Trump official slams cartels as U.S. lawmakers push anti-OPEC bill The Saigon Times Daily The logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is seen at its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, December 5, 2018 – PHOTO: REUTERS WASHINGTON (REUTERS) - A senior administration official said on Friday that U.S. national security depends on affordable energy, and slammed cartels when asked if President Donald Trump would support a bill targeting the OPEC production group’s oil supply cuts. “The United States is firmly committed to open, fair and competitive markets for global energy trade,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “We do not support market-distorting behaviour, including cartels.” The House of Representatives’ Judiciary Committee on Thursday unanimously passed the No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels, or NOPEC, bill. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, who has supported NOPEC in the past, … [Read more...] about Trump official slams cartels as U.S. lawmakers push anti-OPEC bill
Who passes laws house or senate
Trump says he would back both US House immigration bills as separation crisis grows
President Donald Trump told Republican lawmakers on Tuesday he would back either of the immigration bills making their way through the House of Representatives, as the outcry grew over his administration’s separation of immigrant parents and children at the U.S.-Mexico border. Representative Mark Meadows said Trump told Republican members of the House at a meeting on Capitol Hill that they needed to get something done on immigration “right away.” In the meeting, Trump said separating families was “certainly not an attractive thing and does look bad,” added Representative Tom Cole. Congressional Republicans have been scrambling to craft legislation as videos of youngsters in cages and an audiotape of wailing children have sparked anger at home from groups ranging from clergy to influential business leaders, as well as condemnation abroad. A Reuters/Ipsos national opinion poll released on Tuesday showed fewer than one in three American adults supporting the … [Read more...] about Trump says he would back both US House immigration bills as separation crisis grows
Argentine lawmakers approve bill to legalise abortion
BUENOS AIRES — Argentine lawmakers Thursday backed a bill legalising abortion during the first 14 weeks of pregnancy, a historic step for Pope Francis’s Catholic homeland, although the measure must still pass through the Senate. Thousands of abortion rights activists cheered and hugged outside the Congress as the lower house Chamber of Deputies passed the bill by 129 votes to 125. The bill will now go before the Senate, where it was thought likely to face an uphill battle to become law. However, in the hours following Thursday’s vote, former president and now senator Cristina Kirchner’s center-left Front for Victory bloc removed a major obstacle to the bill by saying it would vote in favor. The issue has divided Argentine society: while Argentina became the first Latin American country to legalize same-sex marriage in 2010, it remains strongly influenced by the Catholic Church and by the pope, who was … [Read more...] about Argentine lawmakers approve bill to legalise abortion
US Senate panel targets China, Russia in massive defense bill
U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis (R), and Joint Chiefs Chairman General Joseph Dunford (L) testify before a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., April 26, 2018. Photo by Reuters/Aaron P. Bernstein The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee passed its version of a $716 billion annual defense policy bill on Thursday, joining counterparts in the House of Representatives in labeling China and Russia as threats to the United States and its allies. The 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, includes measures targeting the two “strategic competitors,” including a clampdown on trade rules and a ban on the Defense Department dealing with any entity that uses telecommunications equipment or services from Chinese companies Huawei Technologies and ZTE Corp. The bill also extends a limitation on U.S.-Russian military cooperation, “expresses the sense of the Senate” that it is U.S. policy to strengthen the defense of … [Read more...] about US Senate panel targets China, Russia in massive defense bill
US congressman pulls loaded gun at constituent meeting
A U.S. congressman said he pulled out a loaded Smith & Wesson pistol during a meeting with gun control activists Friday in a bid to prove that firearms are not responsible for violence. House Republican Ralph Norman of South Carolina told The Post and Courier newspaper that he drew the handgun and placed it on a table while at a "Coffee With Your Congressman" event at a diner, in an attempt to convey that guns are only dangerous if in the wrong hands. "I'm not going to be a Gabby Giffords," said Norman, 64, referring to the former congresswoman from Arizona who was shot in the head during a meet-and-greet outside a grocery store in 2011. Giffords was gravely wounded in that attack. She survived and became a prominent gun safety advocate. Both Giffords and her husband, retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly, are longtime gun owners. "Americans are increasingly faced with a stark choice: leaders like Gabby, who work hard together to find solutions to problems, or extremists like the NRA … [Read more...] about US congressman pulls loaded gun at constituent meeting