Will Trump Be Investigated by Congress for Sexual Misconduct Allegations?
Newsweek
Democratic lawmakers held a press conference on Tuesday calling for a congressional investigation into the sexual misconduct allegations against President Donald Trump.
The press conference follows a formal request 56 members of the Democratic Women’s Working Group addressed to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform’s chairman and ranking member on Monday, which listed the names of Trump’s accusers—they number at least 17—and detailed some of their accusations. The group has asked that the committee respond to its request for an investigation in the next 10 days…
…Given that former President Bill Clinton faced such investigations, it’s not unprecedented for a congressional committee to probe allegations that date back to before a president took office. Experts say it’s rather unlikely that Trump will be subject to the same scrutiny.
“We often think of politics and laws as separate and distinct,” Kevin McMahon, a constitutional scholar and Trinity College professor, told Newsweek. “This is one of the many areas where it isn’t.”
Because Congress is ruled by partisan politics, McMahon said Democrats would need to win back control in order to think seriously about bringing an investigation against Trump. Even if that were to happen, McMahon suspects Democrats might choose to focus more intently on issues like the Russia collusion investigation, which some may feel would have a better chance at ending Trump’s presidency than the sexual misconduct allegations. That doesn’t mean the call from the Democratic Women’s Working Group for an investigation is completely meaningless: It serves to remind the public about the allegations against Trump and puts pressure on the White House to confront them head on.
“This is about undermining the credibility of the person in the White House,” McMahon said. “It also undermines the president’s ability to achieve what he promised he would achieve when he was running for office.”

Biomass plan will undercut climate change efforts, critics say
The Boston Globe
The final draft of a Baker administration plan to designate a fuel derived from felling trees and clearing brush in forests as a form of renewable energy will undercut efforts to fight climate change, environmental advocates said Monday at a State House hearing.
The proposed rules, which could take effect this month, provide financial incentives for the energy source known as woody biomass — wood chips and pellets made from tree trunks, branches, sawdust, and other plant matter…
…At Monday’s hearing, advocates raised other concerns about biomass.
Susan Masino, a professor of neuroscience at Trinity College in Hartford, cited research that showed that soot from biomass could cause health risks and lead to increased rates of autism, depression, and diabetes.
“We’re smarter than this,” she told the committee. “We all want to optimize our brain function, and public policies should support brain health as a priority.”

Local author’s short story collection coming out Thursday
The Norwich Bulletin
Local author and college educator Susanne Davis’ debut collection of short stories “The Appointed Hour” will be released Thursday by Cornerstone Press.
“The Appointed Hour”, set in rural Connecticut, is about characters whose roots run deep in the land. In one story, for example, a woman experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder finds her voice in communion with other women. Davis, who grew up in Preston, sets several of the 12 stories in Southeastern Connecticut.
Davis teaches creative writing at Trinity College and the University of Connecticut. Her stories have been featured in Notre Dame Review, American Short Fiction, Harvard Law Bulletin, Feminist Studies, St. Petersburg Review…
Davis will be doing a reading Dec. 12 at The Mark Twain House in Hartford. “The Appointed Hour” is available for pre-order on the Cornerstone Press website at www.uwsp.edu/english/cornerstone and will also be available on Amazon.

Five Points Gallery opens new shows with public reception Friday
The Register Citizen
TORRINGTON — Five Points Gallery will open three new solo shows, opening Thursday and continuing through Jan. 13. The exhibitions feature the work of Connecticut artists, Pamela Stockamore, Joseph Byrne and Peter Busby, and are sponsored by Grace and Djan Yagtug and Victor and Marion Muschell…
Byrne is Professor of Art at Trinity College in Hartford. He has received awards and fellowships from the National Academy of Design, the MacDowell Colony and the American Academy in Rome, among others. He has exhibited at Five Points Gallery, the Groveland Gallery in Minneapolis and Gallery on the Green in Canton, Ct…
For more information about the gallery, visit www.fivepointsgallery.org Five Points is supported in part by the Connecticut Office of the Arts.

Trinity’s Hartford campus home nearly ready
Hartford Business Journal
The new downtown Hartford campus home of Trinity College in Constitution Plaza just about has the final pieces in place and is ready for occupancy.
Trinity faculty, staff and students have begun occupying portions of the approximately 7,500 square feet inside 10 Constitution Plaza, formerly home to defunct Back9Network and Spris Restaurant.
“Only thing left is to put the signs up on it,” said Timothy Cresswell, Trinity’s vice president of academic affairs and the dean of faculty.
Trinity is the latest college to establish a campus beachhead downtown, following the University of St. Joseph and UConn.
Trinity was unwilling, Cresswell said, to miss out on the wave of offices-to-apartments conversions, the new minor-league ballpark and the city’s push to commercially redevelop empty parcels adjacent to the ballfield.
“We believe there is a need for Hartford to have a college-town vibe to it and to be part of it,” he said.
Beginning the last week in January, when classes resume after the Christmas holiday, Trinity will hold its first courses at its downtown campus, Cresswell said.
One of 10 Constitution’s occupants will be the college’s Liberal Arts Action Lab, a partnership between Trinity and Capital Community College, which is based nearby at 960 Main St.
As part of their coursework, participating Trinity-Capital students, Cresswell said, will collaborate with area nonprofits to try to improve qualify of life and facilities in the city’s major neighborhoods.
Also based downtown, he said, will be Trinity’s legislative fellows program, as well as “career coaches” drawn from the colleges’ faculty and students to advise high school students and others about careers in science, technology, engineering and math.
Aside from 10 Constitution Plaza, Cresswell said Trinity has leased about 13,500 square feet of third-floor space at 1 Constitution Plaza, to house its