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Trump signs major disaster declaration for Texas flooding response

Trump signs major disaster declaration for Texas flooding response

Al Arabiya2 days ago
President Donald Trump on Sunday signed a major disaster declaration for Kerr County, Texas, where at least 59 people have died, and dozens remain missing in flooding after torrential rains.
The declaration is 'to ensure that our brave first responders immediately have the resources they need. These families are enduring an unimaginable tragedy, with many lives lost, and many still missing,' Trump posted on social media.
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Independent Dan Osborn Launches New US Senate Bid to Challenge Nebraska Republican Pete Ricketts
Independent Dan Osborn Launches New US Senate Bid to Challenge Nebraska Republican Pete Ricketts

Al Arabiya

timean hour ago

  • Al Arabiya

Independent Dan Osborn Launches New US Senate Bid to Challenge Nebraska Republican Pete Ricketts

A former labor union boss who drew national headlines last year as an independent candidate challenging Nebraska Republican US Sen. Deb Fischer is again entering the political arena–this time to challenge Nebraska's junior senator, Republican Pete Ricketts, in 2026. 'I'm running for Senate because Congress shouldn't just be a playground for the rich,' Dan Osborn said in a video released Tuesday to announce his candidacy. He criticized Ricketts, a former two-term Nebraska governor and multimillionaire who is the son of billionaire TD Ameritrade founder Joe Ricketts, as a lawmaker who bought his Senate seat. Ricketts' campaign responded by touting his voting record to secure the border and cut taxes for Nebraska workers and painted Osborn as beholden to Democrats. 'Dan Osborn is bought and paid for by his liberal out-of-state coastal donors,' Ricketts' campaign spokesman Will Coup said in a written statement. That was a reference to the nearly $20 million Osborn received last year from political action committees, including those that tend to support Democratic candidates. As he insisted last year, Osborn said he would serve as an independent if elected and has no plans to caucus with either Democrats or Republicans. He pointed to Ricketts' vote for Republicans' massive tax cut and spending bill last week that contains $4.5 trillion in tax cuts and cuts Medicaid and food stamps by $1.2 trillion. 'Congress spends their time bickering about how much we should cut taxes for billionaires and multinational corporations. We're just an afterthought,' Osborn said. 'My kids and yours deserve an American dream, too.' It's a familiar refrain from Osborn, who centered his campaign last year on representing working families he says are being steamrolled by an ever-growing wealth gap and policies that favor the rich over the middle class. Osborn was known in labor union circles as the Omaha industrial mechanic who successfully led a labor strike at Kellogg's cereal plants in 2021, winning higher wages and other benefits. He was a political newcomer when he challenged Fischer, outraising her by more than $1 million and coming within 6 percent of the two-term senator, who was used to winning by wide margins. Osborn acknowledged that it would be difficult to pose a campaign finance threat to Ricketts, one of the richest members of the US Senate. Federal campaign finance reports show Ricketts' campaign had more than $800,000 cash on hand at the end of March. But Osborn believes his populist message appeals more to Nebraska voters than campaign war chests. 'I think if you throw $100 million of your own money into Nebraska, I don't know that that moves the needle any more than $30 does,' he said. 'I think we're going to win this the old school way: Go out to where people are. Just hold town hall after town hall and talk with the good people in Nebraska.' Ricketts is seeking reelection next year after winning a special election last year to finish out the term of former Sen. Ben Sasse, who resigned in 2022. Ricketts was appointed to the seat by his successor, fellow Republican Gov. Jim Pillen, to fill the vacancy–a move widely panned as having the appearance of backroom dealing, as Ricketts had heavily supported and donated more than $1 million to help elect Pillen.

US envoy Barrack: Trump fiercely supports Lebanon, but won't wait forever
US envoy Barrack: Trump fiercely supports Lebanon, but won't wait forever

Al Arabiya

timean hour ago

  • Al Arabiya

US envoy Barrack: Trump fiercely supports Lebanon, but won't wait forever

US envoy Tom Barrack urged Lebanon on Tuesday to act swiftly on reforms and disarm Hezbollah, warning that while US President Donald Trump is committed to Lebanon, his patience is not unlimited. 'I don't think there's ever been a president since Dwight Eisenhower who came out with such ferocity for Lebanon, on his own,' Barrack said. 'He has the courage, he has the dedication, he has the ability. What he doesn't have is patience.' He added: 'So, if Lebanon wants to just keep kicking this can down the road, they can... but we're not going to be here in May having this discussion.' Barrack, who also serves as Washington's ambassador to Turkey and Trump's special envoy for Syria, spoke from Beirut during his second visit in less than a month. On Monday, he praised Lebanon's initial response to a proposed roadmap that calls for sweeping reforms and a clear timeline to disarm Hezbollah and other non-state militias in exchange for international economic and political support. Some reports have suggested Lebanese officials are stalling, hoping to delay implementation until next May's parliamentary elections. 'The Lebanese political culture is deny, detour and deflect. This is the way it has been for 60 years. It has to change,' Barrack said, while expressing his feeling that the president, prime minister and parliament speaker were all being candid in their talks. Barrack reaffirmed the US stance on Hezbollah, calling it a 'foreign terrorist organization,' and stressing: 'This is a Lebanese problem, not a world problem.' He also delivered a direct warning during his interview aired on LBCI: 'If they mess with us anywhere… they're going to have a problem with us. They don't want to have a problem with us.' In response to recent remarks by Hezbollah's secretary-general that the group would never give up its weapons, Barrack said: 'It's a typical Lebanese negotiation. We go to the bazaar, it's the same thing; it's a negotiation until everybody is ready to really make a deal.' Barrack said Washington would assist in Lebanon's border demarcation issues with Syria and Israel but emphasized urgency. 'The timeframe… this is an opportunity. If anybody doesn't see what's happening around us, they're mistaken. We're here… we're just here to usher the speed of that opportunity. But we're not going to influence. We can't.'

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