USA

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — An explosive eruption rocked La Soufriere volcano on the eastern Caribbean island of St. Vincent on Friday after the government ordered thousands to evacuate their homes nearby.

Experts said the first explosion shot an ash column 32,000 feet (10 kilometers) into the sky and that the majority of the ash was headed northeast into the Atlantic Ocean. Lightning crackled through the towering column of smoke and ash late Friday.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden released a $1.5 trillion wish list for his first federal budget, asking for substantial gains for Democratic priorities including education, health care, housing and environmental protection.

The request by the White House budget office Friday for an 8.4% increase in agency operating budgets spells out Biden’s top priorities as Congress weighs its spending plans for next year. It’s the first financial outline of the Democrats’ broader ambitions since the expiration of a 2011 law that capped congressional spending.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House Ethics Committee announced an investigation into Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz as federal prosecutors probing sex trafficking allegations against him are also scrutinizing the actions of some of his political allies and fellow Florida Republicans as part of a broader public corruption inquiry.

Federal agents have, in recent months, been examining Gaetz’s connections to several other influential Florida political figures.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump insists he’s enjoying his life off Twitter. The press releases his aides fire off on an increasingly frequent basis are more “elegant,” he says. Plus there’s no risk of backlash for retweeting unsavory accounts.

But since Trump was barred from major social media channels after helping incite the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, his power to shape the national conversation is being tested.

(AP) --- Police accused of wrongdoing can usually count on the blue wall of silence — protection from fellow officers that includes everything from shutting off body cameras to refusing to cooperate with investigators. But that’s not the case with Derek Chauvin, with many colleagues quick to condemn his actions in George Floyd’s death, some even taking the stand against him.

UNITED NATIONS, Apr 09 (APP): Pakistan has called for strengthening international cooperation in mine action to counter the threat posed by landmines and other explosives to civilians and infrastructure as well as to safeguard UN peace-keeping missions and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

UNITED NATIONS, Apr 08 (APP): UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Thursday that the mere presence of landmines, explosive remnants of war and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) can “stall development and shatter stability”, and called for stepping up efforts to counter their challenges.

“They are left in the path of women walking to work, a family displaced by conflict and seeking safety, children on their way to school. They crush lives and end livelihoods”, Secretary-General António Guterres told the UN Security Council.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden asked Congress to sharply increase spending to combat climate change and gun violence in a budget that marks a sharp departure from his predecessor, Donald Trump.

The $1.5 trillion budget, reflecting an 8% increase in base funding from the current year, would invest billions more in public transportation and environmental clean-ups, slash funding for a border wall and expand funding for background checks on gun sales, each goal clashing with the prior administration.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden plans to meet with a bipartisan group of U.S. House and Senate lawmakers Monday on his proposed $2.3 trillion infrastructure and jobs plan, sources briefed on the matter confirmed Friday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday will order the creation of a bipartisan commission to study potential reforms to the U.S. Supreme Court, the White House said, including whether to expand the number of justices, a key goal of progressive Democrats.

In a statement, the White House said the commission would have 180-days to report its findings.