Author: Byron Houston

On behalf of the people of the United States, I extend my warmest wishes to all people in Laos on the 49th anniversary of the founding of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR). I commend the Lao PDR on a very successful ASEAN chairmanship — for hosting me twice, in July and October — and for the leadership it showed throughout 2024. Since the establishment of our Comprehensive Partnership in 2016, the U.S.-Lao PDR relationship has grown significantly. We are pleased to collaborate with the Lao PDR in advancing economic and development goals across many sectors, including education, public health,…

GUANGZHOU, China — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen arrived in China on Thursday for five days of meetings in a nation determined to avoid open conflict with the United States, yet the world’s two largest economies still appear to be hashing out the rules on how to compete against each other. There are tensions over Chinese government support for the manufacturing of electric vehicles and solar panels, just as the U.S. government ramps up its own aid for those tech sectors. There are differences in trade, ownership of TikTok, access to computer chips and national security — all of them a risk to what…

The Biden family’s dog, Commander, has been moved out of the White House after a series of biting incidents. It is still being decided what will happen to the two-year-old German Shepherd, a spokeswoman for First Lady Jill Biden said. Just last week, Commander bit a Secret Service agent who required medical treatment at the scene. It was the 11th time the dog has bitten a guard at the White House complex or at the family home in Delaware. “The President and First Lady care deeply about the safety of those who work at the White House and those who…

Bob Ross was an artist who brought painting to the people, his works completed for PBS viewers in less than a half hour with little more than a large bristle brush, a putty knife and plenty of encouragement. It is unlikely he would have envisioned one of his works going up for sale for nearly $10m. But that is the price a Minneapolis gallery is now asking for A Walk in the Woods, the first of more than 400 paintings Ross produced on-air for his TV series The Joy of Painting. “It is season one, episode one of what you would call the rookie…

Taiwan’s vice president has declared that the self-governed island will not back down in the face of authoritarian threats after China pledged to take “forceful and resolute measures” following his stopover in the United States. William Lai made the comments during a lunch with his supporters in New York City on Sunday. Lai, who is also the frontrunner to be Taiwan’s next president in the January elections, is in the US on what is officially a transit stop on his way to Paraguay for the inauguration of its new president. Paraguay is one of only 13 countries to maintain formal ties…

The recent ‘Qatargate’ scandal in the European Parliament, which has seen MEPs & at least one former former MEP languishing in Belgian jail cells, has re-opened another serious issue – one that is institutionalised in Brussels – that of the “fake NGO”. The fake NGO is becoming a major problem in Brussels. Typically, such a body would purport to represent human rights interests: it is always going to be difficult for a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), for example, to say “no” to an approach by a human rights NGO – but easy for NGO to use the cover…

Former US Vice-President Mike Pence has officially filed paperwork to join an increasingly crowded field of Republicans running for president. Mr Pence, 63, is set to formally launch his campaign with a video, speech and townhall event in the early voting state of Iowa on Wednesday. The move pits him against Donald Trump, the man he served in the White House for four years from 2017-21. The former president is currently polling well ahead in the race. Most opinion polls show Mr Pence in a distant third place, with support in the low single digits. The former Indiana governor and…

Michelle O’Neill is to travel to Washington on Monday to meet senior US officials and members of Congress. The Sinn Féin deputy leader plans to discuss the political situation in Northern Ireland following the outcome of the recent council elections. The party won 144 council seats, up from the 105 councillors they had in 2019. The party is now the largest in both local government and Stormont for the first time. Stormont’s assembly and governing executive are not functioning because of a protest by the the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) against post-Brexit trading rules. Clear signal Ms O’Neill said the people of…

London, New York, Mexico City (11/3 – 18) PGA is looking gloomy – are the fat years over? The emergence in 2019 of LIV Golf has spectacularly upset the status quo, posing a threat as a rival to the PGA Tour monopoly, as the leading professional golf tour in the world. Newcomer LIV Golf brazenly hijacked a number of some of the most famous professional golfers from the PGA Tour, luring them away with more lucrative deals. Several major champions and former world numbers, including names like Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, and Patrick Reed are now…

Despite a revolt among a handful of hard-line Republicans, a bipartisan deal to raise the US debt ceiling is set to reach the floor of the House of Representatives for a vote on Wednesday evening. If a majority of legislators in the chamber approve, the bill will move on to the US Senate. Here’s how the drama is playing out on Capitol Hill and a guide to what comes next. After months of negotiations, President Joe Biden and Republican Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy finally reached a deal to raise the amount of money the US can borrow, avoid…