Page 6 - Us Congress

Biden tells Congress to 'show some spine' as Ukraine aid faces defeat

President Joe Biden on Tuesday acknowledged that a bill to provide security funding for Ukraine and for the US border with Mexico is stalled in Congress. The Democratic president blamed the situation on former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential front-runner and told Congress to show some spine and stand up to Trump. A bipartisan Senate deal intended to curb illegal crossings at the US border with Mexico faced almost certain defeat Tuesday as Senate Republicans signalled their opposition, stranding President Joe Biden with no clear way to advance aid for Ukraine through Congress. The Democratic president has urged lawmakers to embrace a bipartisan Senate deal that pairs border enforcement measures with USD 60 billion in wartime aid for Ukraine, as well as tens of billions of dollars more for Israel, other US allies in Asia, the US immigration system and humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza and Ukraine.

Meta, TikTok, X CEOs face questions on child safety at US Senate hearing

Senator Amy Klobuchar on Wednesday questioned what she said was inaction in the tech industry, comparing it to the response shown when a panel blew out of a Boeing plane earlier this month

TikTok CEO pledges $2 bn during testimony to protect 170 mn US Users

It's Chew's second time testifying before Congress. Last year, he was called to a hearing in the House focused on the potential national security threats stemming from its Chinese ownership

China threat an opportunity for India-US ties, strong FTA: Congressman Issa

The "threat" posed by China offers an opportunity for the US and India to make strong agreements, including a genuine Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to ensure that the two countries will look at each other as first partners, according to Darrell Issa, an influential American lawmaker. Issa, a Republican Congressman from California, said this during a conversation with Aparna Pande, Research Fellow, India, and South Asia with the think tank Hudson Institute here on Monday. Agreeing that the India-US relationship today does seem to be based in no small part on the China threat, he said, Having said that, I view this China threat as an opportunity to do with that we did not do. The items produced in China could be produced in India, at substantially similar costs (and) would more than allow for India to substantially replace its dirty fuel with clean fuel, Issa said. But that requires that the two countries really make strong agreements, including a genuine Free Trade Agreement (FTA), one

President Biden offers fresh assurances to shut down border 'right now'

Bidding to salvage a border deal in Congress that also would unlock money for Ukraine, President Joe Biden offered fresh assurances Saturday night that he would be willing to close the US-Mexico border if lawmakers would only send him a bill to sign. Biden also eager to disarm GOP criticism of his handling of migration at the border said at a political event in South Carolina that he would shut down the border 'right now if Congress passed the proposed deal. The framework hasn't been formally agreed to by Senate Democrats and Republicans and would face an uncertain future in the GOP-controlled House. A bipartisan bill would be good for America and help fix our broken immigration system and allow speedy access for those who deserve to be here, and Congress needs to get it done," Biden said. It'll also give me as president, the emergency authority to shut down the border until it could get back under control. If that bill were the law today, I'd shut down the border right now and fix

US delegation affirms bipartisan support to Taiwan, first since election

A bipartisan delegation from the United States Congress reaffirmed support for Taiwan during a visit Thursday, following the election of its new president. The delegation's visit is the first from US lawmakers to the island since the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party won a third-straight term in the Jan 13 presidential election. China, America's chief competitor for global influence, claims Taiwan as its own territory and threatens to use force to bring the self-ruling island under its control. Beijing strongly condemned Lai Ching-te's election and appears set to continue its policy of refusing to engage with the island's government - a practice that's been in place since Tsai Ing-wen's election in 2016. The support of the United States for Taiwan is firm. It's real, and it is 100% bipartisan," US Representative Mario Daz Balart said. Balart, a Florida Republican, was joined by California Democrat Ami Bera. In the 21st century, there's no place for aggressive action

Trump WH official convicted of defying Jan 6 subpoena to be sentenced

A Trump White House official convicted of contempt of Congress for refusing to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol is set to be sentenced on Thursday. Prosecutors are asking a judge to sentence Peter Navarro to six months behind bars and impose a USD 200,000 fine. He was the second Trump aide to face contempt of Congress charges. Navarro was found guilty of defying a subpoena for documents and a deposition from the House on January 6 committee. Navarro served as a White House trade adviser under then-President Donald Trump and later promoted the Republican's baseless claims of mass voter fraud in the 2020 election he lost. Navarro has vowed to appeal the verdict, saying he couldn't cooperate with the committee because Trump had invoked executive privilege. A judge barred him from making that argument at trial, however, finding that he didn't show Trump had actually invoked it. Justice Department prosecutors say Navarro tri

Swiss group ABB's China operations under investigation by US Congress

The committees wanted to probe potential "cybersecurity risks, foreign intelligence threats, and supply chain vulnerabilities at seaports in the United States,'

Biden invites congressional leaders during difficult talks on Ukraine aid

President Joe Biden has invited the top four congressional leaders and other lawmakers to the White House on Wednesday as members have struggled to reach agreement on US aid for the Ukraine war. Republicans have insisted on pairing it with their own demands for securing the US border. A bipartisan group of negotiators in the Senate has been working for weeks to find an agreement that would provide wartime money for Ukraine and Israel and also include new border policy that is strong enough to satisfy Republicans in both chambers. The talks appeared to slow last week as senators said significant disagreements remained. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Tuesday that the lawmakers -- including Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La; House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-NY; Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY; and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky; -- were invited to meet with Biden "to discuss the critical importance of his national ...

Republicans halt plan to hold Hunter Biden in contempt for defying subpoena

House Republicans have halted plans to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress this week for defying a congressional subpoena, citing negotiations with his attorneys that could end the standoff over his testimony. Republicans were set to advance the contempt resolution against Hunter Biden to the House floor in a procedural step on Tuesday, but called it off "to give the attorneys additional time to reach an agreement", according to a spokesperson for the House Oversight Committee. The move comes days after an attorney for President Joe Biden's son indicated a willingness to cooperate with Republicans' ongoing impeachment inquiry following months of defiance. Still, attorney Abbe Lowell wrote to House Republicans on Friday that his client's cooperation is dependent on the committee issuing a new subpoena. They maintained that the two subpoenas sent in November were not legitimate because they were issued before the full House authorised the impeachment inquiry into President Joe .

US Congressional leaders ready stopgap bill to extend govt funding

Another extension has moved into focus as Congress appears on track to miss two staggered deadlines - January19 for passage of four of the 12 annual government-funding bills and February 2 for others

US Congressional leaders ready stopgap bill to extend govt funding to March

Congressional leaders are preparing a stopgap bill to keep the federal government running into March and avoid a partial shutdown next week. The temporary measure will run to March 1 for some federal agencies whose approved funds are set to run out on Friday and extend the remainder of government operations to March 8. That's according to a person familiar with the situation and granted anonymity to discuss it. The stopgap bill, expected to be released on Sunday, would come as House Speaker Mike Johnson has been under pressure from his hard-right flank in recent days to jettison a recent bipartisan spending deal with Senate Democrats. The bill would need Democratic support to pass the narrowly divided House. Johnson insisted on Friday that he is sticking with the deal he struck with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, despite pressure from some conservatives to renegotiate. Moderates in the party had urged him to stay the course. Still, in his first big test as the new leader, h

US Congress leaders announce agreement on spending levels to avert shutdown

Congressional leaders have reached an agreement on topline spending levels for the current fiscal year that could help avoid a partial government shutdown later this month. The agreement largely hues to spending caps for defense and domestic programmes that Congress set as part of a bill to suspend the debt limit until 2025. But it does provide some concessions to House Republicans who viewed the spending restrictions in that agreement as insufficient. In a letter to colleagues, House Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday it will secure USD 16 billion in additional spending cuts from the previous agreement brokered by then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden and is about USD 30 billion less than what the Senate was considering. This represents the most favourable budget agreement Republicans have achieved in over a decade, Johnson writes. Biden said the agreement moves us one step closer to preventing a needless government shutdown and protecting important national ...

2023: Battle lines drawn in Indian politics and beyond - a year review

The Opposition bloc taking shape after a Congress push, BJP's sweep in the Hindi heartland, and suspension of MPs protesting over Parliament security breach set the stage for an intense 2024 showdown

US Congress bars Pentagon from utilising Chinese port logistics platform

The US Congress has approved a measure prohibiting the Pentagon from using any seaport worldwide reliant on the Chinese logistics platform LOGINK, the Voice of America (VOA) reported

Probe China's role in violence against protesters on US soil: Congress

A congressional commission is asking the Justice Department to investigate the role of Beijing after protesters claimed they were beaten and harassed by Chinese government agents in November in San Francisco during an official visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping. The protesters, who were defending the rights of Hong Kong, Tibet and ethnic Uyghurs, said their attackers' attire, coordination and strong reaction to anti-Communist Party rhetoric indicated official Chinese involvement. They provided no definitive evidence, but US officials have previously accused Chinese operatives of targeting people in the United States. Rep. Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican who chairs the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, said Tuesday it was demanding a thorough investigation to find out why all of these wonderful people who were peacefully protesting were hit with poles, have scars that now you know will not go away. The Chinese Embassy denied any involvement and instead accused the

Biden invites Zelenskyy amid a stepped-up push for Congress to approve aid

President Joe Biden has invited Ukraine's leader, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to the White House on Tuesday as the US administration steps up the pressure on Congress to provide billions more in aid to Kyiv in the war with Russia. The visit is intended "to underscore the United States' unshakeable commitment to supporting the people of Ukraine as they defend themselves against Russia's brutal invasion," the White House said in a statement Sunday. As Russia ramps up its missile and drone strikes against Ukraine, the leaders will discuss Ukraine's urgent needs and the vital importance of the United States' continued support at this critical moment." Biden has asked Congress for a USD 110 billion package of wartime funding for Ukraine (USD61.4 billion) and Israel, along with other national security priorities. But the request is caught up in a debate over US immigration policy and border security. Earlier, Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday defended the emergency sale to Israel of .

Top US Congressmen introduce legislation to reduce green card backlog

Three influential Congressmen, including Indian-Americans Raja Krishnamoorthi and Pramila Jayapal, have introduced bipartisan legislation in the US House of Representatives to reduce green card backlog and end country-based discrimination for employment-based visas. Both the moves, if passed and signed into law, would help thousands of Indian-Americans who are currently in decades-long wait for green cards or permanent residency. Congressman Rich McCormick is the third lawmaker to have joined the two Indian-Americans in introducing the bill on Monday. HR 6542, the bipartisan Immigration Visa Efficiency and Security Act of 2023, would strengthen the US economy and boost its international competitiveness while reducing the green card backlog by allowing American employers to focus on hiring immigrants based on their merit, not their birthplace, a press statement said. The bill would phase out the existing seven per cent per-country limit on employment-based immigrant visas while ...

US nearly out of funds for Ukraine aid, White House warns Congress

The Biden administration on Monday sent Congress an urgent warning about the need to approve tens of billions of dollars in military and economic assistance to Ukraine, saying Kyiv's war effort to defend itself from Russia's invasion may grind to a halt without it. In a letter to House and Senate leaders and also released publicly, Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young warned the US will run out of funding to send weapons and assistance to Ukraine by the end of the year, saying that would kneecap Ukraine on the battlefield. She added that the US already has run out of money that it has used to prop up Ukraine's economy, and if Ukraine's economy collapses, they will not be able to keep fighting, full stop. We are out of money and nearly out of time, she wrote. Biden has sought a nearly USD 106 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and other needs, but it has faced a difficult reception on Capitol Hill, where there is growing scepticism about the magnitude of ...

US House Committee approves 'Resolve Tibet Act' for Tibet-China dispute

The Resolve Tibet Act states that Tibetans "are a people with a distinct religious, cultural, linguistic and historical identity," as per the ICT