Sen. Cory Booker calls on Menendez to resign, joining growing list of Senate Democrats
CBSN
Washington — Sen. Cory Booker called for fellow New Jersey Democrat Bob Menendez to resign from the Senate on Tuesday, joining a growing list of Democrats in the upper chamber who have called on him to step down after his indictment on federal bribery charges.
In a statement noting his close working relationship and friendship with Menendez, Booker said the allegations in last week's indictment were "hard to reconcile with the person I know." Nonetheless, he said senators "operate in the public trust," which he called "essential to our ability to do our work and perform our duties for our constituents."
"As Senator Menendez prepares to mount his legal defense, he has stated that he will not resign. Senator Menendez fiercely asserts his innocence and it is therefore understandable that he believes stepping down is patently unfair. But I believe this is a mistake," Booker said. "Stepping down is not an admission of guilt but an acknowledgment that holding public office often demands tremendous sacrifices at great personal cost. Senator Menendez has made these sacrifices in the past to serve. And in this case he must do so again. I believe stepping down is best for those Senator Menendez has spent his life serving."
The CIA confirmed Wednesday that it offered buyouts to employees who volunteer to resign, the latest group of federal workers to receive such a proposal as President Trump pushes to transform the federal government.
More employees of the Environmental Protection Agency were informed Wednesday that their jobs appear in doubt. Senior leadership at the EPA held an all-staff meeting to tell individuals that President Trump's executive order, "Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing," which was responsible for the closure of the agency's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion office, will likely lead to the shuttering of the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights as well.
Democrats on Capitol Hill, and sources familiar with the situation, said the White House's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, has been inside the offices of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
At least four cattle herds in Nevada have tested positive for a strain of H5N1 bird flu never before seen in cows, state agriculture officials confirmed Wednesday, and respiratory symptoms like coughing and sneezing have been reported.
In her first hours as attorney general, Pam Bondi issued a broad slate of directives that included a Justice Department review of the prosecutions of President Trump, a reorientation of department work to focus on harsher punishments, actions punishing so-called "sanctuary" cities and an end to diversity initiatives at the department.
Blake Lively faces a second defamation lawsuit after the actor alleged she was sexually harassed while making the movie "It Ends With Us" and subsequently targeted by a coordinated smear campaign.
Foodborne illness kills hundreds of Americans a year, sickens tens of millions annually, and costs billions in medical care, lost productivity and premature deaths, federal researchers said in a report.
Washington — Senate Republicans said Wednesday that they intend to move forward with their own plan to approve key components of President Trump's agenda beginning next week, as the House efforts to start the budget reconciliation process have stalled.
Washington — A federal judge in Maryland on Wednesday temporarily blocked President Trump's executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship from taking effect nationwide, becoming the second to rule against the president amid a rush of legal challenges to his directive.
Some health officials in the U.S. fear the shutdown of U.S. Agency for International Development missions may have disastrous results, as the stalling of foreign aid has forced delays in what they said was the "chaotic" early U.S. response to Uganda's swelling Ebola outbreak.
President Trump's move to tack an additional 10% tariff on U.S. imports from China could lead Mattel to hike the price of its Barbie, Hot Wheels and other toys.
Washington — President Trump on Wednesday is set to sign an executive order to ban transgender girls and women from competing on sports teams that match their gender identity, marking his latest move targeting transgender rights.
The quick-fire volley of tariffs between the U.S. and China in recent days has heightened global fears of a new trade war between the world's two largest economies. Yet while experts think the battle is likely to escalate, they also say the early skirmishes offer hope for an agreement on trade and other key issues that could head off a larger conflict.