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State Secretary Rex Tillerson opened a door for dialogue with North Korea on Monday, noting that Washington was willing to talk to Pyongyang if it stopped a string of missile test launches recently, Reuters reports. […]

U.S. Will Respond to Russia’s Move to Expel Diplomats by September 1

According to the Associated Press, State Secretary Rex Tillerson informed Monday that the U.S. will respond to the Russian government’s move to cut down the number of American diplomatic staff by over 700, Politico reports. […]

CNN Poll: Trump’s Approval Rating Hits New Low

The latest poll published by CNN on Monday shows that President Donald Trump’s job as commander-in-chief is approved by a little over a third of the country, The Hill reports. As little as 39 percent […]

Interior Department Annuls Coal Valuation Rule

The Interior Department said Monday that it has annulled an Obama administration rule that rectified how energy companies value trade of coal, gas and oil extracted from tribal and federal land, in order to protect […]

Joe Manchin Says He Doesn’t Care About Attacks

Democratic Senator Joe Manchin is preparing for his reelection fight as a top target for Republicans, but he says he is not affected by the pressure, CNN reports. “I just don’t give a s–t,” Manchin […]

Republican Senators Realizing Legislative Agenda Is in Their Own Hands

Last week Republican senators left Washington for the annual August recess, lacking the historic accomplishments many of them had hoped for, CNN reports. “It’s not good enough. We’ve got to do better,” said Wisconsin Republican […]

Bipartisan Bills Unveiled to Protect Mueller

Donald Trump was put on further notice that any action to remove Special Counsel Robert Mueller from his post will not pass without a serious fight, after competing bipartisan bills in the Senate were introduced […]

Lawmaker: Trump Firing Mueller Would Spark Bipartisan Pushback

Senator Chris Coons made a blunt remark to President Donald Trump, saying that sacking special counsel Robert Mueller would mean crossing a line and spark bipartisan pushback in the Senate, the Hill reports. “I think […]

Trump Praises Attorney General Sessions for Taking Action Against Leaks

President Donald Trump praised Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Saturday for “taking action” against leaks, providing a reprieve to the relationship following numerous public attacks on Sessions over the past month, Politico reports. “After many […]

Tillerson Hails UN Sanctions, Avoids North Korea Envoy at ASEAN Meeting

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and his North Korean counterpart did their best to avoid each other at an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gathering on Sunday, just one day after all 15 members […]

Trump, Moon Jae-in Discuss North Korea

President Donald Trump spoke with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Sunday evening, amid escalating global tension with North Korea. “Just completed call with President Moon of South Korea. Very happy and impressed with 15-0 […]

August 5, 2017 Focus Washington

Justice Department to Boost Investigations into Leaks

Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Friday announced a government-wide crackdown on leakers, which will include a review of the Justice Department’s policies on subpoenas for media outlets that publish sensitive information, The Hill reports. Sessions […]

August 5, 2017 Focus Washington

Trump Slams Congress over New Russia Sanctions Bill

President Donald Trump is firing pointed criticism at the GOP Congress, ripping lawmakers for sending him a Russia sanctions bill he opposes while failing to negotiate an ObamaCare repeal bill. While tensions between the president […]

August 5, 2017 Focus Washington

Mueller Requests White House Documents on Former Security Adviser Flynn

Special counsel Robert Mueller’s office has reportedly asked the White House to hand over documents in relation to President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Mueller is looking into whether Flynn, whose consulting […]

Trump Gathers His Base Against Russia Probe

President Donald Trump gathered his base on Thursday night to balance a continuous attack on the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election, a few hours after news emerged that Robert Mueller, the special […]

Special Counsel Mueller Using Grand Jury in Washington Federal Court in Russia Probe

In the past several weeks, Special counsel Robert Mueller started using a grand jury in a Washington federal court in his investigation of the alleged correlation between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign, Washington Post […]

Trump Pressures Mexico on Border Wall Payment in Turbulent Call

President Donald Trump urged Mexican counterpart to stop pressuring public to oppose Mexico to pay for the border wall, phone calls transcripts have shown, giving an insight into Trump’s moves to manipulate foreign leaders, Reuters […]

Venezuela President Maduro Dismisses Electoral Fraud Allegation

Venezuela’s president defiantly dismissed allegations that official turnout figures for the election of an all-powerful constituent assembly were manipulated, accusing the international software firm behind the claim of bowing to U.S. pressure to cast doubt […]

Kushner Asks Tech Giants to Help Upgrade Federal Agencies

President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner is considering a system where leading tech engineers would serve a “tour of duty” advising the government on how to upgrade its digital infrastructure, The Hill […]

Kelly Sets Ground Rules for Information Flow in White House

Recently appointed White House chief of staff John Kelly, has set ground rules that any information intended for President Donald Trump must first pass by him, Politico reports. Kelly took over the post from Reince […]

Vice President Pence Says Russia’s ‘Destabilizing Behaviors’ Are Unacceptable

Russia’s “destabilizing behaviors are not acceptable to the United States” Vice President Mike Pence told Fox News on Wednesday after President Donald Trump signed a new sanctions bill that seeks to punish Moscow for interfering […]

Trump Signs Russia Sanctions Bill

President Donald Trump signed into law Wednesday morning legislation that levies new sanctions against Russia and restricts Trump’s own ability to ease sanctions in place against Moscow, CNN reports. The bill is one of the […]

First Successful Human Embryo Editing Experiment in U.S

Scientists have successfully edited the DNA of human embryos to erase a heritable heart condition that is known for causing sudden death in young competitive athletes, cracking open the doors to a controversial new era […]

Special Counsel Team for Russia Investigation Expands

A former Justice Department official has joined special counsel Robert Mueller’s team as it investigates Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election.Greg Andres becomes the 16th lawyer to join the team, special counsel spokesman Josh […]

Senate Leaders, Mnuchin Discuss Debt Ceiling Increase

Senate leadership and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin held a closed-door meeting on Tuesday as they try to plot a path toward increasing the debt ceiling. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he, Mnuchin, and Minority Leader […]

DHS Waives Environmental Rules to Speedup Mexico Border Wall Construction

The Trump administration is waiving numerous major environmental laws to build a wall and fencing along the border with Mexico.The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the waiver Tuesday, citing its authority under a 2006 […]

Senate Confirms Christopher Wray as New FBI Director

The Senate easily confirmed President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the FBI on Tuesday, following the firing of James Comey earlier this year. Senators voted 92-5 on Christopher Wray’s nomination to lead the bureau. Democratic […]

Trump Planning Trade Measures against China

The Trump administration is purportedly preparing trade measures against China, including a crackdown on intellectual property theft, signaling a shift by the Trump administration away from working with Beijing, The Hill reports. Several media outlets […]

August 1, 2017 Focus Washington

Unclear Whether Trump Will Hold Signing Ceremony on Russia Sanctions

President Donald Trump has committed to signing a Russia sanctions bill, but it’s unclear if he’ll highlight his signature with a big ceremony. Major bills often have White House signing ceremonies, but Russian sanctions isn’t […]

August 1, 2017 Focus Washington

Trump Reportedly Dictated Statement for Son on Russia Meeting

President Donald Trump reportedly dictated a misleading statement about his son’s meeting with a Russian lawyer that was ultimately issued to the New York Times by Donald Trump Jr., The Washington Post reports. Trump dictated […]