U.S. tributes, protests mark MLK Day
NEW YORK — Tributes to civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. were held across the United States on Monday, with observers linking the federal holiday to a rallying cry in recent protests over police brutality: "Black lives matter." King's 1960s dream of racial equality was being viewed through a lens focused on the deaths of...Obama strikes defiant tone with Republicans in big speech
WASHINGTON — President Obama struck a defiant tone for his dealings with the new Republican-led Congress on Tuesday, calling on his opponents to raise taxes on the rich and threatening to veto legislation that would challenge his key decisions. Dogged by an ailing economy since the start of his presidency six years ago, Obama...Justice Department preparing to clear Ferguson officer
Darren Wilson.WASHINGTON — The U.S. Justice Department is about to close the investigation into the shooting death of an unarmed Black teenager in Ferguson, Missouri, and clear the White police officer involved of any civil rights charges, The New York Times reported this week. The newspaper quoted law enforcement officials as saying...U.S. appeals court hears case on NYC police surveillance of Muslims
PHILADELPHIA — Civil rights groups asked a panel of federal judges on Tuesday to overturn a lower court's ruling that there was nothing harmful in New York City police conducting surveillance on Muslims in neighboring New Jersey without suspicion of a crime. The hearing came days after the deadly attacks in Paris by Islamist gunmen,...Obama seeks enhanced cybersecurity following Twitter hack
WASHINGTON — President Obama sent a bill to Congress on Tuesday to strengthen U.S. cybersecurity laws to protect government, businesses and consumers while protecting privacy, after recent hacking attacks against Sony Picture, Home Depot Inc, Target Corp and on Monday the federal government itself on Twitter. "We've got to stay...White House to curb methane emissions from oil, gas production
WASHINGTON — President Obama’s administration unveiled rules on Wednesday to slash methane emissions from oil and gas production by up to 45 percent from 2012 levels by 2025, its latest move to solidify the Democratic president's credentials on climate change. The Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Interior proposed...U.S. police organizations criticize response to alleged brutality
WASHINGTON — U.S. police are being unfairly targeted in response to allegations of police brutality, leaders from three police organizations said at the first public meeting of President Obama's policing task force on Tuesday, January 13. In a tense back and forth, Fraternal Order of Police President Chuck Canterbury told the task...Federal tax refunds delayed
WASHINGTON — The deadline to have your Federal taxes filed will remain April 15th, but under new directives issued to the IRS no refunds are to be issued before October 15, 2015. This means that early filers who normally receive their refunds around the beginning of February will have to wait an additional 7 months longer than normal...Homeland Security extends Temporary Protected Status for Syrian nationals
WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has formally announced that the Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson, has approved a request made by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) to extend and redesignate Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for Syrian nationals currently in the United...FBI says Sony hackers ‘got sloppy,’ posted from North Korea addresses
FBI Director James Comey.NEW YORK — FBI Director James Comey said this week that hackers behind the cyberattack on Sony Pictures Entertainment provided key clues to their identity by sometimes posting material from IP addresses used exclusively by the North Korean government. The hackers, who called themselves "Guardians of Peace",...Obama discusses auto bailout success during Detroit visit
DETROIT — President Obama, on a trip to unveil elements of his State of the Union address, took a victory lap in Michigan on Wednesday to tout his support of the auto industry. However concerns about trade policies hung in the background of his tour. "America's resurgence is real," Obama said at a Ford Motor Co plant near Detroit...Sony cancels film release date following cyber terrorist threats linked to North Korea
LOS ANGELES — Sony Pictures has canceled the release of a comedy on the fictional assassination of North Korea's leader, in what appears to be an unprecedented victory for Pyongyang and its abilities to wage cyber-warfare. Hackers who said they were incensed by the film attacked Sony Corp last month, leaking documents that...
U.S., Cuba restore ties after 50 years
December 19th, 20140 WASHINGTON — The U.S. and Cuba agreed on Wednesday to restore diplomatic ties that Washington severed more than 50 years ago, and President Obama called for an end to the long economic embargo against its old Cold War enemy. After 18 months of secret talks, Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro agreed in a phone call on Tuesday on a...Arab Americans take action for U.S. census recognition
WASHINGTON — Every 10 years, we ask you to stand up and be counted on the Census. And every year, we struggle with the fact that there is no category on the Census that makes sense for Arab Americans. For the first time ever, we are close to securing just that – an accurate count of our community. There is currently no category...Judge declares Obama immigration action unconstitutional
WASHINGTON — President Obama's new plan to ease the threat of deportation for 4.7 million undocumented immigrants violates the U.S. Constitution, a federal judge found on Tuesday, handing down the first legal ruling against the plan. The ruling has no immediate impact, with the government saying there was no reason for Judge Arthur......
Ex-CIA officials say torture report is one-sided, flawed
A protester holds his hands up during a protest for the death of Eric Garner.WASHINGTON — A group of former top-ranking CIA officials disputed a U.S. Senate committee's finding that the agency's interrogation techniques produced no valuable intelligence, saying such work had saved thousands of lives. Former CIA directors George...Police body cameras carry risks without firm rules
WASHINGTON — Civil rights activists and some police chiefs are warning that the Obama administration's proposal to help local police departments buy 50,000 body cameras must come with firm rules on how to use the equipment. They say that without proper oversight to address potential misuse, such as when police turn off their cameras...Medical schools across U.S. protest chokehold death
NEW YORK CITY — Students at medical schools around the United States planned "die-ins" to protest the chokehold death by police of an unarmed Black man and New York activists demanded the city take action after a grand jury declined to indict the officer involved. Protests intensified last week after the grand jury decision to not...Kerry urges flexibility in U.S. war powers against Islamic State
Kerry.WASHINGTON — Any congressional authorization of U.S. military force against "Islamic State" should be flexible and not limit the fight to Iraq and Syria, Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday. The authorization should also not restrict President Obama in deploying combat troops against the militant group if needed,......
Missouri National Guard scales back, Ferguson protests probed
December 5th, 20140 Members of the National Guard stand guard outside the Ferguson Police Department in Missouri November 28.ST. LOUIS — The Missouri National Guard is starting to scale back its presence in the St. Louis area as angry protests over the lack of an indictment in the police shooting of an unarmed Black teenager ease, Missouri Governor Jay...
NY policeman not indicted in chokehold death
December 5th, 20140 NEW YORK — A New York City grand jury decision not to charge a White police officer who killed an unarmed Black man with a chokehold sparked outrage and protests on Wednesday; and the U.S. Justice Department said it would investigate the incident.Eric Garner, a 43-year-old father of six, was illegally selling cigarettes on July 17......
17 States sue Obama administration on immigration
WASHINGTON — Texas is leading a 17-state coalition that sued the Obama administration on Wednesday over its executive order to ease the threat of deportation for some 4.7 million undocumented immigrants, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said.The case filed at the Federal Court in the Southern District of Texas said the executive...
National Guard, police curb Ferguson unrest as protests spread across U.S.
November 27th, 20140 A woman confronts a police officer in St. Louis.FERGUSON, Mo — Some 2,000 National Guard troops helped ward off a second night of rampant arson and looting in suburban St. Louis after a grand jury declined to indict a White policeman in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager, and sympathy protests spread to several U.S.......
