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[ad_1] Last year, around the same time, young schoolchildren in Karnataka received their newly revised textbooks, which saw changes in the Kannada and social science subjects. The tenth-standard students witnessed drastic changes being made in their Kannada language textbooks, as speeches of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) founder KB Hedgewar and works of right-wing ideologue Chakravarthy Sulibele, among others, were added. This was done under the previous Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. Ashwin is in the tenth standard at the government high school in KR Puram. Last year, he collected textbooks from his seniors as he progressed into class 10. Now he is being told that he may need to get a new Kannada textbook as the syllabus is to change once again. Ashwin’s mother, Laxmi, who works as a house help at my residence, came to me with the question: “Will we have to buy new textbooks now? Will all the syllabus he is studying change?" While her concerned look made me pr...

[ad_1] WASHINGTON — The U.S. House of Representatives entered its second day without an elected speaker Wednesday, after Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., failed in three consecutive votes Tuesday to secure the 218 votes needed to win the coveted post. But after negotiations with fellow Republicans that lasted deep into the night on Tuesday, McCarthy appeared no closer Wednesday to winning over the 20 members of his caucus who had refused to support him the day before. The failed votes marked the first time in 100 years that the majority party in the House has not elected a speaker on its first vote. The staunch opposition to McCarthy from a core group of Republicans grew larger over the course of the day, throwing the party into chaos. The House convened at noon on Wednesday, and members of both parties were advised that there would likely be a fourth vote on the speaker. But this course of events was still up in the air even as members were seated in their seats. If Re...

[ad_1] WASHINGTON — The Biden administration's 2024 budget relies almost entirely on additional revenue created by raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans and corporations and by letting the Trump-era tax cuts expire. If several of the proposals, like a billionaire minimum tax, sound familiar, it's because they have been part of the president's domestic agenda wish list for years. And while a White House annual budget is always one part wish list and one part plan, Biden's tax hikes are even less realistic now — with a Republican majority in the House — than they were when he first tried to pass them through a Democratic-controlled House and Senate. The plan released Thursday by the Treasury Department in its annual Green Book, calls for an even higher minimum tax this year on the top 0.01% of earners and households worth more than $100 million, up to 25% from 20% last year. Read more on Biden's fiscal year 2024 budget plan: It would also quadruple the stock ...

[ad_1] WASHINGTON — Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy failed to secure enough support Tuesday for his bid to become House speaker during the chamber's first round of voting, the first time in a century that the majority party failed to coalesce behind a speaker and forced more than one round of voting. It was unclear immediately after the first round what next steps Republicans would take. McCarthy has vowed to hold as many rounds as needed to secure the necessary 218 votes. During a tense voice vote, all 212 Democrats rallied unanimously around incoming Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, N.Y. Ten Republicans voted for McCarthy's only declared GOP rival, Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona, while nine GOP lawmakers voted for other alternatives. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) talks with reporters after a House Republican caucus meeting on the first day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, January 3, 2023. Jonathan Ernst | Reuters McCarthy's failure to win public support ...