Page 35 - Us Government

Trump downplays Capitol attack by comparing it to students' protest

Donald Trump on Tuesday lamented the possibility that Columbia University's pro-Palestinian protesters could be treated more leniently than the rioters who stormed the US Capitol in January 2021, marking the second time in a week the former president has invoked the ongoing campus protests to downplay past examples of right-wing violence. Speaking in the hallway outside a Manhattan courtroom where his criminal hush money trial is taking place, Trump questioned whether student demonstrators who seized and barricaded a campus building early Tuesday, some of them vandalising it in the process, would be treated the same way as his supporters who attacked the Capitol on January 6 to stop certification of the presidential results. I think I can give you the answer right now, he said. And that's why people have lost faith in our court system. Trump's remarks demonstrate anew how he and the Republican Party have tried to minimise the deadliest assault on the seat of American power in over 2

Judge warns Donald Trump of jail time if ex-Prez violates gag order

Donald Trump on Wednesday will use a one-day break from his hush money trial to rally voters in the battleground states of Wisconsin and Michigan, a day after he was held in contempt of court and threatened with jail time for violating a gag order. His remarks will be closely watched after he received a USD 9,000 fine for making public statements about people connected to the case. In imposing the fine for posts on Trump's Truth Social account and campaign website, Judge Juan M. Merchan said that if Trump continued to violate his orders, he will impose an incarceratory punishment. The former president is trying to achieve a balancing act unprecedented in American history by running for a second term as the presumptive Republican nominee while also fighting felony charges in New York. Trump frequently goes after Merchan, prosecutors and potential witnesses at his rallies and on social media, attack lines that play well with his supporters but that have potentially put him in legal ...

Protesters reach a deal with Northwestern University, draws criticism

For five days, Northwestern University's Deering Meadow rang with the shouts of student protesters and supporters joining demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war on college campuses nationwide. But Tuesday morning the grassy meadow on Northwestern's suburban Chicago campus was silent after student organizers and the school announced an agreement late Monday to curb protest activity in return for a new advisory committee on university investments and other commitments. On campus Tuesday, two unoccupied tents remained, surrounded by abandoned folding chairs, cases of bottled water and other supplies. Some who are protesting the war in Gaza condemned the agreement as a failure to stick to the original demands of student organizers. Some supporters of Israel said the deal represented "cowardly" capitulation to protesters. The harsh response and escalated protests elsewhere Tuesday suggest that the agreement at Northwestern is unlikely to spur similar deals, even if it quickly stal

Florida's 6-week abortion ban takes effect, draws doctors' criticism

Florida's ban on most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, before many women even know they are pregnant, went into effect on Wednesday, and some doctors are concerned that women in the state will no longer have access to needed health care. Dr. Leah Roberts, a reproductive endocrinologist and fertility specialist with Boca Fertility in Boca Raton, said the anti-abortion laws being enacted by Florida and other red states are being vaguely written by people who don't understand medical science. The rules are affecting not just women who want therapeutic abortions, meaning procedures to terminate viable pregnancies because of personal choice, but also nonviable pregnancies for women who want to have babies. We're coming in between them and their doctors and preventing them from getting care until it's literally saving their lives, sometimes at the expense of their fertility, Roberts said. The new ban has an exception for saving a woman's life, as well as in cases involving rape an

Oil prices decline for third day as US crude production, inventories swell

US crude oil inventories swelled last week by 4.906 million barrels, while gasoline and distillate stockpiles fell, according to market sources citing American Petroleum Institute figures on Tuesday

Microsoft's concerns over Google's lead drove investment in OpenAI

The US Justice Department has argued that OpenAI's ChatGPT and other innovations may have been released years ago if Google hadn't monopolised search market

In a historic shift, US govt poised to ease restrictions on marijuana

The US Drug Enforcement Administration will move to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, The Associated Press has learned, a historic shift to generations of American drug policy that could have wide ripple effects across the country. The proposal, which still must be reviewed by the White House Office of Management and Budget, would recognise the medical uses of cannabis and acknowledge it has less potential for abuse than some of the nation's most dangerous drugs. However, it would not legalise marijuana outright for recreational use. The agency's move, confirmed to the AP on Tuesday by five people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive regulatory review, clears the last significant regulatory hurdle before the agency's biggest policy change in more than 50 years can take effect. Once OMB signs off, the DEA will take public comment on the plan to move marijuana from its current classification as a Schedule I drug, ...

Ship that brought down Baltimore bridge to be removed from collapse site

At the site of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse, crews plan to refloat and remove the grounded Dali container ship within roughly the next 10 days, allowing more maritime traffic to resume through Baltimore's port. The ship, which lost power and crashed into one of the bridge's supporting columns, has been stationary amid the wreckage since the March 26 collapse. Officials expect to have it removed by May 10, according to a news release Tuesday from the Port of Baltimore. Six members of a roadwork crew plunged to their deaths in the disaster. Four bodies have been recovered while two remain missing. Crews have identified areas of interest where they believe the bodies could be, but they've been unable to access them so far, Maryland State Police Superintendent Roland Butler said during a news conference Tuesday afternoon. We're working in generalisations of areas where we think they should be, based on sonar images and other mapping techniques, he said. Officials declined to

Australian regulator looking at MDH, Everest spices for possible recall

Earlier, some MDH and Everest spice mixes were recalled in Singapore, while Hong Kong suspended their sales over high levels of ethylene oxide

US to introduce mandatory emergency braking systems in new cars by 2029

The rule requires that systems detect pedestrians in both daylight and at night. Some small-volume manufacturers will be allowed to comply by September 2030

Student protest against Gaza war: What is happening in colleges across US

Officials are trying to resolve the protests as the academic year winds down, but students have dug in at several high-profile universities

Stop supplying weapons to Sudan's warring parties: US to all countries

The United States on Monday implored all countries supplying weapons to Sudan's warring parties to halt arms sales, warning that history in the vast western Darfur region where there was a genocide 20 years ago is repeating itself". US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters after an emergency closed meeting of the U.N. Security Council that El Fasher, the only capital in Darfur not held by paramilitary forces, is on the precipice of a large-scale massacre." She urged all countries to raise the threat that a crisis of epic proportions is brewing." Britain's deputy ambassador James Kariuki echoed her appeal saying: The last thing Sudan needs is a further escalation on top of this conflict that's been going on for a whole year. Thomas-Greenfield said there are credible reports that the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and their allied militias have razed many villages west of El Fasher and are planning an imminent attack on El Fasher. An attack on El Fasher would be a ...

Columbia Univ suspending Israel-Hamas war protesters for not removing camps

Colleges around the US implored pro-Palestinian student protesters to clear out tent encampments with rising levels of urgency Monday as police arrested more demonstrators at the University of Texas and Columbia University said it was beginning to suspend students who defied an ultimatum to disband the encampment there. Dozens of law enforcement officers, many in riot gear, confronted protesters who returned to the University of Texas at Austin on Monday. They quickly arrested six demonstrators and took others into custody one by one. Officers used pepper spray after a group of protesters blocked the path of a police van carrying demonstrators who were arrested. The crowd backed away but continued to block the exit from campus. Officers then used two flash bang explosives to clear a path so the van could leave. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott reposted on social media video of troopers arriving on the 50,000-student campus. No encampments will be allowed," Abbott said. Last week, hundred

US traders seek import tariff on Indian tile suppliers, blame subsidies

A coalition of US ceramic tile suppliers has urged the federal government to impose tariffs on ceramic tile imports from India as it is impacting domestic industry due to subsidised imports by the Indian government. The Department of Commerce has instituted an investigation into this matter. Import of ceramics and tiles from India has increased significantly over the past few years, an association of the US ceramic and tiles industry has claimed alleging that these are impacting their domestic industry as the imports are subsidised by the Indian government. In a petition filed before the US International Trade Commission of the Department of Commerce, the Coalition for Fair Trade in Ceramic Tile (TCNA), which claims to represent more than 90 per cent of US tile production, seeks the imposition of tariffs estimated between 408 per cent to 828 per cent, alleging that there is ongoing massive and widespread dumping from India. American tile manufacturers have always welcomed fair ...

Iraq's law criminalising same-sex marriage will hurt country's economy: US

The law threatens constitutionally protected human rights and fundamental freedoms in Iraq, said US

Loved ones await recovery of 2 bodies from Baltimore bridge wreckage

A wooden cross is laden with Miguel Luna's personal belongings his construction uniform and work boots, a family photo, the flag of his native El Salvador but his body remains missing after the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. More than a month has passed since six members of a roadwork crew plunged to their deaths when a container ship lost power and crashed into one of the bridge's supporting columns. Four bodies have been recovered, but Luna and another worker, Jose Mynor Lopez, have not been found. They were all Latino immigrants who came to the United States from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. They were fathers and husbands, brothers and grandfathers. They shared a common dream and a determination to achieve it. In an effort to honour their lives and their work, Baltimore County's close-knit Latino community has constructed an elaborate memorial near the south end of the bridge. It includes decorated wooden crosses, a painted canvas backdrop, bunches of

TikTok's US-based general counsel Erich Andersen to step down from role

Erich Andersen, the US-based general counsel for TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance Ltd, is stepping down from that role, the social media app said

Planning for potential transition underway as Biden admin kicks it off

President Joe Biden's administration on Friday formally began planning for a potential presidential transition, aiming to ensure continuity of government no matter the outcome of November's general election. Shalanda Young, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, sent memos to all executive departments and agencies, directing them to name a point person for transition planning by May 3. It's the routine first step in congressionally mandated preparedness for presidential transitions. Next week, White House chief of staff Jeff Zients who also chaired Biden's 2020 transition effort will lead the first meeting of the White House Transition Coordinating Council, which consists of senior White House policy, national security and management officials, as required by the Presidential Transition Act. The act provides federal support for major party candidates to prepare to govern so that they can have personnel in place to take policy actions on their first day in ...

Hoping for soft landing for US economy, stagflation possible: Jamie Dimon

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon says he's hopeful the Federal Reserve can bring down inflation without causing a recession but wouldn't rule out more troubling possibilities, such as stagflation. In an interview with The Associated Press at a Chase branch opening in The Bronx, Dimon said he remained cautious about the US economy and said inflation may be stickier for longer and that stagflation is on the list of possible things that could happen to the US economy. You should be worried about (the possibility of stagflation), Dimon said. Dimon did emphasise that he's still hopeful for the US economy to experience a soft landing, where growth slows but the economy avoids a recession even if inflation remains a little high, but he's not certain that is the most likely outcome. I'm just a little more dubious than others that a (soft landing) is a given, he said. The Fed rapidly raised interest rates in 2022 and 2023 after inflation reached the highest level in four decades. Fed officia

US announces new Patriot missiles for Ukraine as part of $6 bn aid package

The US will provide Ukraine additional Patriot missiles for its air defence systems as part of a massive USD 6 billion additional aid package, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on Friday. The missiles will be used to replenish previously supplied Patriot air defence systems and are part of a package that also includes more munitions for the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems, or NASAMS, and additional gear to integrate Western air defence launchers, missiles and radars into Ukraine's existing weaponry, much of which still dates back to the Soviet era. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed the need for Patriots early Friday at the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, a coalition of about 50 countries gathering virtually in a Pentagon-led meeting. The meeting fell on the second anniversary of the group, which Austin said has moved heaven and earth since April 2022 to source millions of rounds of ammunition, rocket systems, armoured vehicles and even jets to .