North Carolina fails to repeal discriminatory LGBT law Negotiations to overturn controversial 'bathroom bill' fall apart; Trump names Kellyanne Conway as counselor; new US trade tsar has hard line on China Lawmakers confer during a negotiations on the floor of North Carolina's state senate chamber about repealing the controversial HB 2 law limiting bathroom access for transgender people in Raleigh, North Carolina. Photograph: Jonathan Drake/Reuters Nicole Puglise @nicolepuglise The Guardian US briefing is going on vacation. We're taking a break after Thursday 22 December but will be back on Tuesday 3 January. Happy holidays! 'Bathroom bill' repeal talks fall apart Plans to repeal the controversial North Carolina "bathroom bill" fell apart late on Wednesday. Known as House Bill 2, the law, among other things, required transgender individuals to use bathrooms that corresponded with the gender on their birth certificates, removed some civil rights protections for LGBT people and prohibited local ordinances to protect the minimum wage. For months, the state's Republican leaders said they were willing to consider repealing the law if Charlotte acted first to undo its expanded anti-discrimination ordinance. Lawmakers held a special session to repeal HB2 after the city gutted a local bill that had prompted the law in the first place. The legislative body adjourned for the night without having voted on a proposal. Negotiations to repeal North Carolina 'bathroom bill' fall apart Trump picks Kellyanne Conway as counselor Donald Trump has named his former campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, as his choice to serve as counselor to the president. Conway, who has run her polling firm since 1995, came on board in August, after two people previously in the role had been fired, and helped guide Trump to electoral victory. Long rumored to be a contender for a White House pick, Conway is credited with feminizing the Trump campaign and improving the candidate's standing with women. Kellyanne Conway chosen as Donald Trump's counselor Berlin Christmas market attack: police raid Police scrambling to find the suspected driver of the truck that drove into a Berlin Christmas market on Monday night have carried out raids overnight in the German capital and in Dortmund. The suspect, Anis Amri, a Tunisian citizen, is thought to have temporarily stayed at the Dortmund apartment which the German police raided around 6.30am. In Berlin, police raided flats in the city's Kreuzberg, Moabit and Prenzlauer Berg districts at 4am. Germany's security services are facing mounting pressure to explain how Amri could have been able to carry out Monday's attack despite being known to multiple intelligence agencies and being under covert surveillance for several months. Police raid flats in search for Berlin truck attack suspect Anis Amri How Trump's new trade tsar sees China The selection of Peter Navarro, a University of California, Irvine business professor, as Donald Trump's choice to run the White House's newly created national trade council is likely to add to Beijing's anxieties over the billionaire's plans for US-China relations. Navarro has written a number of anti-China books – in one he portrays the Asian country as a nightmarish realm where "the raw stench of a gut-wrenching, sweat-stained fear" hangs in the air and myopic, venal and incompetent Communist party officials rule the roost – and has a Netflix documentary based on his book Death by China. 'Brutal, amoral, ruthless, cheating': how Trump's new trade tsar sees China Aleppo: evacuation resumes after delays, freezing temperatures Evacuations have resumed out of besieged Aleppo in snow and sub-zero temperatures, after government and rebel forces patched up a shaky ceasefire deal allowing residents to leave ahead of the city's final surrender. There are only a few thousand people left in the last remaining sliver of opposition-held Aleppo after more than 25,000 were bussed out to the relative safety of the rebel-held countryside in recent days. But after the latest breakdown in evacuation agreement, they endured nearly 24 hours stranded at checkpoints in freezing temperatures, without food or warmth, according to people on the vehicles and a UK monitor. Several deaths from the cold have been reported in recent days, including four babies. Aid groups warned of bleak conditions for those who made it out of the city, which is still a war zone and with badly stretched provisions. Evacuations out of Aleppo resume following intermittent delays Time is running out to help the Guardian in 2016 As 2016 comes to a close, we'd like to ask for your support. More people are reading the Guardian than ever but far fewer are paying for it. And advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. The Guardian's independent, investigative journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe our perspective matters – because it might well be your perspective, too. Support the Guardian by becoming a member or making a contribution. Minority lawmakers vow to resist Trump As Donald Trump prepares to take office, minority lawmakers in Congress are vowing to fight any proposals that would take aim at marginalized communities across America. "My role as a member of Congress, as a Latino member of Congress and as a veteran, is to make sure that we remind a lot of our immigrants, a lot of our minority citizens in general, that this country is still theirs," said Democratic representative Ruben Gallego of Arizona. Minority lawmakers vow to push back against Trump: 'We're not a racist nation' Uber self-driving car trial halted California has forced Uber to remove its self-driving vehicles from the road, canceling the company's controversial pilot program in San Francisco after a week of reports of traffic violations, including running red lights, and repeated legal threats from state officials. The department of motor vehicles announced late on Wednesday that it had revoked the registration of 16 autonomous Uber cars, which the corporation deployed without proper permits last week. Uber confirmed that it has stopped its pilot in a statement, adding: "We're now looking at where we can redeploy these cars but remain 100 percent committed to California and will be redoubling our efforts to develop workable statewide rules." Uber cancels self-driving car trial in San Francisco after state forces it off road Study: Facebook break can do you good A study from the University of Copenhagen suggests taking a break from Facebook can boost emotional wellbeing and life satisfaction. The effects of quitting were found to be greater among heavy users, passive users and those who envied others on the social network. There was no positive effect of taking a break for light users. In other Facebook news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg appeared to have finally conceded that the social network is a media company, just not a "traditional media company". Facebook break can boost wellbeing, study suggests In case you missed it: the best TV episodes of 2016 Our writers highlight some of the best TV episodes of the year from shows such as Black Mirror, Atlanta and Westworld. Taking the number one spot? Battle of the Bastards, an episode of Game of Thrones. Battle of the Bastards to San Junipero: what was the best TV episode of 2016? Manage your emails | Unsubscribe | Trouble viewing? You are receiving this email because you are a subscriber to Guardian US Briefing. Guardian News & Media Limited - a member of Guardian Media Group PLC. Registered Office: 222 Broadway, 22nd and 23rd Floors, New York, New York, 10038