Exiled Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s party barred from election

Exiled Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's party barred from election

Bangladesh's Election Commission has cancelled the registration of the former ruling party of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, preventing it from participating in the next national election, which is expected to be held by June next year. The decision on Monday came hours after the country's interim government headed byNobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunusissued an official notification banning the Awami League party and its affiliated bodies from conducting activities online and elsewhere. Monday's formal notification from the Ministry of Home Affairs was issued two days after the interim Cabinet decided to ban all activities of the party under the country's Anti-Terrorism Act until a special tribunal concludes a trial for the party and its leaders. In the notification, the government said it outlawed all activities "including any kind of publication, media, online and social media" as well as "any kind of campaign, procession, meeting, gathering (or) conference until the trial of the leaders and activists … is completed." It said the decision was effective immediately. Separately, the Election Commission said Monday it would not allow the Hasina-led party to contest the next election. Political parties must be registered with the Election Commission to take part in elections. A government adviser said Monday that anyone who posts comments online in support of the Awami League party would face arrest. On Sunday, the Awami League accused the interim government of "stoking division" and trampling on "democratic norms" by banning its activities. It said in a statement that the ban "stoked division within society, strangled democratic norms, fueled ongoing pogrom against dissenters and strangled inclusivity, all undemocratic steps." The Awami League is one of two major parties in Bangladesh, which has a fractious parliamentary democracy with a violent history of coups and political assassination. Hasina, the daughter of Bangladesh's independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, fled the country on Aug. 5 last year and has beenin exile in Indiasince then along with many senior party colleagues and former Cabinet minsters and lawmakers. They have been accused of killing protesters during an uprising against Hasina's 15-year rule in July-August last year. The United Nations human rights office said in a report in February that up to 1,400 people may have been killed during three weeks of anti-Hasina protests. But the Office of the UN High Commissioner of Human Rights recommended in a report to "refrain from political party bans that would undermine a return to a genuine multi-party democracy and effectively disenfranchise a large part of the Bangladeshi electorate." The Awami League, which led a nine-month war against Pakistan for independence in 1971, has been under severe pressure since Hasina's ouster. Protesters have attacked and torched many of its offices including its headquarters in Dhaka. It accuses the interim government of sponsoring mobs to attack the homes and businesses of their activists and leaders. It said thousands of its supporters have been arrested across the country and that many have been killed. Yunus has said the next election will likely be held either in December or in June next year. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account atCNN.com

byRicky Wilson

in

May 13, 2025

Exiled Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s party barred from election

Exiled Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's party barred from election Bangladesh's Election Commission has cancelled the regis...

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More than 100 lawmakers urge scrapping of federal plans to cut LGBTQ lifeline services

More than 100 lawmakers urge scrapping of federal plans to cut LGBTQ lifeline services

More than 100 Congressional Democrats have signed a letter urging U.S. Health and Human Services SecretaryRobert F. Kennedy Jr.to scrub planned budget cuts that would eliminate crucial mental health services for LGBTQ+ youth, who face greatermental health challengesthan their peers. At stake are services offered through the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which has fielded more than 13 million calls, texts and chats from across the U.S. and its territories since its inception. Created through a bipartisan measure signed into law by President Trump in 2020, the lifeline serves veterans and non-English speakers in addition to LGBTQ+ young people. Similar to calling 911, people looking for mental or emotional health support can call 988, with the further option of being directed to a counselor trained in LGBTQ+ youth support. Theproposed cuts, first reported byThe Washington Post, would slash the lifeline's LGBTQ+ youth services as part ofan HHS overhaul. The restructuring will consolidate the agency's 28 divisions into 15 divisions, including the newly created Administration for a Healthy America to implement Kennedy's "Make America Healthy Again" agenda. "Ending this mental health support for youth in distress would devastate a vital resource for some of our nation's most vulnerable young people,"the lawmakers' letterstated. "This shortsighted and dangerous plan undermines 988's ability to provide tailored support for a population with a higher risk of suicide and will have lethal consequences if enacted." The letter is signed by 109 members of Congress, including Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Massachusetts; Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Illinois; Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Michigan; and Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wisconsin. "Mental health crises do not recognize partisan differences, and this is why support for 988 and its specialized services has always been firmly bipartisan," the representatives wrote. "…. We urge that you scrap this ill-advised plan. Our nation's children deserve nothing less." Their missive echoes a similar letter issuedon May 7by a group of Democratic senators including Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Elizabeth Warren and Edward Markey of Massachusetts. The proposed cuts, to take effect October 1, come as LGBTQ+ youth are experiencing a spike in mental health issues triggered by the Trump administration's heightened attacks on the community. The plan is stillin draft formand its final version will need Congressional approval. About 1.2 million of the 13 million calls, texts and chats received by the lifeline have been directed to its LGBTQ+ Youth Hotline. The frequency of those contacts has spiked over the last several months, according to The Trevor Project, one of seven federally funded contact centers that partner with the lifeline to offer specialized support for LGBTQ+ young people. According to the Trevor Project, a national organization focused on suicide prevention for LGBTQ+ young people, suicide is the second leading cause of death among those aged 10 to 14 and the third leading cause for those aged 15 to 24. LGBTQ+ young people are more than four times as likely to attempt suicide than their peers, and the project estimates more than 1.8 million LGBTQ+ young people in the U.S. seriously consider suicide annually. "Suicide prevention is about risk, not identity," said Jaymes Black, The Trevor Project's CEO. Ending the lifeline's specialized LGBTQ+ youth services, Black said, "will not just strip away access from millions of LGBTQ+ kids and teens. It will put their lives at risk." In response to the lawmakers' letter, a spokesperson for HHS' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration noted that all 988 services currently remain available and unaltered. "The 988 Lifeline offers 24/7 call, text and chat access to skilled, caring crisis counselors who can help people experiencing suicidal, substance misuse, or mental health crises, or any other kind of emotional distress," the spokesperson said. "People can also call, text or chat 988 if they are worried about a loved one who may need crisis support. The 988 Lifeline is a direct connection to immediate support and resources for anyone in crisis." The national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and Veterans Crisis Linelaunched in July 2022to assist people experiencing mental health, substance use or suicidal crises. The service stemmed from the Federal Communications Commission's July 2020 adoption of 988 as a nationwide dialing code for people in crisis to connect with suicide prevention and mental health crisis counselors. Several months after the FCC action, President Donald Trump signed the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020, incorporating the 988 lifeline into law. "When Congress established the 988 lifeline, signed into law by President Trump during his first term, we intended it to be a resource foranyAmerican experiencing mental distress," the representatives' letter said. "To a young person feeling alone and scared, 988 is truly a lifeline." Community and mental health advocates agreed. Tom Milam, a psychologist who serves as chief medical officer for Iris Telehealth, which has a strong LGBTQ+ community presence, said the proposed cuts would likely compound the stresses already faced by overloaded behavioral health resources. Put off by long waitlists for outpatient behavioral health services, patients have increasingly turned to emergency rooms and urgent care centers for mental health and addiction treatment, he said. "988 has been a game-changer as a resource for people struggling with mental health and addiction issues," Milam said. Should that option cease to exist or experience extended hold times because of inadequate staffing, more patients will call 911 or seek emergency-room care – not only the costliest option, he said, but one with minimal access to quality mental health care. "We see hospitals and health systems doing the best they can to serve people in their community with mental health and addiction issues, but it is rarely enough," he said. Rachael Fried, executive director of Jewish Queer Youth, a New York-based mental health organization better known by the acronym JQY, said eliminating the life's LGBTQ+ services would contribute to "an even greater loss of hope." "The administration's proposal to cut services for LGBTQ youth through the 988 suicide and crisis hotline will have devastating and deadly consequences," she said. Black, of the Trevor Project, noted a 2024 Trevor Project survey that found that 40% of LGBTQ+ young people had seriously considered suicide in the past year, while 12% had attempted it. "We urge Congress to defend its establishment of this data-based, bipartisan program to allow its life-saving services to continue for generations to come," they said. "We do not have to agree on every policy issue to agree that every young life is worth saving." If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text988or chat at988lifeline.org. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Democratic lawmakers urge HHS Secretary Kennedy to save LGBTQ lifeline

byRicky Wilson

in

May 13, 2025

More than 100 lawmakers urge scrapping of federal plans to cut LGBTQ lifeline services

More than 100 lawmakers urge scrapping of federal plans to cut LGBTQ lifeline services More than 100 Congressional Democrats have signed a l...

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Federal judge says Trump can use Alien Enemies Act for deportations

Federal judge says Trump can use Alien Enemies Act for deportations

A federal judge in Pennsylvania ruled on May 13 that the United States can use the Alien Enemies Act to fast-track the deportation of accused Venezuelan gang members, in what appears to be the first court ruling that backs the Trump administration's interpretation of the 1798 law. Judge Stephanie Haines, of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, ruled that President Donald Trump has the authority to declare the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua a foreign terrorist organization and deport its members under the Alien Enemies Act. But she criticized the administration's practice of deporting people sometimes "within a matter of hours." Haines, appointed by Trump during his first term, ruled that the administration must give potential deportees at least 21 days' notice and the opportunity to challenge their removals, to avoid the possibility that people who are not gang members "may be errantly removed from this country." She made the ruling in court papers in the case of a Venezuelan man identified as A.S.R. Haines did not rule whether A.S.R. was a member of the gang but she said people like him must be given more opportunity to challenge their deportations. Haines required the government to provide notice in Spanish and English, and to provide interpreters when necessary. Lee Gelernt, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union who is representing A.S.R., said he would appeal. Alien Enemies Act ruling:Trump claimed victory. So did the ACLU. Who's right? "We strongly disagree with the Court's decision to allow the government to continue using this wartime authority during peacetime, and will appeal that aspect of the decision," Gelernt said. Haines' ruling is contrary to other federal courts' decisions on the Trump administration's interpretation of the Alien Enemies Act, which the president invoked in March as legal justification for deporting hundreds of men whom his administration accused of being Tren de Aragua members. Federal judges in New York, Colorado, and Texas have ruled against Trump's use of the law to deport Venezuelans. Haines, in her ruling, noted that her district has jurisdiction over the petition filed by A.S.R., even though he was transferred from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, on April 15 to an ICE detention center in Texas, despite a temporary restraining order issued that day barring his transfer from the Western District of Pennsylvania. The Trump administration has deported alleged gang members to a prison in El Salvador under an arrangement in which the United States is paying the Central American nation $6 million. It is part of Trump's hardline approach toward immigration. The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. (Reporting by Ryan Patrick Jones and Dietrich Knauth; Editing by Chris Reese, Nia Williams and Leslie Adler) This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Trump can authorize the Alien Enemies Act for deportations

byRicky Wilson

in

May 13, 2025

Federal judge says Trump can use Alien Enemies Act for deportations

Federal judge says Trump can use Alien Enemies Act for deportations A federal judge in Pennsylvania ruled on May 13 that the United States c...

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Trump administration plans to deploy hundreds more federal agents to ramp up immigration enforcement across the country

Trump administration plans to deploy hundreds more federal agents to ramp up immigration enforcement across the country

The Trump administration is planning to deploy hundreds more federal personnel to ramp up arrests ofundocumented immigrantsas soon as this week, according to two sources familiar with the planning, including tapping Border Patrol agents to fan out nationwide. The move, which is also expected to include help from state National Guard units, comes as the Justice Department is also intensifying its crackdown on immigration-related crime in cities across the country – the latest escalations in the administration's effort to overcome limited resources and personnel to fulfill President Donald Trump's mass deportation campaign promise Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers – typically charged with the arrest and detention of undocumented immigrants in the US – have been under tremendous pressures to deliver results but have faced many of the same logistical problems that have dogged previous administrations. White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller has previously describedquotas on ICE field officesas a "floor, not a ceiling." But to execute on that, Trump officials have had to look across the federal government for help. That effort is now expected to include US Border Patrol agents, who have authority to conduct immigration enforcement across the country. The involvement of Border Patrol speaks to the White House's confidence in the situation at the US southern border, where migrant crossings have plummeted, freeing up resources. In addition to being stationed on US borders, US Border Patrol agents are also stationed in multiple cities across the country. Their primary mission is border security. The deployment of additional agents in the interior of the United States marks a doubling down on interior enforcement, which has typically been ICE's charge. Agents are also expected to get help from National Guard units in states where governors have provided permissions. While they can't make arrests, they're expected to bolster arresting teams on the ground and provide what's known as "force protection," one of the sources said. CNN reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment. Some states are expected to deputize their National Guard under appropriate authorities to serve as a force multiplier, according to a defense official, who maintained they are expected to remain in a supporting status. It's unclear how many Guardsmen will be tied up with state orders, according to the official. Earlier this year, US Customs and Border Protection and the Texas National Guard entered a memorandum of understanding to grant certain Texas Guard personnel immigration authority under the supervision of CBP officials. "Partnerships with committed state governors are vital to that commitment, particularly in a state like Texas, which has faced unprecedented migration challenges in recent years, straining law enforcement resources and increasing security threats along the border," a CBP spokesperson said at the time of the announcement, referring to a whole-of-government approach toward immigration enforcement. The administration has also emphasized it's looking for help from the states in its efforts to arrest and detain undocumented immigrants. Earlier this year, the then-acting homeland security secretaryreleased a memo,pivoting off ofTrump's invasion-oriented executive orders, that made a finding of a "mass influx" of migrants to trigger new state authorities for immigration enforcement. The administration has already mobilized wide swaths of the federal government to arrest and detain undocumented immigrants, but challenges remain. ICE, for example, is currently funded for around 40,000 detention beds and has around 6,000 immigration enforcement officers. Officials at the White House have also been pushing Justice Department leadership to intensify its crackdown on illegal immigration, a person familiar with the matter told CNN. To that end, the Justice Department is directing federal agents in more than two dozen cities to sideline some of their existing investigations and instead focus their efforts on finding and arresting undocumented immigrants. The department selected 25 cities to focus their efforts on – starting with sending a large number of federal agents from the FBI, ATF, DEA and the US Marshals Service to assist in immigration enforcement. FBI agents are expected to comprise about 45% of the increased federal effort, according to the person familiar. The New York Timesfirst reported on the department's new multi-city surge. Some FBI agents who work in areas that the Trump administration believes are hotbeds of immigration-related crime could be spending as much as a third of their time working immigration efforts, two other people familiar with the effort told CNN. That percentage could be far lower in areas of the country where crimes related to immigration are less common. The move raises questions about how the Justice Department will use its resources to address other federal crimes, and comes as the department continues its efforts to step away fromwhite collar prosecutions, including foreign bribery cases. In an address Monday, Matthew Galeotti, the head of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, announcednew guidancethat doubles down on Attorney General Pam Bondi's promise to shift the department's resources away from prosecuting American businesses and towards prosecuting "cartel enablers and other financial facilitators of transnational crime." CNN's Jamie Gangel contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account atCNN.com

byRicky Wilson

in

May 13, 2025

Trump administration plans to deploy hundreds more federal agents to ramp up immigration enforcement across the country

Trump administration plans to deploy hundreds more federal agents to ramp up immigration enforcement across the country The Trump administra...

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Victor Davis Hanson Breaks Down Why He Thinks ‘Real Economic Boom’ ‘Nobody’s Talking About’ Could Be Coming

Victor Davis Hanson Breaks Down Why He Thinks 'Real Economic Boom' 'Nobody's Talking About' Could Be Coming

Hoover Institution Senior Fellow Victor Davis Hanson said Tuesday on his show that President Donald Trump's negotiations with China and other policies could bring a "real economic boom" to the U.S. The Trump administration began its first negotiations with China on Saturday, with Treasury Secretary Scott BessentannouncingSunday that "substantial progress" had been made since the tariff war broke out in April. While discussing the issue on "The Victor Davis Hanson Show," Hanson questioned the "outrage" from outlets like the Wall Street Journal and said Trump is trying to save American jobs through his tariff negotiations. "What Donald Trump is trying to do is to lower the amount of foreign capital and exchange they have at their disposal and save American jobs," Hanson said. "So if he gets this $1.2 dollar surplus down to $500 hundred million — that sounds to me like he might be able to do that. Cut it in half without destroying them. Then wean us off slowly of Chinese dependence. It's a fantastic boom." "What's so weird about it is that every economist that I know of has been warning us … that it was not sustainable to be running these huge trade deficits," Hanson added. "No other president has really addressed it. No other president has talked about the trade deficit. Nobody's talked about the budget deficit, not since Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich balanced the budget deficit. Nobody's talking about the national debt. I never heard Biden — did you ever hear him say one word that we're paying $3 billion dollars a day in interest? I didn't." After Trump announced tariffs against a handful of countries, China responded with retaliatory measures. While the president later placed a90-day pauseon tariffs for all nations except China, the country was hit with a 145% tariff from the U.S. WATCH: Pundits pointed to risingtensionsbetween the two countries, noting how thestock marketfluctuated following the tariff hits.(RELATED: Inflation Slowed To Four-Year Low In April, Beating Expectations) Hanson went on to say how the "left-wing media" has ignored "real indicators" of the economy, like how the U.S. job growth and lowering of inflation "defied expectations." "So all the news was good, and then they got the trade that the big elephant in the room is China, and if they can make movement then South Korea is next and then Japan and then Taiwan and then Singapore. They'll all fall in place," Hanson said. "The last people to do it will be our so-called friends that we protect, and those will be the Europeans," Hanson said. "They will be the most unhappy if Donald Trump is successful. Maybe rivaled by the American left that is just openly now hoping for a recession." According to Bureau of Labor Statistics datareleasedMay 2, the U.S. added 177,000 non-farm payroll jobs in April, following 185,000 in March. The better-than-expected job growth comes as inflationcooledin March, with the consumer price index rising 2.4%. "I don't think they realize that if he does get 7 to 8 trillion dollars of foreign investment, we've never had that before. We've never had an end to illegal immigration," Hanson added. "That's a multi-billion-dollar drain bringing people in and giving them 17, 18, 20 thousand dollars a year in support." "Then bringing all this energy online, coal, natural gas. It's a multifaceted effort, and if it all works, and I think there's a good chance it could, then we could see a real economic boom, and nobody's talking about it," Hanson said. Since his campaign, Trump has aimed to revive the economy after the U.S. facedsoaring inflationunder former President Joe Biden starting in January 2021. With votersprioritizingthe economy, inflation and the border crisis ahead of the 2024 election, Trump's second administration has clamped down on the southern border, carrying out mass deportations of illegal migrants withcriminal records, despite pushback fromDemocrats. All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter's byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contactlicensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

byRicky Wilson

in

May 13, 2025

Victor Davis Hanson Breaks Down Why He Thinks ‘Real Economic Boom’ ‘Nobody’s Talking About’ Could Be Coming

Victor Davis Hanson Breaks Down Why He Thinks 'Real Economic Boom' 'Nobody's Talking About' Could Be Coming Hoover Insti...

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