The New York Times issued a scorching statement on Thursday blasting President Joe Biden for avoiding media interviews as establishing a “dangerous precedent,” as liberals criticized the paper in response to a POLITICO report detailing friction between the Times and the White House. The Times in a statement called it “troubling” that Biden “has so actively and effectively avoided questions from independent journalists during his term.” The New York Times issued the statement as reporters for the publication also pushed back on the POLITICO story, which detailed the tense relationship between ..read more

The University of Southern California called off its main commencement ceremony on Thursday, a week after canceling the speech of a pro-Palestinian valedictorian and hours after 93 protesters were arrested on the Los Angeles campus. USC students will still have their names called and receive diplomas on stage at events specific to their academic programs. But a traditional congregation of 65,000 guests and students across academic disciplines is off as the private university navigates increasingly intense fallout from the war in Gaza. University leaders said in an announcement that increased ..read more

Republican Senate candidate Steve Garvey delivered sharp words Thursday about college students protesting the Israel-Hamas war, repeatedly calling them “terrorists” and urging university leaders and law enforcement to take action. “What they're saying is: they're pro-Hamas,” he said at a press conference in Los Angeles, standing in front of Israeli flags. “They're pro-terrorists. They're supporting terrorism." The remarks from Garvey, the former Los Angeles Dodgers baseball star running against Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff for the late Dianne Feinstein’s Senate seat, comes a day after police a ..read more

The U.S. is putting the finishing touches on one of its largest Ukraine military aid packages to date, preparing to ink contracts for as much as $6 billion worth of weapons and equipment for Kyiv’s forces, according to two U.S. officials. The package, which could be finalized and announced as soon as Friday, will dip into the $61 billion in Ukraine funding signed into law by President Joe Biden on Wednesday. It would include Patriot air defense munitions, artillery ammunition, drones, counter-drone weapons, and air-to-air missiles to be fitted on fighter planes, according to the two officials ..read more

A hero, a husband, a problem solver, a sister and a soccer player are just a few of the ways Chef José Andrés described the World Central Kitchen workers on Thursday who were killed earlier this month in Gaza in an Israeli airstrike. “The seven souls we mourn today were there so that hungry people could eat,” a teary-eyed Andrés said to mourners at Washington National Cathedral. “They risk everything to feed people. In the worst moments, the best of humanity shows up.” Andrés honored the workers during an hourlong service at Washington, D.C.’s National Cathedral, a site where funerals and mem ..read more

Scotland’s governing coalition has fallen apart — and a stalled drive to cut carbon emissions played a major role ..read more

Coordinated sanctions take aim at drone production ..read more

Gaza-based militants launched mortar rounds on Wednesday at Israeli forces making preparations for the U.S.-led effort to establish a new maritime aid route for Gaza, according to two U.S. officials. No American equipment was damaged as the U.S.-led project — which will establish a pier a few miles offshore as well as a causeway anchored to the beach to expand access to humanitarian aid — is not yet complete, said one of the officials. Both were granted anonymity to discuss sensitive plans. But the attack came as U.S. military personnel were scheduled to soon begin construction of the pier, w ..read more

The White House on Thursday rejected Speaker Mike Johnson’s call to send the National Guard to quell pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University, insisting that it’s up to state governors to first request such a move. “That is something that is under the governors,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One. “That is something for the governors to decide.” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has so far declined to seek federal assistance in managing the protests, which intensified in recent days after Columbia officials invited police onto the campus, resul ..read more

The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday revived Obama-era net neutrality rules, setting up another clash with the telecom industry and Republicans. Key details The 3-2 vote along partisan lines is a victory for Democrats, who have pushed for this type of regulation for the last two decades and say it’s necessary for consumer protection, fair competition and national security. The rules, which prevent broadband providers from blocking and throttling consumers’ internet traffic, were repealed in 2017 during the Trump era. The order also reclassifies broadband as a telecom service, as ..read more