Gov Track

U.S. Department of State Secretary Antony J. Blinken At a Press Availability Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State Karuizawa, Japan The Prince Karuizawa SECRETARY BLINKEN:Good afternoon, everyone.  Let me – let me start with the situation in Sudan.  For the past 36 hours, we and our partners have been focused on how to stop the widespread fighting in Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces.  Indiscriminate military operations have resulted in significant civilian deaths and injuries, and are recklessly endangering the Sudanese people, diplomats including U.S. personnel, and humanitarian aid workers. This morning, I made calls to Generals Burhan and Hemedti, urging them to agree to a 24-hour ceasefire to allow Sudanese to safely reunite with their families and to obtain desperately needed relief supplies. I also underscored in both calls the responsibilities that Sudanese fighting forces bear for ensuring the safety and security of U.S. and other diplomats who are resident in Sudan, as well as for UN staff and other [...]

U.S. Department of State Secretary Antony J. Blinken And UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly Before Their Meeting Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State Karuizawa, Japan The Prince Karuizawa SECRETARY BLINKEN:Well, good morning or almost good afternoon, everyone.  The foreign secretary and I have just spent the last almost three days with our G7 colleagues covering pretty much the entire planet, and I think we both come away from the G7 – well, I should just speak for myself, but I imagine it’s the same – I think feeling very positively about the very strong convergence among all of the G7 countries on virtually all of the major issues that are facing us. We now also have an opportunity to talk about some of the work that we’re doing directly together, the UK and the United States, and in particular following up from the very good meeting between President Biden and Prime Minister Sunak just a few days ago, which was very welcome, as well as looking at the work that we’re carrying forward from the G7, particularly with regard to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, work we’re doing [...]

C-SPAN Booknotes+ Podcast: James B. Stewart, "Unscripted"

U.S. Department of State Zimbabwe National Day Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State On behalf of the Government of the United States of America, I congratulate the Zimbabwean people as you celebrate the 43rd anniversary of your independence. The United States remains committed to standing with the people of Zimbabwe, as we have since your independence in 1980, to work together to promote democratic institutions, equitable economic growth, public health, and food security. Zimbabwe has the chance to set itself on a path to promote citizen engagement and to respect human rights.  We will continue to support the people of Zimbabwe to live longer, more prosperous, and healthier lives. As you celebrate your independence, please know that our friendship with the Zimbabwean people endures. We wish all Zimbabweans a very happy Independence Day.

U.S. Department of State Secretary Blinken’s Calls with General Abdel Fattah al Burhan, Commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces, and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, Commander of the Rapid Support Forces Office of the Spokesperson The below is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel: Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke separately today with General Abdel Fattah al Burhan, Commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces, and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, Commander of the Rapid Support Forces, and underscored the urgency of reaching a ceasefire to permit the delivery of humanitarian assistance to those affected by the fighting, the reunification of Sudanese families, and allow the international community in Khartoum to make sure its presence is secure. The Secretary expressed his grave concern about the death and injury of so many Sudanese civilians due to the sustained, indiscriminate fighting, and stressed the responsibility of the two generals to ensure the safety and wellbeing of civilians, diplomatic personnel, and humanitarian workers.

SCOTUSblog Colorado man’s First Amendment challenge will test the scope of protection for threatening speech Share There is no dispute that the Facebook messages Billy Raymond Counterman sent to local Colorado musician Coles Whalen made her feel afraid. For years, Counterman sent increasingly menacing messages in which he suggested that he had seen Whalen – who is identified only by her initials in court documents, but who has discussed the case on her website – while driving and made comments such as “Die” and “Fuck off permanently.” Whalen told a family member that she was “extremely scared” after receiving these messages. She canceled appearances and her mental health declined. In 2017, Counterman was convicted and sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison for stalking. On Wednesday the Supreme Court will take up Counterman’s appeal to consider how courts should determine what constitutes “true threats,” which are statements not protected by the First Amendment. Should they use an objective test, that looks at whether a reasonable person would regard the statement as a threat of [...]

U.S. Department of Justice Readout of Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr.’s Trip to Lithuania On April 13 and 14, Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division traveled to Vilnius, Lithuania, to meet with the Ukraine Joint Investigation Team (JIT), which is investigating core international crimes committed in Ukraine.

U.S. Department of State Deputy Secretary Sherman’s Meeting with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk Office of the Spokesperson The below is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel: Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman met today with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk in Washington, D.C. during the High Commissioner’s first official visit to the United States.  The Deputy Secretary and the High Commissioner discussed their shared commitment to advancing respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.  Acknowledging the upcoming 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Deputy Secretary Sherman reiterated strong U.S. support for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the UN Human Rights Council.  The Deputy Secretary thanked the High Commissioner for his robust engagement on Ukraine and reiterated the importance of the work of the Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine and the Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.  The two discussed OHCHR’s work around the world, including in Haiti, Ethiopia, [...]

U.S. Customs & Border Protection CBP Releases March 2023 Monthly Operational Update WASHINGTON — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released operational statistics today for March 2023, which can be viewed online here. “CBP works around the clock to perform our vital missions including maintaining border security. Overall,… WASHINGTON — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released operational statistics today for March 2023, which can be viewed online here. “CBP works around the clock to perform our vital missions including maintaining border security. Overall,…

Speaker Kevin McCarthy Our debt is too high. The problem is getting worse, not better. Mr. President, enough is enough.

U.S. Department of Defense U.S., U.K. Defense Leaders Discuss Ukraine, AUKUS in Pentagon Meeting Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III welcomed Ben Wallace, the United Kingdom's Secretary of State for Defense, to the Pentagon to discuss the short-term and long-term implications of the U.S.-U.K. alliance.

U.S. Department of Justice Construction Company Owner Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison and Ordered to Pay Nearly $1 Million in Restitution for Rigging Bids and Bribing a Public Official A construction company owner in California was sentenced to 78 months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay $984,699.53 in restitution for his role in a bid-rigging and bribery scheme involving California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) improvement and repair contracts.

U.S. Department of State Senior Official for Global Women’s Issues Fotovat Travels to the United Kingdom Office of the Spokesperson Senior Official to the Secretary of State in the Office of Global Women’s Issues Katrina Fotovat will visit Belfast from April 16–19.   Senior Official Fotovat will engage with a wide range of stakeholders including government officials, civil society, women entrepreneurs, and youth on women’s economic security; and Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) issues.  Her trip follows President Biden’s and Secretary Blinken’s travel to Belfast on April 11–12 to mark the 25th anniversary of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement and underscores U.S. support for advancing economic prosperity in Northern Ireland. On April 18 in Belfast, Senior Official Fotovat will join women business leaders at the “Women in Business – International Voice of Leadership” Conference, highlighting the importance of women’s leadership and women’s economic security in Northern Ireland and across the globe.  Later that day, she will speak on the importance of women’s and youth voices in peace [...]

U.S. Department of Justice Justice Department Files Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Kentucky Rental Property Owner The Justice Department announced today that it has filed a lawsuit against the owner and operator of rental properties in the Pulaski County, Kentucky, area for engaging in sexual harassment and retaliation in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

U.S. Department of Justice Construction Company Owner Sentenced Ordered to Pay Nearly $1 Million in Restitution for Rigging Bids and Bribing a Public Official A construction company owner in California was sentenced to 78 months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay $984,699.53 in restitution for his role in a bid-rigging and bribery scheme involving California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) improvement and repair contracts.

U.S. Department of Justice President of Metalhouse LLC Indicted for Sanctions Evasion and International Money Laundering The Justice Department announced today the indictment and arrest of John Can Unsalan, aka Hurrem Can Unsalan, the President of Metalhouse LLC, for engaging in a three-year scheme to violate U.S. sanctions against oligarch Sergey Kurchenko and two of Kurchenko’s companies by providing those sanctioned parties with over $150 million in return for steelmaking materials.

C-SPAN Washington Today (4/17/2023): Speaker McCarthy lays out GOP debt limit plan in Wall Street visit

U.S. Department of Defense DOD Assessing Document Disclosures and Implementing Mitigation Measures The Defense Department continues to actively address the incident involving the unauthorized disclosure of classified documents, Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said.