NYC to Cancel Business Contracts with Trump Organization

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New York City, U.S. President Donald Trump’s hometown, says it will cancel all contracts with his business organization because of the deadly insurrection by Trump supporters last week at the U.S. Capitol. “The City of New York will not be associated with those unforgiveable acts in any shape, way or form,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said Wednesday in a formal statement.  De Blasio said he has begun the process of “severing all contracts” to operate a carousel and two ice rinks in Central Park that net Trump’s company about $17 million a year.Trump’s son, Eric, denounced the move and said itmore

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Biden Picks Samantha Power for USAID Post

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President-elect Joe Biden announced Wednesday that he has picked Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under President Barack Obama, to run the agency overseeing American foreign humanitarian and development aid.   If confirmed by the Senate, Power will head the U.S. Agency for International Development, which has an annual budget of about $20 billion. Biden also announced that he is elevating the position to the National Security Council within the White House, a signal that he will prioritize outreach to other nations.   Biden has said that USAID will coordinate America’s work to lead a global responsemore

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Visa Delays Hinder Foreign Student Job Prospects

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Emma is a 27-year-old Chinese national who is pregnant and living with her husband in New York. Emanuel, 23, lives in Virginia and is from Morocco. Peter, 31, moved from China in 2014. He resides in Houston, Texas.Emma, Emanuel and Peter do not know each other, but they have one thing in common: Their international student immigration status is in jeopardy due to processing time delays in facilities overseen by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).At their request, VOA is only using pseudonyms.These delays are affecting their ability to accept job offers because some employers are asking tomore

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US Prosecutors Expect to Charge Hundreds of Capitol Rioters

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U.S. prosecutors say they have identified more than 170 people for potential criminal charges in connection with the January 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol and that they expect that number to run into the hundreds in the coming weeks as a massive nationwide hunt for the pro-Trump rioters continues.    Michael Sherwin, the acting U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, told reporters Tuesday that more than 70 people have been charged since the deadly attack by supporters of President Donald Trump, with prosecutors pursuing charges against at least 100 others.”That number, I suspect, is going to grow intomore

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Handful of Republican Lawmakers Say They Will Vote to Impeach Trump

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A small but growing number of Republican lawmakers is signaling support for impeaching President Donald Trump after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol last Wednesday to try to upend his reelection defeat, leaving five people dead.Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, a member of the Republican Party’s House leadership team, said Tuesday that she would vote to impeach Trump in his final days as president.“There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution,” Cheney said.Also on Tuesday, New York representative John Katko and Illinois representative Adam Kinzinger,more

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US House Will Vote to Impeach Trump Wednesday

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The Democratic-majority U.S. House of Representatives will vote to impeach President Donald Trump as early as Wednesday, charging him with inciting an insurrection in an attempt to overturn President-elect Joe Biden’s election victory. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson reports.  Produced by: Katherine Gypson    …

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VOA Director Reassigns White House Correspondent

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In a rebuke from Congress, U.S. Representatives Gregory Meeks of New York and Michael McCaul of Texas chastised the heads of USAGM and Voice of America on Tuesday for reassigning a VOA White House correspondent.     Patsy Widakuswara was told late Monday she is being reassigned, hours after the veteran reporter attempted to question Secretary of State Mike Pompeo following a speech he delivered at VOA headquarters.    “This is the United States of America – we do not punish our journalists for seeking answers to their questions. A free and fair press is at the core of our Constitutionmore

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US Identifies Over 170 Capitol Rioters for Possible Criminal Charges

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U.S. prosecutors said on Tuesday that they have identified more than 170 people for potential criminal charges in connection with the violent assault on the U.S. Capitol last week and expect the number to run into the hundreds in the coming weeks as a massive nationwide manhunt for the pro-Trump rioters continues.  Michael Sherwin, acting U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, told reporters more than 70 people have been charged so far in the District of Columbia, with prosecutors pursuing charges against at least 100 others.  “That number, I suspect, is going to grow into the hundreds,” Sherwin saidmore

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US Military Leaders Warn Troops Against Political Violence

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Amid worry about renewed violence on Inauguration Day, the military’s top leaders issued a written reminder to all service members Tuesday that the deadly insurrection at the Capitol last week was an anti-democratic, criminal act, and that the right to free speech gives no one the right to commit violence. A memo signed by all members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff also reminded military members that Joe Biden was duly elected as the next president and will be sworn in office on January 20. The memo was unusual in that the military leadership, including Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Jointmore

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Trump Visits Southern US Border

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U.S. President Donald Trump is headed Tuesday to the southern city of Alamo, Texas, near the U.S-Mexico border, where he is expected to use one of his final days in office to highlight his administration’s efforts to curb illegal immigration.His visit to Texas comes as the Democrat-majority House of Representatives pursues efforts to remove Trump from office over last week’s violent storming of the U.S. Capitol building by his supporters.Immigration was a major focus of Trump’s campaign for president in 2016, with his frequent calls to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.With his term set to end January 20,more

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‘Absolutely Ridiculous’ Trump Says of Democrats’ Impeachment Effort

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U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Democratic lawmakers’ push to impeach him in the last days of his presidency is “absolutely ridiculous.”   Speaking to reporters for the first time since thousands of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol last Wednesday to try to upend his defeat for reelection, Trump rejected any contention that he was responsible for the mayhem that left five people dead.   Trump had urged thousands of his supporters at a rally near the White House to “fight” against lawmakers certifying that he had lost his reelection contest to Democrat Joe Biden. But the presidentmore

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Trump to Visit Southern Border

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U.S. President Donald Trump travels Tuesday to the southern city of Alamo, Texas, near the U.S-Mexico border, where he is expected to use one of his final days in office to highlight his administration’s efforts to curb illegal immigration.It will be his first public appearance since last Wednesday when he said in a speech to his supporters that the presidential election was being stolen and urged them to “fight” before they stormed the U.S. Capitol.His visit to Texas also comes as the Democrat-majority House of Representatives pursues efforts to remove Trump from office.US House Moves to Remove Trump from OfficeDemocratsmore

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US House Moves to Remove Trump from Office

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The Democrat-majority U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote Tuesday on a resolution calling for Vice President Mike Pence and members of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet to use their constitutional authority to remove Trump from office.The measure, which is expected to pass, sets a 24-hour deadline for Pence to respond.WATCH: US House to Vote on Impeaching Trump Later this WeekSorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) take part in a joint session of Congress to certify the 2020 election results atmore

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US House to Vote on Impeaching Trump Later This Week

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The U.S. House of Representatives is preparing to vote to impeach President Donald Trump this week, following the violent breach of the U.S. Capitol by the president’s supporters that left five people dead. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson reports on Democrats’ options for removing Trump just days before his term ends. …

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Pompeo Defends Changes at USAGM Under Trump Appointee

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Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday defended the leadership of the U.S. Agency for Global Media against criticisms that its CEO is trying to turn the news network into a propaganda tool.     FILE – Michael Pack, President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media, is seen at his confirmation hearing, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Sept. 19, 2019. Pack’s nomination was confirmed June 4, 2020.He told the audience that faults should be acknowledged but, “This isn’t ‘Vice of America’ focusing on everything that’s wrong with our great nation. It certainly isn’t the place tomore

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Security Increased as Washington Mayor Discourages People from Attending Inauguration

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The Secret Service and National Guard have both pledged an increase of resources in securing President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, as Washington’s mayor is urging people to stay home for the event. Less than a week after a violent mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters breached Capitol security as Congress was certifying Biden’s win, the Secret Service announced Monday it would begin special security operations on January 13, as opposed to January 19. The National Guard confirmed Monday it would send up to 15,000 troops to secure the inauguration — a stark increase from the roughly 8,000 who secured the 2016 inauguration. Responding tomore

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FBI Looking at Threats to Biden’s Inauguration 

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Concerns are growing that the storming of the U.S. Capitol last week by extremists supporting U.S. President Donald Trump may be the start of what could be a series of potentially armed and violent protests across the country leading up to the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden. The Federal Bureau of Investigation on Monday told VOA it is examining evidence suggesting groups or individuals may be looking to incite violence or engage in criminal activity in connection with the planned transfer of power. “While our standard practice is to not comment on specific intelligence products, the FBI is supporting our state, local andmore

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US Homeland Security Acting Secretary Stepping Down, Department Says

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Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf told his staff Monday he was stepping down, the department said Monday, the latest senior Trump administration official to resign following last week’s deadly mob attack on the U.S. Capitol. The Department of Homeland Security press office said Wolf would leave his post at 11:59 p.m. Monday. Pete Gaynor, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, will take over as acting secretary, the office said. President Donald Trump withdrew Wolf’s nomination to be permanent Homeland Security secretary last week. Supporters of Trump stormed the Capitol last Wednesday in an assault that led to five deaths, dozens ofmore

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Washington Mayor Urges Americans to ‘Attend’ Biden Inauguration Virtually

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Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser is discouraging people from coming to the city for the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and instead is urging them to participate virtually. The mayor is citing both coronavirus concerns as well as the attack on the U.S. Capitol building last week.Speaking to reporters at a briefing Monday, Bowser also said she sent a letter requesting that President Donald Trump declare a “pre-emergency disaster” for the District of Columbia ahead of Biden’s inauguration January 20.The mayor said this year’s inauguration poses “several unprecedented challenges that exceed the scope of our traditional planning processes,” including the pandemicmore

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Vast Majority of Americans See Their Democracy as Under Threat, Poll Finds

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Nearly three-quarters of U.S. voters say democracy is under threat in the wake of a deadly mob attack on the U.S. Capitol, according to a new poll by Quinnipiac University.The national poll of registered U.S. voters released Monday found that large numbers of both Republican and Democratic voters believed that democracy is under threat, at 77% and 76% respectively. Independents were slightly less inclined to agree at 70%.U.S. President Donald Trump gives an address a day after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol in Washington.A majority of voters, 56%, said they held U.S. President Donald Trump responsible for the stormingmore

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US House Moves to Impeach Trump, Again

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The Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives moved Monday to impeach President Donald Trump in the waning days of his presidency, accusing him of “incitement of insurrection” in last week’s storming of the U.S. Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters seeking to overturn his reelection defeat.   Even though Trump’s four-year term expires at noon January 20, the four-page impeachment resolution said Trump has “demonstrated that he will remain a threat to national security, democracy, and the Constitution if allowed to remain office, and has acted in a manner grossly incompatible with self-governance and the rule of law.” With the Democrats holdingmore

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Melania Trump: ‘Disappointed and Disheartened’ by Storming of US Capitol 

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U.S. first lady Melania Trump on Monday said she was “disappointed and disheartened” by the storming of the U.S. Capitol by a mob of supporters of her husband looking to overturn his loss for re-election, but also said it was “shameful” that she was the subject of what she characterized as “salacious gossip” and “unwarranted personal attacks.” In a statement from the White House, the first lady voiced her grief at the deaths of six people linked to last Wednesday’s mayhem at the Capitol, including Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, and a second officer, Howard Liebengood, who had responded to themore

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Biden to Tap Veteran Diplomat William Burns as CIA Chief

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U.S. President-elect Joe Biden announced Monday he will nominate career diplomat William Burns to be his director of the Central Intelligence Agency.In a statement Monday, Biden’s transition team said Burns is a 33-year U.S. State Department veteran who has served under both Republican and Democratic presidents.Burns rose through the ranks of the diplomatic corps and served as ambassador to Jordan under former U.S President Bill Clinton and ambassador to Russia under former U.S. President George W. Bush. The 64-year old diplomat was named deputy secretary of state in 2011 by U.S. President Barack Obama before retiring in 2014 to runmore

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Parler Social Network Service Loses Web Hosting

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Parler, a social network service popular with conservatives, went offline Monday after its web hosting service Amazon suspended it for allowing posts that encourage violence.   Before the site went down, Parler CEO John Matze accused Amazon and other tech giants of a “war on free speech.”   Google banned Parler’s smartphone app from its app store on Friday, also citing Parler’s allowance of posts that seek to incite violence in the United States.   Apple instituted its own Parler ban on Saturday.   The two-year-old Parler saw an increase in users in recent months as social media giants Facebookmore

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