Politics

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial distracted the federal government from the coronavirus as it reached the United States in January, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday, despite warnings at the time from public health experts and members of Congress about the spread of the deadly virus. The outbreak “came up while […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department inspector general has found additional failures in the FBI’s handling of a secretive surveillance program that came under scrutiny after the Russia investigation, identifying problems with dozens of applications for wiretaps in national security investigations. The audit results, announced Tuesday by Inspector General Michael Horowitz, suggest that FBI errors […]

MIAMI (AP) — The Trump administration is prepared to lift crippling sanctions on Venezuela in support of a new proposal to form a transitional government requiring both Nicolas Maduro and opposition leader Juan Guaidó to step aside in favor of a five-person governing council, U.S. officials said. The one-page “Democratic Transition Framework for Venezuela” was […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Like forecasters tracking a megastorm, White House officials are relying on statistical models to help predict the impact of the coronavirus outbreak and try to protect as many people as possible. The public could get its first close look at the Trump administration’s own projections Tuesday at the daily briefing. High numbers […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration’s rollback of mileage standards Tuesday marks a win for Americans who like their SUVs and pickup trucks, but the government’s own estimates show big costs, too — more Americans dying from air pollution, more climate-damaging tailpipe exhaust and more expense for drivers at the gas pumps. The administration’s final […]

State Rep. Isaac Robinson was devoted to politics and Detroit, battling for decades on behalf of the city’s underdogs until succumbing to its latest scourge: the coronavirus. The 44-year-old lawmaker was midway through his first term in the Michigan House when he died Sunday, hours after checking into Detroit Medical Center. But he was hardly […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Monday renewed several waivers on U.S. sanctions against Iran, allowing Russian, European and Chinese companies to continue to work on Iran’s civilian nuclear facilities without drawing American penalties. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo signed off on the waiver extensions but couched the decision as one that continues restrictions […]

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — He drew the president’s wrath for seeking to slow congressional approval of a $2.2 trillion coronavirus-relief package, and now U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie is boasting of his tactic and hauling in campaign cash for his reelection bid. Massie’s campaign said Monday it had raised more than $110,000 over a three-day period […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI has reached out to Sen. Richard Burr about his sale of stocks before the coronavirus caused markets to plummet, a person familiar with the matter said Monday. The outreach suggests federal law enforcement officials may be looking to determine whether the North Carolina Republican exploited advance information when he dumped […]

NEW YORK (AP) — In a March 30, 2020 story about a claim by Sen. Marco Rubio that some media members couldn’t contain their glee that the United States appeared to have more coronavirus cases than China, The Associated Press erroneously reported that Rubio had not subsequently cited some examples. In a subsequent article, a […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The two doctors spread out their charts on the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office. The projections were grim: Even if the U.S. were to continue to do what it was doing, keeping the economy closed and most Americans in their homes, the coronavirus could leave 100,000 to 200,000 people dead and […]

The Trump administration has ruled that gun shops are considered “essential” businesses that should remain open as other businesses are closed to try to stop the spread of coronavirus. Gun control groups are balking, calling it a policy that puts profits over public health after intense lobbying by the firearms industry. In the past several […]

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — As the coronavirus pandemic knocks primary election after primary election off schedule, Democrats argue the outbreak shows the country needs to move toward one of their longtime goals — widespread voting by mail — to protect the November election. But Democrats’ hopes for using the crisis to expand voting by mail […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — A $500 billion federal aid package for companies and governments hurt by the coronavirus includes rules aimed at ensuring that the taxpayer money is used in ways that would help sustain the economy. But questions are being raised about whether those guardrails will prevent the kinds of abuses that have marked some […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Mark Meadows is resigning his congressional seat effective 5 p.m. Monday as he assumes the post of White House chief of staff. Meadows will officially take over the White House post Tuesday. Even while he held his House seat these last several weeks, the North Carolina Republican has been the de […]