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Organizers in Monterey Park took inspiration from other US cities to fight against the construction of a giant datacenterWhen a southern California city council proposed building a giant datacenter the size of four football fields last December, five residents vowed to stop it.Through a frenetic word-of-mouth campaign, the small group raised awareness about the proposed facility in Monterey Park, a small city east of Los Angeles known affectionately as the country's first suburban Chinatown. No Data Center Monterey Park organizers - working in tandem with the grassroots racial justice group San Gabriel Valley (SGV) Progressive Action - held a teach-in and rally that drew hundreds of participants, knocked on doors, and distributed flyers on busy streets. They emphasized how the computer systems facility would strain the power grid, drive up energy rates and create noise pollution. A petition quickly amassed nearly 5,000 signatures. All the materials were shared in English, Chinese and Spanish - a concerted effort to reach Monterey Park's diverse populace, which is two-thirds Asian and one-quarter Hispanic. Continue reading...

President reportedly wanted Dulles airport and Penn Station to be renamed after him in exchange for continued fundingA federal judge has reversed a freeze put on funds by Donald Trump for $16bn in enhanced rail links connecting New York and New Jersey amid reports that the US president wants major travel landmarks named after him in return for continued investment.The Gateway Project will build a new commuter rail tunnel between Manhattan and New Jersey under the Hudson River on the western side of New York City and repair a century-old tunnel used by more than 200,000 travelers and 425 trains daily. Continue reading...

We take a look at the best images from the opening day of the Games, including curling, downhill skiing, and ice hockey Continue reading...

Immigration operations are still stoking fear and disrupting the ability to go to work, school or doctor's appointmentsWith the public's outrage and attention focused on the deadly surge of federal agents in Minneapolis, immigration operations have quietly continued across the US - albeit in less noticeable but still troubling ways, advocates say.In recent weeks there have been day laborers swept up at a Home Depot in San Diego. A taco truck vendor chased down outside a church in Los Angeles. Immigrants arrested at check-ins in North Carolina, and during traffic stops in the nation's capital. Continue reading...

After first dismissing uproar over depiction of Obamas as apes, White House then said it was erroneously posted by stafferDonald Trump said on Friday he made the call to post a now-deleted video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as monkeys but deflected blame for the move, causing new speculation in his orbit about whether the blame lay with the president or his aide Natalie Harp.The brief clip, shared late Thursday night on Trump's Truth Social account, appeared in a video pushing conspiracies about the 2020 election. Invoking racist tropes, the video depicted the Obamas' faces superimposed on the bodies of cartoon apes dancing to The Lion Sleeps Tonight. Continue reading...

Time has never seemed to stop the US skiing star. Entering Sunday's Olympic downhill medal race, injuries haven't eitherIt was all going a little too easy for Lindsey Vonn. All the nervous apprehension, the paternalistic concern, the arch skepticism and hushed snickers that had rippled through the sports world when she announced her comeback from a six-year retirement had long since gone silent. A once-unthinkable fairytale ending at the age of 41 on the slopes of Cortina d'Ampezzo was practically within touching distance.Back in November 2024, having been chased from the sport in 2019 by a battered right knee worn down by a string of gruesome crashes and multiple surgeries, Vonn proposed a return to a high-risk sport where no woman had ever won a race past the age of 34. There's a history of comebacks like these going brutally wrong, and even Vonn's most dedicated fans were bracing themselves for the worst. Think a shopworn Joe Louis getting battered through the ropes and on to the ring apron by Rocky Marciano. Or Bjorn Borg returning to the tour in the early 90s with a wooden racket, defiantly flailing through a sport that had moved on without him. Continue reading...

The Obama video should take a toll on the president's political career - but of course it won'tDespite Donald Trump's war on woke, he hasn't (yet) made Black History Month illegal. In fact, on Tuesday the president issued a proclamation declaring February 2026 to be a celebration of Black history and called upon public officials, educators, librarians, and all the people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities".Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Outreach teams battle mistrust, mental illness and thin resources as subzero weather pushes the city to its limitsOn the corner of 23rd Street and 5th Avenue in Manhattan beneath the landmark Flatiron building, two workers from the Bridge, an outreach non-profit, were hoping to help a number of homeless men seek shelter from the dangerous, freezing temperatures gripping the city.It is a matter of life and death as New York endures one of its longest stretches of subzero cold since 1960. Seventeen people have died, with at least 13 deaths linked to hypothermia. The city estimates that 800 homeless people have been moved inside, with Zohran Mamdani, the mayor, saying recently we have been taking every possible measure to get New Yorkers inside. This has been a full all-hands-on-deck approach." Continue reading...

The Amazon documentary brought in $7m its opening weekend - thanks to admirers eager for a glimpse of the first lady's secretive lifeThe dress code for Lisa Copeland's big night out: what would Melania wear?The 60-year-old real estate entrepreneur and nine other friends were headed to Amazon's new documentary Melania, which debuted in theaters nationwide last week. We all brought our best power suit," Copeland said, nodding to Melania Trump's penchant for neat, tailored menswear-inspired looks. But since she lives in Austin, Texas, Copeland put her own country-glam spin on it: black leather pants and a pearl jacket with diamond and pearl beading. Continue reading...

The astonishing case of the missing Today morning show anchor's mom is six days in so far and without resolutionA missing 84-year-old mother of a famous TV morning show anchor; droplets of blood and a mysterious white van; a ransom note sent to a celebrity news website; no suspects; a city surrounded by desert near the US-Mexico border; frustrated investigators; and a concerned US president.It is for all these reasons that the astonishing case of the missing Nancy Guthrie has captivated US public attention in a six-day mystery that still has no resolution. It leads the US news and dominates the headlines, fusing crime and celebrity together in ways not seen since OJ Simpson or the Lindbergh baby. Continue reading...

I understand the appeal of avoiding all human contact. Still, good old-fashioned taxis have so much to offerIt's Super Bowl weekend here in America, which means a few things: copious amounts of gut-busting food, controversial half-time show performances, extravagant commercials, and occasionally a bit of football.For the tens of thousands rich enough to afford tickets to the Big Game, transportation to and from Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, will be paramount. Thankfully, our robotic saviors are here to rescue the throng from the indignity of sharing a ride with an actual human being. This year's Super Bowl is a test of the driverless taxi industry, currently lorded over by Waymo - a company that's about to get a $16bn cash injection to further expand its business to cities all around the world. Smaller American metro areas like Sacramento and Nashville are next up to get Waymo service, as are global capitals like London and Tokyo. Fleets of robotaxis are seeming more and more inevitable, yet another soldier in the onslaught of shiny gadgets designed to sand off the sharp edges of modern life. I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords.Dave Schilling is a Los Angeles-based writer and humorist Continue reading...

Democracy experts say there is little doubt about president's desire to interfere in elections this NovemberDonald Trump set off alarm bells earlier this week with comments that his administration should take over the voting" in some states in the run-up to the 2026 midterms, which followed an unprecedented FBI raid on an election office in Georgia. Although election experts say it's clear the president doesn't have authority over elections, they warn the president's corrosive rhetoric leaves little doubt about his intent.For months, the Trump administration has stoked doubts about the integrity of American elections largely through lawsuits designed to create the impression states aren't doing enough to keep ineligible voters off the rolls. That effort escalated significantly last week when the FBI raided the election office in Fulton county, Georgia and seized ballots, along with other materials, related to the 2020 election. Shortly after the raid, Trump escalated his attack even further, saying the federal government should take over elections. Continue reading...

Grammy-winning Puerto Rican star is in the center of US culture wars before leading this weekend's half-time showA few days after Christmas 2022, Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican reggaetonero, appeared without warning on one of the most unlikely of stages: the roof of a Gulf Oil gas station in San Juan. To a massive crowd singing every word, he performed a surprise concert, along with friend and collaborator Arcangel, that was part hype-y music video shoot, part exultant post-tour homecoming, and part pointed critique. He ended the set with El Apagon (The Power Outage"), a clubby protest anthem about local displacement and the rolling blackouts that have plagued Puerto Rico, a US commonwealth" (read: colony), since Hurricane Maria in 2017.Bad Bunny sang it from a roof on Santurce's Calle Loiza, a thoroughfare in a former working-class Black neighborhood now dotted with Airbnbs. But you do not need the full context to get the show's contagious energy. Though I have never walked Calle Loiza, nor do I speak Spanish, the gas station show is still my favorite concert to rewatch via online fan clips: electric, organic, genuinely popular. In terms of reach, critical acclaim and longevity, Bad Bunny rivals - and sometimes outsells - the likes of Taylor Swift, Kendrick Lamar, Beyonce and Drake, though it is hard to imagine those peers appearing so unguarded, so public, as he does on that roof. Continue reading...

I am convinced that Europe's new right' is a radically contemporary movement. Defeating it means understanding its critique of liberalismEuropean governments are terrified of Donald Trump's threats on trade, Greenland and the future of Nato. But the biggest threat is not that Trump invades an ally or leaves Europe at the mercy of Russia. It is that his ideological movement could transform Europe from the inside.A year after Trump's return to the White House, his second American revolution" is radiating outward into Europe. The Epstein files reveal how this began clumsily in 2018 with Steve Bannon; but it has become a much more sophisticated partnership with the second coming of Trump and the rise to power of JD Vance. The US National Security Strategy published by the White House in November called for strengthening the growing influence of patriotic" European parties such as Reform UK, Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD), Marine Le Pen's Rassemblement National (RN), Fidesz in Hungary and Vox in Spain. As with the communist movements of the cold war, these nationalist, populist and in some cases far-right parties are best understood not as isolated national phenomena but as expressions of a shared intellectual project - a movement that is, to varying degrees, now being reinforced by a foreign power.Mark Leonard is the author of the report The new right: anatomy of a global political revolution. He is director of the Berlin-based European Council on Foreign Relations Continue reading...

Bill Clinton says closed-door depositions would be akin to kangaroo court' as Hillary Clinton says they have already told House committee what they knowFormer US president Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary are calling for their congressional testimony on ties to convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein to be held publicly, to prevent Republicans from politicising the issue.Both Clintons had been ordered to give closed-door depositions before the House of Representatives' oversight committee, which is investigating the deceased financier's connections to powerful figures and how information about his crimes was handled. Continue reading...

Files reveal a world of flattery and fratboy tones, where rich men are cultivated and women provide servicesPluck an email at random from the millions in the Department of Justice's Epstein Library. It is a Saturday evening in February 2013, and Jeffrey Epstein is messaging Bill Gates's assistant about guests for a dinner he wants to organise.People for Bill," the email begins. Epstein starts listing possible candidates: the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, the film director Woody Allen, the prime minister of Qatar, a couple of Harvard academics, the billionaire CEO of Hyatt hotels, a White House communications director, a former US secretary of defence. Continue reading...

Donald Trump says another meeting set for next week while warning of very steep' consequences if Tehran doesn't make a dealIndirect talks between Iran and the US on the future of Iran's nuclear programme ended on Friday with a broad agreement to maintain a diplomatic path, possibly with further talks in the coming days, according to statements from Iran and the Omani hosts.The relieved Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, described the eight hours of meetings as a good start" conducted in a good atmosphere. He added that the continuance of talks depended on consultations in Washington and Tehran, but said Iran had underlined that any dialogue required refraining from threats. Continue reading...

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Jon Hallford, condemned in court as monster', stashed decaying bodies and gave grieving families fake ashesA Colorado funeral home owner who stashed 189 decomposing bodies in a building over four years and gave grieving families fake ashes was sentenced to 40 years in state prison Friday.During the sentencing hearing, family members told Judge Eric Bentley they have had recurring nightmares about decomposing flesh and maggots since learning what happened to their loved ones. Continue reading...

Move by Pete Hegseth marks latest escalation by Trump administration against the Ivy League schoolThe US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has said the Pentagon is ending all military training, fellowships and certificate programs with Harvard University, marking the Trump administration's latest escalation against the Ivy League school.The @DeptWar is formally ending ALL Professional Military Education, fellowships, and certificate programs with Harvard University," Hegseth said in a statement posted on X, labeling Harvard as woke". Continue reading...

Democrats outraged and Republicans mostly silent after president shared racist video of former president and first lady - key US politics stories from Friday 6 FebruaryTop Democrats erupted with fury on Friday and challenged more Republicans to respond to Donald Trump posting a racist video that depicted Barack and Michelle Obama as apes.The clip appeared during one of the 79-year-old US president's increasingly frequent late-night posting sprees to his Truth Social account, and shows the laughing faces of the former president and first lady superimposed on the bodies of primates in a jungle setting to The Lion Sleeps Tonight. Continue reading...

Only a smattering of Republicans spoke out about clip in which Obamas' faces were superimposed on bodies of apes

Nathan Smith, 27, known professionally as DJ Young Slade, was a music producer, artist, engineer and NYU graduateAmerican rapper Lil Jon said on Friday that his son, Nathan Smith, has died, the record producer confirmed in a joint statement with Smith's mother after police found a body in a pond north of Atlanta, Georgia.I am extremely heartbroken for the tragic loss of our son, Nathan Smith. His mother [Nicole Smith] and I are devastated," the statement said. Continue reading...

Disappearance of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie from her home in Arizona is being investigated as kidnappingThe search for Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of NBC's Today show anchor Savannah Guthrie entered its sixth day on Friday in Arizona, as authorities said they were aware of a new message related to the case.The FBI and Arizona's Pima county sheriff's department issued a joint statement on Friday afternoon stating that investigators were actively inspecting information provided in the message for its authenticity. Earlier in the day, authorities said they believe that Guthrie is still alive. Continue reading...

Initial announcement sparked fury from US cattle ranchers as economists say change will have little impact on pricesDonald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation to hike the US's low-tariff imports of Argentinian beef, though economists have said the attempt to lower costs for US consumers will likely have little impact on prices.A White House official said in October that Trump would make such a move, evoking fury from the nation's cattle ranchers. Continue reading...

California governor accused the administration of trying to distract' from Trump posting a racist video of the ObamasCalifornia governor Gavin Newsom debunked a claim by senior Trump officials that his state plans to release more than 33,000 undocumented criminals from its jails.On Friday, Stephen Miller, the deputy White House chief of staff, posted on X that California is getting ready to free up to 33 thousand criminal illegal aliens". Continue reading...

The Olympic Flame is lit as Mariah Carey, Andrea Bocelli and Lang Lang star in beautiful opening ceremony at the San Siro stadiumLindsey Vonn inspected the Olympic downhill course with other racers early this morning as she prepared to take part in the opening training session despite tearing the ACL in her left knee a week ago.The 41-year-old Vonn is planning to compete at the Milan Cortina Games with a large brace covering her injured knee. Continue reading...

Sgt Erik Duran convicted by judge for causing Eric Duprey to fatally crash his motorized scooter in 2023A New York City police officer was convicted on Friday of second-degree manslaughter after he tossed a picnic cooler filled with drinks at a fleeing suspect, causing the man to fatally crash his motorized scooter in 2023.Judge Guy Mitchell handed down the guilty verdict in Bronx criminal court in the case against Sgt Erik Duran in the death of Eric Duprey. The 38-year-old Duran was the first New York police department (NYPD) officer in years to be tried for killing someone while on duty. Continue reading...

Video deleted by White House breaks through numbness barrier and raises further questions about fitness for officeIt is a singular if highly dubious distinction of Donald Trump's pungent contribution to the political discourse to have essentially bankrupted the English language's capacity for outrage.So unremitting and extreme have been the avalanche of affronts since Trump descended the golden escalator in Trump Tower in 2015 to declare his presidential candidacy that even his most ardent critics have become desensitized, leading to a level of shock fatigue. Continue reading...

Indictment alleges Dr John Stevenson Bynon Jr changed the records of five patients, three of whom diedA Houston doctor has been indicted on charges of falsifying medical records for five patients, making them ineligible to receive a liver transplant - including some who died later, federal prosecutors announced on Thursday.Dr John Stevenson Bynon Jr was indicted by a grand jury in Houston in January on five counts of false statements relating to healthcare matters. Continue reading...

Trump also demanded Dulles airport be given his name in exchange for funding NY-NJ tunnel and subway extensionDonald Trump has told the Senate's top Democrat, Chuck Schumer, that he will unfreeze funds for major infrastructure projects in New York and New Jersey if he supports renaming Dulles international airport in Virginia and Penn Station in New York City after him, according to media reports.The demand, which was first reported on Thursday by Punchbowl News, comes after the president in October halted $18bn in funding for a major subway line expansion in New York City as well as a new rail tunnel connecting the city to New Jersey. The funding freeze was announced on the first day of a 43-day government shutdown in which Schumer, who represents New York, played a major role. Continue reading...

Project, following disgraced cyclist, reportedly sparked bidding war, with Conclave's Edward Berger set to directThe Oscar-nominated actor Austin Butler is scheduled to take on the role of the disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong in a buzzy new biopic.According to Deadline, the package has caused a frenzied" bidding war in Hollywood with the Conclave director Edward Berger at the helm and King Richard's Zach Baylin set to write the script. Continue reading...

After months of negotiations, threats and refusals, Bill and Hillary Clinton have finally agreed to testify in front of Congress as part of a Republican-led investigation into the convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The latest tranche of Epstein files has sent shock waves around the world, but many of the powerful men who minimised and dismissed his crimes are still yet to face any real consequences. The documents show the likes of Noam Chomsky and Steve Bannon were happy to maintain relationships with Epstein even after he spent time in jail for child sex offences. What message does that send to the abused women and girls, whose experiences should be the real focus? And will these men ever be held to account? Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian columnist Marina Hyde. Continue reading...

The latest tranche of Epstein files has sent shock waves around the world, but many of the powerful men who minimised and dismissed his crimes are still yet to face any real consequences. The documents show the likes of Noam Chomsky and Steve Bannon were happy to maintain relationships with Epstein even after he spent time in jail for child sex offences. What message does that send to the abused women and girls, whose experiences should be the real focus? And will these men ever be held to account? Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian columnist Marina Hyde - watch on YouTube Continue reading...

Files released by DoJ reveal the financier engaging in efforts to blunt the impact of the movement as it was gaining groundIn August 2018, as the #MeToo movement spread across social media and women around the world demanded justice from sexual predators, Michael Wolff, a journalist, forwarded Jeffrey Epstein a plea for help. Wolff wanted Epstein to support Stephen Elliott, a writer looking to sue the creator of the Shitty Media Men List, a crowd-sourced Google Doc that detailed anonymous allegations of misconduct against dozens of men who worked in the media industry.I have always thought that the way back from this climate is through specific instances of individuals successfully challenging their persecution," Wolff wrote to Epstein, according to emails released in a tranche from the so-called Epstein files. If his story is solid he might be worth supporting." Continue reading...

A crypto startup founded by Trump's family signed a huge deal with the UAE president's brother. Where's the political fallout?Days before Donald Trump returned to office in January 2025, an investment firm controlled by a senior member of the United Arab Emirates royal family secretly signed a deal to pay $500m to buy almost half of a cryptocurrency startup founded by the Trump family. Under any other president, such an arrangement, which was revealed this past weekend by the Wall Street Journal, would cause a political earthquake in Washington. There would be demands for an investigation by Congress, televised hearings and months of damage control.But this latest example of corruption involving Trump and his family business hardly made a blip over the past few days, relegated to a passing headline in a relentless news cycle often dominated by Trump's actions and statements. Continue reading...

Billie Eilish and Biebers wore ICE out' pins at the Grammys, as more and more celebrities find their political voicesThe red carpet is being used increasingly as a platform for protest - and one accessory in particular has become key: the pin badge.At Sunday night's Grammy awards, stars including Hailey and Justin Bieber and Billie Eilish wore black and white pins that read ICE out", a condemnation of the recent actions of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Continue reading...

After weeks of breakup talk, the Bucks and their superstar stayed together. The Knicks and Timberwolves, meanwhile, made smart additionsIt's hard to match the absolute insanity that was the 2024-25 NBA trade deadline, and to the majority of the league's credit, teams didn't really try. But there was still some notable movement ahead of Thursday's 3pm EST deadline - to varying degrees of success. Let's do the early assessment of who came out on top, and who left us scratching our heads. Continue reading...

Turning Point USA is plotting its own half-time show in defiance of Bad Bunny - but one of TV's Blackest programs already perfected the alt-cast in 1992When the NFL announced Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny as this year's Super Bowl half-time show headliner, it walked right into a culture war. Right-wing critics raged over the musician's gender-nonconforming style, Spanish-language music and anti-Maga politics. Donald Trump, after saying he had never heard of Bad Bunny, called the headlining choice absolutely ridiculous".In response, Erika Kirk and her Turning Point USA conservative advocacy group turned the controversy into its own counter-programming event: the All-American Halftime Show. After its Nashville-heavy lineup, led by Kid Rock, was announced on Monday, vice-president JD Vance was first among conservatives to enthusiastically spread the word. Continue reading...

The Barbz have built a parasocial relationship with the rapper - in some cases to their own detrimentNicki Minaj is back doing PR for Donald Trump, and it's messier than ever. Last week, she appeared at a treasury department summit in Washington DC to show support for Trump accounts, a new kind of investment account designed to provide eligible American children with tax-advantaged investment accounts courtesy of President Donald J. Trump", according to a government website.The most disappointing part of the rapper's recent turn toward Maga, though, is how her stans - a significant portion of whom are Black and queer - are responding. After the summit, Minaj's followers defended her online and even helped push Trump's agenda. In a society full of hate and division, supporting Nicki Minaj is reminding people to see past political differences and see the human in one another," one supporter wrote. Oh brother. Minaj is a perfect example of the cult of celebrity, the dangers of modern fan culture and how celebrity worship can intersect with politics in truly dangerous ways.Tayo Bero is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...

Kennedy later said the purpose of his trip had nothing to do with vaccines. US embassy and UN staff at the time said otherwise, emails showOver two days of questioning during his Senate confirmation hearings last year, Robert F Kennedy Jr repeated the same answer.He said the closely scrutinized trip he took to Samoa in 2019, which came ahead of a devastating measles outbreak, had nothing to do with vaccines". Continue reading...

In Santa Clara, California, where nearly half of residents are born outside US, fear builds as game approachesThis weekend, tens of thousands of people will make their way to the Bay Area city of Santa Clara, ready to celebrate a weekend at the Super Bowl.Beneath the jubilant mood, some residents and officials have been grappling with the possibility of ICE enforcement operations during the game, and taking steps to prepare. Continue reading...