Author: potus

Hamas released three more Israeli hostages on Saturday as part of an exchange for Palestinian prisoners, in a highly theatrical handover in which the men were made to give speeches effectively at gunpoint.The hostage release is the fifth in a tense series of exchanges that are part of a 42-day cease-fire deal that went into effect last month pausing the fighting between Israel and Hamas. Hamas agreed to incrementally release 33 of the nearly 100 remaining hostages in exchange for more than 1,000 Palestinians jailed by Israel and a partial Israeli withdrawal.Here’s a closer look at the Israelis released on…

As President Donald Trump’s second administration takes shape in Washington, Democratic governors across the country are laying out their own plans for the year, with some using high-profile speeches to detail plans to resist the president’s agenda — even if they’re not always saying so explicitly.The Democratic Party is trying to find its way back after a tough 2024 election that locked it out of power in Washington. Many in the party are looking to the future in the states, where a number of governors have been floated as potential presidential contenders in 2028.And the plans these governors are laying…

The SummaryIn the last two weeks, EPA staffers have had to contend with dramatic shake-ups at the agency.About 1,100 “probationary” employees were told they could be terminated, and 168 staffers working on environmental justice issues were put on leave.Lee Zeldin, the EPA’s new administrator, said his priorities for the agency include boosting AI and automotive jobs.In the brief week and a half Lee Zeldin has helmed the Environmental Protection Agency, a flurry of personnel moves have dramatically shaken up the agency — like many others — and rattled some staff members.On the day of Zeldin’s confirmation last week, the EPA…

For decades, sub-Saharan Africa was a singular focus of American foreign aid. The continent received over $8 billion a year, money that was used to feed starving children, supply lifesaving drugs and provide wartime humanitarian assistance.In a few short weeks, President Trump and the South African-born billionaire Elon Musk have burned much of that work to the ground, vowing to completely gut the U.S. Agency for International Aid.“CLOSE IT DOWN!” Mr. Trump wrote on social media on Friday, accusing the agency of unspecified corruption and fraud.A federal judge on Friday halted, for now, some elements of Mr. Trump’s attempt to…

Booing during “The Star-Spangled Banner” at sports games in Canada.“Buy Canadian” signs multiplying at grocery stores amid a brewing boycott of U.S. goods.Cross-party calls to find new friends and customers on the global stage.President Trump may have paused his plans to impose crushing tariffs on Canada, pulling the two countries back from the brink of a trade war. But evidence abounds of the damage Mr. Trump has inflicted on the relations between the two nations.After threatening levies on Canada, and Canada threatening to retaliate, Mr. Trump and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday came to an agreement for a 30-day…

President Trump’s executive order freezing most U.S. foreign aid for 90 days has thrown into turmoil programs that fight starvation and deadly diseases, run clinical trials and seek to provide shelter for millions of displaced people across the globe.The government’s lead agency for delivering humanitarian aid, the U.S. Agency for International Development, or U.S.A.I.D., has been hit the hardest. Mr. Trump has accused the agency of rampant corruption and fraud, without providing evidence.The Trump administration ordered thousands of the agency’s workers to return to the United States from overseas; put all of the agency’s direct hires, including its roster of…

Republicans managed to flip the Virginia governorship in 2021 largely on an education platform, focusing on parents’ concerns over peak-pandemic public school closings and race-based curricula.Four years later, the party is aiming to retool its “parents’ rights” campaign in its bid to hold on to the office in the blue-leaning state in a post-Covid era.Republicans in recent years have sought to expand their education and cultural playbook in Virginia and around the country. While Republicans once zeroed in on critical race theory, the target is now diversity, equity and inclusion policies. And they’ve broadened their focus to preventing transgender students…

WASHINGTON (AP) — Before President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress can enact much of their legislative agenda, they have to deal with some unfinished business — completing work on the current budget year’s spending bills. It’s a task that by all accounts is not going well.The current stopgap measure lasts through March 14. After that, without congressional action, there would be a partial government shutdown. Five weeks is an eternity when it comes to resolving spending bills in Washington. But Trump’s first weeks in office have escalated tensions between the two parties as the new administration reshapes agency priorities…

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk arrives to the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla | Via ReutersA federal judge on Friday declined to block Elon Musk’s government cost-cutting department from accessing the U.S. Department of Labor’s systems, an initial setback for the government employee unions resisting his efforts to shrink the federal bureaucracy. The temporary ruling by U.S. District Judge John Bates in Washington, D.C., is the first step in a lawsuit against the Labor Department by one of the largest U.S. labor unions,…

Cuando el presidente Donald Trump anunció el martes su propuesta de que Estados Unidos se hiciera con el control de Gaza, sorprendió incluso a funcionarios de alto cargo de su propia Casa Blanca y de su gobierno.Aunque su anuncio pareció formal y meditado —leyó el plan de una hoja de papel—, su gobierno no había hecho ni siquiera la planificación más básica para examinar la viabilidad de la idea, según cuatro personas con conocimiento de las discusiones que no estaban autorizadas a hablar públicamente.No fueron solo los estadounidenses quienes quedaron en estado de agitación; el anuncio sorprendió igualmente a los…