Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand entered the growing field of 2020 Democratic presidential contenders Tuesday, telling television host Stephen Colbert that she’s launching an exploratory committee. “It’s an important first step, and it’s one I am taking because I am going to run,” the New York senator said on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” She listed…
read moreA Gillette ad for men invoking the #MeToo movement is sparking intense online backlash, with accusations that it talks down to men and groups calling for a boycott. But Gillette says it doesn’t mind sparking a discussion. Since it debuted Monday, the Internet-only ad has garnered nearly 19 million views on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter…
read moreMore than 3,200 government, business, academics and civil society leaders will address issues of globalization, climate change and other matters of world importance next week at the annual World Economic Forum in the plush Swiss Alpine village of Davos. The list of participants reads like the Who’s Who of the most powerful, successful and inventive…
read moreAlthough it is unclear if the United States and China will be able to meet a 90-day deadline and strike a deal on trade by March 2, the tussle is clearly adding to uncertainty about the future fate of the Chinese government’s strategic plan named “Made in China 2025.” The plan itself is much like…
read moreFacebook says it is investing $300 million over the next three years in local news programs, partnerships and other initiatives. The money will go toward reporting grants for local newsrooms, expanding Facebook’s program to help local newsrooms with subscription business models and investing in nonprofits aimed at supporting local news. The move comes at a…
read moreThe founder of network gear and smart phone supplier Huawei Technologies says the tech giant would reject requests from the Chinese government to disclose confidential information about its customers. Meeting with foreign reporters at Huawei’s headquarters, Ren Zhengfei sought Tuesday to allay Western concerns the company is a security risk. Those fears have hampered Huawei’s…
read moreWhen Democratic lawmakers won the majority in the House of Representatives in recent elections, they not only won the ability to better shape legislation in the House, they also gained the enormous power of investigation. Investigations have always been an important way for Congress members to hold government officials accountable, to inform public policy and…
read moreWhen Democratic lawmakers took control of the U.S. House of Representatives in early January, they promised to launch multiple investigations into President Donald Trump’s administration, his 2016 campaign, and his family’s businesses. Here is a summary of what the committees are planning to begin investigating. Committee: House Intelligence Chairman: Adam Schiff Russia inquiry — Wants…
read moreWhen the Democrats took control of the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this month, the new committee chairs said they would use their role of oversight to begin investigating the controversies and scandals regarding President Donald Trump’s businesses, campaign and administration. Russia inquiry *At least four House committees plan to look into aspects of the…
read moreU.S. President Donald Trump declared Monday, “I never worked for Russia,” days after news reports suggested he might be beholden to Russia and President Vladimir Putin. “I think it’s a disgrace you even asked that question,” Trump told a reporter who queried him about his ties to Russia outside the White House as he prepared…
read moreU.S. presidential candidate Julian Castro joined dozens of high-profile Latinos in Puerto Rico on Monday to talk about mobilizing voters ahead of the 2020 elections and increasing Latino political representation to take on President Donald Trump. The group condemned Trump’s plan to build a border wall, and Castro also criticized Trump for his response to…
read moreRepublican South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham has all but given up efforts to negotiate a compromise to end the U.S. government shutdown that would fund a U.S. Mexico border wall, and extend legal protections to thousands of young undocumented immigrants and those who have lost Temporary Protected Status. VOA’s Brian Padden reports. …
read moreChina’s trade surplus with the United States rose dramatically in 2018, despite a tit-for-tat tariff war with the U.S. that has roiled global markets. The surplus stood at a record-high $323.3 billion, compared to $275.8 billion recorded the year before. Data released Monday by China’s customs bureau shows the country’s exports to the U.S. grew…
read moreThe auto industry gathered in Detroit on Sunday, on the eve of the last winter edition of North America’s premiere auto show, as carmakers grapple with a contracting market and uncertainty in the year ahead. Concerns over the health of the global economy and a US-China trade war loomed over the North American International Auto…
read moreOne of President Donald Trump’s closest allies in the U.S. Senate is urging him to at least temporarily reopen the shuttered federal government and negotiate with Democrats on a border wall. South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham told Fox News Sunday he would still support a presidential emergency declaration after giving talks another chance. “I would…
read moreThe leader of the Republican minority in the U.S. House of Representatives said Sunday that “action will be taken” against Congressman Steve King, a Republican lawmaker from rural Iowa who has questioned why the terms “white nationalist” and “white supremacist” are offensive. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told CBS News that he is holding a…
read moreA partial U.S. government shutdown is in its fourth week, becoming the longest federal work stoppage in American history. VOA’s Michael Bowman reports from Washington, where finger-pointing abounds amid President Donald Trump’s continuing demand for border wall funding and congressional Democrats’ refusal to approve it. …
read moreSaudi Arabia’s energy minister said Sunday that major oil producers need to do better to narrow swings in prices that dip below $60 a barrel and rise above $86. “I think what we need to do is narrow the range… of volatility,” Khalid al-Falih said. “We need to do better and the more producers…
read moreNature finds a way, the old saying goes. We see it in how animals fly, crawl, slink, dig and otherwise make their way through the world. Scientists have long recognized the ways in which evolution has perfected movement in the natural world, and mimicked it in their robot designs. Here’s the latest, and it’s simple…
read moreA new form of social therapy is powering-on in the U.S. A group of former toy company employees bought a brand from their ex-employer and started developing robotic household animals that serve as friends and therapy aids to America’s growing elderly population. Arash Arabasadi reports. …
read moreIt is more than three weeks into the partial government shutdown. Among the hundreds of thousands of federal employees affected by the political battle are military veterans. According to the latest government data, veterans make up about a third of the federal government’s civilian workforce. Tyler Holmquist of Fredericksburg, Virginia, is a veteran and an…
read moreU.S. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said Saturday he will force a vote soon on a resolution to disapprove the Trump administration’s decision to relax sanctions on three Russian companies connected to oligarch Oleg Deripaska. “I have concluded that the Treasury Department’s proposal is flawed and fails to sufficiently limit Oleg Deripaska’s control and influence…
read more
