US politics

US politics

A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked US sanctions against Francesca Albanese, a UN expert on the Palestinian territories, finding that the Trump administration likely violated her free speech rights by imposing the measures after she criticized US ally Israel's war on Gaza. The sanctions barred her from entering the US and banking there. Albanese, an Italian lawyer who is UN special rapporteur on the Israel-occupied Palestinian territories, recommended the international criminal court pursue war crimes prosecutions against Israeli and US nationals.

We want a good relationship with the United States government. What are our limits? The defence of sovereignty and respect for the Mexican people and their dignity.

The viral footage showed McConnell attempting to conclude a Senate hearing, thanking those who'd attended, before a staffer approached him, placing a hand on his shoulder and quietly informing him: Baldwin, Shaheen, and Kennedy still have questions. McConnell then shifted course, telling the room: Yeah, obviously there's not a whole lot of time for a second round, so we'll get through everybody and Senator Murkowski, I'd appreciate your taking over.

A former girlfriend of Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) has accused him of offering a $5,000 hush money payment, the accusation dropping just days before Massie's May 19 primary in Kentucky. Axios' Marc Caputo and Kate Santaliz spoke with Cynthia West's about her new accusations against Massie, which the congressman's campaign dismissed as a last-minute dirty trick in the campaign.

Well, I don't think the president said that. I think that's a misrepresentation of what the president said, but look, I agree with the president that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon, Vance replied, adding: We're obviously engaged in a very aggressive and very engaged diplomatic process to try to ensure that that doesn't happen. And the President has a lot of options, as he said repeatedly. There are options diplomatically, there are options on the military side.

A poll from the Pew Research Center published Monday asked more than 5,000 Americans whether they considered specific issues a “very big problem” for the country. When asked about the federal deficit, 66% of Democrats and 62% of Republicans agreed, a more aligned view than Americans had on healthcare costs, inflation, or jobs.

The US Department of Defense released 162 files on unidentified flying objects (UFOs), following an order from President Donald Trump. The files included documents from the FBI, NASA, and the US State Department. As conspiracy theories soar all over the internet, what's really in the files, and how significant is the release?

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche warned reporters to expect subpoenas on Tuesday, one day after The Wall Street Journal reported that it had been subpoenaed in connection with criminal investigations launched by the Department of Justice. President [Donald] Trump privately complained to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche about media leaks in the wake of the Iran war last month, according to administration officials familiar with the matter, prompting an aggressive push at the Justice Department to pursue those investigations, reported the Journal.

A super PAC dedicated to reelecting Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine recently put nearly $2 million behind television and YouTube ads attacking likely Democratic candidate Graham Platner. The spots, which began airing more than a month before the June 9 Democratic primary, focus exclusively on decade-old personal social-media posts and a tattoo Platner got as a young man and has since covered up. There is no discussion of policy, voting records, or Platner's platform as a Marine veteran running as a working-class populist. Instead, the ads-focused on the theme "Who Is The Real Graham Platner?"-center entirely on personal attacks, financed largely by out-of-state billionaires and Republican-aligned "dark money" groups seeking to preserve Collins's seat and the GOP Senate majority.

As Hegseth gave his opening statement, a woman suddenly stood up behind him and began shouting. The nearest security guard quickly approached her as she continued shouting. In response, Hegseth simply stopped reading his statement and continued looking forward. He did not turn around to see the commotion. The woman was then escorted out of the chamber.

The Trump administration is seeking to use eminent domain to take about 14 acres of land from the Catholic Church in Dona Ana County, New Mexico. Officials suggest that just compensation for the land is $183,071, according to the legal complaint.

Somebody told me there was something floating around on the internet about me accusing President Obama of stealing $120 million or something. I didn't say that. I don't know the basis of it, added the Louisiana Republican, who is a close ally of Trump.

“Well, first of all, this is a temporary energy shock,” Hassett insisted. “And that’s very clearly in the data. And so, the history of this is that people at the Federal Reserve and elsewhere tend to peer through energy shocks and use core CPI to forecast the future, not the energy shock data.”