President Trump commutes sentence of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, pardons others
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has gone on a clemency blitz, commuting the 14-year prison sentence of former Illinois Gov.
Congressman pushing to remove restrictions on churches talking politics
WASHINGTON – A Georgia congressman wants to remove a restriction on churches that don’t allow pastors to talk politics and prayer.For Rep.
President Trump pardons former 49ers owner convicted in gambling fraud scandal
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has pardoned Edward DeBartolo Jr., the former San Francisco 49ers owner convicted in a gambling fraud scandal.DeBartolo Jr., who built the San Francisco 49ers' 1980s-'90s dynasty, was involved in one of the biggest owners' scandals in the sport's history.
President Trump calls for 'badly tainted' case against Roger Stone to be thrown out
WASHINGTON — Hours before a court session regarding his longtime ally Roger Stone, President Donald Trump is tweeting that Stone's recent conviction for witness tampering and lying to Congress “should be thrown out.”The barrage of Tuesday morning tweets comes days after President Trump earned a public rebuke from his own attorney general, William Barr, who had said the president's tweets were “making it impossible” for Barr to do his job.President Trump tweeted Fox News commentator Andrew Napolitano's comment that the jury appears to have been biased against President Trump and calling out Judge Amy Berman Jackson by name, saying “almost any judge in the country” would throw out the conviction.President Trump added in a subsequent tweet. “Everything having to do with this fraudulent investigation is badly tainted and, in my opinion, should be thrown out.”Stone was convicted in November of a seven-count indictment that accused him of lying to Congress, tampering with a witness and obstructing the House investigation into whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia to tip the 2016 election.
Rain postpones running of Daytona 500 to 3 p.m. CST Monday
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The Daytona 500 was delayed by rain for the second time, Sunday, Feb. 16 -- dampening NASCAR's season opener that started with a visit from President Donald Trump.
President Trump looks to rev up his base at Daytona 500
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is out to rev up his appeal with a key voting demographic — NASCAR fans — as he takes in the Daytona 500 on Sunday.NASCAR drivers may veer to the left during their trip around the oval racetrack, but their fans lean right, which helps explain the regularity with which GOP presidents have made their way to the track.President Trump will be the second sitting president to attend the Daytona 500, after George W.
Daytona 500 purse in high gear, topping $23 million
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — NASCAR will dole out a record $23.6 million to the 40 drivers racing in the Daytona 500.
Official says US, Taliban reach Afghanistan truce agreement
MUNICH — The United States and the Taliban have reached agreement on a temporary truce that will take effect in the coming days and, if successfully completed, will lead to a formal cease-fire, the start of peace negotiations between all Afghan sides next month and the ultimate withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, a senior U.S. official said Friday.The official said the agreement for a seven-day “reduction in violence” is “very specific” and covers the entire country, including Afghan government forces.
US Attorney General Barr: President Trump's tweets on cases make it 'impossible' to do job
WASHINGTON — Attorney General William Barr took a public swipe at President Donald Trump on Thursday, saying that the president’s tweets about Justice Department prosecutors and cases “make it impossible for me to do my job.”Barr made the comment during an interview with ABC News just days after his Justice Department overruled its own prosecutors — who had recommended in a court filing that President Trump’s longtime ally and confidant Roger Stone be sentenced to 7 to 9 years in prison — and took the extraordinary step of lowering the amount of prison time it would seek.
President Trump to transfer $3.8 billion from military to fund border wall
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is transferring $3.8 billion in recently passed military funding to finance the construction of the president's long-sought U.S.-Mexico border wall, angering not just Democrats but also GOP defense hawks.Thursday's move by the Pentagon would transfer money from National Guard units, aircraft procurement and shipbuilding to anti-drug accounts that can finance the construction of the new wall.The maneuver, announced in “reprogramming” documents provided to lawmakers, came in for harsh criticism by Rep.
President Trump bringing back trusted aide Hope Hicks to White House
WASHINGTON — Hope Hicks, one of President Donald Trump's most trusted and longest-serving aides, is returning to the White House as the president works to surround himself with loyalists as his reelection campaign moves into high gear.Hicks, who was one of President Trump's original 2016 campaign staffers, moved with him to Washington after he won and had been serving as White House communications director before she left in 2018.
US Attorney General William Barr agrees to testify as Democrats question his leadership
WASHINGTON — Attorney General William Barr has agreed to testify before the House Judiciary Committee next month, appearing for the first time before the panel as questions swirl about whether he intervened in the case of a longtime ally of President Donald Trump.House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., released a letter Wednesday to Barr “to confirm your agreement to testify” on March 31.
US working on trade deal with Ecuador, President Trump says
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he's working on a trade deal with Ecuador's President Lenin Moreno, who became the first chief of state from the small South American nation in 17 years to meet with an American president in Washington.“They have incredible product," President Trump said about Ecuador's exports. "They grow it and they make it and we like it — and they need our product."“We are working on great deals.
President Trump signs bill into law supporting veterans in STEM careers
WASHINGTON (Nexstar) – A new law designed to help veterans get back on their feet and into careers in science, technology, engineering and math – or STEM for short – was signed into law by the president.“One of the hardest things that veterans face when they come out of military service is finding a job where they can raise their families,” Sen.
Over 100 US troops have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries following Iran strike
AIN ASSAD AIR BASE, Iraq -- Over 100 U.S. service members have been diagnosed with mild traumatic brain injuries in the wake of the Jan. 8 Iranian missile attack on the al Asad military base in Iraq, according to a U.S. official with knowledge of the latest information.That's an increase of at least 36 cases from the end of January when the Pentagon said 64 service members had been diagnosed with injuries.The Pentagon and President Donald Trump had initially said no service members were injured or killed in the Iranian missile attack, which was retaliation for the Jan. 2 U.S. drone strike that killed a top Iranian general.Several Pentagon officials told CNN in January that the number of diagnosed cases is likely to continue to change.
Man carrying knife arrested outside White House after threat to 'assassinate' President Trump
WASHINGTON — A man carrying a knife was arrested outside the White House after he told a U.S. Secret Service officer that he was there to kill the president, police said.Roger Hedgpeth, 25, was arrested Saturday afternoon on a charge of making threats to do bodily harm, the Metropolitan Police Department said.Hedgpeth approached a Secret Service officer who was patrolling outside the White House and said he was there to “assassinate” President Donald Trump and “I have a knife to do it with,” according to a police report obtained by The Associated Press.Police found a 3 1/2-inch knife in a sheath on his left hip, and Hedgpeth also had an empty pistol holster on his right hip, authorities said.Hedgpeth was taken into custody and brought to a hospital for a mental health evaluation, police said.
Democrats clash over electability in struggle to oust President Trump
MANCHESTER, N.H. — With urgency rising in their presidential nomination fight, the Democrats’ top presidential contenders clashed over experience and electability in a fiery debate Friday night that tested the strength of a new front-runner, former Midwestern mayor Pete Buttigieg, and struggling former Vice President Joe Biden.Biden, on the offensive throughout the high-stakes face-off, predicted he would “take a hit” in New Hampshire’s next-up primary election after a weak showing in Iowa.
President Trump ousts officials who testified on impeachment
WASHINGTON — Exacting swift punishment against those who crossed him, an emboldened President Donald Trump on Friday ousted two government officials who had delivered damaging testimony against him during his impeachment hearings.
GOP opens Milwaukee campaign office to 'pursue every vote;' some in community question motive
MILWAUKEE -- Senator Ron Johnson was in Milwaukee Thursday, Feb. 6 to help open a Republican Party campaign office in a neighborhood not used to seeing one -- the city's Bronzeville neighborhood.