Groups from Amnesty International U.S.A. urge action on Middle East
March 17th, 20170 ALBUQUERQUE — Issues affecting the Middle East continued to be brought to light at the 2017 annual general meeting of Amnesty International U.S.A. members, which gathered human rights advocates from around the nation. The plight of refugees worldwide was commemorated in the #NoBanNoWall campaign— a slogan in defiant response to...
Trump refuses to shake Angela Merkel’s hand
March 17th, 20170 WASHINGTON, DC - On Friday, President Trump greeted German chancellor Angela Merkel with a handshake upon her arrival to the White House, but appeared to ignore requests to do so as the pair sat together in front of cameras. The pair had an awkward meeting that could help determine the future of the transatlantic alliance and shape...
Hawaii judge halts Trump’s new travel ban before it can go into effect
March 15th, 20170 HONOLULU ― A U.S. federal judge in Hawaii dealt another legal blow to President Donald Trump on Wednesday, issuing an emergency halt to his revised travel ban just hours before it was set to go into effect early on Thursday. U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson put out an emergency stop on Trump's executive order, which aimed to...
Lebanese consulate moves to accomodate community growth
March 15th, 20170 SOUTHFIELD — A vast, green vista, dotted with skyscrapers and notable landmarks, unfolds below the large windows of a contemporary office – a landscape reminiscent of millions' homeland of Lebanon. Bilal Kabalan, consul general of Lebanon, looks through binoculars from his office and points out the several observable towns where...
Republican plan to repeal Obamacare would leave millions uninsured
March 14th, 20170 Fourteen million Americans would lose medical insurance by next year under a Republican plan to dismantle Obamacare that would also reduce the budget deficit, a nonpartisan congressional research office said on Monday, throwing President Donald Trump and Republicans on the defensive as they press forward with replacement...
Trump’s revised travel ban dealt first court setback
March 12th, 20170 A federal judge in Wisconsin dealt the first legal blow to President Donald Trump's revised travel ban on Friday, barring enforcement of the policy to deny U.S. entry to the wife and child of a Syrian refugee already granted asylum in the United States. The temporary restraining order, granted by U.S. District Judge William Conley in...
Republican health care plan moves forward
March 10th, 20170 WASHINGTON, D.C. —After the GOP organized together to oppose former President Obama's Affordable Care Act (AKA Obamacare), Democrats organized to delay a replacement plan's advancement. The Republican-dominated House Ways and Means Committee required 18 hours to become the first panel to approve the Republicans' Obamacare repeal...
Washington restaurant sues Trump over alleged unfair hotel competition
March 10th, 20170 WASHINGTON D.C. - A Washington restaurant has sued President Trump and the company that operates his landmark Washington hotel, claiming that patrons have shifted business there to curry favor with his new administration, the owners said on Thursday. The suit, which was filed on Wednesday, does not seek monetary damages, but wants...
Secretary of Homeland Security releases statement on hate-inspired attacks
March 10th, 20170 WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Thursday, Secretary of Homeland Security John F. Kelly released a statement in response to an onslaught of hate crimes against individuals and attacks against communities. "I strongly condemn any violent acts to perpetuate fear and intimidation not only against individuals, but entire communities," said Kelly...
U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade quitting at Trump’s request
March 10th, 20170 DETROIT — Barbara McQuade says she's stepping down as U.S. attorney for eastern Michigan at the request of President Donald Trump. McQuade has been head of the U.S. Attorney's Office since 2010. But it's common for the job to change hands when a new president takes office. She said Friday it's been an "incredible privilege" to work...
U.S. to lead 68 nations in anti-ISIS effort
March 10th, 20170 WASHINGTON D.C. — A Trump administration official reported Thursday that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will host a counterterrorist meeting on March 22. The meeting, to which 68 countries are invited, will coordinate the next moves in combating ISIS. It will be the first assembly of the full coalition since the last similar...
More states seek to halt Trump’s new travel ban in court
March 10th, 20171 WASHINGTON D.C. — Several states said on Thursday they would move forward with legal challenges to a revised executive order signed by President Trump this week that temporarily bars the admission of refugees and some travelers from a group of Muslim-majority countries. The opposition comes on top of a separate legal challenge to...
Texas State Senate committee approves transgender ‘bathroombill’
March 10th, 20170 AUSTIN, TX — A vote to approve a controversial bill took effect within a Texas State Senate committee on Wednesday. The bill, which would require people to use the bathroom corresponding to their biological sex rather than with the gender they identify, passed 7-1 following hours of testimony which included many objections and...
Call from Trump interrupts Israeli police questioning Netanyahu
March 9th, 20170 JERUSALEM ― A phone call from President Trump interrupted a police inquiry into Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was on Monday being questioned for a fourth time over suspicions of corruption. Not long after sitting down with police investigators at his residence in Jerusalem, one aide said, Netanyahu briefly excused...
Women plan to stay off the job, rally in anti-Trump protests
March 8th, 20170 Women in the United States plan to use International Women's Day on Wednesday to stay off the job and stage demonstrations across the country in an effort to seize on the momentum built from the massive marches held a day after President Donald Trump's inauguration. On "A Day Without a Woman," those who are able to do so will stay......
Muhammad Ali’s son detained at airport, questioned about religion
March 7th, 20170 FORT LAUDERDALE, FL — Muhammad Ali, Jr., the son of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali, was detained at a Florida airport for four hours in early February. Ali, who was born in Philadelphia in 1972 and holds a U.S. passport, said immigration officials who detained him on Feb. 7 repeatedly asked, "Where did you get your name from?" and...
Trump’s attorney general withdraws from probe about Russia
March 7th, 20170 WASHINGTON — On Thursday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions withdrew from any deep examination into suspected Russian interference in the 2016 general election. Sessions asserted that he did no wrong in withholding comment during Senate testimony regarding his meeting with Russia's ambassador last year. Sessions told reporters...
New York City reaches new deal over police surveillance of Muslims
March 6th, 20170 NEW YORK CITY- New York City's police department has agreed to a new settlement in a lawsuit accusing it of illegally targeting Muslims for surveillance, according to court papers filed on Monday, after a federal judge rejected an earlier deal. The new settlement gives additional powers to a civilian representative charged with...
Senator Gary Peters: Travel ban is outrageous and un-American
March 6th, 20170 DEARBORN — Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) called President Trump's executive order to ban immigrants and refugees from seven predominantly Muslim countries "outrageous" and un-American during a visit to Dearborn on Saturday, Feb. 25. Peters, a Democrat, met with a roomful of community activists and rights group leaders at......
Trump signs new travel ban order, Iraq left off
March 6th, 20170 WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump signed a revised executive order for a U.S. travel ban on Monday, leaving Iraq off the list of targeted countries, after his controversial first attempt was blocked in the courts, senior administration officials said. The new order, which the White House said Trump had signed, will keep a...
Palestine, campaign finance reform still deal breakers for DNC
March 3rd, 20170 WASHINGTON, D.C.— In a turn of events paralleling the contentious rivalry between Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during the Democratic Party primaries last year, Representative Keith Ellison(D-MN) lost his bid to become the next Democratic National Committee Chair to former Labor Secretary......
U.S. appeals court upholds suspension of Trump travel ban
February 9th, 20170 SAN FRANCISCO ― A federal appeals court on Thursday unanimously upheld a temporary suspension of President Donald Trump's order that restricted travel from seven Muslim-majority countries. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling came in a challenge to Trump's order filed by the states of Washington and Minnesota. The U.S....
Attack on Quebec City mosque leaves five dead
January 29th, 20170 Earlier, a witness told Reuters that up to three gunmen fired on about 40 people inside the Quebec City Islamic Cultural Center. Police put up a security perimeter around the mosque. Quebec police confirmed the shooting at a Quebec mosque in a tweet, and police on the scene said there had been fatalities. "There are many......
