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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” →

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he was appointing Fox News host Laura Ingraham and Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo to the board of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. In February, weeks after taking office, Trump fired the center’s president, replaced the board of trustees and named himself chairman of the organization. The moves represented a takeover by Trump of a cultural institution that is known for its signature Kennedy Center Honors performances and is home to the National Symphony Orchestra and the Washington National Opera. “This completes our selection,” Trump said on social media after announcing the appointments of Ingraham and Bartiromo. Trump said last month special U.S. envoy Richard Grenell will serve as the interim executive director of the center. Since taking office on Jan. 20, Trump, a Republican, has embarked on a massive government makeover, firing and sidelining hundreds of civil servants and top officials at agencies in his first steps toward downsizing the bureaucracy and installing more loyalists. During his first term in office, Trump declined to attend the annual Kennedy Center Honors, considered the top award for achievement in the arts. In December, at the last show attended by former President Joe Biden, the center’s leaders made clear Trump was welcome to come in the future. Earlier this week, the hit musical Hamilton canceled its run at the center after Trump’s takeover.  …