America in Focus America's Talking Network

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has set up a week of controversy, political posturing and even risked his own job over federal funding for Israel, Taiwan, and Ukraine. The Senate passed a $95 billion aid package earlier this year that combined Israel and Ukraine funding that included $60 billion for Ukraine and $14.1 billion for Israel. That bill made no progress in the House so far, but the escalating tensions between Iran and Israel have pushed the issue to the forefront.



Full Story: https://www.thecentersquare.com/national/article_c40105ae-fc12-11ee-b11a-339751511969.html


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A coalition of states has filed a legal challenge to President Joe Biden’s latest executive effort to forgive a portion of Americans' student loan debt.

The lawsuit comes after Biden on Monday announced the plan, which the states in question say is an overreach of executive authority. The White House claims that Biden has so far canceled at least some of the debt for 4 million Americans, totaling $146 billion so far.

The White House said the newest effort would partially forgive debt for 30 million Americans, though independent analyses have not confirmed that figure.


Full Story: https://www.thecentersquare.com/national/article_80cc5f48-f688-11ee-82c6-93cf698c33d0.html


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President Joe Biden this week touted what he called a major drop in inflation, saying prices had fallen more than 60%. Those comments come on the heels of more federal data showing prices are on the rise, raising the question: Has inflation really fallen or is something else going on? The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its Consumer Price Index, a key marker of inflation that has spiked recently. BLS found the CPI rose another 0.4% last month, part of a 3.5% increase over the previous twelve months. Soon after that data was released, Biden released a statement boasting of a drop in inflation.






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The federal government reported hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars in improper payments last fiscal year and trillions over the last two decades.

According to a new report from the Government Accountability Office, the federal government reported $236 billion in improper payments in fiscal year 2023. The true number, though, is actually much higher, but federal reporting is often lacking.

“GAO has found that these payments represent a material deficiency or weakness in internal controls,” GAO said. “Specifically, GAO has noted that the federal government is unable to determine the full extent of its improper payments or to reasonably assure that appropriate actions are taken to reduce them.”



Full Story: https://www.thecentersquare.com/national/article_e0f897fc-f137-11ee-811d-5b4aa35ab139.html


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Republican members of the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security are demanding answers from Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas after learning that Border Patrol agents are releasing known or suspected terrorists (KSTs) into the country.

The demand comes after Republican members led the charge to impeach Mayorkas in February and after FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before Congress expressing concerns about those illegally entering the U.S. with ties to the terrorist group ISIS.



Full Story: https://www.thecentersquare.com/national/article_24207312-f2b7-11ee-9fd7-df016d720a58.html


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U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., blasted the Biden administration Wednesday for cutting back on a federal effort to increase union accountability and transparency. The Center Square exclusively obtained a letter this week that was sent from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management to 10 U.S. senators. In the letter, OPM Director Kiran Ahuja defended the agency’s decision to remove a webpage built to hold unions accountable. The federal webpage in question included data on “official time,” a common practice where federal employees use work time to do union business and are therefore paid by taxpayers to do so.


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