Politics

WASHINGTON (AP) — Four House Democratic freshmen who recently toured detention stations for migrants along the Texas border told a House committee Friday of jam-packed, fetid holding areas “in front of the American flag” and accused President Donald Trump of intentional cruelty to discourage future arrivals. Firing back, a quartet of Republicans from border states […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic-controlled House voted Friday to put a liberalized stamp on Pentagon policy, including a bipartisan proposal to limit President Donald Trump’s authority to make war against Iran. The measure passed along party lines after a series of votes that pushed it further to the left. Among them was a 251-170 tally […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Amid talk of a U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, the U.S. envoy talking to the Taliban said Thursday that America is not “cutting and running” from its longest war and that women will continue to have seats in peace talks to end nearly 18 years of fighting. Zalmay Khalilzad addressed an audience […]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — President Donald Trump barnstormed for his new trade deal with Mexico and Canada during a visit to Wisconsin on Friday, hoping that its economic impact will help him to retain a battleground state vital to his re-election effort. Trump told workers at Derco Aerospace the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which has yet to […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — After failing to get his citizenship question on the census, President Donald Trump now says his fallback plan will provide an even more accurate count — determining the citizenship of 90 percent of the population “or more.” But his plan will likely be limited by logistical hurdles and legal restrictions. Trump wants […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The debate between Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other House Democrats over migrant children in detention at the border was wrenching enough. Then it became about race. First, the freshman’s chief of staff compared more centrist Democrats to 1940s segregationists. Then Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY., accused Speaker Nancy Pelosi of “singling out” her and fellow newcomers, […]

One of the nation’s largest teachers’ unions sued the U.S. Education Department on Thursday over a federal program that promises to forgive student loans for public workers but has been beset by problems. The American Federation of Teachers filed a federal lawsuit in Washington alleging that the department has mismanaged the Public Service Loan Forgiveness […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on President Donald Trump and the issue of adding a citizenship question to the 2020 census (all times local): 7:45 p.m. Civil rights groups say President Donald Trump’s efforts to add a citizenship question to the census have sown fear and discord in vulnerable communities, making the task of an […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s July Fourth extravaganza — featuring tanks, a military flyover, and a Trump speech at the Lincoln Memorial — cost an estimated $5.4 million, according to rough figures Thursday.  Interior Secretary David Bernhardt provided the latest share of costs, $2.45 million for his agency, in a letter to lawmakers, saying […]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Democratic presidential candidates promised major changes to U.S. immigration law, contrasting their ideas to the hardline policies of President Donald Trump during a forum with Latino political activists in Milwaukee. The White House hopefuls gathered Thursday as Trump’s detention policies have sparked fierce Democratic pushback and intense public debate. They uniformly panned […]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Latest on Tennessee’s open Senate seat (all times local): 10:50 a.m. Tennessee’s U.S. Rep. Mark Green is the latest Republican contender to say he won’t run for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat in 2020. Green made the announcement Thursday, shortly after former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam declared he wouldn’t […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Pulling American troops prematurely from Afghanistan would be a “strategic mistake,” the Army general nominated to be Joint Chiefs chairman told senators Thursday. Mark Milley also said the United States should keep a “modest number” of forces in Iraq and Syria for now to maintain stability. Milley assured the Senate Armed Services […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. Customs and Border Protection is clarifying that airline passengers aren’t required to submit to identification checks when getting off planes if there’s no law enforcement-related reason. The new policy directive comes as a result of a settlement in a lawsuit; the documents were obtained by The Associated Press on Thursday. The […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — After two setbacks this week, President Donald Trump is now focusing his drive to curb drug costs on congressional efforts aimed at helping people on Medicare and younger generations covered by workplace plans. The White House on Thursday yanked its own regulation to ease the financial bite of costly medications for those […]

CHICAGO (AP) — The Trump administration is moving forward with a nationwide immigration enforcement operation targeting migrant families, despite loud opposition from Democrats and questions over whether it’s the best use of resources given the crisis at the border. The operation could happen as soon as this weekend after being postponed by President Donald Trump […]