Page 88 - Joe Biden

Biden admin is resuming deportation flights for Venezuelan migrants: Report

The Biden administration will resume deporting Venezuelan migrants, the largest single group encountered at the US-Mexico border last month, back to their economically troubled country as their arrivals continue to grow. The process is expected to begin shortly, said two US officials, though they did not provide specific details on when the flights would begin taking off. The officials were not authorised to disclose details of the government's plan and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. The resumption of deportation comes not long after the administration increased protected status for Venezuelans who arrive to the US, so if someone arrived to the US before July 31 of this year, but not after, they'd be eligible for protections. The decision reflects the larger strategy by President Joe Biden to not only provide expanded legal pathways for people arriving, but also to crack down on those who illegally cross into the country from Mexico. The officials would not discuss detai

I don't believe in walls: Biden says he had to use Trump-era funds

President Joe Biden on Thursday defended his administration's decision to waive 26 federal laws in South Texas to allow for construction of roughly 20 miles of additional border wall, saying he had no choice but to use the Trump-era funding for the barrier to stop illegal migration from Mexico. Asked if he thought such walls work, he said flatly, No. The new construction was announced in June, but the funds were appropriated in 2019 before the Democratic president took office. Biden said he tried to get lawmakers to redirect the money but Congress refused, and the law requires the funding to be used as approved and the construction to be completed in 2023. The money was appropriated for the border wall, Biden said. I can't stop that. Still, the waiving of federal laws for the construction something also done when Republican Donald Trump was president -- raised questions, particularly because Biden condemned border wall spending when he was running for the White House. One of Biden

Biden govt waives 26 laws to allow border wall construction in South Texas

The Biden administration announced they waived 26 federal laws in South Texas to allow border wall construction, marking the administration's first use of a sweeping executive power employed often during the Trump presidency. The Department of Homeland Security posted the announcement on the US Federal Registry with few details outlining the construction in Starr County, Texas, which is part of a busy Border Patrol sector seeing high illegal entry. According to government data, about 2,45,000 illegal entries have been recorded in this region during the current fiscal year. There is presently an acute and immediate need to construct physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the border of the United States in order to prevent unlawful entries into the United States in the project areas, Alejandro Mayorkas, the DHS secretary, stated in the notice. The Clean Air Act, Safe Drinking Water Act and Endangered Species Act were some of the federal laws waived by DHS to make way for ...

Biden suggests he has path around Congress to get more aid to Ukraine

Facing a likely roadblock from House Republicans on aid for Ukraine, President Joe Biden said on Wednesday he's planning to give a major speech on the issue and suggested there may be another means to provide support for Kyiv if Congress continues to balk. I'm going to be announcing very shortly a major speech I'm going to make on this issue and why it's critically important for the United States and our allies that we keep our commitment to Ukraine, Biden told reporters after giving unrelated remarks at the White House. White House officials declined to say when Biden planned to give his speech. The president did not elaborate on the alternate method he was looking at to get additional military aid to Ukraine in its ongoing war with Russia. There is another means by which we may be able to find funding, but I'm not going to get into that right now, he said. Aid for Ukraine has been a source of tension and uncertainty as several Republicans in the House have severe doubts or openly

US Prez Biden announces more student debt relief as payments resume

President Joe Biden announced another round of federal student loan forgiveness on Wednesday as borrowers brace for payments to restart after a three-year pause that began during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Democratic president's latest step will help 125,000 borrowers by erasing USD 9 billion in debt through existing relief programs. In total, 3.6 million borrowers will have had USD 127 billion in debt wiped out since Biden took office. President Biden has long believed that college should be a ticket to the middle class, not a burden that weighs on families, the White House said in a statement. Biden was scheduled to make a formal announcement at the White House in the afternoon. He promised to help alleviate the burden of student debt while running for president, and he's been under pressure to follow through even though his original plan was overturned by the conservative majority on the Supreme Court. He has been relying on a patchwork of different programs to chip away at deb

Recession may be coming to the US soon: Here's why

Last-minute deal delays government shutdown. However, an auto strike, upcoming student-loan repayments, and potential future shutdown could cut GDP growth by 1% in Q4. >

Urged India to cooperate with Canada in its probe into Nijjar's death: US

The Biden Administration has engaged with the Indian government on a number of occasions urging them to cooperate with Canada in its investigations into the death of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a US State Department official has said. The issue was raised by Secretary of State Tony Blinken during his meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar here last week. As he made clear then, I'll reiterate now, we remain in close coordination with our Canadian colleagues on this question, State Department spokesperson Mathew Miller told reporters at his daily news conference. We have engaged with the Indian government on a number of occasions to urge them to cooperate with Canada's investigation. The secretary had an opportunity to do that in his meeting with the foreign minister on Friday, he said. When asked if India has agreed to cooperate with Canada, Miller said this is for New Delhi to respond to. I will let the Indian government speak for themselves and I wil

Will resign if Biden asked me to act on Trump: Attorney General Garland

Attorney General Merrick Garland has said that he would resign if asked by President Joe Biden to take action against Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump. But he doesn't think he'll be put in that position, Garland said in an interview on Sunday. I am sure that that will not happen, but I would not do anything in that regard, he said on CBS 60 Minutes. And if necessary, I would resign. But there is no sense that anything like that will happen. The Justice Department is at the centre of not only indictments against Trump that include an effort to overturn the 2020 election and wrongly keeping classified documents, but also cases involving Biden's son Hunter, the aftermath of the riot at the US Capitol, and investigations into classified documents found in the president's home and office. Garland has appointed three separate special counsels. Garland has spoken only sparingly about the cases and reiterated on Sunday he would not get into specifics, but dismissed claims b

GOP leader vows to oust McCarthy; US House Speaker says 'bring it on'

This comes hours after the US was finally able to pass the spending bill, that can keep the economy afloat for the next 47 days

US will not walk away from Ukraine: Biden after spending bill avoids aid

This comes after the spending bill didn't include new aid for Ukraine. Biden also called on the Republicans to keep their word about support for Ukraine

US averts govt shutdown hours before deadline, passing stopgap bill

"The American people can breathe a sigh of relief: there will be no government shutdown tonight," Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said after the vote

Ukraine aid left out of funding package, raises questions about US support

Congressional supporters of Ukraine say they won't give up after a bill to keep the federal government open excluded President Joe Biden's request to provide more security assistance to the war-torn nation. Still, many lawmakers acknowledge that winning approval for Ukraine assistance in Congress is growing more difficult as the war between Russia and Ukraine grinds on. Republican resistance to the aid has been gaining momentum in the halls of Congress. Voting in the House this past week pointed to the potential trouble ahead. Nearly half of House Republicans voted to strip USD 300 million from a defence spending bill to train Ukrainian soldiers and purchase weapons. The money later was approved separately, but opponents of Ukraine support celebrated their growing numbers. Then, on Saturday, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy omitted additional Ukraine aid from a measure to keep the government running until Nov. 17. In doing so, he closed the door on a Senate package that would have ...

Threat of govt shutdown ends as Congress passes temporary funding plan

On the brink of a federal government shutdown, the House on Saturday swiftly approved 45-day funding bill to keep federal agencies open as Speaker Kevin McCarthy dropped demands for steep spending cuts and relied on Democratic votes for passage to send the package to the Senate. The new approach would leave behind aid to Ukraine, a White House priority opposed by a growing number of GOP lawmakers, but the plan would increase federal disaster assistance by $16 billion, meeting President Joe Biden's full request. The House vote was 335-91. With hours to go for the midnight deadline to fund the government, the Senate was also in for a rare weekend session and prepared to act next. We're going to do our job, McCarthy said ahead of voting. We're going to be adults in the room. And we're going to keep government open. With no deal in place before Sunday, federal workers will face furloughs, more than 2 million active-duty and reserve military troops will work without pay and programmes a

On the brink of govt shutdown, US Senate tries to approve funding

The US is on the brink of a federal government shutdown after hard-right Republicans in Congress rejected a longshot effort to keep offices open as they fight for steep spending cuts and strict border security measures that Democrats and the White House say are too extreme. Come midnight Saturday with no deal in place, federal workers will face furloughs, more than 2 million active duty and reserve military troops will work without pay and programs and services that Americans rely on from coast to coast will begin to face shutdown disruptions. The Senate will be in for a rare Saturday session to advance its own bipartisan package that is supported by Democrats and Republicans and would fund the government for the short-term, through Nov. 17. But even if the Senate can rush to wrap up its work this weekend to pass the bill, which also includes money for Ukraine aid and U.S. disaster assistance, it won't prevent an almost certain shutdown amid the chaos in the House. On Friday, a ...

Last-ditch plan to keep US govt open collapses, shutdown almost certain

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's last-ditch plan to keep the federal government temporarily open collapsed on Friday as hard-right holdouts rejected the package, making a shutdown almost certain. McCarthy's right-flank Republicans refused to support the bill despite its steep spending cuts of nearly 30 per cent to many agencies and severe border security provisions, calling it insufficient. The White House and Democrats rejected the Republican approach as too extreme. The bill's failure a day before Saturday's deadline to fund the government leaves few options left to prevent a shutdown that will furlough federal workers, keep the military working without pay and disrupt programmes and services for millions of Americans. The outcome puts McCarthy's speakership in serious jeopardy with almost no political leverage to lead the House at a critical moment that has pushed the government into crisis. Ahead of voting, the Republican speaker all but dared his hold-out colleagues to oppose t

The Biden govt could shut down on October 1: Here's all you need to know

The US Congress is at a crossroads days before a disruptive federal shutdown that would halt paychecks for many of the federal government's roughly 2 million employees

House GOP start making Biden impeachment inquiry case in first hearing

After insisting for months that they have the grounds to launch impeachment proceedings against President Joe Biden, House Republicans on Thursday opened their first formal hearing to make the case to the public, their colleagues and sceptics in the Senate. The chairmen of the Oversight, Judiciary, and Ways and Means committees are using the first hearing of their impeachment inquiry to review the constitutional and legal questions surrounding their investigation of Biden. They are trying to show what they say are links to his son Hunter's overseas businesses, though they have yet to produce hard evidence of any serious wrongdoing. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky, the Oversight chairman, said in opening remarks the lawmakers have a mountain of evidence that will show that the elder Biden "abused his public office for his family's financial gain. It's a high-stakes opening act for Republicans as they begin a process that can lead to the ultimate penalty for a president, punishment for what t

Biden sounds clarion call to defend democracy in his re-election campaign

On the anniversary of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, President Joe Biden stood in early 2022 at the literal epicenter of the insurrection and accused Donald Trump of continuing to hold a dagger at democracy's throat. Biden closed out the summer that same year in the shadow of Philadelphia's Independence Hall, decrying Trumpism as a menace to democratic institutions. And that November, as voters were casting ballots in the midterm elections, Biden again sounded a clarion call to protect democratic institutions, warning that their underpinnings remained under threat. Biden on Thursday will make his fourth in a series of presidential addresses about the state of democracy, a cause that is a key motivator and a touchstone for him as he tries to remain in office even in the face of low approval ratings and widespread concern from voters about his age. The location for this speech, as was the case for the others, was deliberately chosen: It will be near Arizona State University, which houses th

US Prez Biden headed to Michigan, will join the auto workers' picket line

United States President Joe Biden's decision to stand alongside United Auto Workers picketers Tuesday on the 12th day of their strike against major carmakers underscores an allegiance to labour unions that appears to be unparalleled in presidential history. Experts in presidential and US labour history say they cannot recall an instance where a sitting president has joined an ongoing strike, even during the tenures of the more ardent pro-union presidents such as Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Harry Truman. Theodore Roosevelt invited labour leaders alongside mine operators to the White House amid a historic coal strike in 1902, a decision that was seen at the time as a rare embrace of unions as Roosevelt tried to resolve the dispute. Lawmakers often appear at strikes to show solidarity with unions, and during his 2020 Democratic primary campaign, Biden and other presidential hopefuls joined a picket line of hundreds of casino workers in Las Vegas who were pushing for a contract with T

Biden has made America far more dependent on communist China: Nikki Haley

US President Joe Biden has made America "far more dependent" on communist China, Republican presidential aspirant Nikki Haley has alleged, vowing to stand up to every "enemy" that uses energy against her country. She was addressing the inaugural American Energy Security Summit hosted by the Hamm Institute for American Energy in Oklahoma City. "He (Biden) has made America far more dependent on communist China. Yet the pandemic proved that we should never rely on an enemy for critical supplies," Haley said in a policy speech on Monday. "We have all the resources we need to make the most advanced technology we want. And we don't have to impoverish ourselves to protect the environment. The best way to make our country cleaner, healthier and happier is to use more American energy not less," she said. "China isn't the only country I'll hold accountable. I'll stand up to every enemy that uses energy against us. Russia, Iran, and Venezuela are using their oil to advance their evil and Jo