Trump's USA

Border issue
US votes to end budget fight: "Damn time"

The US House of Representatives votes to fund the Department of Homeland Security, and thus also to end the budget fight that has shut down the department for 76 days. CBS News reports, among others.

The proposal applies to the entire department except for the immigration police ICE and the Border Patrol, writes Bloomberg.

- It was damn time, says top Democrat Rosa DeLauro, who presented the proposal more than 70 days ago.

The shutdown will formally end when Donald Trump signs the bill. The White House has previously said that he will sign it.

The shutdown has caused delays and mass queues at many of the country's airports, as security personnel have not received any pay.

Midterm elections in the US
Senate candidate drops out of key Maine primary

Maine's Democratic governor and Senate candidate Janet Mills is dropping out of the primary, paving the way for oyster farmer Graham Platner to challenge incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins, reports CNN.

"I have the drive, the passion, the dedication, the experience and, above all, the fighting spirit to continue, but unfortunately not what political campaigns unfortunately require today: the financial resources," she writes in a statement.

Defeating Susan Collins - who has been in office since 1997 - in the primary on June 9 is a must for Democrats if they want to clinch a Senate majority in this fall's midterm elections. 

Active-duty US soldiers may receive MDMA therapy

Next year, 186 active-duty US soldiers may receive MDMA to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), reports The Guardian.

This is part of two studies funded by the Department of Defense. A group of therapists from the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs will begin training in the therapy next week.

MDMA, also known as ecstasy and molly, is a central stimulant that produces feelings of euphoria and heightened empathy. Studies have shown that it can be effective in therapy.