List of All Articles with Tag 'us politics'

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is playing a central role in the opening stages of the 2024 Republican presidential contest, with candidates eager to bask in her glow in hopes of elevating their own campaigns. She's pledging her neutrality in the race -- for now, at least.

US District Judge Tanya Chutkan wasted little time taking charge of the historic case by special counsel Jack Smith against former President Donald Trump, using a hearing Friday to make clear she doesn't want a political carnival.

A sudden new twist in the investigation into Hunter Biden means his legal tribulations will likely stretch on for months, creating an unwelcome new drag on his father's White House and reelection bid.

Former President Donald Trump is not expected to testify on behalf of his former trade adviser Peter Navarro, potentially undercutting a key defense for Navarro in his upcoming criminal trial on contempt of Congress charges for defying the House select committee that investigated the US Capitol attack on January 6, 2021.

A California candidate for Congress has blamed an aide for sending out an email saying that he was quitting the race in Orange County out of a “lack of joy” - but admitted that he did write it. “Life is short. I believe one should enjoy their work. For the past four months, I have not enjoyed mine,” Aditya Pai wrote in the email, before announcing that he was in fact quitting. In the second email titled “Apologies for the scare. I am not going anywhere” Mr Pai, 31, said the first email was sent by a now-former aide accidentally. He, however, said he had written the email. “I wrote that letter as an emotional processing exercise after an exhausting glimpse into the political machine,” Mr Pai wrote in the second email. “I sent it to some mentors and staff for perspective before getting back to work; it was never supposed to be shared. Now that it was, I see a silver lining in your seeing it.” Mr Pai, who is trying to unseat, Rep Michelle Steel, told the Orange County Register that he was at the gym when the first email was sent. He initially thought it was a test email. But, when he realised the email had gone to “literally everyone” he called his parents and mentors for advice, who told him that he had to get through the campaign “to be in a position to serve and serve as I’ve always enjoyed it.” “In that first email, the only thing that was inaccurate was the resulting decision,” he told the newspaper. Now, with the mask off, Mr Pai said he can run an authentic campaign. “There was a bit of catharsis in that letter coming out,” he told The Hill. “There was a silver lining. I feel free in being myself.” “Rest assured: I am here to run, win, and serve you to the absolute best of my ability,” he wrote in the second email. Mr Pai and three other Democratic candidates are vying for the seat held by Rep Steel which covers California’s 45th congressional district or much of northwestern Orange County. While historically Orange County has mostly voted Republican, demographic shifts have turned the county purple and Ms Steel’s district is regarded as a swing district. Read More CLIMATE GLIMPSE: Here's what you need to see and know today Union leader urges PM to return ‘to real world’ to settle doctors’ pay dispute Prosecutors say a California judge charged in his wife's killing had 47 weapons in his house A brief history of natural disasters in Hawaii, from tsunamis to wildfires Summer camp in California gives Jewish children of color a haven to be different together Maui residents had little warning before flames overtook town. At least 53 people died.

The federal government has gone into disaster response mode after wildfires destroyed Lahaina on the island of Maui in Hawaii earlier this week.

Attorney General Merrick Garland did not provide a robust explanation on Friday for why he needed to give US attorney David Weiss special counsel status for the Hunter Biden probe, or why it was necessary five years after the investigation began.

Michael Cohen, former President Donald Trump’s former attorney, is reportedly weighing a run for Congress. “I am interested and there’s a multitude of folks encouraging me to run,” the former president’s former fixer told Semafor. Mr Cohen told the outlet that he would run as a Democrat. “I’m still contemplating the run,” Mr Cohen confirmed to The Independent, but said he wouldn’t be divulging any further details, like a timeline or what would sway his decision one way or another, at this time. Mr Cohen told The Independent that he has been living in Manhattan since 1991. He lives on the East side of Manhattan, according to Semafor, meaning he would run against Rep Jerry Nadler in the 12th congressional district. Mr Nadler is the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee and has served in Congress since 1992. A potential congressional run for Mr Cohen would be particularly interesting during the next election cycle, as he is likely to be a key player in the Manhattan trial against Mr Trump involving hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels. Mr Cohen admitted to paying Ms Daniels hush money payments during Mr Trump’s 2016 campaign — after being directed by Mr Trump to do so. The former president was indicted in March by a grand jury and pleaded not guilty to 34 felony charges for falsification of business records. Mr Cohen has been an outspoken critic of Mr Trump in recent years, and the pair have been engaged in ongoing legal battles. Earlier this month, Mr Trump was called to sit for a September deposition as part of his $500m lawsuit against his former attorney, claiming that he has “suffered vast reputational harm as a direct result of Defendant’s breaches.” Last month, Mr Trump reached a settlement with Mr Cohen over $1.3m in unpaid legal bills. Read More All of Trump’s lawsuits and criminal charges and where they stand Michael Cohen claims Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner ‘probably a cooperating witness’ in probe Trump called for deposition in $500m lawsuit against Michael Cohen

A group of Republican members of Congress are invoking Noah’s Ark and an obscure legal theory to defend Texas governor Greg Abbott’s controversial floating border wall in the Rio Grande, after the Justice Department sued the state and claimed the barrier violates federal law. On Wednesday, a delegation led by US Representative Jodey Arrington of Texas, alongside the Texas Public Policy Foundation, filed an amicus brief in federal court, arguing the Department of Justice is mistaken to argue that the 1,900-mile Rio Grande, the fourth largest river in North America, is a navigable waterway under the definition of federal regulations. The brief argues that an 1870 court case defines navigable waterways as those used in interstate or international commerce. “Indeed, if one takes the Book of Genesis literally, then the entire world was once navigable by boats large enough to carry significant amounts of livestock,” the brief reads. “Under the federal government’s theory, these anecdotes would render any structure built anywhere in Texas an obstruction to navigation subject to federal regulation.” Last month, echoing the arguments from Mr Abbott, Representative Arrington argued that Texas is under “invasion” by drug cartels, so the US Constitutional authorises emergency, military-style action like deploying national guardsmen and building border barriers without federal permission. “The sovereign states created the federal government,” he said, “not the other way around. When the states entered into that social contract of the Constitution of the United States, they may have ceded some of their authority to the central government but they didn’t surrender their sovereignty.” Legal experts told The Independent that this interpretation of the Constitution’s “Invasion Clause” is mistaken and has previously been struck down in federal immigration cases. Last month, the Biden administration sued Governor Abbott, arguing his plan to install thousands of feet of saw-tipped border barriers in the middle of the Rio Grande violating the federal Rivers and Harbors Act by failing to seek permission to build from the US Army Corps of Engineers. The river barrier is also facing a state lawsuit from a river guide named Jessie Fuentes. “You’ve taken a beautiful waterway and you’ve converted it into a war zone,” he told The Independentlast month. Other Texas members of Congress have criticised the border barriers, arguing they are putting already vulnerable migrants at greater risk of death or serious injury. “Today was eye-opening,” Rep Sylvia Garcia of Texas wrote on X this week during a border visit, sharing a video of the orange buoys used in the Rio Grande which are separated with blade saw-like barbed disks. “Seeing the barbaric, inhumane, and ungodly practices in my home state of Texas. This is beyond politics and crosses a line into human rights violations.” Read More Greg Abbott slammed by Texas lawmakers for ‘cruel’ floating border barriers with ‘chainsaw devices’ How governor Greg Abbott is using an obscure ‘invasion’ legal theory for a border power grab in Texas Buoys, razor wire, and a Trump-y wall: How Greg Abbott turned the Rio Grande into an immigration ‘war zone’ Up-close look at buoys with saw-like barbed metal used in Rio Grande Greg Abbott slammed for ‘cruel’ floating border barriers with ‘chainsaw devices’ Texas separates migrant families, detaining fathers on trespassing charges in latest border move

House Republicans are still scrambling to find a path forward with less than two months until the government runs out of funding, as the right wing of the GOP conference is still insisting it needs to see more spending cuts in order to support a series of bills to avert a government shutdown.

Republicans are vowing to continue their investigations related to President Joe Biden's son, Hunter, after Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Friday he is appointing a special counsel to oversee the ongoing criminal probe.

Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that he granted the US attorney investigating President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden special counsel status. Mr Garland announced that David Weiss, who has served as the US Attorney for Delaware since 2018, would serve as special counsel and he had informed relevant members of Congress about the nomination. The move is a shift from July when Mr Weiss informed Congress that he had not requested special counsel designation for his investigation into the president’s son. But on Tuesday, Mr Weiss requested such status. “I have concluded that it is in the public interest to appoint him as special counsel,” Mr Garland said on Friday. “This appointment confirms my commitment to provide Mr. Weiss all the resources he request.” Mr Weiss had previously been investigating Hunter Biden since 2019. Mr Garland and the Department of Justice allowed Mr Weiss to stay on board as US attorney when Mr Biden took office in 2021 to continue his investigation of Mr Biden. In July, Mr Biden looked set to enter into a plea deal for unpaid taxes and lying on a federal application for a firearm. Republicans, including former president Donald Trump, had decried the agreement as a sweetheart deal. Many Republicans argued that the younger Mr Biden received preferential treatment because he is the president’s son despite the fact that Mr Trump nominated Mr Weiss and Republicans in the Senate voted to confirm him in 2018. Then in late July, Mr Biden pleaded not guilty to two of the charges after the presiding judge questioned whether the deal would prohibit the federal government from prosecuting him for other crimes he might have committed in the future. The White House referred to remarks from Mr Garland and the Justice Department when asked by The Independent. Mr Garland said that Mr Weiss’s office would not be subjected to day-to-day supervision but would have to comply with regulations, procedures and policies of the Justice Department. Mr Weiss would also be mandated to write a report of his investigation once it concludes. “ As with each special counsel who has served since I have taken office, I am committed to making as much of his report public as possible, consistent with legal requirements and department policy,” he said. “Today's announcement affords the prosecutors agents and analysts working on this matter, the ability to proceed with our work expeditiously and to make decisions indisputably guided only by the facts and the law.” Mr Garland’s announcement comes the same day that former president Donald Trump’s legal team appeared in court in Washington, DC and earned a win as US District Judge Tanya Chutkan ruled that a protective order against Mr Trump would only apply to sensitive material such as jury transcripts, witness interview records and other documents. Mr Trump faces charges for his attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election after a federal grand jury indicted him in response to a presentation from Special Counsel Jack Smith’s office. Mr Garland nominated Mr Smith to investigate Mr Smith to investigate Mr Trump. In addition, the attorney nominated Robert Hur to investigate classified documents found in locations associated with President Biden earlier this year. Read More Hunter Biden’s plea deal appears at risk of falling apart. What happens next? Hunter Biden pleads not guilty to two tax charges after court chaos around deal with prosecutors Attorney General Garland will appoint special counsel in Hunter Biden probe Utah man killed after threats against Biden believed government was corrupt and overreaching Utah man suspected of threatening President Joe Biden shot and killed as FBI served warrant