Politics Election category, Page 45
America’s long history of ‘checks and balances’ is being tested by Trump like rarely before
ATLANTA — It’s what one historian calls an “elaborate, clunky machine,” one that’s been fundamental to American democracy for more than two centuries. The principle of “checks and balances” is rooted in the Constitution’s design of a national government with three distinct, coequal branches. President Donald Trump in his first...
Federal Reserve likely to defy Trump, keep rates unchanged this week
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve will likely keep its key short-term interest rate unchanged on Wednesday, despite weeks of harsh criticism and demands from President Donald Trump that the Fed reduce borrowing costs. After causing a sharp drop in financial markets two weeks ago by saying he could fire Fed...
Trump, in a new interview, says he doesn’t know if he backs due process rights
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump is circumspect about his duties to uphold due process rights laid out in the Constitution, saying in a new interview that he does not know whether U.S. citizens and noncitizens alike deserve that guarantee. He also said he does not think military...
Putin says he hopes there will be no need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that the need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine had not arisen and that he hopes it will not. In comments aired Sunday in a film by Russian state television about his quarter of a century in power, Putin said Russia has the strength...
Fetterman video shows argument with airplane crew about seatbelt
A video filmed earlier this year showing Sen. John Fetterman in a tense exchange with an airline crew member over his seatbelt on a flight to Pittsburgh has gone viral online — after a New York Magazine report raised new concerns about his health. The video of the senator’s exchange...
Where did all the Democrats go? In suburban Pittsburgh counties, they’re harder to find in elected office
Democrats are disappearing from elected office in the six counties surrounding Allegheny County. Just 13 Democrats combined serve as county commissioners or row officers in Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Washington and Westmoreland counties, compared to 57 Republicans. Only about a decade ago, nearly three times as many Democrats — 38...
Analysis: National security shake-up narrows Trump’s circle of influence
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s removal of national security adviser Mike Waltz brings further disruption to a national security team that has endured scrutiny over using the Signal messaging app to discuss sensitive military operations as well as mounting questions over the leadership of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the...
Trump draws criticism with AI image of himself as the pope ahead of the papal conclave
NEW YORK — President Donald Trump posted an artificial intelligence-generated image of himself dressed as pope as the mourning of Pope Francis continues and just days before the conclave to elect his successor is set to begin. Trump’s action drew rebukes from a group representing Catholic bishops in New York...
Marco Rubio criticized Germany. The foreign ministry hit back
BERLIN — Germany’s foreign ministry hit back at U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio after he criticized the decision to classify the Alternative for Germany party as a “right-wing extremist” organization. The spat deepened Friday to embroil the foreign office, Rubio, U.S. Vice President JD Vance and tech billionaire Elon...
Fetterman’s ex-chief of staff warned doctor of mental health concerns, report says
The former chief of staff to U.S. Sen. John Fetterman grew so concerned about the Pennsylvania Democrat’s behavior last year he wrote a detailed letter to Fetterman’s doctor, warning that the politician appeared to be experiencing significant mental health challenges that could pose serious risks to his well-being, according to...
Trump signs executive order directing federal funding cuts to PBS and NPR
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order aiming to slash public subsidies to PBS and NPR as he alleged “bias” in the broadcasters’ reporting. The order instructs the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and other federal agencies “to cease Federal funding for NPR and PBS” and further...
Trump re-ups his threat to strip Harvard University’s tax-exempt status
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday re-upped his threat to strip Harvard University of its tax-exempt status, escalating a showdown with the first major college that has defied the administration’s efforts to crack down on campus activism. “We are going to be taking away Harvard’s Tax Exempt Status,” Trump...
White House will unveil Trump’s 2026 budget, his 1st since returning to power
WASHINGTON — The White House is planning on Friday to unveil President Donald Trump’s 2026 budget, a sweeping framework that is expected to propose steep reductions, if not a wholesale zeroing out, of various federal programs as part of his administration’s priorities. Budgets do not become law but serve as...
Trump says it’s Biden’s economy, but businesses, economists beg to differ
WASHINGTON — When the stock market was climbing in January 2024, Donald Trump knew exactly who deserved credit: Himself. Nearly a year before his return to the White House, he declared on his Truth Social platform that investors were celebrating his lead in the polls against President Joe Biden. When...
Trump taps national security adviser Waltz for U.N. envoy in major national security team switch-up
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Thursday he’s nominating his national security adviser Mike Waltz to serve as United Nations ambassador in a major shake-up of his national security team. The president said Secretary of State Marco Rubio will serve simultaneously as acting national security adviser while maintaining his position...
Harris accuses Trump of ‘wholesale abandonment’ of American ideals in major post-election speech
SAN FRANCISCO — Former Vice President Kamala Harris used a high-profile speech to sharply criticize President Donald Trump amid speculation about whether she will mount another presidential campaign or opt to run for California governor. In her most extensive public remarks since leaving office in January following her defeat to...
Trump says U.S. kids may get ‘2 dolls instead of 30,’ but China will suffer more in a trade war
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Wednesday acknowledged that his tariffs could result in fewer and costlier products in the United States, saying American kids might “have two dolls instead of 30 dolls,” but he insisted China will suffer more from his trade war. The Republican president has tried to...
Lovefest or Cabinet meeting? For Donald Trump, it’s both
WASHINGTON — Near the end of President Donald Trump’s marathon Cabinet meeting Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that the U.S. has brought home 47 wrongfully detained Americans so far in Trump’s second term. “Forty-seven for the 47th president in the first 100 days,” Rubio said. “And that’s all...
Senate votes down resolution to block Trump’s global tariffs amid economic turmoil
WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans narrowly voted down a Democratic resolution Wednesday that would have blocked global tariffs announced by Donald Trump earlier this month, giving the president a modest win as lawmakers in both parties have remained skeptical of his trade agenda. Trump announced the far-reaching tariffs on nearly all...
About that hug … Whitmer risks backlash from Democrats as she embraces Trump in Michigan
HARRISON TOWNSHIP, Mich. — First came their much-analyzed Oval Office moment. Next, their subject-to-interpretation hug. The two interactions between President Donald Trump and a sometime antagonist, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, reflect the Democratic governor’s efforts to move past last year’s hard-fought campaign and find common ground with the Republican president...
Democrats, Republicans outline visions for Pittsburgh in mayoral forum
The candidates seeking to lead Pittsburgh as mayor outlined their positions on key issues like public safety and affordable housing in a pair of debates held at Point Park University’s Pittsburgh Playhouse Downtown. Tuesday’s mayoral forum included all four candidates, separated into two separate debates, one for the Republicans and...
Hegseth boasts about ending ‘woke’ program on women and security. Trump signed it into law
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth boasted on social media Tuesday that he had dismantled a program supporting women on security teams, an initiative that he called “woke” but actually was signed into law by his boss, President Donald Trump. In a post on the social platform X, Hegseth called...
Trump marks his first 100 days in office with a rally in Michigan, a state rocked by his tariffs
WARREN, Mich. — President Donald Trump is holding a rally in Michigan on Tuesday to mark the first 100 days of his second term, staging his largest public event since returning to the White House in a state that has been especially rocked by his steep trade tariffs and combative...
Posters of immigrant arrests line White House driveway
Posters of immigrant arrestees’ mugshots now line the driveway of the White House — a President Donald Trump administration move to promote its recent crackdown. The dozens of posters appeared on Monday, showing the faces of men with the words “Illegal Alien” and alleged crimes such as “Sexual contact with...
Trump China tariffs set to unleash supply shock on U.S. economy
President Donald Trump’s tariff onslaught has roiled Washington and Wall Street for nearly a month. If the trade war persists, the next upheaval will hit much closer to home. Since the U.S. raised levies on China to 145% in early April, cargo shipments have plummeted, perhaps by as much as...
