In a speech at Mount Rushmore on Friday evening, the US president claimed a resurgent communist menace' posed a severe threat the countryDonald Trump has kicked off America's 250th birthday weekend with an extraordinary partisan attack on what he called the communist menace" in America, framing its supporters as the enemy of July 4th, 1776".The US president spoke for half an hour on Friday night at Mount Rushmore in South Dakota, the latest stop on his tour celebrating the milestone anniversary of the US declaration of independence from Britain. Continue reading...
From the gold rush to civil rights, the moon landing to 9/11, the US has always understood, mythologised and sold itself through the power of the still imageThe United States was founded in 1776, but did not begin to see itself until the autumn of 1839, when daguerreotypes, the first form of photograph, reached American cities. You could argue the US began again on the morning it could look at its own face.At first photography seemed to answer the democratic promise of 1776. A portrait was no longer reserved for the rich; almost anyone could now leave a trace of their existence. The gold rush became one of the first great American dramas to find the camera: ordinary diggers squinting into the lens, looking beyond it for gold. A more emblematic American scene can scarcely be imagined: what would be called the American Dream, a lottery everyone plays and very few win. The myth was not that they all found gold - it was that the search itself made them American. Continue reading...
The couple invited an array of celebrity guests to the wedding, including Gigi Hadid and Bradley Cooper, while Adam Sandler officiated their nuptialsTaylor Swift and Travis Kelce are officially wed. The couple hosted their wedding celebration on Friday in New York City, nearly three years after first meeting.The ceremony was officiated by Adam Sandler, a Swift spokesperson said in a Friday statement confirming the nuptials. Continue reading...
A fight between two groups of young people who knew each other escalated into gunfire, police saidA shooting altercation between two groups of young people at a shopping mall in Dearborn, Michigan, left two people dead and a third injured over what is typically the most violent weekend of the year in the US, police said.The shooting occurred as the US began celebrating the Fourth of July, historically a holiday weekend that sees higher rates of gun violence across the country. In 2024, the Gun Violence Archive reported more than 500 shootings over Independence Day weekend. Continue reading...
Attendance had been thin to Trump's unbelievable' event before an increase on Friday - and then the high temperatures swept inEven by Trumpian standards, the event was promoted with intense hyperbole: nothing short, the US president suggested, of the the most unforgettable birthday party any country has ever seen".It's gonna be great," Donald Trump proclaimed on the opening night of the Great American State Fair, the centerpiece of the US 250th anniversary celebrations. It's gonna be unbelievable." Continue reading...
Parasite cyclospora spreads through produce and water contaminated with feces and causes the intestinal illness cyclosporiasisThe US Centers for Disease Prevention has been working to find the source of a parasitic illness that causes explosive", watery diarrhea, with more than 400 cases of the sickness reported across 18 states.The parasite, cyclospora, spreads through raw produce and water contaminated with human feces - and it causes the intestinal illness cyclosporiasis, whose symptoms include cramps, nausea, fatigue, loss of appetite, low-grade fever and vomiting. The most commonly reported symptom is watery diarrhea with frequent and sometimes explosive bowel movements", according to the CDC. Continue reading...
Russian airstrikes on Kyiv, the aftermath of the earthquakes in Venezuela, a brutal heatwave in Europe and Harry Kane at the World Cup - the past seven days as captured by the world's leading photojournalists Continue reading...
Hundreds of Guardian readers expressed concerns over greed in the White House and a billionaire president unconcerned with high gas and grocery pricesDonald Trump has earned more than $1bn from his crypto businesses since returning to the White House, according to recent financial disclosures.Amid questions of conflict of interest, more than 400 Americans expressed feelings of outrage, disgust and despair at their president. They answered a Guardian call for their views on Trump's fortune. Continue reading...
by Michael Butler (now); John Brewin, Martin Belam an on (#76QWB)
The latest news, reaction and build-up as the last-32 stage draws to a closePlayer guide | Bracketology | Knockout draw | Email usJulian Nagelsmann is set to resign as Germany coach, according to reports in the newspaper, Bild.It was reported on Friday the 38-year-old had agreed to leave following talks with senior German soccer officials, a three-hour secret summit" on Thursday at the German Football Association (DFB) headquarters in Frankfurt.That pundit was Ange Postecoglou, and now, Asia's No 1 team need him to not just talk the talk but walk the nation to the top level of the global game. The federation in Tokyo should do all they can to get his signature on a lengthy contract as he is going to be in demand this summer. Continue reading...
by Presented by Lucy Hough with Elle Hunt ; produced on (#76R9J)
The US superstar golden couple Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are finally tying the knot in a rumoured major event in New York's Madison Square Garden.The couple - who got engaged 10 months ago, announced via an Instagram post that received 14m likes in its first hour online - held an intimate rehearsal dinner at MSG with a rumoured guest list of 1,000 for today's ceremony and construction of a custom-made fairytale castle inside.But with tight security, NDAs and New York streets on lockdown - what do we know? Lucy Hough speaks to Guardian writer Elle Hunt Continue reading...
Tesla said Michael Butler disabled his car's self-driving mode before it plowed into Martha Avila's home in JuneA man whose Tesla Model 3 was allegedly in self-driving mode when it crashed into a home near Houston and killed a 76-year-old woman inside recently has been jailed on a count of manslaughter.Michael Butler's arrest in the 19 June death of Martha Avila was announced late on Wednesday in a Facebook post by the sheriff of Harris county, Texas, Ed Gonzalez. Continue reading...
New York mayor's speech cut ideological counterpoint to policies of president, who will deliver his own remarks later todayNew York's mayor, Zohran Mamdani, exalted the city's legacy of immigrants on Friday in a historically laden, ideological counterpoint to a US semiquincentennial address that was expected later in the day from Donald Trump - who has sought to deport immigrants en masse throughout his second presidency.Speaking from behind a desk at New York's city hall that belonged to the US's first president, George Washington, and which itself is a century older than the Resolute desk in the White House, Mamdani was surrounded by naturalized citizens like himself as he listed the waves of immigrants who shaped the city. Continue reading...
On paper, the US constitution is a thing of beauty. But the would-be emperor in Washington has revealed its great weaknessAmerica's big birthday has come at a bad time. On Saturday it will be a divided nation that marks 250 years since 13 North American colonies declared their independence from the Great Britain of George III. Many will be anxious that the republic they established that day is fragile - not least because of the would-be emperor in the White House.Some will console themselves that hope and angst have always been intertwined in the American story. From the very start, confidence in a bright, exceptional US future was combined with foreboding and doubt. At the close of the 1787 constitutional convention, a woman approached one of the founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin, to ask if the delegates had established a monarchy or a republic. Franklin's answer: A republic, if you can keep it."Jonathan Freedland is a Guardian columnistDo 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...
The New York City mayor delivered a speech on Friday morning from behind George Washington's desk in New York City Hall to mark the US's 250th anniversary Continue reading...
Against a backdrop of sweeping rollbacks of civil rights and deteriorating relations with allies, many are feeling cynicalAs the United States prepares to mark its 250th anniversary on 4 July, the country faces a turbulent moment under the Donald Trump administration.The anniversary coincides with sweeping rollbacks of civil rights, deteriorating relations with traditional allies and growing domestic opposition to the administration's handling of immigration and free speech. Against this backdrop, many Americans say they feel increasingly cynical about the country's future. Continue reading...
The 250th anniversary is arriving among Black communities as a whisper instead of a roarNot soon after Donald Trump's 2025 inauguration, there emerged a viral illustration of four Black women sitting at the top of a building while watching the world burn at a distance. They are observing with coffee cups in hand. An American flag hangs over the edge. If that exhaustion hadn't been made clear enough, Black people, particularly across TikTok and Threads, have urged one another to not give them a reaction".The them" is white people who find Black rage exciting and lucrative for their own personal gain. We're not allowing our anger to become spectacle. We're not shouting any more. What is most important is to stay alive, take care of one another, and to allow ourselves to step to the forefront for the rights that they have taken for granted as we've risked our lives to protect them. There is an old African American proverb: If you can't hear, then you must feel."Morgan Jerkins is a senior writer, race and equity, at the Guardian US
Investigations into president and corruption charges will get heavy scrutiny if Democrats win majority in midtermsDonald Trump's presidency is facing investigations and corruption charges from a key House Democrat and ex-prosecutors, involving political and personal abuses of power, which legal experts predict will get heavy scrutiny if Democrats win the House majority in the midterms.Legal critics call the scandals dogging the president target rich" for investigations that Democrats will have a field day" investigating if they win the House majority. Critics cite, for instance, Trump's damaging the rule of law by weaponizing the Department of Justice (DoJ) to exact revenge on political foes and protect himself from federal investigations, plus Trump moves to profit in radical ways from his presidency with lucrative and new cryptocurrency ventures. Continue reading...
Experts say the Food and Drug Administration is not prepared for the health threat of bacterial contaminationMultiple brands of infant formula have been recalled recently due to bacterial contamination, and experts say the Food and Drug Administration is inadequately prepared to deal with the health threat they pose in the wake of Trump administration cuts.Last March, the FDA announced the launch of Operation Stork Speed, specifically intended to expand options for safe, reliable, and nutritious infant formula for American families". Two months later, Martin Makary, who was FDA commissioner at the time, told Congress that the FDA had lost around 3,100 employees due to the Trump administration's reorganization and cuts. Makary departed the FDA the same month. Continue reading...
Amid Trump's immigration crackdown, thousands take the oath of allegiance in a US not as welcoming as in the past'In June, Yesica McKeone officially became a US citizen. At the naturalization ceremony, she raised a hand and took the oath of allegiance to a country on the verge of its 250th anniversary. Thousands of new citizens recited the oath alongside her. Some cried softly.I'm finally here," McKeone, 32, remembered thinking about her citizenship journey. At two years old, she left Michoacan, Mexico, with her family and settled in California, where she became a permanent resident. Now, home is a pastoral patch of land in Solvang, in the heart of California's central coast. Continue reading...
by Presented by Jonathan Freedland , with Yoni Appelb on (#76R1S)
This weekend marks 250 years since the signing of the declaration of independence, but Donald Trump is making the celebration all about himself. As the anniversary approaches, Jonathan Freedland talks to the Atlantic's Yoni Appelbaum about why so many Americans are feeling less patriotic these days Continue reading...
Ceremony for Ali Khamenei intended to be epic display of national power. Plus, the expected wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce pays dividend to good causesGood morning. Final preparations are under way for Ali Khamenei's six-day funeral. The farewell to the former supreme leader is expected to draw millions in Iran. Khamenei was killed in the opening salvo of the US-Israeli attack on the country in February, and the funeral is intended to be an epic display of personal mourning, national power, resilience and social cohesion.Iran's first vice-president, Mohammad Reza Aref, who is the lead funeral organiser, described the ceremony, which begins on Saturday in Tehran and will end with Khamenei's burial on Thursday in Mashhad, as the most important event of this century" and the most attended event since the 1979 revolution. The scale of the funeral has been conceived to relay political and religious messages of resistance to the rest of the world. At the request of Iraqi politicians, Khamenei's body will also be carried through the Iraqi Shia cities of Karbala and Najaf.Will Ali Khamenei's successor take part? Khamenei's son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, is not expected to make an appearance at his father's funeral. He was severely injured in the same US-Israeli strike that killed his father and also killed Mojtaba's wife and his 14-month-old daughter. The extent of Mojtaba's injuries is unknown and he has so far issued only written statements, including one that distanced himself from the ceasefire negotiations but sanctioned their continuance. Israel's defence minister, Israel Katz, threatened to kill him this week, saying he was marked for death.Why is Trump so unhappy with Nato? Aside from the failure of countries such as the UK and France to join in with the US-Israeli war on Iran, Trump has long complained that Europe does not spend enough on defence. Under pressure from the US, Nato leaders agreed at a gathering last year to boost defence-related spending to 5% of GDP by 2035. Continue reading...
America at 250 is not a finished monument, but a structure still under repairTo call this Saturday the nation's 250th birthday is to indulge a comfortable fiction. 1776 was a declaration, not a birth certificate - and the founders wrote its claims of human equality while this nation enslaved human beings. A truer account of American freedom runs through 1619 and Juneteenth, when Americans forced the country, at last, to begin making its promises answerable to reality.So I'm not in the mood to celebrate America 250", and I'm not alone. The affection is thin this summer: the Pew Research Center found that 69% of Americans were dissatisfied with the country's direction early this year. That is not ingratitude. Sometimes a sour mood is simply clear vision.Jamil Smith is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...
Amid America's 250th-birthday celebrations, the Eagles are facing tough challenges, looking for momentum and meaning on and off the fieldSaturday is America's 250th birthday and a huge national holiday but the US Eagles will be working. The men are in Denver, kicking off the World Rugby Nations Cup against Portugal, champions of Europe's second tier. The women are in Johannesburg for the first of two games against South Africa, a double bill with the Springbok men facing England.I'm dual nationality," said the women's captain, Georgie Perris-Redding, who speaks with a Manchester accent but was born in Detroit and whose development included a stint at the American Pro Rugby Training Center in Little Rock, Arkansas, a groundbreaking operation that nurtured US women's talent.USA v South Africa and USA v Portugal are broadcast in the US on Paramount+.Martin Pengelly writes on rugby in the US on Substack, at The National Maul. Continue reading...
America has long stood for freedom and prosperity, but under Trump insults, threats and unpredictability have become the new norm. As the US marks its 250th anniversary, Guardian correspondents around the world report on how it is perceived elsewhereAmy Hawkins in Beijing Continue reading...
In today's newsletter: As official celebrations spotlight a narrow cast of white heroes, communities across the US are reclaiming the histories that Freedom 250 leaves outGood morning, and a very happy 250th birthday to the United States of America. If you prefer to celebrate with cage fighting on the White House lawn, an IndyCar rally through the streets of Washington DC, or simply by watching the president do his lonely bop to YMCA at a sparsely attended state fair, so much the better.It takes a special kind of someone to make the semiquincentennial birthday of a nation of 349 million people, from a whole variety of backgrounds, all about himself. But he wouldn't be the only one centred on a very particular (white, male, Christian-centric) view of how the nation came to be.UK news | Women from Black and Asian backgrounds are less likely than their white counterparts to receive an epidural while giving birth, research has revealed.Ukraine | Ukraine and Russia have promised fresh assaults after Moscow launched a huge barrage on Kyiv, killing at least 27 people, tearing open apartment buildings and sending tens of thousands of people to shelters.UK news | Criminal investigators in the UK say they have uncovered a truly international network" of organised drug-facilitated sexual assault in which victims are sedated before being raped and sexually assaulted.UK politics | Keir Starmer has formally apologised for the British state's role in past forced adoptions after decades of campaigning by mothers and children affected.World news | A rescue team pulled a 43-year-old security guard alive from a collapsed basement, ending an operation that became a symbol of hope after the devastation of twin earthquakes that struck Venezuela. Continue reading...
President says Washington's relationship with Nato is not reciprocal' and they were not there for us' in Iran warDonald Trump has said it is ridiculous" for the US to continue its one sided" relationship with Nato, less than a week before a summit of the military alliance in Ankara.Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that They were not there for us!!!" and Washington's relationship with Nato is not reciprocal". Continue reading...
Goncalo Ramos scored to set up a last-16 clash with Spain as Croatia's hearts were broken when VAR ruled their late equaliser offside1 min: Croatia in blue, Portugal in white.Weather and ref Continue reading...
Princess Cruises vessel is docked in San Francisco for disinfecting in third outbreak for company this yearMore than 100 passengers and about 23 crew members on a Princess Cruises ship fell sick from suspected norovirus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), marking the third outbreak to hit one of the company's watercrafts this year.The Ruby Princess vessel set sail on 12 June from San Francisco, bound for Alaska and Canada, with a scheduled return on 2 July. More than two weeks into the journey, CDC officials received a report of an outbreak, which is defined by a threshold of 3% or more of passengers. Aboard the ship were 3,032 passengers and 1,144 crew members, per the CDC. Continue reading...
Memo calls for surge' of analysts after agents in January seized hundreds of boxes containing Fulton county ballotsThe FBI has asked its field offices across the country to dedicate more than 200 staffers to its investigation of the 2020 election in Georgia's Fulton county.A memo obtained Thursday by the Associated Press calls for the FBI to surge" 260 investigative analysts and staff operations specialists to the effort, which it described as a priority investigation". Continue reading...
In latest legal twist, appeals panel rules US does not have to reinstate signage on climate, immigration and slaveryThe Trump administration does not have to reinstate materials related to climate change, immigration and slavery that it has removed from national parks, a US appeals court ruled on Thursday.It's the latest twist in a legal battle over how history is remembered at American public monuments. Continue reading...
Abdul El-Sayed, backed by Bernie Sanders, leads polls ahead of Haley Stevens and Mallory McMorrow in primaryAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez has thrown her support behind Abdul El-Sayed, the doctor and progressive Democrat seeking the party's nomination in Michigan's closely watched US Senate race.In an interview with the New York Times, Ocasio-Cortez - an influential congresswoman on the left of the Democratic party - endorsed El-Sayed, a former public health director. Despite our ideological differences and whatever disagreements there are in the party, every single one of us sees this moment as existential," she said. Continue reading...
President, in latest AI-generated social media post, targets prominent celebrities who have spoken out against himDonald Trump on Thursday posted an AI-generated social media video portraying himself as a doctor who claims to have cured some of his most prominent celebrity critics - including Rosie O'Donnell - of the fictional condition Trump derangement syndrome".Outside the AI fantasy, O'Donnell said her assessment of the president remained unchanged. In a statement, she offered her own diagnosis: He's quite ill-and getting worse daily. The 25th amendment exists for exactly this reason. Remove. Impeach. Convict." Continue reading...
Grigor Dimitrov claimed an emotional win against the 15th seed; Alexander Zverev, Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina advanced; while three of the four remaining Brits departedAt 4-3 in the second, Shnaider makes 0-40, Sansonova saving the first break point with a forehand ushered to the corner and the second with a serve out wide and clean-up. But when a return, thudded flat and close to the baseline, arrives, the response falls long, and the French Open semi-finalist will now serve for a decider at 4-6 5-3.We get going on No1 at 1pm BST, 1.30pm on Centre, but before that, we've close matches on 12 and 18. Samsonova is still holding her own against Shanider, who beat Sabalenka - admittedly with help from Sabalenka herself - on her way to the semis at Roland Garros, leading 6-4 3-3 and refusing to wilt though her opponent has improved. And Fery - who our commentators reckon has the ability to break the top 20 - trails Virtanen 5-7 4-4. Back with our hidings, though, De Minaur has just served out a 6-2 set to lead Mannarino 2-0. Continue reading...
by Graham Searles, Martin Belam, Will Unwin , Taha Ha on (#76Q2G)
The latest news and reaction on day 22 of the tournament after England set up a last-16 clash with MexicoAnd I appreciate all this has been forgotten because England won but Harry Kane should have been awarded a first-half penalty. When a goalkeeper slides and does not get the ball, of course the forward is going to take the contact. Kane is just being punished for being as clever as the officials desire.Maurico Pochettino was rather unhappy with Folarin Balogun's dismissal. The striker painfully caught the Bosnia and Herzegovina defender Tarik Muharemovic on the ankle but it was a complete accident with two players going for the ball. Continue reading...
Critics condemn decision by education board aligned with hard-right Ron DeSantis to block access to college systemImmigration advocates in Florida have decried a cruel and harmful" new rule by education officials aligned with hard-right Republican governor Ron DeSantis to ban undocumented students from state colleges and universities.The Florida board of education voted on Tuesday to bar access to its 28 state-funded institutions to anybody not a US citizen or lawfully present" in the country. It follows Florida's move last year to strip discounted in-state tuition rates for certain immigrant students. Continue reading...
by Presented by Lucy Hough with Aditya Chakrabortty ; on (#76QFW)
The NHS will divert billions of pounds from essential services to pay for new medicines, under the terms of the US-UK trade deal agreed in December, which could lead to more than 200,000 excess deaths, analysis has found.Ministers have defended the deal as a way of helping British drug exports avoid US tariffs and giving patients access to vital medication, but critics accuse the Labour party of caving into pressure from Donald Trump.Lucy Hough speaks to columnist Aditya Chakrabortty Continue reading...
The woman, 31, suffered some injuries but was found alert and in good spirits on Mount Shasta, officials saidA novice climber was rescued after surviving a 1,500ft fall down California's Mount Shasta on Sunday, officials said.The woman, 31, was attempting to ascend the mountain along the Left of Heart variation of the popular Avalanche Gulch route alongside two other novice climbers at an elevation of about 13,000ft when she fell. Continue reading...
Rooftopers' Angela Nikolau and Ivan Kuznetsov were arrested after allegedly scaling the New York skyscraperTwo Russian rooftoppers" who staged an apparent marriage proposal at the peak of the Empire State Building's spire were reportedly arraigned in New York on Thursday on a slew of charges including reckless endangerment.Angela Nikolau and Ivan Kuznetsov were arrested on Wednesday after the stunt, which featured the pair, dressed in all black, unfurling a peace banner and kissing. Continue reading...
An estimated 650,000 bags of potato chips are affected as US agency upgraded recall of several popular brandsThe US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has upgraded a recall of several popular brands of potato chips to its most serious level because of the risk of salmonella contamination.Manufacturer Utz issued a voluntary recall in May for varieties of its Zapp's and Dirty potato chips products, citing the possible presence of salmonella in dry milk powder sourced from a third party used to make a seasoning ingredient. Continue reading...
Critics say the Trump administration is trying to rewrite and whitewash history by removing and altering scores of signs on public landsJerry Bransford, a former US National Park Service (NPS) ranger, has always had a deep connection with the land he grew up on - and the land hundreds of feet below it. His great-great-grandfather, Materson Mat" Bransford, was one of the earliest explorers of Mammoth Cave in south-central Kentucky, the largest known cave system on the planet.But for decades, Mat wasn't paid for his work. Enslavers rented him out for $100 a year to a man who wanted to turn the site into a tourist attraction - what would later become Mammoth Cave national park. Continue reading...
Federal prosecutors to focus on issue despite court backing constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship. Plus: Greek priest whose metal music has become cult smash
Birthright citizenship ruling only a surface level setback, with the court granting president's multiple power grabsThe symbolic and high profile defeats cannot obscure a more uncomfortable truth.The US supreme court - a vital cog in the US constitutional framers' vision of an intricate system of checks and balances aimed at reining in an excessively assertive president - has made Donald Trump stronger than ever, and shows little inclination to stop. Continue reading...
Two people were arrested after an apparent marriage proposal atop the Empire State Building's spire on Wednesday, having climbed well above the section open to the public. The pair were identified as Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus, Russian 'rooftoppers' known for carrying out similar stunts in cities including Los Angeles and Tianjin in China. Dressed in black and with their faces covered, they unfurled a large black banner bearing the words: 'When the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace.'It remains unclear how they reached the uppermost section of the building, which rises 1,454ft (443 metres) above midtown Manhattan. The New York police department said charges were pending and the investigation remained ongoing. CBS News later reported that the pair were facing charges including burglary, criminal trespass and reckless endangerment Continue reading...
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