Page 70 - Joe Biden

3 officers shot in Washington, results in standoff before suspect's arrest

Three police officers were shot trying to make an animal cruelty arrest that touched off an hours-long standoff in the nation's capitol on Wednesday, which ended late at night with a man's arrest. The officers were hospitalised and expected to recover from gunshot wounds, authorities said. A fourth officer was hurt at the scene, but not shot. The standoff started Wednesday morning as officers attempted to make an arrest on an animal cruelty warrant, but the suspect refused to leave the home, Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith said. As officers tried to get inside, a person opened fire. The shooter barricaded himself inside his home in the southeast part of Washington and continued sporadically firing shots hours after opening fire, police said. Hours after the standoff began, 46-year-old Julius James was arrested on suspicion of cruelty to animals. He is expected to face additional charges related to the shooting. No attorney or phone number was listed for him in pub

India is our biggest, most-valued partner in South Asia: US official

Describing India as its biggest partner in South Asia, the Biden administration has said it is working with New Delhi to deploy a multi-billion-dollar climate infrastructure and a new fund that will include a USD 500 million investment contribution from its development finance institution. Afreen Akhter, Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA), told this at a news conference organised by the Washington Foreign Press Center. With India, which of course is our biggest partner in South Asia, we launched in January of last year the US-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology. We call this iCET, Akhter said. The goal is to build a resilient semiconductor supply chain, elevate space cooperation, and partner on the next generation of telecommunications so, again, a really ambitious initiative to build cooperation on critical and emerging technologies with India, she said on Wednesday. The US is also advancing regional resilience to ..

Russia prefers Biden to Trump because he's 'more experienced, predictable'

President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia would prefer to see President Joe Biden win a second term, describing him as more experienced than Donald Trump. Speaking in an interview with a correspondent of Russian state television on Wednesday, Putin declared that he would work with any US leader who is elected, but noted unequivocally that he would prefer Biden's victory when asked who would be a better choice from the point of view of Russia. Biden, he's more experienced, more predictable, he's a politician of the old formation, Putin said. But we will work with any US leader whom the American people trust. Asked about speculation on Biden's health issues, Putin responded I'm not a doctor and I don't consider it proper to comment on that. Biden's team worked to alleviate Democratic concerns over alarms raised by a special counsel about Biden's age and memory. They came in a report determining that Biden would not be charged with any criminal activity for possessing classified .

In a historic rebuke, House Republicans impeach Alejandro Mayorkas

The US House voted on Tuesday to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, with the Republican majority determined to punish the Biden administration over its handling of the US-Mexico border after failing last week in a politically embarrassing setback. The evening roll call proved tight, with Speaker Mike Johnson's threadbare GOP majority unable to handle many defectors or absences in the face of staunch Democratic opposition to impeaching Mayorkas, the first Cabinet secretary facing charges in nearly 150 years. In a historic rebuke, the House impeached Mayorkas 214-213. With the return of Majority Leader Steve Scalise to bolster the GOP's numbers after being away from Washington for cancer care and a Northeastern storm impacting some others, Republicans recouped -- despite dissent from their own ranks. President Joe Biden said in a statement released after the vote, "History will not look kindly on House Republicans for their blatant act of unconstitutional ...

Lloyd Austin urges Senate to pass National Security Bill 'immediately'

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin urged the Senate to pass the national security bill immediately to invest in America's national security, which will further bolster its deterrence in Indo-Pacific

Prez Biden warns opposing Ukraine funding 'playing into Putin's hands'

President Joe Biden on Tuesday urgently called for House Republicans to bring a USD 95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan to a vote, warning that refusal to take up the bill, passed overnight in the morning by the Senate, would be "playing into Putin's hands". "Supporting this bill is standing up to Putin," Biden said, raising his voice in strong comments from the White House. But the package faces a deeply uncertain future in the House, where hardline Republicans aligned with former President Donald Trump -- the frontrunner for the GOP presidential nomination, and a critic of support for Ukraine -- oppose the legislation. Speaker Mike Johnson has cast new doubt on the package and made clear that it could be weeks or months before Congress sends the legislation to Biden's desk. The months-long push to approve the USD 60 billion in Ukraine aid that is included in the package has exposed growing political divisions in the Republican Party over the role of the US ...

Northern Gaza residents can return once it's clear of militants: Israel

Israel's top general says the army will not allow residents of northern Gaza to return to their homes until the area is completely cleared of militants. At a press conference Tuesday, Lt Gen Herzi Halevi said that although many of the estimated 15,000 Hamas militants originally in northern Gaza had been killed or wounded, rocket launches and attacks against Israeli troops are still occurring there. He says residents will return there when it is safe to return and there are no more terror activities. Northern Gaza was the first target of Israel's ground invasion in late October, after weeks of heavy airstrikes and artillery shelling. Most of the more than 1 million people living there fled in the opening weeks of the war, which has flattened entire neighbourhoods. Israel is now threatening to expand its operation to the southern city of Rafah, where over half of Gaza's population is sheltering. Halevi says the army is weighing different options to evacuate Rafah, though no final ...

Trump sowing doubts about US commitment to Nato is 'un-American': Biden

President Joe Biden on Tuesday said Donald Trump's comments calling into question the US commitment to defend its NATO allies from attack were "dangerous" and "un-American", seizing on the former president's comments that sowed fresh fears among US partners about its dependability on the global stage. Trump, the frontrunner in the US for the Republican Party's nomination this year, said on Saturday that he once warned that he would allow Russia to do whatever it wants to NATO member nations that are "delinquent" in devoting two per cent of their gross domestic product to defence. It was the latest instance in which the former president seemed to side with an authoritarian state over America's democratic allies. Speaking from the White House as he encouraged the House to take up a Senate-passed aid bill to fund Ukraine's efforts to hold off a two-year Russian invasion, Biden said Trump's comments about the mutual defence pact were "dangerous and shocking". "The whole world heard it a

US Senate passes $95.3 bn aid package for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan

The Senate early Tuesday passed a $95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, pushing ahead after months of difficult negotiations and growing political divisions in the Republican Party over the role of the United States abroad. The vote came after a small group of Republicans opposed to the $60 billion for Ukraine held the Senate floor through the night, using the final hours of debate to argue that the US should focus on its own problems before sending more money overseas. But 22 Republicans voted with nearly all Democrats to pass the package 70-29, with supporters arguing that abandoning Ukraine could embolden Russian President Vladimir Putin and threaten national security across the globe. With this bill, the Senate declares that American leadership will not waiver, will not falter, will not fail, said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who worked closely with Republican Leader Mitch McConnell on the legislation. The bill's passage through the Senate with a ..

Russia, West clash over Ukraine at UNSC meeting ahead of war anniversary

Russia accused the West on Monday of sabotaging agreements that would have prevented the war in Ukraine -- but the US and its allies put the blame squarely on Moscow, saying there is no escaping that President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of its smaller neighbour. Days before the second anniversary of Russia's invasion on February 24, 2022, Russia's UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia again put the cause of the war down to the failure to implement the 2015 Minsk agreements, which he blamed on "Kyiv's sabotage" supported by the West. The agreements aimed to resolve the conflict between Ukraine and Russia-backed separatists that flared in April 2014 after Russia's annexation of Crimea and its support for the separatists in the mostly Russian-speaking industrial east called Donbas. At Monday's Security Council meeting that Russia called on the seventh anniversary of the signing of the Minsk peace plan brokered by France and Germany, Nebenzia called claims by Ukraine and Western natio

Prez Biden forms task force to avoid mishandling of classified documents

President Joe Biden on Monday launched a task force aimed at addressing the "systemic" problem of mishandling classified information during presidential transitions, days after a Justice Department special counsel's sharply critical report said he had done just that. The Presidential Records Transition Task Force will study past transitions to determine best practices for safeguarding classified information from an outgoing administration, the White House said. It will also assess the need for changes to existing policies and procedures to prevent the removal of sensitive information that by law should be kept with the National Archives and Records Administration. The report from special counsel Robert Hur listed dozens of sensitive documents found at Biden's home in Wilmington, Delaware, and at his former Washington office. The papers were marked as classified or later assessed to contain classified information. The majority of the documents, Hur's report stated, appeared to have

Biden pushes for six-week fighting pause in Israel-Hamas hostage deal

"Once Hamas' control of Gaza is over, they must prepare to build a state that accepts peace and does not harbor terrorist groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad," Biden said

Israel strikes Rafah after Biden warns to have a plan to protect civilians

A series of Israeli strikes early on Monday hit Rafah, the city on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip where 1.4 million Palestinians have fled to escape fighting elsewhere in the four-month Israel-Hamas war. Israel has been signalling its ground offensive in Gaza may soon target the densely populated city on the Egyptian border. On Sunday, the White House said President Joe Biden had warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel should not conduct a military operation against Hamas in Rafah without a "credible and executable" plan to protect civilians. The strikes hit around Kuwait Hospital early on Monday morning, an AP journalist in Rafah said. Some of those wounded in the strikes had been brought to the hospital. The Israeli military said it struck "terror targets in the area of Shaboura" -- which is a district in Rafah. The military statement said the series of strikes had concluded, without elaborating on the targets or assessing the potential damage or ...

US President Biden slams Trump for his comments on Nikki Haley's husband

US President Joe Biden has slammed his predecessor Donald Trump for dragging Indian-American Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley's husband into the swirl of personal attacks. Haley's husband Major Michael Haley, a commissioned officer with the South Carolina National Guard, is currently on a year-long deployment with the 218th Maneuver Enhancement Bridge, which is providing support in the Horn of Africa. He deployed in June. Trump at a rally in South Carolina on Saturday questioned the whereabouts of Michael Haley. Where's her husband? Oh, he's away... What happened to her husband? Where is he? He's gone, Trump said at his rally in Conway in South Carolina, his first visit to the state this year. The answer is that Major Haley is abroad, serving his country right now. We know he thinks our troops are 'suckers,' but this guy wouldn't know about service to his country if it slapped him in the face, Biden said in a tweet on Sunday. Haley, 52, the only candidate against Trum

Biden calls on snack cos to stop 'shrinkflation', calls practice a rip-off

"Give me a break. The American public is tired of being played for suckers. I'm calling on companies to put a stop to this. Let's make sure businesses do the right thing now," he said.

Biden's campaign joins TikTok amid national security concerns with app

President Joe Biden's 2024 campaign is now on TikTok, even though he has expressed national security concerns over the platform and banned it on federal devices. Biden isn't expected to personally join the platform, aides said, nor the others in his administration. The account will be run entirely by the campaign team in an effort to reach voters in an ever-fragmented American population, particularly as younger voters gravitate away from traditional platforms. The inaugural post featured the president being quizzed on the Super Bowl and included a reference to the latest political conspiracy theory centering on music superstar Taylor Swift. Both the FBI and the Federal Communications Commission have warned that TikTok owner ByteDance could share user data such as browsing history, location and biometric identifiers with China's authoritarian government. Biden in 2022 banned the use of TikTok by the federal government's nearly 4 million employees on devices owned by its agencies,

US presidential polls: In Trump-Biden rematch, the only sure loser is China

Tariffs were Trump's weapon of choice early on, but as China policy hardened he expanded the arsenal

National security spokesman John Kirby gets expanded role in Biden govt

John Kirby, President Joe Biden's national security spokesman, is getting an expanded role at the White House, according to a US official. Kirby will have a new title, White House national security communications adviser, and will be named an assistant to the White House, the official said on Sunday. The official was not authorised to speak about an appointment that has not been publicly announced and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity. Details of the expanded role were first reported by Reuters. Kirby came to the White House in 2022 as the National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, not long after Karine Jean-Pierre was named White House press secretary, after the departure of former press secretary Jen Psaki. Previously, the NSC didn't have anyone in such a role. He will run a separate team from the national security press team that will coordinate information across agencies, the official said. Kirby is a retired US Navy admiral and has been valued in

US allies worry nation growing less dependable, whether Trump or Biden wins

As chances rise of a Joe Biden-Donald Trump rematch in the US presidential election race, America's allies are bracing for a bumpy ride. Many worry that a second term for Trump would be an earthquake, but tremors already abound and concerns are rising that the US could grow less dependable regardless of who wins. With a divided electorate and gridlock in Congress, the next American president could easily become consumed by manifold challenges at home before even beginning to address flashpoints around the world from Ukraine to the Middle East. French President Emmanuel Macron's recent verdict was blunt: America's first priority is itself. The first Trump administration stress-tested the bonds between the US and its allies, particularly in Europe. Trump derided the leaders of some friendly nations, including Germany's Angela Merkel and Britain's Theresa May, while praising authoritarians such as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian leader Vladimir Putin. He has calle

Year after train derailment, President Biden to travel to Ohio next week

US President Joe Biden will travel to East Palestine, Ohio, on Friday, about a year after a Norfolk Southern train there derailed and spilled a cocktail of hazardous chemicals that caught fire. The White House said on Saturday the president would travel there to ensure state and local officials "hold Norfolk Southern accountable". East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway, a conservative who does not support Biden, extended the invitation to the Democratic president, saying the visit will be good for his community. The February 3, 2023, derailment forced thousands of people from their homes near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. Area residents still have lingering fears about potential health effects from the toxic chemicals that spilled in the accident, and from the vinyl chloride that was released a few days after the crash to keep tank cars from exploding. Biden's decision not to visit the site until now had become a subject of persistent questioning by reporters at the White House, as wel