Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
Richard Grenell, ambassador to Germany, dispatched to Serbia-Kosovo peace talks
President Trump late Thursday tapped Richard Grenell, his ambassador to Germany, to serve as a special envoy for Serbia-Kosovo peace talks. Published October 3, 2019
Democrats focused on Ukrainian aid, Trump in impeachment drive
Whether President Trump withheld military aid to Ukraine to force President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate the Bidens has emerged as the linchpin of Democrats' impeachment drive. Published October 3, 2019
Donald Trump asserts ‘absolute right, perhaps even a duty’ to investigate corruption
President Trump asserted late Thursday he has an "absolute right" to have corruption investigated, even it means asking for help from other nations. Published October 3, 2019
Donald Trump: If I were Zelensky, ‘I would start’ probe into Bidens; also points to China trip
President Trump on Thursday said Ukrainian officials should investigate former Vice President Joseph R. Biden and his son Hunter -- and that China might as well, too. Published October 3, 2019
Donald Trump to sign order enhancing Medicare, heads to Florida to slam Dems’ plans
President Trump signed an executive order Thursday aimed at improving the Medicare program for seniors, hoping to redirect the 2020 campaign conversation from his failure to overhaul President Obama's program to his step-by-step efforts to stamp out health crises and stiff-arm Democrats pushing government-run care. Published October 3, 2019
Finland to return Hopi remains taken in 1895
The Trump administration on Wednesday said Finland has agreed to return American Indian remains that were excavated from the Southwest and taken to northern Europe at the end of the 19th century. Published October 2, 2019
Trump slams ‘Shifty’ Adam Schiff from Oval Office
President Trump said Wednesday he has a "duty to report corruption," hoping to explain his push to look into a 2020 Democratic rival during a now-famous phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Published October 2, 2019
Donald Trump China tariffs windfall prompts GOP calls for tax cuts, rebate checks
President Trump's decision to impose tariffs on Chinese products over the Asian superpower's "unfair" trade practices has brought in tens of billions of dollars, prompting Republican lawmakers to propose ways to pass along the windfall to American taxpayers. Published October 1, 2019
Trump congratulates China on 70 years of communist rule; message coincides with Hong Kong unrest
President Trump congratulated China on the 70th birthday of communist rule there Tuesday, cultivating his relationship with strongman leader Xi Jinping even as members of his party chastised the Asian superpower for its crackdown in Hong Kong. Published October 1, 2019
Eugene Scalia sworn in as Trump’s labor secretary
Eugene Scalia, one of the sons of the late Justice Antonin Scalia, was sworn in as President Trump's labor secretary Monday in front of his large family. Published September 30, 2019
Donald Trump says Gen. Joseph Dunford helped him make 2015 decision to run
President Trump welcomed the new chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Mark A. Milley, on Monday as he faces tough decisions on Iran and controversy in Ukraine, though first he publicly thanked the departing chairman for helping him make the decision to run for president in 2015. Published September 30, 2019
Donald Trump blasts ‘secondhand’ whistleblower complaint
President Trump and his allies are deploying a new favorite word -- "secondhand" -- as they attempt to discredit a government official who blew the whistle on White House interactions with Ukraine, hoping the public will view Democrats' impeachment inquiry as a hasty mission built on hearsay. Published September 29, 2019
James Carroll, drug czar, convinced China to crack down on fentanyl, cooperate with U.S.: WH
The White House says its drug "czar" convinced Chinese officials to take a stronger hand in detecting illicit fentanyl and inspecting U.S.-bound parcels that may contain the deadly synthetic opioid. Published September 27, 2019
Joseph Wilson, key figure in run-up to Iraq War, dies at 69
Joseph C. Wilson, a key player in the messy run-up to the 2003 Iraq invasion and whose wife, Valerie Plame, went from secretive CIA officer to household name, died Friday at his home in New Mexico. Published September 27, 2019
Donald Trump questions Ukraine whistleblower’s motivations, frets over ‘leaker’ with partisan aims
President Trump continued to attack a government official who blew the whistle on his interactions with Ukraine as unreliable and potentially partisan on Friday, one day after he alluded to harsh, old-time punishments for people who commit "treason." Published September 27, 2019
Donald Trump likens whistleblower to ‘spies,’ talks of ‘treason’
President Trump raised eyebrows Thursday by likening the people behind a whistleblower complaint roiling Washington to "spies" who should face dire consequences, like "in the old days." Published September 26, 2019
Whistleblower works for CIA, detailed to WH for a time: NY Times report
The whistleblower who levied explosive claims about President Trump's interactions with Ukraine is a CIA officer who was detailed to the White House. Published September 26, 2019
Trump campaign blasts ‘secondhand’ whistleblower claims
The Trump campaign on Thursday blasted a whistleblower complaint that alleges President Trump misused the presidency for political gain as an "even bigger hoax" than the Russian-meddling investigation. Published September 26, 2019
Trump offers trade on whistleblower transparency
President Trump on Wednesday said Congress should receive a whistleblower complaint about his conversations with Ukraine, so long as former Vice President Joseph R. Biden faces scrutiny, too. Published September 25, 2019
Volodymyr Zelensky felt no pressure from Trump on controversial call
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday that President Trump didn't pressure him during an infamous phone call, emboldening Mr. Trump to scold the media and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi while demanding credit for wins on the global stage. Published September 25, 2019
