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☆ House Oversight Committee chair urges spending cuts to avoid U.S. debt default
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 15 (Reuters) - House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said on Sunday he hoped a U.S. debt default could be avoided but put the onus on Democrats to agree to spending cuts being pushed by his fellow Republicans. We hope that the Senate, House - Democrats and Republicans - will agree to spending cuts. Republicans now in control of the House of Representatives have threatened to use the debt ceiling as leverage to demand spending cuts from Democrats, who control the U.S. Senate, and the Biden administration. We campaigned on the fact that we were going to be serious about spending cuts," Comer said in an interview with CNN's "State of the Union." Congress created the debt ceiling in 1917 to give the government greater borrowing flexibility, and must approve each increase to ensure that the United States meets its debt obligations and avoids a catastrophic default.

The White House said some material was found in a locked garage at Biden's home and an adjacent room, and pledged to cooperate. "People know I take classified documents and classified material seriously," he added. Biden's attorneys said they have found fewer than a dozen classified documents and turned over the relevant papers after finding them. Trump resisted doing so until an August FBI search turned up about 100 classified documents, raising questions about whether Trump or his staff obstructed the investigation. "People know I take classified documents, classified material seriously," Biden told reporters on Thursday.

☆ Biden didn't know classified documents were there in think tank or his home - White House
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 12 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden did not know that classified documents from his vice presidential days were at a Washington think tank or house in Wilmington, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said on Thursday. Biden did not know what was in those classified documents, the White House said after Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed a special counsel to investigate the handling of sensitive government documents found there. Reporting by Jeff Mason, writing by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Doina ChiacuOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

"We are confident that a thorough review will show that these documents were inadvertently misplaced," White House lawyer Richard Sauber said in a statement. The White House on Monday disclosed that classified documents from Biden's vice presidential days were discovered in November at a think tank in Washington. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst 1 2 3 4 5"The fact that they called for special counsel for Trump's handling of classified documents, I don't see how they cannot appoint a special counsel with respect to Biden," said Representative James Comer, who will head the House Oversight Committee. Garland named a special counsel, Jack Smith, in November to oversee Justice Department investigations related to Trump, including the Republican former president's handling of classified documents and efforts to overturn the 2020 election. "As I said earlier this week, people know I take classified documents, classified material seriously.

☆ Biden slams House Republicans' plans on taxes, says they will make inflation worse
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Jeff Mason | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 12 (Reuters) - U.S. President Biden criticized House Republicans who have taken control of Congress for backing tax measures that he said would benefit the wealthy at the expense of middle class taxpayers, and make inflation worse. The Republican-controlled House passed a bill Monday night that would slash tens of billions of funding dollars for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, which analyzes bills for lawmakers, reported in an analysis on Monday that the Republicans' IRS measure would raise the deficit by $114 billion. "House Republicans campaigned on inflation. They didn't say if elected their plan was to make inflation worse," Biden told reporters.

☆ Biden says some material marked classified was found in a locked garage
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 12 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden said on Thursday that his lawyers searched his Delaware homes and found a small number of documents marked classified in a locked garage in Wilmington, and an adjacent room. The president said his lawyers notified the Justice Department immediately and was cooperating fully. "They finished the review last night," Biden told reporters. "They discovered a small number of documents of classified marketing in storage areas and file cabinets in my home, in my personal library," he said. Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Chizu NomiyamaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Second set of classified papers found at Biden's home, White House says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File PhotoWASHINGTON, Jan 12 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden's legal team has discovered a second set of classified documents from his time as vice president at a storage space in the garage of his home in Wilmington, Delaware, the White House said on Thursday. The discoveries have presented legal and political headaches for Biden as he prepares for an expected 2024 re-election campaign in the upcoming months. There are differences between the revelation that Biden's legal team found classified documents in his properties and the ongoing Justice Department investigation into former President Donald Trump's refusal to hand over classified documents taken from the White House. When he finally handed over 15 boxes of records in January 2022, the Archives discovered more than 100 were marked as classified. It referred the matter to the Justice Department in the spring and a special counsel has been named to oversee the investigation.

WASHINGTON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Embattled U.S. Representative George Santos said he had no plans to heed fellow New York Republicans' calls to step down, a plea they made on Wednesday due to what they called "lie after lie after lie" about his career and history. The New York Republicans made their plea at a news conference two days after a nonpartisan watchdog accused Santos of breaking campaign finance laws in a filing with the Federal Election Commission. "It's just lie after lie after lie. Republican Representative Nick Langworthy from western New York and Representative Anthony D'Esposito, who represents a district next to that of Santos, were also among those calling on the first-term congressman to step down. During the news conference, officials said they would direct Santos' constituents to Representative D'Esposito in some cases, who had agreed to help residents of Santos' district.

FAA officials said a preliminary review traced the outage to a damaged database file, but added there was no evidence of a cyberattack and the investigation was continuing. FAA officials said they were working to "further pinpoint the causes" so the problem can be avoided in the future. One issue airlines are facing is trying to get planes in and out of crowded gates, which is causing further delays. He described confusion as airline employees and many passengers were initially unaware of the FAA's moves and flight delays. The U.S. Travel Association, which represents the travel industry including airlines, called the FAA system failure "catastrophic."

"The enemy literally step over the corpses of their own soldiers, using massed artillery, MLRS systems and mortars," Malyar said. Prigozhin has been trying to capture Bakhmut and Soledar for months at the cost of many lives on both sides. "Thanks to the resilience of our soldiers in Soledar, we have won for Ukraine additional time and additional strength," Zelenskiy said. [1/8] General view of railway lines, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Siversk, Ukraine, January 9, 2023. Moscow has not commented on the reports from the village, which Ukraine recaptured from Russian forces in September.

☆ Biden to lay out new Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti migrant policy in border speech
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Biden will also use his speech to press Republicans to stop blocking his immigration reform proposals and border measures and for Congress to provide the necessary resources. Under the plan announced on Thursday, Mexico will accept up to 30,000 expelled migrants per month from Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti and Venezuela, according to a White House fact sheet. In November, U.S. border officials encountered 82,000 migrants from those nations at the border with Mexico, according to U.S. government data. Reuters reported last week that the Biden administration planned to implement the new restrictions. Reporting by Steve Holland, Ted Hesson, Doina Chiacu and Matt Spetalnick in Washington; Editing by Alistair BellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/3] House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) speaks to reporters after McCarthy was nominated by fellow Republicans to be their leader or the Speaker of the House if they take control in the next Congress, following House Republican leadership elections at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., November 15, 2022. "I won't be voting for Kevin McCarthy tomorrow. In an interview last week with the conservative Daily Caller website, Gaetz said: "I think he's just a shill of the establishment. I think that Kevin McCarthy is little more than a vessel through which lobbyists and special interests operate." The power struggle could undermine House Republicans' hopes of moving forward quickly on investigations into Biden's administration and family.

☆ U.S. House committee releases Trump tax returns he sought to keep secret
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Moira Warburton | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] Donald Trump departs Trump Tower two days after FBI agents raided his Mar-a-Lago Palm Beach home, in New York City, New york, U.S., August 10, 2022. The nearly 6,000 pages of records include over 2,700 pages of personal returns from Trump and his wife Melania Trump, plus more than 3,000 pages of returns from his businesses. Trump, a businessman who held public office for the first time when he entered the White House in 2017, was the first presidential candidate in decades not to release his tax returns. Neal first requested the returns in 2019, arguing that Congress needed them to determine if legislation on presidential tax returns was warranted. Representative Kevin Brady, the House panel's top Republican, warned that future committee chairmen will have "nearly unlimited" power to make public the tax returns of private citizens, including "political enemies".

"There'll certainly be an impact to the fourth quarter," Chief Commercial Officer Ryan Green told reporters on a call on Thursday. While other U.S. airlines got back to their feet relatively quickly, Dallas-based Southwest is still limping back to normalcy. Employee unions say they have repeatedly warned Southwest management that the airline's technology systems badly needed upgrades. Flight attendants have been complaining about technological failures at the airline for years, according to Lyn Montgomery, president of the Southwest Airlines Flight Attendants Union, a local 556 of the Transport Workers Union. The comments echoed those of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, which said leadership had failed to adapt operations to address repeated systems failures, despite years of calls for improvements by the union.

☆ Southwest Airlines operations back to normal after being crippled by storm
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Southwest Airlines (LUV.N) was up and running on a normal schedule on Friday after a massive winter storm crippled operations this week and exposed problems at the low-cost carrier. "Let me just be straightforward here: the storm had an impact but we had impacts beyond the storm that obviously impacted Southwest very differently," Jordan said in an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America." Map shows U.S. airports where an average of at least 25% of flights by Southwest Airlines were cancelled from Dec. 19 to 28. Southwest Airlines has promised to reimburse passengers for expenses such as hotels and car rentals in addition to refunding tickets and said there would be a still-undetermined hit to its earnings. The Southwest chief executive said he had a "great conversation" with Buttigieg and their goals were aligned.

☆ U.S. concerned by China's ties with Russia, State Dept says after Putin-Xi call
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[1/3] Flags of China and Russia are displayed in this illustration picture taken March 24, 2022. REUTERS/Florence Lo/IllustrationWASHINGTON, Dec 30 (Reuters) - The United States is concerned by China's alignment with Russia as Moscow continues its invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. State Department said on Friday after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a video meeting. "Beijing claims to be neutral, but its behavior makes clear it is still investing in close ties to Russia," a State Department spokesperson said, adding Washington was "monitoring Beijing’s activity closely." Reporting by Michael Martina and Kanishka Singh; Editing by Doina ChiacuOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The storm forced U.S. airlines to cancel thousands of flights around the holiday weekend, but Southwest's problems deepened while other airlines largely recovered. Southwest plans to return to normal flight schedules on Friday, the airline said in a statement, adding it was eager to get back to normal ahead of the New Year holiday weekend. On a Sept. 27 picket line, she added, one sign read, "Picket line loading, Southwest Airlines technology failure." The comments echoed those of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, which said leadership had failed to adapt operations to address repeated systems failures, despite years of calls for improvements by the union. The U.S. Transportation Department is investigating the large number of cancelled and delayed Southwest flights in recent days to determine if they were in the airline's control.

☆ Southwest unions say they warned company about outdated systems for years
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Shelby TauberWASHINGTON, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Employee unions say they warned Southwest Airlines Co. management for years that its technological systems badly needed upgrades, as the low-cost carrier canceled thousands of flights during the busy holiday travel crunch. Flight attendants have been complaining about technological failures at the airline for years, according to Lyn Montgomery, president of the Southwest Airlines Flight Attendance Union. On a Sept. 27 picket line, she added, one sign read, "Picket line loading, Southwest Airlines technology failure." The comments echoed those of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, which blamed leadership failures in adapting airline operations to address repeated systems failures despite years of calls for improvements by the union. Company officials acknowledged that current problems stem, in part, from an inability of internal logistics and scheduling systems to recover after widespread storm disruptions.

☆ Chinese jet came within 20 feet of U.S. military aircraft- U.S. military
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 29 (Reuters) - A Chinese military plane came within 20 feet (6 metres) of a U.S. air force aircraft and forced it to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision in international airspace over the South China Sea last week, the U.S. military said on Thursday. The close encounter followed what the United States has called a recent trend of increasingly dangerous behavior by Chinese military aircraft. The incident, which involved a Chinese Navy J-11 fighter jet and a U.S. air force RC-135 aircraft, took place on Dec. 21, the U.S. military added in a statement. In a meeting with his Chinese counterpart in November, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin raised the need to improve crisis communications, and also noted what he called dangerous behavior by Chinese military planes. Reporting by Idrees Ali and Doina Chiacu Editing by Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Chinese jet came within 10 feet of U.S. military aircraft -U.S. military
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Idrees Ali | Thomson Reuters | National Security Correspondent Focusing On The Pentagon In Washington D.C. Reports On U.S. Military Activity | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The close encounter followed what the United States has called a recent trend of increasingly dangerous behavior by Chinese military aircraft. A U.S. military spokesperson said the Chinese jet came within 10 feet of the plane's wing, but 20 feet from its nose, which caused the U.S. aircraft to take evasive maneuvers. China claims vast swathes of the South China Sea that overlap with the exclusive economic zones of Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and the Philippines. In a meeting with his Chinese counterpart in November, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin raised the need to improve crisis communications, and also noted what he called dangerous behavior by Chinese military planes. Australia's defence department said in June that a Chinese fighter aircraft dangerously intercepted an Australian military surveillance plane in the South China Sea region in May.

Congress, currently controlled by Biden's Democrats, is expected to approve $44.9 billion more this week in a bill funding the federal government. Zelenskiy stressed as he began his speech that he was addressing both Democrats and Republicans. "No more blank checks to Ukraine," Republican Representative Andy Biggs wrote on Twitter hours before Zelenskiy's visit to Washington. Biggs, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, has emerged as the main challenger to House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy in the House speakership election, slated for Jan. 3. Gaetz said nothing had changed his opposition to Ukraine aid and, when asked if there was anything compelling in the speech, said, "I loved the fashion choices."

The Senate voted 70-25 to proceed to debate of the bill, with some Republican senators hoping to offer amendments. A handful of conservative Senate Republicans on Tuesday said they objected to the bill, but would not try to stop its passage. Top Senate Republican Mitch McConnell said most of his caucus supports it: "We're moving toward completing the business for the year. And I think in a highly productive way from the point of view of the vast majority of Senate Republicans." Among the most significant add-ons to the spending bill is the bipartisan Electoral Count Act, which overhauls and clarifies Congress' certification process for presidential elections.

☆ Trump paid no income tax in 2020, reported losses in office, records show
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Andy Sullivan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Donald Trump paid no income tax during the final full year of his presidency as he reported a loss from his sprawling business interests, according to tax figures released by a congressional panel. Democrats on the panel said their review found that tax authorities did not properly scrutinize Trump's complex tax returns to ensure accuracy. In 2017, Trump and his wife reported adjusted gross income of negative $12.9 million, leading to a net income tax of $750, the records showed. They reported adjusted gross income of $24.3 million in 2018 and paid a net tax of $1 million, while in 2019 they reported $4.4 million of income in 2019 and paid $134,000 in taxes. In 2020, they reported a loss of $4.8 million and paid no net income tax.

"No more blank checks to Ukraine," Republican Representative Andy Biggs wrote on Twitter hours before Zelenskiy's visit to Washington. Biggs, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, has emerged as the main challenger to House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy in the House speakership election, slated for Jan. 3. Many House Republicans insist that they do support Ukraine. "I hope all House Republicans will attend the Zelenskiy address this evening. And when they do, they should listen to President Zelenskiy describe the horror his people have endured at the hands of (Russian President) Vladimir Putin," Schumer said.

WASHINGTON, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Conservative Republicans in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday expressed outrage at a $1.66 trillion government funding bill, but signaled that they did not intend to significantly delay the measure, which could lead to a weekend partial government shutdown. Fellow Republican Senator Mike Braun said the group will intensify its budget reform efforts next year, when Republicans take control of the House of Representatives. Top Senate Republican Mitch McConnell said most of his caucus supports it: "We're moving toward completing the business for the year. And I think in a highly productive way from the point of view of the vast majority of Senate Republicans." Among the most significant add-ons to the spending bill is the bipartisan Electoral Count Act, which overhauls and clarifies Congress' certification process for presidential elections.

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