The U.S. Congress is moving toward adoption of new sanctions against Russia for its interference in the 2016 election, but it was unclear Sunday whether President Donald Trump would sign the legislation. Anthony Scaramucci, the new White House communications director, told CNN, “You’ve got to ask President Trump. My guess is he’s going to make…
read moreAuthorities in Madrid asked Spain’s anti-trust watchdog on Saturday to investigate whether Uber’s new low-cost airport transfer service constitutes unfair competition. The city council’s request follows the ride-hailing app’s return to the Spanish capital last year after the CNMC competition regulator called for the government to lift a ban on the U.S. company. The firm’s…
read moreThe state government in India’s capital told Philip Morris International Inc and other tobacco companies Saturday to remove all advertisements from tobacco shops in the city, warning them of legal action if they do not comply. The order, sent by Delhi state’s chief tobacco control officer S. K. Arora, comes days after Reuters reported that…
read moreA bipartisan group of U.S. congressional leaders have reached agreement on new sanctions for Russia, in response to its meddling in the 2016 presidential election, as well as a provision that would prevent President Donald Trump from trying to relax sanctions against Moscow. The bill, Countering Iran’s Destabilizing Activities Act, was passed more than a month…
read moreThe Republican push to craft a health care bill to replace the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, hit another stumbling block Friday. The Senate parliamentarian is reported to have decided Republicans would need 60 votes to keep anti-abortion provisions in the bill. Republicans have a 52-48 Senate majority. It is highly unlikely that…
read moreAn Australian man who died in a Sydney car crash may be the 18th death linked to faulty Takata air bags, after police said he was killed when hit in the neck by shrapnel from an air bag. Police did not say the air bag in the Honda CR-V was from manufacturer Takata, whose faulty…
read moreAnthony Scaramucci agreed in January to sell his hedge fund firm to clear the way for a job with U.S. President Donald Trump, but he has yet to receive US permission to sell to a group led by Chinese conglomerate HNA Anthony Scaramucci, the Trump administration’s new communications director, has yet to get approval from…
read moreThe Carrier manufacturing facility in Indianapolis, Indiana, owned by United Technologies Company, was in the limelight during the 2016 presidential election when then-candidate Donald Trump criticized UTC’s announcement it was moving jobs from the facility to Mexico. While Trump’s postelection negotiations, including tax incentives, encouraged Carrier to remain in Indianapolis, hundreds of employees still face…
read moreThe appointment of a new communications director at the White House on Friday led to the sudden resignation of its high-profile press secretary, Sean Spicer. VOA White House bureau chief Steve Herman reports. …
read moreThe Washington Post is reporting that Russia’s ambassador to the U.S. told his supervisors in Moscow that he discussed campaign-related matters with Attorney General Jeff Sessions last year during the presidential election season, contrary to what Sessions has said. The Post quoted “current and former U.S. officials” in its story, which said U.S. intelligence agents…
read morePresident Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner “inadvertently omitted” more than 70 assets worth at least $10.6 million from his personal financial disclosure reports, according to revised paperwork released Friday. The previously unreported assets were included in updated financial disclosure reports certified by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics Thursday as part of…
read moreFormer U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice has met with the Senate’s Intelligence Committee as the panel investigates Russia’s interference in the U.S. election, one of several Obama administration officials to talk to the committee. A spokeswoman for Rice confirmed the closed-door meeting Friday, saying Rice met voluntarily with the panel and was pleased to…
read moreThe appointment of a new communications director at the White House on Friday led to the sudden resignation of its high-profile press secretary. Anthony Scaramucci, an entrepreneur and former hedge fund manager, was offered the communications job by President Donald Trump. That led to Sean Spicer, the press secretary and acting communications director, to immediately…
read moreTo understand the significance of the so-called Monkey Trial, one must try to imagine the America of 1925; specifically, the southern state of Tennessee. Under pressure by a coalition of strict Christians, Tennessee became the first state in the United States to pass a law — the Butler Act — that deemed it illegal to…
read moreThe Russian lawyer who met Donald Trump Jr. during the 2016 campaign has represented a military unit operated by Russia’s intelligence agency, according to court filings obtained by The Associated Press on Friday. The filings from 2011 and 2012 show that Natalia Veselnitskaya represented Military Unit 55002 — run by the FSB, Russia’s main…
read morePhilippine President Rodrigo Duterte says he will never visit the United States while he is in office, and adds that he has “seen America and it’s lousy.” Duterte delivered his latest verbal attack on the United States after he was asked in a news conference Friday to react to an American lawmaker’s threat to lead…
read morePresident Donald Trump was expected to sign an executive order Friday authorizing a comprehensive review of the U.S. manufacturing sector to help ensure the security of the nation, according to White House officials. White House National Trade Council Director Peter Navarro told reporters Friday industrial supply chains will also be reviewed in the effort to…
read moreBusinesses owned by U.S. President Donald Trump have filed requests for visas with the Department of Labor to hire dozens of temporary foreign workers. The news of the requests comes during the White House’s “Made in America Week,” urging American companies to hire American workers, a central theme of Trump’s presidential campaign. The president’s Mar-a-Lago…
read morePresident Donald Trump is expected to announce his policy for Afghanistan before the end of this month, amid growing concerns about the increasing presence of Islamic State and other terrorists groups in the region. Trump’s move to give more authority to the Pentagon is welcomed across the board, from U.S. army officials to Afghan President…
read moreAn international energy watchdog warns that the decline in global investment in the oil sector could lead to energy shortages when prices start to rebound. The International Energy Agency says energy investments have declined 20 percent in the past three years as oil profits fell. One analyst tells VOA that is a short-term recipe for…
read moreThere has been an outpouring of bipartisan support for Republican Senator John McCain, after he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer. McCain is widely regarded as an American hero for his service in the Vietnam War and his five years as a prisoner of war, and for his 31 years as a…
read moreNews that Republican Senator John McCain has brain cancer triggered expressions of shock and an avalanche of well wishes from across Washington and around the world. VOA’s Michael Bowman reports, McCain’s absence deprives the Senate of one of its strongest, most resolute voices and deprives Republicans of a vote they desperately need. …
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