Page 110 - Joe Biden

US pick for World Bank, Ajay Banga to meet PM Modi, Sitharaman in India

These discussions will focus on India's development priorities, the World Bank, and global economic development challenges, the Treasury said in a statement

US Prez Biden's Canada agenda stocked from Ukraine to climate change

President Joe Biden arrives in Canada on Thursday with a focus on several of the world's largest challenges: the war in Ukraine, climate change, trade, mass migration and an increasingly assertive China. The administration has made strengthening its friendship with Canada a priority over the past two years and Biden's meetings with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the capital of Ottawa is an opportunity to set plans for the future. This visit is about taking stock of what we've done, where we are and what we need to prioritise for for the future, said John Kirby, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council. We're going to talk about our two democracies stepping up to meet the challenges of our time. National security and air defences will likely be a priority, with a recent Chinese spy balloon floating over North America putting newfound urgency on Canada's plans to update its radar systems and recent purchase of F-35 jets. Trudeau signalled there could be a

TikTok CEO warns users about ban ahead of US Congress hearing on March 23

Shou Zi Chew, the CEO of Chinese short-form video platform, which faces a nationwide ban in the US, has warned users as he prepares to appear before the US Congress on March 23

How Elon Musk's empire has made him a problem for the Biden administration

Elon Musk's unilateral decision-making, which more often than not is opposite to the official stance of the US, has caused a headache for the Biden government, and it is difficult to shrug off

Biden to curb China growth for chipmakers getting federal funds

The $50 billion CHIPS and Science Act will bar firms that win grants from expanding output by 5 per cent for advanced chips and 10 per cent for older technology

Biden signs bill to declassify information related to origins of Covid

US President Joe Biden on Monday signed a Bill, the "COVID-19 Origin Act of 2023", that requires the Director of National Intelligence to declassify information related to the origins of COVID.The US President in a statement on Monday said: "My Administration will continue to review all classified information relating to COVID-19's origins, including potential links to the Wuhan Institute of Virology; will declassify & share as much of that information as possible.""Today, I am pleased to sign into law S. 619, the "COVID-19 Origin Act of 2023." I share the Congress's goal of releasing as much information as possible about the origin of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). In 2021, I directed the Intelligence Community to use every tool at its disposal to investigate the origin of COVID-19, and that work is ongoing," Biden said in a statement released by The White House."We need to get to the bottom of COVID-19's origins to help ensure we can better prevent future pandemics. My

Biden intends to nominate Nisha Biswal to US govt's top administrative post

US President Joe Biden intends to nominate Indian-American Nisha Desai Biswal to a top administrative position in the US International Development Finance Commission, the White House said Monday. Biswal, who served as Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia during the Obama Administration, brings over 30 years of work experience in US foreign policy, international development programs within the Executive Branch, Congress, and the private sector. She is currently Senior Vice President for International Strategy and Global Initiatives at the US Chamber of Commerce, overseeing the US India Business Council and the US Bangladesh Business Council. Biswal served as Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs at the US Department of State from 2013 to 2017, where she oversaw the US-India strategic partnership during a period of unprecedented cooperation, including the launch of an annual US-India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue, the White House said. She als

US Prez Biden issues first veto, defending Labor Department 'ESG' rule

President Joe Biden on Monday issued the first veto of his presidency as he sought to block Republican-led efforts in Congress to overturn a Labour Department rule allowing retirement plans to consider environmental, social and governance factors when making investment decisions. The Labor Department rule ended a Trump-era ban on managers of retirement plans considering factors such as climate change or pending lawsuits when making investment choices. Because suits and climate change have financial repercussions, administration officials argue that their predecessors were courting possible disaster. Critics say ESG investments allocate money based on political agendas, such as a drive against climate change, rather than on earning the best returns for savers. Republicans in Congress who pushed the measure to overturn the Labour Department's action argue ESG is just the latest example of the world trying to get woke. Only two Democrats in the Senate voted for the measure, making it

Joe Biden calls Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu with judicial plan 'concern'

President Joe Biden spoke Sunday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to express concern over his government's planned overhaul of the country's judicial system that has sparked widespread protests across Israel and to encourage compromise. The White House said Biden reiterated U.S. concerns about the measure to roll back the judiciary's insulation from the country's political system, in a call a senior administration official described as candid and constructive. There was no immediate indication that Netanyahu was shying away from the action, after rejecting a compromise last week offered by the country's figurehead president. Netanyahu said Sunday the legal changes would be carried out responsibly while protecting the basic rights of all Israelis. His government the country's most right-wing ever says the overhaul is meant to correct an imbalance that has given the courts too much power and prevented lawmakers from carrying out the voting public's will. Critics say it

Biden's $6.8 trn budget in jeopardy as Congress resumes sitting on Monday

US President Joe Biden's $6.8 trillion budget hangs in the balance as Congress resumes its sitting on Monday as Republicans have vowed to defeat it demanding spending cuts

Biden's $6.8 tn budget faces hurdles as it proposes higher taxes on big biz

US President Joe Biden's $6.8 trillion budget is unlikely to pass muster in the Republican-dominated House of Representatives as it proposes higher taxes on big businesses and the rich and elite

International Criminal Court justified in issuing warrant for Putin: Biden

US President Joe Biden said that the International Criminal Court (ICC) is justified in issuing an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over allegations of war crimes

President Joe Biden calls for tougher penalties for execs of failed banks

President Joe Biden on Friday called on Congress to allow regulators to impose tougher penalties on the executives of failed banks, including clawing back compensation and making it easier to bar them from working in the industry. Biden wants the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to be able to force the return of compensation paid to executives at a broader range of banks should they fail, and to lower the threshold for the regulator to impose fines and bar executives from working at another bank. He called on Congress to grant the FDIC those powers after the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank sent shockwaves through the global banking industry. Strengthening accountability is an important deterrent to prevent mismanagement in the future, Biden said in a statement. Congress must act to impose tougher penalties for senior bank executives whose mismanagement contributed to their institutions failing. Currently the FDIC can only take back the compensation of ...

Joe Biden's climate legacy at stake after backlash over Willow oil project

When Elise Joshi was at the White House last year, her eyes welled with happy tears as President Joe Biden hosted thousands of supporters to celebrate groundbreaking legislation targeting climate change. "In that moment, I felt a lot of hope that the administration was listening to us," said Joshi, a California college student who is a leader of Gen-Z for Change, a coalition of young activists on social media. Now Joshi is planning to return to Washington, but for a very different reason. She's outraged that administration officials approved the Willow project, a large-scale oil drilling proposal in Alaska, and she's organising a protest with compatriots from around the country. Joshi's pivot underscores the political fallout that Biden is facing over Willow and the tension between honouring his promises on climate change and the nation's energy needs. The president made fighting global warming a central part of his agenda, and White House officials are quick to defend efforts to p

Indian-Americans celebrate Garcetti's confirmation as ambassador to India

Indian-Americans have welcomed Eric Garcetti's confirmation as the US ambassador to India and are hopeful that his close relationship with President Joe Biden will serve the crucial bilateral ties quite well. The US Senate voted 52-42 to confirm the former Los Angeles mayor's nomination on Wednesday after an unprecedented delay of more than two years. In a year when India is holding the presidency of G20 countries and there is expected to be a presidential visit and several other high-profile trips, the presence of a full-time ambassador with closeness to the White House was never felt as strongly before. "The United States-India relationship is extremely important and it's a very good thing we now have an Ambassador, Senate Majority Leader Senator Chuck Schumer said soon after the Senate confirmed the nomination of Garcetti. President Biden believes that we have a crucial and consequential partnership with India and that Mayor Garcetti will make a strong and effective Ambassador,

Eric Garcetti: Everything you need to know about new US ambassador to India

Eric Garcetti's tenure as mayor of Los Angeles saw several high points, like adopting a $15 minimum wage and his regular briefings during the Covid-19 pandemic. But, it had some setbacks as well

Biden's close aide Garcetti set to be confirmed as US Ambassador to India

President Joe Biden's close aide Eric Garcetti is set to be confirmed as US Ambassador to India after the Senate on Wednesday voted on the cloture motion limiting debate on his nomination, reflecting that the ruling Democratic Party has enough votes for his selection for the top post. The former Los Angeles mayor's nomination was pending before the US Congress since July 2021 when he was nominated for the prestigious diplomatic posting by Biden. A cloture motion is a procedural motion that limits further debate on the matter at hand. It allows the majority to defeat efforts by the minority to delay or obstruct proceedings on a matter by showing the matter has the support of a super-majority. The cloture motion on his nomination was passed 52 to 42 votes. Garcetti's nomination was not brought to the Senate floor for a vote during the last Congress as the ruling Democratic Party did not have enough support to get the 52-year-old close aide of Biden through. Garcetti was not confirme

Do something, do something big, says US President Joe Biden on gun control

The grief is still suffocating, the anger still visceral, President Joe Biden said Tuesday, in this suburban Los Angeles community where a gunman stormed a dance hall and killed 11 in January. He announced fresh federal measures to curb gun violence but emotionally declared there must be more. Do something. Do something big, he implored. I'm determined to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, Biden told the families of some of the victims who were in the audience for his remarks, along with the 26-year-old who wrestled the semiautomatic pistol away from the gunman. Biden's rhetoric has grown ever stronger about guns he routinely calls for banning assault weapons in pushing a gun-control platform even tougher than during the Obama administration when he was vice president. He has been emboldened by the midterm elections when his regular talk of gun control didn't result in massive Democratic losses, and he's expected to continue to argue for strong changes as he moves ..

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Biden administration lets Ukrainians who fled Russia's war stay in US

The Biden administration is allowing thousands of Ukrainians who fled their homeland when Russia invaded a year ago to stay in the United States longer, the administration said Monday. The decision provides relief to Ukrainians whose one-year authorisation to remain in the US was set to expire soon. The Homeland Security Department said the extension is for certain Ukrainian nationals and their immediate family members who were let into the U.S. before the Uniting for Ukraine programme started. Ukrainians who came in under the Uniting for Ukraine programme generally got two years of humanitarian parole in the U.S. whereas those who arrived before them generally got permission to stay only for one year. Thousands of Ukrainians came to America last year fleeing the war. The US government used a programme called humanitarian parole to admit them into the country. Humanitarian parole is a way to allow people from other countries to enter the United States on an emergency basis due to a