Articles by Focus Washington

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Saturday reported 10,690,665 cases of the novel coronavirus, an increase of 181,801 cases from its previous count, and said that the number of deaths had […]

Man beats lumber store employee over mask rule

North Dakota Makes Masks Mandatory in Public

North Dakota has become the 35th U.S. state to require face coverings be worn in public, as governors across the country grapple with a surge in coronavirus infections that threatens to swamp their healthcare systems. […]

Trump Claims Biden Victory Due to ‘Rigged Election’

President Donald Trump said on Twitter that President-Elect Joe Biden did defeat him in this month’s election, but claimed he only appears to have done so because “the Election was Rigged,” Newsweek reported. The President […]

Stephen Moore: Trump is ‘Little Grouchy’ over Election Results

Economist and adviser to President Donald Trump, Stephen Moore, said the President is “a little grouchy” over the results of the election, The Hill reported. During an interview with John Catsmatidis on his radio show […]

Violence Erupts between Counter-Protestors, Trump Supporters after DC Rally

Supporters of President Donald Trump and counter-demonstrators clashed Saturday night after what was mostly a peaceful day of demonstrations in support of Trump and protesting the election results, The Hill reported. Violent clashes between Trump supporters […]

Trump Officials Unveil New U.S. Citizenship Test, as Advocates Worry it is Too Long, Difficult and Politicized

The Trump administration unveiled a new U.S. citizenship test Friday, adding a broader array of history and civics themes while requiring that legal residents answer twice as many questions correctly to pass, The Washington Post […]

Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs Accused of Bias in Election Over 2017 Tweet

Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs is catching so much alt-right flack over an old tweet — in which she accused President Trump of having a “neo-Nazi base” — that her office has reached out […]

Joe Biden's social spending bill approved by House Dems

Biden’s Toughest Foreign Policy Challenge May Be Regaining Allies’ Trust

President Donald Trump may be refusing to concede his defeat, but governments around the world are congratulating President-elect Joe Biden — and anticipating that he will adopt a more traditional foreign policy approach, CNN reports. […]

Secret Service Struck Again by Coronavirus Outbreak

The Secret Service’s Uniformed Division has sustained a coronavirus outbreak, according to four people briefed on the matter, the latest blow to a beleaguered agency that has faced challenges in performing its duties during the […]

Joe Biden Wins Georgia, Trump Takes North Carolina, Major Networks Say

The three major network TV news outlets — ABC News, CBS News and NBC News — on Friday declared Joe Biden the winner of the presidential race in Georgia, with President Trump taking North Carolina, […]

China Congratulates Biden and Harris on Election

China on Friday congratulated U.S. President-elect Joe Biden, who won the Nov. 3 election that President Donald Trump has not conceded, nearly a week after the former vice president clinched enough states for the win, […]

Biden Speaks With Pope Francis, the Latest World Leader to Acknowledge the New President-Elect

President-elect Joe Biden spoke with Pope Francis on Thursday, adding to the list of world leaders who have acknowledged the incoming administration, Reuters writes. According to a readout of the call, Biden thanked the pope […]

Trump Bans Investments in Companies That White House Says Aid China’s Military

President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order barring Americans from investing in a collection of Chinese companies that the White House believes support Beijing’s military, CNBC reported. The order prohibits American companies and individuals from […]

U.S. Supreme Court’s Alito Raised Concerns Over Individual Liberty Amid COVID-19

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito raised concerns on Thursday night over individual liberty, including religious liberty, in the United States with reference to restrictions related to the coronavirus outbreak, Reuters informed. “It pains me […]

U.S. Government Appeals Order Blocking TikTok Ban From Taking Effect

The U.S. Justice Department said it had appealed a Pennsylvania judge’s Oct. 30 order that blocked the government from imposing restrictions on Chinese-owned short video sharing app TikTok that were set to take effect on […]

Musk Questions Coronavirus Tests, Saying They Gave Opposite Results on Same Day

Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk questioned the accuracy of COVID-19 tests on Thursday after claiming that results showed he tested positive twice and then negative twice all on the same day, Reuters writes. “Something extremely […]

China Warns of Action After Pompeo Says Taiwan Not Part of China

China will strike back against any moves that undermine its core interests, its foreign ministry said on Friday, after U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Taiwan “has not been a part of China”, […]

Zuckerberg Defends Not Suspending Ex-Trump Aide Bannon From Facebook

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg told an all-staff meeting on Thursday that former Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon had not violated enough of the company’s policies to justify his suspension when he urged the beheading […]

Biden Cements Victory by Flipping Arizona, as Trump Keeps Transition in Limbo

President-elect Joe Biden cemented his electoral victory by capturing the battleground state of Arizona late on Thursday, but the transition to his administration remains in political stasis as President Donald Trump refuses to accept defeat, […]

Congressional COVID-19 Impasse Drags on, Pelosi Warns ‘House Is Burning Down’

Top Democrats in the U.S. Congress on Thursday urged renewed negotiations over a multitrillion-dollar coronavirus aid proposal, but the top Republican immediately rejected their approach as too expensive, continuing a months-long impasse, Reuters reported. House […]

Former Bush Chief of Staff Cites 9/11 Commission, Warns About Slow Transition

George W. Bush’s Chief of Staff Andy Card told CNBC that “it’s concerning” that the Trump administration has refused to cooperate with President-elect Biden’s transition team, as the nation faces the worst public health crisis […]

Trump May Accept Results but Never Concede He Lost, Aides Say

There is a growing expectation among President Donald Trump’s advisers that he will never concede that he lost re-election, even after votes are certified in battleground states over the coming weeks, according to multiple people […]

Biden Reassures U.S. Allies in Calls With Leaders of Japan, South Korea, Australia

In their first calls with Joe Biden since the U.S. election, the leaders of Japan, South Korea and Australia on Thursday reaffirmed plans to form close ties with the president-elect to tackle issues including climate […]

Global Oil Demand Unlikely to Get Vaccine Boost Until Later in 2021

Global oil demand is unlikely to get a significant boost from the roll-out of vaccines against COVID-19 until well into 2021, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Thursday, a view that is likely to […]

Gates Foundation Adds $70 Million More Funding for COVID Vaccines for Poor

The Gates Foundation added another $70 million of funding on Thursday to global efforts to develop and distribute vaccines and treatments against the COVID-19 pandemic, saying it hoped other international donors would now also pledge […]

U.S. Notches up More COVID-19 Case and Hospitalization Records

The United States continued to notch up grim records on Wednesday as it battles through the coronavirus pandemic, with a worsening outbreak in the northeast of the country adding pressure on top of an already […]

Biden Insider Klain Will Bring Virus-Fighting Expertise to Chief of Staff Role

Ron Klain was once tapped by Democratic President Barack Obama to safeguard the United States from the threat of a lethal virus. As President-elect Joe Biden’s chief of staff, he will take on a similar […]

Biden Focuses on Transition, COVID-19 Crisis, as Trump Prolongs Legal Challenges

President-elect Joe Biden will continue to lay the groundwork for his administration on Thursday against the backdrop of a resurgence of COVID-19 cases across the United States, while President Donald Trump refuses to accept the […]

November 11, 2020 Focus Washington

U.S. Treasury Seeks ‘Resolution’ With ByteDance on Security Concerns

The U.S. Treasury Department said on Wednesday it wants a resolution of national security concerns it has raised over China-based ByteDance’s acquisition of U.S. social media app Musical.ly, which it then merged into video-sharing app […]

November 11, 2020 Focus Washington

Trump Files New Election Challenge, Georgia Announces Recount

President Donald Trump’s campaign on Wednesday took another step in its legal strategy to upend his U.S. election loss by filing a lawsuit in Michigan while Georgia announced a recount and President-elect Joe Biden focused […]