US Domestic News Roundup: U.S. college admissions scam; self-driving cars and more


Devdiscourse News Desk | Updated: 09-02-2020 19:03 IST | Created: 09-02-2020 18:27 IST
US Domestic News Roundup: U.S. college admissions scam; self-driving cars and more
(Representative Image) Image Credit: Flickr

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Isle of Dogs: Westminster Kennel Club show opens in New York

Thousands of dogs from 20 countries will compete in this year's annual Westminster Kennel Club show in New York, which opens Sunday and culminates with the crowning of "Best-in-Show," the most coveted prize for pedigree dogs in the United States. This year's 3-day competition will showcase the skills and good looks of more than 2,600 dogs from 49 U.S. states and 19 other countries, including Japan, Australia and Thailand.

Blue collar boom? College grads, baby boomers big winners in Trump's economy

U.S. President Donald Trump rolled out an eye-catching statistic in his State of the Union address Tuesday: the wealth held by the poorest half of American households increased three times as fast as the wealth held by the "1%" since he became president. That's true, according to Federal Reserve data.

Four New Jersey cruise ship passengers hospitalized for coronavirus screening

About two dozen passengers aboard a Caribbean cruise ship that docked in Bayonne, New Jersey, on Friday morning were screened for coronavirus and four were sent to a local hospital for further screening, the city's mayor said. Mayor Jimmy Davis of Bayonne, about 10 miles from New York City, described the hospitalizations as "an abundance of caution" and said officials at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had indicated there seemed to be little threat.

How Bernie Sanders’ passionate base revitalized his campaign

When Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders suffered a heart attack in October, what upset his long-time supporter Craig Althof the most was the way it was covered by the media. In the opinion of 65-year-old Althof, who had a similar procedure to Sanders to prop open an artery, journalists were too quick to write Sanders' political obituary, speculating that the 78-year-old’s second White House run was likely over.

Masked white nationalists march in Washington with police escort

Police escorted masked members of a white nationalist group on a march through Washington's National Mall on Saturday that Metropolitan Police said occurred without incident or arrests. More than 100 members of the Patriot Front, dressed in khaki pants and caps, blue jackets and white face masks, shouted "Reclaim America!" and "Life, liberty, victory!" video of the march showed.

Colorado transgender teen pleads guilty to murder in school revenge case

A transgender teenager accused of opening fire with a friend in a Denver-area charter school in May to exact revenge on classmates who bullied him pleaded guilty on Friday to murder and attempted murder charges, prosecutors said. Alec McKinney, 16, who has been held without bond since the May 7 rampage that left one student dead and eight others wounded, pleaded guilty to 17 criminal counts, including conspiracy and weapons charges, said Douglas County District Attorney George Brauchler.

Pompeo urges U.S. state governors to be cautious in business with China

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged governors of U.S. states and territories on Saturday to adopt a "cautious mindset" when engaging in business with China, saying Beijing was seeking to use U.S. openness to undermine the United States. In a speech to the National Governors Association in Washington Pompeo said China was pursuing a policy of exploiting U.S. freedoms to "gain advantage over us at the federal level, the state level and the local level."

House panel to hold hearing on future of self-driving cars

A U.S. House panel will hold a hearing Tuesday on autonomous vehicles as lawmakers try to hammer out legislation to advance self-driving cars. An Energy and Commerce subcommittee overseeing automotive issues will hear from officials of trade groups representing automakers and tech companies, as well as safety advocates and a San Francisco transit official.

New York threatens to sue Trump administration over access to traveler programs

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday threatened to sue the Trump administration over its decision to restrict New Yorkers' access to some programs that allow faster security checks at ports of entry, part of a dispute about the state's limits on cooperation with current U.S. immigration policy. U.S. President Donald Trump, a Republican who was born and raised in New York, has criticized the Democratic-run state and other states and cities his administration deems "sanctuary jurisdictions" because of their policies limiting information sharing between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities.

Pimco ex-CEO sentenced to prison in U.S. college admissions scam: prosecutor

The former head of asset management firm Pimco was sentenced on Friday to nine months in prison for his part in a scheme in which privileged parents paid bribes to get their children into U.S. colleges, federal prosecutors said. Douglas Hodge, who retired as chief executive of Allianz SE's California-based Pimco in 2016, also was sentenced to two years of supervised release, a $750,000 fine and 500 hours of community service, a spokeswoman for Boston U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling said in an email.

(With inputs from agencies.)

Give Feedback