Tag: United States

Trump national security adviser Waltz is out in a major staff shake-up after his Signal chat blunder

WASHINGTON (AP) — White House national security adviser Mike Waltz is leaving the Trump administration just weeks after it was revealed he added a journalist to a Signal chat being used to discuss military plans. That’s according to two people familiar with the matter. Thursday’s development marks the first major staff shake-up of President Donald Trump’s second term. Waltz came under scrutiny in March after revelations he added journalist Jeffrey Goldberg to a private text chain on the encrypted messaging app Signal, which was used to discuss planning for a March 15 military operation against Houthi militants in Yemen. Waltz served in the House representing Florida for three terms before his elevation to the White House.… Continue Reading

Roberts might hold key Supreme Court vote over first publicly funded religious charter school

WASHINGTON (AP) — Chief Justice John Roberts appears to hold the key vote over whether the Supreme Court will allow the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school, in Oklahoma. Roberts was the only justice whose vote seemed in doubt after the court heard more than two hours of arguments Wednesday in a major culture-war clash involving the separation of church and state. Four other conservative justices seemed firmly on the side of the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School and the state charter school board that approved it. The three liberal justices seemed just as likely to vote to affirm an Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling that held that the taxpayer-funded school would entangle church and state in violation of the First Amendment.… Continue Reading

Wisconsin high court suspends Milwaukee judge accused of helping man evade immigration authorities

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Supreme Court has suspended a judge accused of helping a man evade immigration authorities. The FBI took Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan into custody on Friday morning at the county courthouse. She faces federal charges of concealing an individual to prevent his discovery and arrest and obstructing or impeding a proceeding. The state Supreme Court issued a two-page order Tuesday noting that Dugan faces two federal charges and saying it is in the public interest to temporarily relieve her of her duties. Her attorney had no immediate comment. Democrats have accused the Trump administration of trying to chill the nation’s judiciary.… Continue Reading

Trump marks his first 100 days in office in campaign mode, focused on grudges and grievances

WARREN, Mich. (AP) — President Donald Trump has celebrated the 100th day of his second term — yet spent much of his rally marking it in campaign mode, fixated on past grudges and grievances. He repeatedly mocked his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, at Tuesday’s rally — attacking Biden’s mental acuity and even how he appears in a bathing suit. He again uttered the lie that he won the 2020 presidential election. And he attacked polling and news coverage not favorable to him. And the rally just outside Detroit, which marked Trump’s largest political event since returning to the White House, glossed over two forces that had rocked the state: his steep trade tariffs and combative attitude toward Canada.… Continue Reading

How bugs and beet juice could play roles in the race to replace artificial dyes in food

ST. LOUIS (AP) — U.S. health officials are pushing to get artificial colors out of the nation’s food supply. Sensient Technologies Corp. is one of the world’s largest dyemakers. The company has seen a surge in businesses rushing to covert their products from synthetic to natural colors. The process to change from petroleum-based dyes to colors made from vegetables, fruits, flowers and even insects won’t be cheap or easy. Health advocates have long called for the removal of the dyes. They cite mixed evidence that the colors are linked to behavior problems and obesity in kids.… Continue Reading

Judges blocks Trump push to cut funding to public schools over diversity programs

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration’s guidance forbidding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in K-12 public schools. The ruling Thursday came in a lawsuit brought by National Education Association and the American Civil Liberties Union. In February, the Education Department told schools and colleges they needed to end any practice that differentiates people based on their race or they were at risk of losing their federal funding. The department ordered states to gather signatures from local school systems certifying compliance with civil rights laws, including the rejection of what the federal government calls “illegal DEI practices.”… Continue Reading

US election officials question agency about Trump’s order overhauling election operations

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — State and local election officials from around the country in North Carolina have questioned the leaders of a federal agency tasked by President Donald Trump with implementing parts of his sweeping election overhaul executive order, with some expressing concerns about the consequences for voters and the people in charge of voting. Whether the Republican president can order an independent agency to act and whether the commission has the authority to do what Trump wants will likely be settled in court. The commission is an independent federal agency and is at the center of Trump’s March 25 order that directs the commission to update the national voter registration form to include a proof-of-citizenship requirement and revise guidelines for voting systems.… Continue Reading

Alito’s dissent in deportation case says court rushed to block Trump with middle-of-the night order

WASHINGTON (AP) — Justice Samuel Alito has written a sharp dissent that castigates the seven-member majority for blocking the Trump administration from deporting any Venezuelans held in northern Texas under an 18th-century wartime law. The dissent was released Saturday night, hours after the court’s intervention against the Republican administration. Alito says the Supreme Court acted “literally in the middle of the night” and without sufficient explanation. Alito says there was “dubious factual support” for granting the request in an emergency appeal from the American Civil Liberties Union. That group contends that immigration authorities appeared to be moving to restart such removals under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798.… Continue Reading

A look at the universities with federal funding targeted by the Trump administration

Harvard University has joined the growing list of institutions targeted by the Trump administration for federal funding cuts. Seven universities have been faced with cuts so far. Six of them are Ivy League schools. The Trump administration has increasingly used funding cuts as a tool to influence campus policies to comply with his political agenda. Most universities were targeted due to allegations of antisemitism on campuses after a wave of pro-Palestinian protests last year. Trump’s strategy was mostly successful at Columbia University after the institution agreed to several of the administration’s demands.… Continue Reading

El Salvador President Bukele says he won’t be releasing a Maryland man back to the US

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s top advisers and El Salvador president Nayib Bukele say that they have no basis for the small Central American nation to return a Maryland man who was wrongly deported there last month. Trump administration officials are emphasizing that Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was sent to a notorious gang prison in El Salvador, was a citizen of that country and that U.S. has no say in his future. And Bukele, who has been a vital partner for the Trump administration in its deportation efforts, said “of course” he won’t release him back to U.S. soil. The Supreme Court has called for the Trump administration to “facilitate” the return of Abrego Garcia to the U.S.… Continue Reading

Tag Archives: United States