Senate confirms Howard Lutnick as commerce secretary
CBSN
The Senate confirmed wealthy financier Howard Lutnick as commerce secretary Tuesday, putting in place a staunch supporter of President Trump's hardline trade policies.
At the Commerce Department, Lutnick, who was CEO at the investment firm Cantor Fitzgerald, will oversee 50,000 employees who do everything from collecting economic statistics to running the census to issuing weather reports. But he's likely to spend a lot of time — along with Jamieson Greer, Mr. Trump's nominee to be the top U.S. trade negotiator — managing the president's aggressive plans to impose import taxes on U.S. trading partners, including allies and adversaries alike.
The Senate vote to confirm Lutnick was 51-45.
An Idaho judge declined to throw out key evidence against the man charged with murder in connection with the killings of four University of Idaho students, saying Wednesday that the genetic investigation process that it hinges on was not unconstitutional.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has directed the Pentagon to come up with plans to cut 8% from the defense budget in each of the next five years, according to sources familiar with his plans. The Defense Departmen expects to redirect those fund to other programs in the department that would be prioritized by President Trump.
A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday denied the Trump administration's bid to pause a lower court ruling that blocked the president's executive order seeking to terminate birthright citizenship.
John Rosenow, a fifth-generation farmer in Waumandee, Wisconsin, owns more than 900 acres and over 600 dairy cows. He said about 90% of the work on the farm is done by immigrants.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sought to alleviate fears about flying amid a spate of plane crashes and incidents in recent weeks, telling CBS News in an interview Wednesday, "of course" it's safe to fly.
People who are listed as over 100 years old in the Social Security system are "not necessarily receiving benefits," the new head of the agency said Wednesday, contradicting claims that tens of millions of dead people over that age are receiving checks.
At least two people have died after two small planes crashed midair Wednesday in Arizona, officials said.
Delta Air Lines says it is offering $30,000 to passengers who were aboard a flight from Minneapolis that crashed and flipped upside down while landing in Toronto on Monday.
Over 3,500 Internal Revenue Service employees are expected to be terminated by the end of this week, according to the text of an email obtained by CBS News and shared by an IRS employee.
Andrew Lester, the 86-year-old Missouri man who pleaded guilty to a lesser charge in the 2023 shooting of a Black honor student who rang the White man's doorbell in Kansas City by mistake, has died, prosecutors announced Wednesday.
Some lots of raw pet food sold in two states are being recalled after two indoor cats became ill with bird flu earlier this month and were euthanized due to the severity of their illnesses.
Washington — President Trump will speak at an investment conference in Miami sponsored by Saudi government entities on Wednesday, an address that comes as the Trump Organization seeks to expand its real estate empire in Saudi Arabia and the president looks to strengthen ties with the Middle East partner.
Washington — President Trump attacked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a "dictator without elections," echoing rhetoric from the Kremlin about the war in Ukraine and escalating a public feud between the two leaders.