Category: United States

Ukraine and the United States are set to sign a landmark minerals agreement, marking a significant step toward strengthening economic ties between the two nations. However, security experts tell VOA that concerns persist about the broader implications of the deal.  Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers approved the agreement Wednesday and U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy will visit the White House on Friday to sign it. The deal includes provisions for the co-ownership and management of a post-war reconstruction fund for Ukraine, to which Ukraine will allocate 50% of future revenues from the country’s natural resources. The agreement states that the U.S. will maintain a “long-term financial commitment to the development of a stable and economically prosperous Ukraine.”  The deal makes no direct reference to efforts to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, though, or about future security arrangements for the Eastern European country, apart from a single line: “The Government of the United States of America supports Ukraine’s efforts to obtain security guarantees needed to establish lasting peace.”  While the deal aims to unlock Ukraine’s mineral wealth and bolster its economic recovery, security experts warn it may fall short in addressing Ukraine’s ongoing security challenges amid continued Russian aggression.  American business perspective  Andy Hunder, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine, explained to VOA by telephone that the deal aims to establish a new American-Ukrainian fund, focusing on state-owned enterprises and Ukraine’s rich subsoil resources, including gas, oil, and critical minerals. A representative of American business in Ukraine, Hunder expressed optimism about the agreement’s potential impact: “We’re excited. Professional fund managers can turn these enterprises profitable very quickly. This is a win-win for both Ukrainian and American taxpayers,” he told VOA on Wednesday.  Hunder said the fund could unlock profits rapidly by introducing professional management to Ukraine’s state-owned enterprises, which currently face mismanagement issues.  “Ukraine has the second highest number of state-owned enterprises in the world, many of which are being managed, or some are being mismanaged, by the Ukrainian state. So, I think we get new professional fund managers into these entities, and this is where you could seal profits and turn them around very, very quickly,” he said.   Hunder revealed that discussions about Ukrainian economic potential were high on the agenda between the two countries in 2024, “[s]tarting when Senator Lindsey Graham came in March and May of 2024, and we have looked … “Security experts highlight pros, cons of Ukraine-US minerals deal” →

The United States said Wednesday it is nearing a deal on Ukraine’s lucrative rare earth minerals needed for technology products to compensate Washington for the more than $100 billion worth of munitions it has sent to Kyiv to defend itself against Russia’s three-year war of aggression. “We’re very close to the finish line,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters. In Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at a news conference that the framework of an economic deal is complete, but that U.S. security guarantees for Ukraine that the Kyiv government views as vital have yet to be settled. Zelenskyy is expected to visit Washington on Friday for talks with President Donald Trump, who has long expressed skepticism about continued U.S. military support for Ukraine. In recent weeks, he has refused to say he wants Ukraine to win the war and has initiated talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin without Kyiv’s involvement to settle the conflict that started with Russia’s invasion three years ago this week. Trump said Tuesday of Zelenskyy, “Certainly, it’s okay with me if he’d like to” visit the White House. “He would like to sign [the economic deal] together with me. I understand that. It’s a big deal.” Trump has called Zelenskyy a dictator, without blaming Putin for the invasion. The U.S. leader has said he is particularly peeved that his predecessor, former President Joe Biden, agreed to the Ukraine military assistance without any provision that Ukraine would pay back the cost. Biden led the coalition of Western allies in providing the military aid to fight Russian aggression without sending their own troops to fight alongside Ukrainian forces. Zelenskyy says the U.S. military aid was a grant and not a loan that needed to be repaid. Zelenskyy said he expects to have wide-ranging substantive discussions with Trump. “I want to coordinate with the U.S.,” Zelenskyy said. The Ukrainian leader said he wants to know whether the U.S. plans to halt military aid and, if so, whether Ukraine would be able to purchase weapons directly from the U.S. He also wants to know whether Ukraine can use frozen Russian assets for weapons investments and whether Washington plans to lift its economic sanctions on Russian entities and high-level associates and friends of Putin. Elements of the deal Earlier, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal told the country’s public television channel that Ukraine and the United States had reached … “US, Ukraine near minerals deal, but security issues unsettled” →

Most homebuyers get to know the people who live next door after they move in. But a new real estate app allows future homebuyers to learn a potential neighbor’s political leanings before they make what, for many people, is the biggest purchase of their life. “The purpose of Oyssey [the app] is to democratize data for buyers in their home search experience … to get you, as a prospective buyer, a feel for the area and community,” says Darian Kelly, co-founder of Oyssey. “It’s to get you to the understanding of, when I move here, these are the type of people that I might be inviting over for dinner. The type of people that I will be raising my child alongside.” The Oyssey data is pulled from sources like election results, campaign contributions and information from marketing research firms. The app has only launched in Florida and New York so far, but its founders say they expect to take it nationwide later this year. Realtors subscribe to Oyssey and then give their homebuyer clients access to the service. For the initial launch, the platform breaks down political affiliation block by block, but Kelly says potential homebuyers will eventually be able to look up whether their prospective new neighbor is a registered Democrat or Republican. Ben McCartney, an assistant professor of commerce at the University of Virginia, co-authored a study published in 2024 that found that 1 of every 100 moves is politically motivated, and that the people most likely to relocate for this reason tend to be less involved in politics. “They don’t want politics to be part of their everyday life, but then they get a new neighbor, and that new neighbor is not only very politically vocal, but also affiliated with the opposite party, and there’s where we see the strongest tensions arise,” McCartney says. The study found that current residents are slightly more likely to move away if they get new neighbors with different political views than if the new neighbor is affiliated with the same political party. “So, political polarization isn’t just a social media phenomenon but is affecting real economic decisions, as well,” McCartney says. The study found the numbers of Democrats and Republicans who wanted to move away from neighbors with different political views to be roughly even. That’s why an app like Oyssey makes sense to McCartney. “People do seem to care about … “New app lets homebuyers know about future neighbor’s politics “ →

Ukrainian officials said Wednesday that Russian aerial attacks in the Kyiv and Donetsk regions killed at least seven people.    Donetsk Governor Vadym Filashkin said on Telegram that preliminary information indicates Russian forces used guided bombs to hit the city of Kostyantynivka, killing at least five people and injuring eight others.  In the Kyiv region, Governor Mykola Kalashnyk said Russian attacks killed at least two people and injured two others.  Kalashnyk said on Telegram that the attack also damaged nine houses and four multi-story residential buildings.   The Ukrinform news agency said journalist Tetyana Kulyk was one of those killed. It said a Russian drone struck her house.    Fragments from destroyed drones damaged apartment buildings, a university building, and a theater in the Kharkiv region in eastern Ukraine, the regional governor said Wednesday.     Ukraine’s military said Wednesday it shot down 110 of the 177 drones that Russian forces used in their latest overnight attacks.     Russia’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday its air defenses destroyed 130 Ukrainian drones, more than half of which were shot down over the Krasnodar region located along the Black Sea.     Krasnodar Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said on Telegram that the attacks damaged homes in three districts but did not hurt anyone.     Russian air defenses also shot down drones over Russia-occupied Crimea, the Sea of Azov, the Black Sea and Russia’s Bryansk and Kursk regions, the Defense Ministry said.     Some information for this story was provided by Agence France-Presse and Reuters.  …

PENTAGON — President Donald Trump’s nominee for deputy secretary of defense is warning that China’s military is resolute on surpassing the United States and is calling for a fix to “significant” military shortages at a time when administration leaders are trying to make big budget cuts. “China is incredibly determined, they feel a great sense of urgency, and they’ll be fully dedicated to becoming the strongest nation in the world and having dominance over the United States,” Steve Feinberg told members of the Senate Armed Service Committee on Tuesday.   Feinberg, a businessman and investor, said the U.S. military shortages include “shipbuilding, nuclear modernization, aircraft development, cyber defense, hypersonics, counter space, defending our satellites [and] counter drones.” “We really need to plug these shortages, focus on our priorities, get rid of legacy programs, be very disciplined, while at the same time focusing on the economics. If we do that, given America’s great innovative capability, entrepreneurship, we will defeat China. If we don’t, our very national security is at risk,” Feinberg said. The hearing comes as Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has called on the department to cut 8% — roughly $50 billion — to reinvest in priorities aligned with a “more lethal fighting force.” Senator Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, on Tuesday pushed back against the move saying, “Slashing the defense budget will not create efficiency in our military. It will cripple it.” The concern about cuts to the military has echoed on both sides of the aisle. Republican committee Chairman Roger Wicker told the Breaking Defense news organization last month that he hoped to increase defense spending by as much as $200 billion in coming years. And Republican Senator Dan Sullivan on Tuesday called for prioritizing solutions to shipbuilding to counter threats from China and others. “We’re in the worst crisis in shipbuilding in over 40 years. The Chinese are building a giant navy. It’s already bigger than ours,” he said. China’s military has about 370 warships, according to the Pentagon’s latest China Military Power Report, while the U.S. military has about 300. Feinberg acknowledged that the shipbuilding shortage is “a tough problem” for the military. “Our supply chain is definitely weak. Our workforce needs to be improved. But a big piece of improving our supply chain is working more closely with our private sector. We have companies that can get at where our … “Nominee for No. 2 spot at Pentagon warns China ‘incredibly determined’ to surpass US” →

U.S. consumer confidence plunged in February in its biggest monthly decline in more than four years, a business research group said Tuesday. The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index dropped from 105.3 in January to 98.3 this month, the largest month-to-month decline since August 2021. With U.S. consumer spending accounting for about 70% of the world’s largest economy, the three major stock indexes on Wall Street all fell on news of the report. The tech-heavy NASDAQ dropped by more than a percentage point. The Conference Board said in a statement, “Views of current labor market conditions weakened. Consumers became pessimistic about future business conditions and less optimistic about future income. Pessimism about future employment prospects worsened and reached a 10-month high.” Separately, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent contended Tuesday that the U.S. economy is more fragile under the surface than economic indicators suggest, and he vowed to “reprivatize” growth by cutting government spending and regulation. In his first major economic policy address, Bessent told a group at the Australian Embassy in Washington that interest rate volatility, enduring inflation and reliance on the public sector for job growth have hobbled the American economy, despite general national economic growth and low unemployment. Bessent blamed “prolific overspending” under former President Joe Biden and regulations that have hindered supply-side growth as the main drivers of “sticky inflation.” “The previous administration’s over-reliance on excessive government spending and overbearing regulation left us with an economy that may have exhibited some reasonable metrics but ultimately was brittle underneath,” he said. Bessent said that 95% of all job growth in the past 12 months has been concentrated in public and government-adjacent sectors, such as health care and education, jobs offering slower wage growth and less productivity than private-sector jobs. Meanwhile, he said jobs in manufacturing, metals, mining and information technology all contracted or flatlined over the same period. “The private sector has been in recession,” Bessent said. “Our goal is to reprivatize the economy.” Consumers had appeared increasingly confident heading toward the end of 2024 and spent generously during the holiday season. But U.S. retail sales dropped sharply in January, with unusually cold weather throughout much of the U.S. taking some of the blame. Retail sales fell 0.9% last month from December, the Commerce Department reported last week. The decline, the biggest in a year, came after two months of robust gains. With inflation remaining a concern … “US consumer confidence drops sharply, survey shows” →

WASHINGTON — The United States has expanded an existing visa restriction policy to target Cuban officials believed to be tied to a labor program that sends Cuban workers overseas, particularly health care workers, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday. In a statement, Rubio said the expanded restrictions target individuals and immediate family members of individuals believed to be responsible for the program, which he described as “forced labor.” The U.S. has already imposed restrictions on several people, including some Venezuelans, he added. The Caribbean island nation’s health service generates major export earnings by sending health workers around the world. “Cuba’s labor export programs, which include the medical missions, enrich the Cuban regime, and in the case of Cuba’s overseas medical missions, deprive ordinary Cubans of the medical care they desperately need in their home country,” Rubio said. The Cuban government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The United States and Cuba have had a strained relationship since Fidel Castro took over in a 1959 revolution, and a U.S. trade embargo has been in place for decades. …

For more than 50 years, WHUR has been broadcasting to listeners in the U.S. capital from Howard University, a historically black institution. A commercial station owned by the university, it offers music, news and education opportunities. During Black History Month, VOA’s Cristina Caicedo Smit met the team behind the unique station. …

Washington — The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday threw out the murder conviction and death penalty for Richard Glossip, an Oklahoma man who has steadfastly maintained his innocence and averted multiple attempts by the state to execute him. The justices found that Glossip’s trial violated his constitutional rights. The justices heard arguments in October in a case that produced a rare alliance in which lawyers for Glossip and the state argued that the high court should overturn Glossip’s conviction and death sentence because he did not get a fair trial. The victim’s relatives had told the high court that they want to see Glossip executed. Oklahoma’s top criminal appeals court had repeatedly upheld the conviction and sentence, even after the state sided with Glossip. Glossip was convicted and sentenced to death in the 1997 killing in Oklahoma City of his former boss, motel owner Barry Van Treese, in what prosecutors have alleged was a murder-for-hire scheme. Glossip has always maintained his innocence. Another man, Justin Sneed, admitted robbing Van Treese and beating him to death with a baseball bat but testified he only did so after Glossip promised to pay him $10,000. Sneed received a life sentence in exchange for his testimony and was the key witness against Glossip. …

U.S. President Donald Trump plans to send 30,000 undocumented migrants to Guantanamo Bay, the U.S. naval base in Cuba. While it is most well known for housing terror suspects after 9/11 — and for drawing condemnation from human rights groups — Guantanamo has been occasionally used as a processing center for immigrants trying to reach the U.S., mostly from Haiti and Cuba. Although Guantanamo’s Migrant Operations Center is separate from the high-security jail, that doesn’t mean it has escaped scrutiny. …

The Trump administration has proposed punitive new fees on international shipping that would target vessels owned by Chinese companies or manufactured in Chinese shipyards, promising to dramatically alter the economics of global trade. The new policy would charge Chinese-owned cargo ships, as well as third-country flagged vessels built in China, $1 million or more per port-of-call in the U.S. Large container ships often make multiple stops when delivering goods to the U.S., and would face new fees at each port. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) published the proposal Friday, tying it to an investigation into allegations by several U.S. labor unions that China has unfairly distorted the international shipbuilding industry. The investigation, conducted under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, determined that the Chinese government has pursued a policy of subsidizing its domestic shipbuilding industry with the aim of “targeting for dominance” the global market. Growing market share The investigation pointed out that over the past 25 years, China’s share of the global shipbuilding industry has exploded. China accounted for about 5% of the total tonnage of ships manufactured in 1999. By 2023, the Chinese share of the market surpassed 50%. The USTR found that Chinese policy “burdens or restricts U.S. commerce by undercutting business opportunities for and investments in the U.S. maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors; restricting competition and choice; creating economic security risks from dependence and vulnerabilities in sectors critical to the functioning of the U.S. economy; and undermining supply chain resilience.” The results of the investigation, which began during President Joe Biden’s administration, were announced last month. The proposal is open for public comment until March 24, at which point the administration will determine whether or not to implement it. Chinese reaction On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian sharply criticized the U.S. move. “[T]o serve its political agenda at home, the U.S. has abused Section 301 investigation[s], which seriously violated WTO [World Trade Organization] rules and further undermined the multilateral trading system,” he said. “We call on the U.S. side to respect facts and multilateral rules and immediately stop its wrongdoings.” The China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry (CANSI) and China Shipowner Association had previously blasted the USTR investigation as being “conclusions full of lies and distortion of facts.” In a statement issued when the results of the investigation were released, CANSI said, “Development of China’s shipbuilding industry strictly … “Trump administration proposes steep fees on Chinese cargo ships” →

Washington — The United States has started sending more migrants deemed by officials to be “high threat” criminal aliens to the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, just days after emptying out the base’s migrant facilities. A U.S. defense official confirmed to VOA that a C-130 military cargo plane carrying migrants left Fort Bliss in Texas and arrived at Guantanamo Bay on Sunday. A second defense official said all 17 migrants were assessed to be “high threat” and are being held at the base’s detention facility. Both officials spoke to VOA on the condition of anonymity to discuss the deportation operations. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which is spearheading the U.S. deportation efforts, along with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), has not yet responded to questions about the identities of the latest round of detainees sent to Guantanamo Bay, their countries of origin, or the crimes with which they are charged. The latest flight carrying migrants to Guantanamo Bay comes as U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is set to visit the base Tuesday to review the military’s efforts to support the mass deportations ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump. Hegseth, according to a Pentagon statement, “will receive briefings on all mission operations at the base, including at the Migrant Operations Center and the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility.” “The Secretary’s trip underscores the Department’s commitment to ensuring the security and operational effectiveness of Guantanamo Bay Naval Station,” the statement added. ICE announced last Thursday that it had transported 177 migrants being held at Guantanamo Bay to Honduras, where they were to be picked up by the Venezuelan government. U.S. officials had previously said that more than 120 of those detainees were dangerous criminals, including members of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan street gang designated by the U.S. as a foreign terrorist organization. The approximately 50 other individuals who were deported Thursday had been held at the base’s migrant facility, designed to hold nonviolent individuals. Earlier this month, the commander of U.S. Southern Command, which oversees operations at the naval base at Guantanamo Bay, told lawmakers that the base’s migrant facility had the capacity to hold about 2,500 nonviolent detainees. Efforts are under way to allow it to house as many as 30,000 nonviolent migrants slated for deportation. The American Civil Liberties Union, along with several immigration rights groups, earlier this month filed a lawsuit against DHS, alleging the detainees held … “US again sends ‘high threat’ migrants to Guantanamo Bay” →

WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Monday denied a request by the Associated Press to restore full access for the news agency’s journalists after President Donald Trump’s administration barred them for continuing to refer to the Gulf of Mexico in coverage.  U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden, a Trump appointee, declined to immediately grant the AP’s request for a temporary injunction restoring its access to the Oval Office and Air Force One during a hearing in Washington federal court.  The AP sued three senior Trump aides on Friday, arguing that the decision to block its reporters from those locations violates the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment protections against government abridgment of speech by trying to dictate the language they use in reporting the news.  Lawyers for the Trump administration argued in a court filing before the hearing that the AP does not have a constitutional right to what it called “special media access to the president.”  White House Communications Director Steven Cheung in an earlier statement had called the AP lawsuit a “blatant PR stunt.” During an appearance last week at the Conservative Political Action Conference, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also said, “We feel we are in the right in this position.”  Leavitt is one of the three White House officials named as defendants in the lawsuit. The other two, Chief of Staff Susan Wiles and Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich, have not responded to requests for comment.  Trump signed an executive order last month directing the U.S. Interior Department to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.  The AP said in January it would continue to use the gulf’s long-established name in stories while also acknowledging Trump’s efforts to change it.  The White House banned AP reporters in response. The ban prevents the AP’s journalists from seeing and hearing Trump and other top White House officials as they take newsworthy actions or respond in real time to news events.  The White House Correspondents’ Association said in a legal brief backing the AP in the case that the ban “will chill and distort news coverage of the president to the public’s detriment.” Reuters released a statement in support of the AP. …

BELVEDERE, CALIFORNIA — Clint Hill, the Secret Service agent who leaped onto the back of President John F. Kennedy’s limousine after the president was shot, then was forced to retire early because he remained haunted by memories of the assassination, has died. He was 93.  Hill died Friday at his home in Belvedere, California, according to his publisher, Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. A cause of death was not given.  Although few may recognize his name, the footage of Hill, captured on Abraham Zapruder’s chilling home movie of the assassination, provided some of the most indelible images of Kennedy’s assassination in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963.  Hill received Secret Service awards and was promoted for his actions that day, but for decades blamed himself for Kennedy’s death, saying he didn’t react quickly enough and would gladly have given his life to save the president.  “If I had reacted just a little bit quicker. And I could have, I guess,” a weeping Hill told Mike Wallace on CBS’ 60 Minutes in 1975, shortly after he retired at age 43 at the urging of his doctors. “And I’ll live with that to my grave.”  It was only in recent years that Hill said he was able to finally start putting the assassination behind him and accept what happened.  On the day of the assassination, Hill was assigned to protect first lady Jacqueline Kennedy and was riding on the left running board of the follow-up car directly behind the presidential limousine as it made its way through Dealey Plaza.  Hill told the Warren Commission that he reacted after hearing a shot and seeing the president slump in his seat. The president was struck by a fatal headshot before Hill was able to make it to the limousine.  Zapruder’s film captured Hill as he leaped from the Secret Service car, grabbed a handle on the limousine’s trunk and pulled himself onto it as the driver accelerated. He forced Mrs. Kennedy, who had crawled onto the trunk, back into her seat as the limousine sped off.  Hill later became the agent in charge of the White House protective detail and eventually an assistant director of the Secret Service, retiring because of what he characterized as deep depression and recurring memories of the assassination.  The 1993 Clint Eastwood thriller In the Line of Fire, about a former Secret Service agent scarred by the JFK … “Clint Hill, agent who leaped onto JFK’s car after president was shot, dies at 93” →

President Donald Trump pledged last week to impose an additional 25% tariff on U.S.-bound imports of cars, semiconductors and medical products, possibly after April – a move that experts believe could significantly affect Taiwan. TSMC, which is based in Taiwan and the world’s largest contract chipmaker, may suffer the most as 60% of its revenues are believed to be generated in the U.S. Click here for the full story in Mandarin.  …

NEW YORK — Roberta Flack, the Grammy-winning singer and pianist whose intimate vocal and musical style on Killing Me Softly with His Song, The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face and other hits made her one of the top recording artists of the 1970s and an influential performer long after, died Monday. She was 88.  She died at home surrounded by her family, publicist Elaine Schock said in a statement. Flack announced in 2022 she had ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, and could no longer sing,  Little known before her early 30s, Flack became an overnight star after Clint Eastwood used The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face as the soundtrack for one of cinema’s more memorable and explicit love scenes, between the actor and Donna Mills in his 1971 film Play Misty for Me. The hushed, hymn-like ballad, with Flack’s graceful soprano afloat on a bed of soft strings and piano, topped the Billboard pop chart in 1972 and received a Grammy for record of the year. In 1973, she matched both achievements with Killing Me Softly, becoming the first artist to win consecutive Grammys for best record.  She was a classically trained pianist discovered in the late 1960s by jazz musician Les McCann, who later wrote that “her voice touched, tapped, trapped, and kicked every emotion I’ve ever known.” Versatile enough to summon the up-tempo gospel passion of Aretha Franklin, Flack often favored a more reflective and measured approach.  For Flack’s many admirers, she was a sophisticated and bold new presence in the music world and in the social movements of the time, her friends including the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Angela Davis, whom Flack visited in prison while Davis faced charges — for which she was acquitted — for murder and kidnapping. Flack sang at the funeral of Jackie Robinson, major league baseball’s first Black player, and was among the many guest performers on the feminist children’s entertainment project created by Marlo Thomas, Free to Be … You and Me. …

U.S. tech giant Apple has announced plans to create some 20,000 jobs and invest $500 billion over the next four years in the United States.  Apple says it will expand teams and facilities in nine states across the country and that it aims to open a 23,200-square-meter server manufacturing facility in Texas in 2026.  The announcement comes just days after Apple CEO Tim Cook met with U.S. President Donald Trump.  “We are bullish on the future of American innovation, and we’re proud to build on our long-standing U.S. investments with this $500 billion commitment to our country’s future,” Cook said on the investment.  “From doubling our Advanced Manufacturing Fund, to building advanced technology in Texas, we’re thrilled to expand our support for American manufacturing. And we’ll keep working with people and companies across this country to help write an extraordinary new chapter in the history of American innovation,” he added in a company statement.  Trump thanked Cook and Apple for the investment on Monday morning on the social media platform Truth Social.  “Apple has just announced a record $500 billion investment in the United States of America. The reason, faith in what we are doing, without which, they wouldn’t be investing 10 cents,” Trump said.  Most of Apple’s consumer goods are currently assembled and produced overseas. Many of them, assembled in China, are liable to 10% tariffs imposed by Trump earlier in February.  To reduce its reliance on international supply chains, Apple announced in January that it had begun mass producing its own chips at an Arizona factory owned by TSMC, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company.  The TSMC Arizona factory, along with legislation aimed at increasing U.S. semiconductor production, were two of Trump’s largest industrial policy moves during his first term.  In a release on its website, Apple said the $500 billion commitment includes the company’s work with thousands of suppliers across all 50 states, direct employment, Apple Intelligence infrastructure and data centers, corporate facilities, and Apple TV+ production in 20 states.   Apple said it is also set to open a manufacturing academy in Michigan, offering training led by engineers and local university staff to support mid-sized manufacturing firms in areas like project management and manufacturing processes.   …

Washington — The United States imposed sanctions on more than 30 people and vessels for their role in selling and transporting Iranian petroleum-related products as part of Tehran’s “shadow fleet,” the Treasury Department said.  The sanctions target oil brokers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Hong Kong, tanker operators and mangers in India and China, the head of Iran’s National Iranian Oil Company, and the Iranian Oil Terminals Company, Treasury said.  It said the vessels sanctioned ship tens of millions of barrels of crude oil valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars, the department said in a statement.  “Iran continues to rely on a shadowy network of vessels, shippers, and brokers to facilitate its oil sales and fund its destabilizing activities,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.   The sanctions build on those imposed by the Biden administration.   Such sanctions target key sectors of Iran’s economy with the aim of denying the government funds for its nuclear and missile programs. The move generally prohibits any U.S. individuals or entities from doing any business with the targets and freezes any U.S.-held assets. …

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said in a post on social media Sunday that Dan Bongino, a conservative talk show host, will be deputy director of the FBI. Bongino will join Kash Patel, who was recently confirmed by the Senate as director of the FBI. Trump said Bongino was named to the role by Patel. The position does not require Senate confirmation. “Great news for Law Enforcement and American Justice!” Trump posted on his social media network, Truth Social, calling Bongino “a man of incredible love and passion for our Country.” Bongino was previously a New York City police officer, and a member of the U.S. Secret Service. He most recently had been known as a conservative radio host and podcaster. Trump said in his post that Bongino is “prepared to give up” his program as he steps into the new role. “The Dan Bongino Show” was most recently the 56th-ranked podcast in the United States, according to Spotify. …

The papal thriller “Conclave” won best ensemble and Timothée Chalamet took best actor at the 31st Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday, a pair of twists that added a few final wrinkles to an unusually unpredictable awards season. In winning the guild’s top award, Edward Berger’s Vatican-set drama triumphed just as the Catholic Church was praying for the health of Pope Francis, who remained in critical condition Sunday after an asthmatic respiratory crisis. “Conclave” dramatizes the fictional election of a new pope. Earlier in the evening onstage, Isabella Rossellini shared the cast’s best wishes for Pope Francis. All the momentum going into the SAG Awards was with Sean Baker’s “Anora,” which had won with the producers, directors and writers guilds. Now, with “Conclave” winning with the actors and at the BAFTAs, what will nab best picture in a week’s time at the Academy Awards is, again, anyone’s guess. “Wow,” said “Conclave” star Ralph Fiennes taking the stage. “I’ve not been elected to speak. I’ve been designated to speak on behalf of our conclave, our ensemble.” That wasn’t the only surprise in the ceremony held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles and streamed lived by Netflix. Chalamet’s best actor win upset “The Brutalist” star Adrien Brody and put the 29-year-old on course to possibly win his first Academy Award. Chalamet looked visibly surprised when his name was announced at the ceremony. But once he reached the staged, the “A Complete Unknown” star spoke with composure and confidence. “The truth is, this was 5 ½ years of my life,” said Chalamet. “I poured everything I had into playing this incomparable artist, Mr. Bob Dylan, a true American hero. It was the honor of a lifetime playing him.” He then added: “The truth is, I’m really in pursuit of greatness. I know people don’t usually talk like that, but I want to be one of the greats.” The other Oscar favorites — Demi Moore, Zoe Saldaña and Kieran Culkin — all won. The SAG Awards are closely watched as an Oscar preview. Their picks don’t always align exactly with those of the film academy, but they often nearly do. The last three best ensemble winners — “Oppenheimer,” “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and “CODA” — all went on to win best picture at the Oscars. All but one of the SAG acting winners of the last three years has also won the … “‘Conclave’ triumphs at SAG Awards and Timothée Chalamet wins best actor, upending Oscar predictions” →

Los Angeles — Former Vice President Kamala Harris stepped on the NAACP Image Awards stage Saturday night with a sobering message, calling the civil rights organization a pillar of the Black community and urging people to stay resilient and hold onto their faith during the tenure of President Donald Trump. “While we have no illusions about what we are up against in this chapter in our American story, this chapter will be written not simply by whoever occupies the oval office nor by the wealthiest among us,” Harris said after receiving the NAACP’s Chairman’s Award. “The American story will be written by you. Written by us. By we the people.” The 56th annual Image Awards was held at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in the Los Angeles area. Harris, defeated by Trump in last year’s presidential election, was the first woman and the first person of color to serve as vice president. She had previously been a U.S. senator from California and the state’s attorney general. In her first major public appearance since leaving office, Harris did not reference her election loss or Trump’s actions since entering the Oval Office, although Trump mocked her earlier in the day at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Harris spoke about eternal vigilance, the price of liberty, staying alert, seeking the truth and America’s future. “Some see the flames on our horizons, the rising waters in our cities, the shadows gathering over our democracy and ask ‘What do we do now?’” Harris said. “But we know exactly what to do, because we have done it before. And we will do it again. We use our power. We organize, mobilize. We educate. We advocate. Our power has never come from having an easy path.” Other winners of the Chairman’s prize have included former President Barack Obama, the late Rep. John Lewis and the late actor Ruby Dee. NAACP Hall of Fame Harris was honored during the ceremony along with the Wayans family. The family was inducted into the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame in recognition of pioneering contributions to film, TV, sketch and stand-up comedy that have shaped Hollywood for decades. Keenen Ivory Wayans, Damon Wayans Sr., Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Kim Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr. each were recognized. Marlon Wayans, whose guest appearance on Peacock’s “Bel-Air” was up for an NAACP award, shared how Keenen Ivory Wayans sparked the family’s rise. “He raised us … “Kamala Harris receives prestigious Chairman’s prize at NAACP Image Awards” →

Sacramento, California — California Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked Congress to approve nearly $40 billion in aid to help the Los Angeles area recover from January’s devastating wildfires, which he said could become the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. Newsom sent a letter Friday asking for support from lawmakers including House Speaker Mike Johnson and Rep. Tom Cole, the House Appropriations Committee chair. “Los Angeles is one of the most economically productive places on the globe, but it can only rebound and flourish with support from the federal government as it recovers from this unprecedented disaster,” Newsom wrote. The total economic losses from the firestorm have been estimated to surpass $250 billion — with real estate losses from the Palisades and Eaton fires predicted to potentially top $30 billion, according to a Los Angeles Times analysis. More than 16,200 structures were destroyed as flames ripped through Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Pasadena and Altadena. Newsom vowed that the funding would be used to rebuild homes, infrastructure, businesses, schools, churches and health care facilities, while supporting the needs of people affected by the devastation. “Make no mistake, Los Angeles will use this money wisely,” Newsom wrote. His largest request is for an additional $16.8 billion from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, mostly intended for the rebuilding of property and infrastructure, with $5 billion earmarked for debris cleanup. Newsom also asked for $9.9 billion from the Department of Housing and Urban Development for grants to fire victims, homeowners, businesses and renters, as well as $5.29 billion from the Small Business Administration for homeowner and business loans. Newsom thanked President Donald Trump for support for fast-tracking debris removal. The letter did not mention recent threats by the Trump administration that federal aid could come with strings attached. “We are eternally grateful,” Newsom said. Trump has been a frequent critic of Newsom and California’s water policies. Ric Grenell, a Trump ally serving as his envoy for special missions, said Friday that “there will be conditions” to any federal aid for the state. He said one of the possible conditions being discussed was defunding the California Coastal Commission, which regulates coastal development and protects public beach access. Trump has criticized the agency as overly restrictive, bureaucratic and a hindrance to timely rebuilding efforts. …

Washington — The Trump administration said Sunday that it was placing all but a fraction of staffers at the U.S. Agency for International Development on leave worldwide and eliminating 2,000 U.S.-based staff positions. The move was the latest and one of the biggest steps yet toward what President Donald Trump and cost-cutting ally Elon Musk say is their goal of gutting the six-decade-old aid and development agency in a broader campaign to slash the size of the federal government. The move comes after a federal judge on Friday allowed the administration to move forward with its plan to pull thousands of USAID staffers off the job in the United States and around the world. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols rejected pleas in a lawsuit from employees to keep temporarily blocking the government’s plan. “As of 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, February 23, 2025, all USAID direct hire personnel, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and/or specially designated programs, will be placed on administrative leave globally,” according to the notices sent to USAID workers that were viewed by The Associated Press. At the same time, the agency said it was beginning a reduction in force that would eliminate 2,000 U.S.-based staffers. That means many of the Washington-based staffers who are being placed on leave would soon have their positions eliminated. The Trump appointee running USAID, deputy administrator Pete Marocco, has indicated he plans to keep about 600 mostly U.S.-based staffers on the job in the meantime, in part to arrange travel for USAID staffers and families abroad. USAID and the State Department did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. The move escalates a monthlong push to dismantle the agency, which has included closing its headquarters in Washington and shutting down thousands of aid and development programs worldwide following an effort to freeze all foreign assistance. Trump and Musk contend that USAID’s work is wasteful and furthers a liberal agenda. Lawsuits by government workers’ unions, USAID contractors and others say the administration lacks the constitutional authority to eliminate an independent agency or congressionally funded programs without lawmakers’ approval. The Trump administration efforts upend decades of U.S. policy that aid and development work overseas serves national security by stabilizing regions and economies and building alliances, a critical tool of U.S. “soft power” for winning influence abroad. The notices of firings and leaves come on top of hundreds … “Trump administration fires 2,000 USAID workers, puts thousands of others on leave” →

Linda Facci has a unique and charming job. Using just a few tools and a lot of felt, she makes hyper realistic sculptures that, if they weren’t so small, it would be hard to tell them apart from the real thing.  Anna Nelson met up with Facci to talk about her art. Anna Rice narrates her story. (Videographer: Vladimir Badikov, Natalia Latukhina ) …

Washington — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth insists President Donald Trump ‘s abrupt firing of the nation’s senior military officer amid a wave of dismissals at the Pentagon wasn’t unusual and he suggested more firings could come. “Nothing about this is unprecedented,” Hegseth told “Fox News Sunday” about Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr. being removed Friday night as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “The president deserves to pick his key national security advisory team.” Hegseth said “there are lots of presidents who made changes” citing former commanders in chief, including Franklin D. Roosevelt, George H.W. Bush and Barack Obama. Obama, Hegseth said, “fired or dismissed hundreds” of military officials. Months into his first term, Obama removed Army Gen. David McKiernan from being commander of the U.S. forces in Afghanistan. However, Trump, while running for his second term, vowed to eradicate “woke” ideologies from the military and to swiftly dismiss many top leaders. Hegseth and Trump have made no secret about focusing on pushing aside military officers who have supported diversity, equity and inclusion in the ranks. The administration says the move will better fortify a lethal fighting force. Brown was just the second Black general to serve as chairman. His 16 months in the post were consumed with the war in Ukraine and the expanded conflict in the Middle East. Trump in 2020 nominated Brown as Air Force’s chief of staff. Trump wants to replace Brown with Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine, who retired in December. It is unclear what recalling Caine to active-duty service will require. The position requires Caine to be confirmed by the Senate. Hegseth said Friday’s dismissals affected six three- and four-star generals and were “a reflection of the president wanting the right people around him to execute the national security approach we want to take.” He called Brown “honorable” but said he is “not the right man for the moment,” without citing specific deficiencies. After the 2020 murder of George Floyd, Brown in a video spoke of his experience as a Black pilot, apparently making him fodder for the Trump administration’s wars against inclusion initiatives in the military. Of Caine, Hegseth said that Trump “respects leaders who untie the hands of war fighters in a very dangerous world.” Retired Gen. George Casey called the firings “extremely destabilizing.” Casey, who was Republican President George W. Bush’s commander of the U.S. and multinational forces … “Hegseth defends Trump’s firings of Pentagon leaders, says more may be to come” →

New York City Mayor Eric Adams is facing mounting legal and political pressure over bribery and campaign finance charges. Aron Ranen reports from the Big Apple. …