First-term U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar has won the DFL endorsement to run in the August primary election for the Minneapolis congressional seat long held by Democrats. The party endorsement Sunday pits Omar against primary challenger Antone Melton-Meaux, an attorney and political newcomer. The 37-year-old Omar was elected to Congress in 2018 after a…
read moreGeorgia’s governor is offering his state and its “world-class facilities” as host of the Republican National Convention — a day after President Donald Trump threatened to pull the convention out of North Carolina if that state’s Democratic governor doesn’t assure him that the August gathering can go forward despite coronavirus fears. Georgia Gov. Brian…
read moreOfficials with the U.S. space agency say the weather is looking favorable for the scheduled launch Wednesday of the first manned space craft from U.S. soil in nine years. During a briefing from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said the forecast is currently at 60% favorable for launch, an improvement from Monday…
read moreItaly’s new contact tracing app for the coronavirus is about to be launched in a number of pilot regions. It will be available to everyone in the country on a voluntary basis and will guarantee the privacy of users, officials who commissioned its development say. Italians will be able to download the contact tracing…
read moreMerck & Co Inc, which has largely kept to the sidelines of the race for COVID-19 treatments, said it was buying Austrian vaccine maker Themis Bioscience and would collaborate with research nonprofit IAVI to develop two separate vaccines. It also announced a partnership with privately held Ridgeback Biotherapeutics to develop an experimental oral antiviral…
read moreRichard Branson’s Virgin Orbit failed Monday on its first attempt to launch a test satellite into space aboard a rocket carried aloft by a Boeing 747 and released over the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California. The inaugural launch had appeared to be going well until moments after the rocket was dropped from beneath…
read moreCountries should levy an “orbit congestion charge” on satellite operators to tackle the growing concentration of space junk cluttering the skies, researchers said on Monday, but with some doubting the practicalities of such a fee. From dead satellites to bits of rockets, the amount of debris orbiting the planet is already so great that space agencies…
read moreThe World Health Organization said Monday that it will temporarily drop hydroxychloroquine — the malaria drug U.S. President Trump says he is taking — from its global study into experimental COVID-19 treatments, saying that its experts need to review all available evidence to date. In a press briefing, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that…
read moreU.S. President Donald Trump threatened Monday to move his August renomination convention for a second term in the White House from Charlotte, North Carolina if the state’s Democratic governor doesn’t give the Republican party an immediate assurance that it will be able to fully occupy a basketball arena in the midst of the coronavirus crisis.“Unfortunately,…
read moreWhen President Donald Trump doesn’t like the message, he shoots the messenger. So it was this past week when he took very personally a scientific study that should give pause to anyone thinking of following Trump’s lead and ingesting a potentially risky drug for the coronavirus. He branded the study’s researchers, financed in part by…
read moreCyberattacks have been flying fast and furious around the world during these days of global uncertainty because of the coronavirus. Countries accuse each other of engaging in cyber warfare, and each of the accused also claims to be a cyber victim. International organizations dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic have also been targeted. Linda Gradstein reports…
read moreThe global pandemic is causing major anxiety for many. Some are finding treatment via online therapy. Deana Mitchell reports. Camera, produced by: Deana Mitchell …
read moreA Florida law requiring felons to pay legal fees as part of their sentences before regaining the vote is unconstitutional for those unable to pay, or unable to find out how much they owe, a federal judge ruled Sunday. The 125-page ruling was issued by U.S. District Court Judge Robert Hinkle in Tallahassee. It involves a…
read moreA New England teenager is collecting old devices to connect loved ones to patients quarantined in hospital rooms. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi brings us this good news story from New England. …
read moreThe first astronauts launched by SpaceX are breaking new ground for style with hip spacesuits, gull-wing Teslas and a sleek rocketship — all of it white with black trim. The color coordinating is thanks to Elon Musk, the driving force behind both SpaceX and Tesla, and a big fan of flash and science fiction. NASA astronauts Doug…
read moreJoe Biden won the Democratic Party of Hawaii’s party-run presidential primary on Saturday, which was delayed by more than a month because of the coronavirus.Biden defeated Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders 63% to 37%.Biden won 16 of Hawaii’s delegates and Sanders will take eight. Biden has a total of 1,566 delegates to the party’s national convention,…
read moreThe newest branch of the U.S. military began a mostly-classified mission in public view while Japan launched a rocket to the International Space Station. Meanwhile, astronauts scheduled to make history next week reported for duty. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi transports us through This Week in Space. …
read moreReader advisory: Note vulgarity in 17th paragraph beginning “In 2018.”Joe Biden declared he “should not have been so cavalier” on Friday after he told a prominent black radio host that African Americans who back President Donald Trump “ain’t black.”The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee quickly moved to address the fallout from his remark, which was interpreted…
read moreNearly 80 million children under age 1 are at higher risk of preventable diseases such as measles, cholera and polio because of the disruption of routine vaccination programs, according to a report released Friday by the World Health Organization and other global organizations. Immunization campaigns have been disrupted in half of the 129 countries surveyed…
read moreIn ordinary times, the beaches and roads along Florida’s Space Coast would be packed with hundreds of thousands of spectators, eager to witness the first astronaut launch from Florida in nine years. In the age of coronavirus, local officials and NASA are split on whether that’s a good idea. NASA and SpaceX are urging…
read moreMalaria drug hydroxychloroquine, which U.S. President Donald Trump says he has been taking, is tied to increased risk of death in COVID-19 patients, according to a study published in medical journal Lancet. The study which observed over 96,000 people hospitalized with COVID-19, showed that people treated with the drug, or the closely related drug…
read moreReconsideration of jobless aid is fast becoming the focus of congressional debate over the next virus aid package After the Senate decided to take a “pause” on new pandemic proposals, senators faced mounting pressure to act before leaving town for a weeklong Memorial Day break. Republicans are staking out plans to phase out coronavirus-related…
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