https://www.voanews.com/z/599 The latest news and analysis about United States culture, education, entertainment, race, immigration, politics, and religion. https://www.voanews.com/Content/responsive/VOA/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.voanews.com/z/599 en 2026 - VOA 60 Tue, 09 Jun 2026 09:15:52 -0400 Pangea CMS – VOA The replacement crew for the International Space Station was launched late Friday, paving the way for the return home of Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, two NASA astronauts stuck on the space station for nine months.The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at 7:03 p.m. from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida carrying Crew-10 members: NASA’s Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japan’s Takuya Onishi and Russia’s Kirill Peskov. The crew is part of a routine six-month rotation.Crew-10 and the... https://www.voanews.com/a/nasa-spacex-launch-crew-to-space-station-to-retrieve-stuck-astronauts/8011575.html https://www.voanews.com/a/nasa-spacex-launch-crew-to-space-station-to-retrieve-stuck-astronauts/8011575.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 06:04:44 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) A California jury Friday imposed a $50 million fine on Starbucks in the case of a delivery driver burned by a scalding cup of hot tea at a company location in Los Angeles.Michael Garcia was picking up three drinks in 2020 but one, he claimed, was "negligently" unsecured and spilled in his lap. He claimed that he consequently "suffered severe burns, disfigurement, and debilitating nerve damage to his genitals" and he was taken to an emergency room by... https://www.voanews.com/a/8011572.html https://www.voanews.com/a/8011572.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 05:47:48 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) A U.S. federal appeals court Friday lifted a block on the Trump administration’s crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the federal government, pausing a lower court ruling blocking enforcement of a series of presidential executive orders halting support of DEI initiatives.The three-judge panel on the Fourth Circuit of Appeals, in Richmond, Virginia, found that the directives by President Donald Trump were likely constitutional, disagreeing with a ruling in February by a... https://www.voanews.com/a/us-appeals-court-allows-dei-crackdown/8011570.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-appeals-court-allows-dei-crackdown/8011570.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 05:35:26 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) U.S. weather forecasters warned of the threat of tornados in multiple states this weekend following at least five twisters in the state of Missouri on Friday.Friday's storms left some 100,000 buildings without power as severe weather continued into the night.The tornado risk was expected to continue into the weekend in a slew of states including Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama. Accuweather predicted the storm risk to peak from Saturday afternoon to Saturday night.The National Weather... https://www.voanews.com/a/forecasters-warn-of-tornadoes-in-us-in-coming-days/8011541.html https://www.voanews.com/a/forecasters-warn-of-tornadoes-in-us-in-coming-days/8011541.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 02:11:12 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) U.S. President Donald Trump promised to seek accountability for those who pursued legal cases against him when he was out of office, speaking Friday at the Justice Department."Our predecessors turned this Department of Justice into the Department of Injustice. But I stand before you today to declare that those days are over, and they are never going to come back. They're never coming back," Trump said.During his years out of office, the department twice indicted Trump on... https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-vows-accountability-for-those-who-pursued-him-in-court-cases-/8011522.html https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-vows-accountability-for-those-who-pursued-him-in-court-cases-/8011522.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 23:12:18 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) Federal judges in two separate cases ruled this week that recent mass firings of employees as part of President Donald Trump’s push to cut the size of the federal workforce were illegal and ordered thousands of probationary employees to be reinstated — at least for now.The Trump administration pushed back, filing appeals in both cases."This injunction is entirely unconstitutional," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Friday."You cannot have a low-level district... https://www.voanews.com/a/judges-rule-mass-firings-of-agency-employees-to-be-illegal-/8011510.html https://www.voanews.com/a/judges-rule-mass-firings-of-agency-employees-to-be-illegal-/8011510.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 22:03:43 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) March 14 is Pi Day, an annual celebration of the mathematical constant of pi, representing the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter.The holiday is observed on March 14 or 3/14 because 3.14 are the first three digits of the infinite number pi — 3.14159 ... and on and on.The celebration of Pi Day was the brainchild of physicist Larry Shaw and was first observed in 1988 at San Francisco’s Exploratorium, a science museum, and has since grown into an international event.At that... https://www.voanews.com/a/pi-day-counts-on-never-ending-numerical-sequence-for-march-14-celebrations-/8011286.html https://www.voanews.com/a/pi-day-counts-on-never-ending-numerical-sequence-for-march-14-celebrations-/8011286.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 19:57:14 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) The U.S. Senate passed a stopgap spending bill Friday evening, averting a partial government shutdown and overcoming Democratic opposition to the measure.The bill passed 54-46 after clearing a more difficult procedural hurdle to stop debate on the measure, which required at least 60 votes.The Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed the bill earlier this week to meet a March 14 deadline to keep the government running.Senate Democrats had fractured over whether to support the... https://www.voanews.com/a/us-government-shutdown-likely-averted-democrats-fracture/8011226.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-government-shutdown-likely-averted-democrats-fracture/8011226.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 19:03:31 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) U.S. special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff said a Hamas statement issued Friday announcing it had agreed to release an American-Israeli soldier was, in reality, a condition of a "bridge" ceasefire proposal offered by U.S. officials earlier this week.Early Friday, the U.S.-designated terrorist group Hamas issued a statement saying it had agreed to release Edan Alexander, believed to be the last living American hostage held in Gaza, as well as the bodies of four other... https://www.voanews.com/a/us-envoy-says-hamas-misrepresented-release-of-hostage/8011067.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-envoy-says-hamas-misrepresented-release-of-hostage/8011067.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 15:35:19 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) The on-again, off-again tariffs between the United States and other countries are again under scrutiny, with the U.S. president not budging. VOA White House Correspondent Carolyn Presutti reports. https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-intent-on-imposing-global-tariffs/8010989.html https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-intent-on-imposing-global-tariffs/8010989.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 14:35:26 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (Carolyn Presutti) Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday that there were reasons for "cautious optimism" regarding a proposed ceasefire deal between Ukraine and Russia, following talks between a U.S. envoy and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.Speaking to reporters in a telephone news briefing, Peskov referenced comments from Putin on Thursday in which he expressed qualified support for a U.S. ceasefire proposal to halt Russia's war with Ukraine for 30 days but said some questions... https://www.voanews.com/a/kremlin-reasons-to-be-optimistic-about-ceasefire-deal/8010812.html https://www.voanews.com/a/kremlin-reasons-to-be-optimistic-about-ceasefire-deal/8010812.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 12:13:20 -0400 Ukrainewebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) The U.S. bird population is declining at an alarming rate, according to a report published Thursday by an alliance of science and conservation groups.Habitat loss and climate change are among the key contributing factors to the bird population losses, according to the 2025 U.S. State of the Birds report.More than 100 of the species studied, have reached a "tipping point," losing more than half their populations in the last 50 years. The report revealed that the avian population in... https://www.voanews.com/a/report-us-bird-population-is-declining/8010492.html https://www.voanews.com/a/report-us-bird-population-is-declining/8010492.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 02:55:47 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) Officials tell VOA the shortage of amphibious warfare ships has reached a breaking point. While the ships make up just 10% of the fleet, they are the go-to alternative to aircraft carriers when commanders need something more precise or expedient. VOA Pentagon Correspondent Carla Babb reports. https://www.voanews.com/a/shortage-of-marines-amphibious-warships-worries-top-us-military-officers/8010115.html https://www.voanews.com/a/shortage-of-marines-amphibious-warships-worries-top-us-military-officers/8010115.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 20:13:58 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (Carla Babb) PENTAGON — U.S. government lawyers are expected to face off with attorneys for civil and immigration rights groups over the use of a U.S. naval base in Cuba to hold migrants slated for deportation.Arguments in the two lawsuits over operations at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, filed against the Department of Homeland Security and Secretary Kristi Noem, are set for a U.S. District Court in Washington on Friday.The suits allege that the U.S. government has overstepped its bounds by denying... https://www.voanews.com/a/homeland-security-rights-group-to-meet-in-court-over-migrants-at-guantanamo-bay-/8010057.html https://www.voanews.com/a/homeland-security-rights-group-to-meet-in-court-over-migrants-at-guantanamo-bay-/8010057.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 19:09:03 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (Jeff Seldin) CHARLEVOIX, QUEBEC — Top diplomats from the Group of Seven leading industrial nations gathered Thursday in Charlevoix, Quebec, as host country Canada outlined its top agenda, focusing on achieving a “just and lasting peace in Ukraine” and strengthening security and defense partnerships as the G7 marks 50 years.During the opening remarks, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said, “Peace and stability is on the top of our agenda, and I look forward to discussing how we can continue to... https://www.voanews.com/a/ukraine-peace-global-security-top-g7-agenda-as-diplomats-convene-in-canada-/8010030.html https://www.voanews.com/a/ukraine-peace-global-security-top-g7-agenda-as-diplomats-convene-in-canada-/8010030.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 17:46:06 -0400 Ukrainewebdesk@voanews.com (Nike Ching) NEW YORK — Wall Street's sell-off hit a new low Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump's escalating trade war dragged the S&P 500 more than 10% below its record, which was set just last month.A 10% drop is deemed a correction by professional investors, and the S&P 500's 1.4% slide on Thursday sent the index to its first since 2023. The losses came after Trump upped the stakes in his trade war by threatening huge taxes on European wines and alcohol. Not even a... https://www.voanews.com/a/wall-street-tumbles-10-below-its-record-after-trump-escalates-trade-war/8010009.html https://www.voanews.com/a/wall-street-tumbles-10-below-its-record-after-trump-escalates-trade-war/8010009.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 17:14:25 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press) WASHINGTON — Donald Trump took the fight over his attempt to restrict automatic U.S. birthright citizenship to the Supreme Court on Thursday as the Republican president's administration asked the justices to narrow a judicial block imposed on this key element of his hardline approach toward immigration.The Justice Department made the request challenging the scope of three nationwide injunctions issued against Trump's order by federal courts in Washington state, Massachusetts and... https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-asks-supreme-court-to-intervene-in-bid-to-curb-birthright-citizenship/8009956.html https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-asks-supreme-court-to-intervene-in-bid-to-curb-birthright-citizenship/8009956.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 16:15:52 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (Reuters) U.S. lawmakers are running out of time to pass a short-term continuing resolution, or CR, that will fund the government past a March 14 deadline."Democrats need to decide if they're going to support funding legislation that came over from the House, or if they're going to shut down the government. So far, it's looking like they plan to shut it down," Senate Majority Leader John Thune said on the Senate floor Thursday.Appropriations bills require a 60-vote threshold... https://www.voanews.com/a/us-lawmakers-running-out-of-time-to-fund-government/8009839.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-lawmakers-running-out-of-time-to-fund-government/8009839.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 15:03:21 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (Katherine Gypson) Western politicians have repeatedly called on China to limit or cease tacit support for Russia’s bloody war against Ukraine. In response, China’s leadership insists it is committed to peace and respect for the territorial integrity of other nations.But unlike most United Nations member states, China has never condemned Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and their military-diplomatic partnership — from joint bomber flights near the U.S. state of Alaska to votes in the U.N. Security... https://www.voanews.com/a/can-the-us-pry-russia-away-from-china/8009771.html https://www.voanews.com/a/can-the-us-pry-russia-away-from-china/8009771.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 14:26:15 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (Danila Galperovich) A California federal judge on Thursday ordered six U.S. agencies to reinstate thousands of recently hired employees who were fired as part of President Donald Trump's purge of the federal workforce.The ruling made by U.S. District Judge William Alsup during a hearing in San Francisco applies to the U.S. Department of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Agriculture, Department of Energy, Department of Interior and the Treasury Department.Alsup last month temporarily... https://www.voanews.com/a/judge-orders-trump-administration-to-reinstate-thousands-of-fired-government-workers/8009741.html https://www.voanews.com/a/judge-orders-trump-administration-to-reinstate-thousands-of-fired-government-workers/8009741.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 14:03:46 -0400 USAwebdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)