Politics

The west front of the U.S. Capitol with the Supreme court on the left and the Library of Congress o...

Social Security’s retirement trust fund faces funding shortfall one year earlier than expected

WASHINGTON (AP) — Social Security’s retirement trust fund is projected to face a funding shortfall in 2032, a year earlier than last year’s projections, according to an annual report released Tuesday, while Medicare’s hospital insurance trust fund will be unable to pay full benefits in 2033, which is unchanged from last year’s estimate. Rising healthcare […]
3 months ago
FILE - Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick speaks as President Donald Trump signs the Gold Card execu...

What to know about Trump’s $100,000 fee on H-1B visas and the court decision that struck it down

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump last year dramatically ratched up the fee for H-1B work visas to $100,000, saying it would protect American workers from losing their jobs to lower-paid foreigners. But on Monday a federal judge struck down the fees, siding with 20 states and ruling that the Trump administration exceeded its authority […]
3 months ago
President Donald Trump listens during an event at Custer Farms in Chippewa Falls, Wis., Friday, Jun...

Trump administration warns more than 500 hospitals to provide more price information or face fines

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has warned more than 500 hospitals that they are failing to provide the public with basic pricing information — arguing that the lack of disclosure is keeping healthcare costs higher than they should be. The Associated Press obtained exclusively the list of hospitals that since April have either received […]
3 months ago
Vice President JD Vance speaks with reporters upon arriving on Air Force Two at Joint Base Andrews,...

Vance demands Justice Department probe of Minnesota officials as White House presses ‘war on fraud’

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President JD Vance is pressing federal prosecutors to investigate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and state Attorney General Keith Ellison over allegations they failed to stop widespread social services fraud, amplifying concerns the White House will use a new Justice Department division to target political rivals. Vance, who has been tapped to […]
3 months ago
FILE - Canadian and American flags are shown on the Gordie Howe Bridge under construction between W...

Carney says the new Canadian-built bridge across Detroit River that Trump threatened will open

TORONTO (AP) — A new Canadian-built bridge across the Detroit River that U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to block will open at the end of the week, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday. In February, Trump demanded that Canada turn over at least half the ownership of the bridge and agree to other unspecified […]
3 months ago
FILE - IRS CEO Frank Bisignano testifies during a Senate Committee on Finance hearing on Capitol Hi...

After long waits at the Social Security Administration, its chief says things are getting better

WASHINGTON (AP) — After complaints about staffing cuts and long waits to get help at the Social Security Administration, its commissioner says he’s ready to make the case to Congress this week that things are getting a lot better at the embattled agency. Frank Bisignano is expected to face pointed questions from lawmakers at a […]
3 months ago
Mary Saunders looks over her choices one last time before casting her ballots in the Maine Primary,...

The Latest: Maine primary election tests Platner’s support following mounting scandals

Voters across Maine, Nevada, South Carolina and North Dakota will cast their ballots Tuesday in another day of primary elections in America, but much of the political world will be focused on Maine’s high-stakes U.S. Senate contest. The results aren’t in question. Neither Republican incumbent Sen. Susan Collins nor Democratic challenger Graham Platner faces serious […]
3 months ago
President Donald Trump gestures during the National Anthem as he attends an NBA Finals playoff bask...

The Latest: Federal judge strikes down Trump’s $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas

A federal judge on Monday struck down the Trump administration’s $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas, contradicting an earlier federal court ruling upholding the fee hike. The administration announced the much-higher fee as a way of preventing foreign workers from taking American jobs. Schools and states say filling teacher and doctor jobs was already hard […]
3 months ago
FILE - Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Federal Air Marshal...

House is set to fund Trump’s immigration actions for the rest of his time in the White House

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans will look to get nearly $70 billion for immigration enforcement over the finish line Tuesday, enough to fund a pair of Homeland Security agencies through the next three years and the rest of President Donald Trump’s time in office. Speaker Mike Johnson will need near perfect attendance and unity on […]
3 months ago
FILE - Various wines are displayed in Sonoma, Calif., July 10, 2017. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File)C...

A government-commissioned study found drinking risks. US guidelines didn’t feature its findings

A study commissioned by President Joe Biden’s administration to investigate alcohol-related health harms was released independently on Tuesday, after President Donald Trump’s administration decided not to feature the researchers’ findings in new dietary guidelines as it faced pushback from the alcohol industry and a congressional committee. The findings of the study, in the Journal of […]
3 months ago
This artistic rendering provided by Heller Inc. shows a dramatically redesigned Pennsylvania Statio...

Proposed $8B transformation of NYC’s Penn Station features Roman-style columns, ornamental design

NEW YORK (AP) — When Manhattan’s original Pennsylvania Station was demolished in 1963, it marked the undignified end to one of America’s great public works, a monolithic Beaux Arts train terminal with Roman-style columns and a spacious central waiting area that at the time was the largest indoor space in the city. In its place […]
3 months ago
FILE - President Dwight Eisenhower brushes up on his golf game near the putting green on the lawn o...

From tennis to T-ball, the White House’s South Lawn is no stranger to sports. But not like the UFC

WASHINGTON (AP) — Teddy Roosevelt boxed. Richard Nixon bowled. Dwight D. Eisenhower put in a putting green. George H.W. Bush added a horseshoe pit. Herbert Hoover played a game named for himself to get more exercise, while George W. Bush threw open the space for youth T-ball. The White House and its storied South Lawn […]
3 months ago
Rahm Emanuel takes a break from a bike ride through New Hampshire, Saturday, June 6, 2026. (AP Phot...

Rahm Emanuel’s uphill climb in New Hampshire tests a 2028 presidential bid

WARNER, N.H. (AP) — For Rahm Emanuel, the road to the White House runs through the uphill climbs of rural New Hampshire. The onetime Democratic congressman, White House chief of staff, Chicago mayor and U.S. ambassador to Japan hasn’t formally announced his ambition to return to power in Washington. But his weekend trip through the […]
3 months ago
Bradley Beychok poses for a photograph, Monday, June 8, 2026, in Alexandria, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Bra...

Democratic group launches ad campaign to help flip control of Congress in midterm elections

A Democratic group that previously focused on presidential races is wading into the midterms by targeting more than a dozen House and Senate contests, many of them on Republican turf, in a new advertising campaign that begins Tuesday. American Bridge 21st Century’s $50 million effort adds financial firepower to Democrats’ attempt to flip control of […]
3 months ago

Trump says pilots are fine after US helicopter crashes near Strait of Hormuz

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The pilots of a helicopter that crashed around the Strait of Hormuz are “fine,” U.S. President Donald Trump said late Monday. Trump made the comments to journalists after watching the NBA Finals in New York while at John F. Kennedy International Airport. The New York Times first reported that […]
3 months ago
FILE - Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks with supporters after filing his reelection paperwork, M...

South Carolina Republicans try to extend winning streak as Sen. Lindsey Graham seeks fifth term

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina voters on Tuesday are aiming to winnow the field in high-profile races for governor and U.S. Senate, with Republicans seeking to maintain a statewide winning streak that stretches back decades. Republican contenders have trumpeted their loyalty to President Donald Trump, who has remained popular in the state despite some […]
3 months ago
James Settelmeyer, a Republican candidate for Congress in Nevada's 2nd district, speaks to attendee...

GOP primary for open US House seat and Democratic governors race highlight Nevada ballot

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nevadans are choosing their party nominees Tuesday for two closely watched congressional seats and the governor’s race, among others, as the state grapples with an affordable housing shortage, exploding energy demand from data centers and federal cuts to key state programs. The state has a closed primary, meaning only registered Democrats […]
3 months ago

Tuesday takeaways: Platner’s big night, Clyburn carries on and Trump’s support gets mixed results

WASHINGTON (AP) — Nevada, South Carolina and North Dakota hosted primary elections Tuesday, but much of the political world was focused on Maine’s high-stakes U.S. Senate contest. The results were never in question. Neither Republican incumbent Sen. Susan Collins nor Democratic challenger Graham Platner faced serious opposition for their party’s nomination. And yet Tuesday marked […]
3 months ago
Graham Platner, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, speaks at a campaign event Friday, June 5, 20...

Platner seeks Democratic nomination for US Senate to set up critical Maine race with Collins

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Graham Platner has attracted a following of enthusiastic supporters and been confronted with a string of controversies as he has transformed from a political unknown into the leading Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in one of the year’s most critical races. Platner is running in Tuesday’s primary for the chance to […]
3 months ago
In this image provided by Karen Dillman, Alaska Senate candidate Dan Sullivan, one of the challenge...

The other Dan Sullivan in Alaska’s US Senate race says candidacy was ‘my choice,’ not a sham

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Alaska U.S. Senate candidate Dan Sullivan acknowledges that sharing a name and party affiliation with the incumbent Republican gives him “an instant megaphone” in the crowded primary race. But Sullivan said his campaign isn’t a sham or something Democrats put him up to doing. He said friends for years have jokingly […]
3 months ago
Nithya Raman, a candidate in the Los Angeles mayoral race, smiles during a campaign event discussin...

Progressive Nithya Raman advances to November runoff against Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Progressive city council member Nithya Raman has advanced to a November runoff against Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, setting up an unexpected matchup between two Democrats and former political allies to run the struggling city of nearly 4 million. The outcome means Spencer Pratt, a Republican and former reality television personality […]
3 months ago
FILE - President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the e...

Netanyahu and Trump are at odds over the war they started together

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s latest strikes on Lebanon and Iran have made clear that U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who started the war in lockstep, want different things. Trump had publicly warned Israel not to strike Beirut in its war with Iran-backed Hezbollah militants. When it did, on Sunday, Iran […]
3 months ago
FILE - In this Aug. 17, 2018, file photo, people arrive before the start of a naturalization ceremo...

Federal judge strikes down Trump’s $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas

BOSTON (AP) — A federal judge on Monday struck down the Trump administration’s $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas, contradicting an earlier federal court ruling upholding the fee hike. The administration announced the much-higher fee as a way of preventing foreign workers from taking American jobs. But U.S. District Court Judge Leo Sorokin in Boston […]
3 months ago

Editorial Roundup: United States

Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad: ___ June 3 The Washington Post on the conditions for immigrant detainees The state of New Jersey filed a lawsuit this week against the operator of a privately run immigration detention center in Newark, claiming that health inspectors were denied full access to the facility. […]
3 months ago