Page 7 - Us Government

US adds five more products to high-priority list under Uyghur labour law

The new products include steel, copper, lithium, caustic soda, and red dates, all of which are now under heightened scrutiny for links to forced labour

Intel shares rise 4% on report of possible US government stake purchase

Trump, who called the meeting "very interesting", has taken an unprecedented approach to interventions and deal-making with corporate America

DC residents protest as WH says federal agents will be on patrol 24/7

Residents in one Washington DC neighborhood lined up Wednesday to protest the increased police presence after the White House said the number of National Guard troops in the nation's capital would ramp up and federal officers would be the streets around the clock. After law enforcement set up a vehicle checkpoint along the busy 14th Street Northwest corridor, hecklers shouted, Go home, fascists and Get off our streets. Some protesters stood at the intersection before the checkpoint and urged drivers to turn away from it. The action intensified a few days after President Donald Trump's unprecedented announcement that his administration would take over the city's police department for at least a month. The city's Democratic mayor walked a political tightrope, referring to the takeover as an authoritarian push at one point and later framing the infusion of officers as boost to public safety, though one with few specific barometers for success. The Republican president has said crime i

Nvidia, AMD China revenue deal could be model for others, says Bessent

Asked about reporting that China is urging its companies to avoid the Nvidia H20 processors now allowed for its market, Bessent said "sure, we can discuss that" with the Chinese

Hindu temple desecrated in US, Indian consulate calls act 'reprehensible'

The signboard of a Hindu temple was defaced in the US city of Indiana, an incident described by the Indian consulate as "reprehensible". The "hateful act" took place at the BAPS Swaminarayan Temple in Greenwood city, the temple's official public affairs account said in an X post on Tuesday. This was the fourth time in less than a year that a BAPS temple has been targeted, it said. The Indian Consulate in Chicago took strong note of the act and called it "reprehensible". "Desecration of main signboard of the BAPS Swaminarayan Temple in Greenwood, Indiana is reprehensible," it said in an X post, adding that it has raised the matter with the law enforcement authorities for "prompt action". It added that the consul general also addressed a gathering of devotees and local leadership including the Mayor of Greenwood, "calling for unity & solidarity, and vigilance against miscreants there." The temple administration in its post also said that the act has "strengthened our community's ..

US national debt reaches record $37 trillion, Treasury Department reports

The US government's gross national debt has surpassed USD37 trillion, a record number that highlights the accelerating debt on America's balance sheet and increased cost pressures on taxpayers. The USD37 trillion update is found in the latest Treasury Department report issued Tuesday which logs the nation's daily finances. The national debt eclipsed USD37 trillion years sooner than pre-pandemic projections. The Congressional Budget Office's January 2020 projections had gross federal debt eclipsing USD37 trillion after fiscal year 2030. But the debt grew faster than expected because of a multi-year COVID-19 pandemic starting in 2020 that shut down much of the U.S. economy, where the federal government borrowed heavily under then-President Donald Trump and former President Joe Biden to stabilise the national economy and support a recovery. And now, more government spending has been approved after Trump signed into law Republicans' tax cut and spending legislation earlier this year. Th

Trump admin calls out human rights records of countries accepting deportees

The Trump administration on Tuesday released human rights reports for countries worldwide, which eliminate mentions of discrimination faced by LGBTQ people, reduce a previous focus on reproductive rights and criticise restrictions on political speech by US allies in Europe that American officials believe target right-wing politicians. The reports, which cover 2024 before President Donald Trump took office, reflect his administration's focus on free speech and protecting the lives of the unborn. However, the reports also offer a glimpse into the administration's view of dire human rights conditions in some countries that have agreed to accept migrants deported from the United States under Trump's immigration crackdown. This year's reports were streamlined for better utility and accessibility in the field and by partners, the State Department said. The congressionally mandated reports in the past have been frequently used for reference and cited by lawmakers, policymakers, academic ..

Nvidia, AMD to pay 15% of China chip sale revenue to US, says report

The deal to pay the US government from sales in China is unusual for a president, and marks Trump's latest intervention in corporate decision-making

William Webster, only person to lead both FBI and CIA, dies at 101

Appointed judge by Nixon, FBI chief by Carter, and CIA head by Reagan, Webster was retained by George HW Bush until his retirement in 1991

Epstein's ex Ghislaine Maxwell moved to a low-security Texas prison camp

Jeffrey Epstein's former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, has been moved from a federal prison in Florida to a prison camp in Texas as her criminal case generates renewed public attention. The federal Bureau of Prisons said Friday that Maxwell had been transferred to Bryan, Texas, but did not explain the circumstances. Her attorney, David Oscar Markus, also confirmed the move but declined to discuss the reasons for it. Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of luring teenage girls to be sexually abused by the disgraced financier, and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. She had been held at a low-security prison in Tallahassee, Florida, until her transfer to the prison camp in Texas, where other inmates include Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes and Jen Shah of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City. Minimum-security federal prison camps house inmates the Bureau of Prisons considers to be the lowest security risk. Some don't even have fences. The prison camps were originally designed with low .

Columbia Sportswear sues Columbia Univ over confusingly similar merchandise

For decades, T-shirts, sweatshirts and other clothing under the Columbia Sportswear brand and clothing emblazoned with the Columbia University name coexisted more or less peacefully without confusion. But now, the Portland-based outdoor retailer has sued the New York-based university over alleged trademark infringement and a breach of contract, among other charges. It claims that the university's merchandise looks too similar to what's being sold at more than 800 retail locations, including more than 150 of its branded stores, as well as its website and third-party marketplaces. In a lawsuit filed July 23 in the US District Court for the District of Oregon, Columbia Sportswear, whose roots date back to 1938, alleges that the university intentionally violated an agreement the parties signed on June 13, 2023. That agreement dictated how the university could use the word Columbia on its own apparel. As part of the pact, the university could feature Columbia on its merchandise provided

Iraq's PM Al-Sudani seeks closer US ties while keeping armed groups at bay

The prime minister of Iraq has kept his country on the sidelines as military conflicts raged nearby for almost two years. This required balancing Iraq's relations with two countries vital to his power and enemies with each other: the US and Iran. The feat became especially difficult last month when war broke out between Israel, a US ally, and Iran and the US struck Iranian nuclear sites. Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said he used a mix of political and military pressure to stop armed groups aligned with Iran from entering the fray. In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, Al-Sudani explains how he did this, how he plans to keep these groups in check going forward and as he seeks a second term why he wants to get closer to the Trump administration, even as he maintains strong ties to Iran-backed political parties that helped propel him to power in 2022. Staying on the sidelines as Israel and Iran traded blows After Israel launched airstrikes on Iran and it responded by firi

US data experts unite to save public statistics amid political interference

The data nerds are fighting back. After watching data sets be altered or disappear from U.S. government websites in unprecedented ways after President Donald Trump began his second term, an army of outside statisticians, demographers and computer scientists have joined forces to capture, preserve and share data sets, sometimes clandestinely. Their goal is to make sure they are available in the future, believing that democracy suffers when policymakers don't have reliable data and that national statistics should be above partisan politics. There are such smart, passionate people who care deeply about not only the Census Bureau, but all the statistical agencies, and ensuring the integrity of the statistical system. And that gives me hope, even during these challenging times, Mary Jo Mitchell, director of government and public affairs for the research nonprofit the Population Association of America, said this week during an online public data-users conference. The threats to the U.S.

US, Mexico sign accord to combat Tijuana River sewage flowing across border

The United States and Mexico have signed an agreement outlining specific steps and a new timetable to clean up the longstanding problem of the Tijuana River pouring sewage across the border and polluting California beaches, officials from both countries announced Thursday. Billions of gallons of sewage and toxic chemicals from Tijuana have polluted the Pacific Ocean off neighboring Southern California, closing beaches and sickening Navy SEALs who train in the water. That's despite multiple efforts and millions of dollars that have been poured into addressing the problem over decades, including under the first Trump administration. There is a great commitment by the two countries to strengthen cooperation, Mexico's Environmental Secretary Alicia Brcena said Thursday after meeting with Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin in Mexico City for the signing of the memorandum of understanding. The accord comes three months after Zeldin flew to San Diego to meet with ...

Trump signs executive order banning 'woke AI' in federal government use

Citing threats to trust and accuracy, Trump orders agencies to use only AI models that are 'truthful, ideologically neutral', and free from 'DEI-driven distortions'

US court finds Trump's push to end birthright citizenship unconstitutional

A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that President Donald Trump's order seeking to end birthright citizenship is unconstitutional, affirming a lower-court decision that blocked its enforcement nationwide. The ruling from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals comes after the push was also blocked by a federal judge in New Hampshire, and puts the issue one step closer to quickly coming back before the Supreme Court.

At least 13 held, including journalists, in Cincinnati immigration protest

Police in Cincinnati arrested at least 13 people, including two journalists, after demonstrators protesting the immigration detention of a former hospital chaplain blocked a two-lane bridge carrying traffic over the Ohio River. A reporter and a photography intern who were arrested while covering the protest for CityBeat, a Cincinnati news and entertainment outlet, were among those arraigned Friday morning in a Kentucky court. Other journalists reporting on protests around the US have been have arrested and injured this year. More than two dozen were hurt or roughed up while covering protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles. A Spanish-language journalist was arrested in June while covering a No Kings protest near Atlanta. Police initially charged Mario Guevara, a native of El Salvador, with unlawful assembly, obstruction of police and being a pedestrian on or along the roadway. A prosecutor dropped the charges, but Guevara had already been turned over to U.S. Immigration an

Trump won't recommend special counsel in Epstein case, says spokeswoman

President Donald Trump will not recommend a special counsel in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation, a White House spokeswoman has said, turning aside calls for further action in an inquiry that has roiled the Justice Department and angered supporters who had been expecting a treasure trove of documents from the case. The rejection of a special counsel is part of an effort by the White House to turn the page from continued outrage from corners of Trump's base over the Justice Department's refusal last week to release additional records from the investigation into Epstein, a well-connected and wealthy financier who killed himself in jail in 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. Officials also said Epstein did not maintain a much-hyped "client list" and said the evidence was clear he had died by suicide despite conspiracy theories to the contrary. Trump on Wednesday sought to clamp down on criticism from his own supporters about his administration's handling of the ...

Trump checked for lower leg swelling, diagnosed with common vein condition

President Donald Trump recently underwent a medical checkup after noticing "mild swelling" in his lower legs and was found to have a condition common in older adults that causes blood to pool in his veins, the White House has said. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Thursday that tests by the White House medical unit showed that Trump has chronic venous insufficiency, which occurs when little valves inside the veins that normally help move blood against gravity gradually lose the ability to work properly. Leavitt also addressed bruising on the back of Trump's hand, seen in recent photos covered by makeup that was not an exact match to his skin tone. She said the bruising was "consistent" with irritation from his "frequent handshaking and the use of aspirin". Trump takes aspirin to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. She said during her press briefing that her disclosure of Trump's medical checkup was meant to dispel recent speculation about the 79-year-old president's

Justice dept fires Maurene Comey, prosecutor on Diddy, Epstein cases

The Justice Department has fired Maurene Comey, the daughter of former FBI director James Comey and a prosecutor in the federal cases against Sean "Diddy" Combs and Jeffrey Epstein, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. There was no specific reason given for her firing from the US attorney's office in the Southern District of New York, according to one of the people who spoke to the AP on Wednesday on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters. Her termination comes shortly after she prosecuted Combs, who was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges. The rapper was convicted of lesser prostitution-related offences. The Justice Department recently appeared to acknowledge the existence of an investigation into James Comey, though the basis for that inquiry is unclear. He was abruptly fired by Trump during his first administration in 2017.