Page 44 - Donald Trump Administration

Dropped plans to ease Iran sanctions after Khamenei's harsh remarks: Trump

While Trump has been urging Iran to return to the table to resume nuclear talks, it is unclear if the administration was taking any steps to ease legal curbs on the Islamic Republic

University of Virginia president resigns under Trump admin pressure on DEI

The president of the University of Virginia is resigning his position under pressure from the Justice Department, which had pushed for his departure amid scrutiny of the school's diversity, equity and inclusion practices, a person familiar with the matter said Friday. The departure of James Ryan, who had led the school since 2018, represents a dramatic escalation in the Trump administration's effort to reshape higher education. Doing it at a public university marks a new frontier in a campaign that has almost exclusively targeted Ivy League schools. It also widens the rationale behind the government's aggressive tactics, focusing on DEI rather than alleged tolerance of antisemitism. Ryan had faced conservative criticism that he had failed to heed federal orders to eliminate DEI policies, and his removal was pushed by the Justice Department as a way to help resolve a department inquiry targeting the school, according to the person, who was not authorized to discuss the move by name a

World leaders use flattery, patience to handle Trump's erratic diplomacy

If world leaders were teaching a course on how to deal with US President Donald Trump early in his second term, their lesson plan might go like this: Pile on the flattery. Don't chase the policy rabbits he sends running across the world stage. Wait out the threats to see what, specifically, he wants, and when possible, find a way to deliver it. With every Oval Office meeting and summit, the leaders of other countries are settling on tactics and strategy in their pursuit of a working relationship with the emboldened American leader who presides over the world's largest economy and commands its most powerful military. The results were there to see at NATO, where leaders heaped praise on Trump, shortened meetings and removed contentious subjects from the agenda. Given that Trump dominates geopolitics, foreign leaders are learning from each other's experiences dating to Trump's first term, when he reportedly threatened to withdraw the US from the alliance. Among the learnable Trumpisms:

Rural schools in US struggle as Trump admin cuts mental health grants

In parts of rural upstate New York, schools have more than 1,100 students for every mental health provider. In a far-flung region with little public transportation, those few school counsellors often are the only mental health professionals available to students. Hennessey Lustica has been overseeing grant-funded efforts to train and hire more school psychologists, counsellors and social workers in the Finger Lakes region, but those efforts may soon come to end a casualty of the Trump administration's decision to cancel school mental health grants around the country. Cutting this funding is just going to devastate kids, said Lustica, project director of the Wellness Workforce Collaborative in the Seneca Falls Central School District. The workforce that we're developing, just in my 21 school districts it's over 20,000 kids that are going to be impacted by this and not have the mental health support that they need. The $1 billion in grants for school-based mental health programs were

US Treasury deal with G7 kills 'revenge tax' that spooked Wall Street

Section 899, dubbed the 'revenge tax,' was backed by House Republicans and the White House to counter what they saw as discriminatory taxes on US firms by several foreign nations

Trump admin expands military's role at border to the southern tip of Texas

The Department of Defense is expanding a militarised zone along the southern US border where troops are authorised to detain people who enter illegally for possible federal prosecution on charges of trespassing in a national defence area. The Air Force announced Monday the annexation of a serpentine 250-mile (400-kilometre) stretch of the border in Texas amid a buildup of military forces under President Trump's declaration of a national emergency at the border. A Defense Department official said the Navy also has been instructed to establish a new national defence area at the border. The official didn't provide further details. The newly designated national defence area on land and water along the Rio Grande spans two Texas counties and runs alongside cities including Brownsville and McAllen. It will be treated as an extension of Joint Base San Antonio. The Air Force said it's prepared to install warning signs immediately against entry to the area. The military strategy was pioneere

NYC Mayor Adams launches reelection, slams Mamdani as having 'silver spoon'

New York Mayor Eric Adams set out Thursday to persuade sceptical voters to grant him a second term, hosting a kickoff event for his independent reelection bid after a corruption indictment, a controversial dismissal and a decision to drop out of a the Democratic primary. On the steps of City Hall, Adams rattled off his political accomplishments while punctuating his speech with barbs for the expected Democratic nominee, Zohran Mamdani, casting the young liberal as a child of privilege with no real political achievements or realistic policies. "This election is a choice between a candidate with a blue collar" and one with a "silver spoon," Adams said. "A choice between dirty fingernails and manicured nails," he added. Two days ago, progressive upstart Mamdani declared a stunning Democratic primary victory over former Gov Andrew Cuomo, the presumed favourite despite a sexual harassment scandal that forced him from office four years ago. Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist in

Judge blocks Trump admin from withholding funds for EV charger infra

US District Judge Tana Lin ruled that states are likely to succeed in their lawsuit claiming the federal government illegally withheld billions meant for EV charging station infrastructure

Donald Trump to meet Nato allies amid doubts over US defence commitment

President Donald Trump on Wednesday will meet with members of a NATO alliance that he has worked to bend to his will over the years and whose members are rattled by his latest comments casting doubt on the US commitment to its mutual defence guarantees. Trump's comments en route to the Netherlands that his fidelity to Article 5 depends on your definition" are likely to draw a spotlight at the NATO summit, as will the new and fragile Iran-Israel ceasefire that Trump helped broker after the US unloaded airstrikes on Iran's nuclear facilities. At the same time, the alliance is poised to enact one of Trump's chief priorities for NATO: a pledge by its member countries to increase, sometimes significantly, how much they spend on their defence. NATO was broke, and I said, You're going to have to pay,' Trump said Tuesday. And we did a whole thing, and now they're paying a lot. Then I said, You're going to have to lift it to 4 or 5 per cent, and 5 per cent is better. Spending 5 per cent of

Lawsuit challenges billions of dollars in Trump admin's funding cuts

Attorneys general from more than 20 states and Washington, DC, filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday challenging billions of dollars in funding cuts made by the Trump administration that would fund everything from crime prevention to food security to scientific research. The lawsuit filed in Boston is asking a judge to limit the Trump administration from relying on an obscure clause in the federal regulation to cut grants that don't align with its priorities. Since January, the lawsuit argues that the administration has used that clause to cancel entire programmes and thousands of grants that had been previously awarded to states and grantees. Defendants' decision to invoke the Clause to terminate grants based on changed agency priorities is unlawful several times over, the plaintiffs argued. The rulemaking history of the Clause makes plain that the (Office of Management and Budget) intended for the Clause to permit terminations in only limited circumstances and provides no support for a

Court orders Trump admin to return man wrongly deported to El Salvador

The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the return of Jordin Alexander Melgar-Salmeron, deported to El Salvador on May 7 due to administrative errors, saying he must be brought back as soon as pos

Trump admin to provide $30 mn to Israeli group distributing food in Gaza

The Trump administration is providing USD30 million to an Israeli-backed group distributing food in Gaza, a US official said Tuesday. The request is the first known US government funding for the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's aid distribution efforts amid the Israel-Hamas war. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive diplomatic issue involving a controversial aid programme, confirmed that the US authorised the funding. The Associated Press reported Saturday that the American-led group had asked the Trump administration for the initial funding so it can continue its aid operation, which has been criticised by the UN, humanitarian groups and others.

US judge extends block on Trump-era ban on foreign students at Harvard

US District Judge Allison Burroughs granted Harvard a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of a June 4 proclamation that bars international students from entering the US

Shifting views and misdirection: How Trump decided to strike Iran

When Israel began its assault on Iran, President Trump kept his distance. But within days he was on a path that led to an extensive bombing mission aided by political and military ruses

Iran strikes threaten to split GOP at crucial moment for Trump's agenda

After the attack, the White House carefully avoided angering Trump's "America First" base, which opposes US involvement in foreign military conflicts

Trump's Iran strikes may face backlash from Maga's anti-war supporters

President Donald Trump's decision to strike three nuclear sites in Iran could deepen a divide among some of the Republican's supporters, including high-profile backers who had said any such move would run counter to the anti-interventionism he promised to deliver. Notably though, immediately following Trump's Saturday announcement of the strike, some of those who had publicly spoken out against U.S. involvement voiced their support. The lead-up to the move against Iranian nuclear sites had exposed fissures within Trump's Make American Great Again base as some of that movement's most vocal leaders, with large followings of their own, expressed deep concern about the prospect of US involvement in the Israel-Iran war. With the president barred from seeking a third term, what remains unknown is how long-lasting the schism could be for Trump and his current priorities, as well as the overall future of his America First movement. Among the surrogates who spoke out against American ...

Japan scraps US meeting after Washington demands more defence spending

Japan and other US allies have been engaged in difficult trade talks with the United States over President Trump's worldwide tariff offensive

Vance blames California Democrats for protests, mocks Sen Padilla as 'Jose'

Vice President JD Vance on Friday accused California Gov Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass of encouraging violent immigration protests as he used his appearance in Los Angeles to rebut criticism from state and local officials that the Trump administration fuelled the unrest by sending in federal officers. Vance also referred to US Sen Alex Padilla, the state's first Latino senator, as Jose Padilla, a week after the Democrat was forcibly taken to the ground by officers and handcuffed after speaking out during a Los Angeles news conference by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on immigration raids. I was hoping Jose Padilla would be here to ask a question, Vance said, in an apparent reference to the altercation at Noem's event. I guess he decided not to show up because there wasn't a theater. And that's all it is. They want to be able to go back to their far-left groups and to say, Look, me, I stood up against border enforcement. I stood up against Donald Trump,' Vanc

Trump issues two-week ultimatum to Iran as Mideast conflict escalates

Israel intensifies strikes on Iran amid growing fears of wider regional conflict and rising civilian casualties

'Mindbogglingly' historic deal with Harvard may be near, says Trump

Trump's upbeat tone hints at a major shift in a key controversy of his term, as he accused US colleges of antisemitism and slammed them for promoting what he calls a liberal bias