China on Tuesday banned exports of goods that could be used for military purposes to Japan, a move that escalates tensions between Beijing and a key U.S. ally as disputes intensify over Taiwan. The Chinese Commerce Ministry said in a statement that any items that have a dual use — civilian and military — would no longer be exported to Japan. The government did not offer specifics on which items would be included in the...
The arrest of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has reopened debate over whether the country’s long-isolated economy could soon re-engage with global markets, but analysts caution that sanctions relief and recovery are far from guaranteed. Venezuela is among the world’s most heavily sanctioned countries, alongside Russia, Iran, Syria, North Korea and Cuba, a status that has severely restricted its access to international finance and trade. Andres Martinez-Fernandez, a senior policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation’s...
A major state audit in Minnesota conducted by the nonpartisan Office of the Legislative Auditor found widespread failures and internal control problems in the Department of Human Services’ Behavioral Health Administration (BHA) grant program, reaffirming concerns about massive fraud issues. The report, released on Monday, found that between July 1, 2022, and Dec. 31, 2024, DHS dished out more than $425 million in grants to 830 organizations, the majority being nongovernmental, and did not show proper...
‘Are You Not Entertained?’ With the country’s economy improving and other issues losing traction with the public, Democrats are increasingly turning to the one thing lacking in Washington: impeachment. As they work to take back the House in the midterms, Democrats are again promising voters the equivalent of the Roman Games by restarting impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump. For many liberal voters, impeachment has become the thrilling cage match of lawfare. Facing a challenger...
The death of Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., has shrunk the Republican majority in the House of Representatives to the minimum of 218 seats, presenting fresh challenges for Speaker Mike Johnson as the party heads into an election year. LaMalfa, 65, died suddenly on Tuesday during an emergency surgery. He was a staunch ally of President Donald Trump and a reliable vote for Johnson’s priorities. His death means Johnson can only lose two Republican votes and...
UK housebuilding has fallen to its weakest level since the Covid-19 lockdowns of 2020, underlining the scale of the challenge facing ministers as they attempt to revive construction and meet housing targets. New data from S&P Global shows activity across the UK construction sector continued to shrink in December, with housing and commercial construction work both contracting at the fastest pace in more than four years. The survey of purchasing managers found that housebuilding and...
Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI has secured $20bn (£15.7bn) in fresh funding, pressing ahead with its expansion plans even as its flagship chatbot, Grok, faces intensifying global scrutiny over the creation of sexualised and non-consensual images of women and children. The Series E funding round, announced on Tuesday, exceeded xAI’s initial $15bn target and attracted heavyweight backers including Nvidia, Fidelity, Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund and Valor Equity Partners, the private investment firm run by...
Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the entrepreneur behind easyJet, is offering ambitious young business owners the chance to secure up to £150,000 in funding as the third annual Stelios Awards for Young Entrepreneurs officially open in the UK. More than 30 years after founding easyJet at the age of just 27, Sir Stelios has built an “easy” brand empire spanning more than 200 businesses, from budget airlines and hotels to storage, shipping and retail. Now, through the...
Donald Trump has claimed that Venezuela will “turn over” between 30 and 50 million barrels of oil to the United States following a US-backed operation that removed President Nicolás Maduro from power. Posting on social media, the US president said the oil — worth an estimated $2.8bn (£2.1bn) at current market prices, would be sold by the US, with proceeds controlled by him and used “to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States”....
A bipartisan group of senators is still working on a fix for the now-expired Obamacare subsidies and believe that they may be nearing a proposal that could hit the Senate floor. The confab, which met a handful of times during Congress’ holiday break, adjourned once more behind closed doors on Monday night. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, are leading the talks among several Senate Republicans and Democrats looking for a compromise solution....
