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MadAboutPolitics.com - Featured News
Featured News
Today's Political News Compilation - Wednesday, March 12, 2025
AP Photo
Trump administration resumes detention of immigrant families after Biden-era pause
By VALERIE GONZALEZUpdated 6:24 PM CDT, March 12, 2025
McALLEN, Texas (AP) — The Trump administration resumed family detention of immigrants last week in a South Texas facility after a Biden-era pause, a legal nonprofit group providing services to migrant families said Wednesday.
Fourteen immigrant families with children as young as one year old were in the detention facility in Karnes County, Texas, about 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) southeast of San Antonio, according to RAICES, which provides services to families at the center. The families are originally from Colombia, Romania, Iran, Angola, Russia, Armenia, Turkey and Brazil.
Faisal Al-Juburi, the organization’s chief external affairs officer, said the families had been detained in the U.S. near the Mexican and Canadian borders. Some were in the U.S. for as little as 20 days and others for as long as about 10 years, Al-Juburi said. The nonprofit provided service to adult detainees at the center prior to last week’s shift in the center’s detention population when the adult detainees were moved out.
Both the Obama administration and Trump’s first administration detained families until their immigration cases played out. Trump severely curbed asylum and forcibly separated children from their parents at the border in a policy widely denounced as inhumane.
READ THE FULL STORY - AP
Trump overstepped his constitutional authority in freezing Congress' funding for USAID, judge says
A federal judge says President Donald Trump overstepped his authority in freezing almost all spending on U.S. humanitarian and development work abroad. Judge Amir H.
apnews.com
Judge temporarily blocks part of Trump’s executive order against prominent Democratic Party-tied law firm Perkins Coie | CNN Politics
A federal judge on Wednesday halted parts of President Donald Trump’s executive order that targeted a Democratic-linked law firm.
www.cnn.com
Judge hopes to rule next week on Trump order banning transgender people from military service
A federal judge says she hopes to rule next week on whether to block President Donald Trump’s administration from banning transgender people from serving in the U.S. military.
apnews.com
Trump pardons former Tennessee lawmaker imprisoned in campaign fraud scheme
Brian Kelsey pleaded guilty to charges related to his attempts to funnel campaign money from his state legislative seat toward his failed 2016 congressional bid.
www.cbsnews.com
'Corruption in broad daylight': Dems outraged by Trump 'playing car salesman' for Tesla
President Donald Trump took the driver's seat to support Elon Musk on Tuesday following a steep decline in Tesla's stock amid ongoing protests at Tesla showrooms across the country.
www.foxnews.com
Musk eyes Social Security and benefit programs for cuts while claiming widespread fraud
Elon Musk says Social Security and other federal benefit programs will be targeted in his hunt for fraudulent spending.
apnews.com
Trump hits back after retaliation to steel and aluminium tariffs
Trump repeated trade threats after the European Union and Canada retaliated to US steel and aluminium tariffs.
www.bbc.com
Canada and the EU swiftly retaliate against Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said as the United States is “applying tariffs worth 28 billion dollars, we are responding with countermeasures worth 26 billion euros,” or about $28 billion.
apnews.com
House divided over consequences for controversial congressman
Democratic lawmakers are against efforts to remove Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, from his committee position, while Republicans tell Fox they disagree with his disruption of Trump's joint address.
www.foxnews.com
A breakdown of major EPA deregulatory moves around water, air, climate
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin on Wednesday announced nearly three dozen deregulatory moves that he said would spur the U.S. economy by rolling back rules that have unfairly burdened industry.
apnews.com
6 American prisoners in Kuwait released, land back in US, representative says
The Americans, many of whom are veterans and former military contractors, were convicted on drug charges, a representative for their families told ABC News.
abcnews.go.com
Trump campaigned as a protector of free speech. Critics say his actions as president threaten it
President Donald Trump campaigned as a champion of free speech, but First Amendment advocates say they’ve never seen freedom of speech under attack the way it has been in his second term.
apnews.com
Canada, EU strike back at Trump tariffs; DOGE cuts mount: Trade war live updates
Canada and the European Union swiftly unveil retaliatory levies against the U.S., hours after Trump's sweeping tariffs on steel and aluminum.
www.usatoday.com
What to know about the charges against former Texas megachurch pastor Robert Morris
Also a former spiritual advisor to Donald Trump, Robert Morris was indicted on five felony counts stemming from alleged sexual abuse of 12-year-old
www.usatoday.com
Chinese nationals banned from US student visas under new House GOP proposal
Rep. Riley Moore is leading a bill to ban Chinese nationals from getting student visas in the U.S.
www.foxnews.com
Trump halts doubling of tariffs on Canadian metals after Ontario suspends electricity price hikes
President Donald Trump’s threat to double his planned tariffs on steel and aluminum from 25% to 50% for Canada has led the provincial government of Ontario to suspend its planned surcharges on electricity sold to the United States.
apnews.com
Israel, Hamas continue truce talks; Arab states present Gaza plan to US
Hamas welcomes Trump’s comments as US envoy briefed on Arab plan to rebuild Gaza.
www.aljazeera.com
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Pakistan army says 300 hostages freed from train
More than 30 militants were killed in the operation, a military spokesperson says.
Continue reading...Federal student loan website down after layoffs gutted Education Department
An hours-long outage Wednesday on StudentAid.gov, the federal website for student loans and financial aid, underscored the risks in rapidly gutting the Department of Education, as President Donald Trump aims to dismantle the agency.
Hundreds of users reported FAFSA outages to Downdetector starting midday Wednesday, saying they were having trouble completing the form, which is required for financial aid at colleges nationwide. The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, a group of people who handle colleges' financial aid...
Continue reading...Hundreds of users reported FAFSA outages to Downdetector starting midday Wednesday, saying they were having trouble completing the form, which is required for financial aid at colleges nationwide. The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, a group of people who handle colleges' financial aid...
Trump pardons former Tennessee lawmaker imprisoned in campaign fraud scheme
President Trump has pardoned a former Republican Tennessee lawmaker who was two weeks into a 21-month prison sentence for an illegal campaign finance scheme that he pleaded guilty to in 2022, before he tried unsuccessfully to take back his plea.
Former state Sen. Brian Kelsey announced the pardon in a social media post Tuesday evening. He had been ordered to report to FCI Ashland's minimum security satellite camp in Kentucky on Feb. 24.
Kelsey received a "full and unconditional pardon" for his case and authorities were ordered to release him from...
Continue reading...Former state Sen. Brian Kelsey announced the pardon in a social media post Tuesday evening. He had been ordered to report to FCI Ashland's minimum security satellite camp in Kentucky on Feb. 24.
Kelsey received a "full and unconditional pardon" for his case and authorities were ordered to release him from...
Idaho becomes first state to prefer death by firing squad for executions
Idaho Gov. Brad Little signed his name on a bill Wednesday making Idaho the only state in the U.S. to have a firing squad designated as the preferred execution method for capital punishment, beginning next year.
The governor’s action comes less than a week after Brad Sigmon, 67, of South Carolina, was executed by way of a firing squad for killing his ex-girlfriend’s parents with a baseball bat in 2001.
Sigmon was pronounced dead nearly three minutes after being shot by three volunteer prison employees last Friday – a method used for the first time...
Continue reading...The governor’s action comes less than a week after Brad Sigmon, 67, of South Carolina, was executed by way of a firing squad for killing his ex-girlfriend’s parents with a baseball bat in 2001.
Sigmon was pronounced dead nearly three minutes after being shot by three volunteer prison employees last Friday – a method used for the first time...
Hegseth orders review of military fitness and grooming standards: 'Our adversaries are not growing weaker'
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is ordering a review of military fitness and grooming standards as the Trump administration continues to reverse policies critics say have made America's fighting force appear weaker on the global stage.
In a memo Wednesday to senior Pentagon leadership, Hegseth ordered Darin Selnick, the under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness, to gather existing standards in all U.S. military branches related to physical fitness, body composition and grooming, including regulations on beards.
"We must remain...
Continue reading...In a memo Wednesday to senior Pentagon leadership, Hegseth ordered Darin Selnick, the under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness, to gather existing standards in all U.S. military branches related to physical fitness, body composition and grooming, including regulations on beards.
"We must remain...
Trump pardons convicted lawmaker once represented by the White House counsel
Trump pardons convicted Tennessee lawmaker once represented by the White House counsel.
Continue reading...Education Department cuts agency that measures student performance
Education Department cuts agency that compiles 'Nation's Report Card' and measures student performance.
Continue reading...Illinois Dem lawmaker pushes bill to legalize attacks on police for people having mental health episode
An Illinois lawmaker has introduced a bill that critics say will make it legal for anyone experiencing a mental health episode to attack police officers.
Democratic state Rep. Lisa Davis, an attorney in the Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender's office, introduced House Bill 3458 in February.
Under the terms of the legislation, the bill would "[provide] that it is a defense to aggravated battery when the individual battered is a peace officer and the officer responded to an incident in which the officer interacted with a person whom a...
Continue reading...Democratic state Rep. Lisa Davis, an attorney in the Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender's office, introduced House Bill 3458 in February.
Under the terms of the legislation, the bill would "[provide] that it is a defense to aggravated battery when the individual battered is a peace officer and the officer responded to an incident in which the officer interacted with a person whom a...
'Do you feel guilty?' - Watch BBC reporter challenge smuggler as he follows lethal drugs trade
Quentin Sommerville gains access to a cartel's operation as the US grapples with hundreds of thousands of opioid deaths.
Continue reading...SpaceX launch that aimed to get stranded astronauts home postponed
Nasa's SpaceX mission will could try again on Thursday as part of the effort to retrieve Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore.
Continue reading...A man called Bombshell fires up Zimbabwe's succession battle
Zimbabwe's leader faces a backlash from key allies over efforts to extend his time in office.
Continue reading...US tech firms feel pinch from China tariffs
The price of China-made smartphones, TVs and laptops could rise in the US and elsewhere, experts warn.
Continue reading...EPA head says he'll roll back dozens of environmental regulations
In what he called the “most consequential day of deregulation in American history,” the head of the Environmental Protection Agency announced a series of actions Wednesday to roll back landmark environmental regulations, including rules on pollution from coal-fired power plants, climate change and electric vehicles.
“We are driving a dagger through the heart of climate-change religion and ushering in America’s Golden Age,'' EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in an essay in The Wall Street Journal.
If approved after a lengthy process that includes...
Continue reading...“We are driving a dagger through the heart of climate-change religion and ushering in America’s Golden Age,'' EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in an essay in The Wall Street Journal.
If approved after a lengthy process that includes...
Reporter's Notebook: How a fireside chat set a new standard for presidential leadership
Late President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave his first fireside chat on this day in 1933 to an audience of approximately 60 million, setting the standard for a leader's obligation to explain himself. John Dickerson explains.
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