Trump says Colombia's president next' as he announces major escalation in US pressure on Nicolas Maduro - key US politics stories from Wednesday, 10 December at a glanceUS forces have seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, in a major escalation of Donald Trump's four-month pressure campaign against the South American country's dictator, Nicolas Maduro.Pam Bondi, the US attorney general, posted footage of the seizure on X. The grainy, unclassified 45-second video shows US forces landing on the tanker from a helicopter. Continue reading...
Legislation includes pay increase for troops and a demand for more information about boat strikes in the CaribbeanThe US House voted 312-112 to pass a sweeping defense policy bill on Wednesday that authorizes $900bn in military programs, including a pay raise for troops and an overhaul of how the Department of Defense purchases weapons.The 3,000-page bill also includes a demand for more information about nearly two dozen lethal boat strikes in the Caribbean targeting suspected drug smugglers. A stipulation calls for the withholding of part of the travel budget of Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, unless the Pentagon releases to Congress the full, unedited video of a widely scrutinized strike in September which killed survivors of an earlier strike. Continue reading...
The 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) carries $8bn more than the funding Trump requested in MayThe US House has approved a sweeping defence bill that bolsters Europe's security, in what appears to be sharp rebuke to Donald Trump's mounting threats to downgrade Washington's ties to traditional allies and Nato.The bipartisan vote came just days after the publication of a White House national security strategy that said Europe faced civilisational erasure" and made explicit Washington's support for Europe's nationalist far-right parties - rattling EU leaders and opening up a seismic shift in transatlantic relations. Continue reading...
Bob Ferguson says he has also activated the state's national guard to respond to the floodingThe governor of Washington, Bob Ferguson, declared a statewide emergency on Wednesday in response to heavy rain in the Pacific north-west state since an atmospheric river smacked the region a day earlier with rains that triggered mudslides and washed out roads and submerged vehicles.The emergency declaration, Ferguson said, allows us to seek federal funds to cover the cost of this response, which we anticipate will be significant, and also gives us the flexibility we need to respond quickly to keep Washingtonians safe in a fast-moving situation". Continue reading...
California officials predict months-long investigation into 29 November killing of four people, including three childrenMore than a week after a mass shooting at a toddler's birthday party in Stockton, California, killed four people and injured 17 others, law enforcement has yet to make arrests or name any suspects. It may take investigators months to figure out what led to the tragedy, authorities said.As investigators parse through the aftermath of the shooting, they have found at least 50 shell casings and believe at least five firearms were used in the attack, San Joaquin sheriff Patrick Withrow told reporters during a press conference on Tuesday. Continue reading...
In 2023, court ruled in favor of 16 plaintiffs that officials violated their constitutional right by promoting fossil fuelsThe young Montanans who scored a landmark triumph in the lawsuit Held v Montana are calling on the state's highest court to enforce that victory.In a groundbreaking legal decision in August 2023, a Montana judge ruled in favor of 16 youth plaintiffs who had accused state officials of violating their constitutional rights by promoting fossil fuels. The state's supreme court affirmed the judge's findings in late 2024. But state lawmakers have since violated her ruling, enshrining new laws this year that contradict it, argue 13 of the 16 plaintiffs in a petition filed on Wednesday. Continue reading...
Transport infrastructure in the US is a hot mess - and the guy in charge thinks wellness spaces' are going to solve the problemSean Dog" Duffy is a legend in the lumberjack world: a three-time world champion in the 90ft lumberjack speed climb who is renowned for his prowess in mounting and rolling big bits of wood. Not just a lumberjack, Duffy also made waves on late-90s reality TV shows The Real World: Boston and Road Rules: All Stars. And now Duffy is parlaying his experience on Road Rules into his role as US transportation secretary.Duffy has got a lot on his big lumberjack hands: transport infrastructure in the US is, to use the technical term, a hot mess. More than a third of the country's bridges need major repair work or replacement. There has been little historical investment in railways and the country lags behind the rest of the industrialized world when it comes to high-speed trains. Meanwhile, there's a chronic air-traffic-controller shortage, which was exacerbated by the recent government shutdown when a number of controllers, fed up with the dysfunctional system, took early retirement. Continue reading...
Wealthy immigrants will be able to buy residency, and $5m platinum card' will exempt holders from some US taxesDonald Trump launched a new program that will allow wealthy foreign individuals to buy a US golden visa" for $1m, and trailed a platinum" version for $5m.A direct path to Citizenship for all qualified and vetted people. SO EXCITING! Our Great American Companies can finally keep their invaluable Talent," Trump wrote on Wednesday on social media. Continue reading...
Funds for contract signed with Daedalus Aviation will come from $170bn allocated for Trump's border policyThe Department of Homeland Security has signed a nearly $140m contract to purchase six Boeing 737 planes for deportation operations.The contract, signed with the Virginia-based firm Daedalus Aviation, was first reported by the Washington Post on Wednesday and later confirmed by DHS. Continue reading...
Car company said team detected unusual activity' inside vehicle and called to check on rider and alert 911Self-driving Waymo taxis have gone viral for negative reasons including the death of a beloved San Francisco bodega cat and pulling an illegal U-turn in front of police, who were unable to issue a ticket to a nonexistent driver.But this week, the company behind the self-driving taxis is drawing attention to the happier news that a San Francisco woman gave birth in a Waymo. Continue reading...
Divisive vote to lower rates highlights uncertainty in the Fed as economy absorbs major shakeups, including tariffsThe US Federal Reserve announced on Wednesday that it was cutting interest rates by a quarter point for the third time this year, as the embattled central bank appeared split over how best to manage the US economy.The Fed chair, Jerome Powell, has emphasized unity within the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the board of Fed leaders that sets interest rates. But the nine-to-three vote to lower rates to a range of 3.5% to 3.75% was divisive among the committee that tends to vote in unanimity. Continue reading...
Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and others to discuss peace plan as US tries to push through peace dealLeaders of the coalition of the willing" group of nations will hold a video call on Thursday as chaotic American efforts to push through a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine reach a crunch moment.Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said his officials would hand over a revised version of a peace plan to US negotiators on Wednesday before the call with leaders and officials from about 30 countries. Continue reading...
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, as Evoke decides to undertake a review of the Company's strategic optionsEuropean stock markets are mostly in the red this morning, as defence company stocks fall.Shares in German automotive and arms manufacturer Rheinmetall are down 3.3%, UK weapons maker BAE System has dropped by 1.27%, and Italian defence firm Leonardo has lost 2.2%.Mainland European equity markets are heading lower in a day that will be dominated by monetary policy out of the Americas.Notably, the defence sector has particularly suffered this morning, with the likes of BAE Systems, Rheinmetall, and Thales lose traction as the end of the Russia-Ukraine war comes into sight. Unfortunately for Europe, the peace agreement appears to be a deal Trump has formed with Russia behind the back of European leaders whom the President has labelled weak". Continue reading...
Speaking on a rightwing podcast, the billionaire said he would not go back and lead the job-cutting program againElon Musk has said the aggressive federal job-cutting program he headed early in Donald Trump's second term, known as the department of government efficiency" (Doge), was only a little bit successful" and he would not lead the project again.Musk said he wouldn't want to repeat the exercise, talking on the podcast hosted by Katie Miller, a rightwing personality with a rising profile who was a Doge adviser and who is married to Stephen Miller, Donald Trump's hardline anti-immigration deputy chief of staff. Continue reading...
There is no rule of law if the president can deem anyone an enemy combatant and order them summarily shotThe largely supine Republicans in Congress had no apparent trouble as Donald Trump and defense secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the killing of suspected drug runners off the coasts of Venezuela and Colombia. But suddenly they are up in arms because the Washington Post reported on 28 November about one incident, a double-tap strike, in which the US military finished off two survivors of an attack.Tempted as I am to accept whatever it takes to spark some minimal scrutiny of these summary executions, I hope this unexpected opening prompts broader investigation of this entire series of murders, which have now claimed 87 victims in 22 attacks. As Democrats join in, there are some indications that this expanded scrutiny may be finally beginning.Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch (1993-2022), is a visiting professor at Princeton's School of Public and International Affairs. His book, Righting Wrongs: Three Decades on the Front Lines Battling Abusive Governments, is published by Knopf and Allen Lane. Continue reading...
Newly released footage shows officers' first interaction with Luigi Mangione inside a McDonald's in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Mangione was arrested in December 2024 and is facing trial for the killing of the UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in midtown Manhattan that month. In the video, Mangione can be heard telling officers his name is 'Mark Rosario'. Police were responding to a report from a restaurant employee who said customers believed they recognised Mangione from the news Continue reading...
Co-chairs of LNG firm, who bought stock worth almost $12m each after meeting with Trump officials, deny wrongdoingA senior Democratic senator is calling for an investigation into potential insider trading by fossil-fuel billionaires close to the Trump administration, after a Guardian investigation raised questions about an unusual share buying spree.Robert Pender and Michael Sabel, the founders and co-chairs of Venture Global, a liquefied natural gas (LNG) company headquartered in Virginia, bought more than a million shares worth almost $12m each, just days after meeting with senior Trump officials in March. Continue reading...
The FDA is reviewing RSV vaccines, which have drastically lowered infant hospitalizations, a spokesperson confirmedUS regulatory officials are re-examining the safety of RSV shots despite no published reports of safety issues - a move that could lead to the removal or limitation of shots that have dramatically lowered hospitalizations among babies.It's the latest move from US health officials under Robert F Kennedy Jr, the secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and a longtime anti-vaccine activist, to limit access to shots and to undermine public trust in the safe and effective products. Continue reading...
Zines have made a resurgence as communities seek to share information on everything from ICE raids to local electionsOn a cloudy Saturday afternoon, the Los Angeles central public library bustled with nearly 100 people making zines, small, DIY magazines made out of a single piece of paper. There was folding, laughing and helping with cuts. Titles like Narcan 101," Free Palestine," and An American Zine," filled with illustrations and tips, lined a table down the hall.While this may sound like a scene from the 1980s or 1990s - when zines were popular as a countercultural form of expression - this was a workshop in modern-day Los Angeles, where immigration raids and federal threats have left residents restless and scared. Continue reading...
Ukraine's president to look at holding wartime vote. Plus, the hidden life of Matthew PerryGood morning.Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he is ready to hold a wartime election within the next three months, if Ukraine's parliament and foreign allies will allow it, after Donald Trump accused him of clinging on to power.Why hasn't there been an election? Zelenskyy's five-year term expired in May last year, but the Ukrainian constitution prohibits elections during wartime, and even his political opponents have said repeatedly that the security and political considerations do not allow for holding a vote while the war continued.What else did he talk about? There were familiar rally staples such as a mocking impression of Joe Biden, as well as a repeat of a racist falsehood about the Democratic congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, a Muslim woman born in Somalia: We ought to get her the hell out! She married her brother ... Therefore she's here illegally." The crowd chanted: Send her back!" Omar has called the claims about her brother ridiculous". Continue reading...
RootsAction report finds Harris courted moderates instead of working-class Democrats - and Gaza stance did not helpKamala Harris lost last year's US presidential election because she chased the wrong voters with the wrong message, ultimately demobilising the very base that she needed to win, according to an autopsy by a progressive grassroots advocacy group.The vice-president focused on courting moderate Republicans over motivating core Democratic working-class, young and progressive voters, a misstep compounded by her failure to break from Joe Biden on Gaza, says the report by RootsAction. Continue reading...
In 2010 and 2022, the US faced heightened emotions from the lead-in to the tournament itself. As hosts next year, little will changeThe draw is done. The schedule is set. For the US men's national team, all that's left, aside from playing the games, are the emotional highs and lows. After the draw, US head coach Mauricio Pochettino referenced a competitive stress" factor triggered by the World Cup. He said the friendlies against Belgium and Portugal in March are intended to simulate that stress so that it doesn't surprise his players when the spotlight of the World Cup arrives.With the margins always thin at a World Cup, earning results that mitigate that pressure could prove to be the difference between the USMNT crashing out just when they capture the undivided attention of the nation, or enduring and soaring to a best-ever finish. Continue reading...
Don't say you weren't warned: Trump's new national security strategy seeks to destroy liberal democracy as we know itOn the same day that Donald Trump received his made-to-order peace prize" from his newest pal, Fifa president Johnny" Infantino, his administration published an equally gaudy national security strategy. The relatively short document oozes Trump and Trumpism. It starts out with the typically modest claim that the president has brought our nation - and the world - back from the brink of catastrophe and disaster".Even if the strategy mostly formalises the ongoing actions and statements of Trump and his administration, it should be heeded as a warning for the world, and Europe in particular.Cas Mudde is the Stanley Wade Shelton UGAF professor of international affairs at the University of Georgia, and author of The Far Right Today Continue reading...
Trump's sometimes incoherent Politico interview featured recycled far-right tropes about European immigration - key US politics stories from Tuesday 9 December at a glanceDonald Trump has hinted he could walk away from supporting Ukraine as he doubled down on his administration's recent criticism of Europe, describing it as weak" and decaying" and claiming it was destroying itself" through immigration.In a rambling and sometimes incoherent interview with Politico, a transcript of which was released on Tuesday, the US president struggled to name any other Ukrainian cities except for Kyiv, misrepresented elements of the trajectory of the conflict, and recycled far-right tropes about European immigration that echoed the great replacement" conspiracy theory. Continue reading...
The US president made baseless claims during remarks on cost of living that meandered into racism and bigotryDonald Trump made a series of false and baseless claims in Pennsylvania on Tuesday during a speech that was billed as an address on affordability, but quickly became a meandering, campaign-style rally.Here are some key fact-checks and takeaways: Continue reading...
by Cecilia Nowell, Shrai Popat, Lucy Campbell and Emi on (#721E7)
In Pennsylvania, US president attacks Ilhan Omar and Jasmine Crockett and makes multiple false claims, including that prices are way down'. This blog is now closed.A federal judge in New York has granted the justice department's request to unseal grand jury documents in the sex-trafficking case against Ghislaine Maxwell -the companion and accomplice of the late sex-offender Jeffrey Epstein. It comes after the passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which Donald Trump signed last month.The legislation requires the Department of Justice to release the full tranche of records related to disgraced financier, in a searchable format by 19 December. Continue reading...
Trump had further said Nicolas Maduro's days are numbered' as military has targeted alleged drug boatsTwo US fighter jets circled the Gulf of Venezuela on Tuesday, in what appeared to be an escalation of the Trump administration's ongoing hostilities toward the South American country and its leftist leader, Nicolas Maduro.Venezuelans and South American media followed the flights in real time using websites like FlightRadar24, which showed a pair of F/A-18 Super Hornets flying together into the narrow Gulf of Venezuela for about 40 minutes. The jets flew just north of Maracaibo, Venezuela's most populous city. Continue reading...
In stunning upset victory, Higgins also becomes first woman in post and first non-Hispanic candidate since 90sDemocrat Eileen Higgins was elected mayor of Miami on Tuesday night in a stunning upset victory that reversed a run of recent Republican successes in Florida.The election of Higgins, 61, a former county commissioner, also added to a string of Democratic wins across the country that have served to highlight the growing level of resistance to Donald Trump in his second presidential term. Continue reading...
A cable from Marco Rubio reportedly said cutting Calibri from official communication would abolish yet another wasteful DEIA program'US diplomats have been ordered to return to using Times New Roman font in official communications, with secretary of state Marco Rubio calling the Biden administration's decision to adopt Calibri a wasteful" diversity move, according to an internal department cable seen by Reuters.The department under Rubio's predecessor Antony Blinken switched to Calibri in 2023, claiming the modern sans-serif font was more accessible for people with disabilities because it did not have the decorative angular features and was the default in Microsoft products. Continue reading...
Education department announces plans to halt illegal' Save program as critics call news devastating' for borrowersDonald Trump's administration announced on Tuesday it had reached a settlement with several Republican-led states to end Joe Biden's student loan repayment program, which has helped millions of borrowers repay their debt.On Tuesday, the education department announced plans to halt what it called Biden's illegal" Save plan - the Saving on a Valuable Education income-driven repayment program which currently has more than 7 million borrowers. Continue reading...
Civil rights coalition calls for immediate closure of camp, where more than 2,700 detainees are being heldOfficers at the large immigration detention camp located at the Fort Bliss army base in Texas are allegedly mistreating detainees, with accusations including beatings, sexual abuse and clandestine deportations of non-Mexican nationals into Mexico, according to a coalition of local and national US civil rights organizations.In a 19-page letter, addressed to senior government officials at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency and Fort Bliss military command, the coalition accuses officers at the immigration detention facility on the base, called Camp East Montana, of being in violation of agency policies and standards, as well as statutory and constitutional protections". Continue reading...
Daniella Levine Cava wished the piglet a long happy life' in speech alluding to the several pardons issued by TrumpIt might not have been at the same level as pardoning Thanksgiving turkeys, or January 6 US capitol attack participants - but the mayor of Miami-Dade had her own Donald Trump moment on Tuesday in ritually sparing the life of a pig named Six Seven.Daniella Levine Cava performed the seasonal stunt in the Cuban-themed Latin Cafe 2000 in the heart of Miami's Little Havana neighborhood, where the immigrant population has also been affected by Trump's aggressive new policies targeting them. Continue reading...
The White House is aggressively seeking to weaken and dominate the United States' traditional allies. European leaders must learn to fight back.Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz have become adept at scrambling to deal with the latest bad news from Washington. Their meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Downing Street on Monday was so hastily arranged that Mr Macron needed to be back in Paris by late afternoon to meet Croatia's prime minister, while Mr Merz was due on television for an end-of-year Q&A with the German public.But diplomatic improvisation alone cannot fully answer Donald Trump's structural threat to European security. The US president and his emissaries are trying to bully Mr Zelenskyy into an unjust peace deal that suits American and Russian interests. In response, the summit helped ramp up support for the use of up to 100bn in frozen Russian assets as collateral for a reparations loan" to Ukraine. European counter-proposals for a ceasefire will need to be given the kind of financial backing that provides Mr Zelenskyy with leverage at a critical moment. Continue reading...
More than 300,000 signatures delivered to secretary of state to force referendum on Republican-drawn mapOrganizers challenging Missouri's gerrymandered congressional map say they turned in enough signatures on Tuesday to block the map from going into effect and to force a referendum on the map next year.People not Politicians, the main organization behind the effort, said they submitted more than 300,000 signatures to the secretary of state's office, nearly triple the number required to block the map from going into effect. Missouri's Republican secretary of state now needs to review the signatures. Continue reading...
The inaugural award bestowed upon the US president could pave the way for many more colourful accolades. I have some ideas ...What a privilege it is to be alive in such a peaceful and prosperous time. If you ignore the genocides in Sudan and Gaza, fighting in eastern Congo, continued attacks on Ukraine, military airstrikes in Myanmar, near-daily strikes on Lebanon, extrajudicial killings" on Venezualan vessels, increased political violence in the US, along with various other inconvenient issues, then I think we can all agree that Donald Trump has ushered in world peace.Good luck convincing the nasty Norwegians on the Nobel committee of that, though. They've doled out peace prizes to many an alleged war criminal but have a weird grudge against Trump. Still, at least Fifa, an organisation renowned for its impeccable ethics, appreciates the president's efforts. Last Friday, Trump was awarded the inaugural Fifa peace prize in an over-the-top ceremony that would have made a lesser man, one burdened with a smidgen of self-awareness, feel like a prize idiot.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...
Largest US Catholic archdiocese is raising funds, selling assets and cutting costs to compensate about 1,300 victimsThe Roman Catholic archdiocese of New York - the largest organization of its kind in the US - is raising a $300m fund as it seeks to settle with about 1,300 survivors of clergy sexual abuse who have sued the church.Some of the money involved comes from the New York archdiocese's cutting costs and selling off assets after Catholic priests, deacons and lay workers worldwide sexually preyed on children for decades - with the abusers being protected by their superiors. Continue reading...
President did same thing his administration is now calling mortgage fraud' in case against Fed governor Lisa CookDonald Trump signed mortgage documents in the 1990s claiming two separate Florida properties would each serve as his principal residence - the same thing his administration is calling mortgage fraud" when done by political rivals, records show.ProPublica unearthed documents demonstrating that within seven weeks of each other in late 1993 and early 1994, the president obtained loans for neighboring Palm Beach homes, pledging each would be his primary dwelling. Instead of living in them, though, he rented both out as investment properties. Continue reading...
Republican congresswoman berated TSA in late October with profanity and insults, leaving employees visibly upset'A police investigation has found that Nancy Mace, the South Carolina Republican congresswoman, turned a minor miscommunication" by police into a spectacle" when she involved herself in a heated confrontation with staff at Charleston's airport in late October.According to an internal investigation by the Charleston airport police department and obtained by the Washington Post, Mace berated officers and Transportation Security Administration ( TSA) personnel on 30 October with profanity and insults, leaving facility employees visibly upset". Continue reading...
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