US Senate Race too Close to Call; Recount Likely

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Pennsylvania’s Republican primary for an open U.S. Senate seat is too close to Pennsylvania’s Republican primary for an open U.S. Senate seat is too close to call and is likely headed for a statewide recount to decide the winner of the contest between heart surgeon-turned-TV celebrity Dr. Mehmet Oz and former hedge fund CEO David McCormick. A recount would mean that the outcome of the race might not be known until June 8, the deadline for counties to report their results to the state. Oz, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump, led McCormick by 1,079 votes, or 0.08more

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What to Expect From Biden’s Trip to Asia

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US President Joe Biden is traveling to South Korea and Japan on Thursday, after hosting Southeast Asian leaders at the White House last week. The administration’s spotlight on Asia is a clear signal that the Indo-Pacific region remains its priority, even as it focuses on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara is traveling with the president and has this report. …

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Looming Midterm Elections Put US Voting Rights in Spotlight

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Millions of U.S. voters are casting ballots in state primary races to determine which candidates face off in November’s midterm elections. The stakes are high for Democrats and Republicans, as the outcome will determine which political party controls both houses of Congress next year. The contest will be a test of new voting laws in many states that restrict access to the ballot in the name of election security. With barely six months until the 2022 midterms, fierce debate has emerged over voting rights and voting integrity, topics that have long stirred passions in America. In broad terms, Democrats favormore

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Are Americans Purposely Moving Next to People Who Share Their Politics?

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Democrats and Republicans are less likely to live near each other than they were a generation ago. This political segregation is a phenomenon journalist Bill Bishop wrote about in his book “The Big Sort,” which suggested that Americans are increasingly moving to places where neighbors share their political views. But are they doing that on purpose? “It may well be that some of them are doing that, but I think from the data, that’s not entirely what they’re doing. … It looks like when people are moving, they’re mostly looking for communities that have certain features, like say, art walksmore

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Trump’s Republican Political Clout Yields Split Results in Primary Test  

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The political sway of former U.S. President Donald Trump over Republican Party politics 16 months after he left office was tested again Tuesday as his preferred candidates face off with Republican opponents in party primaries in key states. Five states held Republican and Democratic primaries, but political analysts paid particularly close attention to Trump’s fortunes in two states — Pennsylvania in the eastern U.S., which Trump lost in his reelection bid in 2020 after winning there in 2016, and the mid-Atlantic state of North Carolina, which Trump won in 2016 and two years ago. In one key race in Pennsylvania,more

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Review Finds US Troops Didn’t Violate Law in Syria Airstrike

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A U.S. military investigation found that American troops did not violate the law of war or deliberately cause civilian casualties in a 2019 airstrike in Syria that killed dozens of people, including women and children. It did find that the military committed procedural mistakes in the aftermath of the attack. The Pentagon said Tuesday that no one, including the ground force commander, was disciplined as a result of the strike, which was launched in support of Syrian partner forces who were under heavy fire from the Islamic State group near the town of Baghuz, in eastern Syria. Defense Secretary Lloydmore

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Trump’s Republican Political Clout Faces Another Test on Tuesday 

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The political sway of former U.S. President Donald Trump over Republican Party politics 16 months after he left office is being tested again Tuesday as his preferred candidates face off with Republican opponents in party primaries in key states. Five states are holding Republican and Democratic primaries, but political analysts will be paying particularly close attention to Trump’s fortunes in two states — Pennsylvania in the eastern U.S., which Trump lost in his reelection bid in 2020 after winning there in 2016, and the mid-Atlantic state of North Carolina, which Trump won in 2016 and two years ago. While winningmore

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Migrant Border Entries Rise in April, Boosted By Ukrainians 

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U.S. authorities said Monday they stopped migrants more than 234,000 times in April, one of the highest marks in decades as the Biden administration prepares to lift pandemic-era restrictions on claiming asylum.  U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials made 234,088 stops on the Mexican border last month, a 5.8% increase from 221,303 in March, according to a Justice Department filing in a lawsuit filed by Texas and Missouri.  The April total would have been lower without more than 23,000 people — many of them Ukrainian refugees admitted on humanitarian parole — who went through a San Diego border crossing. Themore

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US Supreme Court Rules for Sen. Cruz in Campaign Finance Case

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The Supreme Court’s conservative majority on Monday sided with Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas in his challenge to a provision of federal campaign finance law, in a ruling that a dissenting justice said runs the risk of causing “further disrepute” to American politics. The justices, in a 6-3 decision that divided the court along ideological lines, agreed that the somewhat obscure section of the law violates the Constitution. The decision comes just as campaigning for the 2022 midterm elections is intensifying. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the majority that the provision “burdens core political speech without proper justification.”more

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Blinken Meets European Counterparts as Finland Seeks NATO Membership

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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the United States supports Finland and Sweden applying for NATO membership. This follows statements from those countries’ leaders in the wake of Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Leaders say the war has them rethinking their own security. A warning: some viewers may find images in this report disturbing. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi has more. …

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Jan. 6 Panel Subpoenas McCarthy, 4 Other Republican Lawmakers

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A House panel issued subpoenas Thursday to House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy and four other Republican lawmakers in its probe into the violent Jan. 6 insurrection, an extraordinary step that has little precedent and is certain to further inflame partisan tensions over the 2021 attack. The panel is investigating McCarthy’s conversations with then-President Donald Trump the day of the attack and meetings the four other lawmakers had with the White House beforehand as Trump and his aides worked to overturn his 2020 election defeat. The former president’s supporters violently pushed past police that day, broke through windows and doors ofmore

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Biden Seeks to Balance Human Rights and Geopolitics in US-ASEAN Special Summit

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In a bid to strengthen alliances and counter Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific, President Joe Biden is hosting Southeast Asian leaders in Washington in a two-day U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit. While trade, regional security and Ukraine are high on the agenda, activists are urging him to address the region’s human rights concerns and democratic backsliding, including the 2021 coup in Myanmar. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has this report. Camera: VOA Indonesian, VOA Burmese    Producer: Bakhtiyar Zamanov …

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Four Supreme Court Rulings That Could Be Impacted by Reversal of Abortion Decision

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In his draft opinion overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion, conservative U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito stressed that his ruling was limited to abortion and would not affect other rights. “Nothing in this opinion,” Alito wrote in the leaked document, “should be understood to cast doubt on precedents that do not concern abortion.” The document is an initial draft and could change before a final decision is handed down in the next several weeks. But despite Alito’s assurances, the sweeping case it makes for reversing the 1973 decision and a subsequent abortion ruling frommore

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Justices to Meet for 1st Time Since Leak of Draft Roe Ruling

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The Supreme Court’s nine justices will gather in private Thursday for their first scheduled meeting since the leak of a draft opinion that would overrule Roe v. Wade and sharply curtail abortion rights in roughly half the states. The meeting in the justices’ private, wood-paneled conference room could be a tense affair in a setting noted for its decorum. No one aside from the justices attends and the most junior among them, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, is responsible for taking notes. Thursday’s conference comes at an especially fraught moment, with the future of abortion rights at stake and an investigationmore

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Biden Congratulates Marcos on Philippines Election Win

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U.S. President Joe Biden has congratulated Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for winning the presidential election in the Philippines. The White House said Wednesday U.S. President Joe Biden called to congratulate Ferdinando Marcos Jr. for winning the presidential election in the Philippines.  Marcos, who is colloquially known as “Bongbong,” claimed victory Wednesday as a near-complete initial count of votes put him far ahead of his closest challenger. “President Biden underscored that he looks forward to working with the President-elect to continue strengthening the U.S.-Philippine Alliance, while expanding bilateral cooperation on a wide range of issues, including the fight against COVID-19, addressing themore

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Ukraine Cites Gains Pushing Russia Out of Kharkiv 

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Ukrainian officials said the country’s forces have made gains in pushing Russian forces out of Kharkiv, a city in northeastern Ukraine that has been under attack since Russia launched its invasion in late February.  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy cautiously offered what he called “good news” in an address late Tuesday, saying “the occupiers are gradually being pushed away.”  “But I also want to urge all our people … not to spread excessive emotions,” Zelenskyy said. “We should not create an atmosphere of excessive moral pressure, where victories are expected weekly and even daily.”  The Ukrainian leader also tweeted his appreciationmore

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US House Passes $40 Billion Bill to Bolster Ukraine Against Russian Invasion

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The U.S. House of Representatives approved more than $40 billion more aid for Ukraine on Tuesday, as Congress races to keep military aid flowing and boost the government in Kyiv as it grapples with the Russian invasion. The House passed the Ukraine spending bill by 368 to 57, with every ‘no’ vote coming from Republicans. The measure now heads to the Senate, which is expected to act quickly. President Joe Biden had asked Congress to approve an additional $33 billion in aid for Ukraine two weeks ago, but lawmakers decided to increase the military and humanitarian funding. “This bill willmore

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McConnell, Utah Leaders Honor ‘Larger Than Life’ Orrin Hatch

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell paid tribute to the late Sen. Orrin Hatch on Friday, celebrating the Utah icon as a principled conservative, committed public servant and man of faith. Two weeks after Hatch died at age 88 from complications stemming from a stroke, McConnell joined Hatch’s family, friends, former colleagues and leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to memorialize the seven-term U.S. senator at a ceremony held at a chapel at the Institute of Religion in Salt Lake City. “Each piece of legislation Orrin crafted was like a handwritten note. Every bill was an Orrinmore

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US Judge Dismisses Trump’s Lawsuit Challenging His Twitter Ban

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A U.S. judge on Friday dismissed former President Donald Trump’s lawsuit against Twitter Inc. that challenged his suspension from the platform. In a written ruling, U.S. District Judge James Donato in San Francisco rejected Trump’s argument that Twitter violated his right to freedom of speech guaranteed by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Twitter and other social media platforms banned Trump from their services after a mob of his supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol in a deadly riot on Jan. 6, 2021. That assault followed a speech by Trump in which he reiterated false claims that his election lossmore

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White House Announces New Press Secretary

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Karine Jean-Pierre will be the new White House Press Secretary starting May 13, the White House announced Thursday.  Jean-Pierre, who is currently deputy press secretary, will replace Jen Psaki who has served as press secretary since President Joe Biden became president.  “Karine not only brings the experience, talent and integrity needed for this difficult job, but she will continue to lead the way in communicating about the work of the Biden-Harris Administration on behalf of the American people. Jill and I have known and respected Karine a long time and she will be a strong voice speaking for me andmore

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US Voters Predict Republicans Will Make Gains in Midterm

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With rising inflation, an ongoing pandemic, a Russian war in Ukraine and now a looming Supreme Court ruling on abortion, the stakes are high as Americans prepare to go to the polls in November for midterm elections. “I have so many friends who are struggling right now,” said Brandon Legnion, a nurse in New Orleans, Louisiana. “Friends who can barely afford the gas they need to get themselves to job sites. I think a lot of them are going to be eager to vote and express displeasure at the way the country is being run.” The midterms not only markmore

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