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The Senate in a single stroke has approved about 425 military promotions after Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama ended a monthslong blockade of nominations over a Pentagon abortion policy. Tuberville had been under pressure from members of both sides of the political aisle to end his holds as senators complained about the toll it was taking on service members and their families, and on military readiness. Tuberville said holds would continue, however, for about 11 of the highest-ranking military officers. President Joe Biden calls the Senate’s action long overdue and says the military confirmations should never have been held up.
Please disregard US--Media-Variety-Zucker, published on November 20, 2023, and datelined in NEW YORK. It is a story that originally moved on July 28, 2023, and was filed inadvertently.
President Joe Biden has ended the immediate threat of a government shutdown, signing a temporary spending bill a day before much of the government was to run out of money. The bill maintains existing funding levels. It pushes a fight with congressional Republicans over the federal budget into the new year, when GOP lawmakers in the House are vowing to exact stiff spending cuts. It splits the deadlines for passing full-year appropriations bills into two dates: Jan. 19 for some federal agencies and Feb. 2 for others. The measure does not include any wartime aid for Ukraine or Israel, nor does it offer humanitarian funding for Palestinians.
Congress has ended the threat of a government shutdown until after the holidays. The Senate gave final approval to a temporary government funding package Wednesday night and sent it to President Joe Biden for his signature. The bill sets up a final confrontation on the government budget in the new year. The Senate worked into the night to pass the bill with days to spare before government funding expires Saturday. The spending package keeps government funding levels at current levels for roughly two more months while a long-term package is negotiated.
The House has voted overwhelmingly to prevent a government shutdown. New Republican Speaker Mike Johnson was forced to reach across the aisle to Democrats when hard-right conservatives revolted against his plan.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has unveiled his proposal to avoid a partial government shutdown next weekend by extending government funding for some agencies and programs until Jan. 19 and continuing funding for others until Feb. 2.
Please disregard US-Asylum-Border, published on November 7, 2023, and datelined in SAN DIEGO. The story was from Oct. 13.
A ballot measure in Ohio that would guarantee access to abortion rights is fueling misleading claims about how the proposal could influence abortion care, gender-related health care and parental consent in the state. The Associated Press spoke to medical and legal experts who explained what the proposed constitutional amendment would mean if it were to pass in November. Among other things, those experts evaluated misleading claims that the amendment is about gender-related care or parental consent, that it would lead to abortions “up to birth,” that it would enable abusers and that it would open the door to infanticide.
With more than a year until the 2024 presidential contest, the field of candidates is largely set. Former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have continued to dominate the early Republican race. But other GOP candidates, including former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, are looking for an opening in case Trump and DeSantis falter. Several GOP candidates have dropped from the race, the most prominent being former Vice President Mike Pence. President Joe Biden faces two Democratic challengers but is expected to secure his party’s nomination.
Police in Tennessee were searching Sunday for the estranged son of Nashville’s police chief as the suspect in the shooting of two police officers outside a Dollar General store. Authorities said officers in the city of La Vergne were investigating a stolen vehicle outside the store Saturday when they struggled with the suspect, who pulled a handgun and shot them. Police identified the suspect as John C. Drake, Jr., the son of Metro Nashville Police Department Chief John Drake. A spokesperson for the city of La Vergne identified the officers as Ashley Boleyjack and Gregory Kern. Boleyjack was released from the hospital Saturday night, while Kern was kept overnight for observation and is in stable condition.
Nashville Police Chief John Drake has spent much of his career trying to steer young people away from crime. Inspired by mentors who helped him as a young man, Drake has tried to pay it forward. But sadly, he was unable to keep his own son out of trouble. John C. Drake Jr. stands accused of shooting two police officers outside of a Dollar General store in the nearby city of La Vergne on Saturday afternoon. The 38-year-old was still the subject of a manhunt Monday, and police say they consider him to be armed and dangerous. Drake has said he is estranged from his son and that he needed to be held accountable for his actions.
U.S. officials say the number of suicides among military members and their families dipped slightly in 2022, compared with the previous year. This decline comes as the Defense Department tries to build prevention and treatment programs to address what's been a steadily growing problem over the past decade.
Shares have skidded in Asia after Wall Street tumbled as bond yields tightened their chokehold. Sentiment also dimmed after some of the most influential companies turned in mixed profit reports. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 and the Kospi in Seoul were more than 2% lower. U.S. futures slipped and oil prices also fell. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 tumbled 1.4%, falling back to where it was in May. Some of the heaviest losses hit Big Tech stocks, which dragged the Nasdaq composite to its second-worst drop of the year, at 2.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 105 points. The yield on the 10-year Treasury jumped.
Washington state senator Jeff Wilson has been arrested in Hong Kong for carrying a gun that was not registered in the semi-autonomous Chinese city. His website and local media reported that he was released on bail after appearing in court on Monday. Local media reports said Wilson was arrested on Saturday after landing at the Hong Kong International Airport. He was traveling with his wife for a five-week vacation in Southeast Asia. His gun was not registered in the financial hub but is registered in Washington. Wilson was quoted as saying that it “was an honest mistake" and that he expected "the situation to be resolved shortly.” His second hearing is due next week.