September 16, 2024 5:54 PM

US President Joe Biden tests positive for COVID-19, says White House

US President Joe Biden has tested positive for COVID-19 and is showing mild symptoms, the White House said. "He (Biden) will be returning to Delaware where he will self-isolate and will continue to carry out all of his duties fully during that time," the White House said in its official release on Wednesday (local time). Biden, 81, tested Covid positive on Wednesday, a day after he attended the NAACP National Convention in Las Vegas, where he strongly criticised Donald Trump's policies and also...

September 16, 2024 5:55 PM

White House should disclose whether Russia sharing US weapons insight with China, says Congress

A bipartisan U.S. congressional committee urged the White House on Monday to disclose details on whether Russia was sharing insight with China on how to defeat U.S. weapons used on the battlefield in Ukraine. In a letter to White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan seen by Reuters, the House of Representative's select committee on China warned that Russia's battlefield adaptations that undermine certain U.S. weapon systems are "likely to proliferate" to China, including Russian electr...

July 10, 2024 10:12 AM

White House warns Iran against meddling in Gaza protests in US

The White House on Tuesday accused Tehran of trying to take advantage of Gaza-related protests in the U.S. and described such behavior as unacceptable, following a warning by the top U.S. intelligence official that Iran was trying to stoke discord in American society. The warning, issued earlier on Tuesday by Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, said actors tied to Iran's government had posed as activists online, sought to encourage protests regarding Gaza and even provided demonstra...

July 4, 2024 11:25 AM

Biden “absolutely not” considering stepping down: White House

In response to recent speculations, the White House has unequivocally denied any consideration of President Joe Biden stepping down, with Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre stating "absolutely not" when asked about the possibility. Concerns are mounting about Biden's viability as a candidate following what has been described as a devastating performance in Atlanta, according to a New York Times (NYT) report. Jean-Pierre on Wednesday (local time) highlighted President Biden's recent eng...

May 8, 2024 4:38 PM

Biden to unveil $3.3 billion Microsoft AI investment in battleground Wisconsin

President Joe Biden will visit the political battleground state of Wisconsin on Wednesday to announce plans by Microsoft Corp to build a $3.3 billion high-tech data center that will create thousands of jobs, the White House said. The Microsoft facility in Racine County, in southeastern Wisconsin, will be built on the same land where Taiwan electronics manufacturer Foxconn had planned to build a $10 billion factory that former President Donald Trump once called "the eighth wonder of the world," ...

May 8, 2024 12:10 PM

US paused shipment of weapons to Israel to head off Rafah invasion-official

U.S. President Joe Biden's administration paused a shipment of weapons to Israel last week in opposition to apparent moves by the Israelis to invade the southern Gaza city of Rafah, a senior administration official said on Tuesday. Biden has been trying to head off a full-scale assault by the Israelis against Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinian have sought refuge from combat elsewhere in Gaza. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that as Israelis leaders seemed ...

April 30, 2024 3:53 PM

US reforms environmental law to speed up clean energy, infrastructure approval

The White House on Tuesday reformed the U.S. environmental review process for major projects which officials said would speed up approval of everything from transmission of power from wind and solar farms to semiconductor manufacturing. The reforms are the second and final phase of the administration of President Joe Biden's adjustments to the National Environmental Policy Act, or NEPA, after former President Donald Trump overhauled the bedrock environmental law in 2021 for the first time in de...

September 16, 2024 3:26 PM

White House directs NASA to create time standard for the moon

The White House on Tuesday directed NASA to establish a unified standard of time for the moon and other celestial bodies, as the United States aims to set international norms in space amid a growing lunar race among nations and private companies. The head of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), according to a memo seen by Reuters, instructed the space agency to work with other parts of the U.S. government to devise a plan by the end of 2026 for setting what it called ...

September 16, 2024 4:51 PM

America ‘outraged’ by Israeli airstrike killing aid workers in Gaza, Britain demands investigation

The Biden administration is outraged and has expressed deep dismay over an Israeli airstrike that resulted in the tragic deaths of seven aid workers in Gaza, a White House official said on Tuesday. President Joe Biden also spoke with Jose Andres, the founder of the affected organisation and conveyed his condolences. On the other hand, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, in a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, conveyed his deep concern regarding an Israeli strike on an aid c...

September 16, 2024 5:03 PM

Biden Will Visit Baltimore Next Week After Bridge Collapse

President Joe Biden will travel to Baltimore on Friday following last week's collapse of Francis Scott Key Bridge, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said. The steel truss bridge collapsed early on Tuesday morning, killing six road workers, when a massive container ship lost power and crashed into a support pylon. Much of the span crashed into the Patapsco River, blocking the Port of Baltimore's shipping channel. The accident has paralyzed shipping in and out of the Port of Baltimore....