Latest news with #politicalturmoil
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alina Habba out as acting US Attorney; DOJ removes judges' replacement
New Jersey's U.S. District court judges have opted not to extend acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba's term. As acting attorney, Habba's term was limited to just 120 days but the state's district court judges could have voted to allow her to retain the post beyond that. Instead, as of July 22, they have chosen to appoint Desiree Leigh Grace to the role effective July 22 or 'upon the expiration of 120 days' of Habba's appointment, whichever is later. Habba was appointed on March 24 by President Donald Trump. But hours after the decision was made public, U.S. Attorney General and U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said on social media that Grace had been "removed effective immediately" because they alleged the decision of the judges would "threaten" and "undermine" the president. What's happened on Alina Habba's watch? Habba's tenure has been tumultuous at best. During her roughly four months in the role, she arrested two Democratic elected officials, may have subpoenaed the governor and announced an investigation into the state's attorney general. After Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested May 9 by immigration agents, she had charges pressed that accused him of trespassing at Newark's Delaney Hall. Those charges were dropped weeks later, but Rep. LaMonica McIver was then indicted and still faces for allegedly "assaulting, resisting and impeding" Homeland Security investigators and ICE agents. The freshman congresswoman has said she was there with fellow Reps. Bonnie Watson-Coleman and Rob Menendez on May 9 to "inspect the treatment of ICE detainees at Delaney Hall in my district." "We were fulfilling our lawful oversight responsibilities, as members of Congress have done many times before, and our visit should have been peaceful and short," she said. "The charges against me are purely political — they mischaracterize and distort my actions, and are meant to criminalize and deter legislative oversight." Habba also expressed interest in investigating Gov. Phil Murphy and state Attorney General Matthew Platkin during a cable news appearance in April. She said she instructed her office to open an investigation into Murphy and Platkin for not cooperating with federal immigration authorities, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Earlier: President Donald Trump nominates Alina Habba for full four-year U.S. attorney term for NJ Did Habba subpoena Gov. Phil Murphy? Murphy may have been subpoenaed for an investigation into comments he made at an event in Montclair back in February. The governor suggested that he was harboring an undocumented person in a garage at his home and that he dared federal immigration agents to "try to get her." Murphy said at the time that he and his wife had been discussing "someone in our broader universe whose immigration status is not yet at the point that they are trying to get it to. And we said, 'You know what? Let's have her live at our house above our garage, and good luck to the feds coming in to try to get her.'" The Murphy administration later clarified that the person the governor was referring to had legal status but was concerned that she might get swept up in Trump's immigration crackdown. They also declined to comment after reports circulated that Murphy had been subpoenaed. Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@ This article originally appeared on Alina Habba out as U.S. Attorney for NJ Solve the daily Crossword
Reuters
4 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Japan's ruling coalition likely to lose upper house, exit polls show
Japan's shaky ruling coalition is likely to lose control of the upper house, exit polls showed after Sunday's (July 20) election, potentially heralding political turmoil as a tariff deadline with the United States looms.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Japan PM faces 'Japanese-first' populist challenge in upper house election
Japanese voters headed to the polls on Sunday in a tightly contested upper house election that could unleash political turmoil, with rising prices, immigration concerns and the emergence of a Trump-style "Japanese-first" party threatening to weaken Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's grip on power. FRANCE 24's correspondent Gavin Blair has the details.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Japan PM faces 'Japanese-first' populist challenge in upper house election
Japanese voters headed to the polls on Sunday in a tightly contested upper house election that could unleash political turmoil, with rising prices, immigration concerns and the emergence of a Trump-style "Japanese-first" party threatening to weaken Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's grip on power. FRANCE 24's correspondent Gavin Blair has the details.
Reuters
5 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Japan heads to polls in key test for Prime Minister Ishiba
TOKYO, July 20 (Reuters) - Japanese voters could unleash political turmoil as they head to the polls on Sunday in a tightly contested upper house election, with rising prices and immigration concerns threatening to weaken Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's grip on power. Opinion polls suggest Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party and coalition partner Komeito may fall short of the 50 seats needed to retain control of the 248-seat upper house of parliament in an election where half the seats are up for grabs. The polls show smaller opposition parties pushing for tax cuts and increased public spending are set to gain, among them the right-wing Sanseito, which vows to curb immigration, oppose foreign capital inflows and reverse gender equality moves. A poor showing by the coalition could shake investor confidence in the world's fourth-largest economy and disrupt critical trade talks with the United States, analysts said. Ishiba may have to choose between making way for a new LDP leader or scrambling to secure the backing of some opposition parties with policy compromises, said Rintaro Nishimura, an associate at the Asia Group in Japan. "Each scenario requires the LDP and Komeito to make certain concessions, and will be challenging, as any potential partner has leverage in the negotiations." After the election, Japan faces a deadline of August 1 to strike a trade deal with the United States or face punishing tariffs in its largest export market. Such import levies could squeeze the economy and further pressure the government to give financial relief to households already reeling from inflation, such as a doubling of rice prices since last year. With an eye on a jittery government bond market, the LDP has called for fiscal restraint, rejecting opposition calls for major tax cuts and welfare spending to soften the blow. Ishiba's administration lost its majority in the more powerful lower house in October. That was the LDP's worst showing in 15 years, roiling financial markets and leaving the prime minister vulnerable to no-confidence motions that could topple his administration and trigger a fresh general election. Ruled by the LDP for most of the post-war period, Japan has so far largely avoided the social division and fracturing of politics seen in other industrialised democracies. Voting ends at 8 p.m. (1100 GMT), when media are expected to project results based on exit polls.
