More Universities to Close After Thanksgiving 

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As COVID-19 cases surge around the U.S., more universities and colleges plan to move all classes online after Thanksgiving break in late November, while others say they will allow students to return to campus. FILE – Students wait in line at a testing site for the COVID-19 set up for returning students, faculty and staff on the main campus of New York University (NYU) in Manhattan in New York City, Aug. 18, 2020.”By requiring all students to test negative before leaving, we are implementing a smart, sensible policy that protects students’ families and hometown communities and drastically reduces the chances ofmore

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Biden Warns of Lethal Consequences if Trump Won’t Coordinate on Coronavirus Response

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President-elect Joe Biden warned that outgoing President Donald Trump’s refusal to recognize the transition prior to the January 20 inauguration could have dire consequences amid the coronavirus pandemic.  “More people may die if we don’t coordinate,” Biden said in response to a reporter’s question Monday in Wilmington, Delaware.Biden, again warning of a “very dark winter” ahead, called for immediate congressional passage of the HEROES Act — a proposed $3 trillion stimulus package in response to the economic devastation wrought by COVID-19.  “The idea the president is still playing golf and not doing anything about it is beyond my comprehension,” Bidenmore

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Former Harvard Coach, Dad Charged in Latest Admission Scheme

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A former Harvard University fencing coach and a Maryland businessman have been arrested and charged with conspiring to circumvent the school’s admissions process, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston.Peter Brand, 67, a former Harvard fencing coach who was fired in 2019, is alleged to have taken more than $1.5 million in bribes to get the sons of Maryland businessman Jie “Jack” Zhao, 61, into Harvard by recruiting them to the school’s fencing team.In 2013, Zhao, who runs a telecommunications company, allegedly donated more than $1 million to a fencing charity run by Brand. That same year, one ofmore

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New International Student Enrollment Falls 43% in the US

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COVID-19 has drastically cut international student participation in U.S. colleges and universities, punctuating three years of declining enrollment tied to costs, immigration barriers and perceived chaos in American society.Fewer Foreign Students Enrolling in US College and UniversitiesAnnual Open Doors report of international students in US shows increase in total international enrollment from previous year, but a decrease in new international student enrollmentIn the school year that began three months ago, new enrollment of international students dropped 43% because of COVID-19. Nearly 40,000 students — mostly incoming freshmen — have deferred enrollment at 90% of U.S. institutions to a future term. The data were compiled and reported bymore

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Trump Campaign Abandons Parts of Pennsylvania Election Lawsuit

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U.S. President Donald Trump’s campaign on Sunday dropped a major part of a lawsuit it brought seeking to halt Pennsylvania from certifying its results in the presidential election, narrowing the case to a small number of ballots. In an amended complaint filed in federal court, the Trump campaign dropped a claim that election officials unlawfully blocked observers from watching the counting of mail-in ballots in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. The pared-down lawsuit now focuses on a claim that Democratic-leaning counties unlawfully allowed voters to fix errors in their mail-in ballots in violation of state law. Officials have said the dispute affects a smallmore

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Political Polling Once Again Under Microscope

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Frank Luntz is a noted Republican political pollster. In the days before the Nov. 3 election, he said if the 2020 pre-election polls were wrong again, “my profession is done.”In the days after the election, Luntz said the results are “devastating for my industry.”“The polls were really bad this time and really misleading, and I’m not sure why,” said Elaine Kamarck, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.In 2016, the pre-election polls of individual states were off quite a bit, showing Democrat Hillary Clinton ahead of Republican Donald Trump in key states that Trump eventually won. Pollsters failed to adequatelymore

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Trump Legal Efforts Falter in Bid to Undo Biden’s Presumptive Victory

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U.S. President Donald Trump’s legal battles to undo Democrat Joe Biden’s presumptive victory in the Nov. 3 presidential election faltered Friday as courts pushed back against allegations of voting irregularities and fraud.A Michigan judge rejected a bid by Republican Party supporters to prevent the certification of election results in the predominantly Democratic Detroit area, undercutting the prospects of a similar lawsuit filed by the Trump campaign.In Pennsylvania, another judge dismissed a series of Trump lawsuits challenging the validity of several thousand mail-in ballots, while in Arizona the Trump campaign dropped a lawsuit over the election results, acknowledging that Biden’s lead wasmore

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Pro-Trump Rallies Planned for Saturday in Washington

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Demonstrators in support of President Donald Trump are planning to gather in Washington on Saturday, backing the president’s unproven claims of fraud in the November election.Several rallies are scheduled for the day, including a Million MAGA March, a Women for Trump event and a Stop the Steal demonstration, which has leveled unproven claims of voter fraud in the presidential election.Trump has refused to concede the presidential race to former Vice President Joe Biden, the projected winner of the Nov. 3 election, citing irregularities in several swing states. State election officials have reported no serious irregularities with the vote that wouldmore

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New US Diplomat: South Sudan Policy Unlikely to Change

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U.S. government policy toward South Sudan isn’t expected to change regardless of the new presidential administration, according to Jon Danilowicz, the new U.S. charge d’affaires to South Sudan.He said the top priority will remain restoring peace and stability in the country. U.S. President-elect Joe Biden has been declared the winner, but President Donald Trump has so far refused to concede. Some mail ballots are still being counted.This week at his first news conference at the U.S. Embassy since arriving in Juba nearly two months ago, Danilowicz said there has been bipartisan consensus between Democrats and Republicans on U.S. policy towardmore

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Trump’s Appeal to Many Hispanics Helped Keep Election Close

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Although projected to lose the U.S. election, President Donald Trump made the race closer than expected, in part by gaining a higher percentage of minority voters than in 2016, especially among in the growing Latino or Hispanic population. VOA’s Brian Padden reports on increasing political diversity of this rapidly growing ethnic minority, which has increased from 16% to 18% of the U.S. population in the last decade according to the Pew Research Center.  Camera: Vero Balderas Iglesias     Producer: Brian Padden …

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Latest US Presidential Race Projections: Trump Wins North Carolina, Biden Wins Arizona

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U.S. news outlets on Friday called the Southeastern U.S. state of North Carolina for President Donald Trump, a day after projecting that President-elect Joe Biden would win the Southwestern state of Arizona.The latest calls in the presidential race gave Biden a projected 290 votes in the Electoral College to Trump’s 232 votes.Biden had previously cleared the 270-vote threshold needed to win the White House, paving the way for his inauguration on January 20. Trump has refused to acknowledge defeat in the presidential race and has leveled unproven claims of widespread voter fraud.FILE – Poll workers assist voters on a brisk fallmore

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Trump Renews ‘Rigged Election’ Claim Against All Evidence 

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President Donald Trump persisted Friday in claiming the U.S. presidential election was rigged despite assurances from federal and state officials, and private industry partners, that the November 3 vote was the “most secure” in the nation’s history.Heartwarming to see all of the tremendous support out there, especially the organic Rallies that are springing up all over the Country, including a big one on Saturday in D.C. I may even try to stop by and say hello. This Election was Rigged, from Dominion all the way up & down!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) FILE – U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agencymore

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Top CEOs Met to Plan Response to Trump’s Election Denial

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Only a few of America’s CEOs have made public statements about President Donald Trump’s refusal to accept his election loss, but in private, many are alarmed and talking about what collective action would be necessary if they see an imminent threat to democracy. On Nov. 6, more than two dozen CEOs of major U.S. corporations took part in a video conference to discuss what to do if Trump refuses to leave office or takes other steps to stay in power beyond the scheduled Jan. 20 inauguration of former Vice President Joe Biden. On Saturday, Biden was declared the election winnermore

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Georgia Hand Tally of Presidential Vote Gets Underway

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Election officials in Georgia’s 159 counties started counting ballots Friday morning for a hand tally of the presidential race that stems from an audit required by state law.   The law requires that one race be audited by hand to check that the machines counted the ballots accurately, not because of any suspected problems with the results.   Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger chose to audit the presidential race and said the tight margin — Democrat Joe Biden leads Republican President Donald Trump by 14,000 votes — meant a full hand count was necessary.   In Cobb County, in suburbanmore

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Ivy League Cancels Winter Sports Because of COVID-19

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The Ivy League became the first Division I conference this year to cancel all winter sports, including men’s and women’s basketball.   The decision Thursday came 13 days before the scheduled start of the college basketball season. The league had decided this past summer, when it canceled fall sports, not to allow any of its sports to start play before early December.   “Regrettably, the current trends regarding transmission of the COVID-19 virus and subsequent protocols that must be put in place are impeding our strong desire to return to intercollegiate athletics competition in a safe manner,” the Ivy Leaguemore

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Biden Wins Arizona, Widening Electoral College Lead

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U.S. President-elect Joe Biden is the winner in the southwestern state of Arizona, according to major U.S. news outlets, adding to his electoral victory even as President Donald Trump refuses to acknowledge defeat.   With more than 99 percent of the votes counted in the state, Biden leads President Donald Trump by about 11,000 votes. The New York Times, CNN, NBC News and The Washington Post were among the news organizations Thursday that projected Biden the winner in Arizona, historically a Republican stronghold. Fox News and Associated Press called Arizona for Biden last week.   Edison Research also has projectedmore

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Parler: A New Social Media Hangout for Conservatives to Vent, Plan

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When Twitter started blocking President Donald Trump’s postings claiming widespread voter fraud, some cheered. Others started looking for the social media exits.   They found a new option at Parler.   Fed up with what they see as an anti-conservative bias by managers of the major social media platforms, Trump supporters are telling their followers on Twitter and Facebook to “Follow me on Parler.”   From the French word “to speak” or “to talk” but pronounced “PAR-lor,” the social media app is a lot like Twitter, with users posting messages and following topics searchable as hashtags.   Launched in 2018more

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Biden Presidency Could Be Watershed Moment in US-Turkey Relations, Analysts Say

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Turkish analysts say Joe Biden’s projected presidential election victory could prove to be a pivotal moment in Turkey’s relations with the United States — one that could see Ankara pivoting back to its traditional Western allies or further deepening ties with Russia and China. While many European leaders were quick to offer congratulations to Biden, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan belatedly issued a statement Wednesday acknowledging Biden’s victory. In it, Erdogan stressed the “strategic” nature of bilateral ties and said they should be further strengthened based on common interests. The Turkish leader also sent a message to President Donald Trump, thanking him. Under Trump, critics say, Erdogan paid little price for confronting fellow NATO members and cozying up to Moscow, with the U.S. president opposing calls in the U.S. Congress for sanctions against Turkey.A Bidenmore

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China Congratulates Biden on Election Victory

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China on Friday extended its congratulations to U.S. President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin made a statement at a regular daily briefing.“We extend congratulations to Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris,” Wenbin said. “We have been following the reaction to the U.S. presidential election of both the United States and the international community,” he said without elaborating on his country’s delay.“We respect the choice of the American people. Meanwhile we understand the results of the U.S. election will be determined according to U.S. laws and procedures,” Wenbin said.Biden is projected to become U.S. presidentmore

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What Is the Fate of Trump’s Border Wall?

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Joe Biden, projected to become America’s 46th president in January, has vowed to stop constructing a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border — a centerpiece of President Donald Trump’s presidency. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee reports. Camera:  Spike Johnson and Christian von Preysing     Producer: Elizabeth Lee …

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Biden Agenda Depends on Battle for Senate

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The balance of power in the U.S. Congress will come down to just two Senate races in one Southern state – Georgia — where the presidential contest remains too close to call. As VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson reports, those two Senate seats will determine if there is a divided government during President-elect Joe Biden’s first two years. Camera:  Adam Greenbaum           Producer: Katherine Gypson …

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No Voting System Deleted or Lost Votes in US Election, Security Groups Say

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Election security officials have no evidence that ballots were deleted or lost by voting systems in this month’s U.S. election, two security groups said in a statement released Thursday by the lead U.S. cybersecurity agency. “There is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised,” the groups said about the November 3 election won by Joe Biden, a Democrat. Republican President Donald Trump has repeatedly made unsubstantiated claims of electoral fraud and has yet to concede. The groups, the Election Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council Executive Committee (GCC) and the Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinatingmore

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