U.S. President Donald Trump held a roundtable discussion on gun control Wednesday with a group of senators, during which he accused them of being “afraid” of the National Rifle Association, the powerful gun lobby. At the bipartisan meeting, Trump said he would give “very serious thought” to a proposal to raise to 21 from 18 the age…
read moreWhite House Communications Director Hope Hicks, who has been one of President Donald Trump’s closest confidantes since before his election, is quitting. “Hope is outstanding and has done great work for the last three years,” Trump said in a statement issued late Wednesday afternoon. “She is as smart and thoughtful as they come, a truly…
read moreCalifornia stands in “complete opposition” to a Trump administration plan to scrap a policy slashing climate-changing emissions from power plants, its top air official said Wednesday at a U.S. hearing in a state helping lead the fight against global warming. State officials joined hundreds of other opponents, including technology billionaire Tom Steyer, in speaking out…
read moreNative Americans are underrepresented in Washington’s corridors of power. Three known Native Americans have served in the Senate and fewer than 20 in the House of Representatives. But three Native American women are running in 2018 midterm elections, widely viewed as a pivotal vote that could not only tip the balance of power but strengthen…
read moreA company’s value is often tied to the message it portrays to customers. But what happens when other companies try to take advantage of your brand? Take the Philadelphia Eagles, for instance. The American football team wants to exclusively own the phrase: “Philly Special.” That was the trick play that helped them win the Super…
read moreDick’s Sporting Goods, one of the largest sports retailers in the U.S., will immediately end the sale of assault-style rifles in its stores and stop selling guns of any type to anyone under age 21. The company made the announcement Wednesday, precisely two weeks after a school shooting in Parkland, Florida. “We deeply believe that…
read moreWhen refugees arrive in a new country, they bring little to no material possessions. But many bring something more valuable: their talent and skills. Twenty refugee women and asylum seekers from different parts of the world recently came together at a pop-up store in Phoenix, Arizona, to display their homemade products and tell their compelling…
read moreGrowth in China’s manufacturing sector in February cooled to the weakest in more than 11/2 years, raising concerns of a sharper-than-expected slowdown in the world’s second biggest economy this year as regulators tighten the screws on financial risks. The weakness was driven by disruption to business activity by the Lunar New Year holidays and curbs…
read moreThe U.S. Commerce Department on Tuesday recommended raising import duties on Chinese-made aluminum foil it said is being sold at unfairly low prices due to improper subsidies to producers. The ruling was praised by the Aluminum Association, a trade group that pressed the case and said cheap imports were threatening thousands of jobs. …
read moreThe White House on Tuesday urged U.S. lawmakers to move ahead with legislation to help prisoners prepare for life after release, but he stopped short of calling for broader reforms such as changing mandatory minimum sentences for drug crimes. Arguing that a wider overhaul lacks congressional support, the Trump administration recommended more prison work programs,…
read moreThe chairman of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee said Tuesday that there was not enough support in Congress to move forward with a plan backed by President Donald Trump to privatize the air traffic control system. Republican Representative Bill Shuster of Pennsylvania said in a statement that the “air traffic control reform provisions…
read moreU.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a new initiative Tuesday that will target painkiller manufacturers and distributors who overprescribe and allow the misuse of prescription drugs by addicts. The initiative, Sessions said, will tackle the opioid crisis “at its root.” The Prescription Interdiction and Litigation (PIL) Task Force will “use criminal and civil actions” to ensure…
read moreA resolution approved Tuesday by a committee in the U.S. House of Representatives has made it legal for House members to use taxpayer funds to buy bulletproof vests and other security equipment. The Committee on House Administration, which does not need approval from the full House to enact decisions about internal procedures, approved the security…
read moreThe same federal judge who President Donald Trump derided during the presidential campaign because of his Mexican heritage ruled in favor of Trump’s desire for a wall along the Mexican border. Judge Gonzalo Curiel on Tuesday dismissed legal challenges to the wall by the state of California and a number of environmental groups. The judge…
read moreThe U.S. negotiator for regional content requirements in autos flew back to Washington from a NAFTA round in Mexico on Monday to talk with car companies, officials said, in a development some hoped would lead to progress on the contentious issue. Three Mexican, Canadian and U.S. trade officials said the negotiator, Jason Bernstein, had been…
read moreComcast Corp, the biggest cable operator in the United States, offered on Tuesday to pay $31 billion to buy Sky, challenging Rupert Murdoch’s Fox and Bob Iger’s Walt Disney for the European pay-TV jewel. Comcast, a $184 billion media giant which owns NBC and Universal Pictures, said it was offering 12.50 pounds per share, significantly…
read morePresident Donald Trump is reportedly pushing for his longtime personal pilot to lead the nation’s top aviation agency. Multiple media outlets reported that Trump’s personal pilot, John Dunkin, who flew Trump around the country during his presidential campaign, is under consideration to lead the Federal Aviation Administration. Other candidates to head the agency that oversees…
read moreA surge in sales of Cuba’s legendary cigars in China helped manufacturer Habanos S.A.’s global revenue rise 12 percent to hit a record of around $500 million last year, the company said on Monday at the start of Cuba’s annual cigar festival. Habanos S.A., a 50-50 joint venture between the Cuban state and Britain’s Imperial…
read moreIt promised ample snow and sunny weather on a normally bare, rocky peak easily accessible by “super highway,” thousands more hotel rooms than existed, and a cross-country ski course that looked good on paper but would have cut through some people’s backyards. The airbrushed pitch worked, but after Denver won a bid to host the…
read moreLooking for common ground with your neighbor these days? Try switching subjects from the weather to Congress. Chances are, you both agree it’s terrible. In red, blue or purple states, in middle America or on the coasts, most Americans loathe the nation’s legislature. One big reason: Most think lawmakers are listening to all the…
read moreThe governor of Sao Paulo and likely centrist presidential candidate Geraldo Alckmin said on Monday that he would privatize Brazil’s state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA if he wins the elections in October. Alckmin, who has single digit support in opinion polls, said during a television interview with Band TV that he favored private ownership…
read moreThe Trump Organization said Monday it has made good on the president’s promise to donate profits from foreign government spending at its hotels to the U.S. Treasury, but neither the company nor the government disclosed the amount or how it was calculated. Watchdog groups seized on the lack of detail as another example of…
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