Stories of justice and action across America
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Call it a tarp tantrum but President Donald Trump's attempt to rebrand Washington, D.C. isn't going well.
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Hi there, This is America readers, I'm Phillip M. Bailey, chief political correspondent with USA TODAY.
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Trump had to take his name off the Kennedy Center after a federal judge forced ruled last month that renaming the building without congressional approval was illegal. People are noticing the massive covering remains in the way, however.
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What gives? Well a spokesman for the center told USA TODAY it remains up to enable construction crews to address maintenance needs of the building's marble exterior and soffit panels under the center's overhang.
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Democrats aren't buying it, saying the White House is simply trying to avoid an embarrassment for the president.
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"Rather than simply let the Kennedy Center be the Kennedy Center, they’re literally covering up its name," Rep. Matt Levin, D-Calif., said in a June 16 post on X. "How vain can one man be? It' petty. It’s absurd. And frankly, it’s embarrassing.
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A tarp covers the facade of the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, following a federal judge’s order to remove President Donald Trump's name from the institution, in Washington, D.C., on June 13, 2026.
Ken Cedeno, REUTERS
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For more on Trump's DC makeover, check out USA TODAY's coverage: |
After a fight over Trump's name on the Kennedy Center, judge demands details: U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper blocked the closure and wants plans by June 19 to remain open.
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Trump ballroom soars to $600M, with taxpayers on hook for half: Report
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Saving Social Security will be a major issue this year |
If you haven't heard, the trust fund that supplements monthly Social Security benefits is projected to be depleted by the end of 2032.
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The retirement programs has been paying out more than it receives from taxes collected for the past 16 years, forcing it to dip into reserves to cover that shortfall. If Congress doesn't act soon then beneficiaries will see an immediate across-the-board 22% cut, which averages out at about a $500 a month loss.
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This has reignited a debate on Capitol Hill where lawmakers are tossing around different ideas such as increasing the retirement age and creating personal accounts to invest in the stock market.
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"This should be a wake-up call: Congress needs to act," said Myechia Minter-Jordan, chief executive at AARP, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization representing older adults. "Americans have worked hard and paid into Social Security their entire lives, and they deserve to count on it when they retire. "
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President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized the 2015 deal with Iran under former President Obama. Now a deal is in the works. Are they different?
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Gas prices fell on hopes of a peace deal between the U.S. and Iran, though it may take time for shipping in the Strait of Hormuz to return to pre-war levels.
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The Supreme Court said a man's every-other-day marijuana use is not a reason to bar him from having a gun, a decision weakening a federal gun control law.
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Georgia lawmakers surprisingly ditched plans to redraw the state's congressional district maps following a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
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Howie Mandel had a rare skin condition as a kid. The way doctors treated him, he said, gave him lasting trauma − and he's not alone.
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