CNN bans White House pool reporters from debate room 

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washington — The White House Correspondents’ Association said Thursday that CNN had rejected multiple requests to include White House pool reporters inside the studio during the first presidential debate between incumbent Joe Biden and Republican rival Donald Trump.  The press pool, made up of representatives of major news organizations, accompanies the president on foreign and domestic trips and normally has access to any event where he speaks or appears in public, with the goal of keeping the U.S. public informed.  It is extremely rare for it to be barred from an event in the United States.  “WHCA is deeply concerned thatmore

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Famous US presidential debate moments

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Public debates between presidential candidates have become a mainstay of American elections, though this wasn’t always the case. Sometimes amusing and sometimes shocking, presidential debates have been full of key moments shaping the way the public perceives the candidates and the issues. …

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Ahead of Thursday presidential debate, a look back to 2020

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The first debate of the 2024 U.S. presidential election takes place on Thursday. But it isn’t the candidates’ first time debated each other. VOA’s senior Washington correspondent, Carolyn Presutti, looks back to 2020 for some clues about what we will see and hear in the debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. …

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Once a rallying cry, ‘radical Islamic terrorism’ fades from Trump rhetoric

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Washington — In 2016, Donald Trump’s presidential campaign echoed with a frequent vow to crush “radical Islamic terrorism.”  Fast forward to today, as he seeks a second chance in the White House, Trump rarely mentions the phrase, his erstwhile rhetoric about Islamist terrorism eclipsed by a focus on immigration, crime and other domestic issues.   The shift came into sharp relief on Sunday when a coordinated terrorist assault on a police station, churches and synagogues in southern Russia left at least 20 people dead. What might once have prompted a flurry of tweets went unmentioned on Trump’s Truth Social platform.   Why themore

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Unpacking US campaign spending

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Elections in the United States are some of the most expensive in the world. In 2020, more than $16 billion was spent on U.S. presidential and congressional races. 2024 election costs are likely to be higher. How do campaigns help finance these elections? Fundraising. …

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How the presidential candidates see top foreign policy issues 

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washington — An aggressive Russia, an emboldened China, a tempestuous Middle East and the fragile global relationships needed to confront these challenges are major foreign policy issues neither Joe Biden nor Donald Trump can dodge if either wins November’s election. As the two men hold their first presidential debate on Thursday, they’ll likely use their talking points to paint a picture of the role they want the United States to occupy on the world stage. The difference couldn’t be starker, said Jeremi Suri, a history professor at the University of Texas at Austin. “Biden’s approach is a combination of liberal internationalismmore

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How Biden, Trump differ over Ukraine policy

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U.S. presidential candidates Joe Biden and Donald Trump meet Thursday for the first of their two scheduled debates. Russia’s war on Ukraine is expected to be one of the top foreign policy questions. VOA’s Tatiana Vorozhko looks at how the two candidates differ in their approach to Ukraine. …

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Trump backs Ten Commandments in all schools, urges Christians to vote 

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washington — Donald Trump told a group of evangelicals they “cannot afford to sit on the sidelines” of the 2024 election, imploring them at one point to “go and vote, Christians, please!”  Trump also endorsed displaying the Ten Commandments in schools and elsewhere while speaking to a group of politically influential evangelical Christians in Washington on Saturday. He drew cheers as he invoked a new law signed in Louisiana this week requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom.  “Has anyone read the ‘Thou shalt not steal’? I mean, has anybody read this incredible stuff? It’s justmore

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Gaza war divides Democrats in New York primary

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How a U.S. congressional district north of New York City votes in the June 25 primary race could reveal how much the war in Gaza is on the minds of Americans. The outcome could inform Democrats trying to regain control of the House of Representatives in November. Veronica Balderas Iglesias explains. …

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Trump departs from anti-immigrant rhetoric with green card proposal

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Miami, florida — Former President Donald Trump said in an interview posted Thursday he wants to give automatic green cards to foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges, a sharp departure from the anti-immigrant rhetoric he typically uses on the campaign trail. Trump was asked about plans for companies to be able to import the “best and brightest” in a podcast taped Wednesday with venture capitalists and tech investors called the “All-In.” “What I want to do, and what I will do is, you graduate from a college, I think you should get automatically as part of your diploma a greenmore

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Lack of legal framework complicates policing political deepfakes

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Voters in this U.S. presidential election are vulnerable to bad actors using artificial intelligence to create disinformation that benefits rival politicians or promotes the interests of foreign governments. VOA’s Ivanna Pidborska looks at the use of AI in Election 2024 in this report narrated by Carolyn Presutti. Camera and edit: Kostiantyn Golubchik, Dmytro Melnyk …

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