Washington, U.S.According to a Senate Democratic report released Wednesday, a vital national security office is still severely understaffed, allowing Russian-made technology to continue to end up in Ukrainian hands. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, is leading the investigation, which was released at the same time as members of the incoming Trump administration demand significant expenditure cutbacks. The new analysis emphasizes how current capacity shortages in important federal agencies are already harming U.S. interests, despite their arguments centered on reducing government waste. Democratic staff on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations claim in the 30-page study that the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) enforcement of expo...

Moscow Late Wednesday, the mother of American journalist Austin Tice wrote to Russian President Vladimir Putin, requesting his assistance in locating her son, who vanished in Syria twelve years ago. "The current situation in Syria compels us to ask for your help in finding Austin and safely reuniting our family," wrote Debra Tice in a letter. "You have profound connections with the Syrian government, which can be a great benefit for our unrelenting efforts to find our Austin and reunite our family." "In this holiday season of peace and goodwill, we respectfully request your assistance in finding Austin and safely reuniting him with our family," she added. Watch NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt tonight at 6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CT for more on this topic. Hours after Israeli Prime Ministe...

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that a person in Louisiana was hospitalized with avian flu, the nation's first serious human H5N1 illness. According to Louisiana Department of Health spokeswoman Emma Herrock, the patient is in serious condition at the hospital and is suffering from a severe respiratory sickness linked to an H5N1 infection. This would be the first time a backyard flock has been linked to a bird flu infection in a U.S. resident, according to the CDC, which also stated that the patient was most likely exposed to the virus from the flock. During a briefing on Wednesday, Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, stated that although an investigation is still underway to determine the origin of this i...

Authorities said Tuesday that a man from Michigan had confessed to organizing a mass shooting at the offices of a local political party and a club in the area because he connected both places to homosexuals. In Owosso, which is roughly 25 miles west of Flint, Mack Davis, 22, entered a guilty plea to one count of committing a hate crime by trying to carry out the mass murders. According to a news release from the Department of Justice, he could receive a maximum sentence of life in prison. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke stated in a statement attached to the release that such cruel and despicable hate-fueled violence, which targets innocent people based on their sexual orientation, is incompatible with our beliefs as Americans. The LGBTQI+ community will not be the target of crim...

Although Olympic gold medallist Trinity Rodman is the daughter of a famed athlete, the American women's soccer player disclosed that she did not communicate with her father, Dennis Rodman, for years. In an interview with the "Call Her Daddy" podcast on Wednesday, the 22-year-old ventured into what she called "new territory" by talking about her family. A rising star in the soccer world, Trinity Rodman was crucial to the Washington Spirit's championship victory in her rookie season and at the age of 18 became the youngest player drafted into the National Women's Soccer League. When she assisted the United States in winning its first gold medal in women's soccer since the London 2012 Summer Olympics, she became an overnight sensation. For sports fans, however, "Rodman" is not precisely a new...

Following the Federal Reserve's signaling of a slower pace of interest-rate decreases for 2025 than initially anticipated, which rekindled concerns about how quickly inflation would decline, major stock indices fell sharply on Wednesday. As markets closed for the day, the S&P 500 lost 2.4% and the Nasdaq Composite lost almost 3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced its largest decline since August, plunging more than 1,100 points. The Dow is now on the verge of its worst losing run in half a century after its tenth straight day of declines. Despite being striking, the trend mostly shows that investors are shifting their focus from more established businesses to tech firms, which the Dow tends to give less weight to. Just a few months ago, the Fed projected four rate cuts for n...

DETROIT Industry analysts predict that next year's new car sales in the United States will reach their greatest level since 2019, driven by improved affordability and reduced financing rates. Cox Automotive anticipates 16.3 million new light-duty vehicle sales in 2025, which is marginally more than S&P Global Mobility and Edmunds' projections of 16.2 million sales in the same year. These sales would be the biggest since about 17 million in 2019 and would surpass projections of 15.9 million to 16 million this year. That would correspond to a 2.5% or less predicted increase in new automobile and truck sales. Automakers' incentives and discounts, relaxing financing and loan rates, and the ongoing normalization of car inventories are anticipated to be the main drivers of the increase. Jess...

The front lawn of the Milam family's Dallas home has been turned into a miniature golf winter paradise for the holidays. The Christmas decorations are on display from almost sunrise to sunset, and visitors can rent a club to play a game of putt-putt with themes like Santa, candy canes, snowflakes, and more. Firefighter and father of two Mike Milam stated, "You can see not just the excitement and wonderment of kids but also of adults." Since the Covid epidemic, the Milam family has made decking out the front yard an annual ritual. The ornate decorations of the family of four reflect a trend that several shops, such as Home Depot and Walmart, have attempted to follow in recent years: Even while they keep an eye on their spending on other luxuries, some consumers are increasing their purchase...