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Sean Salai

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Sean Salai

ssalai@washingtontimes.com

Sean Salai is the general assignment/culture reporter for The Washington Times. A former National desk intern and Metro clerk at The Washington Times, he also has served as a City Hall reporter at the Boca Raton News and as a special contributor at America Media. He can be reached at ssalai@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Sean Salai

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AI-generated pictures and voices drive surge in online dating scams, cyber experts say

That attractive, charming person on a video-chat dating website and that attentive, sympathetic caller on a dating phone line are likely scammers employing the latest artificial intelligence features to separate lonely romantics from their money, cybersecurity experts say.

March 17, 2026

Mifepristone tablets are seen at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Ames, Iowa, on Thursday, July 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

Pro-lifers slam Trump team for asking court to dismiss abortion pill lawsuit

Pro-life advocates are accusing the Trump administration of selling out unborn children by asking a federal court to block Florida and Texas officials from keeping mail-order abortion pills out of their states.

March 16, 2026

Rep. Robyn Kelly, D-Ill., right, speaks with former federal workers who lost their jobs in President Donald Trump's DOGE layoffs, at the Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) **FILE**

Federal layoffs drove 96% of 2025 job losses

Roughly 96% of all job losses in the D.C. region last year came from federal layoffs, the liberal Brookings Institution reported this month.

March 12, 2026

The sun sets over Texas A&M Campus, just outside Rudder Tower in College Station, Texas, on Feb 12, 2016. (Timothy Hurst/College Station Eagle via AP) **FILE**

Southern accreditor greenlights 3-year bachelor’s degrees in 11 states

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools approved a pathway for three-year bachelor's degrees in 11 states, citing a need to address affordability concerns and connect students to jobs faster.

March 12, 2026

Graduates in black caps, gowns and golden tassels listen to a speech at a community college graduation ceremony. File photo credit: Ryanzo W. Perez via Shutterstock.

Bipartisan Policy Center report finds U.S. higher education system failing the nation

America's education system has failed the nation by increasingly producing underemployed college graduates who lack essential job skills, according to a report published Wednesday.

March 11, 2026

Nearly 9 in 10 college presidents say Trump’s policies are hurting higher education, survey shows

Nearly 9 in 10 college presidents say President Trump's belt-tightening policies have harmed campus finances and diversity, according to an annual survey released Tuesday.

March 10, 2026

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai speaks at a Google I/O event in Mountain View, Calif., Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

Companies rehire workers after AI replacements fail

Complaints from frustrated customers have prompted e-commerce and financial technology companies to quietly rehire some content writers, software engineers and customer service workers they had replaced with AI bots.

March 10, 2026

Property managers say half of the residents of the Marylander Condominiums in Prince George's County have been without heat since vandals damaged the boiler room on the day after Thanksgiving. They blame the incident on vagrants from a nearby homeless encampment who have overrun the property. (Sean Salai/The Washington Times)

P.G. County asks court to replace condo property manager near homeless encampment

Prince George's County officials will ask a circuit court to replace property managers who blamed a nearby homeless encampment for knocking out heat at the Marylander Condominiums more than three months ago.

March 5, 2026

The Department of Energy building is shown in Washington on Friday, May 1, 2015. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) **FILE**

Watchdog flags $50 billion in ‘unsustainable’ maintenance backlog at federal buildings

The federal government has an estimated $50 billion in unsustainable deferred maintenance and repair liabilities at its underused agency buildings, an independent watchdog reported Thursday.

March 5, 2026

This Tuesday, April 3, 2018, file photo shows a closeup of a beam scale in New York. (AP Photo/Patrick Sison, File)

Ozempic effect: GLP-1 drugs surge, weight-loss surgeries crater, study finds

Surgeries to manage obesity "declined substantially" for eligible patients starting in 2023, fueled by surging prescriptions for appetite-suppressing GLP-1 drugs, a new study finds.

March 4, 2026

People listen as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks on the north steps of the State Capitol to supporters at a Texas Public Policy Foundation Parent Empowerment rally, Tuesday, March 21, 2023, in Austin, Texas. Abbott and his supporters are pushing to have a voucher system, also known as school choice. (Ricardo B. Brazziell/Austin American-Statesman via AP, File)

More states expand universal school choice under Trump administration

More states are expanding programs letting parents spend public money on private schools, buoyed by the Trump administration's support.

March 4, 2026

Boxes for the medications Wegovy and Zepbound are arranged for a photograph in California, May 8, 2025. (AP Photo/JoNel Aleccia) **FILE**

Pediatric trials aim to expand GLP-1 weight loss drugs to younger children

Pediatric trials are quietly underway to support prescribing GLP-1 medications for obesity in children under 12, despite concerns about their long-term effects on developing bodies.

March 3, 2026

Students walk past Royce Hall on the UCLA campus in Los Angeles, Aug. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) **FILE**

Confidence gap: Students insist on college value as public doubts grow

College students and graduates have more faith than the public in higher education's ability to overcome rising costs, workforce misalignment and political polarization, according to a new study.

February 26, 2026

President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable on farm subsidies in the Cabinet Room of the White House, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025, in Washington, as Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins listens. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Federal government announces sale of USDA South Building in D.C.

The federal government has announced plans to sell the USDA South Building, bolstering a Trump administration push to shed underused D.C. agency buildings where maintenance has been deferred for years.

February 26, 2026

This April 3, 2018, file photo shows a close-up of a beam scale in New York. (AP Photo/Patrick Sison, File) ** FILE **

CDC finds obesity at new high for youths but waning among adults

Obesity rates have hit new highs for children and teenagers, but could be waning among adults, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Wednesday.

February 25, 2026

County Executive Aisha N. Braveboy (center, wearing light top), on Thursday, Feb 19, 2026, flanked by U.S. Rep. Glenn Ivey, County Council Chair Krystal Oriadha and members of the Prince George’s County Council, representatives from “We Are CASA,” and other mayors and municipal leaders from throughout the county, signed Executive Order No. 9-2026, establishing an immediate moratorium on any proposal seeking to use any property in Prince George’s County as a detention center. (Image and text from Prince George's County Executive's press release)

Prince George’s County bans detention centers as Maryland clashes with ICE

Prince George's County Executive Aisha N. Braveboy has signed an order banning detention centers, bolstering Maryland Democrats' efforts to thwart the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration.

February 24, 2026

Unidentified people are seen at the Marylander Condominiums through a gap in the security fence on Monday, Jan. 12. Property managers say homeless people created the opening when workers installed the fence last year. (Sean Salai/The Washington Times)

Judge allows Prince George’s County sheriff to remove condo residents near homeless encampment

A Prince George's County district court judge has authorized sheriffs to evacuate the Marylander Condominiums if property managers do not fix the heat that they say neighboring homeless people wrecked almost three months ago.

February 23, 2026

Food products representing the DASH diet, which was created to help lower high blood pressure. File photo credit: monticello via Shutterstock.

Study links diets rich in fish and vegetables to reduced memory loss

Diets rich in fish and vegetables could help adults stave off memory loss as they age, according to new research published Monday in JAMA Neurology.

February 23, 2026

School hallway with lockers and students. File photo credit: TiffanyBurke via Shutterstock.

Montgomery County’s only charter school vows to stay open after board votes to begin closure

Montgomery County's only charter school said it's staying open despite education board officials' plans to close it for failing to document special education needs.

February 20, 2026

Chyanne Henderson practices putting together a window during an Ironworkers Local 63 pre-apprenticeship class in Broadview, Ill., on Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) **FILE**

Trump team offers apprenticeship incentives for high-demand trades

The Trump administration has created new incentives for apprenticeships to woo the nation's dwindling pool of high school graduates to high-demand trades.

February 18, 2026