Focus Washington February 2018

Russians Charged as Mueller Reveals Effort to Aid Trump Campaign

February 17, 2018 Focus Washington

The Justice Department indicted 13 Russians and three companies on Friday in a sprawling indictment that revealed a sophisticated network established to topple the 2016 election and to support the Trump campaign. It stretched from […]

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American Flag Replaced with ISIS Flag at High School in Utah

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

An American flag at a high school in Southwest Utah was destroyed and replaced with an ISIS flag on Thursday, Fox News informed. The incident happened at Hurricane High School, in the Washington County School District. […]

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Sessions Will Step up With Federal Gun Prosecutions

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

Attorney General Jeff Sessions said that the federal prosecutions for gun crimes will be increased in the Justice Department as a response to the Parkland, Florida, school shooting that left 17 people dead on Wednesday. […]

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Veterans Affairs Secretary Accuses Trump’s Appointees of Undermining His Policies

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

Secretary for Veterans Affairs (VA) David Shulkin blamed several political appointees in his department of attempting to undermine him and his policies. Shulkin, in an interview with The New York Times, said that he was […]

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Arming Teachers to Prevent Future School Shootings

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

The North Carolina state legislator found a solution to the ongoing problem the U.S. has with the common school shootings. He is pushing for teachers to be armed during classes so they can stop future […]

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Intelligence Agencies to Brief State Officials on Election Threats

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

U.S. intelligence and security agencies will host senior election officials from all 50 states to inform them about the threats to the integrity of the elections and security measures they can take, Reuters informs. The briefings […]

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Trump to Tackle Mental Health, but Not Guns

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

President Donald Trump promised to tackle school safety and the difficult issue of mental health in response to the deadly shooting in Florida, but he did not mention the scourge of gun violence, Associated Press reports. […]

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Gates Close to Plea Deal with Special Counsel

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

Former Trump campaign adviser Rick Gates is close to a plea deal with special counsel Robert Mueller’s team, sending the message that he is willing to cooperate in the probe, sources said. Gates has been […]

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U.S. Calls on Iran to Release Detained Opposition Leaders

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

The U.S. State Department, late on February 15, called on Iran to release three opposition leaders who have been under house arrest for seven years, RFERL reports. The statement came on the seventh anniversary of the […]

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Rex Tillerson Breaks Protocol While Meeting with Turkish President

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

Rex Tillerson, the U.S. Secretary of State, met Thursday with Turkish leaders in a meeting that lasted more than three and a half hours and conducted out of standard protocol which dictates that the U.S. […]

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Bannon Continues to Stonewall HIC Russia Probe

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

In a new interview on Thursday, former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon once again refused to answer the House Intelligence Committee’s questions and said that he can only answer questions that are pre-approved by […]

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Immigration Bill Fails Leaving Senators Furious

February 16, 2018 Focus Washington

The latest immigration debate, which Senators expected to last a week and end with the president’s signature, lasted for about an hour on the floor Thursday and ended in no amendments passed to protect DACA […]

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Meadows Rejects Any Possibility of Coup Against Speaker Ryan

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

Republican Representative for North Carolina Mark Meadows stated in an interview published Thursday that the House should take the lead in proposing an immigration reform bill which has sparked talks that the representative is implying […]

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U.S. to Give Jordan over Billion Dollars Increase in Aid

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

The United States will increase aid to Jordan by more tan one billion dollars over the next five years, even though President Donald Trump said that he would no longer provide aid to countries that […]

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As Schumer Ratings Drop Gillibrand Paves Her Road for 2020

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

Based on results from a new poll, Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer came to his lowest approval point among New York voters. According to Quinnipiac University Poll, 53 percent of voters approve of the job […]

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GOP Pushes New Budget Resolution Meant for Medicare, Social Security

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

A new budget resolution is being pushed by the Republicans on the House Budget Committee meant mostly to rein in spending on entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security, according to the panel’s chairman. […]

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American Detainee Worked for Islamic State in Syria

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

An American detainee was carrying thumb drives containing files on how to make bombs plus administrative spreadsheets describing work he did for the Islamic State when he surrendered in Syria last year, Associated Press reports, citing […]

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Trump: ‘Shooter Was Mentally Disturbed’

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

President Donald Trump said in a tweet Thursday that a mental illness played a big role in the shooting at a Florida high school that resulted in 17 being killed. “So many signs that the Florida […]

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Priebus Says Chaos in White House Is Much Worse Than It Looks

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

Reince Priebus, former White House chief of staff, said that during his time in office the Trump administration was much more chaotic than what was reported, according to an upcoming book he writes. “Take everything […]

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McCarthy: There Is No Job Opening as Chief of Staff

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

Kevin McCarthy, the House Majority Leader, dismissed on Wednesday all talks that he could be the next chief of staff in the White House if John Kelly resigns. During a leadership press conference, McCarthy was […]

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Democrats Call for Tighter Gun Control

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

The Governor of Florida Rick Scott refused on Wednesday to give an answer to questions regarding whether policymakers should take a stricter stand on mental health and gun control laws should be made tighter. Scott […]

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Over Dozen Killed in School Shooting in Florida

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

At least 17 people were killed in a shooting in a South Florida high school on Wednesday, The Hill reported. “I’m saddened to say that 17 people lost their lives,” the county’s sheriff said in […]

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Fewer People Consider Themselves Republicans, but Aren’t Becoming Democrats

February 15, 2018 Focus Washington

Fewer Americans say they consider themselves Republicans, but at the same time are not becoming Democrats, recent polls show. Charles Franklin, a Marquette Law professor and pollster, analyzed Gallup data and concluded that even though […]

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Obama’s Last Move Before Leaving Office Helps Fund Green Energy Projects Abroad

February 14, 2018 Focus Washington

The U.S. government almost doubled their financial support for solar and wind power projects overseas in 2017 under a “climate-friendly” investment policy written during the last days of the Obama administration. According to Reuters, the […]

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Duckworth Looking for Way to Vote While on Maternity Leave

February 14, 2018 Focus Washington

Illinois Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth will soon become the first woman that has given birth while serving in the Senate. Duckworth stated during an interview that she can’t “technically take maternity leave,” as a result […]

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Kelly Says ‘All Done Right’ in Handling of Porter Scandal

February 14, 2018 Focus Washington

Chief of Staff John Kelly defended Tuesday his handling of the most recent physical abuse scandal involving former White House staff secretary Rob Porter. Kelly told The Wall Street Journal that “It was all done right,” […]

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Mulvaney Would Not Vote for Trump’s Budget If He Were Still Congressman

February 14, 2018 Focus Washington

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) said in a statement that Mick Mulvaney was going to vote for President Donald Trump’s budget proposal if he was still part of Congress. This comes after the […]

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Kelly’s Successor Still Not Determined

February 14, 2018 Focus Washington

President Donald Trump is considering who to choose as a possible successor of Chief of Staff John Kelly, sources say. According to them, conversations on the matter are heating up, even though there has not […]

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The nation's increasingly polarized politics are instilling new concerns in lawmakers and employees, as seen by Saturday's scheduled Capitol demonstration in support of those jailed on charges connected to the Jan. 6 Capitol disturbance

Democratic Senators Block McConnell on Starting Votes on Immigration Proposals

February 14, 2018 Focus Washington

On two separate occasions on Tuesday, Democrats blocked Republicans from starting initial votes on immigration plans. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell attempted to set up a vote at 8 P.M. on a legislation proposed by […]

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Former CIA Analyst Accuses Trump of Giving Russia Green Light to Interfere Again

February 14, 2018 Focus Washington

National Security Council spokesman, as well as former CIA analyst, Ned Price accused President Donald Trump of giving Russia a green light to continue meddling in the U.S. democracy and upcoming U.S. elections. Price said that […]

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