Page 14 - Us President

Lindsay M Chervinsky's book explores how John Adams shaped US presidency

Chervinsky reminds us that Adams set important precedents in his failures as well as his triumphs

Hunter Biden's tax trial carries heavy emotional toll for president Biden

Hunter Biden's continued legal problems may no longer be a political concern for the president, but they're still very much a personal concern. President Joe Biden's son is already facing the prospect of prison time after his conviction on felony gun charges and is now confronting a second criminal trial in the case accusing him of dodging taxes on millions of dollars in income from foreign business entities. The trial could put a spotlight on Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings that Republicans have spent years scrutinising to accuse the Democratic president without evidence of corruption in connection with his son's work overseas. The potential political ramifications of the trial just weeks before the presidential election may have faded somewhat since President Biden's July decision to drop out of the 2024 race. But the president is deeply concerned with the well-being of his son, so the trial is likely to weigh heavily on him in the final months of his five-decade ...

US presidential campaigns prepare for intense sprint to Election Day

After a summer of historic tumult, the path to the presidency for both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump this fall is becoming much clearer. The Democratic vice president and the Republican former president will devote almost all of their remaining time and resources to just seven states. They will spend hundreds of millions of dollars targeting voters who, in many cases, have just begun to pay attention to the election. And their campaigns will try to focus their messages on three familiar issues the economy, immigration and abortion even in the midst of heated debates over character, culture and democracy. The candidates will debate in one week in what will be their first meeting ever. The nation's premier swing state, Pennsylvania, begins in-person absentee voting the week after. By the end of the month, early voting will be underway in at least four states with a dozen more to follow by mid-October. In just 63 days, the final votes will be cast to decide which one of them will le

'At War With Ourselves': A must-read for a potential second Trump term

At War With Ourselves serves as essential reading for anyone countenancing a potential second round of Trump as a global leader

SC denies Biden's plea to restore multibillion-dollar student debt plan

The Supreme Court on Wednesday kept on hold the latest multibillion-dollar student debt relief plan from the Biden administration, while multiple lawsuits make their way through lower courts. The justices rejected an administration request to put most of it back into effect. It was blocked by 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals. In an unsigned order, the court said it expects the appeals court to issue a fuller decision on the plan with appropriate dispatch. The Education Department is seeking to provide a faster path to loan cancellation, and reduce monthly income-based repayments from 10 per cent to 5 per cent of a borrower's discretionary income. The plan also wouldn't require borrowers to make payments if they earn less than 225 per cent of the federal poverty line USD 32,800 a year for a single person. Last year, the Supreme Court's conservative majority rejected an earlier plan that would have wiped away more than USD 400 billion in student loan debt. Cost estimates of the new

Never do anything half a**ed: Kamala Harris recalls Indian mother's advice

Kamala Harris becomes first woman of colour in the United States to officially become the Democratic Presidential nominee. Harris speaks on her mother and upbringing in her acceptance speech

Kamala Harris accepts historic nomination to start election sprint

Her challenge now is to harness the energy and excitement of a party reinvigorated by her rapid ascent.

V-P Harris all set to make acceptance speech at Democratic convention

Vice President Kamala Harris, in the most important speech of her political life, is expected to outline her personal story and give an optimistic vision for the future in a bid to persuade the American people to make her the first woman president of the country. Tonight, I think it will be one of the greatest speeches we're going to hear in this election season, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker told reporters here Thursday, hours ahead of a speech by Harris at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago where she accepts the presidential nomination, the second woman to do so for the Democratic Party. Harris, 59, is the first ever Indian-American and the first ever Black woman to be nominated on a major presidential ticket in the US, and she will take on Republican Party's Donald Trump in elections in November. Taking the stage at the United Center in Chicago to accept her nomination as the Democratic nominee, Harris, in her address, will share her personal story and her professiona

NY state urges appeals court to uphold Trump's $500 mn civil fraud judgment

New York state lawyers urged an appeals court late Wednesday to uphold Donald Trump's nearly USD 500 million civil fraud judgment, arguing there's overwhelming evidence to support a judge's finding that the former president lied for years about his wealth as he built his real estate empire. In paperwork filed ahead of oral arguments next month, New York Attorney General Letitia James' office said the current Republican nominee's appeal is awash in meritless legal arguments and ignores volumes of trial evidence showing that he and his co-defendants engaged in "fraud and illegality on an immense scale." On appeal, defendants tellingly ignore almost all their deceptions, Assistant Solicitor General Daniel S Magy wrote in a 168-page submission to the state's mid-level appeals court known as the Appellate Division. Trump, his company and top executives including his sons Eric and Donald Trump Jr created and used financial statements rife with blatant misrepresentations and omissions to .

Kamala will be a great president who we'll all be proud of: Husband

Kamala Harris will be a great president who entire America will be proud of, her husband Douglas Emhoff has said, as he talked about her strong character and empathy as well as their personal life to make a strong pitch for her. Emhoff, 59, introduced himself as the first-second gentleman to the cheering crowd at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday night. Emhoff highlighted their family and how he met Harris on the second day of the four-day convention in Chicago. He said that his wife rises to the occasion wherever she's needed and has done that for their family. And now that the country needs her, she's showing you what we already know. She is ready to lead, Emhoff said. Harris' stepson, Cole Emhoff, introduced his father in a video message. Both Cole and Doug Emhoff's participation highlights what Harris often describes as her blended family. Hello to my big, beautiful blended family up there. I love you so much, he said at the beginning of his remarks. He gave insi

'America, hope is making a comeback': Michelle Obama bats for Harris at DNC

Hope is making a comeback in America, former first lady Michelle Obama has said as she made an impassioned case for Kamala Harris and described her as the most qualified person ever to seek the office of the US president. Michelle, in her speech to the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday night, described Vice President Harris as a candidate who worked her way up from a middle-class background, drawing on lessons from the two women's late mothers. "America, Hope is making a comeback," Michelle, the wife of former president Barack Obama, said as she was given a rousing welcome by thousands of Democratic party leaders and workers from across the country for the national convention. Harris, 59, is scheduled to formally accept the Democratic Party's presidential nomination on Thursday to take on Republican rival Donald Trump, 78, in the November 5 election. Recollecting the death of her mother recently, Michelle, 60, said she was an inspiration for her and so was the mother of ...

Democrats eye disqualifying Kennedy, others from Georgia presidential polls

Challengers seeking to throw Robert F. Kennedy Jr. off Georgia's November ballot told a judge on Monday that the independent presidential candidate must be disqualified because the New York address he used on Georgia ballot access petitions is a "sham". It shows how a decision by a New York court last week finding Kennedy doesn't live at the address in the New York City suburbs is being used to attack Kennedy's ballot access in other states. The judge ruled Kennedy shouldn't appear on New York ballots, but Kennedy plans an appeal. In Georgia, challengers argue that because Kennedy used the New York address on petitions needed for an independent to qualify, his petitions should be voided. The court found, by clear and convincing evidence that petitioners had shown that his New York residence was a sham used for political purposes, lawyer Adam Sparks said after a Monday hearing in Atlanta. He doesn't live there. He claimed to on each and every sheet of his petition here in Georgia. ..

Democrats will honour Biden, pivot to Harris on convention's first day

A refreshed Democratic Party gathered Monday night for a valedictory speech from President Joe Biden, whose decision to end his reelection bid released newfound energy with Vice President Kamala Harris ' rise to the top of the ticket. The Democratic National Convention that began Monday in Chicago holds particularly high stakes for the party one month after an unprecedented mid-campaign switch from Biden to Harris. The opening night was designed as a handoff from the incumbent to his hand-picked successor albeit four years before he intended for her to follow him. Democrats are looking to the weeklong event to slingshot Harris toward an faceoff with Republican Donald Trump, whose comeback bid for the White House is viewed by Democrats as an existential threat. Having taken over the ticket just one month ago, Harris must now win over a divided country that is viewing her more positively but still making up its mind about the election. Beyond the convention's celebrations, the event

Republicans release initial impeachment inquiry report on President Biden

House Republicans have released their initial impeachment inquiry report into President Joe Biden, alleging an abuse of power and obstruction of justice in the financial dealings of his son Hunter Biden and family associates. The nearly yearlong inquiry by Republicans stops short of alleging any criminal wrongdoing by the president. Instead, the almost 300-page report out Monday ahead of the Democratic National Convention covers familiar ground, asserting the Biden family traded on its brand in business ventures in corrupt ways that rise to the Constitution's high bar for impeachment. With Biden no longer running for reelection, next steps are highly uncertain. House Republicans have not had support from their own ranks to actually impeach the president, and removal by the Senate is even further afield. Many Republicans prefer to focus attention on the Democratic Party's presumptive presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, with some probes getting underway. The White Hous

Harris, Trump offer worlds-apart views on top issues in presidential race

Vice President Kamala Harris has replaced President Joe Biden atop the presidential ticket, but his finish the job campaign mantra can still largely apply to her top policy goals. She's promising to continue a lot of what Biden was doing during the past four years if she's elected to four of her own. Former President Donald Trump, for his part, is itching to get back to the White House and accomplish what he didn't during his first term. Since Biden stepped down last month, the vice president has announced few major policy proposals beyond a new push to prevent price gouging by food producers and grocers and plans to cut taxes for families, attempt to bring down homebuying and rental prices and reduce medical debt. Harris also used a recent rally in Las Vegas, where the economy runs on the hospitality industry, to call for ending taxes on tips paid to restaurant, hotel and other service employees. That came more than a month after Trump used his own Las Vegas rally to promise the sam

Trump refuses to tone down his attacks on Harris, says entitled to do so

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has said he is "entitled" to personally attack his Democratic rival Kamala Harris because he doesn't "have a lot of respect for her", as he dismissed calls from allies to refocus his campaign on policy issues in his bid to reclaim the White House. Trump, 78, said he is "angry" at Vice President Harris, 59, over the Biden administration's handling of issues ranging from inflation to immigration. "I don't have a lot of respect for her. I don't have a lot of respect for her intelligence. I think she'll be a terrible president. I think it's very important that we win. And whether the personal attacks are good or bad she certainly attacks me personally," the former president told reporters at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey on Thursday. Trump was responding to questions from his party members urging him not to make personal attacks on Harris, who is the first woman of colour running for the presidency. "As far as the personal attac

Harris aims to blunt Trump's economic attacks by proposing new tax breaks

Vice President Kamala Harris is promoting a broad set of economic proposals that would offer new tax breaks and lower the cost of living for Americans, aiming to address the financial concerns that are at the top of the mind for voters and that Republican Donald Trump is trying to lay at her doorstep. Harris will be in the battleground state of North Carolina on Friday to lay out her plans, including a proposal for a federal ban on price gouging on groceries. She also is proposing $25,000 in down payment help for certain first-time homebuyers and tax incentives for builders of starter homes, among other things. Harris is calling for tax breaks aimed at families, as well as middle- and lower-income people. She would expand the child tax credit to up to $3,600 - and $6,000 for children in their first year of life. Harris would expand the earned income tax credit to cover people in lower-income jobs without children, which the campaign estimates would cut their effective tax rate by ...

Harris would be favourite to win if polls were held today: Washington Post

Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris would be the favourite to win the White House if polls were held today, The Washington Post has said, basing its conclusion on the results of its polling model. "Relative to the day that Biden dropped out, Harris has gained two percentage points nationally and, as of Sunday, leads in our national polling average. In swing states, she has gained an average of 2.1 points since June 21 and leads in 2 of 7 of them," the American daily said on Thursday. "It is no exaggeration to state that Harris would be the favorite to win the White House, according to our polling model, if the presidential contest were held today, it reported. According to the daily, Harris has taken the lead in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, and has substantially closed the gap in Michigan, where Trump now leads by less than one percentage point. "According to our polling model, Harris still trails Trump in the electoral college tally if the election were h

Biden, Harris make first joint appearance since his exit from prez race

Harris secured her party's nomination for president, earning the support of 99 per cent of the 4,567 delegates who cast ballots at the Democratic National Convention recently

Dropped out of Presidential race to avoid becoming a distraction: Biden

US President Joe Biden on Sunday said that he decided to withdraw from the presidential election because he did not want to create "a real distraction" for the Democrats and let them fully concentrate on preventing former president Donald Trump from regaining the White House. In his first interview since ending his re-election campaign on July 21, Biden said that he had "no serious problem" with his health, but added that the highest priority had to be defeating former President Trump. "We must, we must, we must defeat Trump," Biden told CBS Sunday Morning in an interview. "The polls we had showed that it was a neck-and-neck race, would have been down to the wire. But what happened was, a number of my Democratic colleagues in the House and Senate thought that I was gonna hurt them in the races," he said. "I was concerned if I stayed in the race, that would be the topic. You'd be interviewing me about 'Why did Nancy Pelosi say' 'Why did so-and-so' And I thought it'd be a real ...