Washington, March 3 (IANS) A US Senate oversight hearing on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) turned sharply confrontational on Tuesday, as Democrats accused the agency of excessive force and civil liberties violations, while DHS Secretary Kristi Noem rejected the claims and defended enforcement actions as lawful. Senator Richard Durbin, the committee’s top Democrat, said that under Noem’s leadership the department has been “devoid of any moral compass or respect for the rule of law”.He …
Latest US Senate News & Updates
Washington, Feb 28 (IANS) A bipartisan US Senate panel took aim at the Food and Drug Administration over delays and shifting standards that witnesses said are blocking rare disease treatments, warning that “time is the most precious commodity” for families and that “rare disease patients cannot wait.”At a hearing of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, Chairman Rick Scott said the central question was whether the FDA is doing “everything Congress intended it to do to quickly get safe…
Washington, Feb 27 (IANS) Democratic Senators have questioned US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick over a $1.6 billion rare-earth minerals deal, warning that the arrangement could benefit his immediate family and his former firm, Cantor Fitzgerald.In a February 25 letter, Senators Elizabeth Warren, Ron Wyden, and Chris Van Hollen said the agreement brokered by the Department of Commerce with USA Rare Earth, Inc. (USAR) “could enrich your immediate family.”“This follows in a long string of …
Washington, Feb 26 (IANS) US Senate Republicans and Democrats traded sharp accusations on tariffs, Iran, and a possible government shutdown, laying bare deep divisions a day after President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address. Talking to reporters after a closed policy luncheon on Wednesday (local time), Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Republicans were focused on “securing the border”, “providing monumental historic tax relief to the American people”, and “making sure th…
Washington, Feb 26 (IANS) US senators have warned that billions of dollars in suspected pandemic-era small business fraud may go unpunished unless Congress quickly extends prosecution deadlines — a move that could affect thousands of restaurant and hospitality owners, including many Indian-origin entrepreneurs.At a Senate hearing on Small Business and Entrepreneurship on Wednesday (local time), Senator Joni Ernst said weak oversight and rushed disbursement of Covid relief funds created opportun…
Washington, Feb 13 (IANS) A fierce debate over the future of US crypto regulation unfolded on Capitol Hill as senators clashed over whether the Trump administration’s Securities and Exchange Commission is easing enforcement while pushing for a new statutory framework to bring clarity to digital asset markets.SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins on Thursday defended a pivot away from what Republicans described as “regulation by enforcement” under the previous administration and towards clearer statu…
Washington, Feb 13 (IANS) A sharp political fight erupted in the US Senate over federal immigration enforcement tactics and civil liberties, in a debate closely watched by immigrant communities, including Indian visa holders and green card applicants.The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee examined “Operation Metro Surge,” a large-scale Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deployment in Minnesota.The operation followed protests and clashes between federal agents …
Washington, Feb 13 (IANS) The US Senate failed to advance a funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), raising the prospect of a partial government shutdown as temporary funding for the department expires at the end of Friday.The procedural vote was 52-47, short of the 60 votes required to advance the bill, Xinhua news agency reported.The legislative stall came as the White House and congressional Democrats have been unable to reach an agreement on immigration enforcement regula…
Washington, Feb 5 (IANS) The imminent expiry of the New START nuclear arms control treaty has triggered sharp warnings in the US Senate about a more dangerous, unconstrained era of nuclear competition involving the United States, Russia, and China, with lawmakers and experts cautioning that the fallout could extend well beyond the three powers.Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker believes that the treaty, signed in 2010, was “negotiated in a bygone era” and no longer reflect…
Washington, Feb 4 (IANS) A US Senate panel has flagged serious antitrust risks in Netflix’s $83-billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, questioning whether the merger would give the streaming giant excessive market power and reshape competition across the entertainment industry. Senate Antitrust Subcommittee Chair Mike Lee said the proposed transaction was “extraordinary in both scale and in potential consequence” and warranted close scrutiny.He said that Netflix, the world’s largest streaming p…