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The Gates Foundation met with Epstein about 30 times despite staff concerns, an external review says

NEW YORK (AP) — Bill Gates and the staff of his charitable foundation met with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein more than two dozen times even as employees expressed concerns about the reputational risk of working with him, an external review commissioned by the Gates Foundation found. The conversations appeared to focus on a public health fund that never materialized and a grant to the International Peace Institute, which was run by an associate of Epstein. The roughly 30 meetings, which took place from 2011 to 2014, included several visits to Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse ...

What to know about the 50% tariffs Trump is imposing on Canada

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has reached back to the Great Depression for an obscure trade weapon he can use to wallop Canada again. Trump on Monday announced 50% tariffs on some Canadian products, ratcheting up tensions with one of the closest U.S. allies. The move threatens to push prices higher at a time when Americans are already frustrated with the high cost of living ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections. It’s also unclear whether Trump’s latest tariffs would survive a legal challenge. Tariffs are taxes on foreign products. They’re paid by importers in the ...

Trump admin says it’s deferring $1B in Medicaid payments to California and Minnesota

The Trump administration on Tuesday said it was deferring more than $1 billion in Medicaid payments to Minnesota and California because of “suspected fraud and noncompliance,” the latest in a series of punitive steps it has linked to allegations of fraud in mostly Democratic-led states. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the new actions — which come after previously announced Medicaid funding deferrals in those states — are part of the administration’s strategy to “stop the fraud before it happens” rather than claw back problematic spending after bad actors are ...

Smithsonian history museum chief rejects White House criticism of its leaders as radical activists

WASHINGTON (AP) — The director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History pushed back Tuesday against a recent White House report that branded the institution’s leadership as radical activists who cannot be trusted. The testimony from Anthea M. Hartig came as President Donald Trump has engaged in a broad national effort to reshape the stories of America told by cultural institutions controlled or influenced by the federal government and, in particular, to purge diversity, equity and inclusion elements from those narratives. Many historians are alarmed by the ...