Washington: The landmark immigration bill, which offers a path to citizenship for more than 11 million - including over 260,000 Indians - undocumented immigrants and increasing H-1B visas today passed its first legislative test.
The Senate Judiciary Committee on the fifth day of its deliberations that included 300 amendments to the Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill - Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act - passed it by 13-5 votes.
The bill passed through the key Senate committee only after lawmakers reached a deal on H-1B visa expansion plan. The bill (No 744) now goes to the Senate for approval - which is expected to witness another round of negotiations and tough bargaining. It needs 60 votes to pass the 100-seat Senate.
Welcoming the passage of the legislation, US President Barack Obama said that it is largely consistent with the principles of commonsense reform he has proposed and meets the challenge of fixing the broken immigration system....
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12:16 PM, May 22, 2013
Barack Obama on Tuesday offered condolences for the victims of a deadly tornado in Oklahoma and pledged to focus the nation's resources on recovery and rebuilding. ...
08:39 AM, May 22, 2013
Washington: As rescuers searched for survivors of Monday's devastating tornado that pulverized a vast swath of the Oklahoma City suburbs, authorities revised the death toll down to 24 from 91. Nine of the fatalities are children. The Monday afternoon storm carved a trail through the area as much as two miles wide and 17 miles long, CNN reported citing officials. Hardest hit was Moore, Oklahoma - a suburban town of...
07:24 AM, May 22, 2013
Washington: US President Barack Obama on Tuesday offered condolences for the victims of a deadly tornado in Oklahoma and pledged to focus the nation's resources on recovery and rebuilding. "As a nation, our full focus right now is on the urgent work of rescue and the hard work of recovery and rebuilding that lies ahead," he said at the White House. "Yesterday I spoke with Governor (Mary) Fallin to make...
06:08 AM, May 22, 2013
The tornado, over a mile wide, ripped through the US city of Oklahoma with winds of up to 320 km/h. ...
02:08 PM, May 21, 2013
The tornado, over a mile wide, ripped through the area with winds of up to 320 km/h. ...
12:31 PM, May 21, 2013
Washington: Over 90 people, including 20 children, were killed after a monstrous tornado ripped through the US city of Oklahoma, flattening entire neighbourhoods, crushing two elementary schools and turning the area into a war-zone. The tornado, over a mile wide, ripped through the area on Monday with winds of up to 320 km/h. Worst hit was Moore, south of the city, where neighbourhoods were flattened and two elementary schools destroyed....
11:57 AM, May 21, 2013
Washington: President Barack Obama urged the president of Myanmar on Monday to take steps to halt violence against Muslims in his country and move ahead with economic and political reforms. Thein Sein became the first head of Myanmar to visit the White House in 47 years, and he and Obama sat down for talks in the Oval Office. Obama said the Myanmar leader had assured him that he intends to...
06:21 AM, May 21, 2013
Washington: US President Barack Obama has asked Americans to be more competitive as millions of young people from countries like India, China and Brazil are joining the global workforce. "In today's hyper-connected, hyper-competitive world, with millions of young people from China and India and Brazil - many of whom started with a whole lot less than all of you did - all of them entering the global workforce alongside you,...
12:16 PM, May 20, 2013
Washington: A top White House adviser insisted President Barack Obama learned that the federal tax collection agency had targeted conservative groups only "when it came out in the news" while Republicans continued to press the administration for answers on Sunday. The Obama administration has also been forced on the defensive over its handling of last September's terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya, that killed the US ambassador and three other Americans,...
09:20 PM, May 19, 2013
New Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to travel to Washington in a few months at the invitation of US President Barack Obama. Obama's invitation to Singh was delivered by US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns during his recent visit here, sources said. Singh has accepted the invitation and will be travelling to Washington, the sources said. The Prime Minister's visit to Washington could be clubbed with his...
09:20 AM, May 18, 2013
Washington: The top general in the US Armed Forces warned of a crisis of confidence in the growing ranks of women soldiers due to a rash of sexual assault cases that has prompted lawmakers to act. The warning by Army General Martin Dempsey came hours before President Barack Obama asked military leaders at a White House meeting to get the problem of sexual assaults under control. "We're losing the confidence...
07:21 AM, May 17, 2013
Washington: President Barack Obama said on Thursday he reserves the right to resort to a range of both diplomatic and military options if he receives conclusive proof that the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had used chemical weapons in the country's civil war. Obama, at a joint news conference with Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, said there was evidence of chemical weapons use in Syria but that it is...
11:45 PM, May 16, 2013
Boston: The lone-surviving Boston bombings suspect has claimed responsibility for the deadly terror attack in a note written on the wall of the boat he hid in, saying it was retribution for US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Boston bombings suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, left a note in the boat he hid during a massive manhunt for the April 15 attack on the Boston Marathon that killed three people and...
10:50 PM, May 16, 2013
Washington: US President Barack Obama has forced the acting head of the Internal Revenue Service to resign amid furor over the tax agency's handling of conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status. "It's inexcusable, and Americans are right to be angry about it, and I am angry about it. I will not tolerate this kind of behaviour in any agency, but especially in the IRS, given the power that it has and...
01:59 PM, May 16, 2013
Washington: US lawmakers accused the Obama administration on Wednesday of trampling on free speech rights and evading questions about the Justice Department's secret seizure of Associated Press telephone records. US Attorney General Eric Holder, testifying before a House of Representatives panel, provided limited responses on the issue, noting he had been recused from the probe into a government leak that led to the records seizure. Lawmakers on the House Judiciary...
03:48 AM, May 16, 2013
Washington: US President Barack Obama on Tuesday called PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, set to become Pakistan's next Prime Minister, to congratulate him on his election victory and pledge to further strengthen friendly ties with Islamabad. "Today, the President spoke by phone with Nawaz Sharif, president of Pakistan Muslim League's (Nawaz) to congratulate him on his party's success in the May 11 parliamentary election," said White House Press Secretary Jay Carney....
12:26 AM, May 15, 2013
Washington: US President Barack Obama on Sunday congratulated Pakistan on successful completion of parliamentary elections and said his administration is ready to work "as equal partners" with the new government. "I congratulate the people of Pakistan on the successful completion of parliamentary elections. The United States stands with all Pakistanis in welcoming this historic, peaceful and transparent transfer of civilian power, which is a significant milestone in Pakistan's democratic progress,"...
10:40 PM, May 12, 2013
Washington: The police officer who risked his life to save victims of the Wisconsin Gurdwara shootout in 2012 was honoured by US President Barack Obama at a White House award ceremony. Six people were shot dead while three others injured when gunman Wade Michael Page went on a shooting rampage in August, 2012. The toll could have been much higher if not for Lieutenant Brian Murphy of the Oak Creek...
11:16 AM, May 12, 2013
Washington: There is no more important partner for the United States in Asia than India and the growing convergence interests and outlook has brought about unprecedented cooperation between the two nations on regional and global security, a top US official has said. "President Obama has called our partnership with India a 'defining partnership for the 21st century'. And as we go about the much-talked about 'Asia rebalance', there's no more...
07:52 AM, May 12, 2013
