US news | The Guardian

Veteran Frenchman bowed out in New York but the clash of two black players in the last four of the men's singles is testament to his effectThe early days of this year's US Open can be told in a series of farewells to competitors who plan to end their careers this year. The most moving of them all came in the form of Gael Monfils's grand departure inside Louis Armstrong Stadium against the wildly talented 20-year-old Learner Tien. Tien was competing in front of his home crowd, one of the Americans capable of a deep run, but for much of his straight-sets defeat the Frenchman had the American crowd in the palm of his hands.Beyond the massive popularity he has garnered among tennis fans, one of the most striking parts of Monfils's long farewell was seeing how highly nearly all of his fellow professionals, particularly his fellow black players, regard him. Frances Tiafoe says he spent his youth looking up to Monfils. Arthur Fils considers Monfils his older brother. Naomi Osaka's nickname for Monfils, one of her idols, is simply the Goat". They all hold Monfils in such great esteem, and for good reason. Continue reading...

Crude jumps above $107 a barrel amid concerns over Middle East conflict and out-of-control government borrowingNervous investors across big economies have been dumping government bonds, driving up the cost of borrowing, as surging oil prices amplified fears about rising inflation.The cost of a barrel of oil jumped 6% to above $107 on Thursday amid concerns that advances by Houthi rebels along the Red Sea coast in Yemen could choke off Saudi crude exports. Continue reading...

The payments amounted to 30% of each aides' $150,000 annual salaryDonald Trump may have committed serious" ethical violations by giving three officials including his close personal aide Natalie Harp cash gifts of $45,000 each, according to a former White House ethics czar", as a watchdog group called for an investigation.The nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center filed a complaint with the US Office of Government Ethics over the US president's handouts to a handful of staff, arguing that an investigation is clearly warranted". Continue reading...

Surprise appearance by Pennsylvania senator raises fresh questions over loyalty to and future in Democratic partyThe Democratic senator John Fetterman's decision to address the Republican National Committee (RNC) midterm convention via video sparked a furious response from some members of his party.Fetterman's surprise appearance - and praise of his fellow Pennsylvania senator, Republican Dave McCormick - raised fresh questions over his loyalty to, and future inside, the Democratic party. Continue reading...

Twenty-five years later, the Guardian asks US readers how the attacks affected their lives, and their countryAs the United States commemorates the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, in which nearly 3,000 people were killed in New York City, Washington DC and Pennsylvania, the Guardian asked American readers to share how the attacks affected their day-to-day lives and the country at large.Many readers shared their feeling of patriotism in the days following the attacks while also highlighting how the government's response to 9/11 expanded government surveillance and fueled Islamophobia in the country. For those who were adults at the time of the attacks, the day marked a cataclysmic shift. For those too young to remember it, it served as the context for the complicated and violent world they grew up in. Continue reading...

The Englishman has gotten no shortage of recognition, but his contributions to the American game deserve an official title

Teo Davidov doesn't hit backhands. He serves from both sides. The 16-year-old from Denver is treating the tennis world to a wildly unorthodox style - and proving it's more than a parlor trickTeo Davidov always has the upper hands. An amiable junior prodigy from Denver, the 16-year-old was the oddest sight at this year's US Open, the only player in the tournament - man, woman or junior - who hits only forehands. To be clear: it's not that he doesn't have a backhand or can't hit a backhand. He's ambidextrous and so he doesn't bother with them.It's nothing personal. To be honest, I like the traditional backhand-forehand," he says. I like the classiness of it. I like hitting backhands myself just to play around, just for fun." He hits those from both wings, too. Continue reading...

Borrowing costs climb in Europe and oil tops $105 a barrel as bank flags growing price pressures in eurozone

The White House posted a photo of bald eagle attacking a Canada goose to send a message - but it was Canada that played a critical role in the recovery of the bird in the USIn late August, the White House posted a real photograph on social media of a bald eagle standing atop the limp neck of a Canada goose.The raptor presses the goose's face into the grey winter slush. With its stark white head and brilliant yellow talons, the eagle looks victorious and defiant. Continue reading...

Chemours, DuPont and Corteva reach settlement after lawsuits accuse companies of polluting drinking waterChemours, DuPont and Corteva on Thursday reached a $455m settlement with North Carolina and 11 local entities over Pfas contamination claims tied to Chemours' Fayetteville Works plant and other historical discharges.Lawsuits accusing major chemical companies of polluting U.S. drinking water with toxic Pfas chemicals - a group of pollutants referred to as forever chemicals" - have led to settlements worth billions of dollars, including one struck by the three companies in New Jersey last year. Continue reading...

CEO Michael O'Leary tells reporters the businessman was sucked towards' but not out of the opening

People from across the US and around the world pay their respects at memorial to victims of the terrorist attacksNo day shall erase you from the memory of time," reads an inscription at the the Ground Zero national September 11 memorial and museum, quoting from The Aeneid and cast in 15in letters made from the steel of the twin towers, which fell 29 minutes apart in a terrorist attack a quarter century ago.It took a decade for the 9/11 memorial in downtown Manhattan to be completed. It is composed of two dark granite basins on the footprints of the original towers with water cascading from their lips and the names of all 2,977 who died as a result of four aircraft hijackings inscribed on bronze panels around it. Continue reading...

The very mechanisms that allow the census bureau to resist partisan interference are coming undone. And Congress is silentWhen the constitutional architects of the United States got together, they came up with a crazy plan: What if we count everyone in the country and allocate political representation that way?"It was a radical act. Until then, censuses had been used by kings to levy taxes and conscript men into war. With the penning of article 1, section 2 of the US constitution, being counted ensured that states would get financial resources and political representatives. Congress was tasked with building the processes to anchor representation to the population. People wanted to be counted. And politicians wanted their people to be counted more.danah boyd is the Geri Gay professor of communication at Cornell University and the author of Data Are Made, Not Found: A Story of Politics, Power, and the Civil Servants Who Saved the US Census Continue reading...

What sounds like the overwrought penultimate episode in a sci-fi series about AI doom is now our realityOn Tuesday, a former OpenAI researcher quit his job at Anthropic, warning that neither company is acting responsibly" and that the people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade. This is not a marketing stunt."As someone who's reported on AI risk for years, this wasn't news to me. But the outpouring of alarm suggests a much wider public is properly confronting this ludicrous situation for the first time. Continue reading...

Speaking in Dallas, the president raised ethical concerns with an apparent $1tn offer to the electorate. Plus the US citizens who are finding Scotland to be an irresistible lureGood morning. Donald Trump has pledged to pay every adult citizen in the US $5,000 if Republicans retain the House and Senate in the midterm elections. The outlandish proposal, which would cost over $1tn, immediately raised ethical concerns.Trump made the promise during a marathon speech at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas in which he assailed Democrats as radical", defended his unpopular war in Iran, and urged voters to pretend that I'm on the ballot". Trump claimed, without evidence, that his second term had been the most successful two years, financially and every other way, in the history of the presidency".Why did the Republicans hold a midterm convention? Republicans are gambling that the GOP's first midterm convention can salvage their threatened House majority. However, Trump's dismal approval rating drove many competitive candidates to skip the two-day event entirely.What has Trump said about the former attorney Michael Cohen? The US president has said he would consider pardoning Michael Cohen, the former fixer whom he once branded a rat" for testifying against him. Cohen was Trump's personal lawyer, but flipped in 2018, and pleaded guilty to federal crimes including facilitating a hush payment to the pornography star Stormy Daniels and lying under oath to Congress.How many people has the US killed in its campaign? Late Wednesday, US Southern Command announced the latest strike in the Caribbean Sea, saying it killed three people. That brought the number of people who have been killed in boat strikes by the US military to at least 230 in 69 strikes.What has the US announced about Ecuador's gangs? The US has designated Ecuador's Los Tiguerones gang as a terrorist organisation. Rubio said the gang was linked to narcotics trafficking, as well as attacks on civilians, law enforcement officers and journalists. We are talking about terrorists who, in many cases, possess weapons and equipment resembling the national armies of certain countries," he said. Continue reading...

Anna Sweeney Rossman was 5 when her mother, flight attendant Amy Sweeney, was killed aboard American Airlines flight 11 after helping authorities identify the hijackersAnna Sweeney Rossman was only 5 years old when her mother, flight attendant Madeline Amy" Sweeney, died aboard an airliner that terrorists hijacked and deliberately flew into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. And for years, she said in an interview on Wednesday, Rossman's grief primarily centered on her mother's absence from certain milestones in her life.She recalled how planning her 2023 wedding - particularly shopping for a dress - hit her especially hard without her mom there. And Rossman said it was as much a blow to not have her mom there for the birth of her daughters, each younger than 2, as the US prepared to mark the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on Friday. Continue reading...

President suggested US might not help UK if Argentina tried to seize Falklands - a new low for UK-US special relationship'Last week, Donald Trump suggested in an interview with the British TV channel GB News that he might not help the UK if Argentina tried again to seize the Falkland Islands. It was a new low for UK-US relations.The special relationship" (Winston Churchill's phrase) was never perfect, but the UK helped the US on countless occasions, from Korea to Iraq to Afghanistan. The US often stood by the UK as well - although not during the Suez Crisis of 1956, but Ronald Reagan's government provided significant intelligence and logistics support to Britain during the dust-up over the Falklands in 1982. That relationship is fading fast. Continue reading...

Concerns over rising inflation, continuing war with Iran, and the US's record national debt have shaken the marketAmericans who have been grappling with the higher cost of living over the last few years now face another issue: trouble in the US bond market that could mean elevated costs are here to stay.US government bonds - known as treasurys - are supposed to be the most stable type of investment vehicle. But investor concerns over issues including rising inflation, the continuing war with Iran, and the US's record national debt have shaken the market and slowed demand for US treasury bonds. Continue reading...

Donald Trump pledged to pay every adult citizen in the US a $5,000 dividend if the Republicans retain the House and Senate in the midterms, during a rambling speech at the party's midterm convention in Dallas.The US president claimed the payment was possible due to the country's 'tremendous economic success, like in history we've never had anything like what's happening'. The proposal, which would cost more than $1tn, immediately raised ethical concerns

The man mentioned by Tiger Woods after his first Masters win paved the way for generations of Black golfers, reintegrating the US Open and challenging the PGAHow good a golfer was Ted Rhodes? At the 1948 US Open, he finished the first round just three shots behind the leader - and eventual winner - Ben Hogan. But there's more to the story: Rhodes was the first Black competitor in the tournament in its modern era, during a time of widespread segregation in American sport.Rhodes is the subject of a new book by sports historian Dan Taylor, Out of the Rough: Ted Rhodes and His Fight against Golf's Color Barrier. The author aims to change what he sees as mainstream unfamiliarity with Rhodes, even among golf enthusiasts. Continue reading...

The president's latest warning barely registered, written off as typical behavior. But the threats have real-world consequencesAs the US and Iran fought around the strait of Hormuz last week, Donald Trump issued one of his typical threats. In an interview with a Fox News correspondent, Trump said Iran would be totally wiped out as a country" if it retaliated for the latest wave of US air strikes.That threat by the US president to wipe out another country generated few headlines, even during a relatively slow news week by Trump administration standards. Continue reading...

Manager is excited by new US deal but might have returned to Spurs if the stars had aligned and does not rule out taking England job one dayIf things had worked out differently, Mauricio Pochettino would have gone back to his beloved Tottenham over the summer. They had put in the call and it stirred him. Nothing was going to put him off - not even the possibility of the club being in the Championship.Seriously, Mauricio? After a World Cup campaign with the United States and top jobs with Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain before that, he would have been willing to start a new chapter in the second tier of English football? Yes, of course," Pochettino says. Tottenham ... it's the only club that always I am open to help. In whatever division." Continue reading...

President's quest in self-mythology stops off in Dallas for a Republican convention where fans indulged his lies and revelled in his jokesKim Il-sung of North Korea reportedly sought transfusions of blood from young men; Mao Zedong of China believed sex with young women could prolong his life; Muammar Gaddafi underwent fat injections and hair transplantation to make himself look younger. But for Donald Trump, the secret of eternal youth lies in nights like this.The occasion of the Republican midterm convention in Dallas was enough to get the 80-year-old US president's juices flowing. An arena with thousands of fanatical supporters indulging his lies, laughing at his jokes and burnishing his fantasies of greatness is Trump's happy place. Continue reading...

President makes offer that would cost US over $1tn and asks voters to pretend that I'm on the ballot' despite being deeply unpopular among electorateDonald Trump pledged to pay every adult citizen in the US $5,000 if Republicans retain the House and Senate in the midterm elections, during a marathon speech at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas in which the president assailed Democrats as radical" and defended his unpopular war in Iran.The outlandish proposal, which would cost over $1tn, immediately raised ethical concerns. But it laid bare the extent of the Republicans' concern about their prospects in the pivotal November elections. Continue reading...

Budget cuts, loss of knowledgeable officials and diverted resources raise risk of another attack, experts warnThe US faces growing challenges in countering international terrorism as resources are diverted to other threats, experienced security officials leave and complacency" spreads, experts have warned.It is 25 years this week since the 9/11 attacks launched by Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida on New York and Washington, which killed about 3,000 people and led to decades of conflict, radicalisation and instability across the Middle East and beyond. Continue reading...

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Helena Foulkes beats incumbent Dan McKee after criticizing handling of Providence's Washington bridge, now expected to be completed in 2028Rhode Island's Dan McKee became the first sitting governor to lose a primary in nearly a decade, bested not by a more progressive challenger or a more youthful upset but by frustration over a bridge.McKee lost his Democratic primary to Helena Foulkes, a former longtime executive with Rhode Island-based retail pharmacy CVS, the Associated Press said on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Rubio visits Ecuador and welcomes cooperation after campaign of unilateral strikes on alleged narco-terrorists'US secretary of state Marco Rubio gave new clarity on the approach toward combating drug trafficking in Latin American waters, saying the Trump administration was focused on working with allied countries and aligning with their laws but insisting the military will still blow up ships if need be."The public acknowledgment of a shift in US strategy comes a year after Washington began a campaign of unilateral deadly strikes against those it calls narco-terrorists" operating boats in international waters. Continue reading...

Senator praises great friend' Dave McCormick and says he will help him and Trump to support steel in PennsylvaniaDemocratic senator John Fetterman made a surprise virtual appearance at the Republican midterm convention, delivering a video address supporting Dave McCormick, a Republican senator in Pennsylvania.Fetterman, who has increasingly broken with his party since his election in 2022, said in the video that he would always reject extremes and socialism", repeating an oft-used Republican critique of the Democratic party's increasingly popular left wing. Continue reading...

Appeal against federal panel's approval of Trump-backed maps is latest move in legal back-and-forth spanning four courtsA high-stakes legal battle over Missouri's congressional map returned on Wednesday to the US supreme court, after a series of conflicting decisions threw the state's elections into turmoil less than two months before the November midterm elections.On Wednesday, a federal appeals court panel declined to block a ruling ordering Missouri to use the newly drawn congressional lines backed by Donald Trump to give Republicans an edge in the midterms elections. Opponents of the state's redistricted map immediately filed an appeal to the US supreme court. Continue reading...

Trump administration to seek extra funding from Congress to dismantle' Los Tiguerones over narcotics traffickingThe US has designated Ecuador's Los Tiguerones gang, which stormed a television station during a live broadcast in 2024, as a terrorist organisation as the Trump administration expands its campaign against narcotics traffickers it says are destabilising Latin America.The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, made the announcement in Quito, where he met Ecuadorian president Daniel Noboa, one of several rightwing allies of Donald Trump whom Rubio is courting as a security partner during a three-nation tour through Latin America that began on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Coco Gauff saved two match points to set up a semi-final against Elena Rybakina, who secured the world No 1 ranking with her three-set win over Zheng QinwenRybakina has won four of her five meetings with Zheng, including two three-set victories this year. But Zheng was earlier in her comeback from elbow surgery then, the 2024 Olympic champion is a totally different proposition now, carrying the momentum of seven successive match wins in New York having come through qualifying - and the belief she can turn around any deficit after coming from 5-0 down in sets against both Madison Keys in the third round and Iga Swiatek in the last 16.Here come Zheng and Rybakina, Zheng stepping on to court wearing headphones, not that there's much noise to drown out yet at 11.35am New York time. Both already look extremely focused with their game faces on. Continue reading...

Census Bureau also considers race and ethnicity questions in overhaul that would have dramatic effect on voter mapsThe Trump administration on Wednesday proposed changes to the US census intended to exclude immigrants without legal status in addition to other groups, with potentially significant effects on the allocation of federal resources and drawing of districts in the US House of Representatives.In a proposed rule published in the Federal Register, the Census Bureau also announced it was considering changes to the data it collects about race and ethnicity, amid the Trump administration's push to rid the government of diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Continue reading...

Scott Bessent made announcement on Wednesday as bond yields rose to highest point since 2008 financial crisis

Brent crude up by more than 3% after latest fire between US and Iran in Gulf and Houthi attacks on Saudi cities

The US president seized a nation's natural wealth in a modern-day version of gunboat diplomacy to feed his ego - not to lower Americans' fuel billsImperialism does not require a flag to be planted or a governor dispatched. It can be a powerful nation deciding who governs a smaller, weaker country, and on what terms and for whose benefit its resources will be developed. Donald Trump's kidnapping of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro, putting his deputy - DelcyRodriguez - in his place as president, and then her signing a deal handing a fifth of the country's proven oil reserves to the US, amount to a modern version of 19th-century gunboat diplomacy. Regime change supplied America's commercial concession.This won't bother Mr Trump. But it should. The US president has oversold his neocolonial spoils. The additional production Venezuela is supposed to bring online might bring down oil prices eventually, but not anytime soon. Crucially, what Mr Trump calls the biggest oil deal in history" won't cause the price at the pump to fall before November's midterms. When so many American voters are struggling to pay energy bills, it's hard to see how unrealised Orinoco Belt riches are going to help Republican candidates.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...

Republicans plan to center the US president at the two-day event, while slamming Democrats as socialistsRepublicans are gathering in Texas on Wednesday for a rare midterm convention", as they attempt to convince Americans to vote for a party led by a deeply unpopular president who has overseen inflation and led the US into an increasingly unpopular war.Donald Trump will dominate the two-day convention, appearing both nights as the GOP works to cling to control of the House of Representatives in November. Republicans plan to put the president at the center of the event, a bold strategy given his approval rating is hovering at about 38%, while accusing the Democratic party of being socialist and out of touch with Americans.Chris Hippensteel contributed to reporting Continue reading...

US president often brings up al-Qaida attack that struck his home town New York City almost 25 years agoDonald Trump often brings up September 11, the devastating al-Qaida attack that struck his home town New York City almost 25 years ago.His recollections of that day have repeatedly included exaggerations and falsehoods - including this week, when he shared an anecdote at a White House event commemorating the attacks that appears to be untrue. Continue reading...

An Amazon cargo plane crashed at Miami international airport in Florida after overshooting the runway, striking vehicles and resulting in at least five deaths and five injuries.Officials said evidence suggested the pilots considered aborting the landing before the crash.Miami airport is not equipped with 'arresting beds', systems of lightweight, crushable material that the federal aviation authority says have been installed at more than 120 airports nationwide at the end of runways to help safely stop planes that overshoot

Brandon Herrera of state's 23rd congressional district calls insults against women and unhoused people jokes'A Republican candidate for a key congressional district in Texas has come under scrutiny over a series of derogatory comments made about women in his social media posts and videos.Brandon Herrera, who is the GOP candidate for Texas's 23rd congressional district, has made a string of insults while fashioning a rightwing online persona as the AK Guy", and hosts a YouTube channel with more than 4 million subscribers that tests and reviews firearms. Continue reading...

Anthony Albanese wants social media algorithms to be optional - and it's not the first Musk-Zuckerberg irritant emanating from AustraliaNew risks to a deftly managed personal relationship with Donald Trump have not slowed the Australian prime minister's plans for a showdown with America's all-conquering social media companies.Anthony Albanese, who will rub shoulders with the US president and other world leaders in New York later this month at the UN general assembly, is pushing ahead with changes that would impose fines on big tech firms under a newly created digital duty of care". Continue reading...

The 23-year-old's epic win over Carlos Alcaraz means there is a real chance of an American man winning the US Open for the first time since 2003In yet another graveyard shift at the US Open, Ben Shelton showed he can hang around late, ousting defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in five sets in a quarter-final that started on Tuesday night and finished on Wednesday morning. When Shelton fired the final ball out wide for his seventh ace of the night, the clock on the Arthur Ashe Stadium court read 3.33am. It was the latest-ever finish at the Open and the fifth-latest finish in grand slam history.After embracing Alcaraz at the net, he pumped his fists and greeted his coach's box with a primal scream. Parents have a name for this: the zoomies. Then Shelton looked to the stands and gestured at his mother and his girlfriend, soccer star Trinity Rodman. In his on-court interview, he asked that his sister, Emma, be given the day off. She had spent the entire night and much of the early morning watching her little brother play. Continue reading...

More than 30 properties ordered to evacuate after sinkhole grows to roughly 25-30ft deep and 30 by 60 feet wideThe city of Malibu, California, has ordered the evacuation of more than 30 properties after a large sinkhole opened on Tuesday.Malibu officials declared a local emergency on Tuesday evening after a large sinkhole" emerged near 31630 Sea Level Drive. The officials said the sinkhole was believed to have begun developing on Monday, and had grown to roughly 25-30ft deep and 30 by 60ft wide by Tuesday evening. Continue reading...

Through the loss of one franchise, name controversies and stadium changes, Legacy supporters have created an environment of advocacy and belongingMore than two years of work had led to this moment for the Boston Independent Supporters' Association (ISA). Even before Boston's new NWSL team had a name, a mascot or a roster, there were fans organizing, ready and waiting to embrace the franchise.On 14 March 2026, it finally paid off. The Boston ISA members marched into Gillette Stadium for the Legacy's opening match, following behind the marching band from Boston Public Schools and holding their Up the Swans" scarves over their heads. The group arrived at their seats in the supporters' section behind the north goal and unfurled the tifo they had spent many hours diligently painting. Continue reading...