international relations
Nigerian Boys Taken in Kidnapping Claimed by Boko Haram Handed Back
Supporters urged authorities to rescue hundreds of abducted schoolboys in the northwestern state of Katsina, Nigeria, on Dec. 17. Photo: kola sulaimon/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images Updated Dec. 17, 2020 4:32 pm ET More than 300 schoolboys kidnapped by gunmen from their boarding school in northwest Nigeria last Friday were handed over to government security agencies late …
Trump Pursues Appointing Special Counsel to Probe Election, Hunter Biden
President Trump has expressed interest in pursuing the appointment of a special counsel to investigate allegations of fraud in the November elections and issues related to Hunter Biden, according to people familiar with the matter. In recent days, the president has directed advisers to look for people who could serve in such a position, one …
BlackRock Emerges as Wall Street Player in Biden Administration
Wall Street bankers, and in particular those from Goldman Sachs Group Inc., have long held senior positions in the White House. Under President-elect Joe Biden, such roles are going to executives of BlackRock Inc. A former Goldman executive held the Treasury secretary post in three of the last four administrations, but the firm is absent …
Justice Department Files Antitrust Lawsuit Against Google
The Justice Department filed an antitrust lawsuit Tuesday alleging that Google engaged in anticompetitive conduct to preserve monopolies in search and search advertising that form the cornerstones of its vast conglomerate. The long-anticipated case, filed in a Washington, D.C., federal court, marks the most aggressive U.S. legal challenge to a company’s dominance in the tech …
‘Too Complex to Break Up’ Is the New ‘Too Big to Fail’
Days before, Facebook Inc. produced its own document contending that breaking it up would be a “nonstarter” for a number of reasons, including that the company’s constituent parts are already too complicated and interconnected for any of them—Instagram, WhatsApp, its ad business—to be spun off as individual companies or walled off as separate divisions. “After …
House Panel Says Big Tech Wields Monopoly Power
WASHINGTON—America’s biggest technology companies have leveraged their dominance to stamp out competition and stifle innovation, according to a Democratic-led House panel, which said Congress should consider forcing the tech giants to separate their dominant online platforms from other business lines. Republicans issued a separate response endorsing strong antitrust enforcement targeting the companies but didn’t endorse …
Trump Remains Hospitalized as Doctors Offer Mixed Signals on Health
WASHINGTON—President Trump remained hospitalized with Covid-19 on Monday after seeking to project confidence and vigor over the weekend, as his doctors offered conflicting signals about how he is faring with the unpredictable illness. The president’s physicians are expected to deliver another update on his condition on Monday. Doctors said Sunday that the president’s vital signs …
White House Gives Mixed Signals on Trump’s Health
WASHINGTON—President Trump’s health condition was unclear as he was treated at a hospital for the coronavirus Saturday, with his physician saying his symptoms were improving, but a person familiar with the situation warning that the past day had been concerning and that the next 48 hours would be critical to his recovery. In a briefing …
Justice Department Probes Electric-Truck Startup Nikola Over Claims It Misled Investors
The Justice Department has joined U.S. securities regulators in examining allegations that electric-truck startup Nikola Corp. misled investors by making exaggerated claims about its technology, according to people familiar with the matter. The Justice Department’s inquiry is being handled by the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office, working in concert with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which …
Breaking Judicial Norms: A History
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is widely reported to have told his Democratic colleagues on Saturday that “nothing is off the table for next year” if Republicans confirm a Supreme Court nominee in this Congress. He means this as a threat that Democrats will break the filibuster and pack the Court with more Justices in …