US News

Late last week, the Trump administration officially denied Washington state’s request for federal disaster aid to help recover from last year’s devastating “bomb cyclone.” The powerful storm killed at least two people and caused widespread damage to homes, businesses, and critical infrastructure. In a letter sent Friday, the administration responded to a $34 million aid request initially filed by former Gov. Jay Inslee with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) before leaving office. The letter, addressed to current Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson, stated: “This is in response to your January 14, 2025, request for a major disaster declaration for the State of Washington due to severe storms, straight-line winds, flooding, landslides, and mudslides between November 17 and No...

President Donald Trump is facing serious legal pushback after floating the idea of sending violent American criminals to foreign prisons—specifically, to El Salvador’s infamous CECOT mega-prison. This idea came up during his meeting with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, where Trump praised the facility and called for more prisons to be built to handle not just foreign criminals, but also “homegrown” violent offenders from the U.S. "If it’s a homegrown criminal, I have no problem," Trump told reporters. "I’m talking about really bad people—every bit as bad as the ones coming in." Even before the media entered the room, Trump reportedly encouraged Bukele to consider building additional prisons because the existing one wasn’t “big enough” for all the criminals he hoped to send t...

The White House has urged Colombia to hold off on enforcing new auto safety regulations that could disrupt nearly $700 million worth of U.S. car exports. The call comes as both countries gear up for trade talks following recent U.S. tariffs on key Colombian exports such as coffee, avocados, flowers, and oil. In a letter addressed to Colombia’s Ministry of Commerce, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer warned that the proposed changes in vehicle certification standards could lead to a “total cessation” of U.S. automotive exports to the South American country. The letter, dated April 11, was leaked to local media and obtained by the Associated Press. Greer’s letter also suggested that if Colombia moves forward with the new rules, it could be seen as an “unfair trading pract...

On February 24, 19-year-old Merwil Gutiérrez was outside his Bronx apartment with two friends when he was detained by ICE agents, even though they reportedly admitted he wasn't the person they were looking for. According to Merwil’s father, Wilmer Gutiérrez, officers stopped all three boys at the building entrance. “One officer said, ‘No, he’s not the one,’ but another replied, ‘Take him anyway,’” Wilmer told Documented. Weeks later, Wilmer managed to speak to his son, who told him he was being held in Pennsylvania and feared being deported to Venezuela. But instead, he was sent to El Salvador — specifically to CECOT, the high-security prison now being used by the U.S. to hold deported immigrants. Merwil has no criminal history and no gang ties, according to his family. He cam...

The Trump administration is using sensitive government data—normally kept private—to locate undocumented immigrants in the U.S., targeting where they work, live, and study. This data, which many individuals gave in good faith while applying for housing or filing taxes, is now being used to support the administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement policies. At the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), officials are preparing a new rule that would ban mixed-status households—families where some members are U.S. citizens or legal residents and others are undocumented—from receiving public housing assistance. According to insiders, the administration is also trying to remove existing mixed-status families from public housing altogether. Meanwhile, the Social Securi...

America’s self-proclaimed dealmaker-in-chief is now throwing a wrench into Wall Street’s business flow. When Donald Trump returned to the White House, many in the financial world anticipated a surge in IPOs, dealmaking, and capital raising — a wave of activity expected to energize U.S. stock exchanges and investment firms alike. But just five months in, Trump’s sweeping trade war is chilling the deals market instead. Several companies, including StubHub, Klarna, and eToro, have paused their plans to go public. Corporate leaders are becoming increasingly hesitant to greenlight investments, signaling a potential long-term freeze in mergers and acquisitions. “People are paralyzed,” said West Riggs, head of equity capital markets at Truist Securities. “Things won’t change overnigh...

The Wall Street Journal delivered a sharp critique of President Donald Trump’s unpredictable trade policy, cautioning that American consumers are now bearing the brunt of a “triple whammy” under his tariff strategy. In an editorial titled “Trump’s Exceptional Tariff Weekend,” published on Sunday, the paper’s conservative editorial board described the past weekend as chaotic and confusing, highlighting what they called the “arbitrary nature of Trump trade policy.” The confusion began when the administration announced a temporary exemption on tariffs for imported electronics like smartphones and laptops. Soon after, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick stated that those tariffs would increase again shortly. Then, on Sunday, Trump posted on social media that “NOBODY is getting ‘off...

The Trump administration is preparing to impose tariffs on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals, moving forward with national security investigations into imports from those sectors, as revealed in notices published Monday in the Federal Register. This move adds to the turbulence in the global trade landscape, which has already been shaken by a flurry of tariff announcements, rollbacks, and changes from the Trump administration over the past two weeks, triggering sharp reactions in financial markets. Although semiconductors and pharmaceuticals were initially exempt from the 10% tariffs imposed on most imports starting April 5, Trump had stated they would be subject to separate levies. On Sunday, he mentioned that the tariff rate on semiconductors would be revealed in the coming wee...

Americans angry over Elon Musk’s sweeping cuts to federal services aren’t just venting online — they’re showing up in person. Across the country, frustrated citizens are staging demonstrations outside Tesla showrooms, and it’s starting to rattle Musk. “Who is funding and organizing all these paid protests?” he complained on X, referring to the nationwide “Tesla Takedown” protests. But maybe Musk should be asking a different question: “Who designed my showrooms to be so protest-friendly?” The answer? Elon Musk himself. While traditional car dealerships are typically located on the outskirts of cities, Tesla flipped the script. Of the 276 Tesla showrooms in the U.S., most sit right in the heart of affluent, bustling neighborhoods—often where wealthy progressives live, shop, and din...