United States Government

China pushes India-US closer; tariffs, Pakistan strain ties: D Jaishankar

At a Congressional hearing, ORF's Dhruva Jaishankar said China is accelerating India-US coordination, but tensions over tariffs and US-Pakistan engagement weighs on diplomatic momentum

US ends low-value package tariff exemption, raising costs for shippers

The change broadens the Trump administration's cancellation of the de minimis exemption for packages from China and Hong Kong in May as part of an effort to halt shipments of fentanyl

FBI searches ex-Trump adviser John Bolton's Maryland home in security probe

Federal Bureau of Investigation agents began searching his house in Maryland at 7 am as part of a probe ordered by FBI Director Kash Patel, according to the Post

US examines equity stake in chip makers for CHIPS Act cash grants: Report

Trump administration has recently made unusual deals with US companies, including allowing AI chip giant Nvidia to sell H20 chips to China, exchange for the US government receiving 15% of those sales

In split decision, court clears Trump to restart CFPB mass firings

The decision nevertheless imperiled the employment of perhaps 1,500 workers at the CFPB whose mass dismissals were blocked in April by a trial court

SpaceX gets billions from US govt but gives little to nothing back in taxes

Tax experts said that not having to pay $5 billion in federal income taxes was substantial and notable for a company that has relied on contracts with the US government to an unusual degree

US job growth slows sharply in July, unemployment rate rises to 4.2%

The Labor Department's closely watched employment report on Friday also showed the unemployment rate rose to 4.2 per cent last month amid a decline in the volatile household employment segment

Judge bars ICE from taking Garcia into custody if he's released from jail

A federal judge in Maryland has prohibited the Trump administration from taking Kilmar Abrego Garcia into immediate immigration custody if he's released from jail in Tennessee while awaiting trial on human smuggling charges, according to an order issued Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ordered the U.S. government to provide notice of three business days if Immigration and Customs Enforcement intends to initiate deportation proceedings against the Maryland construction worker. The judge also ordered the government to restore the federal supervision that Abrego Garcia was under before he was wrongfully deported to his native El Salvador in March. That supervision had allowed Abrego Garcia to live and work in Maryland for years, while he periodically checked in with ICE. Abrego Garcia became a prominent face in the debate over President Donald Trump's immigration policies following his wrongful explusion to El Salvador in March. Trump's administration violated a U.S. ...

Civil rights work slows as Trump dismantles education dept: Agency data

The Trump administration insists it hasn't wavered in its duty to protect the civil rights of America's children even as it dismantles the Education Department. Yet its own data shows the agency has resolved far fewer civil rights cases than in past years, despite families filing more complaints. The Education Department's civil rights branch lost nearly half its staff amid mass layoffs in March, raising questions about its ability to address a deep backlog of complaints from students alleging discrimination based on disability, sex or race. Pressed on the issue in June, Education Secretary Linda McMahon denied a slowdown. Not only are we reducing the backlog, but we are keeping up with the current amount with a reduced staff because we are doing it efficiently, McMahon said at a Senate budget hearing. By several measures, however, the output of the Office for Civil Rights appears to have fallen sharply in comparison with previous years. A public database of the office's resolution

Democrats troll Trump and his loyal base over Jeffrey Epstein case

Democrats are latching on to the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, demanding records be released and trolling Republicans on social media, news shows and in the US House as they revel in a rare fissure between President Donald Trump and his fiercely loyal base. Conspiracy theories over Epstein's death in prison and potential evidence in his sex trafficking case, including an alleged client list, have largely been a fixation for the right, one egged on by Trump himself. But Democrats sensed an opening after the Justice Department said last week no additional evidence will be released, and some of Trump's most influential allies refused to heed his pleas to move on. They're highlighting the dramatic about-face by some Republicans, which has divided the MAGA movement and could weaken a critical following for Trump. The more in-your-face approach also may help Democrats appease elements of the party's own base, who are hungry for a more aggressive confrontation with the other side. Rep. Ro Khan

US slaps sanctions on firms linked to North Korea's fake-tech-worker scheme

Thousands of North Korean workers have been posing as nationals from other countries to infiltrate companies in the US and around the world, said the US government

Protester shot and killed at 'No Kings' rally in Utah, say police

A man believed to be part of a peacekeeping team for the "No Kings" protest in Salt Lake City shot at a person who was brandishing a rifle at demonstrators, striking both the rifleman and a bystander who later died at the hospital, authorities said on Sunday. Police took the alleged rifleman, Arturo Gamboa, 24, into custody on Saturday evening on a murder charge, Salt Lake City Police Chief Brian Redd said at a Sunday news conference. The bystander was Arthur Folasa Ah Loo, 39. Detectives do not yet know why Gamboa pulled out a rifle or ran from the peacekeepers, but they accused him of creating the dangerous situation that led to Ah Loo's death. The Associated Press did not immediately find an attorney listed for Gamboa or contact information for his family in public records. Redd said the man who dressed in a neon green vest and was believed to be part of the peacekeeping team fired three shots from a handgun at Gamboa, inflicting a relatively minor injury but fatally shooting Ah

Trump honours fallen soldiers, calls them America's 'best and bravest'

President Donald Trump paid tribute to fallen service members during a Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday, in an address that honoured the great, great warriors" yet also briefly veered into politics as he boasted of a nation he is fixing after a long and hard four years. Though the holiday is one that US presidents typically treat with pure solemnity, Trump began it with an all-caps Memorial Day social media post that attacked his predecessor and called federal judges who have blocked his deportation initiatives "monsters who want our country to go to hell. Yet at Arlington National Cemetery, where more than 400,000 have been laid to rest, Trump commemorated the sacrifice of US service members and singled out several Gold Star families to tell the stories of their fallen relatives. We just revere their incredible legacy," Trump said. We salute them in their eternal and everlasting glory. And we continue our relentless pursuit of America's destiny as we .

Memorial Day 2025 explained: History, significance and what's shut today

Memorial Day 2025 honours US military personnel who have passed away in service. It also serves as a federal holiday. So, let's know more about it and what's open and closed today

Moody's downgrade of US rating may not dent stock markets much: Analysts

Moody's downgrade, analysts said, was more to get the rating in sync with Fitch and S&P, who have already downgraded US' ratings.

Ex-Utah Rep Mia Love, 1st Black Republican woman elected to US House, dies

Former US Rep Mia Love of Utah, a daughter of Haitian immigrants who became the first Black Republican woman elected to Congress, died Sunday. She was 49. Love's family posted news of her death on Love's X account. Love had been undergoing treatment for brain cancer, and her daughter said earlier this month that the former lawmaker was no longer responding to treatment. She had been receiving immunotherapy as part of a clinical trial at Duke University's brain tumor center. Love entered politics in 2003 after winning a seat on the city council in Saratoga Springs, a growing community about 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City. She later became the city's mayor. In 2012, Love narrowly lost a bid for the House against the Democratic incumbent, former Rep. Jim Matheson, in a district that covers a string of Salt Lake City suburbs. She ran again two years later and defeated first-time candidate Doug Owens by about 7,500 votes. Love didn't emphasize her race during her ..

US cyber agency puts poll security staffers who worked with states on leave

Staffers at the nation's cybersecurity agency whose job is to ensure the security of U.S. elections have been placed on administrative leave, jeopardizing critical support provided to state and local election offices across the country. In recent days, 17 employees of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency who have worked with election officials to provide assessments and trainings dealing with a range of threats from cyber and ransomware attacks to physical security of election workers have been placed on leave pending a review, according to a person familiar with the situation who was not authorized to speak publicly. Ten of those employees are regional election security specialists hired as part of an effort to expand field staff and election security expertise ahead of the 2024 election. The regional staffers were told the internal review would examine efforts to combat attempts by foreign governments to influence US elections, duties that were assigned to othe

Flu season in the US is most intense it's been in at least 15 years

The U.S. winter virus season is in full force, and by one measure is the most intense in 15 years. One indicator of flu activity is the percentage of doctor's office visits driven by flu-like symptoms. Last week, that number was clearly higher than the peak of any winter flu season since 2009-2010, when a swine flu pandemic hit the nation, according to data posted Friday morning by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Of course, other viral infections can be mistaken for flu. But COVID-19 appears to be on the decline, according to hospital data and to CDC modeling projections. Available data also suggests another respiratory illness, RSV, has been fading nationally. The flu has forced schools to shut down in some states. The Godley Independent School District, a 3,200-student system near Fort Worth, Texas, last week closed for three days after 650 students and 60 staff were out Tuesday. Jeff Meador, a district spokesman, said the vast majority of illnesses there have bee

US mission in India 'reviewing' foreign aid after Trump's executive order

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has reportedly ordered an immediate halt to work on virtually all existing foreign aid programmes pending a review

How India's trade ties with US panned during past two administrations

Here's looking at how the last two terms panned out