Page 49 - Us Government

$454 mn judgment against Donald Trump finalised in civil fraud case

The staggering civil fraud judgment against Donald Trump was finalised in New York on Friday, making official a verdict that leaves the former president on the hook for more than USD 454 million in fines and interest. The procedural step by the New York county clerk starts the clock on Trump's appeals process, while allowing the debt to begin racking up post-judgment interest of nearly USD 112,000 each day, according to a spokesperson for New York Attorney General Letitia James, who brought the case. In his February 16 ruling, Judge Arthur Engoron ruled that Trump lied for years about his wealth in order to secure favourable loans and make deals that helped prop up his real estate empire. He was ordered to pay USD 354.9 million in penalties plus nearly USD 100 million in interest. The formalised verdict gives Trump a 30-day window to appeal, which he has vowed to do. Within that same time frame, he must deposit sufficient funds in a court-controlled account or secure a bond for the

Global commons getting 'contested', admirals pitch for strong partnerships

Underlining that global commons are getting "contested", top admirals from the UK, France and the US on Friday pitched for forging partnership between like-minded nations to respond to ongoing crises in the world, provide stability, reduce risks and restore confidence. Navy Chief Adm R Hari Kumar; Adm Sir Ben Key, First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff, the UK; Adm John C Aquilino, Commander, US Indo-Pacific Command; Adm Nicolas Vaujour, Chief of the Naval Staff, France; and Air Marshal Robert Chipman, Chief of the Air Force, Australia took part in a panel discussion titled 'From the Aegean Sea to the South China Sea: Responding to Maritime Sieges', held at the Raisina Dialogue here. "If you can see what is happening in the South China Sea, and Red Sea where people are seeking to impose their will on the global commons... then that ripple will be felt far and wide, and not just in that point. And, this is what separates the maritime environment from the land environment," Adm Key ..

In support of IVF Trump calls on Alabama lawmakers to protect access

Former President Donald Trump said Friday that he would "strongly support the availability of IVF" and called on lawmakers in Alabama to preserve access to the treatment that has become a new flashpoint in the 2024 presidential election. It was his first comment since an Alabama Supreme Court ruling that led some providers in the state to suspend their in vitro fertilization programs and has left Republicans divided over the issue. Trump, in a post on his Truth Social network, said: "Under my leadership, the Republican Party will always support the creation of strong, thriving, healthy American families. We want to make it easier for mothers and fathers to have babies, not harder!" The all-Republican Alabama Supreme Court, among the nation's most conservative judicial panels, ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law. Since then, some Alabama clinics and hospitals, including the University of Alabama at Birmingham health system, have announced pauses on IV

Donald Trump asks US judge to dismiss charges over handling of documents

Trump pleaded not guilty to the charges and claims all the cases against him are part of a Democratic-led "witch hunt" to keep him from returning to office

Ukraine war: US to impose sanctions on over 500 targets in Russia action

The new penalties come as the US and its allies look to maintain pressure on Russia, despite doubts over whether the US Congress will approve additional security assistance for Kyiv

Why it took the US more than half a century to get back on the moon

The biggest hurdle may have been the 21st century engineers and companies with little or no moonshot experience

Stalled US aid for Ukraine shows GOP's shift away from confronting Russia

At about 2 a.m. last Tuesday, Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin stood on the Senate floor and explained why he opposed sending more aid to help Ukraine fend off the invasion launched in 2022 by Russian President Vladimir Putin. I don't like this reality," Johnson said. Vladimir Putin is an evil war criminal. But he quickly added: Vladimir Putin will not lose this war. That argument that the Russian president cannot be stopped so there's no point in using American taxpayer dollars against him marks a new stage in the Republican Party's growing acceptance of Russian expansionism in the age of Donald Trump. The GOP has been softening its stance on Russia ever since Trump won the 2016 election following Russian hacking of his Democratic opponents. There are several reasons for the shift. Among them, Putin is holding himself out as an international champion of conservative Christian values and the GOP is growing increasingly sceptical of overseas entanglements. Then there's ...

US electoral financing based on pvt fundraising, transparency: Top official

America's electoral financing system is based on private fundraising and emphasis on transparency, with a candidate allowed to accept up to USD 3,300 from any individual while the limit for party committees is USD 41,300, according to a top US Federal Election Commission official. Ellen L Weintraub, Vice Chair of the US's Federal Election Commission, spoke to PTI in an interview taken following the recent landmark ruling by India's Supreme Court to scrap the central government's electoral bonds scheme of anonymous political funding, calling it "unconstitutional" and ordering disclosure of the bond's donors, amount and recipients by March 13. We have a system that is based on private fundraising, but public transparency. Most of the money is raised privately, but it does have to be disclosed on a regular basis, Weintraub said. The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is the independent regulatory agency charged with administering and enforcing the federal campaign finance law. The FEC,

Highlights of the day: Investments are inclined towards India, says FM

From Bihar govt launching a probe into Tejashwi Yadav's dept to Intel discussing financial support with US govt, catch all the latest updates from around the world

Highlights of the day: Investments are inclined towards India, says FM

From Bihar govt launching a probe into Tejashwi Yadav's dept to Intel discussing financial support with US govt, catch all the latest updates from around the world

US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Verma to visit India next week

United States' Indian-American Deputy Secretary of State Richard Verma will be on a six-day long official visit to India, Sri Lanka and Maldives next week to strengthen bilateral ties with the nations, along with reaffirming America's enduring commitment to a free, open, secure, and prosperous region. Verma, who is currently the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources, and the second senior post in the State Department, will travel to India, Maldives, and Sri Lanka from February 18-23 to strengthen America's cooperation with each of these key Indo-Pacific partners. Shortly following the two-year anniversary of the US Indo-Pacific Strategy, his trip will reaffirm the United States' enduring commitment to a free, open, secure, and prosperous region, a media release said. In New Delhi, Verma will meet with senior government officials, business leaders, and entrepreneurs to advance the US-Indian global strategic partnership on a full range of issues, including economic ..

US House passes Quad bill to facilitate closer cooperation between members

The US House of Representatives has passed the Quad bill which instructs the Biden administration to establish a Quad Intra-Parliamentary Working Group to facilitate closer cooperation between the US, Australia, India and Japan. Passed by a roll call vote of 379 to 39 votes, the Strengthen US-Australia-India-Japan Cooperation' or the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) bill says that the joint cooperation between the US, Australia, India and Japan should be strengthened. It directs the State Department to submit to Congress, within 180 days of the bill's enactment, a strategy to increase engagement and cooperation with the Quad, and within 60 days of its enactment, to enter into negotiations with Japan, Australia and India to establish a Quad Intra-Parliamentary Working Group to facilitate closer cooperation. It also would establish a US group, which would have a maximum of 24 members of Congress, to represent the US in the working group. It also would establish guidelines for ..

Trump wants to fire thousands of govt workers, liberals prepare for his win

Former President Donald Trump has plans to radically reshape the federal government if he returns to the White House, from promising to deport millions of immigrants in the U.S. illegally to abolishing government agencies and firing tens of thousands of workers and replacing them with loyalists. Liberal organizations in Washington are backing President Joe Biden and say they expect Trump to lose. But they're quietly trying to install roadblocks just in case. A collection of activists, advocates and legal experts is promoting new federal rules to limit presidential power while urging Biden's White House to do more to protect his accomplishments and limit Trump in a possible second term. All of that is happening with far less fanfare than plans by Trump supporters to create a conservative government-in-waiting via an effort known as Project 2025. The Office of Personnel Management, the federal government's chief human resources agency, will finalize a rule by April against reclassifyi

Pakistan polls: Imran Khan calls on US to raise voice over transparency

Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has accused the US of not fulfilling responsibility against the anti-Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) measures in Pakistan

White House writes to WHCA over inaccurate reporting by major media outlets

In a rare move, the White House Counsel's Office has written to the White House Correspondents Association expressing concern over the striking inaccuracies in the reporting of several US media outlets on the recent release of a Special Counsel report on the handling of classified documents by President Joe Biden as a private citizen. In the letter addressed to WHCA president Kelly O'Donnell from NBC News, White House Counsel's Office spokesman Ian Sams listed out the alleged factual inaccuracies in the reporting of several American media outlets, including CNN, CBS News, the Associated Press, Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times. Sams also asked that the letter be distributed through WHCA's email chain that goes out to its members and journalists. The WHCA, however, refused to share the letter through its platform. It is inappropriate for the White House to utilise internal pool distribution channels, primarily for logistics and the rapid sharing of need-to-know information,

US company's lunar lander rockets to attempt landing on moon next week

Another private US company took a shot at the moon on Thursday, launching a month after a rival's lunar lander missed its mark and came crashing back. NASA, the main sponsor with experiments on board, is hoping for a successful moon landing next week as it seeks to jumpstart the lunar economy ahead of astronaut missions. SpaceX's Falcon rocket blasted off in the middle of the night from NASA's Kennedy Space Centre, dispatching Intuitive Machines' lunar lander on its way to the moon, 230,000 miles (370,000 kilometres) away. If all goes well, a touchdown attempt would occur on February 22, after a day in lunar orbit. Only five countries the US, Russia, China, India and Japan have scored a lunar landing and no private business has yet done so. The US has not returned to the moon's surface since the Apollo program ended more than five decades ago. There have been a lot of sleepless nights getting ready for this, Intuitive Machines' co-founder and chief executive Steve Altemus said ..

3 officers shot in Washington, results in standoff before suspect's arrest

Three police officers were shot trying to make an animal cruelty arrest that touched off an hours-long standoff in the nation's capitol on Wednesday, which ended late at night with a man's arrest. The officers were hospitalised and expected to recover from gunshot wounds, authorities said. A fourth officer was hurt at the scene, but not shot. The standoff started Wednesday morning as officers attempted to make an arrest on an animal cruelty warrant, but the suspect refused to leave the home, Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith said. As officers tried to get inside, a person opened fire. The shooter barricaded himself inside his home in the southeast part of Washington and continued sporadically firing shots hours after opening fire, police said. Hours after the standoff began, 46-year-old Julius James was arrested on suspicion of cruelty to animals. He is expected to face additional charges related to the shooting. No attorney or phone number was listed for him in pub

Australian lawmakers pass motion calling for release of WikiLeaks founder

Australia's House of Representatives has ramped up pressure on the United States and Britain to end the prosecution of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange by passing a motion calling for the Australian citizen to be allowed to return to his home country. Independent lawmaker Andrew Wilkie moved the motion on Wednesday one week ahead of Britain's High Court of Justice hearing Assange's appeal against extradition to the United States on espionage charges. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was among the 86 lawmakers who voted for the motion that called on the United States and Britain to bring the "matter to a close so that Mr. Assange can return home to his family in Australia. The motion was opposed by 42 lawmakers including most of the main opposition party that unsuccessfully proposed amendments. Leaders of both the government and the opposition have publicly stated that the United States' pursuit of the 52-year-old had dragged on for too long. Assange has been in London's

Army chief holds high-level professional discussions with US counterpart

Indian Army chief Gen Manoj Pande has held high-level professional discussions with his American counterpart Gen Randy George and other senior military officials on matters of bilateral importance and ways to enhance mutual commitment towards global peace and security. Pande, who is on a four-day official visit to the US beginning February 13, is the first Indian Army chief to visit the country in several years. The discussions were aimed at aspects of bilateral importance and further enhancing mutual commitment towards global peace and security, according to an official post on X by the Additional Directorate General of Public Information of the Indian Army. During his ongoing official visit, Gen Pande reviewed the US Army Honour Guard on arrival at Fort Myers and thereafter, in a solemn ceremony, paid respect by laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arlington National Cemetery. Thereafter he engaged in high-level professional discussions with the Chief of Staf

Russian efforts to create anti-satellite weapons are cause for US concern

The US has gathered highly sensitive intelligence about Russian anti-satellite weapons that has been shared in recent weeks with the upper echelons of government, according to four people who have been briefed on the intelligence. The people, who were not authorised to comment publicly, said the capability was not yet operational. The intelligence sparked an urgent but vague warning Wednesday from the Republican head of the House Intelligence Committee, who urged the Biden administration to declassify information about what he called a serious national security threat. Rep. Mike Turner gave no details about the nature of the threat, and the Biden administration also declined to address it. But several leading lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, cautioned against being overly alarmed. A congressional aide said he understood that the threat relates to a space-deployed Russian anti-satellite weapon. Such a weapon could pose a major danger to U.S. satellites that transmit .