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Administration officials, his family and even Mar-a-Lago guests wield outsized influence on a mercurial presidentIt is a world turned upside down. In his first year in office, Donald Trump has bullied Ukraine, bombed Iran and toppled the leader of Venezuela. In the eyes of critics, he has turned the US into a rogue superpower that poses a greater threat to Nato allies than its foes.The blitzkrieg has left diplomats in foreign capitals scrambling to understand Trump's motivations and what - or who - is shaping his thinking. Like past presidents, he has an inner circle of advisers who are playing a crucial role in determining his worldview. Continue reading...

Hopes that tougher sanctions and lower oil prices could derail Putin's war effort underestimate how far the Kremlin has rewired its economyPacing inside the Kremlin last weekend, as news feeds churned out minute-by-minute reports of Donald's Trump's Venezuelan coup, Vladimir Putin may have been wondering what it would mean for the price of oil.Crude oil has lubricated the Russian economy for decades - far more than gas exports to Europe - and so the threat of falling oil prices, prompted by US plans for control of Venezuela's rigs, will have been a source of concern. Continue reading...

Funding was paused because health department said benefits were going to people in country illegallyA federal judge ruled on Friday that the Trump administration cannot block federal money for childcare subsidies and other programs aimed at supporting low-income families with children from flowing to five Democratic-led states for now.The states of California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York argued that a policy announced on Tuesday to freeze billions of dollars in funds for three grant programs was having an immediate impact on them and creating operational chaos". In court filings and a hearing earlier on Friday, the states contended that the government did not have a legal reason for withholding the money from them. Continue reading...

Prosecutors claim Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, started a smaller wildfire that went on to become the devastating Palisades blaze. Is he ultimately to blame?More than a year after a devastating wildfire tore through Pacific Palisades, all but obliterating one of the west coast's most iconic neighborhoods, prosecutors are honing their case against the man they say is responsible.Jonathan Rinderknecht, a 29-year-old occasional Uber driver who used to live in Pacific Palisades, was charged with three felonies by federal prosecutors in October, who claim he was in the neighborhood in the early hours of New Year's Day. According to a federal complaint, Rinderknecht allegedly used an open flame - likely a lighter - to start a small blaze that grew to about 8 acres (3.2 hectares) before firefighters rushed to the area and extinguished it. Continue reading...

The governor and mayor unveiled a plan for free childcare in New York City. Is the family values' party listening?I think we all need a little cheering up, don't you? So allow me to interrupt the steady stream of violent authoritarianism and state-sponsored murder in your feed with some good news. New York City, which already provides free preschool for three- and four-year-olds, is a step closer to providing free universal childcare for two-year-olds. On Thursday, Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced a plan for the free childcare program, which they said will start by focusing on high-need areas" and then gradually expand to cover the city. The mayor said he expected about 2,000 children to be covered by the program this fall.Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

ICE Out for Good vigils and rallies are being tracked online by Indivisible, the group behind the No Kings protestsMore than a thousand protests are planned across the US this Saturday and Sunday after ICE agents shot three people, one fatally, in Minneapolis and Portland, Oregon, this week.This weekend, people all over are coming together not just to mourn the lives lost to ICE violence, but to confront a pattern of harm that has torn families apart and terrorized our communities," said Leah Greenberg, co-executive director of Indivisible, an organizer of ICE Out for Good Weekend of Action". Continue reading...

Aligning itself with Washington and dismissing regional diplomacy has left the dual island nation isolated amid the Venezuela crisisThere is a saying in Trinidad and Tobago: Cockroach should stay out of fowl business." It captures a hard truth. Small states that stray into great-power conflicts rarely emerge unscathed. They are not players; they are expendables.It's a statement that frames the reality of where Trinidad and Tobago sits uneasily today. Continue reading...

Online campaign for US woman shot and killed by ICE agent in Minneapolis significantly surpasses initial $50,000 goalAn online campaign meant to financially support the family of Renee Nicole Good - the US woman shot to death Wednesday by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent - raised more than $1.5m before organizers closed it Friday.Thank you. Thank you. Thank you," said the page of the GoFundMe campaign benefiting Good's family, which also explained the money raised would be placed in a trust. We are here brokenhearted and in awe of your generosity." Continue reading...

The NFL playoffs kick off with ground-game battles, QB duels and a high-stakes edition of the Packers v Bears rivalryWhat the Rams need to do to win Hold on to the ball. Across five regular-season defeats, Matthew Stafford gave the ball away seven times with six interceptions and a fumble. In the Rams' worst loss of the season, to the Panthers in November, Stafford held his team back from taking a commanding lead with two picks in the first quarter. Keep it tight. Continue reading...

The US president is weaponising tech, but his tariffs and Brexit provide a surprising opportunity to gain back digital control of our livesIt's been 25 years since I started working for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, an American nonprofit dedicated to preserving and promoting human rights on the internet. I've found myself in dozens of countries working with activists, politicians and civil servants to untangle the complex technical questions raised by the internet, and every one of our discussions ended in the same place. OK," they'd say, you've definitely laid out the best way to regulate tech, but we can't do it."Why not? Because - inevitably - the US trade rep had beaten me to every one of those countries and made it eye-wateringly clear that if they regulated tech in a way that favoured their own people, industries and national interests, the US would bury them in tariffs.Cory Doctorow is a science fiction author, activist and journalist. He is the author of dozens of books, most recently Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What To Do About It Continue reading...

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President's assertion that only a paid agitator would scream at ICE agents contradicted by hundreds of video recordsAt the White House on Friday, Donald Trump endorsed his vice-president's baseless claim that Renee Good, the 37-year-old woman killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis on Wednesday, was part of a shadowy leftwing network" trying to incite violence" against federal agents.Asked by a Fox News correspondent to expand on JD Vance's comments about Good, the president said that the vice-president is generally very accurate" and then cited what he referred to as evidence that at least one person in Good's vicinity when she was killed was probably a paid agitator". Continue reading...

Local leaders' appeal for non-violence largely holds despite growing outrage over US immigration enforcement in citySix protesters were arrested by police in Portland, Oregon, late on Thursday, as an appeal for calm from local leaders largely held despite growing outrage over federal immigration enforcement in the city after two people were shot by US border patrol agents.On Friday afternoon, dozens of protesters gathered again outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Portland, holding signs that denounced ICE agents as thugs" and Nazis". Continue reading...

We're going to be extracting numbers in terms of oil like few people have seen,' Trump said - key US politics stories from 9 January 2025Donald Trump had a message for fossil-fuel companies on Friday: Venezuela is now open for business" as the US president vowed the country's resources would be extracted for the benefit of the US, oil companies - and some" money for Venezuelans.At a roundtable press conference at the White House with more than a dozen oil executives, including leaders from Chevron, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, the US president doubled down on claims that Nicolas Maduro's arrest presents American oil companies with an unprecedented opportunity for extraction. Continue reading...

Move marks abrupt pivot from operation that drew protests in New Orleans and arrested 370 people of a planned 5,000Federal immigration officers are pulling out of a Louisiana crackdown and heading to Minneapolis in an abrupt pivot from an operation that drew protests around New Orleans and aimed to make thousands of arrests, according to documents obtained by the Associated Press.The shift appeared to signal a wind-down of the Louisiana deployment that was dubbed Catahoula Crunch" and began in December with the arrival of more than 200 officers. The operation had been expected to last into February and swiftly raised fears in immigrant communities. Continue reading...

Clip first posted by partisan outlet Alpha News shows perspective of ICE agent as Good was fatally shotRenee Nicole Good calmly said everything was fine" and I'm not mad at you" seconds before an on-duty Immigration Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot her in Minneapolis as she drove away, according to a cellphone video shared on Friday by Donald Trump's White House.The partisan media outlet Alpha News first posted the video on X, a 47-second clip that showed the perspective of the ICE agent - and captured a man's voice calling Good a fucking bitch" after she was mortally wounded. It was then shared by the White House's official Rapid Response X account as well as JD Vance, with the vice-president writing in part that he agreed with the notion that Good's death was a tragedy" but accused the media of dishonestly covering the circumstances of her killing. Continue reading...

US president doubles down on threats to acquire territory at White House meeting with oil and gas executivesDonald Trump has doubled down on his threats to acquire Greenland, saying the US is going to do something [there] whether they like it or not".Speaking at a meeting with oil and gas executives at the White House, the US president justified his comments by saying: If we don't do it, Russia or China will take over Greenland. And we're not going to have Russia or China as a neighbor." Continue reading...

Country is uninvestable' today, president told, but CEOs signal they are ready to spend with supportDonald Trump promised oil giants total safety, total security" in Venezuela in an effort to persuade them to invest $100bn in the country's infrastructure after US forces toppled Nicolas Maduro from power.At a roundtable press conference at the White House on Friday afternoon with more than a dozen oil executives, including leaders from Chevron, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhilips, the US president doubled down on claims that Maduro's arrest presents American oil companies with an unprecedented opportunity for extraction. Continue reading...

Authorities said about 261 drug parcels were sent to home of Justin Salsburey and his wife Ruthann Rankin since 2024Republican Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has expressed concern after his family's bodyguard was arrested recently on federal drug-trafficking charges.Justin Salsburey, 43, and his wife, 38-year-old Ruthann Rankin, were each charged on 30 December with conspiracy and possession with the intent to distribute large amounts of narcotics through the US mail. Continue reading...

The 550lb black bear was drawn out with paintball guns after it had resided under the home for more than a monthGetting rid of an unwanted houseguest can be difficult, but seldom does it involve a paintball gun and an electrified mat. A 550lb black bear that took residence under a southern California home for more than a month has finally been removed, KTLA has reported.Altadena resident Ken Johnson first noticed the bear was living in the crawl space below his home in late November. Continue reading...

US president does not elaborate on alleged plan for fresh strikes but says large naval presence in region will remain

Jacob Frey criticizes Trump administration's response to shooting death of Renee Nicole GoodOfficials in Minneapolis on Friday accused federal authorities of hiding the facts" over the killing of a US citizen by an officer with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, and demanded the inclusion of state investigators in the FBI inquiry.Jacob Frey, the Minnesota city's Democratic mayor, criticized the Trump administration's response to the shooting, speaking at a press conference two days after the death of Renee Nicole Good in her car in a confrontation with federal officers amid protests and community scrutiny during an immigration crackdown. Continue reading...

Paris has shifted this year's Group of 7 summit after Donald Trump confirmed plans for a UFC fight card on the White House lawn on 14 June, his 80th birthdayFrance has delayed this year's Group of 7 summit by one day to avoid a scheduling conflict with an Ultimate Fighting Championship fight card planned at the White House on 14 June, according to two officials with direct knowledge of the G7's preparations.The summit, hosted by France in the Alpine resort town of Evian-les-Bains, was originally scheduled for 14 to 16 June, a date that coincides with US Flag Day and US president Donald Trump's 80th birthday. It will now run from 15 to 17 June, a change that has been reflected on the G7's official website. Continue reading...

Nicolas Maduro seized, Russian drone strikes rock Kyiv, anti-ICE protests erupt in Minneapolis and Storm Goretti lashes Britain - the past seven days as captured by the world's leading photojournalists Continue reading...

A brutal regime has failed to safeguard either the country's physical security or basic living standards. But Donald Trump's threats to intervene won't help civiliansThe internet blackout across Iran is meant to prevent protests from spreading, and observers from witnessing the crackdown on them. But it's also emblematic of the deep uncertainty surrounding this unrest and the response of a regime under growing pressure.Rocketing inflation and a tanking currency sparked the protests in late December. They have since broadened and spread. Videos showed thousands marching in Tehran on Thursday night and people setting fire to vehicles and state-owned buildings.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...

Over 100 pieces of human remains including skulls and headless torsos found in car and home of Jonathan GerlachA Pennsylvania man suspected of desecrating a historic cemetery in his state is facing hundreds of charges pertaining to grave robbery after authorities recently found more than 100 pieces of human remains in his possession, prompting one official to call the case the most horrific thing".Jonathan Gerlach, 34, had human skulls, bones, mummified feet, headless torsos and other corpse parts - including in his car, home and storage locker - after his arrest on Tuesday, according to a sworn police statement reported by NBC News. Continue reading...

Trump's admission that he recognises no constraint outside his own morality was a horrifying moment of truth. It should galvanise all those who oppose himFor a serial liar, Donald Trump can be bracingly honest. We've known about the mendacity for years - consider the 30,573 documented falsehoods from the president's first term, culminating in the big lie, his claim to have won the 2020 election - but the examples of bracing candour are fresher. This week both began and ended with the US president speaking the shocking truth.At a press conference to celebrate his capture of the Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, Trump announced that from now on the US would run" that country, before moving in the very next breath to Venezuela's oil. There was no pious talk of democracy, scant mention even of the drug trafficking that earlier served as a pretext for military action. Instead, Trump said out loud what had once been a slogan on leftist placards in protest at past US interventions, admitting that it really was all about the oil. It was as transparent a revelation of Trump's true motive as you could have asked for.Jonathan Freedland is a Guardian columnistGuardian newsroom: Year One of Trumpism: Is Britain Emulating the US? On Wednesday 21 January 2026, join Jonathan Freedland, Tania Branigan and Nick Lowles as they reflect on the first year of Donald Trump's second presidency. Book tickets here or at guardian.live Continue reading...

A video posted online by the US homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, shows what she says is the US Coast Guard boarding and seizing the tanker Olina in international waters east of the Caribbean Sea on 9 January. On Friday the US said it had seized another tanker that tried to break a naval blockade aimed at preventing oil from departing Venezuela, the fifth ship apprehended in recent weeks

On Wednesday, Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, was killed by a federal immigration agent in Minneapolis during a large-scale immigration enforcement operation. Eyewitness footage from various angles shows how the incident unfolded

US faces big challenges in trying to unlock tremendous wealth' from Venezuela's long-neglected oil industryDonald Trump has laid claim to billions of dollars' worth of Venezuelan crude this week, which at a stroke has handed the world's biggest consumer of oil up to 50m barrels - but his ambitions are far greater.The White House said Venezuela would be turning over" the nearly $3bn (2.3bn) of crude stranded in tankers and storage facilities before it is sold on the international market and after that the US plans to control all the country's oil sales indefinitely". Continue reading...

Data compiled by news non-profit the Trace shows 29 incidents as of 9 January, including 16 shootingsFederal immigration agents have been involved in a sharp rise in shootings in recent months, coinciding with the Trump administration's expanded immigration enforcement efforts.Under Trump's crackdown, immigration officers have been connected to 16 shootings, according to data compiled by the Trace, a non-profit newsroom focused on gun violence in the US. Continue reading...

Americans took to the streets across the country after a Minneapolis resident, Renee Nicole Good, 37, was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent during a confrontation on Wednesday Continue reading...

The Guardian reviewed figures from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection since Trump's inaugurationDonald Trump campaigned on a platform of mass deportation. Since he took office, his administration has reshaped immigration enforcement across the country. The Guardian, using data published every two weeks by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), is tracking the number of people the administration has arrested, detained and deported. Continue reading...

Trump's attacks on mainstream media have opened a window for journalists who want to operate independentlyWhen Donald Trump retook office last January, many national newsrooms braced for what lay ahead. There was the expected firehose of news, with the president issuing dozens of executive orders in his first week alone. Then there was the fear and tension over the president's history of attacking and suing news organizations over unfavorable coverage. Meanwhile, audience trust in media was at an all-time low.While it was a turbulent time for traditional media, it opened a window for independent journalists like Marisa Kabas, who is not beholden to covering Trump's every move, nor saddled with decades of institutional distrust. On 27 January, she received a massive scoop she published in her newsletter, the Handbasket: the US office of management and budget was freezing federal grants. Getting to that news first only led to more exclusives and subscribers. Continue reading...

Analysis estimates Trump administration wasted' billions to compensate over 154,000 federal employees on leaveThe Trump administration wasted" $10bn on paid leave, or paying workers to stay home, as part of the department of government efficiency's" assault on the federal workforce, a new analysis by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (Peer) estimates.In a letter sent to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Peer estimates that more than 154,000 employees were put on paid leave in 2025, making up nearly 7% of the federal civilian workforce. That costs taxpayers approximately $10bn in compensation for workers who were staying home and not working. Continue reading...

Police say pair are in hospital but condition not known, as mayor urges ICE to pause operationsUS border patrol agents shot two people outside a hospital in Portland, Oregon, a day after an ICE officer shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis.The Portland police bureau (PPB) said in a statement on Thursday afternoon that two people were in hospital after a shooting involving federal agents, adding that the conditions of those shot were not known. Continue reading...

Nearly 16,000 nurses set to join union-led strike Monday to demand large hospitals across NYC put patients over profit'Nearly 16,000 nurses in New York City are set to strike on Monday amid a battle over pay during contract negotiations.The action, due to take place across five large hospitals, is being organized by the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), which is demanding the hospitals put patients over profit. Continue reading...

As Americans worry about healthcare and affordability, the no more wars' president is helping oil companies insteadImmediately after Donald Trump ordered a military strike in Venezuela, many critics focused on how that attack violated international law as well as the US War Powers Resolution. But there hasn't been nearly enough focus on the domestic implications of Trump's move.Trump seems to have ordered his Venezuela venture in part to flip the script away from domestic matters, where things aren't going well for him. His approval ratings are under water, and he's getting low marks on the economy, health policy (just 30% approval), inflation (31% approval on the cost of living), his immigration crackdown (41% approval) and his sending the national guard into US cities. Then there's the big thumbs down that Americans are giving to his tariffs, which have helped push up prices even though candidate Trump promised to lower prices on day one.Steven Greenhouse is a journalist and author, focusing on labour and the workplace, as well as economic and legal issues Continue reading...

We have our own medics,' bystanders were told after ICE agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good in MinneapolisWitnesses to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent fatally shooting Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis on Wednesday say federal officers impeded the response of emergency medical personnel to the scene, blocking the road with their vehicles.Emily Heller, a witness who lives near the intersection of 34th Street and Portland Avenue, recorded the scene as it unfolded. She told NBC News that agents blocked people from approaching Good's vehicle. Her video shows a man who identified himself as a physician asking to check for a pulse and being rebuffed. Continue reading...

Barely a mile from Floyd's murder, an officer killed Renee Nicole Good. We must peacefully say no to this violenceOn 25 May 2020, America witnessed a stunning act of police brutality when a police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota, murdered George Floyd. The killer, Derek Chauvin, apparently confident that he would be immune to accountability, did his deed in the open, with other officers standing by and in front of a crowd of onlookers.The video of Floyd's murder shocked the nation.Austin Sarat, William Nelson Cromwell professor of jurisprudence and political science at Amherst College, is the author or editor of more than 100 books, including Gruesome Spectacles: Botched Executions and America's Death Penalty Continue reading...

Victim-blaming began almost as soon as Renee Nicole Good was killed - we examine the claims and the realityThe killing of a US citizen by a federal immigration agent in Minneapolis was a five-alarm fire for the Trump administration. But a torrent of untruths, half-truths, smears, and innuendo has been unleashed by the White House, and amplified by its social media and cable television acolytes, in an attempt to douse the flames.Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic House minority leader, called homeland security secretary Kristi Noem a stone cold liar" on Thursday for her efforts to falsely portray the victim Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother of three and award-winning poet, as a domestic terrorist". Continue reading...

The postseason kicks off on Saturday. Our writers pick the dark horses, players to watch and make their tips for the NFL's championship gameMelissa is right about the Lions (see below), but how about the Dallas Cowboys? Their defense was nauseating, and nobody wants a playoff weekend spoiled watching that. But their offense was electric. They finished fifth in the league in EPA/play in the regular season. And with Dak Prescott, a solid o-line and George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb, they had the potential to drop 30 points on any playoff group. If they'd snuck in and managed to knock off a top seed, it would have convinced Jerry Jones that he was on the right path. And nothing is funnier than Jones failing to recognize that the reason why Dallas is stuck is the reflection in his mirror. Oliver Connolly Continue reading...

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