Tom Howell Jr.

HHS cancels the CDC’s ‘Wild to Mild’ flu vaccine campaign: Report

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reportedly canceling a flu-vaccine campaign that depicted wild animals and encouraged Americans to tame the illness through immunization.

February 20, 2025

Trump hypes USA to beat ‘51st state’ Canada in hockey final

President Trump is stirring the pot before a major hockey clash Thursday between the U.S. and Canada, using the occasion to revive his offer of making America's northern neighbor the 51st state.

February 20, 2025

Trump’s Transportation Department moves to kill congestion pricing in Manhattan

The Trump administration said Wednesday it is canceling federal approval of New York City's controversial congestion-pricing program that charged vehicles a toll for entering busy parts of Manhattan.

February 19, 2025

Trump’s Labor pick says she supports blue-collar workers, state flexibility on labor rules

Lori Chavez-DeRemer testified at her confirmation hearing Wednesday she is "uniquely prepared" to lead the Department of Labor because her dual support from industry and labor reflects the broad coalition of business leaders, blue-collar Americans and workers of color who powered President Trump's election victory.

February 19, 2025

Trump approval slips due to economic approach, poll shows

President Trump's approval rating is starting to slip as people express doubts about his ability to address economic concerns, including inflation, according to a new poll.

February 19, 2025

Trump signs executive order targeting COVID-19 vaccine mandates

President Trump signed an executive order Friday that halts federal funding for schools and universities that require students to be vaccinated against coronavirus.

February 14, 2025

Government staff cuts reach CDC, prompting outcry from Georgia Democratic senator

The Trump administration is reportedly slashing the workforce at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the nation's premier disease-fighting agency, by nearly 1,300 positions.

February 14, 2025

Vance chastises Europe over threat from ‘within,’ rails against censorship, migrant flood

Vice President J.D. Vance scolded European leaders on Friday for failing to address unchecked migration or uphold free speech principles and democratic values.

February 14, 2025

New HHS chief RFK Jr. says he will address physical and ‘spiritual’ health crisis

Newly confirmed Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says many Americans confront both a "health crisis" and a "spiritual" one, crises that leave them disconnected from others and fuel alcoholism, suicide and drug addiction.

February 14, 2025

RFK Jr. gets final approval to ‘go wild,’ vows to ‘solve the childhood chronic disease epidemic’

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was sworn in as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services after his confirmation Thursday, giving him license to "go wild" on health and putting the last of President Trump's contentious nominees in place so his Cabinet can reset the federal government.

February 13, 2025

Trump aims trade fight at Europe, U.K. and India: ‘This should have been done years ago’

President Trump signed an order Thursday that calls for reciprocal tariffs on friendly and rival nations alike, saying too many places are taking advantage of duty-free treatment in the U.S. even as they tax American goods that flow across their borders.

February 13, 2025

Senate confirms Brooke Rollins as agriculture chief

The Senate on Thursday confirmed Brooke Rollins, a longtime policy aide to President Trump with a farm-town background, to lead the Agriculture Department.

February 13, 2025

RFK Jr. overcomes odds, is confirmed as HHS secretary

The Senate on Thursday confirmed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, sweeping aside concerns about his past vaccine skepticism to let him "go wild" on health under President Trump.

February 13, 2025

White House defends decision to block AP reporter, likens ‘Gulf of Mexico’ usage to lying

The White House is defending its barring of an Associated Press reporter from an Oval Office event over the wire service's refusal to use the Gulf of America title.

February 12, 2025

RFK Jr. cruises toward confirmation after clearing early Senate vote

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. cleared a Senate test vote on Wednesday, placing him on the path to confirmation as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services after a difficult vetting process that focused on his vaccine views.

February 12, 2025

Senate panel advances Jamieson Greer as U.S. trade rep

The Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday advanced Jamieson Greer's nomination to serve as U.S. trade representative, a role of outsized significance, given President Trump's penchant for using tariffs as a bargaining tool with foreign nations.

February 12, 2025

Trump presses for lower interest rates even as U.S. inflation edges up to 3% in January

President Trump said Wednesday he thinks interest rates should come down, injecting himself into the debate around Federal Reserve decisions just as the government was reporting that U.S. inflation for January remained well above the Fed's preferred target.

February 12, 2025

Kremlin expects the return of a Russian prisoner for releasing Marc Fogel

The Kremlin said Wednesday it expects a Russian citizen detained in the U.S. to be returned as part of the deal that secured American teacher Marc Fogel's release.

February 12, 2025

Ford Motor Co. says tariff threats are causing ‘chaos’ in industry

Foreign officials outlined broad plans to retaliate over U.S.-imposed tariffs on key metals and Ford Motor's chief executive on Tuesday said levies -- both real and proposed -- are causing "chaos" as the world grapples with President Trump's shock-and-awe trade policy.

February 11, 2025

Trump ally Steve Bannon pleads guilty in build-the-wall scheme, won’t get jail time

Former Trump aide Steve Bannon pleaded guilty Tuesday to engaging in a scheme to defraud fundraisers who contributed to an online effort to build a border wall.

February 11, 2025