President Donald Trump unloaded via Twitter on Republican former House Speaker Paul Ryan after Ryan’s comments critical of Trump appeared in excerpts from a new book. Ryan condemns Trump in “American Carnage,” by Tim Alberta of Politico, in excerpts running in various publications. Alberta wrote the former speaker, who retired from Congress in 2018, could … continue reading -> “Trump Unloads on Paul Ryan After ‘American Carnage’ Excerpts”
Outgoing British Prime Minster Theresa May has leveled a thinly disguised swipe at Conservative Party front-runner Boris Johnson as she underscored the necessity of character in taking on the country’s top post. May told the Daily Mail in an interview published Friday that the job of prime minister is not about power but about public … continue reading -> “UK PM May Takes Swipe at Front-Runner Boris Johnson”
Opposition lawmakers in Italy demanded Thursday to have Interior Minister Matteo Salvini appear in Parliament about allegations that a covert Russian oil sale scheme was devised to fund his pro-Moscow League party. Democratic Party lawmakers pressed for a parliamentary inquiry following another media report with allegations that a former Salvini associate proposed an under-the-table arrangement … continue reading -> “Italy: Lawmakers Want Salvini to Explain Alleged Russia Deal”
France adopted a pioneering tax on internet giants like Google, Amazon and Facebook on Thursday, despite U.S. threats of new tariffs on French imports. The final vote in favor of the tax in the French Senate came hours after the Trump administration announced an investigation into the tax under the provision used last year to … continue reading -> “France Adopts Pioneering Tax on Internet Tech Giants After US Threat”
The Trump administration imposed sanctions Thursday on Venezuela’s military intelligence agency, which is accused of torturing to death a navy captain in its custody. The latest move by the U.S. Treasury Department to pressure President Nicolas Maduro from power followed another round of negotiations in Barbados between Maduro’s government and opposition leaders aimed at … continue reading -> “US Targets Venezuela Intelligence Agency with Sanctions”
South Korea’s foreign minister told U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that Japan’s export curbs against South Korea are “undesirable” for trilateral cooperation, South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said Thursday. Japan tightened curbs last week on exports of three materials crucial for smartphone displays and chips, saying trust with South Korea had been broken over a … continue reading -> “S. Korean Diplomat Complains to Pompeo About Japan’s Export Curbs”
Britain and Canada established a fund Wednesday to train and provide legal support for journalists in some of the world’s hot spots. The two nations hope other countries will also contribute to the Global Media Defense Fund, which will be administered by UNESCO. Britain is donating about $3.8 million, and Canada kicked in about … continue reading -> “Britain, Canada Create Fund to Promote Global Free Press”
The number of people apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border declined in June, breaking a six-month streak of dramatic increases and prompting the Trump administration to quickly — though cautiously — claim an early victory in its negotiations for stricter border enforcement in Mexico. The number of unauthorized border crossers detained by the U.S. Border Patrol … continue reading -> “US Border Apprehensions Decline Amid Summer Heat, Mexico Deal”
Relentless global warming threatens the potential success of a sweeping set of goals established by the United Nations to tackle inequality, conflict and other ills, officials said on Tuesday. Climate change imperils food supplies, water and places where people live, endangering the U.N. plan to address these world problems by 2030, according to a report … continue reading -> “UN: Global Warming Threatens to Defeat Effort to Fix World Ills”
In the Dutch port city of Rotterdam, nine “water plazas” have been created that soak up excess rainfall while offering people a green space to meet and children to play. The city is also planting gardens and putting solar panels on a growing area of its nearly 20 square kilometers (8 square miles) of flat … continue reading -> “Despite Funding Loss, Cities Vow to Continue Resilience Push”
The organizers of the beleaguered Woodstock 50 festival said on Tuesday they still hoped to get a permit for the event due to take place next month despite being turned down at a second site. Authorities in the town of Vernon in upstate New York turned down the organizers’ application to stage the three-day event, … continue reading -> “Woodstock 50 Organizers Still Hopeful Despite Second Venue Setback”
The widely-publicized case of Baiq Nuril Maknun, the 41-year-old school bookkeeper sentenced to six months in prison for recording sexually-suggestive phone calls she received from the principal at her school, has gained traction after the Indonesian government indicated a willingness to grant her amnesty – which would eliminate any traces of wrongdoing from her part. … continue reading -> “Indonesian Woman Convicted of Recording Boss’ Sexual Advances Seeks Presidential Amnesty”
Sri Lanka’s government announced Tuesday it will reduce ground handling charges for airlines and slash aviation fuel prices and embarkation fees to help the country’s vital tourism industry recover after Easter suicide bombings killed more than 250 people. Tourism Minister John Amaratunga said the decision will lead to an increase in flights to Sri Lanka … continue reading -> “Sri Lanka To Slash Airline Charges To Help Boost Tourism”
Greece’s new Cabinet was sworn in Tuesday, two days after conservative party leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis won early elections on pledges to make the country more business-friendly, cut taxes and negotiate an easing of draconian budget conditions agreed as part of the country’s rescue program. The new Cabinet relies heavily on experienced politicians who have served … continue reading -> “Greece’s New, Conservative Cabinet is Sworn In”
First lady Melania Trump is visiting West Virginia to learn how a city at the center of the nation’s opioid epidemic is grappling with the crisis. Trump on Monday participated in a roundtable discussion on opioids with federal, state and local officials in Huntington, West Virginia. Federal statistics show West Virginia has the highest opioid … continue reading -> “Melania Trump in West Virginia for Opioid Talk”
Religious publishers say President Donald Trump’s most recent proposed tariffs on Chinese imports could result in a Bible shortage. That’s because millions of Bibles are printed in China each year. Stan Jantz, president and CEO of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, says more than half of worldwide Bible production takes place in China. Critics … continue reading -> “Bible Shortage? Publishers Say Tariffs Could Cause It”
Elizabeth Warren raised $19.1 million in the second quarter, her campaign said Monday, cementing her status in the top tier of Democratic presidential contenders and a leading voice of the party’s liberal base. The Massachusetts senator’s second-quarter contributions leave her behind only Pete Buttigieg, the South Bend, Ind., mayor who reported nearly $25 million in … continue reading -> “Warren Raises $19.1M, Tops Sanders During Second Quarter”
“We don’t need to eat,” said a young man held in a Libyan detention center five days after the compound was bombed killing more than 50 people and injuring at least 130. “We didn’t touch the food. We need to be out of Libya.” The hunger strike in the detention center was on … continue reading -> “Migrants, Stuck in Libya, Demand Evacuation as Conflict Escalates”
Two remote California desert communities assessed damage after two major earthquakes hit the area at the end of last week, followed by thousands of smaller aftershocks. Ridgecrest and neighboring Trona were hit hard by the magnitude 7.1 quake that rocked the Mojave Desert towns Friday. A day earlier, a magnitude 6.4 temblor hit the same … continue reading -> “Aftershocks in California Continue After 2 Major Earthquakes”
Concerted efforts continue to rebuild the Syrian city of Raqqa, nearly two years after it was recaptured from the Islamic State (IS) terror group. And while these efforts mostly focus on essential services in the city, several activist groups are trying to take on something different by restoring parks, playgrounds and public squares. U.S.-backed … continue reading -> “Rebuilding Syria’s Raqqa, One Park at a Time”
Sofia Lysenko’s parents moved to the United States from the Ukraine when she was 3 years old. Today, at 17, some of the biggest American pharmaceutical companies want to team up with this teenage science prodigy because she has created an artificial macromolecule robot that can deliver drugs directly to the brain cells of patients … continue reading -> “Prodigy and Ukrainian Immigrant Creates Unique DNA Robot”
Emergency workers in Ridgecrest, Calif., are assessing the damage after a second major earthquake struck the desert community northeast of Los Angeles on Friday night. No deaths or major injuries have been reported from either the Thursday or Friday quake, but as Mike O’Sullivan reports, Friday’s magnitude-7.1 temblor caused additional damage and left residents shaken. …
Hong Kong has long been seen as a good place to do business, thanks to its proximity to China and the one-country, two systems policy that provides a wide degree of economic freedom. But as Beijing expands its control, that reputation is at risk, as VOA’s Bill Gallo reports. …
President Donald Trump roused a political tempest when he decided to plant himself squarely in Independence Day observances with a speech from the Lincoln Memorial. His words from that platform, though, were strikingly measured, except for some befuddlement over American military history. The unscripted Trump — the one the world sees day to day — … continue reading -> “FACT CHECK: Trump on Vets, Economy and History”
Federal agents descended on the suburban Maryland house with the flash and bang of a stun grenade, blocked off the street and spent hours questioning the homeowner about a theft of government documents that prosecutors would later describe as “breathtaking” in its scale. The suspect, Harold Martin, was a contractor for the National Security Agency. … continue reading -> “Mystery of NSA Leak Lingers as Stolen Document Case Winds up”