U.S News

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 9 NEW YORK (AP) — Capping an extraordinary week in Donald Trump’s post-presidency, a New York judge ordered Friday that his company and its longtime finance chief stand trial in the fall on tax fraud charges stemming from a long-running criminal investigation into Trump’s business practices. Manhattan Judge Juan Manuel Merchan scheduled jury selection for Oct. 24 in the case, which involves allegations the Trump Organization gave CFO Allen Weisselberg more than $1.7 million in off-the-books compensation, including rent, car payments and school tuition. Lawyers at a hearing Friday suggested the trial could last several months. Merchan denied requests by Weisselberg’s lawyers and the Trump Organization to throw out the case, though he did drop one criminal tax fraud count against the company citing the statute of limitations. More than a dozen … [Read more...] about Trump Organization, CFO’s tax fraud trial set for October

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 9 WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats pushed their flagship climate change and health care bill toward House passage Friday, placing President Joe Biden on the brink of a back-from-the-dead triumph on his leading domestic goals that the party hopes will energize voters going into November’s elections. The narrowly divided House was poised to approve the legislation, which is but a shadow of the larger, more ambitious plan to supercharge environment and social programs that Biden and his party envisioned early last year. Even so, Democrats were thirsty to declare victory on top-tier goals such as providing Congress’ largest ever investment in curbing carbon emissions,reining in pharmaceutical costs and taxing large companies and show they can wring accomplishments out of a frequently gridlocked Washington that disillusions many voters. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, … [Read more...] about Dems near congressional passage of climate, health package

BEIJING (AP) — Latvia and Estonia say they have left a Chinese-backed forum aimed at boosting relations with Eastern European countries, in what appears to be a new setback for China's increasingly assertive diplomacy. The move follows China’s boosting of its relations with Russia, whose invasion of Ukraine is seen as a possible first step in a series of moves against countries that were once part of the Soviet Union. China has refused to criticize Russia and has condemned punishing economic sanctions imposed on Moscow by the West. Weeks before the invasion, Chinese President and Communist Party leader Xi Jinping hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing and declared their bilateral relations had “no limits" in a joint statement. The move also comes after Beijing launched economic and diplomatic retaliation against another Baltic state, Lithuania, in retaliation for its expanded ties with the self-governing island democracy of Taiwan, which China claims as its own … [Read more...] about Latvia, Estonia leave China-backed East Europe forum

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Supreme Court on Friday dismissed an appeal by a handful of Creighton University students who sought to be exempt from the private Catholic school’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate last year, arguing that getting the shots would violate their religious beliefs against abortion. The state’s high court said it didn’t have jurisdiction, citing its 150-year stance that people can't appeal orders denying or granting temporary injunctions. In this case, a judge last year declined to issue a temporary injunction that would have blocked Creighton University’s requirement that all students get the COVID-19 vaccination. “Because the court’s denial of a temporary injunction was not a final order, we lack jurisdiction of the appeal and must dismiss it,” Justice William Cassel wrote for the court. The 10 students who sought the injunction said they had religious objections to the vaccines because they "were developed and/or tested using abortion derived fetal … [Read more...] about Creighton students’ COVID vaccine mandate appeal dismissed

CNN anchor Chris Wallace said Friday on “New Day” that Republicans characterizing the FBI’s action at Mar-a-Lago as a “raid” using “Gestapo” tactics are out of touch with reality. Partial transcript as follows: KEILAR: He sort of put out his new talking points. I think if these documents are to be released, which lays the groundwork for this being planted evidence asking, “well, why wouldn’t the FBI allow the inspection areas with our lawyers or others present,” the idea being, “oh, we didn’t have eyeballs on what they were doing, what were they up to?” Do you think, Chris, Republicans who have come out so vociferously, and in some extreme language, supporting Donald Trump, talking about how this is the DOJ being weaponized against him, do you think they’re going to take this leap? WALLACE: Well, yeah. You know, there’s every indication that some of them will. You know, I mean, look at what happened yesterday, where you have this person who goes to attack, if he’d been able … [Read more...] about Chris Wallace: Calling Mar-a-Lago FBI Raid ‘Gestapo’ Tactic ‘Out of Touch with the Reality’