A coronavirus relief agreement in Congress appeared in doubt early Friday after new economic data showed a U.S. economy buckling under the pandemic’s weight. On Thursday, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisc., tried to unanimously pass an extension of the weekly enhanced federal unemployment insurance that would slash the benefit from $600 to $200 per week. Senate Minority
Politics
Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden speaks about his plans to combat racial inequality at a campaign event in Wilmington, Delaware, July 28, 2020. Jonathan Ernst | Reuters Joe Biden came out swinging against President Donald Trump’s record on the economy on Thursday, hours after new data showed the U.S. suffered its
WASHINGTON — Former President Barack Obama delivered an impassioned eulogy for the late congressman and civil rights leader John Lewis on Thursday and called on Congress to honor Lewis’ legacy by expanding the Voting Rights Act. Speaking in Atlanta, the nation’s first Black president warned that the same forces that empowered and motivated some of
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday suggested that perhaps the United States would need to “delay the election” on November 3, claiming that mail-in voting would make this fall’s election “the most inaccurate and fraudulent in history.” Trump has no power to unilaterally delay elections, which were set for the day after the first
A man walks past the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, June 25, 2020. Al Drago | Reuters Republicans and Democrats appeared far from striking a coronavirus relief deal Wednesday as millions of Americans wait to see whether Congress will renew financial lifelines during an ongoing economic crisis. As negotiators cite little progress in talks and
Reading Police Officer Bucklin helps to hand out boxes of MREs. At City Light Ministries on Spruce Street in Reading Saturday afternoon May 2, 2020 where a large group came out for the food distribution by One Luv during the coronavirus / COVID-19 outbreak. Ben Hasty | MediaNews Group | Reading Eagle via Getty Images
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday that he will not pass a coronavirus relief bill in the Senate which does not include liability shields. “We’re not negotiating over liability protection,” he told CNBC’s Kayla Tausche as Congress looks to craft a pandemic rescue agreement. He noted, however, that the GOP is open to compromise on other issues. Senate Republicans
U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr listens during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., June 8, 2020. Kevin Lamarque | Reuters Attorney General William Barr is set Tuesday to testify before Congress that “violent rioters and anarchists” have
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell unveiled the Republican coronavirus relief plan on Monday. Here is what we know about the bill, as Republican leaders release the details: It would set enhanced federal unemployment insurance at 70% of a worker’s previous wages, replacing the $600 per week which states stopped paying out this week. The GOP would
National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien attends a briefing on Enhanced Narcotics Operations at the US Southern Command in Doral, Florida, on July 10, 2020. Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images President Donald Trump‘s national security advisor Robert O’Brien has tested positive for the coronavirus. Bloomberg first reported O’Brien’s diagnosis, citing people familiar with the
The flag of the People’s Republic of China flies in the wind above the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in San Francisco, California on July 23, 2020. Philip Pacheco | AFP via Getty Images WASHINGTON — A researcher who took refuge in the Chinese consulate in San Francisco after allegedly lying to
A pair of MQ-9 Reapers from the 46th Expeditionary Attack Squadron are parked on the flightline at Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait, June 9, 2020. Senior Airman Isaiah J. Soliz | U.S. Air Force WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed a measure this week that will allow U.S. defense contractors to sell more armed drones
Michael Cohen, the former personal lawyer for U.S. President Donald Trump, arrives at his Manhattan apartment after being released from federal prison to serve the remainder of his sentence under home confinement in New York, May 21, 2020. Mike Segar | Reuters Michael Cohen was released from prison Friday, a day after a judge ruled
The U.S. Consulate in Chengdu is pictured on July 23, 2020 in Chengdu, Sichuan Province of China. VCG | Visual China Group | Getty Images WASHINGTON — Senior U.S. officials would not address Friday whether the Trump administration intends to comply with an order to close an American Consulate in China, a move that comes
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) speaks to reporters following the Senate Republicans weekly policy lunch on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., June 16, 2020. Jonathan Ernst | Reuters Republicans do not plan to release a coronavirus relief bill until next week, but their proposal has mostly taken shape as Senate GOP leaders and
A Chinese paramilitary policeman stands guard at the entrance to the U.S. consulate in Chengdu, southwest China’s Sichuan province on September 17, 2012. Goh Chai Hin | AFP | Getty Images China’s Foreign Ministry announced Friday it is revoking the license for the U.S. consulate general in the southwestern city of Chengdu. The ministry also ordered
U.S. President Donald Trump stands next to a U.S. map of reported coronavirus cases as he speaks about the administration’s plan for reopening schools during a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) news briefing at the White House in Washington, July 23, 2020. Kevin Lamarque | Reuters President Donald Trump on Thursday moved to cancel the Jacksonville, Florida,
The Republican coronavirus relief plan will extend enhanced unemployment insurance “based on approximately 70% wage replacement,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Thursday. He spoke to CNBC about the state of negotiations hours after Senate Republicans and the Trump administration said they reached a tentative deal on legislation they say will serve as a starting point in