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....Hagel resigns as U.S. defense secretary
WASHINGTON — U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel resigned on Monday, leaving under pressure as President Obama faces critical national security challenges, including fighting Islamic State in Iraq and Syria and revising plans to exit Afghanistan.It was the first major change to Obama's Cabinet since Democrats were routed in midterm...FBI tracking 150 Americans who traveled to Syria, perhaps to fight
BOSTON — The Federal Bureau of Investigation is tracking close to 150 Americans it believes traveled to Syria in recent months, potentially to join armed groups, FBI Director James Comey said on Tuesday.He said Americans fighting with foreign jihadist groups are a top concern for the FBI because of the possibility they could return...Marine who vanished twice to face trial on desertion charge
WASHINGTON — A U.S. Marine accused of deserting the military after disappearing in Iraq and then again failing to report for duty in North Carolina nearly 10 years ago will face a court martial in December, the Marine Corps said on Wednesday.Corporal Wassef Ali Hassoun, an Arabic interpreter, was listed as a deserter for almost a...
Obama announces action on sweeping immigration reform
November 21st, 20140 WASHINGTON — President Obama imposed the most sweeping immigration reform in a generation on Thursday, easing the threat of deportation for about 4.7 million undocumented immigrants and setting up a clash with Republicans.In a White House speech, Obama rejected Republican critics who say his decision to bypass Congress and take...New York doctor now free of Ebola discharged from hospital
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio hugs Dr. Craig Spencer as he is discharged from Bellevue Hospital.NEW YORK CITY — A New York doctor who has recovered from Ebola left the hospital on Tuesday and urged support for U.S. health workers treating patients in West Africa so they do not face "stigma and threats" when they return home.The...Slain Ferguson teen’s dad seeks justice at U.N.
The mother Lesley McSpadden (L) and father Michael Brown Sr. (C) of slain teenager Michael Brown.GENEVA — The father of Black teenager Michael Brown, shot dead by a policeman in Ferguson, Missouri, in August, said on Wednesday he and the boy's mother had come to the United Nations in Geneva to seek justice for their son.In a statement......
Window washers rescued after dangling at NYC’s World Trade Center
The broken scaffolding that had stranded window washers earlier on the side of 1 World Trade Center in New York November 12, 2014.NEW YORK — Two window washers trapped on a broken platform outside the 69th floor of New York's One World Trade Center scrambled to safety through a hole cut in the glass on Wednesday after dangling for two...Obama picks civil rights advocate Loretta Lynch to be next U.S. attorney general
Lynch.WASHINGTON — President Obama on Saturday picked Brooklyn federal prosecutor Loretta Lynch to be the next U.S. attorney general who, if confirmed by the Senate, would be the first Black woman in the job.Lynch would replace Eric Holder, the first Black attorney general, who has held the job since Obama took office in 2009. She was......
Obama to seek authority from Congress for “Islamic State” fight
WASHINGTON — President Obama said on Wednesday he would seek fresh authorization from Congress in the next few weeks for the U.S. military campaign against Islamic State militants, taking a new approach to congressional backing for the fight.Obama made the announcement at a news conference after his Democratic Party suffered big...Republicans sweep Congress Obama: “I hear you.”
WASHINGTON — Tuesday's elections brought sweeping victory for Republicans, who solidified their grip on the U.S. House of Representatives and took control of the U.S. Senate.The president's tone after the Republican takeover of the Senate boiled down to this: He shares the blame for Democrats' sweeping losses and will consider...Quarantine-like monitoring approved for U.S. troops on Ebola mission
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Wednesday approved a strict, 21-day quarantine-like monitoring period for all U.S. troops returning from the Ebola relief mission in West Africa, the Pentagon said.Hagel, acting at the recommendation of top military commanders, signed a memo asking for an implementation plan for the...U.S. tightens Ebola monitoring for West African visitors
WASHINGTON — On Wednesday, the United States imposed new constraints on on people entering the country from three nations at the center of West Africa's Ebola epidemic, mandating that they report their temperature daily and stay in touch with health authorities.President Obama expressed cautious optimism about the situation in the......
Man arrested after jumping White House fence, causing lockdown
WASHINGTON - A man jumped the White House fence on Wednesday evening and was attacked by Secret Service dogs before being arrested, a Secret Service spokesman said."Dogs got him," the spokesman said, referring to the intruder.Video showed Secret Service agents surrounding the man on the north lawn of the White House, which was put on...Ebola scare hits Dallas, Cleveland and Atlanta
DALLAS — Several schools were closed and six airline crew members placed on leave Thursday following news a nurse with Ebola had taken a commercial flight, heightening anxiety over the spread of the virus and how authorities were handling the health emergency.In Washington, federal health officials will be questioned by lawmakers at......
Accused White House fence jumper faces more charges
WASHINGTON — An Iraq war veteran accused of running inside the White House armed with a knife faces more charges under a federal grand jury indictment returned on Thursday.Omar Gonzalez, 42, is alleged to have climbed over the White House fence on Sept. 29, burst through the front door and made it to the executive mansion's East Room...Tennessee man jailed after beheading threats, ISIS membership claim
NASHVILLE — A Tennessee man was in custody on Thursday and facing criminal charges after claiming to be a member of ISIS and threatening to behead his neighbors and burn down their homes, police said.Tullahoma Police Chief Paul Blackwell said the man - Terry Wayne McCullough, 59 - is a known troublemaker but that the threats had to be......
