North Korean authorities have ordered a lockdown in the nation’s capital city Pyongyang because of the spread of an unspecified respiratory illness, according to a statement released by the Russian embassy in North Korea on Facebook. The lockdown will last for five days, and could be extended another three days, according to the post, which...
The US Department of Justice and FBI have opened a civil rights investigation into the death of Tyre Nichols, a Black man from Tennessee who died after enduring a severe beating from police officers. Kevin G. Ritz, United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, promised to conduct a “thorough and methodical” investigation in...
A prosecutor’s pledge to make imminent charging decisions for “multiple” people in a probe centered on Donald Trump’s actions in Georgia following the 2020 election has renewed interest in whether the former president could soon be facing charges. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) offered the revelation Tuesday as she argued that a special...
The White House on Wednesday pushed back on Speaker Kevin McCarthy's (R-Calif.) opposition to having three House Democrats serve on certain committees. Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre took issue with McCarthy blocking Reps. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) from serving on the House Intelligence Committee, and with McCarthy’s pledge to remove Rep. Ilhan Omar...
The White House is always reviewing the guidelines around classified documents, national security spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday. “I don’t have any changes to speak to the process of classified material handling,” Kirby said. “The guidelines change over time as technology changes, and we’re always reviewing those procedures to make sure that they’re fully appropriate.”...
Two Democratic House members from New York called on Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Wednesday to restrict Rep. George Santos's (R-N.Y.) access to classified information during his congressional term. Reps. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.) and Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) sent a letter to McCarthy detailing their "serious" concerns about whether it's "appropriate" for Santos to access classified...
A group of House Democrats is forming a caucus to advocate for sustainable investing — a rapidly growing sector that already accounts for trillions in global investment. Reps. Sean Casten (D-Ill.) and Juan Vargas (D-Calif.) announced Wednesday they would be co-chairing the caucus, which also includes Reps. Bill Foster (D-Ill.), Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Brad Sherman...
Civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump said Wednesday that three Florida high school students are ready to file a lawsuit against Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) over his rejection of an Advanced Placement (AP) African American studies pilot program in the state. “Will we let Governor DeSantis or anybody exterminate Black history in the classrooms across America?”...
If the Treasury revalues its gold holding to current prices, we calculate that it can deposit $494 billion in new gold certificates at the Fed.
A bipartisan working group is preparing a renewed push for paid family leave, despite facing stiff political headwinds with a new GOP majority. The Bipartisan Paid Family Leave Working Group — made up of six congresspeople, half Republicans and half Democrats — will begin meeting next month, Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-Okla.) and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan...
The maker of a generic version of mifepristone, the first of two drugs used in medication abortions, sued West Virginia’s attorney general and a local prosecuting attorney on Wednesday over the state’s restrictions on the medication. GenBioPro argued that West Virginia’s abortion ban and restrictions have caused it "significant, ongoing economic injury" and are preempted by federal...
Centrist Sen. Joe Manchin (D) met with Speaker Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) Wednesday to urge the House Republican leader to negotiate with President Biden on legislation to raise the debt limit, a sign the senior West Virginia senator could play a pivotal role in bipartisan talks. Manchin’s meeting with McCarthy comes at a time when other...
Jill Biden’s inaugural outfits have a new home at the Smithsonian, with the first lady saying she hopes the dresses will "continue speaking to generations to come." The community college professor and wife of President Biden was on hand Wednesday at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History for a ceremony marking the donation of the pair...
The Biden administration on Wednesday announced several steps meant to ensure access to affordable housing and protect renters from eviction. The measures unveiled Wednesday are part of the White House’s broader attack on the national affordable housing crisis, which has left millions of Americans struggling to find safe and secure housing within their budgets. The...
College Board will release an updated version of its Advanced Placement course in African American studies next week after Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R-Fla.) administration rejected initial plans for a pilot program in Florida high schools. Florida's Department of Education blocked the course last week, arguing in a letter that the curriculum "is inexplicably contrary to Florida...
More than 16.3 million people enrolled in a health plan through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) during the most recent open enrollment period, marking the highest number of enrollees since the program was signed into law 10 years ago. This record amount of enrollments occurred between Nov. 1 and Jan. 15 and represented nearly 2...
Republicans on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee have turned their focus to Hunter Biden’s art sales as a part of the panel’s larger probe into the first family’s business dealings. Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) sent a letter Wednesday to Georges Bergès, owner of the Georges Bergès Gallery, seeking information about sales of Hunter Biden’s...
Most U.S. children are using cosmetics and body care products that could contain carcinogens and other toxic chemicals, a new study has found. About 70 percent of parents surveyed said that their children use items such as glitter, face paint, nail polish, lip gloss and perfumes that are marketed for kids, according to the research, published on...
Rock musician Marilyn Manson reached a settlement with actress Esmé Bianco on Tuesday in a sexual assault lawsuit she filed against him in 2021. The "Game of Thrones" actress had accused Manson of raping her in 2011 and using "drugs, force and threats of force to coerce sexual acts" in several incidents. Manson, whose legal...
A woman pleaded guilty on Wednesday to mailing ricin to then-President Trump and eight Texas state law enforcement officials in September 2020. A release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia states 55-year-old Pascale Cecile Veronique Ferrier, who has dual citizenship in Canada and France, admitted she sent the threatening letters to...
The offices of former Presidents Obama and Clinton say they turned over all classified materials to the National Archives at the end of their presidencies. A day after it was announced that classified materials had been found at former Vice President Mike Pence's Indiana home, both the Clinton and Obama offices told The Hill that...
The U.S. attorney investigating the death of Tyre Nichols, a Tennessee man who was beaten by police while being arrested earlier this month, promised to conduct a “thorough” and “methodical” investigation. U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee Kevin Ritz said at a brief press conference on Wednesday that the investigation “may take some...
Republican Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.), Mike Braun (Ind.), Ron Johnson (Wis.), Mike Lee (Utah), and Rick Scott (Fla.) on Wednesday will host a press conference on the debt ceiling in the Senate Radio and TV Gallery. The U.S. hit its debt ceiling last week and began inacting "extraordinary measures" to avoid a default that could...
Broad investment in mass transit and reduced reliance on cars could reduce the additional lithium required to transition to electric vehicles by 90 percent, according to research from the Climate and Community Project and the University of California, Davis. The research, first shared with The Guardian, found a scenario in which current demand for EVs...
Television provider DirecTV has dropped conservative channel Newsmax from its lineup after a dispute over carrier fees, a decision the network is calling an act of political censorship. DirecTV's current contract with Newsmax expired on Tuesday evening, after the television provider said it was unwilling to agree to carrier fees proposed by the conservative channel....
