AFP USA

A new prosecutor has taken over the election interference case in the US state of Georgia against President Donald Trump after the previous district attorney was removed.Peter Skandalakis, the executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, said in a statement on Friday that he was stepping in to oversee the case.Trump and 18 co-defendants were charged with racketeering and other offenses in Georgia in 2023 over their alleged efforts to subvert the results of the 2020 presidential election in the southern state.A Georgia appeals court in December disqualified Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis from the case citing the “impropriety” of an intimate relationship she had with the man she had hired to be a special prosecutor.Following Willis’s disqualification, Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee had set a Friday deadline for a new prosecutor to be named or the case would be dismissed.”While it would have been simple to allow Judge McAfee’s deadline to lapse or to inform the Court that no conflict prosecutor could be secured — thereby allowing the case to be dismissed for want of prosecution — I did not believe that to be the right course of action,” Skandalakis said.”The public has a legitimate interest in the outcome of this case,” he said. “My only objective is to ensure that this case is handled properly, fairly, and with full transparency discharging my duties without fear, favor, or affection.”Trump and his 18 co-defendants were indicted for allegedly conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election in Georgia, where the Republican lost to Democrat Joe Biden.Four of those indicted subsequently pleaded guilty to lesser charges.Trump is unlikely to go on trial in Georgia while he is in the White House but the case could potentially proceed against the remaining co-defendants.Trump granted pardons over the weekend to several allies accused of attempting to subvert the 2020 election, but the pardons only apply to federal crimes, not state offenses such as those in Georgia.Among those who received pardons were former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani and Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Meadows, both of whom face charges in Georgia.Trump also faced two federal cases but they were dropped by special counsel Jack Smith after the November 2024 election under the Justice Department policy of not indicting or prosecuting a sitting president.Trump was accused of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election results and of removing large quantities of top secret documents after leaving the White House, but neither case came to trial.

US President Donald Trump claimed Friday that pressure to release details of Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged sex abuse network is a “hoax” pushed by Democratic opponents.”The Democrats are doing everything in their withering power to push the Epstein Hoax again,” the Republican wrote on his Truth Social platform, adding that lawmakers in his party joining the effort to force publication of the Epstein files are “soft and foolish.”Trump’s angry message came as the Epstein scandal escalated, with growing questions over the 79-year-old president’s long, close relationship with the disgraced late financier.Epstein died in prison in 2019 — by suicide, authorities ruled — before he could face trial on federal sex charges. But questions over his alleged masterminding of a sex ring where powerful men were provided with underaged girls only grew.Trump and some of his close allies had in the past promised to their right-wing base they would seek the release of all the evidence against Epstein, including details of his alleged clients.However, since entering the White House in January, Trump has fought hard to put a lid on the issue.The scandal peaked again with release of emails subpoenaed by Congress from Epstein’s estate. The email traffic between Epstein and friends, as well as other materials, confirm that Trump had close relations with the financier, although he has not been accused of any wrongdoing.Now the House of Representatives will vote as early as next week on demanding release by the Justice Department of its materials on Epstein.Those materials could include far more damning evidence than has been previously seen on the links between Epstein and his circle, which over the years ranged from Trump to Britain’s ex-prince Andrew.If a US House majority votes for the release, the Republican-controlled Senate would still have to give its approval and Trump would then also need to sign the bill.Trump on Friday made clear he does not want the effort to proceed.”Epstein was a Democrat, and he is the Democrat’s problem, not the Republican’s problem!” he wrote. “Don’t waste your time with Trump. I have a Country to run!”

Global stock markets slumped further Friday as doubts built over whether the US Federal Reserve would cut interest rates next month and persistent fears of a tech bubble.Crude prices rallied as analysts cited risks to Russian oil flows due to Ukrainian strikes and US sanctions.On Wall Street, the Dow shed 1.1 percent to stand at 46,929.78 points some 25 minutes into the session, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq was off 1.9 percent at 22,436.79 points — having ended two percent down Thursday.The S&P 500 fell almost 1.5 percent — losses mirrored on major European and Asian indices.London struggled after UK government bonds and the pound slid following reports that finance minister Rachel Reeves has scrapped plans to hike income tax in her budget speech this month. Analysts said the reports heightened concerns about UK public finances. “After an extraordinary run that began in April, the tech sector has finally started to wobble, with valuations looking overstretched in recent weeks,” said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst for StoneX.”It wouldn’t be surprising if markets stayed a bit jumpy for a while yet, though it’s still premature to call the top of this cycle,” he added.- ‘volatile week’ -“It’s certainly been a volatile week… with relief over the end of the (US government) shutdown vying with concerns over AI valuations and whether the Fed will cut rates again,” said Jim Reid, managing director at Deutsche Bank.Traders trimmed bets on a December rate cut after several Fed officials voiced concerns about cutting borrowing costs while inflation remained stubbornly high.  For much of the year, equities have been boosted by optimism that rates would come down, and the Fed has delivered at its past two meetings.But comments from Fed boss Jerome Powell last month that a December repeat was not “a foregone conclusion” sowed the seeds of doubt.Investors also awaited the release of economic data that had been held up by the record US government shutdown, with jobs and inflation the main focus, even though some statistics are expected to be incomplete.The dimmer outlook for rates compounded worries that the tech sector may be overpriced after an AI-fuelled surge that sent markets to record highs this year.”The tech-sector rout from Wall Street spilled across the globe,” on Friday, noted Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets.Oil prices rallied some two percent, rebounding days after the commodity tumbled on OPEC’s monthly report which forecast an oversupply in the third quarter.The International Energy Agency on Thursday flagged risks to Russian output caused by US sanctions imposed last month, including on the country’s top two producers.- Key figures at around 1445 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 1.1 percent at 46,929.78 pointsNew York – S&P 500: DOWN 1.3 percent at 6,646.91New York – Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 1.9 percent at 22,436.79London – FTSE 100: DOWN 1.6 percent at 9,657.52 pointsParis – CAC 40: DOWN 1.4 percent at 8,120.54Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 1.3 percent at 23,676.79Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.8 percent at 50,376.53 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.9 percent at 26,572.46 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.0 percent at 3,990.49 (close)Dollar/yen: DOWN at 154.16 yen from 154.53 yen on ThursdayEuro/dollar: UNCHANGED at $1.1634 from $1.1634 Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3160 from $1.3189Euro/pound: UP at 88.41 pence from 88.21 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 2.2 percent at $59.96 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 1.9 percent at $64.16 per barrel

Markets sank Friday, tracking a selloff on Wall Street as doubts built over next month’s Federal Reserve interest rate decision and persistent speculation about a tech bubble.With the US shutdown saga now out the way, focus returned to the central bank’s policy meeting next month, when officials will decide whether or not to lower borrowing costs again.For much of the year, equities have been boosted by optimism that rates would come down, despite persistent inflation — and the Fed has delivered at its past two gatherings.But comments from bank boss Jerome Powell last month that a December repeat was not “a foregone conclusion” sowed the seeds of doubt, while several other decision-makers have made similar noises.The latest came this week, with three regional presidents voicing concerns about moving while inflation remained stubbornly high.St. Louis head Alberto Musalem urged “caution”, adding that “there’s limited room for further easing without monetary policy becoming overly accommodative”.His Minneapolis counterpart Neel Kashkari, who called for a pause in October, pointed to “underlying resilience in economic activity, more than I had expected”.And Cleveland’s Beth Hammack told the Pittsburgh Economic Club: “On balance, I think we need to remain somewhat restrictive to continue putting pressure to bring inflation down toward our target.”She called current rates “barely restrictive, if at all” and that “we need to keep rates around these levels”. The comments come as investors await the release of economic data that had been held up by the record shutdown, with jobs and inflation the main focus, even though some are expected to be incomplete.”As we await this schedule, we’ve seen some recalibration of expectations around whether the Fed cuts by 25 basis points on 10 December,” wrote Pepperstone’s Chris Weston. He added that markets saw a 52 percent chance of a cut, down from 60 percent the day before.The dimmer outlook for rates compounded worries that the tech sector may be overpriced after an AI-fuelled surge this year that has sent markets to records.There is growing talk that the mind-boggling amounts of cash invested in artificial intelligence may take some time to be realised as profit.Chip titan “Nvidia’s earnings (are) the key bottom-up focal point next week — potentially prompting traders to de-risk, lock in performance and sit tight until the tape turns and risk appetite returns into year-end”, said Weston.All three main indexes on Wall Street ended well in the red, with the tech-rich Nasdaq down more than two percent, while the Dow and S&P 500 were each off 1.7 percent.And Asia followed the lead, having enjoyed a broadly positive week.Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore, Wellington, Bangkok and Taipei all shed at least one percent. Seoul — which has hit multiple tech-fuelled records of late — shed nearly four percent, and Manila more than two percent.There were also losses in Mumbai.London, Paris and Frankfurt extended Thursday’s losses.Shanghai was also hit by fresh data showing growth in Chinese retail sales slowed in October for the fifth successive month, as leaders struggle to revive consumption in the world’s number two economy.Oil rallied after the International Energy Agency flagged risks to Russian output caused by hefty sanctions imposed by Washington last month, including the country’s top two producers.The IEA said the decision could have “the most far-reaching impact yet on global oil markets”.Friday’s gains of more than one percent came days after the commodity tumbled following OPEC’s monthly crude market report, which forecast an oversupply in the third quarter.- Key figures at around 0705 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.8 percent at 50,376.53 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.9 percent at 26,572.46 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.0 percent at 3,990.49 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.9 percent at 9,715.30 Dollar/yen: UP at 154.66 yen from 154.53 yen on ThursdayEuro/dollar: UP at $1.1636 from $1.1634 Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3152 from $1.3189Euro/pound: UP at 88.43 pence from 88.21 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 1.6 percent at $59.63 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 1.5 percent at $63.92 per barrel

Asian markets sank Friday, tracking a selloff on Wall Street as doubts built over next month’s Federal Reserve interest rate decision and persistent speculation about a tech bubble.With the US shutdown saga now out the way, focus returned to the central bank’s policy meeting next month, when officials will decide whether or not to lower borrowing costs again.For much of the year, equities have been boosted by optimism that rates would come down, despite persistent inflation — and the Fed has delivered at its past two gatherings.But comments from bank boss Jerome Powell last month that a December repeat was not “a foregone conclusion” sowed the seeds of doubt, while several other decision-makers have made similar noises.The latest came this week, with three regional presidents voicing concerns about moving while inflation remained stubbornly high.St. Louis head Alberto Musalem urged “caution”, adding that “there’s limited room for further easing without monetary policy becoming overly accommodative”.His Minneapolis counterpart Neel Kashkari, who called for a pause in October, pointed to “underlying resilience in economic activity, more than I had expected”.And Cleveland’s Beth Hammack told the Pittsburgh Economic Club: “On balance, I think we need to remain somewhat restrictive to continue putting pressure to bring inflation down toward our target.”She called current rates “barely restrictive, if at all” and that “we need to keep rates around these levels”. The comments come as investors await the release of economic data that had been held up by the record shutdown, with jobs and inflation the main focus, even though some are expected to be incomplete.”As we await this schedule, we’ve seen some recalibration of expectations around whether the Fed cuts by 25 basis points on 10 December,” wrote Pepperstone’s Chris Weston. He added that markets saw a 52 percent chance of a cut, down from 60 percent the day before.The dimmer outlook for rates compounded worries that the tech sector may be overpriced after an AI-fuelled surge this year that has sent markets to records.There is growing talk that the mind-boggling amounts of cash invested in artificial intelligence may take some time to be realised as profit.Chip titan “Nvidia’s earnings (are) the key bottom-up focal point next week — potentially prompting traders to de-risk, lock in performance and sit tight until the tape turns and risk appetite returns into year-end”, said Weston.All three main indexes on Wall Street ended well in the red, with the tech-rich Nasdaq down more than two percent, while the Dow and S&P 500 were each off 1.7 percent.And Asia followed the lead, having enjoyed a broadly positive week.Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore, Wellington, Bangkok and Taipei all shed at least one percent. Seoul — which has hit multiple tech-fuelled records of late — shed more than three percent, and Manila two percent.There were also losses in Mumbai.Shanghai was also hit by fresh data showing growth in Chinese retail sales slowed for the fifth successive month in October, as leaders struggle to revive consumption in the world’s number two economy.Oil rallied after the International Energy Agency flagged risks to Russian output caused by hefty sanctions imposed by Washington last month, including the country’s top two producers.The IEA said the decision could have “the most far-reaching impact yet on global oil markets”.Friday’s gains of more than one percent came days after the commodity tumbled following OPEC’s monthly crude market report, which forecast an oversupply in the third quarter.- Key figures at around 0705 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.8 percent at 50,376.53 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.7 percent at 26,620.98Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.0 percent at 3,990.49 (close)Dollar/yen: UP at 154.61 yen from 154.53 yen on ThursdayEuro/dollar: UP at $1.1636 from $1.1634 Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3143 from $1.3189Euro/pound: UP at 88.53 pence from 88.21 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 1.6 percent at $59.64 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 1.5 percent at $63.93 per barrel

Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny enjoyed a victory lap Thursday night at the Latin Grammys, the biggest celebration of Spanish and Portuguese-language music.The reggaeton star won five awards from 12 nominations, including the coveted best album prize — a category in which he is also competing at the 68th Annual Grammy Awards in February.Bad Bunny also won for Best Urban/Urban Fusion Performance, Best Reggaeton Performance, Best Urban Music Album and Best Urban Song.The awards triumph for “Debi Tirar Mas Fotos” (“I should have taken more photos”) marks another chapter in a year in which the 31-year-old — whose real name is Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio — has swept the entertainment world.A barnstorming residency in his native Puerto Rico has just ended, with a world tour set to kick off this month in the Dominican Republic.The reggaeton breakout made headlines when he said the tour would not include any dates on the US mainland because he was concerned his fans might be targeted by US President Donald Trump’s immigration raids.The one exception to his self-imposed ban will be the Super Bowl halftime show on February 8 in Santa Clara, California.The performance, which comes midway through the NFL final, is routinely one of the television events of the year, watched by well over 100 million people in the United States alone, with millions more tuning in around the world.Bad Bunny faced competition from Argentinian duo Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso, who took home five awards of their own.They are the first nominations for the explosive hip-hop duo, who recently opened several concerts in Latin America for Kendrick Lamar, a strong favorite for the 2026 Grammys.Edgar Barrera, who as a producer and songwriter has garnered more than 70 nominations at the Latin awards, also competed for Song and Record of the Year for his work with Karol G on “Si antes te hubiera conocido” (“If I Had Met You Before”).The album’s single “Tropicoqueta” also earned the Colombian singer a nomination for Best Tropical Song. Karol G is set to be one of the headliners at Coachella next year.Brazil’s Liniker, who in 2022 became the first transgender artist to win a Latin Grammy, received seven nominations for her album “Caju,” including the top three prizes.Other nominees for the best album award include Alejandro Sanz, Carin Leon, Gloria Estefan, Joaquina, Rauw Alejandro, Vicente Garcia, and Natalia Lafourcade, who has a total eight nominations.The Latin Grammys returned to the MGM Grand Garden Arena after editions in Spain and Miami. The show featured performances from Bad Bunny, Karol G, and Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso, as well as by Alejandro Sanz, Carlos Santana, Rauw Alejandro, Kacey Musgraves, Edgar Barrera, Joaquina, Christian Nodal, Nathy Peluso, Elena Rose, and Grupo Frontera.

Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin successfully launched its New Glenn rocket on Thursday with NASA twin spacecraft destined for Mars aboard, and in a breakthrough nailed the landing of its booster.The launch was stalled for days over weather both on Earth and in space, but it was worth the wait: in the rocket’s second-ever flight, Blue Origin managed to recover the booster for reuse.Ecstatic cheers rang out at the launch site in Florida’s Cape Canaveral as the booster gracefully stuck its landing on a floating platform. Prior to Thursday, only Elon Musk’s SpaceX had managed to accomplish such a maneuver with an orbital-class rocket.Blue Origin’s accomplishment comes amid intensified rivalry between the two billionaire-owned private space companies, as the US space agency NASA recently opened up bids for its planned Moon mission.”Damn that was exciting!” said Jared Isaacman — a Musk ally who President Donald Trump recently nominated again to head NASA — on X, congratulating Blue Origin.A handful of figures at SpaceX also had praise for their rivals, including Musk himself: “Congratulations @JeffBezos and the @BlueOrigin team!” he said on X.The launch was repeatedly delayed, on Sunday over weather on Earth, and on Wednesday over weather in space.The second postponement was over “highly elevated solar activity” that NASA was worried could impact or damage its spacecraft.And multiple glitches meant delays yet again on Thursday — hold-ups Blue Origin did not explain. But at 3:55 pm (2055 GMT), New Glenn finally blasted off.The 322-foot (98-meter) rocket now has the task of sending NASA’s ESCAPADE twin spacecraft to Mars, in a bid to study the Red Planet’s climate history with the eventual hope of human exploration.Applause resounded once more as the spacecraft successfully deployed.Joseph Westlake, a NASA heliophysicist, explained during Thursday’s webcast how the twin spacecraft named “Blue” and “Gold” will first finding a “benign, safe parking orbit” to make “measurements about the space weather here on Earth.”Then, once the planets have reached the ideal alignment in the fall of 2026, the spacecraft will get a boost from Earth’s gravity and begin the journey to Mars, where they will arrive in 2027.This type of launch could allow for more frequent missions in the future, because they could proceed outside the window of direct alignment of Earth and Mars that happens approximately once every two years.- ‘Launch, land, repeat’ -New Glenn’s inaugural flight in January also was marked a success, as its payload achieved orbit and successfully performed tests.But its first-stage booster, which was meant to be reusable, was lost during descent.Thursday’s achievement signals that Blue Origin is on its way to reducing costs by reusing boosters rather than allowing them to plummet into the ocean.”Launch, land, repeat — it starts today,” said Eddie Seyffert, among Blue Origin’s webcast commentators.And it comes as US President Donald Trump’s second term in the White House has seen the administration pile pressure on NASA to accelerate its progress to send a crewed mission to the Moon amid a race with China.George Nield — a senior aerospace executive whose work promotes the commercial space industry, and who has flown with Blue Origin in the past — told AFP this launch was a big win for Blue Origin.Nield called it “a major confidence booster for Blue Origin, and it’s going to give the company credibility and the confidence to move forward with supporting the Artemis program, going to the Moon and on Mars and other things that are happening in low Earth orbit, like commercial space stations and many other projects.”

Big tech platforms, including TikTok and Netflix, are all looking to add video podcasts to their content, a rapidly growing format that attracts a young audience prized by advertisers and where YouTube dominates.Roman Wasenmüller, the head of podcasts at Spotify, said that the development “marks a new chapter for podcasting,” as he announced a partnership with Netflix in mid-October.Google-owned YouTube is now the leading destination for podcasts in the United States, with 33 percent market share according to Edison Research, and more than one billion consumers worldwide.YouTube even offers audio show producers the ability to generate video using artificial intelligence to better illustrate their show on the platform.Spotify is now moving in, and by the end of September, 390 million users of the Swedish streaming service had watched at least one video-version of a podcast.”Podcasting is correctly seen as a medium that is growing in usage considerably faster than a lot of legacy media, and that’s attractive to investors,” said Martin Spinelli, a podcasting professor at the University of Sussex.- Connect with Gen Z -The rise of the podcast is particularly pronounced among young people, noted Yoram Wurmser, an analyst at Emarketer.”Gen Z are heavy podcast listeners and viewers, so it’s good to connect with them” as much as possible, Wurmser said.Donald Trump’s podcast tour during his US presidential campaign helped increase his popularity among young adults.Democrat Zohran Mamdani, recently elected mayor of New York, also gave significant attention to podcasters.A latecomer to this space, Netflix has already announced the release, in early 2026, of a dozen programs licensed from Spotify.But according to Business Insider, Netflix aims to quickly offer more than 50 and eventually up to 200 in total that will include new productions made for Netflix.TikTok announced Monday a collaboration with American radio giant iHeartMedia, aimed at launching up to 25 programs hosted by influencers.”We’re combining our vast networks to deliver relevant content on a massive scale,” said Rich Bressler, iHeartMedia’s number two. “It’s a win for creators, fans, and brands alike.”TikTok will not broadcast entire episodes but excerpts, similar to what most successful podcasts already make available, some garnering several million views each time.The Chinese-owned social network doesn’t produce its own videos, any more than YouTube does, but Martin Spinelli expects streaming services to “amplify the content that they’ve already monetized” using podcasts.Even before launching its offensive, Netflix had already produced audio extras for several of its hit series, from “The Crown” to “Heartstopper.”Disney has also heavily invested in this niche and announced in early September the arrival of podcasts spun off from series like “Only Murders in the Building” and “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.”For existing podcasts, access to new audiences using video should increase revenues, said Emarketer’s Wurmser, whether through advertising, subscriptions or merchandise.Spinelli sees it as a victory for independent podcasts, which “will be able to expand their audience.””It’s much easier to find” a podcast based on its content “on YouTube than on Apple Podcasts,” said Spinelli, who himself hosts the program “For Your Ears Only,” “and I think it will be the same for Netflix and TikTok.”

Is it still the economy, stupid? US President Donald Trump has floated a string of sometimes outlandish policy ideas as he seeks to fight back on the cost-of-living issue that is causing jitters in his Republican Party.While bristling at suggestions that he is the latest US leader facing an economic problem, Trump has also suggested plans ranging from $2,000 dividends for Americans to half-century mortgages.- Affordability – The cost of living has been on the minds of Americans since Democrats scored big wins in off-year elections last week in New Jersey, New York and Virginia, fueled by voters angry over rising prices.Billionaire Trump insisted afterwards that “I don’t want to hear about the affordability,” lashing out at reporters — including an AFP journalist — when asked about the issue, instead opting to blame inflation on former president Joe Biden.Yet Trump’s MAGA movement has pushed him to react, and there are signs that Trump and the White House recognize the issue could damage Republicans in the 2026 US midterm elections.The White House this week highlighted what it said were Trump’s moves to lower prices on essentials like gas and eggs, and pointed to an announcement last week of a deal to lower the prices of some weight-loss drugs.Trump meanwhile is set to “ramp up” his domestic travels in the near future to push his economic message, a White House official told AFP.The 79-year-old tycoon has always made a big play of his economic prowess, and will recall the words of Democratic strategist James Carville, who famously explained what was behind Bill Clinton’s presidential win in 1992 with the phrase: “The economy, stupid!”- Dividends – One of Trump’s most eye-catching suggestions came on social media over the weekend as he proposed dividends of $2,000 for each American, funded by the sweeping tariffs he has imposed around the world.The scheme is reminiscent of the Trump-branded stimulus checks he sent out during the Covid pandemic, but economic figures suggest that it may be a while before any tariff dividend checks arrive in the mail.Trump said tariffs were bringing in “trillions of dollars,” but US Treasury Department data showed customs revenues — which includes tariffs — rose by $179 billion in the January to September period of this year.The US Supreme Court is meanwhile examining whether the levies are even legal.Trump’s spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt insisted that the White House was “committed” to the dividends and exploring legal options, but said there was “no timeline” for Trump’s scheme.- Mortgages – Trump’s most controversial suggestion — again posed on social media — has been to give homeowners the option of 50-year mortgages, instead of the normal maximum of 30 years.”It’s not even a big deal,” Trump told Fox News this week. “All it means is you pay less per month, you pay it over a longer period of time.” But the idea has again enraged some in the MAGA movement, as it would end up with homeowners paying more interest to banks in the long run.US media have reported that even key White House staff were furious with Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte for suggesting the 50-year mortgages without more consultations.- Healthcare – Trump has also suggested that the subsidies the government pays to health insurance companies under the so-called Obamacare program should instead go directly to Americans.Extending subsidies was a key issue in the record US government shutdown that ended on Wednesday, and they will also likely be a big focus in the midterms.In yet another proposal made on his Truth Social network, Trump said this direct payment would allow Americans to choose and purchase their own healthcare instead of the money going to “money sucking insurance companies.”Trump has however given very few details of how the plan would work.

Roads and sidewalks in the US capital Washington were again clogged as thousands of federal employees returned to work Thursday following the record-breaking government shutdown — but some, like management analyst Lee Hardwick, never left. Hardwick had to work the entire 43-day shutdown — unpaid. “I’m pleased that my colleagues, the ones who haven’t gotten paid, or the ones who haven’t been working, that they actually at least get to come back to work,” the 62-year-old told AFP. The shutdown — a uniquely American phenomenon that happens when Congress cannot agree on a budget — impacted more than a million government employees.Those deemed essential, such as air traffic controllers, kept working. The others were furloughed and left waiting for news. After 43 days, the waiting came to an end Wednesday, when President Donald Trump signed a bill funding the government through January — the result of a deal brokered by Republicans and a handful of moderate Democratic lawmakers. Many federal workers approached by AFP declined to be interviewed, a reflection of the political tension behind the shutdown. “It was stressful as it relates to the unknowing” of what was going to happen, Hardwick said of the shutdown, adding that people were “annoyed and frustrated” by the impasse.Scenes of federal employees waiting for food handouts in the Washington suburbs showcased the hardships some faced while on furlough, their incomes slashed to zero.- ‘Lesson learned’? -Things began to get back on track Thursday, with air traffic returning to normal levels after shortages of controllers forced thousands of flights to be delayed or cancelled. Museums in Washington, many of which closed during the shutdown, are set to reopen on Friday. “I felt bad for my other colleagues and friends at other agencies,” said Steve, a government worker in his 50s who asked to use a pseudonym. One federal worker at the Office of Personnel Management, who requested anonymity, said they had to work throughout the shutdown. “It was a little sad to see all my federal comrades not being able to come to work, and then taking the bus for some of them that had to come to work and not get paid. It was sad,” the worker told AFP.”There’s an African proverb that says: ‘When the elephants fight, it’s the grass that suffers,'” the employee said. “And I think that both (political) parties bear some responsibility, because we, as the grass, suffered during that argument.” Though the bill funded the US government through January 30, another possible shutdown is possible in 2026. “Hopefully…this was a lesson learned, and I’m hoping that even if it happens in January, that it would be a short one,” said Hardwick.”Hope it won’t happen again.”