U.S./World category, Page 22
Trump administration moves to overhaul how H-1B visas are granted, ending lottery system
WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday it was replacing its longstanding lottery system for H-1B work visas with a new approach that prioritizes skilled, higher-paid foreign workers. The change follows a series of actions by the Trump administration aimed at reshaping a visa program that critics say...
Voluminous new Epstein document release includes multiple Trump mentions, but little revelatory news
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Justice Department has released tens of thousands more documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, a tranche that included multiple mentions of President Donald Trump but added little new revelatory information to the long-anticipated public file on the late financier and convicted sex offender. The release is the...
Student loan borrowers in default may see wages garnished in 2026
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration said on Tuesday that it will begin garnishing the wages of student loan borrowers who are in default early next year. The department said it will send notices to approximately 1,000 borrowers the week of January 7, with more notices to come at an increasing...
Controversial ’60 Minutes’ segment on Trump immigration policy leaks online
A controversial news segment that was abruptly pulled from the television show “60 Minutes,” appears to have been leaked online this week after the last minute decision to pull the story exploded into public debate about journalistic independence. The segment featured interviews with migrants who were sent to the notorious...
Federal judge says Trump administration must restore disaster money to Democratic states
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to reallocate federal Homeland Security funding away from states that refuse to cooperate with certain federal immigration enforcement. U.S. District Judge Mary McElroy’s ruling on Monday solidified a win for the coalition of 12 attorneys general that sued...
Supreme Court keeps Trump’s National Guard deployment blocked in the Chicago area, for now
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to allow the Trump administration to deploy National Guard troops in the Chicago area to support its immigration crackdown. The justices declined the Republican administration’s emergency request to overturn a ruling by U.S. District Judge April Perry that had blocked the deployment...
Medicaid paid more than $207 million for dead people. A new law could help fix that
WASHINGTON — Medicaid programs made more than $200 million in improper payments to health care providers between 2021 and 2022 for people who had already died, according to a new report from the independent watchdog for the Department of Health and Human Services. But the department’s Office of Inspector General...
Yemen’s sides agree to release 2,900 detainees in war’s largest exchange
CAIRO — Yemen’s internationally recognized government and the Iran-backed Houthi rebels have reached an agreement to free 2,900 detainees held during the 11-year civil war, according to Saudi and Houthi officials. Saudi Ambassador Mohamed AlJabir said in a statement on X that the agreement was signed under the supervision of...
U.S. strikes another alleged drug-smuggling boat in eastern Pacific
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military said Monday that it had conducted another strike against a boat it said was smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing one person. In a social media post, U.S. Southern Command said, “Intelligence confirmed the low-profile vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in...
Ex-aide says Netanyahu tasked him with making a plan to evade responsibility for Oct. 7 attack
JERUSALEM — A former close aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that immediately following the October 2023 Hamas attack that triggered Israel’s two-year war in Gaza, the Israeli leader instructed him to figure out how the premier could evade responsibility for the security breach. Former Netanyahu spokesperson Eli Feldstein,...
Major Russian drone and missile attack on Ukraine kills at least 3 people and cuts power
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia fired more than 650 drones and three dozen missiles at Ukraine in a large-scale attack that began during the night and stretched into daylight hours Tuesday, officials said. At least three people were killed, including a 4-year-old child, two days before Christmas. The barrage struck homes...
Powerball jackpot soars to $1.7 billion after another night with no big winner
The Powerball jackpot has jumped to an eye-popping $1.7 billion, after the 46th drawing passed without a big winner. The numbers drawn Monday night were 3, 18, 36, 41, 54 and the Powerball 7. Since Sept. 6, there have been 46 straight drawings without a big winner. The next drawing...
Judge rules Trump administration must allow court challenges for Venezuelan migrants sent to prison
WASHINGTON — A federal judge ruled Monday that the Trump administration must give legal due process to Venezuelan migrants flown to a notorious prison in El Salvador, either by providing court hearings or returning them to the U.S. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ordered the government to come up with...
Hung jury ends trial of ex-New York governors’ aide accused of selling influence to China
NEW YORK — A judge declared a mistrial Monday in the corruption case of a former aide to New York governors after jurors said they were hopelessly deadlocked and couldn’t reach a verdict on charges she sold her influence to China and profited from a medical equipment scheme during the...
Illinois members of Congress are latest to tour immigration facilities after judge’s ruling
BROADVIEW, Ill. — Four Illinois Democrats toured a federal immigration center outside Chicago on Monday, the latest members of Congress allowed inside immigration facilities after a judge last week lifted Trump administration limits on lawmaker visits. Six months after they were denied access, U.S. Reps. Danny Davis, Delia Ramirez, Jonathan...
Brown University police chief placed on leave after fatal shooting, feds launch investigation
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Brown University’s president on Monday placed its campus police chief on leave as the Rhode Island university reviews its security policies after a gunman killed two students and injured nine others earlier this month. Questions surrounding Brown’s security policies have only intensified since the Dec. 13 shooting...
Judge accepts guilty pleas from Colorado funeral home owners who acknowledged abusing 191 corpses
DENVER — A judge has accepted guilty pleas for the owners of a Colorado funeral home for the abuse of 191 corpses, many of which languished in a room-temperature building for years. Authorities say Carie and Jon Hallford, who operated a Colorado Springs funeral home, maintained a lavish lifestyle and...
U.S. regulators approve Wegovy pill for weight loss
U.S. regulators on Monday gave the green light to a pill version of the blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy, the first daily oral medication to treat obesity. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval handed drugmaker Novo Nordisk an edge over rival Eli Lilly in the race to market an obesity...
Teen drug use remains low, but survey finds small rise in heroin, cocaine use
NEW YORK — Teen use of alcohol, nicotine and marijuana remains at record lows, according to national survey results released last week. They consume a lot of energy drinks, though. And there are slight, but concerning, increases in heroin and cocaine use. But overall, the findings indicate teens are drinking,...
Trump announces plans for new Navy ‘battleship’ as part of a ‘Golden Fleet’Video
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has announced a bold plan for the Navy to build a new, large warship that he is calling a “battleship” as part of a larger vision to create a “Golden Fleet.” “They’ll be the fastest, the biggest, and by far 100 times more powerful than...
Ex-CIA director John Brennan wants ‘favored’ Trump judge kept away from Justice Department inquiry
WASHINGTON — Lawyers for former CIA Director John Brennan want the Justice Department to be prevented from steering an investigation of him and other former government officials to a “favored” judge in Florida who dismissed the classified documents case against President Donald Trump. The request Monday is addressed to U.S....
The Trump administration sues the District of Columbia over its gun laws
The Trump administration is suing the local government of Washington, D.C., over its gun laws, alleging that restrictions on certain semiautomatic weapons run afoul of Second Amendment rights. The U.S. Department of Justice filed its lawsuit Monday in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia, naming Washington’s Metropolitan Police...
Judge allows Kilmar Abrego Garcia to remain free while she considers immigration issuesVideo
GREENBELT, Md. — A federal judge on Monday questioned whether government officials could be trusted to follow orders barring them from taking Kilmar Abrego Garcia into immigration custody or deporting him. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis noted that Abrego Garcia was already deported without legal authority once and said she...
Bondi Beach shooting suspect conducted firearms training with his father, Australian police say
MELBOURNE, Australia — A man accused of killing 15 people at Sydney’s Bondi Beach conducted firearms training in an area of New South Wales state outside of Sydney with his father, according to Australian police documents released on Monday. The documents, made public following Naveed Akram’s video court appearance from...
Trump administration suspends 5 wind projects off the East Coast, cites national security concerns
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration on Monday suspended leases for five large-scale offshore wind projects under construction along the East Coast due to what it said were national security risks identified by the Pentagon. The suspension, effective immediately, is the latest step by the administration to hobble offshore wind in...
