Obama blocks Chinese takeover of tech group Aixtron

US President Barack Obama has blocked a Chinese company's purchase of German chip equipment manufacturer Aixtron on national security grounds in a move that highlights the growing hostility towards Chinese cross-border investment in western countries.  In a presidential order issued on Friday, Mr Obama said "there is credible evidence" that Chinese investors Fujian Grand Chip "might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States".

Panel urges better cybersecurity to President-elect Trump

A national commission was set Friday to deliver urgent recommendations to improve the nation's cybersecurity, weeks before President-elect Donald Trump takes office. The report follows the worst hacking of U.S. government systems in history and accusations by the Obama administration that Russia meddled in the U.S. presidential election by hacking Democrats.

Trump moves to quickly fill his top Cabinet ranks

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said he expected to have most members of his Cabinet announced next week, interviewing more candidates at Trump Tower for top jobs in his administration as he prepares to take office on Jan. 20. Trump is still weighing who to choose as secretary of state. The Republican president-elect said on Thursday he had chosen retired Marine Corps General James Mattis as defense secretary and would make a formal announcement on that on Monday.

Trump’s victory could be pyrhhic

The last time the Republican Party had a win like the surprise pulled off by President-elect Donald Trump, it came in California and it quickly turned the nation's largest state from a consistent toss-up political battleground to a solid Democratic bastion. That "victory" came when then-Gov. Pete Wilson won re-election - on Nov. 8, also the date of Trump's triumph - by a large margin in 1994 on the strength of a campaign directed largely against Latino illegal immigrants.

In Trump era, at least the punk rock will be louder: Larry Wilson

Now that reality has semi-set in, that is my only cogent polling analysis, I told a trio of local professors who each brilliantly dissected the results at a Thursday lunch event I emceed, themed “What the heck happened on election day?” That was no doubt the theme used dozens of times in political science department gatherings and on Rotary Club daises across the nation this week. At our meeting, sponsored by the San Gabriel Valley Public Affairs Network, professors Zachary Courser of Claremont McKenna, Fernando Guerra of Loyola Marymount and Raphe Sonenshein refused to moan and handwring and instead just nailed the numbers about the nationwide results.

5 Fact Checks From Trump’s Cincinnati ‘Thank-You Tour’ Kick-Off

Donald Trump kicked off his post-election "thank you tour" with a Thursday night rally that sounded a lot like any of his campaign rallies. He said trade was dangerous, he warned about refugees, and his mention of his former opponent, Hillary Clinton, prompted supporters to chant "lock her up."

Pence signs paperwork allowing IN electors to vote for him

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence has signed off on the paperwork that will enable the state's delegation to the electoral college to cast their votes - for him. The Republican, who will be Donald Trump's vice president, is the first Indiana governor since 1912 to certify electors who will later cast electoral college votes in his favor.

Pence: Trump will focus fast on tax, healthcare, immigration -WSJ

The Trump administration plans to move quickly on its goals to overhaul taxation, healthcare and immigration laws, Vice President-elect Mike Pence said in an interview published by the Wall Street Journal on Friday. President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, is preparing 100-day and 200-day plans aimed at fulfilling his campaign promises and stimulating economic growth, Pence said.

At Trump Tower, presidential kitsch and caboodle

In his cowboy hat and boots and strategically slung guitar, the Naked Cowboy has been a fixture in Times Square for decades, posing under the neon with visitors for donations. But these days, in his spangled underwear and little else, he can be found farther north: at the Midtown Manhattan home of another outsize New York character, Donald Trump.

Tempers flare, as campaign aides assess still-raw 2016 race

Tempers flared and political fault-lines were inflamed, as aides to Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton gathered for their first meeting since Election Day. Every four years since 1972, top presidential campaign aides have met for a polite discussion of the fierce battle they just waged.

House pushes ahead with $611 billion defense policy bill

The Republican-led House is pushing ahead with a $611 billion defense policy bill that prohibits closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, forbids the Pentagon from trimming the number of military bases and awards U.S. troops their largest pay raise in six years. Lawmakers are scheduled to vote Friday on the legislation, which authorizes military spending for the fiscal year that started Oct. 1. The defense bill includes an agreement that prevents the Defense Department from forcing thousands of California National Guard troops to repay enlistment bonuses and benefits they received a decade after they signed up to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan.