Author: Press Room

The Trump administration is planning to expand the E-Verify rule to ensure that groups applying for federal grants do not hire illegal migrant workers. Proposed new regulations released by the White House Office of Management and Budget would require all federal grant recipients to enroll in E-Verify and to run all hires through the system to continue to qualify to receive their grant money, Bloomberg reported. The new rules would be a big change for past grant applicants who never had to use E-Verify before. The addition of E-Verify is part of the White House’s renewed efforts to root out…

The man accused of igniting last year’s deadly Pacific Palisades fire faces trial Monday in Los Angeles. The court appearance comes against the backdrop of a devasted urban area still struggling to move on from the conflagration that looms large in the current mayor’s race. The blaze became the most destructive inferno in Los Angeles history. It killed 12 people and destroyed 7,000 structures, causing an estimated $18-20 billion in damages. Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, a.k.a. “Jonathan Rinder,” and “Jon Rinder,” of Melbourne, Florida, 29, has pleaded not guilty to starting the fire, AP reports. Prosecutors allege Rinderknecht started a fire on Jan. 1,…

Sen. Raphael Warnock met Tuesday with Speaker Mike Johnson after the Republican leader requested the Democratic senator privately discuss comments Warnock made regarding Johnson’s faith in a recent interview. Warnock was asked in the New York Times Q&A about Johnson praying ahead of the passage last year of the GOP megabill that included tax cuts and reductions in social-service programs and how he “understands that.” Warnock, the pastor of a prominent Atlanta church, responded that he is a “Matthew 25 Christian,” referencing the chapter of the Gospel where Jesus describes the responsibility of the faithful to treat the hungry, sick…

Progressives have spent millions of dollars over the last two cycles trying to unseat Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar — only to watch him spoil their plans each time. Now, as Democrats are trying to claw their way back to the majority, some of those groups are gearing up to try and take out Cuellar again. NARAL Pro-Choice America, the abortion rights advocacy group, told POLITICO that it is “committed to removing” Cuellar from office. Joel Payne, chief communications officer at MoveOn.org, didn’t rule out spending on a primary. Other progressive organizations indicated that they may jump in again, too. “I…

Despite routine attempts to pump up Africa’s promise, with slogans such as “Africa Rising” and the “African Renaissance,” the continent is falling behind the rest of the world. This long slide is proof that the West’s old formula of engaging Africa has failed dismally. Close to five trillion dollars (in real terms) has been disbursed in aid to Africa in the last 60 years. Yet much has been wasted—and not only because the governance conditions of the primary recipients meant that it could not be properly spent, Much of it was given for strategic purposes during the Cold War, and…

The U.S. trade deficit narrowed slightly in April as a record surge in petroleum exports offset a massive increase in imports of artificial intelligence infrastructure equipment, leaving the underlying trade position little changed. The goods and services deficit shrank 1.2 percent to $55.9 billion from a revised $56.6 billion in March, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. Economists had forecast a $55.9 billion deficit. Exports rose 2.6 percent to a record $327.1 billion while imports climbed 2.0 percent to $383.0 billion. The dominant force on the export side was petroleum. With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed since the U.S.-backed war…

The following content is sponsored by The Oxford Club. He spent three years inside CIA headquarters, met Elon Musk face to face, and called the SpaceX IPO filing almost to the exact day. Now he’s showing regular Americans what Wall Street is desperately trying to keep for itself. The hedge funds are locked in. Goldman’s partners already have their allocations. Here’s the one economist who saw this coming long before Wall Street — and why he’s handing his pre-IPO play away for free. The SpaceX IPO is expected to drop just days away. But by the time you read this, Wall…

A key U.S. spy law remains on track to expire at the end of the week after Speaker Mike Johnson met Tuesday with President Donald Trump about the future of a key section of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Trump indicated in the private White House meeting that he’s not inclined to appease Democrats and pave the way for a FISA extension by nominating a permanent director of national intelligence to succeed Bill Pulte, the acting director he installed last week, according to three people briefed on the conversation who were granted anonymity to describe it. Most Democrats are refusing…

PHILADELPHIA — Pollsters are again staring down a familiar nemesis: Donald Trump. The polling industry whiffed every year Trump has been on the ballot. In 2016, Trump upset Hillary Clinton to win the presidency. And after spending four years trying to fix what went wrong, the polls were even worse in 2020. Trump ran far more competitively with now-President Joe Biden than the preelection surveys suggested. Pollsters are breathing a sigh of relief after largely nailing last year’s midterm elections. But presidential years have been a different story in the Trump era. And now, with Trump expanding his lead over…

Mass anti-immigration protests have been planned in the Northern Irish capital in response Northern Irish police have arrested a Sudanese asylum seeker over a brutal stabbing attack in Belfast on Monday. Graphic video footage showed locals intervening as the attacker plunged a kitchen knife into his victim’s neck.The attacker, who is in his 30s, was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said on Tuesday. His victim, who is in his 40s, suffered stab wounds to his back, face, and eyes, and has been hospitalized in serious condition.While the circumstances of the attack are…