U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy assured lawmakers Monday that attempts to reform the beleaguered United States Postal Service (USPS) will not interfere with an anticipated surge in mail-in voting in this year’s presidential election due to the coronavirus pandemic. “This sacred duty is my number one priority,” DeJoy told the House Committee on Oversight and…
read moreApple co-founder Steve Jobs, who died in 2011, was a tough act to follow. But Tim Cook seems to be doing so well at it that his eventual successor may also have big shoes to fill. Initially seen as a mere caretaker for the iconic franchise that Jobs built before his 2011 death, Cook has…
read moreAs the Republican National Convention got under way Monday, Former Arizona Senator Jeff Flake, alongside more than two dozen former Republican members of Congress, endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.The Biden campaign announced that the former lawmakers joined its new “Republicans for Biden” program, also launched Monday, part of the campaign’s efforts to engage with…
read moreThe World Health Organization (WHO) said Monday nine vaccines are being evaluated by its cooperative COVAX facility which now has 172 nations as contributing partners. The FILE – World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attends a news conference at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, July 3, 2020.Speaking at his usual briefing at the agency’s…
read moreKellyanne Conway, a long-serving advisor to President Donald Trump known for sparring with reporters, announced Sunday she will step down to focus on her family. Conway, 53, has been at Trump’s side since day one, managing his 2016 campaign that catapulted the reality TV star into the world’s most powerful office. But the…
read moreThe World Food Program reports Burkina Faso is facing an acute shortage of food, with more than 3.2 million people going hungry in this conflict-ridden country.There has been a 50 percent rise in the number of people struggling to feed themselves and their families since March. The World Food Program warns the situation is likely…
read moreThe U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama – home to “Space Camp” – faced permanent closure as COVID-19 forced the internationally popular science and technology center to turn students and visitors away. But as VOA’s Kane Farabaugh reports, an online campaign to “Save Space Camp” is providing a lifeline to get through the…
read moreA lot of eyebrows were raised when Russia announced it was the first to approve a vaccine for the coronavirus, and even more so when Vietnam said it would buy up to 150 million doses. Not many were expecting the news, but if it comes to pass, a few factors would explain how Vietnam and Russia got here.…
read moreDemocratic presidential nominee Joe Biden says he isn’t blaming President Donald Trump for the coronavirus outbreak, but he does blame him for “walking away” from the crisis. “The idea of saying that this is going to go away, that some miracle is going to happen is unrealistic,” Biden said, adding that Trump has repeatedly promoted “crazy” treatments and “hasn’t listened to the scientists.” Biden and his vice presidential running mate, California Senator Kamala Harris, spoke to ABC News television in an interview broadcast Sunday night.…
read moreSome U.S.-based users of WeChat are suing President Donald Trump in a bid to block an executive order that they say would effectively bar access in the U.S. to the hugely popular Chinese messaging app.The complaint, filed Friday in San Francisco, is being brought by the nonprofit U.S. WeChat Users Alliance and several people who…
read moreVideo app TikTok said Saturday it will challenge in court a Trump administration crackdown on the popular Chinese-owned platform, which Washington accuses of being a national security threat.As tensions soar between the world’s two biggest economies, President Donald Trump signed an executive order on August 6 giving Americans 45 days to stop doing business with…
read moreU.S. President Donald Trump has released a campaign commercial, undoubtedly aimed at winning support from the country’s Indian American voters.Former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential candidate, has chosen a woman of South Asian descent as his vice presidential running mate. Kamala Harris, a U.S. senator from California, is the daughter of Indian and…
read moreU.S. first lady Melania Trump hosted the official reopening of the White House Rose Garden on Saturday. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence attended the event.“The changes you see tonight are the result of a thoughtful and collaborative process carefully crafted with the help of scholars and experts in architecture, horticulture, design, and…
read moreThe Trump administration will send two top officials to the Middle East this week in a bid to capitalize on momentum from the historic agreement between Israeli and the United Arab Emirates to establish diplomatic relations.Three diplomats say Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and President Donald Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner plan to…
read moreFacebook’s India chief said Friday the social media giant denounces hate and bigotry in the wake of a controversy sparked by a media report alleging it failed to remove hate-speech posted by members linked to the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party over fears of damaging its business in the country. “We’ve made…
read moreThe World Health Organization is concerned by the rapid increase and spread of the deadly Ebola virus in remote, densely forested areas of Equateur province in the northwestern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.Health officials report 100 people in DRC have been infected with Ebola in fewer than 100 days, killing nearly half or…
read moreThe head of the World Health Organization says he hopes the coronavirus pandemic will end in less than two years – less time than it took to stop the 1918 Spanish flu. Speaking Friday at his regular briefing in Geneva, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said it is easier for a virus to spread today than…
read morePresident Donald Trump sought to cast a more positive light on his presidency Friday after four days of bashing at the Democratic National Convention, saying that where Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden sees “American darkness,” he sees “American greatness.”The four-day Democratic National Convention culminated with Biden describing “a perfect storm” hitting the nation under Trump’s…
read moreThe U.S. National Weather Service is predicting that two storm systems in and around the Caribbean Sea will strengthen and could both be hurricanes next week in the Gulf of Mexico.The National Hurricane Center reports Tropical Storm Laura formed early Friday just northeast of the Lesser Antilles, and by last report, was 280 kilometers east…
read morePresident Donald Trump is asking the Supreme Court to allow him to block critics from his personal Twitter account. The administration said in a high-court filing Thursday that Trump’s @realdonaldtrump account with more than 85 million followers is his personal property and blocking people from it is akin to elected officials who refuse to allow their…
read moreA recently approved rapid saliva test for COVID-19 is already being used on college campuses across the United States. Also called spit tests, they produce results in less than 24 hours, cost about $10, and are less invasive than the standard swab that is placed deep into the nose.Faster, Easier COVID-19 Test Approved as US Testing…
read moreEvery day, like clockwork, to-do lists for those protesting against Belarus’ authoritarian leader appear in the popular Telegram messaging app. They lay out goals, give times and locations of rallies with business-like precision, and offer spirited encouragement. “Today will be one more important day in the fight for our freedom. Tectonic shifts are happening on all…
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