USA

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Democrats unleashed a roaring assault against Bernie Sanders and seized on Mike Bloomberg’s past with women in the workplace during a contentious debate Tuesday night that tested the strength of the two men at the center of the party’s presidential nomination fight.

WASHINGTON, February 25. /TASS/: Anti-Russian statements by participants of the US election campaign have led to " unprecedented degradation" of bilateral ties, the Russian Embassy in Washington said in a statement.

"Our position is simple and straightforward. The Russian Federation does not "interfere" in other countries’ internal political processes. We appeal to politicians to stop playing blame-game," the embassy said on its Facebook page. "The anti-Russian sentiment in the US partisan struggle has already led to the unprecedented degradation of the bilateral relations."

Washington, Feb 25 (PTI) Democratic presidential front-runner Senator Bernie Sanders on Monday slammed President Donald Trump for selling weapons to India, saying that the US should instead partner with New Delhi to fight climate change to save the planet.

Sanders, who has won the Nevada and New Hampshire primaries and tied in Iowa, made the comments after Trump, who is on a two-day visit to India, on Monday announced that the US will sign defence trade deals worth USD 3 billion with India.

WASHINGTON, Feb 25 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US government is considering asking legislators for emergency funding to ramp up its response to the fast-spreading coronavirus, a White House spokesman said.

“We need some funding here to make sure that we … protect all Americans, that we keep us safe,” White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said.

Asked how much funding the administration may ask Congress to approve, Gidley said that there was no announcement yet on the amount.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- The United States and South Korea are weighing scaling back upcoming joint military exercises due to growing concerns over the novel coronavirus outbreak, said U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Monday.

Esper made the remark at a joint press conference with visiting South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo at the Pentagon.

The Pentagon chief said the two sides "are looking at scaling back the command post training due to concerns about the coronavirus."

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House on Monday sent lawmakers an urgent $2.5 billion plan to address the deadly coronavirus outbreak, whose rapid spread and threat to the global economy rocked financial markets.

The White House budget office said the funds are for vaccines, treatment and protective equipment. The request was immediately slammed by Democrats as insufficient and came as coronavirus fears were credited with Monday’s 1,000-plus point drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and are increasingly seen as a potential political threat to President Donald Trump.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA’s newest Mars lander has confirmed that quakes and even aftershocks are regularly jolting the red planet.

Scientists reported Monday that the seismometer from the InSight spacecraft has detected scores of marsquakes.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — For James Felder, the question of which presidential candidate to support in the South Carolina primary has never been terribly complicated. The 80-year-old civil rights activist has always backed Joe Biden, appreciative of the eight years he spent as the No. 2 to the first black president.

But when Felder opened a recent forum at historically black Benedict College to questions, students in the room weren’t so convinced.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats’ desire for dramatic political change has emerged as a driving force in the party’s presidential primary battle, one that extends beyond the progressive wing and presents challenges for candidates running on promises of moderation.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Bernie Sanders is facing the greatest test of his presidential campaign as his Democratic rivals prepare to launch a series of attacks on the Vermont senator during what could be a pivotal debate on the eve of the South Carolina primary.