Author: Fworld

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence will deliver the commencement address at the University of Notre Dame this year, an honor customarily reserved for newly elected U.S. presidents. Notre Dame’s president, the Reverend John Jenkins, said, “It is fitting that in the 175th year of our founding on Indiana soil that Notre Dame recognize a native …

U.S. first lady Melania Trump read to a group of children at a New York hospital Thursday to celebrate National Read Across America Day. In one of her first outings in a traditional first lady role, Trump read to children at the pediatrics ward from the Dr. Seuss favorite, Oh, the Places You’ll Go! She …

As the world awaits President Donald Trump’s revised executive order on immigration, the future of the U.S. refugee program remains in limbo. VOA spoke with a Kurdish Syrian-born refugee whose personal and tragic experience has led her to advocate for open-door policies for refugees globally. Elizabeth Cherneff has her story. …

From international tourism to federal employment prospects, every new White House administration alters the fabric of life in Washington, D.C. For local restaurateurs, it’s no different. Washington’s restaurants, from gastropubs to fine-dining spots, are beginning to get a sense of the new clientele. VOA Russian Service correspondent Anush Avetisyan has the story. …

The day after President Donald Trump’s address to Congress, much of official Washington focused on the president’s softer, more optimistic tone. Now supporters, critics and analysts are wondering if this change is fleeting or here to stay, a key question as Congress begins the task of grappling with Trump’s ambitious domestic agenda. VOA National correspondent …

The predicted peak blooming period for this year’s cherry blossom season in Washington is being announced.   The window is expected to be announced Wednesday at a news conference at the Newseum.   Last year’s peak bloom happened March 25. According to the National Park Service website, however, from 2013 to 2015, peak bloom was …

World leaders have been digesting Donald Trump’s first speech to Congress Tuesday night. The U.S. president spoke about America’s commitment to NATO and his plan to forge a new global trade system. Henry Ridgwell reports from London. …

In the shadow of New York City, a group of farmers is tending their crop and prepping it for shipment into the Big Apple on a same day basis. But there isn’t a whole lot of room for a farmer’s field in Kearny, New Jersey. That’s where some high tech hydroponics are changing the face …

A Jewish advocacy group is calling on U.S. President Donald Trump to step up federal efforts to stamp out hate crimes after vandalism at a slew of Jewish cemeteries and bomb threats at schools have raised concerns for some in the Jewish community. Jonathan Greenblatt, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, told VOA he wants …

Protesters planned marches Tuesday in downtown Vancouver as President Donald Trump’s two eldest sons attended the grand opening of their company’s new hotel and condominium tower in a city known for diversity and progressive politics. Security officers in black suits surrounded the building’s entrance while police gathered on sidewalks at the soaring tower, which has …

More than 120 retired U.S. military generals and admirals are urging Congress not to cut spending on diplomacy and foreign aid, two government functions that may be targeted in President Donald Trump’s first budget proposal. When he unveils his budget proposal Tuesday before Congress, Trump is expected to call for a $54 billion boost in …

Billionaire investor Wilbur Ross easily won confirmation as U.S. commerce secretary on Monday, clearing President Donald Trump’s top trade official to start work on renegotiating trade relationships with China and Mexico. The U.S. Senate voted 72-27 to confirm the 79-year-old corporate turnaround expert’s nomination, with strong support from Democrats. Ross is set to become an …

Cambodia’s government has threatened to expel several media outlets, including the Voice of America, and is using U.S. President Donald Trump’s criticisms of the press as justification. In a Facebook post Saturday, Phay Siphan, a spokesman for Cambodia’s cabinet, threatened to “take action” against the media outlets, which he said are threatening the country’s peace …

In the days after President Donald Trump’s election, thousands of teenagers across the nation walked out of class in protest. Others rallied to his defense. It was an unusual show of political engagement from future voters who may alter America’s political landscape in 2020 — or even in next year’s midterm elections. Now, a new …

China is sending its first senior official to visit the U.S. since President Donald Trump took office.   State Councilor Yang Jiechi is Chinese President Xi Jinping’s top foreign policy adviser and a familiar face in Washington. He has served as China’s foreign minister and ambassador to the U.S.   The foreign ministry said Yang …

President Donald Trump’s choice to be secretary of the Navy, businessman Philip Bilden, said Sunday he was withdrawing from consideration for the post, citing concerns about privacy and separating himself from his business interests. Bilden’s withdrawal raises similar issues to that of Vincent Viola, Trump’s nominee for Army secretary who stepped aside earlier this month. …

Police say scores of headstones have been vandalized at a Jewish cemetery in Philadelphia. A police spokeswoman said preliminary estimates are that 75 to 100 graves were damaged at Mount Carmel Cemetery in the Wissinoming section of the city. WPVI-TV reported that a man who came to visit his father’s grave Sunday morning discovered headstones …

Iran’s former hardline president Mahmud Ahmadinejad has published an open letter in both English and Farsi to U.S. President Donald Trump, lauding the American leader for what he said was “truthfully describing the U.S. political system and electoral structure as corrupt.” The lengthy letter published Sunday also criticized Trump for his planned visa ban on …

The Pentagon wants to expand the military’s ability to battle al-Qaida-linked militants in Somalia, potentially putting U.S. forces closer to the fight against a stubborn extremist group that has plotted attacks against America, senior U.S. officials said. The recommendations sent to the White House would allow U.S special operations forces to increase assistance to the …

 A trans-Atlantic wave of puzzlement is rippling across Sweden for the second time in a week, after a prominent Fox News program featured a “Swedish defense and national security advisor” who’s unknown to the country’s military and foreign-affairs officials. Swedes, and some Americans, have been wondering about representations of the Nordic nation in the U.S. …

Democratic Party officials are poised to elect a leader to oversee the formidable task of rebuilding a Democratic Party that suffered a humiliating presidential election defeat at the hands of Republican Donald Trump. Four hundred and forty seven members of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) will vote in Atlanta Saturday to elect a new party …

Like other Afghan immigrants, Faisal Razmal thought he was leaving violence behind for a new life in the United States, considered the land of opportunity. After all, he survived an IED (improvised explosive device) blast in Kabul during five years as an interpreter for U.S. forces. Threats to his life were worth it, in his …

The U.S. administration’s new national security adviser has reportedly told his staff that Muslims who carry out terrorist acts are corrupting Islam, a departure from an ideological position held by other senior advisers to President Donald Trump. Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster told members of the National Security Council that the use of the term “radical …

Democratic senators are protesting the Trump Organization’s acceptance of a valuable trademark from the Chinese government without asking Congress first if doing so is constitutional. A group of 13 senators warned President Donald Trump in a letter Thursday that they intended to hold him accountable to his oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution. Additional Democrats …

Republicans in the U.S. Congress are working to overhaul the nation’s health care laws in their effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, considered by some to be one of former President Barack Obama’s most significant legislative achievements. U.S. media outlets reported details Friday of potential replacements for the health care law, frequently …

U.S. companies led by tech firms Yahoo, Apple and Microsoft have criticized the Trump administration’s decision to revoke Obama administration guidance that allowed transgender public school students to use the bathroom of their choice. Their statements evoked the opposition expressed by many businesses last year when North Carolina passed a law forcing transgenders to use …