Page 6 - Donald Trump Administration

Trump names Stuart Levenbach to lead CFPB despite no financial experience

President Trump nominated Stuart Levenbach as the next director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, choosing a person who has no banking or financial services experience to run a bureau that has been effectively inoperable since Trump was sworn into office. Levenbach is currently an associate director inside the Office of Management and Budget, handling issues related to natural resources, energy, science and water issues. Levenbach's resume shows significant experience dealing with science and natural resources issues, acting as chief of staff of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration during Trump's first term. The CFPB has been nonfunctional much of the year. Many of its employees have been ordered not to work, and the only major work the bureau is doing is unwinding the regulations and rules it put into place during President Trump's first term and during the Biden administration. The bureau's current acting director is Russell Vought, President Trump's budg

Nasa planning to divest, demolish buildings at Maryland's Goddard Centre

One of Nasa's premier science Centres, Goddard operates the agency's Hubble Space Telescope and works on science missions including ones that explore the solar system

Trump admin sues California over law banning masked federal agents

The Trump administration filed a lawsuit Monday over California's new laws banning federal agents from wearing masks and requiring them to have identification while conducting operations in the state. The federal government has argued the laws threaten the safety of officers who are facing unprecedented harassment, doxing, and violence and said it will not comply with them. California became the first state to ban most law enforcement officers, including federal immigration agents, from covering their faces while conducting official business under a bill that was signed in September by Governor Gavin Newsom. The law prohibits neck gaiters, ski masks and other facial coverings for local and federal officers, including immigration enforcement agents, while they conduct official business. It makes exceptions for undercover agents, protective equipment like N95 respirators or tactical gear, and it does not apply to state police. Newsom also signed legislation requiring law enforcement

What's next for the Epstein files after Trump's social media posts?

The House is heading toward a vote on a bill to force the Justice Department to release the case files it has collected on the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, pushing past a monthslong effort by President Donald Trump and Republican leaders to stymie the effort. The push for more disclosure in the years-old sex trafficking investigation into Epstein has come roaring back since the House returned to Washington after a nearly two-month absence during the government shutdown. As lawmakers returned last week, they were greeted by new details from a tranche of Epstein's emails, including claims that Trump had spent hours at Epstein's house with a sex trafficking victim and that he knew about the girls." The new revelations and the coming vote showed one of the rare instances where Trump has not been able to exhibit almost total control over his party. Yet the sex trafficking case into Epstein has only grown in political influence since Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan jail while ...

Deployed National Guard troops begin withdrawal from Chicago, Portland

Hundreds of National Guard troops deployed to Chicago and Portland, Oregon, are being sent home, and those who will remain will continue to stay off the streets amid court battles over their domestic mission by the Trump administration, a defense official said Monday. The withdrawal of soldiers sent from California and Texas is part of a larger change to troop deployments after President Donald Trump began his immigration crackdown in various cities with Democratic leadership. The official was not authorised to publicly discuss the issue and requested anonymity. US Northern Command said in a statement Sunday it was shifting and/or rightsising units in Portland, Los Angeles and Chicago, although it said there would be a constant, enduring, and long-term presence in each city." In the coming days, 200 California National Guard troops currently deployed to Oregon will be sent home, and about 100 will remain in the Portland area doing training, the official said. The military also pla

Trump backs 500% tariffs on Russia trade partners: What it means for India

Donald Trump backs Senate legislation enabling tariffs of up to 500% on countries trading with Russia, a move that could significantly affect India and China

Trump may hold talks with Maduro as US aircraft carrier reaches Caribbean

President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the US may be having some discussions with Venezuelan President Nicols Maduro, a potential diplomatic avenue as the US further builds up its military presence near the South American country with the arrival of its most advanced aircraft carrier. Trump didn't offer details about the possible discussions with Maduro, but he said Venezuela would like to talk." The development comes as the Trump administration has carried out a series of military strikes against vessels suspected of transporting drugs. The arrival of the USS Gerald R Ford and other warships, announced by the Navy in a statement, marks a major moment in what the administration insists is a counterdrug operation but has been seen as an escalating pressure tactic against Maduro. When asked Sunday what he meant when he said Maduro wants to talk, Trump simply said: What does it mean? You tell me, I don't know. I'll talk to anybody," he added a few moments later. "We'll see what ..

Trump aides review funds for New York City after Mamdani's mayoral win

After the election, Trump said in an interview on Fox News that he wanted to see "the new mayor do well, because I love New York" but cautioned Mamdani to be "respectful of Washington"

Trump plans dinner with Jamie Dimon, Wall Street executives at White House

The dinner comes as Trump faces rising political pressure on the economy and affordability - issues that anchored Democratic electoral wins in New Jersey and Virginia last week

US Senate approves bill to end govt shutdown, sending it to House

The Senate passed the bill by a 60-40 vote, ending a long six-week deadlock. US President Donald Trump supported the deal

Trump hosts Syria's interim Prez Al-Sharaa in landmark White House visit

President Donald Trump is hosting Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa at the White House on Monday, welcoming the once-pariah state into a US-led global coalition to fight the Islamic State group. It's the first visit to the White House by a Syrian head of state since the Middle Eastern country gained independence from France in 1946, and comes after the US lifted sanctions imposed on Syria during the decades the country was ruled by the Assad family. Al-Sharaa led the rebel forces that toppled former Syrian President Bashar Assad last December and was named the country's interim leader in January. Trump and al-Sharaa who once had ties to al-Qaida and had a USD 10 million US bounty on his head first met in May in Saudi Arabia. At the time, the US president described al-Sharaa as a "young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past, very strong past. Fighter." It was the first official encounter between the US and Syria since 2000, when former President Bill Clinton met with Hafez Assad, .

Trump's $2,000 'tariff dividend' for Americans may end up costing them more

Donald Trump wants to turn tariff revenue into $2,000 "dividends" for Americans but economists warn the plan could backfire, fuelling inflation and raising living costs

Court blocks Trump admin bid to limit SNAP food aid payments temporarily

A panel of the US 1st Circuit Court of Appeals late Sunday denied the administration's request to continue making only partial payments during the government shutdown

US Senate advances plan to end govt shutdown after some democrats agree

The Senate is set to hold a procedural test vote on Sunday. If that vote succeeds, the Senate will need the consent of all members to end the shutdown quickly

US govt shutdown delays inflation data, deepens uncertainty for divided Fed

The CPI and its core measure, which excludes more volatile food and energy costs, each rose a lower-than-forecast 3 per cent in September from a year ago

Trump pushes Republicans to scrap Obamacare, fund citizens directly

Donald Trump renewed his push to scrap Obamacare, urging Senate Republicans to send billions in federal health funds directly to citizens amid a prolonged shutdown

Hunger, flight chaos and health-care woes fail to end US govt shutdown

Shutdown is costing the US economy about $15 billion a week and the Congressional Budget Office estimates that it will cut annualised quarterly growth rate of real GDP by 1.5 per cent by mid-November

US govt shutdown forces some overseas bases to stop paying workers

The longest US government shutdown on record is doing more than grind activities to a halt at home; an ocean away in Europe, local workers at US military bases have started to feel the pain. Thousands of people working at overseas bases in Europe have had their salaries interrupted since the shutdown began almost six weeks ago. In some cases, governments hosting the US bases have stepped in to foot the bill, expecting the United States to eventually make good. In others, including in Italy and Portugal, people have simply kept working unpaid as the gridlock in Washington drags on. It's an absurd situation because nobody has responses, nobody feels responsible, said Angelo Zaccaria, a union coordinator at the Aviano Air Base in northeastern Italy. This is having dramatic effects on us Italian workers, he told The Associated Press. An array of needed jobs The jobs foreign nationals do at US bases around the world range from food service, construction, logistics, maintenance and othe

People in some US states get SNAP food aid, while others await Nov benefits

People in some US states will be able to buy groceries with federally funded SNAP benefits Saturday while those in other states were still waiting for November food benefits that had been delayed by a protracted legal battle over the federal government shutdown. The Trump administration initially said last month that it would not fund Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for November because of the US government shutdown. The twists and turns since have exacerbated uncertainty for the nearly one in eight Americans who receive monthly SNAP benefits to spend at grocery stores and farmer's markets. On Friday, some states began issuing full monthly SNAP benefits to people, a day after a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to provide the funds. But Friday night, Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson temporarily paused that judicial order to allow time for an appeals court to decide whether to issue a more lasting halt. Jackson acted because she handles ...

Trump admin asks SC to halt order providing full SNAP payments for Nov

Residents in some US states began to receive their full SNAP food aid Friday as an appeals court left in place, for now, an order requiring President Donald Trump's administration to fund such benefits amid a US government shutdown. A judge had given the Republican administration until Friday to make the payments through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. But the administration asked the appeals court to suspend any court orders requiring it to spend more money than is available in a contingency fund, and instead allow it to continue with planned partial SNAP payments for the month. After the appeals court declined to do so, the Trump administration quickly asked the US Supreme Court to take up its request. The food program serves about one in eight Americans, mostly with lower incomes. Officials in at least a half-dozen states confirmed that some SNAP recipients already were issued full November payments on Friday. Which states issued SNAP payments Food benefits are