New Orleans Immigration Crackdown Sparks Fear as Federal Arrests Intensify 
U.S. Justice Department Orders Intensified Probe Into Antifa and Domestic Extremist Groups 
Maduro Confirms “Respectful” Call With Trump, Signals Openness to Diplomatic Dialogue 
Hong Kong Faces Low Turnout in “Patriots-Only” Election Amid Public Grief After Deadly Fire 
California Launches Portal for Reporting Alleged Misconduct by Federal Immigration Agents 
IMF Deputy Dan Katz Visits China as Key Economic Review Nears 
UN Chief Says Gaza Operation “Fundamentally Wrong” as Concerns Over War Crimes Grow 
Taiwan Opposition Criticizes Plan to Block Chinese App Rednote Over Security Concerns 
Honduras Election Turmoil Intensifies as Nasralla Blames Trump for Shift in Results 
U.S. Repatriation Flight Carrying 266 Venezuelan Migrants Lands in Caracas 
Trump Claims He Will Void Biden Documents Signed with Autopen 
Trump Administration Halts Immigration, Green Card, and Citizenship Processing for 19 Countries 
Trump Administration Tightens H-1B Visa Vetting With New Focus on Free Speech and Censorship 
China Urged to Prioritize Economy Over Territorial Ambitions, Says Taiwan’s President Lai 
Taiwan Signals Openness to Renew Ties with Honduras as Election Unfolds 
Australia and Japan Strengthen Defence Cooperation Amid Rising Regional Tensions 
U.S. Expected to Expand Travel Ban to More Than 30 Countries 
President-elect Joe Biden is set to take office in six days with his inauguration and over the last several weeks since his election victory in November, he has formally announced who he would be nominating for Cabinet positions. Biden makes another nomination announcement this week, appointing former UN envoy Samantha Power to lead USAID.
Biden has nominated Samantha Power to lead the US Agency for International Development. Power previously served under the Obama administration as an ambassador to the United Nations, a role that would now be assumed by Linda Thomas-Greenfield if confirmed by the Senate. If Power is also confirmed, she would be overseeing the country’s foreign humanitarian efforts, with the agency’s budget of $20 billion. Biden revealed that USAID will be cooperating with the global response to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic and helping the countries that are the most vulnerable.
“Ambassador Samantha Power is a world-renowned voice of conscience and moral clarity - challenging and rallying the international community to stand up for the dignity and humanity of all people. As USAID Administrator, she’ll be a powerful force for principled American engagement,” said Biden.
Power is a Pulitzer Prize winner for her book about the country’s foreign policy response to genocide. She was considered a controversial choice for Obama when she was appointed to the NSC in 2009 due to her criticisms of Hillary Clinton in the 2008 Democratic primaries. However, Power eventually overcame her differences with Clinton and succeeded Susan Rice in 2012 as UN Envoy as Rice became Obama’s National Security Adviser.
Following warnings by the FBI regarding a potential repeat of the insurrection at the Capitol last week, security in Washington leading up to the inauguration has since doubled. It is with these concerns that Biden has decided not to travel to Washington by Amtrak for his inauguration. This decision may not have come easy for the president-elect, who is often known for riding the train from his home in Delaware to the Senate throughout his career as a Senator. Biden also rode the Amtrak train on his last day as vice president in 2016 and used the train to tour through Ohio and Pennsylvania throughout his campaign.
