Page 13 - Donald Trump Administration

US Department of Justice appeals dismissal of James, Comey indictments

The Justice Department had said earlier it would appeal Currie's ruling, but since then, prosecutors have tried and failed twice to convince other grand juries to approve the charges against James

Trump announces lower drug price deals with 9 major pharma companies

US President Donald Trump announced Friday that nine drugmakers have agreed to lower the cost of their prescription drugs in the US. Pharmaceutical companies Amgen, Bristol Myers Squibb, Boehringer Ingelheim, Genentech, Gilead Sciences, GSK, Merck, Novartis and Sanofi will now rein in Medicaid drug prices to match what they charged in other developed countries. As part of the deal, new drugs made by those companies will also be charged at the so-called most-favoured-nation pricing across the country on any newly launched medications for all, including commercial and cash pay markets as well as Medicare and Medicaid. Drug prices for patients in the US can depend on a number of factors, including the competition a treatment faces and insurance coverage. Most people have coverage through work, the individual insurance market or government programs like Medicaid and Medicare, which shield them from much of the cost. Patients in Medicaid, the state and federally funded program for peopl

Head of group suing over White House ballroom backs Trump-picked chairman

The president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation said Friday she trusts the Trump-appointed chairman of a federal planning commission to do his job and give serious review to President Donald Trump's proposal to add a ballroom to the White House. Carol Quillen said in an interview that she takes Will Scharf, chairman of the National Capital Planning Commission, at his word after he said at the panel's December meeting that the review process would be treated seriously once the White House submits the plans. Scharf said at that meeting that he expected to receive the plans sometime this month, and the panel's review process would happen at a normal and deliberative pace. Quillen said she trusted that would be the case. I take him at his word that the process will be conducted as it always is, deliberately and seriously, and that the commission will do its job," she said. The White House has not responded to multiple queries about when the ballroom plans will be shared

Epstein files: Clinton photos draw attention in recent release by US DOJ

The Justice Department released thousands of files Friday about convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein but the incomplete document dump did not break significant ground about the long-running criminal investigations of the financier or his ties to wealthy and powerful individuals. The files included a small number of photos of President Donald Trump, sparing the White House for now from having to confront fresh revelations about an Epstein relationship that the administration for months has tried in vain to push past. It did, however, feature a series of never-before-seen photos of Bill Clinton from a trip that the former president appears to have take with Epstein decades ago. Reaction to the disclosures broke along mostly partisan lines. Democrats and some Republicans seized on the limited release to accuse the Justice Department of failing to meet a congressionally set deadline to produce the Epstein files. White House officials on social media gleefully promoted a photo of Clint

'Seen us engaged' in resolving India-Pak conflict: US Secy of State Rubio

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio referred to the conflict between India and Pakistan that US President Donald Trump claims he resolved along with several others this year, saying the American leader has made it a priority to be a peacemaker. Trump has repeated the claim of stopping the conflict between India and Pakistan nearly 70 times so far. Rubio said that the US remains engaged around the world, including in conflicts that perhaps are not central to everyday life in America. The President has made it a priority to be a peacemaker and so you've seen us engaged whether it's Russia, Ukraine, or India and Pakistan or Thailand and Cambodia, which is an ongoing challenge, Rubio said Friday at a year-end news conference. He said that some of the conflicts resolved by the US have deep roots that go back many, many years, but we are prepared to be engaged and helpful. In ways that perhaps other nations can't, we've been viewed as indispensable in that regard, and it's a role the ...

Britain appoints new ambassador to US, replaces Epstein-linked diplomat

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer appointed a new UK ambassador to the United States on Thursday, replacing a diplomat who was fired over his over his links to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Christian Turner, currently the UK's permanent representative to the United Nations, will replace Peter Mandelson, who was sacked in September because of his friendship with Epstein. The appointment comes as US President Donald Trump has been critical of Europe and at a time when Starmer and his European peers are pushing to make sure that a US brokered peace plan between Russia and Ukraine does not leave Kyiv vulnerable. The United Kingdom and United States have a very special relationship, and Christian's extensive experience as an outstanding diplomat will support this uniquely close bond and ensure it continues to flourish," Starmer said. Turner, a veteran diplomat, will take on the role after US agreement. He was previously political director of the Foreign, Commonwealth and

Can Trump run for a third term? US lawyer outlines possible paths

Lawyer Alan Dershowitz says the Constitution is not explicit on every scenario barring a third term, outlining hypothetical routes even as he doubts Donald Trump will attempt another run

Next Fed chair will believe in lower interest rates 'by a lot', says Trump

Trump made the comments during a national address touting his economic and national security accomplishments in the first year of his second term in office

US House rejects resolutions to limit Trump's campaign against drug cartels

House Republicans rejected a pair of Democratic-backed resolutions Wednesday that would have put a check on President Donald Trump's power to use military force against drug cartels and the nation of Venezuela. Democrats forced the votes using war powers resolutions as Trump has stepped up his threats against the South American nation and Congress has questioned how the US military is conducting a campaign that has destroyed 26 vessels allegedly carrying drugs and killed at least 99 people, including an attack Wednesday. The legislation would have forced the Trump administration to seek authorization from Congress before continuing attacks against cartels that it deems to be terrorist organizations in the Western Hemisphere or launching an attack on Venezuela itself. Rep Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, argued that Trump's aggressions in the region were really because the president is coveting Venezuelan oil. They were the first votes in the ..

US Senate passes $901 bn defence bill, seeks clarity on drug boat strikes

The Senate gave final passage to an annual military policy bill Wednesday that will authorize $901 billion in defense programs while pressuring Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to provide lawmakers with video of strikes on alleged drug boats in international water near Venezuela. The annual National Defense Authorization Act, which raises troop pay by 3.8%, gained bipartisan backing as it moved through Congress, and the White House has indicated that it is in line with President Donald Trump's national security priorities. However, the legislation, which ran over 3,000 pages, revealed some points of friction between Congress and the Pentagon as the Trump administration reorients its focus away from security in Europe and towards Central and South America. The bill pushes back on recent moves by the Pentagon. It demands more information on boat strikes in the Caribbean, requires that the U.S. keep its troop levels in Europe at current levels and sends some military aid to Ukraine. But

Top Trump aide says he has 'alcoholic's personality'; US President responds

In a Vanity Fair interview, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles suggested that Elon Musk is a 'drug user', and called US Vice President Vance a 'conspiracy theorist'

US states sue Trump admin again over billions in withheld EV charging funds

Sixteen states and the District of Columbia are suing President Donald Trump's administration for what they say is the unlawful withholding of over USD 2 billion dollars in funding for two electric vehicle charging programmes, according to a federal lawsuit announced Tuesday. The lawsuit filed Tuesday in the US District Court for the Western District of Washington is the latest legal battle that several states are pursuing over funding for EV charging infrastructure that they say was obligated to them by Congress under former President Joe Biden, but that the Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration are impounding. The Trump Administration's illegal attempt to stop funding for electric vehicle infrastructure must come to an end, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a release. This is just another reckless attempt that will stall the fight against air pollution and climate change, slow innovation, thwart green job creation, and leave communities without

Trump declares fentanyl as weapon of mass destruction to tackle drug crisis

The move comes as Trump has cited fentanyl deaths to justify a series of attacks against boats in international waters that the Pentagon says were being used to smuggle drugs

US plans to reduce number of G-20 finance meetings during its chairmanship

Next year the US intends to hold only one host nation session with the finance ministers and central bankers in August

White House ballroom construction matter of national security: Trump admin

The Trump administration said Monday in a court filing that the president's White House ballroom construction project must continue for reasons of national security. The filing came in response to a lawsuit filed last Friday by the National Trust for Historic Preservation asking a federal judge to halt the project until it goes through multiple independent reviews and wins approval from Congress. In its filing, the administration included a declaration from the deputy director of the US Secret Service saying more work on the site of the former White House East Wing is still needed to meet the agency's safety and security requirements. The administration has offered to share classified details with the judge in an in-person setting without the plaintiffs present. The government's response to the lawsuit offers the most comprehensive look yet at the ballroom construction project, including a window into how it was so swiftly approved by the Trump administration bureaucracy and its ...

California, 18 more US states to sue Trump over $100K H-1B visa fee hike

States argue that the $100,000 H-1B fee exceeds presidential authority, could disrupt tech, healthcare, and education, and adds a costly barrier for employers hiring skilled foreign workers

Trump names Hassett, Warsh as top contenders for Federal Reserve chair

Trump previously signalled that he already made up his mind, saying Monday he had a "a pretty good idea" of who to nominate

Trump signals start of land strikes on drug operations in Latin America

The US president for days has been pledging to broaden the effort, which comes after the Pentagon has launched a series of attacks on what it has called drug-smuggling boats

US justice dept seeks to block contempt probe in mass deportation case

The Justice Department asked an appeals court on Friday to block a contempt investigation of the Trump administration for failing to turn around planes carrying Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador in March. The department also is seeking Chief Judge James Boasberg's removal from the case, accusing him of a "radical, retaliatory, unconstitutional campaign" against the Trump administration. It marks a dramatic escalation in the Justice Department's lengthy feud with the judge appointed to the bench by Democratic President Barack Obama, setting the stage for a showdown over the judiciary's power to serve as a check on an administration that has pushed the boundaries of court orders. The department wants the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to rule on its requests before Monday, when Boasberg is scheduled to hear testimony from a former government attorney who filed a whistleblower complaint. Department officials claim Boasberg is biased and creating "a circus th

Trump sued by preservationists over new White House ballroom project

President Donald Trump was sued on Friday by preservationists asking a federal court to halt his White House ballroom project until it goes through multiple independent reviews and wins approval from Congress. The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a privately funded group, is asking the US District Court to block Trump's White House ballroom addition, which already has involved razing the East Wing, until it goes through comprehensive design reviews, environmental assessments, public comments and congressional debate and ratification. The project has prompted criticism in the historic preservation and architectural communities, and among his political adversaries, but the lawsuit is the most tangible effort thus far to alter or stop the president's plans for an addition that itself would be nearly twice the size of the White House before the East Wing's demolition. "No president is legally allowed to tear down portions of the White House without any review whatsoever -- not