Politics Election category, Page 352
Trump invokes ‘privilege,’ aims to block full release of Robert Mueller’s report
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is invoking executive privilege, reserving the right to block the full release of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on the Russia probe, escalating President Donald Trump’s battle with Congress. The administration’s decision was announced just as the House Judiciary Committee was gaveling in to...
Trump says report he lost over $1 billion is ‘inaccurate’
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says a New York Times report that his businesses lost more than $1 billion from 1985 to 1994 is “highly inaccurate.” The newspaper, citing information from Trump’s tax transcripts, reported business losses of $46.1 million in 1985, and a total of $1.17 billion in losses...
Tax returns from ’80s and ’90s reveal Trump lost over $1 billion in business deals
Donald Trump reported $1.17 billion in financial losses to the IRS between 1985 and 1994, a massive run of red ink that kept him from paying income taxes during most of that period, according to a report published late Tuesday in The New York Times. The Times said it had...
Trump may redefine poverty, cutting Americans from welfare rollsVideo
The Trump administration may alter the way it determines the national poverty threshold, putting Americans living on the margins at risk of losing access to welfare programs. The possible move would involve changing how inflation is calculated in the “official poverty measure,” the White House Office of Management and Budget...
FBI Director Christopher Wray tells Congress he has no evidence of ‘spying’ on Trump campaignVideo
WASHINGTON — FBI Director Christopher Wray said Tuesday that he would not call the investigation of Trump campaign advisers in 2016 “spying” — distancing himself from language used by President Trump and Attorney General William Barr. “That’s not the term I would use,” Wray said in response to a question...
What’s the line of succession for British throne, U.S. presidency?
With the birth of the first child for Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and his wife, Meghan Markle, the line of succession for the British throne is one notch longer. Where does the new — as yet unnamed — royal fall? Well, he’s seven in line, right behind his father....
GOP leader McConnell to say ‘case closed’ on Mueller probe
WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is declaring “case closed” on the Russia probe and potential obstruction by President Donald Trump. The Republican leader, in his most significant public comments yet on the investigation, is expected to outline in a Tuesday speech how special counsel Robert Mueller’s “exhaustive” probe...
Joe Biden parody site outranks his official page on Google
Parody is the sincerest form of flattery, right? So, Joe Biden should feel pretty good. Although, on second thought … A parody Joe Biden website — joebiden.info — is outranking the Democratic presidential candidate’s official website — joebiden.com — in current Google searches. A recent Google search of “Joe Biden”...
Hundreds of former federal prosecutors: Trump would’ve been charged if not presidentVideo
More than 500 former federal prosecutors who worked in Republican and Democratic administrations have signed on to a statement asserting special counsel Robert Mueller’s findings would have produced obstruction charges against President Trump — if not for the office he held. The statement — signed by myriad former career government...
Mnuchin rejects Democrats’ demand to hand over Trump’s tax returns, all but ensuring legal battleVideo
WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Monday told House Democrats he would not furnish President Trump’s tax returns despite their legal request, the latest move by Trump administration officials to shield the president from congressional investigations. Mnuchin, in a letter to House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal,...
Democrats set to hold AG Barr in contempt over Mueller reportVideo
WASHINGTON — A House committee is poised to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress — the opening salvo in what could be a lengthy, acrimonious court battle between House Democrats and President Trump’s administration over special counsel Robert Mueller’s report. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler scheduled...
Trump again falsely claims Puerto Rico received billions more in federal disaster aid than it actually did
President Trump again falsely inflated the amount of federal disaster Puerto Rico has received since Hurricane Maria struck in 2017, saying the island “should be very happy” about the federal response. In two tweets Monday, Trump wrote, “Puerto Rico has been given more money by Congress for Hurricane Disaster Relief,...
Microsoft offers software tools to secure elections
Microsoft announced an ambitious effort it says will make voting secure, verifiable and more transparent with open-source software. Two of the three top U.S elections vendors have expressed interest in potentially incorporating the software into their voting systems. The software kit is being developed with Galois, an Oregon-based company separately...
Democrats set contempt vote for Barr over Mueller report
WASHINGTON — House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler on Monday scheduled a vote this week to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress, escalating the battle between the Democrat-led House and President Donald Trump over special counsel Robert Mueller’s report. Nadler is proposing to hold Barr in contempt...
Trump reverses, now says Robert Mueller should not testify before CongressVideo
WASHINGTON — President Trump said Sunday that special counsel Robert Mueller should not testify before Congress, reversing course from his previous position that the decision is up to Attorney General William Barr. “Bob Mueller should not testify,” Trump said in an afternoon tweet. “No redos for the Dems!” Trump also...
Fines, jail time? Trump team resists oversight, Dems dig in
WASHINGTON — They’re talking at the Capitol about jailing people. Imposing steep fines. All sorts of extraordinary, if long-shot, measures to force the White House to comply with Democratic lawmakers’ request for information about President Trump stemming from the special counsel’s Russia investigation. This is the remarkable state of affairs...
VP Pence praises members of black churches torched by arson
OPELOUSAS, La. — Vice President Mike Pence praised the parishioners of three African American churches Friday for the inspiring way they responded to the destruction of their sanctuaries by an arsonist and lamented that attacks on communities of faith have become “all too frequent.” Pence and President Trump had been...
Trump, Putin discuss nuclear weapons, Mueller report
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin for more than an hour Friday about nuclear weapons agreements, the conflict in Venezuela, North Korea and also briefly about special counsel Robert Mueller’s just completed report on Moscow’s interference in the 2016 election. “They had a very good...
Poll shows most Americans want changes in how government works
After more than two years of the Donald Trump presidency, Andrea Petrusky is ready for some fundamental changes in the way the U.S. government works. “Right now we’re being shown all of the loopholes, the president being able to do all the things that no president should,” said Petrusky, 46,...
Analysis: Trump falsely claims there was little religious freedom before his election
WASHINGTON — In his National Day of Prayer speech on Thursday, President Trump focused on how much the United States has changed since his election, particularly for people of faith. The president, who won a large majority of white evangelical Christians and white Catholic voters in 2016, spoke about how...
AG Barr skips House hearing; Nancy Pelosi accuses him of lyingVideo
WASHINGTON — Attorney General William Barr skipped a House hearing Thursday on special counsel Robert Mueller’s Trump-Russia report, escalating an already acrimonious battle between Democrats and President Trump’s Justice Department. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Barr had already lied to Congress in other testimony and called that a “crime.” Democrats...
Stephen Moore, Trump ally, withdraws from contention for Fed seatVideo
WASHINGTON — President Trump was dealt another setback in his bid to put a political ally on the Federal Reserve Board as plans to appoint Stephen Moore, a conservative commentator and economist, collapsed amid a backlash sparked by Moore’s past writings and statements that disparaged women and gender equity. Trump...
Someone did get to look at Trump’s tax returns: Deutsche Bank bankers
NEW YORK — Donald Trump doesn’t want anyone to see his tax returns. Not the public. Not Congress. But at least one group has peered into the carefully guarded trove and could provide some insight — a team from Deutsche Bank AG. The bankers got a look before agreeing to...
Trump rolls back safety rules meant to prevent another Deepwater Horizon spill
The Trump administration has weakened offshore drilling safeguards put in place after a 2010 explosion on the BP Deepwater Horizon oil platform killed 11 workers and triggered the largest ocean spill in U.S. history. Administration officials said the revised Well Control Rule announced Thursday in Louisiana, not far from the...
Pittsburgh woman claims arrest came for not supporting Trump
A North Side woman said a Pittsburgh police officer charged her with burglary and other crimes in 2017 because she she didn’t support Donald Trump. Darian Balcom, 47, of Perry North, sued the city in federal court Tuesday, contending Officer Gabe Figueroa violated her First Amendment Rights. “The essence of...
