.By Mary Clare Jalonick and Eric Tucker
Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., stepped aside as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday after the FBI served a search warrant for his phone as part of an ongoing insider-trading investigation tied to the coronavirus pandemic.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced the move, saying he and Burr had agreed it was in the Senate's best interests.
FBI officials showed up at Burr's home with the warrant on Wednesday, marking a significant escalation into the Justice Department's investigation into whether Burr broke the law with a well-timed sale of stocks before the coronavirus caused markets to plummet,
The Justice Department declined to comment. His attorney did not respond to phone and email messages, but said last month that the law is clear that any senator can participate in stock market trading based on public information "as Sen. Burr did."
President Donald Trump says he opposes additional funding for the U.S. Postal Service, acknowledging that his position would starve the agency of money Democrats say it needs to process an anticipated surge in mail-in ballots during the coronavirus pandemic.
Paige Hill, surrogate director of communications for the Biden campaign, says the vice presidential shortlist includes a number of highly qualified women.
Joe Biden introduced his newly chosen running mate Kamala Harris on Wednesday, with the former vice president and California senator appearing for the first time together as the Democratic presidential ticket.
Joe Biden named California Sen. Kamala Harris as his running mate on Tuesday.
New Zealand's prime minister says authorities have found four cases of the coronavirus in one Auckland household from an unknown source, the first cases of local transmission in the country in 102 days.
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Hassan Diab says he is stepping down in the wake of the catastrophic explosion in Beirut last week that triggered public fury and mass protests.
U.S. employers advertised more jobs in June compared with May, but overall hiring fell, painting a mixed picture of the job market.
Chicago’s police commissioner says more than 100 people were arrested following a night of looting and unrest that left 13 officers injured and caused damage in the city’s upscale Magnificent Mile shopping district and other parts of the city.
Two studies released this week show another round of layoffs is already underway as evidence emerges that many workers are losing their jobs for the second time since shutdown measures took hold in March.
Hong Kong police have arrested media tycoon Jimmy Lai and raided the publisher’s headquarters in the highest-profile use yet of the new security law Beijing imposed on the city in June.
