The 2020 U.S. presidential election was back in the spotlight Wednesday in Atlanta, Georgia, where Democratic presidential contenders gathered for their fifth debate of the primary season. As VOA National correspondent Jim Malone reports from Washington, the impeachment inquiry targeting President Donald Trump was a key focus of the debate. Trump Impeachment Hearings Fuel Democratic…
read moreWednesday was the most explosive day yet in the House impeachment hearings and perhaps a crucial moment for the Trump White House when U.S. Ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland testified that there was a quid pro quo between President Donald Trump and Ukraine.Trump has been denying allegations that he held up nearly $400 million…
read moreThe impeachment inquiry into allegations President Donald Trump sought to pressure Ukraine was the dominant focus Wednesday in Washington and the first topic on the agenda Wednesday night as Democrats competing to be the party’s nominee in the 2020 election squared off in their latest debate in Atlanta.Those on the stage stood united in their…
read moreWith urban populations surging around the world, cities will struggle to keep residents safe from fast-growing heat risks turbo-charged by climate change, scientists and public health experts warned this week.Heat is already the leading cause of deaths from extreme weather in countries including the United States. The problem is particularly severe in cities, where temperature…
read morePresident Donald Trump said on Wednesday after touring a plant that assembles Apple Inc computers that he was considering whether to exempt the U.S. company from tariffs on imports from China.”We’re looking at that,” Trump said in answer to a reporter’s question about the tariffs, after touring a plant in Austin, Texas, with Apple Chief…
read moreAround the world, national leaders and diplomats have expressed their hopes that the United States will reverse its decision to pull out of the Paris Agreement on fighting climate change. In Washington, some others have chosen to act in small ways rather than wait. Ambassadors and aides from all 28 members of the European…
read moreA divided U.S. House committee approved a proposal Wednesday to decriminalize and tax marijuana at the federal level, a vote that was alternately described as a momentous change in national cannabis policy and a hollow political gesture. The House Judiciary Committee approved the proposal 24-10 after more than two hours of debate. It would reverse a…
read moreFormer President Bill Clinton said Wednesday that efforts to increase access to credit and financial assistance in underserved areas can help bridge America’s partisan divide, as he and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, hosted a daylong summit focused on economic inequality.The Clintons opened the daylong conference at the former president’s library in…
read moreThe director of a Spanish research center says a giant telescope, costing $1.4 billion, is one step nearer to being built on the Canary Islands in the event an international consortium gives up its plans to build it in Hawaii. Canary Islands Astrophysics Institute Director Rafael Rebolo has told The Associated Press that…
read moreAustralian scientists say it could be another five years before a vaccine is developed to protect pigs from African swine fever. It is estimated that a quarter of the world’s pig population has died this year, following the deadly outbreak of the virus in China. African swine fever, or ASF, has yet to reach Australia, but…
read moreU.S. Democrats hold their fifth presidential debate Wednesday in Atlanta, Georgia. Ten Democratic contenders will debate each other in a presidential race that of late has been largely overshadowed by the impeachment drama in Washington involving President Donald Trump. VOA National correspondent Jim Malone has more on the Democratic race from Washington. …
read moreU.S. Ambassador to the E.U. Gordon Sondland on Wednesday will be the most high-profile witness to appear before the U.S. House of Representatives as it holds public hearings on the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.Sondland is set to testify in the morning, followed by career Pentagon official Laura Cooper and Undersecretary of State David…
read moreThe U.S. House Intelligence Committee is set to hear impeachment inquiry testimony Wednesday from a key actor in President Donald Trump’s alleged effort to pressure Ukraine for incriminating information on his political rivals as Democrats continue to build their case for impeaching the U.S. leader.U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland will become the…
read moreAfter a month of preparations and goodbyes, Bei Bei, the Washington National Zoo’s most eligible giant panda bachelor, was on his way to China on Tuesday, where scientists hope he will help increase the population of his species.The departure of 4-year-old Bei Bei to his parents’ homeland had been pre-arranged and was announced last month…
read moreIn recent days the Italian city of Venice has suffered the worst flooding in 53 years – prompting a fierce debate among Italian politicians over whether man-made climate change is to blame. The same argument is taking place in Australia as wildfires fueled by soaring temperatures encroach on the city of Sydney. Henry Ridgwell reports…
read moreDemocratic presidential candidate Deval Patrick is centering his fledgling campaign on a defense of corporations and capitalism that puts him directly at odds with some of the party’s most progressive figures. “There is a role in the economy for private equity. You bet your life,” Patrick said Monday night in an interview with…
read moreIn 1990, a bikini-clad Madonna wrapped in a U.S. flag urged MTV viewers to vote in Senate elections as the youth television network partnered with a “Rock the Vote” campaign that mixed pop culture and politics.Thirty years on, with Millennials and Gen Z poised to outnumber the Baby Boomer generation for the first time in…
read moreDARPA, the main research and development arm of the U.S. Department of Defense, is funding researchers to develop wearable devices that would have military applications such as using the mind to control unmanned aerial vehicles or UAVs, commonly known as drones. Instead of using brain implants to achieve this, DARPA is looking for non-invasive to minutely…
read moreGoogle’s head of philanthropy says the company is having “a lot of conversations” internally amid worries about the tech giant’s bottomless appetite for consumer data and how it uses its algorithms.Vice President Jacqueline Fuller wouldn’t comment on specific data privacy controversies dogging Google lately, but says she shares other concerns many have about Big Tech.…
read moreLouisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has stunned Republicans again, narrowly winning a second term Saturday as the Deep South’s only Democratic governor and handing Donald Trump another gubernatorial loss this year.In the heart of Trump country, the moderate Edwards cobbled together enough cross-party support with his focus on bipartisan, state-specific issues to defeat Republican businessman…
read moreU.S. President Donald Trump made an unexpected visit to a military hospital Saturday afternoon for what the White House said was an early start to his annual health checkup.“Anticipating a very busy 2020, the president is taking advantage of a free weekend here in Washington, D.C., to begin portions of his routine annual physical exam at…
read moreA senior White House budget official arrived on Capitol Hill Saturday to testify behind closed doors before congressional investigators who are conducting an impeachment inquiry against U.S. President Donald Trump.Mark Sandy, a longtime career official with the Office of Management and Budget, is the first agency employee to be deposed in the inquiry after three…
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