Prosecutor Says Politics Didn’t Affect Hunter Biden Investigation

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U.S. Special Counsel David Weiss, who is leading the probe into President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden, told the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday that he faced no political interference, contradicting earlier whistleblower testimony.  Weiss has charged Hunter Biden, 53, with crimes related to owning a firearm while using illegal drugs. The president’s son has said he struggled with addictions to alcohol and crack cocaine.   House Republicans allege the Justice Department improperly interfered with the investigation of Hunter Biden, whose brushes with the law are a central focus of their impeachment inquiry into the president. The White Housemore

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Even at Princeton, International Students Face Legal Obstacles

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The Daily Princetonian, Princeton University’s campus newspaper, spoke with undergraduate students navigating the post-graduation job search. Despite their prestigious degrees, many report limited job options and say they have to apply to in-demand jobs in tech and consulting to have a shot at an H1-B visa. Claire Meng, Sandeep Mangat and Michelle Miao report. (October 2023). …

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War in Middle East Upends Dynamics of 2024 House Democratic Primaries

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Most members of the U.S. Congress have stood firmly behind Israel since the Hamas attack last month, but not Cori Bush. The Missouri Democrat called Israel’s response a “war crime” and an “ethnic cleansing campaign,” and was among the few House members who opposed a resolution supporting Israel.  Her unwavering stance has angered some in her district. St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell on Monday dropped a U.S. Senate bid to challenge Bush in next year’s 1st District Democratic primary, and moderate Democrats believe he could win.  Bush isn’t alone.  She’s among a small group of Democrats viewed bymore

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International Student Dives into American Football

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Isabella McNutt, a student from Budapest, Hungary, studying at the College of William & Mary in the U.S. state of Virginia, went to her first American football game at the school. “It’s a surreal daydream of dressing up in gold and green and going to tailgates before herds of students flood the stadium to see a series of fumbles, sacks and, hopefully, a touchdown or two,” she writes in The Flat Hat, the student newspaper. Read her story here. (October 2023) …

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US House to Vote on Republicans’ Standalone $14.3 Billion Israel Bill

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The U.S. House of Representatives plans a vote on Thursday on a Republican plan to provide $14.3 billion in aid to Israel by cutting Internal Revenue Service funding, setting up a clash with the Democratic-controlled Senate and White House. Republicans unveiled the bill on Monday, in the first major legislative action under new House Speaker Mike Johnson, despite President Joe Biden’s request for a broad $106 billion package that would include funding for Israel, Taiwan and Ukraine, as well as humanitarian aid. The bill will face its first test of support in a morning procedural vote, a hurdle it needsmore

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US House of Representatives to Vote on Proposal to Remove George Santos

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The U.S. House of Representatives will vote Wednesday on whether to expel New York Representative George Santos because of his indictments for corruption. Santos pleaded not guilty to a 23-count federal indictment on October 27 that included charges of laundering funds to pay for his personal expenses, illegally receiving unemployment benefits and using donors’ credit cards without their consent. The charges also include Santos reporting a false $500,000 campaign loan and lying to the House about his assets. The 35-year-old lawmaker has seen his congressional career marred by controversy since its beginning, when it was revealed that much of themore

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Biden Nominates Asia Expert for Deputy Secretary of State

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U.S. President Joe Biden has nominated Kurt Campbell, the U.S. National Security Council’s coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs, to be the State Department’s No. 2 diplomat behind Secretary of State Antony Blinken. In an email obtained by VOA and addressed to State Department staff members, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Campbell’s nomination “comes at a critical inflection point,” coinciding with the United States’ investment in an “unmatched network of alliances and partnerships” in the Indo-Pacific. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Campbell will replace Wendy Sherman, who retired on July 28. Campbell was assistant secretary of state formore

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South Korean Student Urges Princeton to Better Educate International Students on Race

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Princeton student Ukyung (Heidi) Nam, a first-year student from South Korea, says that the school’s International Orientation program needs to do a better job of educating students on race in America. “IO [International Orientation] shouldn’t stop at teaching about topical and logistical issues, such as visas and paid work,” she writes in The Daily Princetonian, the student newspaper. “It must integrate an actual session on race and the history and culture of racism in the United States into its programming.” Read her opinion piece here. (October 2023) …

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EducationUSA Offers Services for International Students

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U.S. News & World Report takes a look at EducationUSA, a network of advising centers supported to the U.S. State Department. Its mission is to help students who want to study in the U.S. According to the story, EducationUSA has some 430 advising centers in more than 175 countries and territories. The centers can help students find the best school for them and help with the admission process. Read the full story here. (October 2023) …

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Can Digital Learning Save Higher Ed?

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As colleges become battlegrounds for U.S. politics, and face declining enrollments, educators are worried that they have lost the American public’s trust. One way to fix this might be to expand access to online degrees. Michael D. Smith, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, argues that academics should embrace digitization as a means of saving the institutions they work for. Read his take in the Chronicle of Higher Education. (October 2023) …

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Amid War in the Middle East, Tensions Grow on US Campuses

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Student activists in the U.S. have long championed both the Israeli and Palestinian causes. Amid the war between Israel and Hamas, many students report feeling threatened for their opinions. Activists claim to have been doxed (when your identity is unwillingly leaked to the public) and threatened online. Douglas Belkin and Melissa Korn speak to students affected for the Wall Street Journal. (October 2023) …

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Nobel Prize in Medicine Winner a ‘Patron Saint’ to ‘Undervalued, Unappreciated and Unrecognized’

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Katalina Karikó won the award for helping pioneer mRNA technology, which was used to develop the COVID-19 vaccine. Before that, she fled authoritarian Hungary, failed to earn tenure and toiled as an underpaid research assistant for years, with few taking her ideas seriously. Yet she never gave up on her research. In this op-ed for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Dr. Priya E. Mammen insists that Karikó’s accomplishment is “nothing short of heroic.” …

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