Editor's note: Politico, citing three unnamed sources, is reporting that President-elect Donald Trump's transition team is considering Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., for the energy secretary job. Politico notes that Manchin said he and his staff haven’t been contacted by Trump’s transition team. - Jimmy
Editor's note: The death toll from the wildfires in Sevier County, Tenn., increased from seven to 10 after three more bodies were found, Mayor Larry Waters announced Thursday. Officials have not yet identified victims, but said Wednesday that identifying people and locating those reported missing is a top priority. - Stephanie
Editor's note: The Wall Street Journal reports that four of President-elect Donald Trump's Cabinet choices have a combined net worth of at least $8.1 billion. The total includes the net worths of commerce secretary pick Wilbur Ross, deputy commerce secretary choice Todd Ricketts, Treasury secretary pick Steven Mnuchin and Education Department secretary choice Betsy DeVos. WSJ says the combined net worth of all four is more than four times the net worth of President Barack Obama's appointees for those posts in 2013 and about 20 times the worth of President George W. Bush's picks at the outset of his second term, according to inflation-adjusted analysis. Trump's Cabinet selections have generally won praise from GOP lawmakers. - Stephanie
Editor's note: French President Francois Hollande's decision to not seek another term in office makes him the first person who has held the position to not run for re-election since World War II, the Guardian reports. The paper also notes he is France's least-popular president since the war, currently coming in at just 9 percent in polling on the first round of next year's race. He was also facing a potential challenge from his prime minister, Manuel Valls, who has not yet announced a decision on whethe he will put his hat in among the other Socialist party candidates. - Tricia
Editor's note: The Wall Street Journal is reporting, citing sources, that Indiana officials have agreed to give the parent company of Carrier Corp. $7 million worth of tax breaks over 10 years to help keep about 1,000 jobs in the state. The company now has a plan to invest about $16 million to keep operations in the state, the Journal reports, including a furnace plant in Indianapolis it previously planned to close in favor of a move to Mexico, the sources say. The Journal reports the company still plans to move about 600 other jobs from the plant to Mexico, and another 700 from a plant it is closing in Huntington. The Washington Post reported yesterday that the tax break will come from the Indiana Economic Development Corp., a state agency, according to a Carrier board member. President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence, who is still serving as Indiana’s governor, are expected to announce the deal later today. Trump's team has not confirmed any details of the deal. - Rebecca
Upcoming: Jacksonville Sheriff's Office say they will hold a press briefing about the just-ended bank robbery and hostage situation at Community First Credit Union at 11:45 am ET. We'll watch for updates.
Editor's note: Protests were expected in Charlotte, N.C., following the district attorney's announcement that an officer won't face charges in the Keith Scott shooting, and organizers said the demonstration was still on despite stormy weather in the area, according to the Facebook group. However, CNN and NBC News reporters have said there is currently no activity near the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department headquarters, where the protest was expected. - Stephanie
Editor's note: The AP notes that details on the agreement between President-elect Donald Trump and Carrier remain unclear. The heating and air conditioning company was set to close its plant in Indianapolis and move manufacturing to Mexico. Federal officials tell AP that the deal spares about 800 union workers out of the 1,400 workers that were set to be laid off. Trump and Carrier have not outlined what incentives or compromises were made to change the company's mind. During the presidential campaign, Trump threatened tariffs on companies that moved to Mexico, and AP reports Carrier's parent company owns Pratt & Whitney, which has U.S. military contracts. - Stephanie
Editor's note: US markets did little Wednesday; however, all three major indexes recorded impressive monthly gains. The Nasdaq gained 2.6% for November, marking its best month since July. The Dow was up 5.5% for the month and the S&P, 3.4%. - Tom
Editor's note: After President-elect Donald Trump tweeted that he would leave his business "in total" to focus on the presidency, the Office of Government Ethics posted several tweets celebrating the announcement, even saying that Trump had committed to fully divesting his company stake. The Washington Post notes that Trump did not publicly state that detail. The OGE's messages were deleted and then reappeared, and spokesman Seth Jaffe appears to have later issued a statement that it does not know the details of Trump's plans. The Post reports the agency has not returned messages to verify the statement and suggests it's possible the OGE's initial tweets may have been an inadvertent leak or possibly the work of a sarcastic official. - Stephanie
Editor's note: ABC News reports former GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is under consideration for secretary of Veterans Affairs, according to sources. NBC News reports sources close to the former Alaska governor say she's been in touch with transition officials but did not identify a specific Cabinet position. Palin endorsed President-elect Donald Trump early in his campaign. - Stephanie
Editor's note: Politico reports that Donald Trump is considering Goldman Sachs President Gary Cohn for a senior administration job, possibly as the director of the Office of Management and Budget, sources say. Trump met with Cohn on Tuesday, and sources say the pair talked about potential positions. Politico notes Cohn, a longtime commodities trader who is friendly with Democrats and Republicans in Washington, became Goldman's president and co-chief operating officer in 2006. - Rebecca
Editor's note: A rebel group leader is disputing a Syrian military official’s account to Reuters that the government has retaken control of the Sheikh Saeed district in southeast Aleppo, saying that in fact the army and its allies were completely repelled. Independent UK-based monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, says it has information that rebels have held onto a third of the district. The military has rapidly overtaken districts in the city’s eastern rebel stronghold in the past several days, and if the city is lost it will be a massive defeat for the rebel movement, with the New York Times noting that the government would then be in control of Syria's five largest cities. - Tricia
Editor's note: This storm system is still active as the National Weather Service shows thunderstorm and tornado watches and warnings still in effect across Alabama. Tornado watches are in effect from Louisiana moving northeast through Mississippi and Alabama up into Tennessee. - David
Editor's note: In its report on the alleged Israeli attack on a Hezbollah convoy in Syria, the Times of Israel notes that this is not the first such incident attributed to the Israeli Air Force. Israeli, the paper notes, has vowed to prevent Hezbollah from obtaining 'game-changing' arms and in particular advanced anti-aircraft systems of chemical weapons. - Tom
Editor's note: The final rankings of the College Football Playoffs will be released this Sunday at noon ET. Neither Ohio State (2) nor Michigan (5) will play in the Big Ten title game this Saturday. Instead, that game will feature Penn State and Wisconsin. - Tom
Upcoming: Ohio State University plans a 3 p.m. ET media briefing to update on the status of victims in Monday's attack. The school says one victim will be on hand to speak about events.
