United States Government

US Postal Service unveils Diwali postage stamp for October release

The US Postal Service has unveiled a postage stamp commemorating the festival of Diwali among others which will be released later this year. The Diwali stamp features an intricate rangoli pattern created by Sangita Bhutada, a Houston-based artist and photographed by Binay Dixit. The USPS described rangoli as a vibrant floor pattern traditionally made from materials such as coloured rice powder, chalk and flower petals and believed to bring good luck. According to the USPS, Bhutada is a native of India and a longtime resident of the Houston area who has practiced the ancient folk art of rangoli for nearly 30 years. The stamp was designed by Jennifer Arnold, and William J. Gicker was the art director. The Diwali stamp will be released in October, the USPS said. "Among the most important holidays on the Hindu calendar, the annual autumn festival celebrates the triumph of good over evil. Diwali is usually observed over five days; in 2026, the main day of the festival will be November

Jaishankar set to visit US to participate in critical mineral summit

The summit will be significant for India, which is trying to strengthen domestic supply chains

Explained: Why the rules-based international order is being questioned

The rules-based international order, built after World War II to restrain power through law and institutions, is under scrutiny as Western leaders acknowledge gaps in how it has been applied

Democrats vow to oppose DHS funding Bill, raising risk of govt shutdown

Democratic senators are vowing to oppose a funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security following the shooting death of a 37-year-old Minnesota man, a stand that increases the prospect of a partial government shutdown by the end of the week. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, in a social media post Saturday night, hours after the shooting, said that what is happening in Minnesota is "appalling" and that Democrats "will not provide the votes to proceed to the appropriations bill if the DHS funding bill is included". Six of the 12 annual spending bills for the current budget year have been signed into law by President Donald Trump. Six more are awaiting action in the Senate. If senators fail to act by midnight Friday, funding for agencies covered under those six bills will lapse. Republicans will need some Democratic support to pass the remaining spending bills in time to avoid a partial shutdown. That support was already in question after Renee Good, a mother of three, w

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 ..