Politics Election category, Page 53
Zelenskyy calls Oval Office spat with Trump ‘regrettable,’ says he’s ready to work for peace
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday the Oval Office blowup with U.S. President Donald Trump last week was “regrettable,” adding that he stands ready to work under Trump’s “strong leadership” to get a lasting peace. Zelenskyy’s remarks — an apparent attempt to placate Trump — came in...
Treasury ends enforcement of business ownership database meant to stop shell company formation
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Treasury Department announced it will not enforce a Biden-era small business rule intended to curb money laundering and shell company formation. In a Sunday evening announcement, Treasury said in a news release that it will not impose penalties now or in the future if companies fail...
Senate confirms Linda McMahon to lead Education Department as Trump pushes to shut it down
WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Monday to confirm former wrestling executive Linda McMahon as the nation’s education chief, a role that places her atop a department that President Donald Trump has vilified and vowed to dismantle. McMahon will face the competing tasks of winding down the Education Department while also...
Ukrainian supporters rally in Pittsburgh after Trump’s contentious meeting with Zelenskyy
Monday’s lunch hour in Downtown Pittsburgh featured a sea of blue and yellow as rallygoers gathered on Grant Street to support Ukraine in the wake of President Donald Trump’s contentious meeting Friday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House. Chants of “Ukrainians and Zelenskyy proud and true, the...
Vaccine critic RFK Jr. backs measles shot amid deadly Texas outbreak
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. publicly backed the measles vaccine amid an outbreak of the disease in Texas that has already killed one child. The 71-year-old vaccine skeptic had previously criticized the immunization and called the outbreak “not unusual” last week, even though the child was the first person...
Trump says 25% tariffs on Mexican, Canadian imports will start Tuesday, with ‘no room’ for delayVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Monday that 25% taxes on imports from Mexico and Canada would start Tuesday, sparking renewed fears of a North American trade war that already showed signs of pushing up inflation and hindering growth. “Tomorrow — tariffs 25% on Canada and 25% on Mexico. And...
Wisconsin audit of Trump win finds not a single voting machine error
MADISON, Wis. — An audit of the November election won by President Donald Trump in swing-state Wisconsin found that not a single vote was counted incorrectly, altered or missed by tabulating machines. The audit also found no evidence that any voting machine or software had been hacked or otherwise tampered...
Trump sends crypto prices on a short-lived surge after announcement of strategic government reserve
Cryptocurrency prices briefly jumped after President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement he wants the U.S. government to purchase and hold a variety of digital assets in a strategic reserve fund, an announcement that highlights Trump’s growing attempts to use volatile cryptocurrency prices as a barometer of his public support. Trump said...
Republicans once maligned Medicaid. Now some see a program too big to touch
WASHINGTON — Every time a baby is born in Louisiana, where Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson handily won reelection last year, there’s more than a 60% chance taxpayers will finance the birth through Medicaid. In Republican Rep. David Valadao’s central California district, 6 out of 10 people use Medicaid to...
Trump’s past speeches to Congress asked them to pass his agenda. Now, he’s willing to go it alone
WASHINGTON — Judging by his past speeches to Congress, President Donald Trump once felt the need to ask lawmakers to pass his agenda. Not so much anymore. Trump, who is addressing Congress on Tuesday night, has asserted his authority to reshape the federal government without needing to consult the legislative...
Trump’s speech to Congress comes as he wields vast power almost daring lawmakers, courts to stop him
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump arrives this week on Capitol Hill to deliver a speech to Congress, a coequal branch of government he has bulldozed past this first month in office, wielding unimaginable executive power to get what he wants, at home and abroad. The Tuesday night address will unfold...
How to watch the 1st joint address to Congress of Trump’s 2nd term
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday night will deliver the first joint congressional address of his second presidency. It’s not officially called the State of the Union, a title reserved for a president’s annual address to Congress during other years of an administration. But it is an opportunity for...
Pa. GOP House members vote for measure that could cut Medicaid, threaten care for constituents
Pennsylvania faces billions in Medicaid and other health funding cuts, which could force tens of thousands out of programs, under a budget resolution approved by Congressional Republicans, according to opposition groups. The Center for American Progress (CAP) and Commonwealth Communications’ PA Accountability Hub, both left-leaning outfits, have criticized Republican U.S....
Crowds protest near Vermont ski resort where JD Vance planned vacation with family
WAITSFIELD, Vt. — Crowds protesting Vice President JD Vance the day after an Oval Office blowout over Ukraine lined roadways Saturday near a Vermont ski resort where he planned a weekend vacation with his family. Many of the hundreds of demonstrators held signs in support of Ukraine, while other anti-war...
Pennsylvania Republicans who narrowly won their House seats feel the heat of early votes back home
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Newly minted U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan swore he wouldn’t support gutting government benefits such as Medicaid that residents of his northeastern Pennsylvania district rely on. Then the first-term Republican voted for a bill that could do just that. Bresnahan and two other Pennsylvania Republicans won in November...
The Pentagon is sending about 3,000 more active-duty troops to the US-Mexico border
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon is sending about 3,000 more active-duty troops to the U.S.-Mexico border as President Donald Trump seeks to clamp down on illegal immigration and fulfill a central promise of his campaign, U.S. officials said Saturday. His defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has ordered elements of a Stryker brigade...
Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo launches political comeback with a run for New York City mayor
NEW YORK — Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Saturday that he is running for mayor of New York City, relaunching his political career following a yearslong exile over a barrage of sexual harassment accusations. In a 17-minute video announcing his campaign, Cuomo pitched himself as an accomplished moderate...
From Cabinet secretary to doomsday president: What being a designated survivor is like
WASHINGTON — They start the day often as low-profile Cabinet secretaries. They end it that way, too, God willing. But, when the rest of the government is gathered together for a big event, like President Donald Trump ‘s joint congressional address Tuesday night, a designated survivor is kept away to...
Trump cutoff of humanitarian parole for immigrants from Ukraine, 6 other countries challenged
MIAMI — A group of American citizens and immigrants is suing the Trump administration for ending a long-standing legal tool presidents have used to allow people from countries where there’s war or political instability to enter and temporarily live in the U.S. The lawsuit filed late Friday night seeks to...
Texas GOP leaders defend appointee after tense exchange over diversity hiring
AUSTIN, Texas — An appointee of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott wiped away tears and gave an emotional defense of her credentials after a tense exchange over diversity hiring policies, which was later followed by the state’s top Republicans rushing to support her publicly. Texas Water Board Development Chair L’Oreal Stepney,...
Ukrainian community in Western Pa. shaken by Trump and Zelenskyy public spat
Negotiations between President Donald Trump and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy deteriorated into shouts Friday during what was supposed to be the signing of a minerals deal. The argument left some members of the Pittsburgh region’s Ukrainian community disturbed. The tense meeting occurred in the Oval Office over a proposed deal that...
No big new revelations in Justice Department’s release of Jeffrey Epstein files
WASHINGTON — Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday released government documents related to wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein, but the first wave of files posted on the Justice Department website have largely been circulating in the public domain for years and didn’t include any new bombshells about the sex trafficking case...
Former defense chiefs call for congressional hearings on Trump’s firing of senior military leaders
WASHINGTON — Five former secretaries of defense are calling on Congress to hold immediate hearings on President Donald Trump’s recent firings of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and several other senior military leaders, according to a letter obtained by The Associated Press. The five men — who...
Transgender troops are now being identified for removal under Pentagon orders
WASHINGTON — The military services have 30 days to figure out how they will seek out and identify transgender service members to remove them from the force — a daunting task that may end up relying on troops self-reporting or tattling on their colleagues. A memo sent to Defense Department...
Republican lawmakers look for ways to weaken state judges
TOPEKA, Kansas — Measures in several state legislatures this year have called for new approaches to weaken the power of judges. One would abandon a centuries-old precedent that courts can decide whether laws are constitutional. Another would change how judges are selected. Tension between the courts and other branches of...
