Obama nominates Richard Verma as new US envoy to India

Washington, Sep 19: President Barack Obama today nominated Indian-American, Richard Rahul Verma, as the next US Ambassador to India, ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Washington later this month.

If confirmed by the US Senate, Verma, who earlier served as the Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs and is now in the private sector, would be the first Indian-American to serve as the top US diplomatic position in New Delhi.

Obama announced his nomination along with several other key administration appointments.

"I am grateful that these impressive individuals have chosen to dedicate their talents to serving the American people at this important time for our country. I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead," Obama said in a statement.

The US Embassy in New Delhi is currently headed by a Charge d'affaires, Kathleen Stephens.

Verma, 45, said to be a close confidant of the President and also former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, currently serves as Senior Counselor at Steptoe & Johnson LLP and Albright Stonebridge Group. He is also a Senior National Security Fellow at the Center for American Progress.

Previously, he was Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs at the Department of State from 2009 to 2011 and Partner at Steptoe and Johnson LLP from 2007 to 2009.

He was Senior National Security Advisor, Counsel and Foreign Policy Advisor to the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid from 2002 to 2007, and an Associate at Steptoe & Johnson from 1998 to 2002.

Verma served on active duty in the US Air Force from 1994 to 1998 and received, among other decorations, the Meritorious Service Medal and Air Force Commendation Medal.

Earlier in his career, Verma was a Field Representative for the National Democratic Institute in Eastern Europe and worked in the House of Representatives for Congressman John P Murtha.

He served on the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction, Proliferation and Terrorism in 2008 and has been a member of the Secretary of State's Foreign Affairs Policy Board.

Verma currently serves on the boards of Human Rights First, the Clinton Foundation, and the National Democratic Institute. He received a BS from Lehigh University, a JD from American University, and an LLM from Georgetown University Law Center.

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Explosive new Epstein files reveal Donald Trump raped 13-year-old girl, murdered newborn

News Network

January 31,2026

The US Department of Justice has released millions of new documents linked to the case of convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, before removing some pages that contained complaints mentioning President Donald Trump.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Friday that approximately 3.5 million files were published to comply with the Epstein Transparency Act, following criticism that the administration had missed a December 19 deadline set by Congress.

The documents include FBI communications and complaints submitted as tips, some of which list comments mentioning Trump and others who had social or professional ties to Epstein.

Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in relation to his past association with Epstein.

Pages removed from DOJ website

After their publication, pages containing complaints that mentioned Trump were removed from the DOJ website and now return a “page not found” message. Copies of the documents, however, have circulated widely on social media. CNN anchor Jake Tapper was among those who publicly noted that the pages had been taken down.

One complaint, filed by a friend of a victim, says Trump forced a girl aged 13–14 to perform “oral sex” approximately 35 years ago in New Jersey. The document states that an investigator was sent to Washington to conduct an interview.

Another complaint says Trump regularly paid an individual to perform sexual acts and adds that he was present when her newborn child was murdered by a relative. The paperwork notes that there was “no contact made” with the complainant.

A separate complaint, which provided no contact information, said “calendar girls” parties at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago involved children and sexual abuse. The document also names several public figures as present at such events.

In another account, a complainant said they witnessed a “sex trafficking ring” at Trump National Golf Club in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, in the mid-1990s. The person noted “threats” from Trump’s head of security if she spoke publicly about what she had seen.

Other figures mentioned in the files

The latest release also includes a draft email Epstein wrote to himself in 2013, referring to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. In the message, Epstein said Gates asked him to delete emails and referenced “personal matters.”

The DOJ has not provided a detailed explanation for why certain pages were removed after publication. The department said the document release was ongoing.

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