Page 18 - Donald Trump Administration

US escalates scrutiny of Harvard with debarment move, funding in jeopardy

Harvard has 20 days to appeal the decision, but it could totally lose access to research grants, student aid and government contracts if the HHS debarment is upheld

US Commerce secy signals 'significant' H-1B visa changes before 2026

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said there will be a significant number of changes in the H1B visa process before February 2026, when the new fee of USD 100,000 goes into effect, as he described as just wrong the idea of inexpensive tech consultants coming into the country and bringing their families. The Trump administration this month announced a one-time fee of USD 100,000 for new H1B work visas, an order that will impact Indian professionals looking to work in the US on the temporary visas. Standing behind US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office when the H1B proclamation was signed, Lutnick had then said that the USD 100,000 will be an annual fee for all H1B visas, including renewals and first-time applicants. Amid widespread panic and chaos, the Trump administration clarified that the new fee requirement for H1B visas will not apply to current visa holders and is a one-time payment applicable only to new petitions. This procedure and process goes into effect in Febru

Trump admin opens more land for coal, offers $625 mn for plant upgrades

The Trump administration said Monday it will open 13 million acres of federal lands for coal mining and provide USD 625 million to recommission or modernize coal-fired power plants as President Donald Trump continues his efforts to reverse the year-long decline in the US coal industry. Actions by the Energy and Interior departments and the Environmental Protection Agency follow executive orders Trump issued in April to revive coal, a reliable but polluting energy source that's long been shrinking amid environmental regulations and competition from cheaper natural gas. Environmental groups denounced announcement, which come as the Trump administration has clamped down on renewable energy, including freezing permits for offshore wind projects, ending clean energy tax credits and blocking wind and solar projects on federal lands. Under Trump's orders, the Energy Department has required fossil-fuelled power plants in Michigan and Pennsylvania to keep operating past their retirement date

US govt shutdown draws closer as congressional leaders head to White House

Democratic and Republican congressional leaders are heading to the White House for a meeting with President Donald Trump on Monday in a late effort to avoid a government shutdown, but both sides have shown hardly any willingness to budge from their entrenched positions. If government funding legislation is not passed by Congress and signed by Trump on Tuesday night, many government offices across the nation will be temporarily shuttered and non-exempt federal employees will be furloughed, adding to the strain on workers and the nation's economy. Republicans are daring Democrats to vote against legislation that would keep government funding mostly at current levels, but Democrats so far have held firm. They are using one of their few points of leverage to demand that Congress take up legislation to extend health care benefits. The meeting is a first step, but only a first step. We need a serious negotiation, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said in an interview Sunday on NBC's

Asian markets edge higher as investors eye possible US govt shutdown

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan firmed 0.4 per cent, to be up almost 4 per cent for the month

US to revoke Colombian President Gustavo Petro's visa for 'reckless' acts

The move marks an escalation in tensions between the two countries since US President Donald Trump "decertified" Colombia this month in America's fight against drug trafficking

US soybean farmers face crisis as China halts purchases amid trade tensions

The leafy soybean plants reach Caleb Ragland's thighs and are ripe for harvest, but the Kentucky farmer is deeply worried. He doesn't know where he and others like him will sell their crop because China has stopped buying. Beijing, which traditionally has snapped up at least a quarter of all soybeans grown in the US, is in effect boycotting them in retaliation for the high tariffs President Donald Trump has imposed on Chinese goods and to strengthen its hand in negotiations over a new overall trade deal. It has left American soybean farmers fretting over not only this year's crop but the long-term viability of their businesses, built in part on China's once-insatiable appetite for US beans. This is a five-alarm fire for our industry, said Ragland, who leads the American Soybean Association trade group. The situation might even be enough to test farmers' loyalty to Trump, although he still enjoys strong support throughout rural America. If no deal is reached soon, they hope the ...

South Korea has asked Trump to be 'peacemaker' with North Korea: FM Hyun

South Korea's president has asked President Donald Trump to become a peacemaker and use his leadership to get North Korea to talks to reduce military tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the South's top diplomat said Friday. Trump welcomed the request from President Lee Jae-myung and he expressed his willingness to be engaged with North Korea again, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said in an interview with The Associated Press. There was no immediate word from the White House. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met three times as North Korea was building a nuclear weapons stockpile, which Kim views as key to the country's security and his continued rule of the northeast Asian country. There were two summits in Singapore in June 2018, and in Vietnam in February 2019, where Trump and Kim disagreed about US-led sanctions against the North. A third meeting that year at the border between the two Koreas failed to salvage their nuclear talks -- and Kim has since shunned any diplomacy with t

US preparing for potential drone strikes on drug targets in Venezuela

Such plans could mark an escalation after US military strikes destroyed at least three small boasts near the Venezuelan coast in recent weeks, likely killing all individuals on board

Donald Trump asks US Supreme Court to limit birthright citizenship

Trump is seeking to jettison the understanding that the Constitution's 14th Amendment confers citizenship on virtually everyone born on US soil

Trump asks Microsoft to fire ex-Biden aide Lisa Monaco over security threat

US President Trump has called for the dismissal of Microsoft's president of global affairs, citing revoked security clearances and potential risks to sensitive government contracts

Oracle's role as TikTok data protector criticised as rehash of earlier plan

TikTok and Oracle have spent years and billions securing US user data under "Project Texas," closely resembling the plan Trump outlined this week

Sinclair restores Jimmy Kimmel's show on ABC affiliates, ending blackout

Sinclair Broadcast Group is bringing Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show back to its ABC affiliate stations on Friday night, ending a dayslong TV blackout for dozens of cities across the US over remarks the comedian made in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk's killing. Our objective throughout this process has been to ensure that programming remains accurate and engaging for the widest possible audience, Sinclair said in a statement Friday afternoon. We take seriously our responsibility as local broadcasters to provide programming that serves the interests of our communities, while also honouring our obligations to air national network programming. Disney-owned ABC suspended Kimmel on September 17, following threats of potential repercussions from the Trump-appointed head of the Federal Communications Commission. Nexstar, another affiliates group had announced it would preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! before ABC's decision, and Sinclair also condemned the host. And even after Disne

US Supreme Court upholds Trump funding freeze on billions in foreign aid

The Supreme Court has extended an order that allows President Donald Trump's administration to keep frozen nearly USD 5 billion in foreign aid, handing him another victory in a dispute over presidential power. The court on Friday acted on the Republican administration's emergency appeal in a case involving billions of dollars in congressionally approved aid. Trump said last month that he would not spend the money, invoking disputed authority that was last used by a president roughly 50 years ago. The Justice Department sought the high court's intervention after US District Judge Amir Ali ruled that Trump's action was likely illegal and that Congress would have to approve the decision to withhold the funding. The federal appeals court in Washington declined to put Ali's ruling on hold, but Chief Justice John Roberts temporarily blocked it on September 9. The full court indefinitely extended Roberts' order. The court has previously cleared the way for the Trump administration to stri

Trump orders release of all govt records on Amelia Earhart's disappearance

President Donald Trump has announced that he has ordered the declassification and public release of all government records about aviator Amelia Earhart, who vanished in 1937 during an attempt to fly around the world. Trump said on Friday that it's an "interesting story" that has "captivated millions". He said people have asked him whether he'd consider declassifying and making public everything the government has on her. "She was an Aviation Pioneer, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, and achieved many other Aviation firsts,'" he wrote on his social media site. "She disappeared in the South Pacific while trying to become the first woman to fly around the World. "Amelia made it almost three quarters around the World before she suddenly, and without notice, vanished, never to be seen again," he continued. "Her disappearance, almost 90 years ago, has captivated millions. I am ordering my Administration to declassify and release all Government Records related to Amel

FBI fires agents photographed kneeling during 2020 racial justice protest

The FBI has fired agents who were photographed kneeling during a racial justice protest in Washington that followed the 2020 death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, three people familiar with the matter have said. The bureau had reassigned the agents last spring but has since fired them, said the people, who insisted on anonymity to discuss personnel matters with The Associated Press. The number of FBI employees fired was not immediately clear, but two people said it was roughly 20. An FBI spokesman declined to comment Friday.

Trump's tariff threat spotlights US factory plans of pharma firms

Merck & Co., Novo Nordisk A/S and Eli Lilly & Co. are among firms that have started US builds since 2023, with construction sites in Delaware, North Carolina and Texas

Prized TikTok US business valued like boring blue chip in $14 billion deal

The rough estimate, cited by Vice President JD Vance on Thursday, is well below previous projections that scaled closer to $40 billion

Fed's Lisa Cook warns US Supreme Court of market 'chaos' if she's fired

The Justice Department has asked the Supreme Court to let Trump remove Cook while it fights a lower court ruling that the economist is likely to succeed in her lawsuit

US, China in final stages of talks to finalise 'huge' Boeing aircraft order

Boeing has been working toward finalising a deal with China to sell as many as 500 aircraft, in a transaction that would end a sales drought that stretches back to Trump's last visit in 2017