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A warning for this episode - it covers details of a murder and an execution that some might find distressing.In this episode of Guardian Australia's US politics podcast, co-hosts Jonathan Yerushalmy and Reged Ahmad examine what happened when the state of Tennessee tried to execute prisoner Christa Pike. They also look at the controversy over taxpayer-funded ads promoting US president Donald Trump, midterm AI attack ads and the Elon Musk-Trump bromance that appears to be back on. Continue reading...

Jamaal Howard, 46, executed by fatal dose of pentobarbital after lawyers' bid for stay had been deniedA Texas man was put to death Wednesday in the first US execution since the botched lethal injection of Christa Pike in Tennessee last week.Jamaal Howard, 46, was pronounced dead at 8.03pm after receiving a fatal dose of pentobarbital, a sedative, at the state prison in Huntsville. Continue reading...

The 78-year-old has spent nearly six decades in prison and California governor has overturned last two parole grantsPatricia Krenwinkel, a former Charles Manson follower, was granted parole on Tuesday after nearly six decades in prison for her role in the infamous Tate-LaBianca murders in Los Angeles.This is the third time that Krenwinkel, 78, has been approved for release by California's board of parole hearings. After both of her last two parole grants, Gavin Newsom, California's governor, reversed the parole board's decisions and denied her freedom, and Krenwinkel's attorneys are now urging the Democrat to allow this latest ruling to stand. Continue reading...

Jamie Raskin says startling' email asked whether young woman was for me, or are you keeping her for yourself'A powerful Democratic lawmaker has called for a criminal investigation into former Bard College president Leon Botstein after congressional investigators uncovered an email from Botstein to accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein in which he says Botstein asked if a young woman was for me, or are you keeping her for yourself".The latest development appears to have triggered the immediate resignation of Botstein from all Bard-affiliated positions, including his professorship and roles in Bard's music programs. Botstein had led the college for 50 years and only recently stepped down as president. Continue reading...

Ads promoting the president have cost more than $12m and his Super Pac has refused to reimburse taxpayers

Attorneys say Pike was set to be taken off life support before she woke up, as judge orders officials to preserve evidenceChrista Pike awoke angry and confused" after surviving two lethal injections, her attorneys said on Wednesday, as a judge ordered Tennessee state officials to preserve all evidence related to the failed execution.Pike, 50, was taken to hospital unconscious but alive from Tennessee's execution chamber last Wednesday after two supposedly lethal doses of the barbiturate pentobarbital. Continue reading...

President floats firing Chris LaCivita and James Blair over any conflict' after reports of work in Republika SrpskaDonald Trump distanced himself from two top advisers on Wednesday, claiming he did not have any idea who else they work for", after it was reported they spent the weekend assisting a pro-Russia government in the Balkans.On Truth Social, Trump wrote that Chris LaCivita, the co-manager of his 2024 presidential campaign, and James Blair, a campaign adviser and White House deputy chief of staff on leave of absence, are outside consultants" and do not work for me other than as outside consultants". Continue reading...

Authorities say they arrested an 18-year-old who was planning a shooting attack at the Mall of AmericaFBI officials stopped a potential terrorist attack on the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, authorities announced Wednesday. An 18-year-old was arrested on one count of obtaining a firearm to carry out an act of terrorism.Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud had been investigated over the last nearly two years by the FBI. He was arrested Tuesday in a public park after he paid $600 to an undercover FBI employee posing as a member of the Islamic State for an AK-47 and 200 rounds of ammunition, according to the criminal complaint. Continue reading...

Lawyers for Christa Pike, who survived two lethal injections, gave updates on her condition, saying she is severely unwell, and angry and confused about everything right now'. Following a court hearing on Wednesday, a judge ordered Tennessee officials to preserve all evidence from the botched execution Continue reading...

Bernadette Greene-Placentia says she is sharing her story in order to fight for victims of sexual assaultThis article contains graphic descriptions of sexual assault.A congressional candidate in Arizona says she was attacked and raped in August while trying to repair one of her damaged campaign signs.Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organizations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html Continue reading...

Donald Trump's unpopularity and the economic struggles of voters have boosted Democrats. But with less than a month to go, there is no complacencyFor once, Democrats and Donald Trump might be in agreement: Pretend I'm on the ticket," the historically unpopular president has instructed supporters. Midterms are in large part a referendum on the incumbent, and Trump's war on Iran and its impact on the cost of living have boosted support for Democrats. With less than a month to go, they have reason to be upbeat. The party has a mountain to climb after the devastating defeats of 2024, and the gerrymandering of Republicans, but surveys give it a lead of about nine points on the generic ballot, which measures preference for parties rather than specific candidates.Attention has turned from the prospects of seizing the House, where Democrats are forecast a clear majority, towhat once seemed like the highly optimistic possibility of taking the Senate too. That would require flipping four seats, with 35 in play. Remarkably, Democrats are prospering in red states from Texas to Alaska. In Kansas - which Mr Trump carried by 16 points, and which has not elected a Democratic senator since 1932 - the race is neck and neck. Continue reading...

Christa Pike, a death row inmate who survived the state of Tennessee's attempt to execute her last week, is conscious and speaking. The 50-year-old is recovering in hospital after surviving two lethal injections in a case that has shocked many in the US and prompted a debate about the death penalty. She was due to be the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years. Michael Safi speaks to the chief reporter for Guardian US, Ed Pilkington - watch on YouTube Continue reading...

Listening to the president at a rally these days is a mix of deja vu and word salad, but his decade-long project of division remains abnormal and dangerous

Jorge Messi wanted his country to fall in love with his son. That ambition was fulfilled during a brilliant international career that ended this weekWhat Argentina is doing in this World Cup is of a sacred order," Brazilian writer Milly Lacombe posted at the height of the tide of anti-Argentinian sentiment during this year's tournament. She was exploring the contradiction she felt around her support of Lionel Messi: a player who is a God and a man who shakes Trump's hand".Lacombe highlighted the importance of acknowledging the complexities around Messi and the Argentinian team. How is it possible that Messi was not speaking out against the racist incidents we all saw around the Argentina team, she asked. That's why it hurts so much to see someone with Messi's power choosing to make himself small," she wrote. Continue reading...

Texas attorney general acknowledged affordability was his party's biggest problem' heading into the midterms

Four people and a dog may have been exposed to rabies from the animal, Los Angeles public health officials sayLos Angeles county recently documented its first rabid raccoon in more than 50 years, and health officials are urging residents to never touch wild animals.The county's department of public health announced in a statement this week that four people and a dog may have been exposed to the animal at a backyard work site in the city of Westlake Village. The raccoon appeared in ill health but was not aggressive. Continue reading...

Lawyers seek preservation of evidence after prisoner received two doses of pentobarbital on 30 SeptemberChrista Pike, a Tennessee prisoner who survived the state's attempt to execute her, is awake and speaking as she receives treatment at a hospital, her attorneys said, as they head to court on Wednesday seeking a court order requiring preservation of all evidence relating to the botched exercise by the state.Pike, 50, survived two doses of pentobarbital, a sedative, as Tennessee officials attempted to put her to death last Wednesday in a case that shocked many in America and created headlines around the world. She was set to be the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years. Continue reading...

We appear to be entering a new era, in which political desperation at home leads to increasingly unhinged threats abroadDonald Trump was in Nebraska on Monday, and though his long rally speech had elements of a performance, this was no Bruce Springsteen album. He offered another dark meditation on a world spiraling out of control, one in which the destruction of American cities is increasingly a possibility, unless Americans trust him to use the vast powers of the presidency to annihilate his foes.The president drew fury when he suggested that Iran could launch a nuclear attack and take out" Los Angeles or San Diego. California leaders reacted with scorn at Trump's alarmism.Ted Widmer, a former White House speechwriter, is the editor of American Speeches, and the recently published The Living Declaration: A Biography of America's Founding Text, both published by the Library of America Continue reading...

Sir James Goldsmith's links to Hilton Head, South Carolina, add to mystery of Jane Doe 4, who claimed she was abused by Epstein in the 1980sFor Jeffrey Epstein, the billionaire Goldsmith family was a gateway to elite society and he wanted to be in their circle.The disgraced financier, who died in prison in 2019 facing sex-trafficking charges, longed for a billionaire's lifestyle and cultivated the family's friends, bankers, business associates and advisers. Continue reading...

NAACP files lawsuit after head of DoJ's civil rights division says she hopes to send election monitors to pollsThe Trump administration has been sued over its plans to deploy a historic number" of election monitors to polling stations during next month's midterm elections.The bid stands to jeopardize" the elections and could interfere with the right of voters to participate in the election free from intimidation", according to the NAACP, which filed a lawsuit against Harmeet Dhillon, head of the justice department's civil rights division, who has said she hopes to send 1,000 monitors to midterm polling sites in November. Continue reading...

A mix of natural disasters could all befall the state at once as it finds itself in the crosshairs of the climate phenomenonOn a cloudless autumn afternoon, sunlight sparkled on the water that had quietly swallowed a busy intersection to the north of San Francisco, as the surrounding rush-hour traffic slowed to a painful crawl.There were no crashing waves or storm surges to blame for the flood. Marin county was one of many areas up and down the California coast affected by high tides last week, as parts of the Pacific swelled with excess warmth. Continue reading...

The US midterms may not be as much of a spectacle as the presidential elections, but they are just as important and can completely change not just the course of a presidential term, but federal legislation for years to come. The Guardianunpacks how these elections work, what the results mean and how they affect American life. Continue reading...

Immigration enforcement agency has signed $16.7m deal for devices that induced excessive' fear in military subjectsThe electric-shock gloves immigration agents could soon use to control detainees and protesters worked so powerfully during a military exercise that participants felt intense pain, stopped fighting immediately and feared additional exposures, according to a previously unreleased army study.Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) leaders were aware of the findings before signing a $16.7m contract in August to purchase 6,000 pairs of shock gloves, according to records obtained by the watchdog group American Oversight and shared with the Associated Press. Continue reading...

The United States winning four of four benefits many that were involved, and may hurt those who were left behindCavan Sullivan Continue reading...

There's an unsung reason for the organization's success even as other leftwing groups face a bumpy roadA lot has been written recently in an effort to understand the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and how we've risen to such prominence in a short time.It is clear that we reflect a growing disillusionment with the Democratic party, and a further radicalization of the American population. But many leftwing social movement organizations, such as Black Lives Matter and the Women's March, have risen in the last decade or so, and many groups, from MoveOn to the Sunrise Movement, have attempted to absorb large numbers of people, influence the Democratic party and enter the public consciousness with lower levels of success. Continue reading...

At least 73 people estimated to have joined protest against prolonged detention and Folkston facility's violations'A group of people detained inside a privately run Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) jail in Georgia have launched a mass hunger strike this week to protest against their prolonged detention and the facility's conditions, according to advocates and family members.Advocates estimate at least 73 detained immigrants are participating in the hunger strike inside the Folkston D Ray James ICE processing center in south-east Georgia. The Folkston facility, a former state prison, is run by the private prison company GEO Group under a contract with ICE. Continue reading...

Site of the Nova music festival near Re'im one of the locations where grieving relatives have gathered. Plus, the unlikely legal tussle over a brain rot' meme

The project has sparked doubts over whether the plant will be built and delivered as promised, given Trump's recordDonald Trump has long sought to portray himself as a man of steel, from the White House photoshopping Trump to look like Superman, to enacting tariffs on steel and approving the sale of US Steel to Japan's Nippon Steel with a "golden" share given to the US government.Most recently, the Trump administration announced plans to construct the largest steel plant in the US, a $15bn plant in Lee county, Iowa to be built by India-based Mesabi Metallics. Continue reading...

Stanford University has shared a video of Karl Deisseroth telling his two daughters and one of his sons he has won a Nobel prize in medicine.Deisseroth spent hours fielding congratulatory calls on Monday after learning he had won the prize for helping to open a field of brain science called optogenetics. But it wasn't long before the California scientist asked for a break for a more ordinary task: he needed to make school lunches for his children who were asleep in the family home in Stanford where he had been speaking to journalists and wellwishers in the middle of the night.Deisseroth, 54, shares the prize with two researchers in Germany for their work in optogenetics, a field that combines light with genes to switch neurons on and off in living brains

The White Sox were one of the worst teams in MLB history. Now they are just five wins from a place in the World SeriesThe postgame celebration songs pounded through the Bluetooth speakers in the Chicago White Sox clubhouse on Monday night, minutes after the team's playoff victory over the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field.The White Sox, who lost 121 games two seasons ago, have made a remarkable turnaround. A team who were once so abject that they stopped tweeting out their results are now just five wins from the World Series. They can seal their progress to the American League Championship Series on Wednesday if they beat the Guardians in Chicago. Continue reading...

Justin Ellis scored in the first half to cap a perfect elongated international window for Mauricio Pochettino's side.Jeff is at the game.Meanwhile, Pablo Maurer is following the Messi farewell:Goalkeeper feels like a re-opened competition after shaky halves from World Cup incumbents Matt Freese and Chris Brady, while Diego Kochen shone bright in his first start against Mexico. Brian Schwake will try to make his case from the opening whistle, looking to carry his fine form with Nashville into his second appearance.

A chippy and at times ugly friendly nonetheless gave Mauricio Pochettino's side four wins out of four, with another young player making the difference.Before 1878, a referee trying to get players' attention was left to waive a white handkerchief in the air. It was an imperfect practice, asking an infractor to be self-aware enough to look for a doffed doily after hard contact. The game forever changed when Joseph Hudson, a Birmingham-bred tool maker who founded Acme Whistles, showed up to an FA Cup match in 1878 with his signature product in tow.On Tuesday, nearly 150 years after Hudson's innovation, referee Steven Madrigal paid the architect a hearty tribute. Continue reading...

Owens sued over September Instagram post that suggested trio tampered with evidence in death of Mississippi teenThree friends of Nolan Wells, a Mississippi teen who died after a July boating trip, have sued NFL Hall of Famer Terrell Owens for defamation.On 26 September, Owens shared an Instagram video that suggested Wells's friends Warren Hudson, Jax Pitalo and Morgan Seymour had deleted evidence from Wells's phone after his death, which the three men denied in their lawsuit. Continue reading...

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Republican challenged by Democrat Troy Jackson in critical Senate race says she opposes Iran war and Canada tariffsSusan Collins, the Republican senator for Maine, pointedly distanced herself from Donald Trump in a televised debate with Democratic challenger Troy Jackson on Tuesday, as she sought to present an image of independence in a state that has voted against Trump three times.Proclaiming herself as not the US president's favorite senator", Collins made the highly unusual boast for a Republican that she had voted with Joe Biden, a Democrat, more than 90% of the time when he was president. She also emphasized her differences with her fellow Republicans, saying she voted against her own party more than any other senator. Continue reading...

The 2022 World Cup champion was given a raucous sendoff with plenty of pomp and circumstance. Read Pablo Iglesias Maurer's minute-by-minute report.Guardian reader Paul reached out via email and is apparently deep in the comments section of a 20-year-old Messi article we published here at the Guardian. I can only hope Guardian reader snafuclarke" has fully recovered from such a scorchingly terrible take:don't kid yourselves. messi is currently hugely overrated. the amount of hype this lad gets has never matched his performances on the pitch the last game aside. Continue reading...

Latest model is launching in New York to target rich US buyers - and is more than 5.2 metres long and 2 metres wideIt has no rear window, will not fit into a UK parking space and - starting at 130,000 - ($172,000) is aimed squarely at rich tech industry buyers driving the wide open roads of America.Jaguar's electric car, the Type 01, was launched in New York on Tuesday night and marks the culmination of a two-year rebrand that has been one of the most scrutinised in automotive history. Continue reading...

As Angelenos bemoan sad situation', those in San Diego say remark a disservice' to town with multiple naval basesDonald Trump's extraordinary implication that Iran could take out" Los Angeles and San Diego have sparked condemnation across the political spectrum. As residents of the two major west coast cities awoke on Tuesday to another sweltering day in a record-breaking heatwave, the president's comments sent blood boiling even higher.Jessica, a 28-year-old Los Angeles hair stylist, was scrolling through social media early on Tuesday morning and was shocked to see that Trump had just suggested Iran should decimate her home town. Continue reading...

Several cities shatter temperatures for time of year as extreme heat warnings in place along California coastAn unprecedented heatwave has gripped southern California, boosting temperatures 15 to 20 degrees above normal for autumn.Monday was a notably sweltering day for several cities. Continue reading...

First hurricane of the season has not formed this late since 1905 as scientists say possible US landfall on SaturdayTropical Depression Nine has been predicted to be the Atlantic season's first hurricane and potentially the latest first hurricane to develop in over a century.The system was located Tuesday afternoon about 630 miles south-west of the mouth of the Mississippi River, with maximum sustained winds of 35 mph, according to the US National Hurricane Center. Continue reading...

Baltimore project to be partly funded by US government but owned by defense firm Anduril, founded by Palmer LuckeyDonald Trump on Tuesday announced the opening of a new $6.6bn shipbuilding factory in Baltimore, partly funded by the US government but owned by Anduril Industries, a politically connected defense company.Trump's appearance at a currently unused shipyard in Sparrows Point is a boost to Anduril, whose founder, Palmer Luckey, is a major GOP campaign fundraiser. Luckey has hosted campaign fundraisers for at least 20 Republican politicians, including Trump, the Guardian reported in August. He has given $5.9m to Republican causes since 2017. Continue reading...

How will the USA and Canada fare today? Here is what to know, including kick-off time, TV channels and live stream optionsBasking in the glow of a 3-0 win over Mexico on Saturday, the US men's national team are in a good place right now. A fourth straight win would make this window a resounding success for Mauricio Pochettino and his players.Canada, however, have won their last two encounters with the USMNT, and are fresh from back-to-back victories over Chile and Peru. Jesse Marsch's side have good reason to believe they can leave Minnesota with a third successive win. Continue reading...

Former and current officials who bolstered claims of voter fraud in 2020 make fresh allegations of vulnerabilitiesProminent election deniers have spent recent weeks stoking fears over US election security before next month's midterms, echoing claims pushed by Donald Trump to justify asserting more control over voting.On conservative-friendly media outlets, former or current officials who tried to bolster the US president's false claims of mass voter fraud in 2020 have in recent weeks made fresh allegations of election vulnerabilities. Continue reading...

Klara Shuster said in court she imported mislabeled Botox illegally and dispensed it to clientsThe owner of a New York City med spa has admitted to illegally administering bootleg Botox, which authorities say led one client to develop botulism.Klara Shuster, also known as Klara Chrzuszcz, made those admissions in the course of pleading guilty in federal court recently to conspiracy to commit smuggling, among other charges. Continue reading...

Cornell University students staged a protest in solidarity with Jane Doe, a former classmate whose gang-rape allegations ignited a national uproar. Protesters demanded the school take firmer action against sexual violence on campus and called for an external inquiry into how the matter has been handled by Cornell's administration. In a civil lawsuit filed last month, Jane Doe alleged she was given drugs and alcohol and then sexually assaulted by several members of the campus chapter of the Chi Phi fraternity in October 2024 after she had become incapacitated. Doe named seven Chi Phi members as defendants in the suit, along with the fraternity chapter, a local bar, her own sorority and the university. Cornell, which has defended its response to the original report, shut down the Chi Phi chapter and imposed a range of disciplinary measures on the fraternity members involved, including expulsions and other sanctions. The men all denied any wrongdoing and none have been charged with a crime Continue reading...

Congressional candidate Jim Desmond says he served to protect Americans, not write off American cities'A Republican candidate in San Diego has criticized Donald Trump after the US president suggested Iran could take out" the city or Los Angeles.Trump has faced a chorus of condemnation from Democratic leaders in California after his comments at a rally in Nebraska on Monday night. Republicans have largely remained silent. Continue reading...

Having seemingly written off the midterms, the Republican bigwigs are making their pitches for 2028. But the current commander-in-chief could be looking closer to homeThe US midterm elections are a month away and it's looking rough for the Republicans. I wouldn't discount devious schemes behind the scenes, but, on the face of it, the president and his entourage seem to be flailing. Donald Trump is desperately dangling money in front of voters and promising a big surprise". Meanwhile, the vice-president, JD Vance, and the GOP senator Ted Cruz seem more concerned with fighting over who will be Trump's heir than with the midterms.If the polls are to be believed, Vance is the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination in 2028. But while he may have great name recognition, Vance is also unlikable. According to the CNN analyst Harry Enten, he is one of the least popular vice-presidents in history. He's also apparently made enemies within his own party, largely because of his scepticism about the Iran war. His detractors include Cruz, who told MS Now in August that Vance wasn't a shoo-in for the nomination. The party, Cruz said, was still figuring out the best candidate and needed to decide who we are, what do we believe". Continue reading...

CBP says in response to lawsuit use-of-force cases are thoroughly investigated, reviewed, and presented'A US citizen who was shot one year ago by a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agent during a sweeping immigration crackdown in Chicago filed a lawsuit against the federal government on Monday, alleging the agent lied about the shooting and fired into her vehicle from behind.Federal prosecutors initially accused Marimar Martinez, then 30, of using her vehicle to strike and box in agent Charles Exum's sport utility vehicle on Chicago's south-west side on 4 October 2025 during what the Trump administration named Operation Midway Blitz. Exum then exited his car and opened fire, leaving Martinez with seven gunshot wounds. Continue reading...

Officials file denaturalization actions' against people accused of crimes in what they call largest' such initiativeDonald Trump's justice department has moved to strip the citizenship of 40 naturalized citizens accused of crimes in what authorities describe as the largest" such initiative over a single period during his administration.US justice department officials on Monday announced the filing of denaturalization actions" against more than three dozen people alleged to have committed such offenses as acting as an agent for a foreign government, committing voluntary manslaughter, and aggravated sodomy against a specialneeds man". Continue reading...