The U.S. space agency NASA has awarded contracts to three American companies to develop spacecraft to land humans on the moon by 2024. In a remote news conference Thursday, NASA announced it had selected Blue Origin, the space exploration company owned by Jeff Bezos, owner of The Washington Post, and owner and founder of Amazon; Dynetics,…
read morePresident Donald Trump on Thursday tweeted his support for his former national security adviser Michael Flynn, raising speculation that a pardon may be coming after Flynn’s lawyers released internal FBI documents they claim show the FBI was trying to entrap him. Trump has long said he is considering pardoning Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying…
read moreChina said Wednesday it has no desire to meddle in this year’s U.S. presidential election, despite claims to the contrary by President Donald Trump. Trump told Reuters Wednesday that “China will do anything they can do to have me lose this race” in favor of Democratic Party opponent Joe Biden. Trump said China prefers…
read morePresident Donald Trump erupted at his top political advisers last week when they presented him with worrisome polling data that showed his support eroding in a series of battleground states as his response to the coronavirus comes under criticism. As the virus takes its deadly toll and much of the nation’s economy remains shuttered, new…
read moreA sexual assault allegation is raising Joe Biden’s first big challenge as the Democrats’ presidential nominee, fueling Republican attacks and leaving many in his own party in an uncomfortable bind. Biden’s campaign has denied the allegation from his former Senate staffer Tara Reade, who has said Biden assaulted her in the basement of a Capitol Hill…
read morePresident Donald Trump said on Wednesday he believes China’s handling of the coronavirus is proof that Beijing “will do anything they can” to make him lose his re-election bid in November.In an interview with Reuters in the Oval Office, Trump talked tough on China and said he was looking at different options in terms of…
read moreA federal appeals court panel ruled that a Kansas law requiring proof of citizenship when registering to vote is unconstitutional and violates the Equal Protection Clause and National Voter Registration Act.The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals panel in Salt Lake City upheld the permanent injunction by U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson banning the statute’s use…
read moreTwo United Nations agencies called on the global community Wednesday to prevent hunger and malnutrition among the 370 million children who are not receiving school meals due to the closure of schools worldwide in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.The U.N. said school meals are particularly vital for girls, especially those in poor countries, whose…
read moreChildren could be the biggest victims of the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the fact that the disease affects mostly older people, according to human rights groups. It is estimated that 1.5 billion children worldwide are missing school. The outbreak is having myriad other impacts on young people, with hundreds of thousands orphaned by the disease that the coronavirus causes. “More and more children are going to…
read moreThe World Health Organization says Niger has been struck by a new outbreak of polio, following the suspension of immunization activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.N. health agency reported that two children were infected by the highly infectious, water-borne disease and that one was paralyzed. The outbreak was sparked by a mutated virus that…
read moreU.S. Congressman Justin Amash says he is exploring a presidential run as a Libertarian Party candidate. He announced his plans Tuesday, saying the country is ready for a president who brings people together and restores respect for the Constitution. Amash drew attention last July when he left the Republican Party to become an independent, citing a dissatisfaction…
read moreJoe Biden won Ohio’s presidential primary Tuesday, clinching a contest that was less about the Democratic nomination and more about how states can conduct elections in the era of the coronavirus. The primary was the first major test of statewide elections via mail amid an outbreak. There were reports of confusion but no widespread disruption. It wasn’t…
read moreMore than a month after Congress approved a historic $2.2 trillion coronavirus recovery package, a patchwork of overlapping oversight bodies created to keep tabs on the funds have yet to get up and running even as hundreds of billions of dollars in emergency funds have been doled out.In response to the coronavirus outbreak, Congress has…
read moreSteve Bullock was the lame-duck governor of solidly red Montana, fresh off a failed Democratic presidential bid, when he announced he’d challenge Republican Sen. Steve Daines for his seat. Days after declaring his candidacy last month, Montana’s first coronavirus cases appeared. That shifted the spotlight onto Bullock as he leads the state’s pandemic response, leaving Daines…
read moreAn asteroid just over two kilometers wide will pass close to earth Wednesday. But scientists with the U.S. space agency, NASA, say the object poses no threat to the planet.The asteroid is known as 1998 OR2, named for the year it was first discovered. It will safely pass at a distance of 6.3 million kilometers…
read moreThe first major test of an almost completely vote-by-mail election during a pandemic is unfolding Tuesday in Ohio, offering lessons to other states about how to conduct one of the most basic acts of democracy amid a health crisis.The process hasn’t been smooth as state officials have navigated election laws and the need to protect…
read moreFormer U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday in his bid against President Donald Trump in the November national election.Clinton joined Biden in a videoconference on the coronavirus’s effect on women.“Just think what a difference it would make right now if we had a president who listened to…
read moreYouTube, the video service of Alphabet Inc’s Google, said on Tuesday it would start showing text and links from third-party fact checkers to U.S. viewers, part of efforts to curb misinformation on the site during the COVID-19 pandemic. The information panels, launched in Brazil and India last year, will highlight third-party, fact-checked articles above search results…
read moreThe smartphone in your pocket may soon let you know if you’ve been exposed to COVID-19.As communities around the world consider the first steps toward reopening, there is fear that once people begin moving, the virus will spread. But COVID-19 presents unique challenges to stop its spread. Some who are infected never had symptoms; those…
read moreAn asteroid just over two kilometers wide will pass close to earth Wednesday. But scientists with the U.S. space agency, NASA, say the object poses no threat to the planet.The asteroid is known as 1998 OR2, named for the year it was first discovered. It will safely pass at a distance of 6.3 million kilometers…
read moreA decision by India to suspend the use of Chinese rapid testing kits for COVID-19 on the grounds that they are faulty has been slammed by the Chinese embassy in New Delhi as “unfair and irresponsible.” The Indian government medical research agency that is dealing with the coronavirus outbreak has said it planned to return…
read moreCommunities in the United States and around the world are talking about when and how to ease lockdown measures as they grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic. This disease and how it spreads presents some unique challenges. People without symptoms can infect others, and for some, it can be deadly. What if a smartphone app could…
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