Latest news with #JoseLuisGonzalez
Straits Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Three Republican-led states to deploy National Guard troops to US capital
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: Members of the FBI and the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) run at the Navy Yard–Ballpark metro station in Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 15, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez/File Photo The Republican governors of three states are deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., at the request of the administration of President Donald Trump, who has portrayed the city as awash in crime. The announcements on Saturday of troops from hundreds of miles away in West Virginia, South Carolina and Ohio came a day after D.C. officials and the Trump administration negotiated a deal to keep Mayor Muriel Bowser's appointed police chief, Pamela Smith, in charge of the police department after D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit to block the federal takeover of the department. Trump, a Republican, said this week he was deploying hundreds of D.C. National Guard troops to Washington and temporarily taking over the Democratic-led city's police department to curb what he depicted as a crime and homelessness emergency. Justice Department data, however, showed violent crime in 2024 hit a 30-year low in Washington, a self-governing federal district under the jurisdiction of Congress. West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey's office said in a statement he was deploying 300 to 400 National Guard troops to D.C. in "a show of commitment to public safety and regional cooperation." The statement said he also was providing equipment and specialized training. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster responded to a Pentagon request by announcing that 200 of his state's National Guard troops would be sent. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said he would send 150 military police members in the coming days, adding none of them were "currently serving as law enforcement officers in the state." Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore I want to divorce my husband and be a single mother: More victims speaking up on emotional abuse World Trump drops Ukraine ceasefire demand after Putin summit Singapore Buying hope: Inside S'pore's love affair with the lottery Singapore She won big in Genting, but getting $240k winnings back to Singapore was dicey Opinion Confessions of a born-again Singaporean Business Manage your household finances like a business for clarity, say entrepreneurs Business Silence does not work when dealing with job loss blues Singapore Singapore congratulates Indonesia on 80th Independence Day After the announcements, Mayor Bowser posted on X: "American soldiers and airmen policing American citizens on American soil is #UnAmerican." TROOPS TO OTHER CITIES? The National Guard serves as a militia that answers to the governors of the 50 states except when called into federal service. The D.C. National Guard reports directly to the president. Trump, who has suggested he could take similar actions in other Democratic-controlled cities, has sought to expand the powers of the presidency in his second term, inserting himself into the affairs of major banks, law firms and elite universities. In June, Trump ordered 700 Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles, against the wishes of California's Democratic governor, during protests over mass immigration raids by federal officials. South Carolina's McMaster said his troops would immediately return to South Carolina if needed to respond to a possible hurricane or other natural disaster. Hurricane Erin, now northeast of Puerto Rico, has become a catastrophic Category 5 storm that could bring ocean swells to the U.S. East Coast early next week, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said on Saturday. National Guard troops often respond to natural disasters and rarely police U.S. civilians. Drew Galang, a spokesperson for West Virginia's Morrisey, said the state's National Guard received the order to send equipment and personnel to D.C. late on Friday and was working to organize the deployment. A White House official said on Saturday that more National Guard troops would be called in to Washington to "protect federal assets, create a safe environment for law enforcement officials to carry out their duties when required, and provide a visible presence to deter crime." A U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said a formal order was expected to go out that would authorize National Guard troops in D.C. to carry firearms. The official said this order would affect mostly military police officers with sidearms. Reuters has reported that the National Guard troops would have weapons nearby, such as in their vehicles. The White House said on Saturday that D.C. National Guard members have conducted patrols on foot and in vehicles around the National Mall and Union Station. The White House said the National Guard troops are not making arrests now and that they may be armed. It is not clear how the administration could deploy National Guard troops elsewhere. A federal judge in San Francisco is expected in the coming weeks to issue a ruling on whether Trump violated the law with the Los Angeles deployments. REUTERS
Straits Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
West Virginia, South Carolina to deploy National Guard troops to US capital
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: Members of the FBI and the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) run at the Navy Yard–Ballpark metro station in Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 15, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez/File Photo The Republican governors of West Virginia and South Carolina are deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., at the request of the administration of President Donald Trump, who has portrayed the nation's capital as awash in crime. West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey's office said in a statement on Saturday he was deploying 300 to 400 National Guard troops to D.C. in "a show of commitment to public safety and regional cooperation." The statement said he also was providing equipment and specialized training. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster responded to a Pentagon request by announcing late on Saturday that 200 of his state's National Guard troops would be sent. Trump, a Republican, said this week he was deploying hundreds of D.C. National Guard troops to Washington and temporarily taking over the Democratic-led city's police department to curb what he depicted as a crime and homelessness emergency. Justice Department data, however, showed violent crime in 2024 hit a 30-year low in Washington, technically a self-governing federal district under the jurisdiction of Congress. The announcement of more troops from two Republican-controlled states hundreds of miles away came a day after D.C. officials and the Trump administration negotiated a deal to keep Mayor Muriel Bowser's appointed police chief, Pamela Smith, in charge of the police department after D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit to block the federal takeover of the department. In June Trump ordered 700 Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles, against the wishes of California's Democratic governor, during protests over mass immigration raids by federal officials. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore I want to divorce my husband and be a single mother: More victims speaking up on emotional abuse World Trump drops Ukraine ceasefire demand after Putin summit Singapore Buying hope: Inside S'pore's love affair with the lottery Singapore She won big in Genting, but getting $240k winnings back to Singapore was dicey Opinion Confessions of a born-again Singaporean Business Manage your household finances like a business for clarity, say entrepreneurs Business Silence does not work when dealing with job loss blues Singapore Singapore congratulates Indonesia on 80th Independence Day South Carolina's McMaster said his troops would immediately return to South Carolina if needed to respond to a possible hurricane or other natural disaster. Hurricane Erin, now northeast of Puerto Rico, has become a catastrophic Category 5 storm that could bring ocean swells to the U.S. East Coast early next week, the U.S. National Hurricane Center on Saturday. National Guard troops often respond to natural disasters and rarely police U.S. civilians. TROOPS TO OTHER CITIES? Drew Galang, a spokesperson for West Virginia's Morrisey, said the state's National Guard received the order to send equipment and personnel to D.C. late on Friday and was working to organize the deployment. A White House official said on Saturday that more National Guard troops would be called in to Washington to "protect federal assets, create a safe environment for law enforcement officials to carry out their duties when required, and provide a visible presence to deter crime." A U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said a formal order was expected to go out that would authorize National Guard troops in D.C. to carry firearms. The official said this order would affect mostly military police officers with sidearms. Reuters has reported that the National Guard troops would have weapons nearby, such as in their vehicles. The White House said on Saturday that D.C. National Guard members have conducted patrols on foot and in vehicles around the National Mall and Union Station. The White House said the National Guard troops are not making arrests now and that they may be armed. Trump, who has suggested he could take similar actions in other Democratic-controlled cities, has sought to expand the powers of the presidency in his second term, inserting himself into the affairs of major banks, law firms and elite universities. It is not clear how the administration could deploy National Guard troops elsewhere. A federal judge in San Francisco is expected in the coming weeks to issue a ruling on whether Trump violated the law with the Los Angeles deployments. The National Guard serves as a militia that answers to the governors of the 50 states except when called into federal service. The D.C. National Guard reports directly to the president. REUTERS
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
West Virginia governor to deploy National Guard troops to US capital
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: Members of the FBI and the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) run at the Navy Yard–Ballpark metro station in Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 15, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez/File Photo West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey is deploying 300 to 400 National Guard troops to the District of Columbia at the request of the Trump administration, the governor's office said in a statement on Saturday. The deployment is "a show of commitment to public safety and regional cooperation" and will include providing equipment and specialized training alongside the "approximately 300-400 skilled personnel as directed," the statement said. Drew Galang, a spokesperson for Morrisey, said the state's National Guard received the order to send equipment and personnel to D.C. late on Friday and was working to organize the deployment. Earlier this week President Donald Trump said he was deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington and temporarily taking over the city's police department to curb what he depicted as a crime and homelessness emergency in the nation's capital. A White House official said on Saturday more National Guard troops would be called in to Washington to "protect federal assets, create a safe environment for law enforcement officials to carry out their duties when required, and provide a visible presence to deter crime." According to U.S. Justice Department data, violent crime in 2024 hit a 30-year low in Washington, technically a self-governing federal district under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Congress. District of Columbia officials and the Trump administration negotiated a deal on Friday to keep D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser's appointed police chief in charge of the police department after D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit to block the federal takeover of the department. Trump, a Republican who has suggested he could take similar actions in other Democratic-controlled cities, has sought to expand the powers of the presidency in his second term, inserting himself into the affairs of major banks, law firms and elite universities. It is not clear how the administration could deploy National Guard troops elsewhere. A federal judge in San Francisco is expected in the coming weeks to issue a ruling on whether Trump violated the law by deploying National Guard troops to Los Angeles in June without California Governor Gavin Newsom's approval. The National Guard serves as a militia that answers to the governors of the 50 states except when called into federal service. The D.C. National Guard, however, reports directly to the president. REUTERS
The Star
18-07-2025
- Business
- The Star
Mexican truck drivers study English to comply with new US language rules
Mexican truck drivers attend an English class as part of an effort to comply with a recent executive order by U.S. President Donald Trump requiring commercial drivers to meet English proficiency standards, at the Fletes Sotelo company facilities in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico July 16, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (Reuters) -Mexican truck drivers in the border city of Ciudad Juarez have begun studying English in efforts to comply with an executive order by President Donald Trump requiring commercial drivers in the U.S. to meet English-proficiency standards. Some 50 drivers who haul goods back and forth between Ciudad Juarez and El Paso, just across the border in Texas, are attending four to eight hours of English classes a week organized by their employer, Fletes Sotelo, in order to meet the U.S. standards. The company's owner, Manuel Sotelo, said the classes started some six weeks ago, and that the goal is for all the company's drivers to know basic English. Sotelo is also the president of the transport association of Ciudad Juarez. Jose Murguia, one of the drivers, said he thought the classes were a great opportunity, especially given the recent executive order. "It's important to know the language, at least in the ways that are necessary for our work, which is to transport goods into El Paso," he said. While the English-proficiency standard for truckers was already longstanding U.S. law, Trump's executive order in April reversed 2016 guidance that inspectors not place commercial drivers out of service if their only violation was lack of English. The order came on the heels of Trump's March executive order mandating English as the official language of the United States. That executive order has been criticized as discriminatory since millions of Americans speak languages other than, or in addition to, English. (Reporting by Jose Luis Gonzalez in Ciudad Juarez; Writing by Laura Gottesdiener; Editing by William Mallard)
The Star
25-06-2025
- Politics
- The Star
US military to create two new border zones, officials say
FILE PHOTO: A U.S. Border Patrol vehicle patrols along the border wall, following the establishment of a 260-mile military zone along the southern U.S. border in New Mexico and Texas as part of the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration, in Sunland Park, New Mexico, U.S., May 20, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez/File Photo WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Pentagon will create two new military zones along the border with Mexico, U.S. officials said on Wednesday, a move that allows troops to temporarily detain migrants or trespassers. President Donald Trump's administration has hailed its actions along the border, including the deployment of active duty troops, as the reason for a sharp decline in crossings by undocumented migrants. Trump made voters' concerns about immigration a cornerstone of his 2024 re-election bid. The Pentagon has already created two military zones, but only four people have been temporarily detained on them, a U.S. official said. A new "National Defense Area" will be created covering about 250 miles (402 km) of the Rio Grande river in Texas and administered as a part of Joint Base San Antonio, according to the Air Force. The U.S. officials said the other military zone would be administered as a part of Marine Corps Air Station in Yuma, Arizona. The zones are intended to allow the Trump administration to use troops to detain migrants without invoking the 1807 Insurrection Act that empowers a president to deploy the U.S. military to suppress events such as civil disorder. As legal deterrents to border crossers, the zones have had mixed results. Federal magistrate judges in New Mexico and Texas dismissed trespassing charges against dozens of migrants caught in the areas on grounds they did not know they were in a restricted military zone. However, some 120 migrants pleaded guilty to trespassing in the first Texas zone in May and federal prosecutors obtained their first two trespassing convictions for the New Mexico zone on June 18, according to U.S. Attorneys' Offices in the two states. Around 11,900 troops are currently on the border. Illegal border crossings fell to a record low in March after the Biden administration shut down asylum claims in 2024 and Mexico tightened immigration controls. (Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart. Additional reporting by Andrew Hay; Editing by Nia Williams)
