Poli Alert Politics & Civics

Funding for scores of Head Start programs hung in the balance as the government shutdown continued Monday without an end in sight. Unless a deal is reached to end the ongoing funding lapse that began Oct. 1, more than 65,000 children in 140 local Head Start programs across 41 states …

President Donald Trump on Monday formally asked a New York appeals court to overturn his felony conviction in the Manhattan hush money case, arguing that the trial that made him the first U.S. president convicted of a crime was unconstitutional and tainted by bias. In a 96-page filing, Trump’s legal …

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing Johnson and Johnson, accusing the pharmaceutical company of failing to warn consumers about the risk of taking Tylenol while pregnant. This lawsuit, the first of its kind from a state government, comes a month after President Donald Trump and U.S. Secretary of Health …

The Republican-led House Oversight Committee on Tuesday declared that President Joe Biden’s autopen-signed pardons and commutations are “void”, alleging that the former president’s cognitive decline was so severe he may not have personally authorized them. In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, the panel urged the Justice Department to …

The United States and China are unlikely to settle all their disputes before Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping meet Thursday in Busan, South Korea. But both sides appear poised to announce limited progress on rare-earth exports, technology trade restrictions, and agricultural purchases — a move intended to calm jittery …

President Donald Trump said Monday that he underwent an MRI scan during his recent medical checkup at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, describing the results as “perfect.” The president confirmed the imaging test while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Tokyo, part of his ongoing …

Former President Joe Biden on Sunday urged Americans not to give in to despair, calling this period under President Donald Trump “dark days” for the nation and warning of growing threats to free speech and the balance of power in government. “Since its founding, America served as a beacon for …

The Agriculture Department posted a striking message on its official website Saturday blaming Senate Democrats for the upcoming suspension of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, warning that millions of Americans will lose access to food assistance beginning Nov. 1 if the government shutdown continues. “Senate Democrats have now voted …

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday that the long-awaited deal allowing TikTok to continue operating in the United States is set to be finalized Thursday, when President Donald Trump meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea. “We reached a final deal …

For most of President Donald Trump’s second term, Republicans have bent to his will. But in two Midwestern states, Trump’s campaign to secure GOP control of the U.S. House through mid-decade redistricting has hit a roadblock. Despite weeks of pressure from the White House, Republicans in Indiana and Kansas say …

The United States and China are nearing an agreement to avert a sweeping 100% tariff on Chinese goods, and Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping are expected to meet soon to finalize the deal, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday. In an interview on NBC News’ Meet the Press, Bessent …

The Pentagon confirmed Friday that it accepted an anonymous $130 million donation to help cover military pay and benefits during the ongoing government shutdown — an unprecedented move that has raised concerns in Congress about transparency and foreign influence. Defense Department spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement that the …

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to move to the Caribbean to support President Donald Trump’s campaign to “dismantle transnational criminal organizations” and “counter narco-terrorism,” the Pentagon said Saturday. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced the move on X, saying the carrier’s deployment will …

The U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a memo Friday the agency’s contingency fund cannot legally be used to provide food assistance benefits for more than 42 million people in November, as the government shutdown drags on. The position is a reversal from the department’s earlier stance, according to a since-deleted copyof …

New York Attorney General Letitia James pleaded not guilty Friday to federal bank fraud charges, denouncing the case as a politically motivated attack ordered by President Donald Trump. James, a longtime political foe of the president, entered her plea before U.S. District Judge Jamar K. Walker, who set a trial …