sergeant who was connected to a used car dealership fraud case in October has resigned from the force. It is unlikely he will be facing any criminal charges in the case. [TU][Gazette][News 10]

Defense says owner wasn't driving in fatal crash
Defense attorneys in a fatal Thruway crash are claiming the driver was not the car's owner, but one of the deceased, and claim the DA and the New York State Police "gave up on trying to find the truth." [TWCN][Gazette]

GE Global Research cuts
A spokesperson for GE Global Research says they're expecting cutbacks, and an unnamed source tells the Daily Gazette they'll be cutting as many as 150 jobs -- mostly in chemical research at global research facilities in Niskayuna and elsewhere. [Daily Gazette]

Environment One
Environment One Corporation says it's planning to expand its Balltown Road battery factory and create jobs over the next five years. [Gazette]

Internet suit
Eric Schneiderman has filed a lawsuit against Charter Communications -- whose subsidiary, Spectrum (previously Time Warner Cable,) provides internet access in the Capital Region -- over failure to deliver on internet speed and reliability [TU]

Police seek owners of stolen goods
Police are trying to locate the owners of items stolen from cars last fall in Clifton Park, Voorheesville, Guilderland, Schenectady, Bethlehem and Niskayuna.[TU]

Momentive takes to Capitol
Striking Momentive workers brought their cause to the state Capitol on Tuesday. [TU]

Ballston Spa air quality testing
EPA vapor testing is underway in some Ballston Spa homes located near a former dry cleaning site in the village. [News 10]

State needs IT experts
New York's IT Services director says a state budget proposal to hire 250 contract employees is necessary because of the number of IT professionals who will soon be eligible for retirement. [TU]

Activism advice
"Find something you care a great deal about so that demonstrating comes naturally. The cause will burn inside you until you have to get out there to protest, even on a cold winter's day" -- advice from Rezin Adams, who turns 90 this month and continues her work as an activist.[TU+]

Stuff going on today

Your Worst Deeds Do Not Define You
Wednesday: Author and criminal justice reform activist Shaka Senghor will be at UAlbany for talk titled "Your Worst Deeds Do Not Define You." It's the keynote for the university's Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration. He also be discussing his recent memoir Writing my Wrongs: Life, Death, and Redemption in an American Prison. Wednesday 7 pm, uptown campus, campus center ballroom -- free

Kill the Overseer!
Wednesday: EMPAC will be hosting a video game demo and talk titled "Kill the Overseer! Playing the Rebel Slave in Videogames." "Sarah Juliet Lauro will discuss how resistance to slavery is represented in video and computer games. Lauro will profile many games that feature this narrative and will demo an art game being developed by students at the University of Southern California called Thralled, which focuses on a runaway slave in Brazil." Wednesday 7 pm -- free

Startup Tech Valley
Wednesday: The Startup Tech Valley series returns from its mid-winter break to Revolution Hall with presentations from four startups (and updates from two others) -- three focused on analytics, and another on solar panels built directly into roofing. Wednesday 5:30 pm -- free (registration required)

Hoops
The UAlbany men's basketball team takes on UMass Lowell at SEFCU Arena. Wednesday 7 pm -- $12 and up