Page 44 - Us Government

Pro-Palestinian protestors block airports and highways in major US cities

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked roadways in Illinois, California, New York and the Pacific Northwest on Monday, temporarily shutting down travel into some of the nation's most heavily used airports, onto the Golden Gate and Brooklyn bridges and on a busy West Coast highway. In Chicago, protesters linked arms and blocked lanes of Interstate 190 leading into O'Hare International Airport around 7 am in a demonstration they said was part of a global economic blockade to free Palestine, according to Rifqa Falaneh, one of the organizers. Traffic in the San Francisco Bay Area was snarled for hours as demonstrators shut down all vehicle, pedestrian and bike traffic on the Golden Gate Bridge and chained themselves to 55-gallon drums filled with cement across Interstate 880 in Oakland. Protesters marching into Brooklyn blocked Manhattan-bound traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge. In Eugene, Oregon, protesters blocked Interstate 5, shutting down traffic on the major highway for about 45 ...

Modernised Indian military has reduced its dependence on Russian arms: US

Observing that India has showcased itself as a global leader, the top intelligence official from the US Department of Defense has told the Congress that in 2023, India took steps to modernise its military to compete with China and reduce its dependency on Russian origin-equipment. During the past year, India has showcased itself as a global leader by hosting the Group of 20 economic summit and demonstrated a greater willingness to counter PRC (People's Republic of China) activity throughout the Indo-Pacific region, Lt Gen Jeffrey Kruse, Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency told members of the House Armed Services Committee the subcommittee on intelligence and special operations during a Congressional hearing on defence intelligence countering China. India, he said, has advanced partnerships in the Indo-Pacific with regional South China Sea claimants, such as the Philippines, through training and defence sales and deepened cooperation with the US, Australia, France and ...

US awards Samsung $6.4 bn in grants to boost Texas chip production

Analysts have estimated Samsung is likely to begin making 4-nanometer chips at its pilot production line and eventually expand to 2-nanometer chips

White House rejects House Republican effort to get Prez Biden to testify

The White House on Monday rejected a long-shot effort from House Republicans to get President Joe Biden to testify before lawmakers in the GOP's stalled impeachment inquiry. In a letter to House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, the White House dismissed the invitation sent to Biden last month, calling it a partisan charade in an impeachment probe that has unearthed no evidence implicating the president in any wrongdoing while in public office. House Republicans had been seeking information related to the Biden family's business dealings in what the GOP characterized as an alleged influence-peddling scheme. Your Committee's purported impeachment inquiry' has succeeded only in turning up abundant evidence that, in fact, the President has done nothing wrong, Richard Sauber, special counsel to the president, wrote in the letter sent to Comer on Monday. Sauber added, Your insistence on peddling these false and unsupported allegations despite ample evidence to the contrary makes

India continues to be important strategic partner for US: Mathew Miller

The Biden administration asserted that India was an important strategic partner of the US and added that the status of the relationship is expected to remain unchanged. US State Department spokesperson Mathew Miller was responding to a question at a press conference on Monday on the US-India relationship in the context of some articles and opinion pieces critical of the Indian government published ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in India. To a question on alleged concerns about democratic backsliding in India and the recent statements by the State Department regarding the alleged crackdown on opposition, Miller said, India is the world's largest democracy. It is an important strategic partner of the United States and I expect that to remain true. US officials in the recent past have called India a "very important partner and that the relationship between the two countries continues to grow. However, after the historic Official State Visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Whi

Israel-Iran conflict: Missile attack adds to airline troubles in West Asia

Iran's attack on Israel by more than 300 missiles and drones, which were mostly shot down by Israel's US-backed missile defence system, caused chaos in the aviation industry

US prez polls: Deep divide apparent in Biden, Trump's tax policies

Tax Day reveals a major split in how Joe Biden and Donald Trump would govern: The presidential candidates have conflicting ideas about how much to reveal about their own finances and the best ways to boost the economy through tax policy. Biden, the sitting Democratic president, plans to release his income tax returns on Monday, the IRS filing deadline. And on Tuesday, he is scheduled to deliver a speech in Scranton, Pennsylvania, about why the wealthy should pay more in taxes to reduce the federal deficit and help fund programs for the poor and middle class. Biden is proud to say that he was largely without money for much of his decades-long career in public service, unlike Trump, who inherited hundreds of millions of dollars from his father and used his billionaire status to launch a TV show and later a presidential campaign. For 36 years, I was listed as the poorest man in Congress, Biden told donors in California in February. Not a joke. In 2015, Trump declared as part of his ..

Russia, China trade new copper disguised as scrap to skirt taxes, sanctions

Customs data on Chinese imports of copper wire rod is not publicly available

Trump's landmark hush money trial starts today with jury selection

In a singular moment for American history, the hush money trial of former President Donald Trump begins Monday with jury selection. It's the first criminal trial of a former commander in chief and the first of Trump's four indictments to go to trial. Because Trump is the presumptive nominee for this year's Republican ticket, the trial will also produce the head-spinning split-screen of a presidential candidate spending his days in court and, he has said, "campaigning during the night. And to some extent, it is a trial of the justice system itself as it grapples with a defendant who has used his enormous prominence to assail the judge, his daughter, the district attorney, some witnesses and the allegations all while blasting the legitimacy of a legal structure that he insists has been appropriated by his political opponents. Against that backdrop, scores of ordinary citizens are due to be called Monday into a cavernous room in a utilitarian courthouse to determine whether they can .

Biden to host Iraqi leader; US military presence in region under question

President Joe Biden is set to host Iraq's leader this week for talks that come as tensions across the Middle East have soared over the war in Gaza and Iran's unprecedented weekend attack on Israel in retaliation for an Israeli military strike against an Iranian facility in Syria. The sharp rise in security fears has raised further questions about the viability of the two-decade American military presence in Iraq, through which portions of Iran's Saturday drone and missile attack on Israel flew or were launched from. A U.S. Patriot battery in Irbil, Iraq, knocked down at least one Iranian ballistic missile, according to American officials. In addition, Iranian proxies have initiated attacks against U.S. interests throughout the region from inside Iraq, making Monday's meeting between Biden and Iraqi Prime Minister Shia al-Sudani all the more critical. The talks will include a discussion of regional stability and future U.S. troop deployments but will also focus on economic, trade and

Rupee depreciates 6 paise to 83.44 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee declined 6 paise to 83.44 against the US dollar in early trade on Monday, tracking negative equity markets and withdrawal of foreign funds amid renewed concerns over geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Forex traders said a strong American currency in the overseas market and curde oil prices hovering above USD 90 per barrel also dented investor sentiments. At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 83.46 against the dollar and gained slightly to 83.44 in the initial trade, registering a fall of 6 paise over its previous close. On Friday, the rupee closed 7 paise lower at 83.38 against the US dollar. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.08 per cent lower at 105.75. The higher dollar index was attributed to diminishing expectations of an immediate rate cut by the US Federal Reserve. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, declined 0.31 per cent to USD 90.17 per barrel.

Iran attack on Israel risks provoking an uncontrollable escalation, says G7

Unequivocally condemning in the strongest terms Iran's direct and unprecedented attack against Israel, the G-7 leaders on Sunday said the development risks provoking an uncontrollable regional escalation even as permanent members of the UN Security Council announced to convene an emergency meeting on the issues in New York. With its actions, Iran has further stepped toward the destabilisation of the region and risks provoking an uncontrollable regional escalation. This must be avoided. We will continue to work to stabilise the situation and avoid further escalation, G-7 leaders said in a joint statement after a conference call among them initiated by President Joe Biden. The US assisted Israel in shooting down dozens of drones and missiles fired by Iran in its first direct military assault on the former. Israeli authorities said 99 per cent of the inbound weapons were shot down without causing any significant damage. In this spirit, we demand that Iran and its proxies cease their .

Don't expect US to take part in any retaliatory action against Iran: Biden

Iran launched the attack over a suspected Israeli strike on its embassy compound in Syria on April 1 that killed top Revolutionary Guards commanders

Destroyed over 80 Iranian ballistic missiles headed towards Israel: US

: The US destroyed more than 80 UAVs and at least six ballistic missiles launched by Iran at Israel, the Pentagon said Sunday. This includes a ballistic missile on its launcher vehicle and seven UAVs destroyed on the ground in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen prior to their launch, the US Central Command said. Iran fired more than 300 drones and missiles at Israel, which Tehran said was in response to the April 1 strike on its consulate in Syria. Almost all Iranian drones and missiles were shot down by Israeli, US and allied forces before they reached their targets. On Saturday and Sunday morning, US CENTCOM forces, supported by US European Command destroyers, successfully engaged and destroyed more than 80 one-way attack uncrewed aerial vehicles (OWA UAV) and at least six ballistic missiles intended to strike Israel from Iran and Yemen, the media note said. Iran's continued unprecedented, malign, and reckless behaviour endangers regional stability and the safety of U.S. and coali

Iran-Israel conflict: Blinken calls Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi FMs

: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday reached out over phone to the foreign ministers of Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt, while Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had calls with his Saudi and Israeli counterparts, amid signs of an escalating crisis in the Middle East following Iran's strikes on Israel. Iran fired more than 300 drones and missiles at Israel, which Tehran said was in response to the April 1 strike on its consulate in Syria. Almost all Iranian drones and missiles were shot down by Israeli, US and allied forces before they reached their targets. The diplomatic overdrive to fight the crisis came soon after US President Joe Biden had a conference call with G-7 leaders and had separate telephonic conversations with King Abdullah of Jordan and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel. In all the calls, the American leadership emphasised on the need to avoid further escalation in the region and reaffirmed America's ironclad commitment to the security of ...

Colorado clears semiautomatic firearm ban; Bill sent to Senate for approval

Colorado's Democratic-controlled House on Sunday passed a bill that would ban the sale and transfer of semiautomatic firearms, a major step for the legislation after roughly the same bill was swiftly killed by Democrats last year. The bill, which passed on a 35-27 vote, is now on its way to the Democratic-led state Senate. If it passes there, it could bring Colorado in line with 10 other states including California, New York and Illinois that have prohibitions on semiautomatic guns. But even in a state plagued by some of the nation's worst mass shootings, such legislation faces headwinds. Colorado's political history is purple, shifting blue only recently. The bill's chances of success in the state Senate are lower than they were in the House, where Democrats have a 46-19 majority and a bigger far-left flank. Gov. Jared Polis, also a Democrat, has indicated his wariness over such a ban. Last year, a similar bill died in committee, with some Democratic lawmakers citing concerns ov

EVs head for junkyard as mechanic shortage inflates repair costs in UK

Once there are more fully trained EV technicians, repair rather than replace becomes a more viable proposition, an expert said

Janet Yellen likely to reiterate warnings over China's manufacturing power

With its dominant voice in all of those forums, the US is expected to try to align other countries across Europe, Asia and Latin America to voice concerns over China's output and exports

US, UK to implement restrictions on trade of Russian-origin metals

The U.S. and U.K. will begin restricting the trade of new Russian-origin metals including aluminum, copper and nickel on global metal exchanges and in derivatives trading. The announcement is meant to follow up on the Group of Seven nations' commitment in February to reduce Russia's revenues from metals as its invasion into Ukraine has dragged on for more than two years. Russia is a key exporter of metals like aluminum, steel and titanium but British and American officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the announcement, said the economic impact from the ban would be negligible for consumers and producers. The intent is to limit Russia's revenues from metals, they say, as metals have earned the nation $40 billion in the past two years, according to British officials. Our new prohibitions on key metals, in coordination with our partners in the United Kingdom, will continue to target the revenue Russia can earn to continue its brutal war against Ukraine, said

Trump to be first ex-prez on criminal trial: All about the hush money case

Donald Trump will make history as the first former president to stand trial on criminal charges when his hush money case opens on Monday with jury selection. The case will force the presumptive Republican presidential nominee to juggle campaigning with sitting in a Manhattan courtroom for weeks to defend himself against charges involving a scheme to bury allegations of marital infidelity that arose during his first White House campaign in 2016. It carries enormous political ramifications as potentially the only one of four criminal cases against Trump that could reach a verdict before voters decide in November whether to send him back to the White House. Here's what to know about the hush money case and the charges against Trump: WHAT'S THIS CASE ABOUT? The former president is accused of falsifying internal Trump Organisation records as part of a scheme to bury damaging stories that he feared could hurt his 2016 campaign, particularly as Trump's reputation was suffering at the tim