Biden to Unveil Actions on Guns, Including Naming New ATF Boss

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U.S. President Joe Biden will unveil a series of executive actions aimed at addressing gun violence on Thursday, according to a person familiar with the plans, delivering his first major action on gun control since taking office.He’s also expected to nominate David Chipman, a former federal agent and adviser at the gun control group Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, to be director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).Two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press that Chipman’s nomination is expected to be announced Thursday. The people could not discuss the matter publiclymore

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Should US Boycott of Beijing Olympics?

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The political dispute over a new election law in the southern state of Georgia has broadened into a debate over whether the United States should participate in a boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, China. On Tuesday, State Department spokesperson Ned Price acknowledged the U.S. will discuss with allies whether to jointly boycott the games to protest Beijing’s repression of minorities and major human rights abuses. “A coordinated approach will be not only in our interest but also in the interest of our allies and partners,” he told reporters at a daily briefing. But he stressed that no final decisionmore

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Democratic US Congressman Alcee Hastings of Florida Dies at 84

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Democratic U.S. Representative Alcee Hastings has died at the age of 84, his office said on Tuesday, further narrowing the party’s majority in the lower chamber of Congress. His office did not provide details on the cause of death. In January 2019, Hastings said he was diagnosed with and receiving treatment for pancreatic cancer. “I’m heartbroken at the passing of my dear friend, Alcee Hastings,” said fellow Florida Democratic lawmaker Ted Deutch in a statement. “Alcee spoke up for the quiet voices that would otherwise go unheard. He never backed down from a fight for the people he represented andmore

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US Senate Democrats Seek Change in Trump Tax Reforms to Create US Jobs

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Top Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee on Monday proposed major shifts in former President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax reforms to eliminate what they say are incentives for companies to move operations overseas and shift profits to tax haven countries. The plan proposed by Democratic senators Ron Wyden, Sherrod Brown and Mark Warner parallels some of the corporate tax hike proposals announced last week by President Joe Biden to finance $2 trillion in U.S. infrastructure investment. The senators are targeting provisions in the landmark 2017 Tax and Jobs Act that govern how companies’ foreign income is taxed, the Global Intangible Low-Taxed Incomemore

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Tragedies Highlight Dark Side of Greek Life

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Greek life communities on campuses across the U.S. are again facing a reckoning after recent student deaths due to alleged hazing.  Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) freshman Adam Oakes died February 27, and Bowling Green State University (BGSU) sophomore Stone Foltz died March 7 after both consumed large amounts of alcohol at fraternity events.  VCU mourns the death of student Adam Oakes. This is a tragic loss for Adam’s family and members of our community and we encourage any students in need of support to contact University Counseling Services at (804) 828-6200. pic.twitter.com/WiroQSQDpy— VCU (@VCU) February 28, 2021Oakes was at an eventmore

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Biden Looks to Raise US Corporate Taxes, with Dozens of Companies Now Paying Nothing 

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U.S. President Joe Biden is looking to raise corporate income tax rates to help pay for his proposed $2.3 trillion infrastructure spending plan, but dozens of the country’s biggest and best-known companies are currently legally avoiding paying any federal taxes. Biden says he wants to raise the corporate income tax rate from 21% to 28%. The rate was cut from 35% in 2017 under Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump.  FILE – Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during a virtual roundtable with participants from Black Chambers of Commerce across the country to discuss the American Rescue Plan, Feb. 5, 2021.On Monday, U.S. Treasurymore

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Supreme Court Dismisses Case over Trump and Twitter Critics

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The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a case over former President Donald Trump’s efforts to block critics from his personal Twitter account.The court said there was nothing left to the case after Trump was permanently suspended from Twitter and ended his presidential term in January.Twitter banned Trump two days after the deadly attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters on Jan. 6. The company said its decision was “due to the risk of further incitement of violence.”The court also formally threw out an appeals court ruling that found Trump violated the First Amendment whenever he blocked a critic to silencemore

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Energy Secretary: Biden to Push Through Infrastructure Plan if No Republican Support

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U.S. President Joe Biden would be willing to push through his $2 trillion infrastructure plan without the support of Republican lawmakers if he cannot reach a bipartisan deal, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said on Sunday. Granholm said Biden would prefer that his plan have Republican backing but, if that does not work, he would likely support using a procedural strategy called reconciliation to allow Democrats to pass it in the Senate. “As he has said, he was sent to the presidency to do a job for America. And if the vast majority of Americans, Democrats and Republicans, across the country support spendingmore

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To the Bank! Suggs Hits the Winner, Zags Top UCLA 93-90

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Jalen Suggs took the inbounds pass and saw nothing but clear sailing. Three dribbles. Past the half-court line. A little stutter-step.And straight into history.The Gonzaga freshman banked in a shot at the buzzer from near the Final Four logo for a 93-90 overtime win over UCLA on Saturday night that vaulted the Bulldogs to within one win of an undefeated season and the national title.  Talk about a perfect finish!This thriller in the national semifinal was the best game of the tournament, and, considering the stakes, it served up possibly the best ending in the history of March Madness —more

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US, Japan and South Korea Agree to Keep Up Pressure on North Korea

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The United States, South Korea and Japan agreed in high-level security talks Friday to work together to keep up pressure on North Korea to give up its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.In a joint statement after a day of talks, U.S. President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, and his Japanese counterpart, Shigeru Kitamura, and South Korea’s national security adviser, Suh Hoon, reaffirmed their commitment to address the issue “through concerted trilateral cooperation towards denuclearization.”The three countries also agreed on the need for full implementation by the international community of U.N. Security Council resolutions on North Korea, “preventing proliferation,more

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Scholars Rally to Defend Colleagues Sanctioned by Beijing

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Hundreds of academics and intellectuals around the world are signing onto a joint statement in support of European colleagues who have been banned by Beijing from visiting China and hit with other sanctions because of their work.The Chinese Foreign Ministry announced the sanctions last week against the Mercator Institute for China Studies in Germany, the Alliance of Democracies Foundation in Denmark and other individuals and institutions, accusing them of actions that “severely harm China’s sovereignty and interests and maliciously spread lies and disinformation.”In announcing the move, the ministry made clear it was reacting to sanctions announced earlier this month bymore

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Blind Pakistani Student is Fully Able to Win Rhodes Scholarship 

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For Khansa Maria, a student at Georgetown University’s campus in Qatar, her advocacy work for people with disabilities is personal.Maria is blind and has faced disability challenges growing up in Pakistan. And she will use that experience, she said, when she heads to Oxford University next fall as Pakistan’s 2021 Rhodes Scholar-elect, to pursue a master’s degree in evidence-based policy intervention and social evaluation.“I do have a disability, I am blind, and I firsthand experienced the impacts of not having an inclusive society,” Maria said, noting she wants to give back.“I do have a certain responsibility to my community tomore

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Biden Taps 5 Cabinet Members to Advance Infrastructure Plan

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U.S. President Joe Biden held his first Cabinet meeting Thursday, directing five Cabinet members to lead the way in explaining his $2 trillion infrastructure plan to the American public.Biden, who unveiled the massive program to repair the country’s deteriorating roads and bridges and ramp up broadband internet connections on Wednesday, also instructed all of his agency chiefs to look at their spending plans to make sure “Buy American” rules are being followed, to maximize job opportunities for U.S. workers.Biden Unveils $2 Trillion US Jobs, Infrastructure PlanPresident’s plan aims to put the United States in position to out-compete China and othermore

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