News

Newsweek reports: The State of the Union address, the president’s annual speech, will not go ahead as planned on Jan. 29. President Donald Trump tweeted his decision to postpone the message late on Wednesday, hours after Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi informed him that he would not be allowed to deliver the address to Congress until the government has …

No mugshot yet for this guy. That’s Nikolas Cruz above. The Miami Herald reports: A California man used Instagram to “harass and intimidate” the relatives and friends of the victims of the Valentine’s Day mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, according to a criminal complaint filed in the Southern District of Florida. Brandon Fleury, of Santa …

The Wall Street Journal reports: Billionaire Ken Griffin, who is becoming almost as known for his prodigious purchases as he is for his investment acumen, has closed on a New York penthouse for roughly $238 million. The deal sets a record for the highest-priced home ever sold in the U.S. The purchase is the latest in a string of record-breaking …

The Guardian reports: Julian Assange, the fugitive WikiLeaks founder whose diplomatic sanctuary in the Ecuadorian embassy appears increasingly precarious, is launching a legal challenge against the Trump administration. Lawyers for the Australian activist have filed an urgent application to the Washington-based Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) aimed at forcing the hand of US prosecutors, requiring them to “unseal” any …

The Associated Press reports: Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro is giving American diplomats 72 hours to abandon the country after breaking diplomatic relations with the U.S. over its decision to recognize an opposition leader as interim president. “Before the people and nations of the world, and as constitutional president…..I’ve decided to break diplomatic and political relations with the imperialist U.S. government,” …

Politico reports: Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday she will block President Trump from delivering the State of the Union address in the House chamber on Jan. 29. In a letter to Trump, Pelosi said she would not move forward with the legislative steps needed for the address to take place. “The House of Representatives will not consider a concurrent resolution …

The Independent reports: Federal workers gathered Wednesday at the Hart Senate Office Building to protest the ongoing government shutdown, which has left hundreds of thousands of them without pay. The workers held 33 minutes of silent protest, or one minute for every day the shutdown has lasted. Protesters shook their fists during the protest and chanted, “No more food banks. …

The New York Daily News reports: Alec Baldwin won’t fight his latest legal woe. The perpetually-peeved actor agreed Wednesday to complete a one-day anger management program after copping a plea to charges in a Greenwich Village scuffle over a parking space. Baldwin appeared before Judge Herbert Moses in black thick-rimmed glasses, a dark purple scarf and a black blazer to …

The Huffington Post reports: Four more accusers have come forward with sexual misconduct allegations against movie director Bryan Singer in an investigation published in The Atlantic on Wednesday. Singer, who directed the “X-Men” franchise, “The Usual Suspects” and “Bohemian Rhapsody” has in the past been accused of abusing or raping teenage boys, and creating toxic work environments on his movie …

The Albany Times-Union reports: Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, flanked by Democratic leaders of the state Legislature, on Tuesday night signed into law a series of measures codifying abortion protections and expanding reproductive health rights for women and their health care providers. The vote, made possible by the new Democratic majority in the Senate, came 46 years to the day after …

The Week reports: The unprecedented shutdown fell into its 32nd day over President Trump’s demand for border wall funding and Democrats’ refusal to give in. But while there remained no hint of a deal to reopen the government on Tuesday, Sen. Mark Warner did introduce the STUPIDITY Act to prevent hypothetical shutdowns in the future. Under the craftily acronymed act, …

The Associated Press reports: Rudy Giuliani’s latest media blitz, which was filled with a dizzying array of misstatements and hurried clarifications, agitated President Donald Trump and some of his allies, who have raised the possibility that the outspoken presidential lawyer be at least temporarily sidelined from televised interviews. Trump was frustrated with Giuliani, according to three White House officials and …

Defense News reports: The U.S. House passed legislation Tuesday evening that seeks to bar President Donald Trump from withdrawing from NATO amid renewed concerns over his commitment to the 29-nation military pact. In a bipartisan 357-22 vote, the Democrat-led lower chamber sent the Senate the NATO Support Act, which would prohibit the use of federal funds to withdraw from the …

The Washington Post reports: Michael R. Bloomberg, the billionaire former mayor of New York City who is considering a presidential run, appeared before reporters in Annapolis on Tuesday to chide Washington over the government shutdown and talk about the importance of compromise. “You can’t be an absolutist . . . life is much more complex than that,” he said. “You want to …

Bloomberg reports: The Federal Aviation Administration temporarily halted flights at Newark Liberty International Airport after a drone sighting. The civilian aircraft was spotted north of the New Jersey hub at an altitude of 3,500 feet, FAA spokesman Greg Martin said Tuesday. The U.S. government last week unveiled a long-awaited set of proposals to dramatically expand civilian drone flights while also …

CNBC reports: The elite financiers attending the World Economic Forum are worried about the 70 percent tax rate on earnings above $10 million proposed by freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. “It’s scary,” Scott Minerd, global chief investment officer for $265 billion Guggenheim Partners, said in an interview. “By the time we get to the presidential election, this is going to …

The New York Times reports: The Senate will vote Thursday on two separate bills that would bring an immediate end to the partial government shutdown: one backed by President Trump that includes $5.7 billion for his border wall and another that would simply extend funding for shuttered agencies through Feb. 8. The plan, a compromise between Senator Mitch McConnell, the …

CNBC reports: John Kerry had a one-word answer when asked his message for President Donald Trump: “Resign.” The former secretary of State and Democratic U.S. senator from Massachusetts made the declaration while speaking on a CNBC panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Kerry, who lost in his bid to become president in 2004, first hesitated to answer …

The Guardian reports: The Iowa senator Joni Ernst has stated she turned down the opportunity to be Donald Trump’s vice-president because she believed her husband Gail “hated any successes I have”. In an affidavit filed as part of divorce proceedings with her husband of 26 years, Ernst states: “in the summer of 2016, I was interviewed by Candidate Trump to …

The Hill reports: Freshman New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D) in an interview late Monday said she gives “zero” f—s about criticism she’s received from members of her own party. “I want to ask this question in a respectful manner, knowing also that you’re from Queens, so you will understand this question,” he continued. “And the BX,” Ocasio-Cortez, who is …