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Biden administration working to recover U.S. hostages held by Hamas
U.S. officials are working to recover American hostages from the Middle East and provide aid to Israel as violence continues in the region following last weekend’s attack by Hamas, administration and congressional leaders said Wednesday. Speaking to Jewish community leaders at the White House late Wednesday afternoon, President Joe Biden said the administration was working […]
Biden denounces deadly Hamas attack on Israel: ‘There’s no justification for terrorism’
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden wants a returning Congress to take “urgent action” on Israel’s security needs after Hamas militants have injured and killed thousands beginning with Saturday’s brutal attack, including the deaths of 14 Americans. U.S. citizens are also among the hostages taken into Gaza by the armed group, though the administration could not […]
McCarthy may jump into U.S. House speaker race, as crises overseas mount
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans will gather behind closed doors beginning Monday night in an attempt to decide who should become the chamber’s next speaker, a race with a renewed sense of urgency with ally Israel now at war and the House in paralysis. Louisiana’s Steve Scalise and Ohio’s Jim Jordan are the only candidates […]
How does a ‘frozen’ U.S. House function without a speaker? Everyone’s got an opinion.
WASHINGTON — The stunning ouster of U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Tuesday — the first time a speaker has been removed in Congress’ 234-year history — created a leadership vacuum in the chamber and left multiple questions about how legislative business would proceed. North Carolina Republican Patrick McHenry ascended to the role of speaker […]
Government shutdown nears: U.S. House GOP fails to pass one-month spending plan
WASHINGTON — A sweeping government shutdown appeared inevitable on Friday, with the U.S. Senate stuck in a procedural holding pattern on its bipartisan stopgap bill and divided U.S. House Republicans unable to pass their short-term spending bill. Both chambers of Congress must approve and President Joe Biden must sign government funding legislation before midnight on […]
Nearly all national park sites to close during government shutdown
Almost all National Park Service sites will be inaccessible during a partial federal government shutdown likely to start this weekend, the U.S. Interior Department said Friday. The agency will bar access to most of the nation’s 425 parks, recreation areas, national historic sites and other units, according to a fact sheet from the Interior Department, […]
U.S. Senate panel weighs free speech and deep fakes in AI campaign ads
Artificial intelligence could be used to disrupt U.S. election campaigns, members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and Administration said during a Wednesday hearing. But the hearing showed that imposing laws and regulations on campaign content without violating constitutional rights to political speech will be difficult. Elections pose a particular challenge for AI, an […]
GOP presidential hopefuls tear into each other and absent Trump at second debate
The candidates polling from second to eighth in the race for the Republican nomination for president largely agreed on policy, fought over their records and took aim at former President Donald Trump at their second debate of the year Wednesday night. Trump, who leads polls of the race by substantial margins, skipped the event at […]
How a looming government shutdown could hit national parks
National parks and nearby communities could forego millions of dollars per day during a partial government shutdown that could start this weekend. Would-be visitors will likely see restrictions on park access, though the extent of those restrictions was still unclear just days before a potential lapse in federal appropriations set to begin Sunday. Parks would […]
U.S. House passes Wounded Knee memorial bill
The U.S. House approved by voice vote Wednesday a bill that would help protect land at the site of the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre in South Dakota, where an estimated 350 Lakota were killed by U.S. soldiers. The site is within the Lakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River […]
U.S. Senate confirms a military nominee, the first since Tuberville blockade began
The U.S. Senate confirmed a nominee for a high-ranking military post Wednesday night and advanced another, the first votes on military nominations or promotions since Alabama Republican Tommy Tuberville started blocking them seven months ago to protest Defense Department abortion policies. Tuberville did not object to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, […]
U.S. House GOP spending bills falter as Congress struggles to avoid a shutdown
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Democrats said Tuesday they are preparing their own short-term spending bill that they believe will garner bipartisan support, a decision that could stave off a partial government shutdown — and as House Republicans failed to advance two spending bills. The Senate move would work as long as the House votes to […]