Advocacy group calls on acting attorney general to lead thorough, transparent federal investigation'The deaths in recent days of two Black men in Tennessee, one in the custody of police and the other at the hands of national guard troops, has prompted the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to demand the suspension of the so-called Memphis Safe Task Force, Donald Trump's anti-crime alliance of federal, state and local law enforcement.In a letter to the acting attorney general, Todd Blanche, on Friday, the NAACP also demanded a thorough, transparent federal investigation" into the actions of the taskforce, which it said has surged federal and military officers into Memphis with insufficient training for civilian policing. Continue reading...
Tyler Robinson is accused of shooting the far-right activist at Utah Valley University last yearA five-day preliminary hearing to determine whether the case against Tyler James Robinson, the man charged with killing Charlie Kirk, will advance to trial came to a close on Friday.Final arguments are set to take place in September. US district judge Tony Graf will sift through the evidence presented by the state and Robinson's defense team before issuing a ruling. Continue reading...
The US's 250th anniversary, the funeral of Ali Khamenei, another brutal heatwave in Europe and the World Cup - the past seven days as captured by the world's leading photojournalists Continue reading...
Company reports $1.4bn profit despite its highest quarterly fuel expense in historyDelta Airlines saidelevated airfares are likely to last despite a recent drop in oil prices, reporting strong appetite for travel and record-high revenue in its quarterly results Friday.Though the company had its highest quarterly fuel expense in its history, demand has been high enough to pass along 60% of its extra fuel costs to consumers, Delta's CEO, Ed Bastian, told CNBC, with plans to eventually pass along all elevated costs. Continue reading...
by Presented by Lucy Hough with Matt Hughes ; produce on (#76X5W)
There is just one week to go until the winner of the World Cup is crowned, and it has been a memorable tournament, not least due to the extraordinary intervention by Donald Trump this week that shocked the football world. Lucy Hough speaks to global sports business correspondent Matt Hughes Continue reading...
Minnesota 15' indicted after opposing ICE crackdown - just the latest attempt by Trump DoJ to criminalize resistanceDays after pleading not guilty to conspiracy charges, Emmett Doyle took the stage at a dive bar in Minneapolis, and performed an Irish protest ballad. And you dare to call me a terrorist, while you look down your gun," he sang during his set.The tune has particular resonance now that Doyle, a musician and carpenter who the US government claims is an antifa" domestic terrorist, awaits trial for protesting. That song has been a source of inspiration for me, in finding courage to face this ordeal," he said. Continue reading...
Over the last six months, activists have ensured the US doesn't forget enslavement in the nation's first capitalOn an overcast day, Tiffany Cooper, a visitor, snapped a photo of a panel about an enslaved woman at the President's House in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The remainder of the brick wall was blank, with bolts serving as the only reminder of the other panels that once stood there.As a Black woman, Cooper said that she felt a deep sadness at the incompleteness" of the exhibit. It once detailed the lives of nine enslaved Africans who served George Washington when Philadelphia was the US capital in the 1790s. Continue reading...
The Magnolia Mother's Trust is the first to target low-income families led by Black mothers in Jackson, MississippiThree months after giving birth to her son, Amaya Jones moved into a new apartment complex. She knew no one else in the building, but it was a fresh start for her and her two children. One day, someone put up a flyer on her unit's door, notifying her about a program called the Magnolia Mother's Trust (MMT).Launched in 2018, the MMT is the longest-running guaranteed income program in the country, and the first to target extremely low-income families headed by Black mothers in Jackson, Mississippi. With no strings attached, the program provides mothers with $1,000 a month for 12 months. Continue reading...
After a fun World Cup with a dismal end, the US enters the 2030 cycle with numerous avenues to rebuild the squadThere are massive questions lingering around the US men's program. Mauricio Pochettino's contract is up, US Soccer has made an extension offer, but both parties are taking some time. Matt Crocker's abrupt exit as sporting director to take a similar job with Saudi Arabia before the World Cup begs more queries about the direction of the sport in this country. And while most of the 2026 squad's core still projects to contend for 2030, four years is a long time.From now, each year offers a major tournament. This is what the US should hope to clarify at every step of the way. Continue reading...
State hit by new wrongful death lawsuit by family of Jason Wilson, who died in brutally hot, un-airconditioned' cellTexas, the state with the largest prison population in the US, is coming under mounting legal pressure to address the ongoing crisis of brutal heat in its cells, as extreme summer temperatures expose inmates to suffering, illness and even death.The Texas department of criminal justice (TDCJ), the state agency that runs dozens of prisons, has been hit by a new wrongful death lawsuit by the family of Jason Wilson. The inmate was found dead in his solitary confinement cell at the Coffield unit in July 2024. Continue reading...
For progressives too, working-class heroes are bearded, buff white guys. Their treatment of women can be overlookedAna Marie Cox's New Republic profile of the Maine oyster farmer and former Democratic senatorial candidate Graham Platner begins with an encounter on the shore with a salt in rubber boots. Learning that she's looking for Platner, the guy says: Good man."In the 2025 article, Cox is charmed by Platner, who's as voluble as this guy is terse. She's impressed by the oyster, calling it a metaphor for how labor, science, and regulation can still stitch together a community and economy.". Continue reading...
It comes from his willingness to violate all norms, rules and laws - and leaving everyone else to pick up the piecesAt the Nato summit just ended, Trump lashed out at other Nato members, saying he was very disappointed with Nato" and asking: Why are we spending hundreds of billions of dollars, and they're not there for us?" He reiterated his desire to take over Greenland, blasted European energy and immigration policies, insulted Spain, and worried allies by declaring that the fighting between Kyiv and Moscow doesn't affect us."Yet throughout the proceedings, Trump was treated by other Nato powers with as much courtesy and respect as any US president has ever received from Nato - perhaps more. It was a great meeting, there was a lot of love in that room, a lot of unity," Trump said when it was over.Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is a professor of public policy emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a Guardian US columnist and his newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com. His new book, Coming Up Short: A Memoir of My America, is out now in the US and in the UK Continue reading...
As the US president swung between threats to take Greenland and promises of help for Ukraine, pledges of a stronger Nato' were lost in the windNato leaders survived another nerve-racking summit with Donald Trump and the 77-year-old defence alliance lives to fight another day, proving its durability against Atlantic storms. But it will never feel safe as long as the unpredictable, vengeful and ruthlessly transactional US president is in the White House.As usual, Trump stole all the headlines at the annual summit, with a mixture of Nato-bashing and implausible threats to take control of Greenland and cut trade with Spain. He declared the ceasefire with Iran dead and called Iranian leaders scum" as US warplanes bombed Iranian targets along the strait of Hormuz. Pitted against such irresistible clickbait, no Nato communique stood a chance of public attention. Continue reading...
The populist Democrat nominee for Senate in Maine bowed to the inevitable but turned his farewell into a pity partyAlways give your best, never get discouraged, never be petty. Always remember, others may hate you, but those who hate you don't win unless you hate them, and then you destroy yourself."These were the parting words of Richard Nixon after he was forced to resign the presidency over the Watergate imbroglio in 1974. For Graham Platner on Wednesday, the stakes were somewhat smaller. But when it came to suspending his Senate campaign in Maine, the Democrat had plenty of hate to go around. Continue reading...
Democrats need a candidate who can speak to working-class, inland and rural Mainers. A logger from the North Woods seems like the obvious choiceMaine's US Senate race was blown wide open by Graham Platner dropping out of the race. Thankfully, a suitable populist is at hand to fill the breach. His name is Troy Jackson.Jackson was born to a 16-year-old mother in the northern Maine town of Fort Kent. He is a fifth-generation logger, union member and former state legislator. As a teenager himself, he went to work in the woods, and by 1998 he led a union logging blockade to prevent Canadian scabs from working Maine jobs.Dustin Guastella is a research associate at the Center for Working Class Politics and the director of operations for Teamsters Local 623. He is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...
Agents seeking different person when they killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, Mexican who had lived in US for 35 yearsLorenzo Salgado Araujo, a man killed by federal immigration agents during a traffic stop in Houston this week, was not the intended target of the enforcement operation", the Department of Homeland Security said on Thursday.Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were reportedly seeking two people from Guatemala when they attempted to stop Salgado Araujo, a Mexican immigrant who had lived in the United States for 35 years, the New York Times reported. Continue reading...
Bipartisan Election Assistance Commission maintains mail-voter registration form, among other dutiesDonald Trump has terminated the remaining members of the independent, federal commission that assists election administration officials nationwide just a few months before the midterm elections, multiple outlets reported Thursday.The remaining three commissioners of the four-member bipartisan commission were forced out on Thursday in different ways. The one Republican appointee resigned and the other two, Democratic appointees were notified of their terminations via email from the White House presidential personnel office. Continue reading...
by Uwa Ede-Osifo, Richard Luscombe and Dani Anguiano on (#76WBF)
Testimony from Lance Twiggs heard in court on fourth day of hearing to determine whether case can proceed to trialTyler Robinson, the 23-year-old charged with murdering the far-right pundit Charlie Kirk, told his roommate a day after the fatal shooting that he wished he hadn't done it", according to testimony heard on Thursday in court.On the fourth day of a hearing to determine whether the case against Robinson has probable cause to proceed to trial, the state presented video of a prosecutor interviewing Lance Twiggs, Robinson's then roommate, with whom he was romantically involved. Continue reading...
NCPC gives preliminary approval to plan for skyline-altering arch despite overwhelming public oppositionDonald Trump's plans to build a skyline-altering arch in the nation's capital won initial approval Thursday from a key federal commission, but its members put off a decision on whether a federal law that limits building heights should be applied to this project.Despite overwhelming public opposition, the National Capital Planning Commission voted to approve preliminary site and building plans for the 250ft (76m) arch the Republican president wants to build on a traffic circle at the Virginia end of the Memorial Bridge from Washington. Continue reading...
Group accused of planning sniper and drone attack on Donald Trump's UFC cage-fighting show in JuneEight men were indicted on murder and terrorism conspiracy charges Thursday for their alleged roles in a thwarted drone and sniper attack on the UFC cage-fighting show staged at the White House in June.The indictment, returned in Ohio, charges all eight in two separate conspiracies, one to provide material support to terrorists and a second to commit murder on federal government territory and to murder a federal government official. Continue reading...
Trailblazing pilot was denied opportunity to become Nasa astronaut but made history on Blue Origin flight in 2021Wally Funk, a trailblazing aviation pioneer who was denied the opportunity to become a Nasa astronaut and half a century later became the oldest woman to travel into space, has died aged 87.Funk died peacefully on Wednesday evening at her apartment in an assisted living facility in Grapevine, Texas, city councilwoman and close friend Duff O'Dell said on Thursday. O'Dell, who described herself as Funk's caregiver, said she was by Funk's side. Funk had fallen a couple of times recently and had an infection in her leg. It took its toll," O'Dell told the Associated Press. Continue reading...
Models show overwhelming chance that this year's El Nino to rank among largest going back to 1950El Nino is strengthening and the risks of a historic event with the power to supercharge extreme weather around the world are rising, according to the latest analysis from the US National Weather Service.Models show there is now an 81% chance that a very strong El Nino that would rank among the largest El Nino events in the historical record going back to 1950" will develop before the end of this year, forecasters said in an advisory released Thursday. There is almost near certainty - a 97% probability - that the conditions will persist through spring 2027. Continue reading...
Democrats have until 27 July to pick a new candidate to face Susan Collins in November - here are the options so farA month after he won Maine's Democratic primary, Graham Platner, the oyster farmer turned insurgent candidate, has suspended his campaign after being accused by a former girlfriend of severely sexually assaulting her in 2021 - an allegation he denies as categorically untrue".Now that Platner has said he will file paperwork to withdraw from the race, Maine Democrats have until 27 July to select a replacement to face Susan Collins, the Republican incumbent, in a race widely seen as pivotal to control of the Senate. The state party said on Wednesday it would hold a nominating convention to pick a new candidate. Continue reading...
Bipartisan group warns HHS that older adults and people with disabilities risk being pressured to end their livesLawmakers urged the health and human services (HHS) secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, on Thursday to establish strict hospice reporting rules to prevent discrimination and coercion in medically assisted suicide.The bipartisan group of members of Congress warned that older adults, people with disabilities, or those with disaffected caregivers face a particular risk of being pressured to end their lives. Continue reading...
by Luke McLaughlin, Will Unwin and Martin Belam on (#76W2C)
England's Jarell Quansah was banned for two games after his red card against Mexico while political jousting continued off the pitchOur very own Jonny Weeks has been doing clever things with photos from across the World Cup.Check them out! Continue reading...
It's a first all-Czech Wimbledon women's final after Karolina Muchova saved a match point in a dramatic final-set tie-break and Linda Noskova was nerveless against Marta KostyukGauff does hold a 6-1 lead in their head-to-head, by the way, but I'm not sure we can read too much into that, as none of those matches were on grass. Gauff, arguably the best competitor in the women's game, has made an art out of winning ugly" - the phrase made famous by her former coach Brad Gilbert - and has consistently found a way to come through three-setters during this tournament even when she's not been at her best. She may well need all that fight to combat Muchova's mix of power and touch - which is so dangerous on grass - especially if Gauff's serve and forehand wobble, as they sometimes do. Gauff's backhand, though, is brilliant. Will temperament + backhand or power + hands prevail? It's going to be so fun finding out.And here they come to a big cheer from the crowd, not that it's quite as warm as the red-hot weather, with the current temp around 33C, and not that Gauff can properly hear it either, because she's got her headphones - and game face - on. Continue reading...
Reform UK presents itself as the people's voice while opaque digital wealth flows around it. That makes transparency a democratic necessityTwice now, the Guardian's questions about Reform UK's finances appear to have been pre-empted by stories friendly to the party. This paper revealed in April that Nigel Farage received 5m from the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne - but an interview with Reform UK's leader, claiming he needed the cash for security", was published hours earlier in the Telegraph. Then, Richard Tice's suggestion that the National Crime Agency (NCA) had leaked the MP's bank statements landed on the Telegraph site on Tuesday, just before the Guardian said bankers had reported the 5m donation to law enforcement over money-laundering concerns.A party serious about probity would have no issue answering questions about such cash. Instead, Reform uses a pliant media outlet to frame scrutiny as persecution. In Mr Farage's world, the questions become the scandal, not the large undisclosed sums. That is a warning about how an authoritarian nationalist party that aspires to govern treats accountability: not as a democratic obligation, but as an attack.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...
As in the Gareth Southgate era, a diverse and passionately committed national team is offering a counter-narrative to the forces of social divisionThe identity of the worst performers at the men's WorldCup has come as no surprise. In the lead-up tothetournament, the world had seen more than enough of Donald Trump and Gianni Infantino in action to fear the worst once the games actually began. MrTrump's lobbying of Fifa to lift a one-match ban on the United States' star striker confirmed that his bullying will-to-power extends to spheres that he neither cares about nor understands. Mr Infantino's craven willingness to accommodate it has been an affront to sporting integrity.From prohibitive ticket prices to the introduction of advertiser-friendly hydration breaks - conveniently replicating the lucrative four-quarter format common in US sports - there have been plenty of other reasons to question Fifa's overly commercialised stewardship of the beautiful game. But the World Cup still delivers a unique spectacle, as anyone who marvelled at the heroic exploits of Cape Verde, or witnessed Scottish fans' goodhumoured invasion of Boston, can testify.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...
by Dan Sabbagh, Elena Morresi, Lachlan Mykura and Sar on (#76WEJ)
Donald Trump's erratic behaviour at the Nato summit in Turkey left his allies guessing. One moment he was criticising fellow leaders over their contribution to defence spending, the next he was praising the alliance's unity.From Ankara, the Guardian's defence and security editor, Dan Sabbagh, explains how Nato emerged from the chaos Continue reading...
A 2021 state law allows campus police to own military equipment for civilian safety - students fear it may be used to quash dissentFor many public colleges and universities in California, keeping their campuses safe includes owning military-grade weaponry: AR-15s, stun grenades designed to cause temporary blindness and sonic weapons that resonate so loudly they are known in the armed forces as the voice of God.According to California state law, campus police can only own military equipment if the college believes there is no other way to uphold civilian safety. Continue reading...
by Bruce Schneier and Nathan E Sanders on (#76WBJ)
AI companies want to capture the value created by entire industries. That concentration of wealth and power is society's greatest riskOpposition to AI datacenters has emerged as a primary theme in US politics, one that - surprisingly - doesn't fall along party lines. We applaud people coming together for constructive debate on any issue, and agree that communities need to evaluate whether any economic benefits these datacenters bring is worth their costs. Still, we worry that a focus on datacenters obscures the larger impacts of AI on people's lives: the concentration of power of AI companies, and their widespread political and financial influence.Local datacenter opposition is grounded in legitimate concerns about misallocation of land resources when housing is at a premium, pressures on already higher energy prices, and localized environmental impact. Unlike other resource-consuming and polluting industrial facilities, datacenters produce very few jobs. The fact that US opposition to datacenters seems to be most fierce among lower-income communities reflects righteous indignation with an inequitable bargain, where tech companies and developers profit from exploiting local resources but offer little in return. On a global scale, their carbon footprint could grow unsustainably if usage accelerates. And all this is in aid of a technology that many fear will propagate misinformation, take their jobs, or even cause existential risks for humanity. Continue reading...
David Hearn is accused of destroying American flag blue' lining material on the bottom of the reflecting poolDavid Hearn, a former Olympic canoe racer, pleaded not guilty on Thursday to damaging Washington's reflecting pool after a $14.7m renovation project.Hearn, a three-time US Olympian, was indicted last week on a single felony count of property destruction. He appeared in local superior court in Washington DC to enter the plea after he was criminally charged over the incident in mid-June. Continue reading...
Officials say climate crisis worsening our exposure' to bacteria as at least 28 people sickened in ManhattanA New York outbreak of legionnaires' disease, a rare but severe form of pneumonia, highlights the microbe's growing and disproportionate impacts in a warming climate.At least 28 people have been sickened in an outbreak on the Upper East Side, a wealthy neighborhood between Central Park and the East River in Manhattan. Health department officials, seeking to stop the outbreak, have sampled water from nearly 160 building cooling towers to test for the bacteria. Continue reading...
Chris Mufarrige has taken aim at Facebook scams and junk fees, but consumer advocates say he has an uphill climbAs the director of the Federal Trade Commission's consumer protection bureau, Chris Mufarrige is the top enforcer protecting Americans against predatory companies.He's got an uphill climb, consumer advocates say. Continue reading...
City seeking bids to build and operate separate terminal, following Los Angeles, London and other citiesSick of the TSA lines? Tired of playing musical chairs at the gate? Rather sit as far from your fellow airplane passengers for as long as possible, in the comfort of your own private, luxury airport terminal?Soon you may get your wish. And San Francisco international airport wants to be your genie - for a fee. Continue reading...
Greenland Energy says billions of barrels of crude lie beneath territory and claims it has exploration permits - a claim flatly denied by NuukOn 10 June, a snowy-haired American in his 60s addressed the residents of a remote Greenland hamlet. He was there to tell them about a business venture supported by figures linked to Donald Trump. So," Robert Price said via an interpreter, we have a project to drill for oil here."The Texas oil company that Price represents, Greenland Energy, hopes to prove that billions of barrels of crude lie underground by bringing in 300 shipping containers of drilling kit. Continue reading...
US president contested judge's order to release money after Carroll's 2023 sexual abuse and defamation trial against himA Manhattan federal appeals court late on Wednesday rejected Donald Trump's latest bid to delay the payment of more than $5m to E Jean Carroll following her successful 2023 sexual abuse and defamation trial against him.The US court of appeals for the second circuit made its decision hours after Trump filed paperwork fighting Manhattan federal court judge Lewis Kaplan's order releasing this money - which has been held in a court-controlled account since June 2023. Trump denies all wrongdoing. Continue reading...
Explosions reported in southern Iran in most extensive exchange of fire since interim ceasefire. Plus the complicated legacy of beat poet Allen GinsbergGood morning. The US military carried out strikes on Iran for a second day, hours after President Donald Trump said an interim agreement to end the war was over". Iranian state media reported explosions in the port city of Bandar Abbas in the strait of Hormuz; in Sirik, another southern coastal city; and the south-western Bushehr province, home to Iran's nuclear-power-plant complex. US Central Command confirmed the strikes.On Tuesday, three cargo ships transiting the strait of Hormuz were attacked, leading to the most extensive exchange of fire between the two sides since the interim deal was signed last month. At the Nato summit in Ankara yesterday, Trump said: Anything that happens is going to happen very fast" and that the latest strikes would not result in long-term" military action. They are behaving very badly," Trump said, accusing Iran of launching drones and a missile at ships.What are the economic impacts of the renewed hostilities? US stock markets fell on Wednesday, and Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil prices, jumped more than 5% to crest $80 a barrel. The International Monetary Fund lowered its global economic growth forecast to 3%, citing conflict in the Middle East. Jorge Leon, the head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy, said: Tanker traffic through the strait of Hormuz has essentially stopped, which tells you more about risk perception right now than any statement from Washington or Tehran."Who could replace Platner? Maine Democrats have until 27 July to select a replacement to face Susan Collins in a race widely seen as pivotal to control of the Senate. The state party said it would hold a nominating convention to pick a new candidate. Troy Jackson, Janet Mills, Valli Geiger and Shenna Bellows are among the names in the frame - with Joseph Gedeon profiling them and assessing their prospects in this piece. Continue reading...
Crude memes of the Maga luminary are exploding online - less than a year after conservatives were suppressing any slander against himTen months since his assassination, Charlie Kirk's name and likeness are still proliferating online. Just not the way the far-right activist would have wanted.Audio of the gunshot that killed him has become a TikTok meme, as have ironic reposts of the apparent AI-slop song We Are Charlie Kirk, which was originally created as a posthumous tribute. He was the butt of a crude joke during the Netflix roast of Hollywood star Kevin Hart in May. The next month, a viral tweet encouraged people to take a shot" in his honor on Juneteenth. And a trend known as Kirkification" has emerged, in which internet pranksters superimpose his face on to unlikely images, such as the Mona Lisa, a woman in a bikini, or Jeffrey Epstein. Continue reading...
Deaths and injuries up as critics condemn administration's appalling' plan to gut federal disaster management systemThe number of US chemical accidents is rising just as the Trump administration guts protections against the disasters, a new analysis of federal data by the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (Peer) non-profit found.The report found the number of chemical accidents, explosions, fires and other emergencies that release chemicals into the atmosphere was up by at least 51% since 2021. Deaths and injuries were up at least 20%. Continue reading...
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