Focus Washington November 2017

At Least 235 Killed in Mosque Attack In Egypt

November 25, 2017 Focus Washington

Militants armed with guns and explosives stormed a crowded mosque in Egypt’s restive northern Sinai on Friday, killing at least 235 people and wounding 109 others in the deadliest single attack in the country, Bloomberg […]

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Pentagon to Acknowledge Official Count of U.S. Troops in Syria

November 25, 2017 Focus Washington

The Pentagon is likely to announce that there are about 2,000 U.S. troops in Syria, two U.S. officials said on Friday, as the military acknowledges that an accounting system for troops has under-reported the size […]

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Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Donald Trump Discuss Syria in Phone Call

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he discussed the Syrian crisis and other regional issues with President Donald Trump in a phone call. Erdogan’s office stated that the presidents also talked about the relations between […]

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Trump Promises to Repeal and Replace ObamaCare ‘Disaster’

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

President Donald Trump once again criticized ObamaCare and said that the health-care law was a disaster. He promised to repeal and replace it after the GOP passes tax reform. “ObamaCare premiums are going up, up, […]

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Abortion Rates in U.S. Fall to Historic Low, Report Finds

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

New report of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that abortion rates in the United States have dropped to historic lows. Data from all 50 states have been analyzed. The numbers indicate […]

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Manafort Allegedly Made 18 Moscow Trips before Joining Trump’s Campaign

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

Paul Manafort made at least 18 trips to Moscow and another 19 to the Ukrainian capital of Kiev while working as a consultant for Vladimir Putin allies, oligarchs, and pro-Kremlin parties, before he joined President […]

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ICE Wants Technology Companies to Help Them Monitor Visa Holders in U.S.

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

The Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement wants help from technology companies to help keep track of visa holders in the United States, Newsweek reports. ICE officials hope to develop algorithms that would evaluate any […]

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Tillerson Brands Rohingya Crackdown as ‘Ethnic Cleansing’

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday threatened Myanmar’s officials with sanctions regarding their crackdown on the Rohingya minority, for the first time referring to their actions as “ethnic cleansing,” Foreign Policy reports. Tillerson slammed […]

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FBI Removed Tens of Thousands Wanted Fugitives from Background Checks for Gun Purchases

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has removed tens of thousands of people wanted by authorities from a criminal background check database. The database used to stop the wanted persons purchasing weapons. Their names were deleted […]

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Franken Issues Apology, Pledges to Regain Trust

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

Senator Al Franken issued an apology on Thursday, noting that he feels “terribly that he could make women feel so badly,” and has learned that for “some women” his actions in encounters have “crossed the […]

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Navy Ends Search for Three Missing Sailors in Pacific Incident

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

The U.S. Navy has ended search and rescue operations for the three sailors still missing following a plane crash in the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, the 7th fleet announced. “Our thoughts and prayers are with […]

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Trump Praises Coast Guard for Recovery Assistance after Hurricanes

November 24, 2017 Focus Washington

President Donald Trump praised the Coast Guard for its hurricane recovery work in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico, stressing that it’s “brand” is on the rise because of its efforts, The Hill reports. “It is […]

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Roy Moore’s Communications Director Resigns

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

While Senate candidate Roy Moore combats allegations that he has harassed and sexually assaulted young girls, his communications director decided to resign. Reuters reported that John Rogers, Moore’s spokesman, decided to leave the campaign on […]

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Uber Faced with New Crisis after Massive Data Breach

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

Due to the massive hack Uber suffered in October 2016, the company is now faced with a number of investigations from several state attorneys general and international regulators from Europe. The breach, which was covered […]

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Australia Wants Strong U.S. Engagement in Asia

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

Australia urged strong engagement of the United States in Asia and called Washington to bolster ties with like-minded partners, but it also warned against China’s rising influence. The Australian government published a 115-page foreign policy […]

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President Trump and Congressional Leaders to Discuss Budget

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters said President Donald Trump will meet next Tuesday with Congressional leaders to discuss several key agenda items, among which is a federal spending plan to prevent the government from shutting […]

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Trump Promises to Build Border Wall in Thanksgiving Tweets

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

President Donald Trump wrote several tweets about Thanksgiving and wished his followers happy holiday, but used the opportunity to tout the strong performance of the stock market and to write a word or two about […]

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Facebook Users Will be Able to Check If They Interacted with Russian Trolls

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

In the next month Facebook will unveil a tool allowing users to learn of any Facebook or Instagram contact they may have had with Russian internet trolls leading up to and following the 2016 U.S. […]

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Federal Judge Allows Key Lawsuit over Keystone XL to Move Forward

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

U.S. District Judge Brian Morris allowed a lawsuit over a key permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline to move forward, rejecting claims from the Trump administration and developers of the Keystone XL pipeline, The […]

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Doug Jones Forced to Defend Record on Crime following Trump’s Criticism

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

Democratic Senate candidate Doug Jones faced a new challenge in the special election race against Republican Roy Moore after President Donald Trump publicly attacked his record on Tuesday, calling it “terrible.” Before becoming U.S. attorney […]

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Ferguson Paid Half a Million Dollars for Monitoring, but Officials Wonder if it Was Worth It

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

Washington attorney Clark Kent Ervin resigned in September after serving over a year as lead monitor overseeing the consent agreement between the U.S. Department of Justice and Ferguson. Ferguson has paid about a half million […]

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Exxon Teams Up with Oil Giants to Reduce Methane Emissions

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

ExxonMobil Corp. and seven other energy firms are working together to tackle natural gas sector greenhouse gas emissions, the companies announced on Wednesday, The Hill reports. Exxon was the only American-owned company to sign an […]

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Special Counsel Probes Flynn’s Former Business Partner

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

Special Counsel Robert Mueller has been investigating Michael Flynn’s former business partner Bijan Kian, regarding his role in the failure of Flynn’s former lobbying firm to disclose its work on behalf of foreign governments, NBC […]

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Trump Administration Rejects Icahn-Backed Bid for Biofuel Mandate Change

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

The Trump administration rejected a bid to relieve refiners of their obligation to fulfill annual biofuel quotas, Bloomberg reports. The Environmental Protection Agency denied petitions by Valero Energy Corp. and other refiners to alter the […]

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Education Department May Narrow Scope of Civil Rights Works in Schools

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

A document obtained by the Associated Press shows that the Education Department is considering narrowing the scope of civil right investigations at schools. It may change the current practice of looking into systematic issues when […]

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U.S. Voted against UN Resolution Condemning Nazism

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

Only three nations have voted against a UN resolution that called to combat the glorification of Nazism, Neo-Nazism and other practices that contribute to fueling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. […]

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Sessions Orders Review of Background Check System for Gun Buyers

November 23, 2017 Focus Washington

Following the mass shooting at a church in Sutherland Springs in Texas, and the Air Force’s failure to report the criminal background of the killer, Attorney General Jeff Sessions ordered on Wednesday a review of the […]

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Federal Court Halts Trump’s Transgender Military Ban

November 22, 2017 Focus Washington

President Donald Trump’s order banning transgender people from becoming part of the military was stopped on Tuesday by a federal court in Baltimore. As part of the America Civil Liberties Union’s lawsuit, a preliminary injunction […]

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North Korea Says Trump’s Decision to Relist It as State Sponsor of Terrorism Is Provocation

November 22, 2017 Focus Washington

Donald Trump’s decision to relist North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism is a serious provocation that justifies the development of nuclear weapons, North Korea says. The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) published the […]

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Kushner’s Contacts with Foreign Leaders Investigated by Mueller

November 22, 2017 Focus Washington

According to The Wall Street Journal, Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his investigators are scrutinizing President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, in particular his communications with foreign leaders. The report said investigators are looking into […]

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