Month: November 2024

Biden told reporters on Thursday that he hopes President-elect Donald Trump “rethinks” his Day 1 proposal to impose tariffs on Mexico and Canada, calling it a “counterproductive thing to do.”

Biden said that  Trump’s proposed 25% tariff on goods from Mexico and Canada would harm relations between the United States and Mexico and Canada, telling reporters on Thanksgiving: “We have an unusual situation in America. We’re surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, and the two allies: Mexico and Canada. And the last thing we need to do is screw up those relationships. I think we’ve got them in a good place. I hope he rethinks it. It’s a counterproductive thing to do, and would screw up the nation’s relationships with its neighbors to the north and south.”

On Monday, Trump proposed implementing tariffs of Mexican and Canadian goods if leaders in those nations don’t do more to stop illegal border incursions into the United States. The President-elect said this week that he plans to sign an executive order when he takes office on Jan. 20, 2025, that would charge Mexico and Canada with a 25% tariff on all products those nations send to the United States, in an effort to stop the flow of drugs entering the country and illegal border crossings.

Trump said in a post on Truth Social: “Thousands of people are pouring through Mexico and Canada, bringing crime and drugs at levels never seen before  Right now, a caravan coming from Mexico, composed of thousands of people, seems to be unstoppable in its quest to come through our currently open border.” He said the tariffs would stay in effect until the flow of fentanyl and other drugs cease and “illegal aliens stop this invasion of our country.”

Trump also vowed to charge China with an additional 10% tariff on top of any additional tariffs on products coming into the U.S., arguing the country wasn’t doing enough to stop the flow of illicit drugs.

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The NYPD arrested 21 pro-Palestinian protesters who briefly blocked the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade route Thursday morning, occurring shortly before 9:30 a.m. EST. The annual parade started at 8:30 a.m. in the upper west side of Manhattan and followed a 2.5-mile route to the Macy’s Herald Square store location on 34th Street.

Nearly two dozen protesters, many of whom had their faces covered, leapt over barriers and blocked the parade route on West 55th Street and sat down, locked arms and chanted, “Free Palestine.” They held two Palestinian flags and carried a banner saying, “Don’t celebrate genocide,” calling for an arms embargo and giving land to Palestinians.

While spectators booed the protesters, the NYPD quickly responded and arrested them; the parade continued after police cleared the protesters, whom are being held on yet-to-be-announced charges.

The NYPD last year arrested 34 pro-Palestinian protesters who blocked the path of the Ronald McDonald’s float and glued their hands to the street, protesting the war in Gaza that started when Hamas attacked and killed Israelis citizens on Oct. 7, 2023. Thirty of those protesters were charged with trespassing while four others were charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and obstructing governmental administration.

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President Biden announced Tuesday that that United States assisted in securing a ceasefire deal. Israel has agreed to the ceasefire deal with Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah that would end nearly 14 months of fighting. Under the deal, which is set to go into effect Wednesday at 4 a.m. local time, the fighting at the Israel-Lebanese border will end.

Mr. Biden said on the White House South Lawn: “Today, I have some good news to report from the Middle East. I just spoke with the prime minister of Israel and Lebanon. I’m pleased to announce that their governments have accepted the United States’ proposal to end the devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. I want to thank President Macron of France for his partnership in reaching this moment.”

Biden’s announcement came as Israel’s Cabinet approved the ceasefire after urging from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The war between Israel and the Iran-backed group has killed almost 3,800 people in Lebanon over the last year and left about 16,000 others wounded.

Biden said the deal was “designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities,” adding that the U.S., and partners including France, “will make sure this deal is implemented fully. Let me be clear, if Hezbollah or anyone else breaks the deal, and poses a direct threat to Israel, then Israel retains the right to self-defense consistent with international law.”

Shortly after the president’s announcement, Netanyahu said in a statement that his Cabinet had approved the U.S.-brokered deal, 10 ministers to one: “Israel appreciates the U.S. contribution to the process, and reserves its right to act against any threat to its security,” adding that he spoke with Biden and “thanked him for the US involvement in achieving the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon and for the understanding that Israel maintains freedom of action in enforcing it.”

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Under a new rule the Biden administration proposed on Tuesday, millions of Americans with obesity would be eligible to have popular weight-loss drugs like Wegovy or Zepbound covered by Medicare or Medicaid. The rule would not be finalized until January, days after President-elect Trump takes office.

The new rule would dramatically expand access to anti-obesity medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy, from Novo Nordisk, and Mounjaro and Zepbound, from Eli Lilly. The White House said in a fact sheet that some 3.4 million Medicare beneficiaries and about 4 million Medicaid recipients would gain access to these medications, which can cost as much as $1,000 a month for the uninsured. Some Medicare enrollees could see their out-of-pocket costs drop by as much as 95%.

The Biden administration said: “This proposal would allow Americans and their doctors to determine the best path forward so they can lead healthier lives, without worrying about their ability to cover these drugs out-of-pocket, and ultimately reduce health care costs to our nation.”

Currently, Medicare has been barred from paying for weight loss drugs unless they’re used to treat conditions like diabetes or to manage an increased risk of heart disease. The Biden administration is proposing to reinterpret the law barring coverage by classifying obesity drugs as treatment for a “chronic disease,” rather than as weight loss medications. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said on a call with reporters Tuesday: “The medical community today agrees that obesity is a chronic disease. These drugs are the beginning of a revolution in the way that weight is controlled.”

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra told The Associated Press: “It’s a good day for anyone who suffers from obesity. It’s a game changer for Americans who can’t afford these drugs otherwise.”

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Iconic retailer Macy’s announced Monday that it would delay its full third-quarter earnings report because of an employee hiding up to $154 million in expenses, which sent its stock plummeting in early trading.  At midday Monday, Macy’s stock was trading at $15.68 a share, down 3.8% — it had traded as high as $22.10 within the last year.

The department store chain was expected to report quarterly results on Tuesday; however, the retailer said that it had identified an issue related to delivery expenses in one of its accrual accounts earlier this month. The did release preliminary third-quarter results, adding that the full report, along with the fourth quarter and full-year guidance, will be unveiled by Dec. 11.

An independent investigation and forensic analysis found that a single unnamed employee, with responsibility for small package delivery expense accounting, intentionally made erroneous accounting accrual entries to hide roughly $132 million to $154 million of expenses from the fourth quarter of 2021 through the fiscal quarter ended November 2. Macy’s did not to explain why the employee, who is no longer with the company, hid the expenses.

Tony Spring, chair and CEO of Macy’s, said in a statement: “We delivered third-quarter sales in line with expectations as we continued to make traction on our Bold New Chapter strategy initiatives. Our Macy’s First 50 locations achieved their third consecutive quarter of comparable sales growth. At the same time … Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury, reported positive comparable sales. Importantly, November comparable sales are trending ahead of third-quarter levels across nameplates.”

Macy’s said it its preliminary report of its first 50 locations, comparable sales growth was up 1.9%. It said asset sale gains of $66 million were ahead of expectations, and that luxury brand Bluemercury reported comparable sales growth of 3.3%.

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Special counsel Jack Smith has filed motions to drop all federal charges against President-elect Donald Trump regarding his mishandling of classified documents and his effort to overturn his 2020 presidential election, leading up to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S Capitol.

Trump was first indicted in June 2023 in a federal court in Miami on 37 felony counts related to mishandling classified documents that he took from the White House to his Florida home. A Florida judge dismissed the case, but Smith’s office had sought an appeal. Trump was separately indicted on four felonies in August 2023 for his attempt to reverse the 2020 election results: conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding and conspiracy against rights.

In newly filed court documents, Smith asked a federal district court in Washington on Monday to dismiss the charges against Trump. Federal prosecutors told U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan that they are seeking to close Trump’s case because Justice Department policy forbids the prosecution of a sitting president. The special counsel is seeking to dismiss the case without prejudice, meaning prosecutors could decide to charge Trump again after he leaves office in January 2029.

Smith wrote: “After careful consideration, the department has determined that [the Office of Legal Counsel’s] prior opinions concerning the Constitution’s prohibition on federal indictment and prosecution of a sitting president apply to this situation and that as a result this prosecution must be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated. That prohibition is categorical and does not turn on the gravity of the crimes charged, the strength of the government’s proof, or the merits of the prosecution, which the government stands fully behind.”

The special counsel noted the historic nature of Trump’s prosecution and subsequent election to the presidency, writing that the “department and the country have never faced the circumstance here, where a federal indictment against a private citizen has been returned by a grand jury and a criminal prosecution is already underway when the defendant is elected president.”  After consultation with the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, Smith said “the department’s position is that the Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated.”

In his six-page motion, Smith said that he conferred with Trump’s lawyers, and they do not object to the request to drop the case. Steven Cheung, Trump’s spokesman, said in a statement: “The American people re-elected President Trump with an overwhelming mandate to make America great again. Today’s decision by the DOJ ends the unconstitutional federal cases against President Trump and is a major victory for the rule of law. The American people and President Trump want an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and we look forward to uniting our country.”

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