Trumpâs Cabinet nominees face sharpest bipartisan grilling to date and other takeaways from Thursdayâs confirmation hearings
By Jeremy Herb, Katie Bo Lillis, Annie Grayer and Lauren Fox, CNN Three of President Donald Trumpâs most controversial nominees faced sharp questions in the Senate during hearings Thursday from Democrats as well as several Republican senators in what amounted to the most direct skepticism from GOP senators over Trumpâs nominees to date. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trumpâs pick to be Health and Human Services secretary, was pressed on his views on vaccines by GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who said he had âreservationsâ about Kennedyâs past positions on vaccine safety. And Tulsi Gabbard, who has been tapped to be the director of national
Trump Administration Rescinds Federal Funding Freeze After Court Ruling and Backlash
By Stacy M. Brown President Donald Trumpâs administration on Wednesday rescinded a Project 2025-inspired order that had abruptly frozen most federal grants and loans, a sweeping directive that threw social service programs like Head Start, student loans, and Medicaid into disarray. The initial order, issued earlier in the week, sparked widespread confusion and disruption, prompting a swift legal challenge. On Tuesday evening, a federal judge temporarily blocked the freeze, and by Wednesday, the White House pulled back the directive altogether. The orderâs reversal came after mounting pressure from lawmakers, advocacy groups, and affected organizations. The White House insisted the move
WSSU students to benefit from expanded resources through Allegacy Federal Credit Union partnership
Courtesy Winston-Salem State University Winston-Salem State University students will have access to more food and clothing resources thanks to the generosity of Allegacy Federal Credit Union. Allegacy donated $120,000 to WSSU in 2023 to repurpose a former game room on the campus into the Allegacy Federal Credit Union Student Resource Center and has committed an additional $5,000 annually for the next five years to ensure its sustainability. A grand opening reception of the Student Resource Center will take place at 12 p.m. on Jan. 23 in Room 207 of the Cleon F. Thompson Student Services Center, followed by tours of
Trump administration uses King’s ‘Dream’ speech to introduce executive orders cutting DEI
By Char Adams When an incoming White House official announced Donald Trumpâs executive order dismantling federal diversity, equity and inclusion programs, the official invoked a familiar line: âThis order is meant to return to the promise and the hope that was captured by civil rights champions, that one day all Americans can be treated on the basis of their character, not by the color of their skin.â The statement echoed a well-known quote from Martin Luther King Jr.âs 1963 âI Have a Dreamâ speech, in which King declared, âI have a dream that my four little children will one day live
Biden Posthumously Pardons Marcus Garvey; Howard Law Professors And Students Had A Part In It
By Tomas Kassahun In one of his final moves as President, Joe Biden posthumously pardoned Marcus Garvey, was convicted of mail fraud in the 1920s. Garveyâs supporters have long argued that the conviction effort to silence the social justice champion as he fought for racial equality for Black Americans, the Associated Press reported. Garvey, who was deported to his home country Jamaica after being convicted, died in 1940. In a statement on Sunday, the Howard University School praised Garvey as âthe first national hero of Jamaica and leader of the U.S. Back to Africa political movement of the 1920s.â âGarvey founded the United Negro Improvement Association and
Delta Sigma Thetaâs Farwest Region Rallies for Wildfire Relief in Los Angeles
The Farwest Region of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. answered the call for community action. On Jan. 11, 2025, the chapter hosted a support event to aid individuals and families devastated by the recent wildfires in Southern California. The gathering took place at Zion Hill Baptist Church from noon to 4 p.m. Alongside Delta Sigma Theta sorority members, local volunteers, Divine Nine fraternities and sororities, and concerned community members came together to help those in need. The event served as a lifeline for wildfire survivors, offering free meals, essential supplies, including clothing and hygiene products, and access to relief funds to
Texas lawmaker proposes to partner in the State Capitol
By Jo Yurcaba A Dallas lawmaker got engaged to his partner in the Texas State Capitol in Austin on Tuesday. State Rep. Venton Jones, a Democrat who became one of the first out Black gay men ever elected to the Texas Legislature in November 2022, proposed to his partner, Gregory Scott Jr., after Jones was sworn in on the first day of the legislative session. When the state House went into recess Tuesday, Jones got down on one knee and asked Scott to marry him. Scott said yes and wiped away tears as Jones gave him an engagement ring, according to a video shared
Trump discusses his viral moment with Obama
By Myah Ward Donald Trump is talking about what appeared to be a warm moment between him and Barack Obama. Trump concedes the pair did seem to be on friendly terms when cameras captured them chatting, and Obama laughing as they sat next to each other Thursday at the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter. The president-elect was asked about it later in a Fox News interview from his home in Florida. âIt did look very friendly, I must say,â Trump said. âI didnât realize how friendly it looked. I saw it on your wonderful network, just a little while
With Trump’s return, these House Democrats look for influence outside of Washington
By Deirdre Walsh Two Democrats are aiming to trade the halls of Capitol Hill for governor’s mansions in their home states of New Jersey and Virginia. Reps. Mikie Sherrill, 52, and Abigail Spanberger, 45, were part of a wave of Democratic recruits with national security credentials who helped their party regain control of the House of Representatives in the 2018 midterms, partly as a response to then-President Donald Trump’s chaotic first year in office. As Trump returns to the White House, their 2025 campaigns to voters could serve as a playbook to help Democrats turn the page from losses in 2024. Sherrill is a
Despite Trump’s win, ‘election integrity’ activists still seek sweeping voting changes
By Miles Parks For Donald Trump and his supporters, concerns about election administration quickly dissipated once it became clear he would win the 2024 presidential election, and in surveys since, most Republican voters say the election was run well. But for the wing of the Republican Party that has been pushing sweeping election reform since the 2020 contest, the work continues. On Jan. 3, the day the new Republican-led Congress was sworn in, Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, reintroduced legislation aimed at stopping noncitizens from voting in federal elections â something that is already illegal and which research has universally shown rarely happens. The