Author: Tage

WASHINGTON — The arrest of a Palestinian activist who helped organize campus protests of the war in Gaza has sparked questions about whether foreign students and green card holders are protected against being deported from the U.S. Mahmoud Khalil was arrested Saturday by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Homeland Security officials and President Donald Trump have indicated that the arrest was directly tied to his role in the protests last spring at Columbia University in New York City. Khalil is being held at an immigration detention center in Jena, Louisiana, while he awaits immigration court proceedings that could eventually lead to his deportation. His arrest has drawn criticism that he’s being unfairly and unlawfully targeted for his activism while the federal government has essentially described him as a terrorist sympathizer. Here is a look at what the protections for foreign students and green card holders are and what might be next for Khalil: Can someone with a green card be deported? A green card holder is someone who has lawful permanent residence status in the United States. Jaclyn Kelley-Widmer teaches immigration law at Cornell Law School. She said lawful permanent residents generally have many protections and “should be the most protected short of a U.S. citizen.” But that protection is not absolute. Green card holders can still be deported for committing certain crimes, failing to notify immigration officials of a change in address, or engaging in marriage fraud, for example. The Department of Homeland Security said Khalil was taken into custody because of Trump’s executive orders prohibiting antisemitism. Trump has argued that protesters forfeited their rights to remain in the country by supporting the Palestinian group Hamas, which controls Gaza and has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States. Khalil and other student leaders of Columbia University Apartheid Divest have rejected claims of antisemitism, saying they are part of a broader anti-war movement that also includes Jewish students and groups. But the protest coalition, at times, has also voiced support for leaders of Hamas and Hezbollah, another Islamist organization designated by the U.S. as a terrorist group. Khalil has not been convicted of any terrorist-related activity or charged with any wrongdoing. But experts say the federal government has fairly broad authority to arrest and try to deport a green card holder on terrorism grounds. Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, green card holders do not need to be … “Activist’s arrest raises questions on US protections for foreign students, green card holders” →

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA — Each year, nearly 54,000 women in the U.S. state of Louisiana are released from prison, according to Operation Restoration, a New Orleans-based nonprofit organization with a mission to support women and girls impacted by incarceration as they attempt to restore their lives. For many women, restoring their lives proves too difficult. Some 30% return to jail within five years. “The number of barriers a woman faces when she is released from incarceration is unfathomable,” Syrita Steib, Operation Restoration’s founder and president told VOA. “There are food and housing issues, of course, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg.” “You are on parole, but you have to pay the state money for that supervision,” Steib continued. “Where do you get the money for that at first, though? If you’ve been in prison for years or decades, you don’t have the network connections or technology literacy most people lean on to find a job.” As Shenica Jackson, 43, readied for her release last year after more than 13 years in prison, she shared many of these concerns. Jackson was one of two individuals arrested in 2011 when an ongoing feud turned violent. “I was full of regret, of course,” Jackson said. “Regret that I took someone’s life, regret that I was leaving my daughter without a mother to take care of her, and regret that I had robbed myself of my future.” “When you’re incarcerated at 30 years old, you don’t imagine you’re going to have lots of opportunities after that,” she added. “I thought my life was over.” That changed when she saw Operation Restoration was training women in prison to work as laboratory assistants. That program has licensed 67 formerly incarcerated women, including Jackson. “It gives me something to be proud of,” Jackson said. “It feels good to try to improve yourself and learn something new.” Finding second chances Operation Restoration has more than a dozen programs including providing housing, work training, education, food, clothing and legal advocacy. It is the kind of help that founder Steib needed when she was released from prison in 2009. Steib served nearly 10 years for her role in a burglary and arson at a car dealership when she was a teenager. When she was released, she felt overwhelmed and disoriented. “The world moves on without you,” Steib said, “and it happens at a rapid pace. When you get out … “US nonprofit helps former female inmates reintegrate into society, job market” →

The Senate voted Monday to confirm Lori Chavez-DeRemer as U.S. labor secretary, a Cabinet position that puts her in charge of enforcing federally mandated worker rights and protections as the White House is trying to eliminate thousands of government employees. Chavez-DeRemer will oversee the Department of Labor, one of several executive departments named in lawsuits challenging the authority of billionaire Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency to order layoffs and access sensitive government data. The Labor Department had nearly 16,000 full-time employees and a proposed budget of $13.9 billion for fiscal year 2025. Some of its vast responsibilities include reporting the U.S. unemployment rate, regulating workplace health and safety standards, investigating minimum wage, child labor and overtime pay disputes, and applying laws on union organizing and unlawful terminations. Several prominent labor unions, including the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, endorsed Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination. The former Republican congresswoman from Oregon is the daughter of a Teamster, and during her one term in the House earned a reputation as pro-labor. The Senate voted to confirm Chavez-DeRemer 67-32, with 17 Democrats voting yes and three Republicans voting no. The Senate has now confirmed all but one of Trump’s picks for his Cabinet. Its Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions had voted 14-9 in favor of her nomination last week, with all Republicans except Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky giving Chavez-DeRemer their support. Three Democrats on the committee — Senators John Hickenlooper of Colorado, Tim Kaine of Virginia and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire — voted with the majority. During her confirmation hearing before the committee, several Republican senators grilled Chavez-DeRemer about her decision to co-sponsor legislation that would have made it easier for workers to unionize and penalized employers who stood in the way of organizing efforts. She declined to explicitly state whether she still backed the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, also known as the PRO Act. Chavez-DeRemer explained she had signed on as a co-sponsor because she wanted a seat at the table to discuss important labor issues. Under further questioning, she walked back some of her support of the bill, saying that she supported state “right to work” laws, which allow employees to refuse to join a union in their workplace. The PRO Act did not come up for a vote during her time in Congress, but the legislation was reintroduced in the House and Senate last week. … “Senate confirms Lori Chavez-DeRemer as Trump’s labor secretary” →

All three major U.S. stock indexes dropped sharply in Monday morning trading, with investors worried about the uncertainty of tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump on key trading partners and then his refusal to rule out the possibility of a U.S. recession in the coming months.   The key Dow Jones average of 30 blue chip stocks dropped more than 1%, with the broader S&P 500 index falling 2 percentage points and the tech-heavy Nasdaq barometer off more than 3 percentage points.   The S&P 500 finished Friday with a 3.1% weekly drop, its biggest such decline in six months, and the index is down 7.4% from its all-time high set on Feb. 19.  Trump imposed new 25% tariffs on Mexican and Canadian exports to the U.S. last week and then days later paused the duties until April 2, leaving it uncertain what might happen then.  Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told NBC News over the weekend, “There’s going to be no recession in America,” but Trump hedged.  “I hate to predict things like that,” the U.S. leader told Fox News. “There is a period of transition, because what we’re doing is very big. We’re bringing wealth back to America. That’s a big thing.” He then added, “It takes a little time. It takes a little time.”  On Monday, the sell-off of big-tech stocks continued. The stock of electric carmaker Tesla, whose chief executive is billionaire Elon Musk, a key Trump adviser, slid more than 8%.   Other key technology stocks such as Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia and Meta Platforms all dropped by more than 2%.  The U.S. economy, the world’s largest, has already given some signals of weakening, mostly through surveys showing increased pessimism from consumers, whose purchases account for 70% of the country’s economic output. A widely followed collection of real-time indicators compiled by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta suggests the U.S. economy may already be shrinking.  Analyst David Mericle at the Goldman Sachs investment company cut his 2025 year-over-year estimate for U.S. economic growth from 2.2% to 1.7%, largely because Trump’s tariffs look like they will be bigger than he was previously forecasting. He said he sees a one-in-five chance of a recession over the next year. …

WASHINGTON — Construction crews began removing the large painting of the words “Black Lives Matter” on a street one block from the White House on Monday as Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser struggles to fend off threats of encroachment from both President Donald Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress.  Bowser pointed to the change on the social platform X last week, writing: “The mural inspired millions of people and helped our city through a painful period, but now we can’t afford to be distracted by meaningless congressional interference. The devastating impacts of the federal job cuts must be our number one concern.”  The move shows Bowser’s striking shift in tone toward Trump and congressional Republicans since the president’s first term in office. Bowser, a Democrat, ordered the painting and renamed the intersection Black Lives Matter Plaza as a public act of defiance in June 2020. It came after days of chaotic protests at that location over police brutality following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer.  Her approach to the protests brought her into direct conflict with Trump. The president at the time accused Bowser of losing control of her city and threatened to invoke his power to take over the Metropolitan Police Department. He didn’t follow through but declared his own multiagency lockdown that included helicopters flying at low altitudes to intimidate protesters.  In Trump’s second stint in the White House, Bowser has worked to avoid conflict and downplay any points of contention. She traveled to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate to meet with the president after his election and has publicly emphasized their points of agreement, such as a mutual desire to return federal workers back to their offices full time.  Trump recently revived a frequent campaign talking point about wanting a federal “takeover” of the nation’s capital, describing Washington as riddled with crime, graffiti and homeless encampments. Bowser has refused to comment on reports that the White House was preparing an executive order targeting Washington; she publicly said that the greatest threat to the so-called Home Rule autonomy was “some of the people in Congress.”  Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress, have repeatedly threatened to interfere in city affairs in large and small ways. A measure currently before Congress, named the Bowser Act, seeks to completely revoke the Home Rule Act of 1973 that grants the capital city limited autonomy.  That would be deeply controversial, likely testing the … “Crews remove ‘Black Lives Matter’ street mural near White House” →

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court agreed Monday in a case from Colorado to decide whether state and local governments can enforce laws banning conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ children.   The conservative-led court is taking up the case amid actions by President Donald Trump targeting transgender people, including a ban on military service and an end to federal funding for gender-affirming care for transgender minors.   The justices also have heard arguments in a Tennessee case over whether state bans on treating transgender minors violate the Constitution. But they have yet to issue a decision. Colorado is among roughly half the states that prohibit the practice of trying to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity through counseling.   The issue is whether the law violates the speech rights of counselors. Defenders of such laws argue that they regulate the conduct of professionals who are licensed by the state.  The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver upheld the state law. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta has struck down local bans in Florida. In 2023, the court had turned away a similar challenge, despite a split among federal appeals courts that had weighed state bans and come to differing decisions.   At the time, three justices, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas, said they would have taken on the issue. It takes four justices to grant review. The nine-member court does not typically reveal how justices vote at this stage of a case so it’s unclear who might have provided the fourth vote.   The case will be argued in the court’s new term, which begins in October. The appeal on behalf of Kaley Chiles, a counselor in Colorado Springs, was filed by Alliance Defending Freedom, the conservative legal organization that has appeared frequently at the court in recent years in cases involving high-profile social issues. One of those cases was a 5-4 decision in 2018 in which the justices ruled that California could not force state-licensed anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers to provide information about abortion.   Chiles’ lawyers leaned heavily on that decision in asking the court to take up her case. They wrote that Chiles doesn’t “seek to ‘cure’ clients of same-sex attractions or to ‘change’ clients’ sexual orientation.” In arguing for the court to reject the appeal, lawyers for Colorado wrote that lawmakers acted to regulate professional conduct, “based on overwhelming evidence that efforts to change a child’s … “Supreme Court will take up state bans on conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ children, in Colorado case” →

Bedford, Massachusetts — A military court-martial convened on Monday for Massachusetts Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira, who was sentenced in federal court to 15 years in prison for leaking highly classified military documents after the most consequential national security breach in years. Teixeira pleaded guilty last year to six counts of willful retention and transmission of national defense information under the Espionage Act. He faces additional military charges of disobeying orders and obstructing justice in the court-martial, held at Hanscom Air Force Base in Massachusetts. Military prosecutors said the court-martial is appropriate given that obeying orders is the “absolute core” of the military. Teixeira’s lawyers argued that further action would amount to prosecuting him twice for the same offense. The leaks exposed to the world unvarnished secret assessments of Russia’s war in Ukraine, including information about troop movements in Ukraine, and the provision of supplies and equipment to Ukrainian troops. Teixeira also admitted posting information about a U.S. adversary’s plans to harm U.S. forces serving overseas. Before he was sentenced in November in U.S. District Court in Boston, Teixeira showed little emotion as he stood in court and apologized for his actions. The 22-year-old previously admitted he illegally collected some of the nation’s most sensitive secrets and shared them with other users on the social media platform Discord. “I wanted to say I’m sorry for all the harm that I brought and caused,” Teixeira said. “I understand all the responsibility and consequences fall upon my shoulders alone and accept whatever that will bring.” Afterward, Teixeira hugged one of his attorneys, looked toward his family and smiled before being led from court. His family left without commenting to reporters, but his mother and others submitted letters to the court seeking leniency. “I know Jack deeply regrets his actions and is ready to accept his punishment for his part in this situation,” his mother, Dawn Dufault, wrote. “While I understand the severity of his charges and the importance of ensuring justice, I implore you, Your Honor, to consider Jack’s true nature and his unique challenges, as I have observed over the years.” The security breach raised alarm over the country’s ability to protect its most closely guarded secrets and forced the Biden administration to scramble to try to contain the diplomatic and military fallout. The leaks also embarrassed the Pentagon, which tightened controls to safeguard classified information and disciplined members found to … “Court-martial convenes for Pentagon leaker already facing years behind bars” →

PENTAGON — A shortage of amphibious warfare ships for commanders across the globe has reached a breaking point, with defense officials warning VOA the crisis has triggered a monthslong drought in critical firepower from sea-based Marines. “I have the Marines, and I have the squadrons, and I have the battalions and the batteries … I just don’t have the amphibs,” Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith told VOA in an exclusive interview. While the amphibious warfare ships, known as amphibs, make up just 10% of the fleet, they are the go-to alternative to aircraft carriers when commanders need something more precise or expedient. They also are the only ships made for the Marine Corps’ rapid reaction forces, known as Marine Expeditionary Units (MEUs), to get equipment and troops from sea to shore during an assault. “Amphibs are vital to us. They are an existential part of who we are as Marines,” Smith said. Military’s Swiss Army Knife Once deployed, these units of about 2,000 Marines and sailors are the military’s Swiss Army Knife, providing everything from strike power with F-35 fighter jets, to support in non-combatant evacuation operations and disaster relief, like when the 15th MEU rushed humanitarian aid to the Philippines after deadly floods and landslides last October. It takes three amphibs – one big-deck amphib and two smaller ones – to make an Amphibious Ready Group that transports the Marines, a unit often referred to as an ARG/MEU. Smith says the military needs three of these 3-ship units deployed abroad at all times –one from the East Coast, one from the West Coast, and one from Japan – a plan known as 3.0. “The INDOPACOM Commander, the EUCOM Commander, the AFRICOM commander have all called for an ARG/MEU, so 3.0 is the requirement.” However, Smith tells VOA he cannot achieve this requirement with the number of amphibs that are ready today. ‘Running ships to ground’ While the U.S. military was busy fighting two wars in the Middle East, its amphib fleet, plagued with maintenance deferments and delays, fell into disrepair, said Shelby Oakley with the Government Accountability Office. Oakley authored a GAO report in December that showed half of the 32 amphibs in the fleet are in poor material condition. “You’re running these ships to ground, not taking care of them,” she told VOA. “This is kind of equivalent to just driving your car and never changing the oil … “Exclusive: Top US Marine says ‘crisis’ with amphibious ships causing coverage gaps” →

Washington — Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday the Trump administration had finished its six-week purge of programs of the six-decade-old U.S. Agency for International Development, and said he would move the 18% of aid and development programs that survived under the State Department.  Rubio made the announcement in a post on X. It marked one of his relatively few public comments on what has been a historic shift away from U.S. foreign aid and development, executed by Trump political appointees at State and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency teams.  Rubio in the post thanked DOGE and “our hardworking staff who worked very long hours to achieve this overdue and historic reform” in foreign aid.  President Donald Trump on Jan. 20 issued an executive order directing a freeze of foreign assistance funding and a review of all of the tens of billions of dollars of U.S. aid and development work abroad. Trump charged that much of foreign assistance was wasteful and advanced a liberal agenda.  Rubio’s social media post Monday said that review was now “officially ending,” with some 5,200 of USAID’s 6,200 programs eliminated.  Those programs “spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States,” Rubio wrote.  “In consultation with Congress, we intend for the remaining 18% of programs we are keeping … to be administered more effectively under the State Department,” he said. Democratic lawmakers and others call the shutdown of congressionally-funded programs illegal, saying such a move requires Congress’ approval.  The State Department in one of multiple lawsuits it is battling over its rapid shutdown of USAID had said earlier this month it was killing more than 90% of USAID programs. Rubio gave no explanation for why his number was lower, and no details of what programs were spared or how the State Department would run them.  The dismantling of USAID that followed Trump’s order upended decades of policy that humanitarian and development aid abroad advanced U.S. national security by stabilizing regions and economies, strengthening alliances and building goodwill.  In the weeks after Trump’s order, one of his appointees and transition team members, Pete Marocco, and Musk pulled USAID staff around the world off the job through forced leaves and firings, shut down USAID payments overnight and terminated aid and development contracts by the thousands.  Contractors and staffers running … “Rubio says purge of USAID programs complete, with 83% of agency’s programs gone “ →

Police in Washington are investigating the shooting of a man Sunday by U.S. Secret Service personnel near the White House. A Secret Service spokesperson said a day before the shooting, police had shared information about “a suicidal individual” who may have been traveling to Washington from the state of Indiana. Secret Service personnel spotted the person’s car near the White House and someone matching the person’s description walking in the area. The spokesperson said the person brandished a firearm as officers approached, and that Secret Service personnel fired shots during “an armed confrontation.” Authorities have not identified the person who was taken to a local hospital after being shot. No Secret Service personnel were injured, the agency said. President Donald Trump was in Florida at the time of the shooting. Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press and Reuters     …

A single-engine airplane carrying five people crashed and burst into flames Saturday in the parking lot of a retirement community near a small airport in suburban Pennsylvania, and everyone on board survived, officials and witnesses said. The fiery crash happened around 3 p.m. just south of Lancaster Airport in Manheim Township, police Chief Duane Fisher told reporters at an evening briefing. All five victims were taken to hospitals in unknown condition. Nobody on the ground was hurt, the chief said. Brian Pipkin was driving nearby when he noticed the small plane climbing before it suddenly veered to the left. “And then it went down nose first,” he told The Associated Press. “There was an immediate fireball.” Pipkin called 911 and then drove to the crash site, where he recorded video of black smoke billowing from the plane’s mangled wreckage and multiple cars engulfed in flames in a parking lot at Brethren Village. He said the plane narrowly missed hitting a three-story building at the sprawling retirement community about 120 km west of Philadelphia. A fire truck from the airport arrived within minutes, and more first responders followed quickly. “It was so smoky and it was so hot,” Pipkin said. “They were really struggling to get the fire out.” A dozen parked cars were damaged, Fisher said. The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed there were five people aboard the Beechcraft Bonanza. Air traffic control audio captured the pilot reporting that the aircraft “has an open door, we need to return for a landing.” An air traffic controller is heard clearing the plane to land, before saying, “Pull up!” Moments later, someone can be heard saying the aircraft was “down just behind the terminal in the parking lot street area.” The FAA said it will investigate. The crash comes about a month after seven people were killed when an air ambulance burst into flames after crashing onto a busy Philadelphia street. …

Panama City — After weeks of lawsuits and human rights criticism, Panama on Saturday released dozens of migrants who were held for weeks in a remote camp after being deported from the United States, telling them they have 30 days to leave the Central American nation. It thrust many like Hayatullah Omagh, a 29-year-old who fled Afghanistan in 2022 after the Taliban took control, into a legal limbo, scrambling to find a path forward. “We are refugees. We do not have money. We cannot pay for a hotel in Panama City, we do not have relatives,” Omagh told the Associated Press in an interview. “I can’t go back to Afghanistan under any circumstances … It is under the control of the Taliban, and they want to kill me. How can I go back?” Authorities have said deportees will have the option of extending their stay by 60 days if they need it, but after that many like Omagh don’t know what they will do. Omagh climbed off a bus in Panama City alongside 65 migrants from China, Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Nepal and other nations after spending weeks detained in poor conditions by the Panamanian government, which has said it wants to work with the Trump administration “to send a signal of deterrence” to people hoping to migrate. Human rights groups and lawyers advocating for the migrants were waiting at the bus terminal, and scrambled to find the released migrants shelter and other resources. Dozens of other people remained in the camp. Among those getting off buses were migrants fleeing violence and repression in Pakistan and Iran, and 27-year-old Nikita Gaponov, who fled Russia due to repression for being part of the LGBTQ+ community and who said he was detained at the U.S. border but not allowed to make an asylum claim. “Once I get off the bus, I’ll be sleeping on the ground tonight,” Gaponov said. Others turned their eyes north once again, saying that even though they had already been deported, they had no other option than to continue after crossing the world to reach the U.S. The deportees, largely from Asian countries, were part of a deal stuck between the Trump administration and Panama and Costa Rica as the U.S. government attempts to speed up deportations. The administration sent hundreds of people, many families with children, to the two Central American countries as a stopover while authorities organize … “Panama releases dozens of detained deportees from US into limbo” →

Washington — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appointed new leadership at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Sunday as the agency struggles to meet President Donald Trump’s stated goal of massive deportation operations aimed at undocumented immigrants in the U.S. illegally. Trump’s administration deported 37,660 people during his first month in office, U.S. Department of Homeland Security data first reported by Reuters last month show, far less than the monthly average of 57,000 removals and returns in the last full year of Joe Biden’s administration. Trump made the promise of deporting millions of people from the United States a centerpiece of his campaign. The acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Caleb Vitello, was reassigned last month for failing to meet expectations, Reuters previously reported. Noem said she was promoting Todd Lyons, ICE’s acting executive associate director, to be the agency’s acting director, and Madison Sheahan, secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, to serve as deputy director. “I am appointing new ICE leadership to deliver results that President Trump and the American people rightfully demand,” Noem said in a statement, adding that Lyons and Sheahan would “lead the men and women of ICE to achieve the American people’s mandate to target, arrest and deport illegal aliens.” …

West Palm Beach, Florida — Air Force fighter jets intercepted a civilian aircraft flying in the temporarily restricted airspace near Donald Trump’s Florida home Sunday, bringing the number of violations to more than 20 since the president took office on Jan. 20. North American Aerospace Defense Command said in a statement that Sunday’s incident, which took place as Trump finished a round of golf at his West Palm Beach golf course, saw F-16s deploy flares to get the attention of the civilian pilot. Jets also conducted an intercept Saturday morning shortly after Trump arrived at the course from his private Mar-a-Lago club and residence. The airspace intrusions in the heavily congested south Florida airspace have prompted fighter jet intercepts but did not alter Trump’s schedule or impact his security, officials said. NORAD says the flares may have been visible from the ground but that they burn out quickly and don’t pose danger. Federal officials maintain a permanent flight restriction over Trump’s club that expands to a radius of 30 nautical miles when the president is in residence. Violations, and intercepts, are relatively routine, but NORAD is raising alarm over the frequency of the intrusions since Trump’s inauguration, saying it has responded to more than 20 incidents and blames civilian pilots for not following regulations requiring them to check for airspace restrictions before taking off. “Adherence to TFR [Temporary Flight Restrictions] procedures is essential to ensure flight safety, national security, and the security of the President,” General Gregory Guillot, the commander of NORAD and U.S. Northern Command said in a statement. “The procedures are not optional, and the excessive number of recent TFR violations indicates many civil aviators are not reading Notice to Airmen, or NOTAMS, before each flight as required by the FAA, and has resulted in multiple responses by NORAD fighter aircraft to guide offending aircraft out of the TFR.” …

U.S. President Donald Trump is keeping new tariffs in place on Mexico, Canada and China to pressure them to block the flow of the deadly opioid fentanyl into the United States, top White House economic officials said Sunday. “If fentanyl ends, I think these [tariffs] will come off,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told NBC’s “Meet the Press” show. “But if fentanyl does not end, or he’s uncertain about it, he will stay this way until he is comfortable,” he said. “This is black and white. You got to save American lives.” Trump last week issued a string of whip-sawing tariff decisions that plunged the three major U.S. stock market indexes and roiled relations with Canada and Mexico, which are long-time U.S. allies and its closest neighbors, as well as its two biggest trading partners. Trump at first imposed 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican exports to the U.S., then exempted the duties on Mexican- and Canadian-made vehicles being transported into the U.S. and later by week’s end delayed the tariffs on almost all items for four weeks until April 2. But Lutnick said 25% U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum imports will take effect Wednesday as scheduled. Canada and Mexico are both top exporters of the metals to U.S. markets, with Canada accounting for most aluminum imports. The Commerce chief also rebuffed fears that Trump’s global tariffs would cause a recession in the United States. “Absolutely not,” he said. “There’s going to be no recession in America.” But Lutnick acknowledged that the tariffs would lead to higher prices for U.S. consumers on foreign-made goods. “Some products that are made foreign might be more expensive, but American products will get cheaper, and that’s the point,” Lutnick said. It was not clear how U.S.-produced goods would become cheaper, except in comparison to foreign-manufactured products. Trump, in a taped interview with Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures” show, dodged a question about a possible recession because of his tariff boosts, but said, “There is a period of transition because what we’re doing is very big.” “There could be a little disruption,” he said about stock market losses last week. “Look, what I have to do is build a strong country. You can’t really watch the stock market. If you look at China, they have a 100-year perspective. We go by quarters. And you can’t go by that.” Trump has at various times said his … “Trump to keep tariffs to pressure Mexico, Canada, China on fentanyl, aides say” →

New York — Fast-moving brush fires fanned by high winds burned through a large swath of land on New York’s Long Island on Saturday, spewing thick gray smoke into the sky and prompting the evacuation of a military base and the closure of a major highway.  Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency and said state agencies were responding to the fires around the Pine Barrens, a wooded area that is home to commuter towns east of New York City. She said homes, a chemical factory and an Amazon warehouse were at risk and more evacuations may be needed.  “This is still out of control at this moment,” Hochul told Long Island TV station News 12. “We’re seeing people having to be evacuated from the Westhampton area.”  Officials said three of the four fires were fully contained, with the fire in Westhampton 50% contained. Two commercial buildings were partially burned, but officials said homes were not in the line of fire.  One firefighter was flown to a hospital to be treated for burns to the face.  “Our biggest problem is the wind,” Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine said. “It is driving this fire.”  Videos posted to social media showed flames shooting into the air and columns of black smoke rising above roads.  Air National Guard helicopters dropped water on the flames.  The Town of Southampton issued a warning in the afternoon against starting recreational fires due to the wildfire risk. That came around the time that the videos began appearing.  In a statement, Hochul said the National Guard was providing support by helicopter and working with local law enforcement.  “Public safety is my top priority, and I’m committed to doing everything possible to keep Long Islanders safe,” she said.  In her comments to News 12, Hochul declined to estimate the extent of the flames, saying only that they were growing rapidly.  Rough satellite data indicated that fire and smoke stretched roughly 3 kilometers along Sunrise Highway, according to NASA’s Fire Information for Resource Management System.  Police closed a section of the highway, which is a thoroughfare to the East End of Long Island.  The fires raged near the Francis S. Gabreski Airport, from which the National Guard launched at least one helicopter. One of the commercial buildings that partially burned was near the airport.  Personnel at the base evacuated as a precautionary measure starting around 1:45 p.m., spokesman Cheran Cambell … “New York governor declares state of emergency for wind-driven brush fire on Long Island” →

Washington — U..S Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday condemned the “radical Islamist terrorists” behind “massacres” of minorities in Syria and demanded that the interim administration hold those responsible to account. “The United States condemns the radical Islamist terrorists, including foreign jihadis, that murdered people in western Syria in recent days,” Rubio said in a statement. “The United States stands with Syria’s religious and ethnic minorities, including its Christian, Druze, Alawite, and Kurdish communities, and offers its condolences to the victims and their families,” he said. “Syria’s interim authorities must hold the perpetrators of these massacres against Syria’s minority communities accountable.” The violence against minorities erupted after gunmen loyal to ousted leader Bashar al-Assad, a member of the Alawite minority, attacked the new security forces. War monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights later reported that security forces and allied groups killed at least 745 Alawite civilians in Latakia and Tartus provinces. Interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, who led the Sunni Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham that spearheaded the lightning offensive that toppled Assad, called for national coexistence after the killings. The United States under former president Joe Biden engaged with Sharaa after he came to power but said that any greater normalization would depend on meeting conditions including the protection of minorities. Donald Trump, then president-elect, said at the time that the United States had little interest in Syria and should stay out, and he has previously spoken of removing U.S. troops in the country to fight the Islamic State movement. Since taking office, the Trump administration has said little about Syria but has severely slashed assistance to groups assisting civilians in the war-ravaged country. The United States did not join Britain on Thursday in announcing an easing of Assad-era sanctions on Syria. …

An armed man believed to be traveling from Indiana was shot by U.S. Secret Service agents near the White House after a confrontation early Sunday, according to authorities.  No one else was injured in the shooting that happened around midnight about a block from the White House, according to a Secret Service statement. President Donald Trump was in Florida at the time of the shooting.  The Secret Service received information from local police about an alleged “suicidal individual” who was traveling from Indiana and found the man’s car and a person matching his description nearby.  “As officers approached, the individual brandished a firearm and an armed confrontation ensued, during which shots were fired by our personnel,” the Secret Service said in a statement.  The man was hospitalized. The Secret Service said his condition was “unknown.”  The Metropolitan Police Department will investigate because the shooting involved law enforcement officers. A message left Sunday for the police department wasn’t immediately returned.  …

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration rescinded a waiver on Saturday that had allowed Iraq to pay Iran for electricity, as part of President Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran, a State Department spokesperson said. The decision to let Iraq’s waiver lapse upon its expiration “ensures we do not allow Iran any degree of economic or financial relief,” the spokesperson said, adding that Trump’s campaign on Iran aims “to end its nuclear threat, curtail its ballistic missile program and stop it from supporting terrorist groups.” Trump restored “maximum pressure” on Iran in one of his first acts after returning to office in January. In his first term, he pulled the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal, a multinational agreement to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. The U.S. government has said it wants to isolate Iran from the global economy and eliminate its oil export revenues in order to slow Tehran’s development of a nuclear weapon. Iran denies pursuing nuclear weapons and says its program is peaceful. For Iraq, the end of the waiver “presents temporary operational challenges,” said Farhad Alaaeldin, foreign affairs adviser to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. “The government is actively working on alternatives to sustain electricity supply and mitigate any potential disruptions,” Alaaeldin told Reuters. “Strengthening energy security remains a national priority, and efforts to enhance domestic production, improve grid efficiency and invest in new technologies will continue at full pace.” Washington has imposed a range of sanctions on Tehran over its nuclear program and support for terrorist organizations, effectively banning countries that do business with Iran from doing business with the U.S. “President Trump has been clear that the Iranian Regime must cease its ambitions for a nuclear weapon or face Maximum Pressure,” said national security spokesperson James Hewitt. “We hope the regime will put the interests of its people and the region ahead of its destabilizing policies.” Pressure on Baghdad Trump initially granted waivers to several buyers to meet consumer energy needs when he reimposed sanctions on Iran’s energy exports in 2018, citing its nuclear program and what the U.S. calls its meddling in the Middle East. His administration and that of Joe Biden repeatedly renewed Iraq’s waiver while urging Baghdad to reduce its dependence on Iranian electricity. The State Department spokesperson reiterated that call on Saturday. “We urge the Iraqi government to eliminate its dependence on Iranian sources of energy as soon as … “Trump administration ends Iraq’s waiver to buy Iranian electricity” →

The U.S. government has revived a five-year contract with a private detention center in Texas that was designed to hold migrant families. The multimillion-dollar agreement was in effect for 10 years until 2024. Click here for the full story in Spanish.   …

UNITED NATIONS — Female activists raised their voices at the United Nations on Friday as they marked International Women’s Day amid a global trend of backsliding on hard-won rights. “International Women’s Day is a powerful moment, and this year, more than ever, the call of gender equality has never been more urgent, nor the obstacles in our way more apparent, but our determination has never been more unshakable,” said Sima Bahous, executive director of U.N. Women. Bahous called on women everywhere to confront the backlash, emphasizing that their movement is powerful and growing. “Equality is not to be feared, but instead to be embraced,” she said. “Because an equal world is a better world.” Women in all parts of the world are facing challenges to their reproductive rights, personal safety, education, equal pay and political participation. This year marks the 30th anniversary of a women’s conference in Beijing that recognized women’s rights as human rights, producing an action platform that has helped drive policy and progress. The United Nations says more girls are in school and more women hold positions of power today than before, but they still face violence, discrimination and financial inequality. “We cannot stand by as progress is reversed,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the gathering. “We must fight back.” At the current pace, he said, eradicating extreme poverty for women and girls will take 130 years. “The fight for gender equality is not just about fairness,” Guterres emphasized. “It is about power — who gets a seat at the table and who is locked out.” U.N. goodwill ambassador for Africa Jaha Dukureh endured female genital mutilation (FGM) as an infant. At age 15, she was forced into marriage with a much older man in her homeland, Gambia. Her organization, Safe Hands for Girls, works to end the practice of FGM and address the physical and psychological toll on its victims. Dukureh told the gathering that governments have a duty to invest in social protection and education for women and girls. “For all women and girls, economic independence is the foundation of freedom,” she said. “A woman who can provide for herself can make choices. A girl who has an education can build her own future.” Commission on the Status of Women On Monday, hundreds of women’s advocates and activists will descend upon U.N. headquarters to hold their annual meeting known as the Commission on the Status of … “Women’s rights advocates warn UN to confront backlash against progress” →

NEW YORK — Fast-moving brush fires burned through a large swath of land on New York’s Long Island on Saturday fanned by high winds, spewing gray smoke and prompting the evacuation of a military base and the closure of a major highway.  Officials said three of the four fires were fully contained while the other one, in Westhampton, was 50% contained. Two commercial buildings were partially burned, but officials said homes were not in the line of fire. One firefighter was flown to a hospital to be treated for burns to the face.  “Our biggest problem is the wind,” Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine said. “It is driving this fire.”  New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency and said state agencies were responding to the fires around the Pine Barrens, a wooded area that is home to commuter towns east of New York City.  “This is still out of control at this moment,” Hochul told Long Island TV station News 12.  “We’re seeing people having to be evacuated from the Westhampton area,” she said, adding that more evacuations may be needed.  Hochul said homes, a chemical factory and an Amazon warehouse were at risk.  Videos posted to social media showed flames shooting into the air and columns of black smoke rising above roads.  Air National Guard helicopters dropped water on the flames.  The Town of Southampton issued a warning in the afternoon against starting recreational fires due to the wildfire risk. That came around the time that the videos began appearing.  In a statement, Hochul said the National Guard was providing support by helicopter and working with local law enforcement.  “Public safety is my top priority, and I’m committed to doing everything possible to keep Long Islanders safe,” she said.  In her comments to News 12, Hochul declined to estimate the extent of the flames, saying only that they were growing rapidly.  Rough satellite data indicated that fire and smoke stretched roughly 3 kilometers (2.5 miles) along Sunrise Highway, according to NASA’s Fire Information for Resource Management System.  Police closed a section of the highway, which is a thoroughfare to the East End of Long Island.  The fires raged near the Francis S. Gabreski Airport, from which the National Guard launched at least one helicopter. One of the commercial buildings that partially burned was near the airport.  Personnel at the base evacuated as a precautionary measure starting around … “Wind-driven brush fire in New York 50% contained” →

WASHINGTON — House Republicans unveiled a spending bill Saturday that would keep federal agencies funded through Sept. 30, pushing ahead with a go-it-alone strategy that seems certain to spark a major confrontation with Democrats over the contours of government spending. The 99-page bill would provide a slight boost to defense programs while trimming non-defense programs below 2024 budget year levels. That approach is likely to be a nonstarter for most Democrats who have long insisted that defense and non-defense spending move in the same direction. Congress must act by midnight Friday to avoid a partial government shutdown. Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, is teeing up the bill for a vote on Tuesday despite the lack of buy-in from Democrats, essentially daring them to vote against it and risk a shutdown. He also is betting that Republicans can muscle the legislation through the House largely by themselves. Normally, when it comes to keeping the government fully open for business, Republicans have had to work with Democrats to craft a bipartisan measure that both sides can support. That’s because Republicans almost always lack the votes to pass spending bills on their own. Crucially, the strategy has the backing of President Donald Trump, who has shown an ability so far in his term to hold Republicans in line. Trump praised the bill, writing on X that Republicans have to “remain UNITED — NO DISSENT — Fight for another day when the timing is right.” “Great things are coming for America, and I am asking you all to give us a few months to get us through to September so we can continue to put the Country’s ‘financial house’ in order,” he said. House Republicans’ leadership staff outlined the contours of the measure, saying it would allow for about $892.5 billion in defense spending and about $708 billion in non-defense spending. The defense spending is slightly above the prior year’s level, but the non-defense spending, the aides said, was about $13 billion below last year. The measure also will not include funding requested by individual lawmakers for thousands of community projects around the country, often referred to as earmarks. The bill does not cover the majority of government spending, including programs such as Social Security and Medicare. Funding for those two programs are on auto pilot and are not regularly reviewed by Congress. The top Democrats on the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, Connecticut Representative … “House Republicans unveil spending bill, avoid shutdown” →

TEHRAN, IRAN — Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said he rejects a U.S. push for talks between the two countries because they would be aimed at imposing restrictions on Iranian missile range and its influence in the region. Speaking to a group of officials on Saturday, Khamenei did not identify the United States by name but said a “bullying government” was being persistent in its push for talks. “Their talks are not aimed at solving problems, it is for … let’s talk to impose what we want on the other party that is sitting on the opposite side of the table,” he said. Khamenei’s remarks came a day after President Donald Trump acknowledged sending a letter to Khamenei seeking a new deal with Tehran to restrain its rapidly advancing nuclear program and replace the nuclear deal he withdrew America from during his first term in office. Khamenei said U.S. demands would be military and related to the regional influence of Iran. “They will be about defense capabilities, about international capabilities of the country,” he said. They will urge Iran “not to do things, not to meet some certain people, not to go to a certain place, not to produce some items, your missile range should not be more than a certain distance. Is it possible for anybody to accept these?” Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, said such talks would not address solving problems between Iran and the West. Although Khamenei did not name any person or country, he said the push for talks creates pressure on Iran in public opinion. “It is not negotiation. It is commanding and imposition,” he said. Trump, in comments to reporters in the Oval Office on Friday, did not mention the letter directly. But he made a veiled reference to possible military action, saying, “We have a situation with Iran that, something’s going to happen very soon. Very, very soon.” Trump’s overture comes as Israel and the United States have warned they will never let Iran acquire a nuclear weapon, leading to fears of a military confrontation as Tehran enriches uranium at near-weapons-grade levels — something done only by atomic-armed nations. Tehran has long maintained its program is for peaceful purposes, even as its officials increasingly threaten to pursue the bomb as tensions are high with the U.S. over its sanctions and with Israel as a shaky ceasefire holds in its … “Iran’s top leader rejects talks with US after Trump makes overture” →

NEW DELHI — India said Friday it is working to lower trade barriers with the United States as it tries to reach a bilateral trade deal with Washington this year. The two countries said after a February White House meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that they will try to reach a deal by fall, aiming to increase bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters Friday the objective of the bilateral trade agreement would be “to strengthen and deepen India-U.S. two-way trade in the goods and services sector, increase market access, reduce tariff and nontariff barriers, and deepen supply chain integration between the two countries.” Trump has accused Delhi of imposing unfair trade barriers through high tariffs and has been putting pressure on India to cut duties on U.S. imports. India, for example, imposes tariffs of up to 110% on all car imports. “India charges us massive tariffs. Massive. You cannot even sell anything in India,” Trump said Friday at the White House. “They have agreed. By the way, they want to cut their tariffs way down now because somebody is finally exposing them for what they have done.” There was no immediate comment from Indian officials. Conciliatory approach Analysts say India has adopted a conciliatory approach on tariffs, opting to engage the U.S. in talks as it looks to avoid friction. India already has lowered duties on some imports that will benefit American companies, such as high-end motorcycles and bourbon. “The U.S. is, first of all, India’s largest export market, so we do not want to upset that,” said New Delhi-based trade analyst Biswajit Dhar. “Then there are other considerations at play. There is a sense that the U.S. is a valued strategic partner, so we don’t want trade tensions to upset that equilibrium, also.” While India has been spared tariffs so far from the Trump administration, reciprocal tariffs that Trump has said he will be announcing early next month could affect Indian exports to the U.S. in areas from pharmaceuticals and drugs to auto components. Two-way trade in goods between the countries was more than $129 billion last year, with Indian exports surpassing $87 billion. Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal visited Washington this week to discuss trade issues with American officials, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. During remarks to an Indian television network, Lutnick called … “India says it is working to cut tariffs as it eyes US trade deal” →

NEW YORK — U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration said it had canceled grants and contracts worth about $400 million to Columbia University because of what it described as antisemitic harassment on and near the school’s New York City campus. Friday’s announcement was made in a joint statement by the departments of Justice, Education and Health and Human Services as well as the General Services Administration. The Trump administration declined to specify the grants and contracts affected or its evidence of antisemitic harassment. The announced cuts would come out of what the administration said was more than $5 billion in grants presently committed to Columbia. Much of the funding goes to healthcare and scientific research but Reuters could not verify the figures. The announcement of “immediate” cuts was likely to face legal challenges, with civil rights groups saying the contract cancellations lacked due process and were an unconstitutional punishment for protected speech. Columbia has been at the forefront of a pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel student protest movement that swept across campuses over the last year as Israel’s war in Gaza has raged. The university has said it has worked to combat antisemitism and other prejudice on its campus while fending off accusations from civil rights groups that it is letting the government erode academia’s free speech protections. Columbia protesters, some of whom seized control of an academic building for a few hours in April and set up tent encampments on campus lawns, have demanded the school stop investing in companies that support Israel’s military occupation of Palestinian territories. There have been allegations of antisemitism, Islamophobia and racism in protests and pro-Israel counter-protests. Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a coalition of student groups behind the pro-Palestinian protests, includes Jewish students and groups among its organizers. They say that criticism of Israel is being wrongly conflated with antisemitism. Some Jewish and Israeli students have said the protests are intimidating and disruptive. “Cancelling these taxpayer funds is our strongest signal yet that the federal government is not going to be party to an educational institution like Columbia that does not protect Jewish students and staff,” Leo Terrell, who leads the Justice Department’s antisemitism task force, said in the statement. Wyn Hornbuckle, a Justice Department spokesperson, declined to specify the grants and contracts that were cut. Hornbuckle also declined to describe the government’s evidence of antisemitism at Columbia. Spokespeople for the other three departments did not respond to … “US cancels $400M in funding to Columbia University” →