Visitors to one of San Francisco's most popular tourist destinations point to cost, feasibility and its legacy of Indigenous incarcerationIn the choppy waters of the San Francisco Bay, on a windswept rock, lies a crumbling former federal prison that's now at the center of Donald Trump's latest real estate proposal: REBUILD, AND OPEN ALCATRAZ!" he announced on Truth Social over the weekend, to serve as a symbol of Law, Order and JUSTICE."On Monday, the day after Trump's declaration, throngs of tourists queued up for the ferry at Fisherman's Wharf to visit the island. Continue reading...
Dressing to this year's theme of Superfine: Tailoring Black Style', Anna Wintour and her co-hosts Colman Domingo, Lewis Hamilton, A$AP Rocky and Pharrell Williams button up and pull out the umbrellas for the opening of the Metropolitan Museum of Fine Art exhibition
by Robert Mackey, Lucy Campbell, Marina Dunbar, Fran on (#6X2GM)
This blog has now closed. Read our latestDonald Trump's bombshell announcement that Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands" will be subject to a 100% tariff has certainly caught the attention of Hollywood, as well as the international film industries it seems to be aimed at - principally Canada, the UK, Australia and New Zealand, as well as European countries such as Hungary and Italy that have often acted as bases for US film production.Vague and grandstanding at it is, the chaotic rollout of previous Trump tariffs has triggered feverish speculation, as well as defiance, in the film industry in exactly how this might play out. Continue reading...
Two children believed to be among missing as search continues for people believed to be migrantsThree people were killed and seven others, including two children, were missing after a small boat capsized in choppy waters off the coast of San Diego, California, on Monday.The fatal disaster appeared to be an apparent migrant smuggling attempt, officials said. Four other people were rescued after the panga"-style open fishing vessel washed ashore near Torrey Pines state beach were transported to hospital, according to US Coast Guard officials. Continue reading...
University told by education secretary Linda McMahon research grants and other aid will not be provided'The US Department of Education informed Harvard University on Monday that it was ending billions of dollars in research grants and other aid unless the school accedes to a list of demands from the Trump administration that would effectively cede control of the nation's oldest and wealthiest university to the government.The news was delivered to Dr Alan Garber, Harvard's president, in a deeply partisan letter from Linda McMahon, the education secretary, which she also posted on social media. Continue reading...
Former vice-president says tariffs not a win for the American people' and predicts public pressure will growDonald Trump's tariffs policy will trigger a price shock" and possible shortages, and lead to public pressure on him to change his approach, the former vice-president Mike Pence has said.In one of his most wide-ranging critiques yet on the policies of the president he used to serve, Pence, speaking to CNN, derided the White House's wavering" support for Ukraine and declared - in direct contradiction of repeated assurances from Trump - that President Vladimir Putin of Russia doesn't want peace". Continue reading...
DHS claims participation in self-deportation' scheme may help legal re-entry later; administration says no final decisions' made on film tariffs - key US politics stories from Monday 5 May at a glanceThe Trump administration will offer undocumented immigrants $1,000 to leave the US as part of its latest crackdown on immigration, drawing criticism for saying that participation in the program may help preserve the option" for an individual to re-enter the US legally in the future".It is an incredibly cruel bit of deception for DHS [Department of Homeland Security] to be telling people that if they leave they will maintain the ability to return to the US legally in the future'," said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, in a social media post. Continue reading...
Lawsuit by Republican-led Missouri, Kansas and Idaho says FDA acted improperly by easing restrictions on abortion pillDonald Trump's administration on Monday pushed forward in defending US rules easing access to the abortion drug mifepristone from a legal challenge that began during Democratic former president Joe Biden's administration.The US Department of Justice in a brief filed in Texas federal court urged a judge to dismiss the lawsuit by three Republican-led states on procedural grounds. Continue reading...
Chuck Schumer calls Federal Aviation Authority a mess' over days of problems at the major New Jersey airportOne of America's most important airports continued to be hit by delays and cancellations on Monday as the Senate's top Democrat called for an investigation into the chaotic crisis.The problems at Newark, a busy airport in New Jersey that acts as one of the main hubs for New York City and the surrounding region, have persisted since last week, causing serious issues for tens of thousands of travelers. Continue reading...
Marco Rubio and Stephen Miller, White House cronies with very different backgrounds, are up for Mike Waltz's old postThe race is officially on to become Donald Trump's next national security adviser - but in this White House, the personalities and egos surrounding the president can matter far more than the titles they hold.Speaking from Air Force One on Sunday evening, Trump suggested secretary of state Marco Rubio could continue to double-hat as the interim national security adviser. But he also praised Stephen Miller, whom he said was at the top of the totem pole" for the appointment and said he was in effect already doing the job. Continue reading...
Dana Nessel acts after Guardian report detailed her extensive links to university regents calling for prosecutionMichigan's attorney general, Dana Nessel, announced on Monday that she was dropping all charges against seven pro-Palestinian demonstrators arrested last May at a University of Michigan encampment.The announcement came just moments before the judge was to decide on a defense motion to disqualify Nessel's office over alleged bias. Defense attorney Amir Makled said the motion largely stemmed from an October Guardian report detailing Nessel's extensive personal, financial and political connections to university regents calling for the activists to be prosecuted. Continue reading...
Plan to expand and reuse long-shuttered penitentiary off San Francisco described as not serious' by Nancy PelosiDonald Trump has said he is directing the administration to reopen and expand Alcatraz, the notorious former prison on an island off San Francisco that has been closed for more than 60 years.California Democrats called the idea absurd on its face" and part of the US president's strategy of political distraction. Other officials pointed to the closure of the prison complex in 1963, known for its brutal conditions, due to operational expense and the high number of (unsuccessful) escape attempts. Continue reading...
In her Hall of Fame induction speech, the World Cup winner opened up about the new perspective she has gained from retirement and motherhoodIt's been almost four years since Carli Lloyd announced her retirement as a player, and it appears to have been a transformative time for the two-time World Cup champion.In a speech at her induction to the US Soccer Hall of Fame on Sunday, Lloyd struck a different tone than the one she used so often throughout her playing career, apologizing to her teammates for not being fully present as she single-mindedly pursued her goals as a player. Saying she wasn't there to make friends" and that she avoided unnecessary drama," Lloyd was well known by the end of her career for her steely demeanor that ran counter to some of her era's more outgoing personalities like Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan. Continue reading...
Behind the slogans and tariffs lies a calculated strategy - fuelled by elite interests, eroding labour rights and stoking global recessionThe White House, eager to win a trade war it barely understands, has yanked the emergency brake on China-US trade without checking who's inside the vehicle. Donald Trump's early April trade decree has taken a month to hit the economy - that's how long Chinese containers need to reach Los Angeles. And on cue, US pacific ports registered a 45% drop in container bookings this week from China. When warehouses fall quiet and trucks idle in California, the silence will creep eastward. Unemployment will surely tick upwards.Even if Washington reverses course by the end of May, and Beijing plays nice, the best-case scenario is delayed damage. Some goods are being rerouted to avoid charges, but you can't reboot global logistics overnight. This isn't strategic decoupling - it's economic self-harm. By the time the Trump administration notices, it will be too late. The consequences of the US president's rash tactics will reverberate through Main Street. Mr Trump offers a flippant excuse: blame 11-year-olds with too many dolls- not his own tariffs - for rising hardship. Continue reading...
By insisting tariffs on films at least partly produced outside the US, the president is trying to limit the important worldview of cinemaAdd movies to the ever-expanding list of areas where Donald Trump has no expertise or even passing knowledge, but assumes problems can be solved through tariffs and maybe a little racism, as a treat. Citing a threat to national security" from movies that aren't shot in the United States, Trump announced that he would be enacting a 100% tariff on movies made anywhere else.Characteristically, this proclamation was not so bold as to make any sense whatsoever, lacking as it was any sign that Trump understands the difference between movies that are produced (at least partially) by US companies and shot in other locations, and foreign films that are produced elsewhere but released in the US (by, of course, US companies who obtain distribution rights). But the consensus seems to be that Trump is referring mainly to purportedly American productions that are lured to shoot in various international locations by tax credits that allow for substantial savings on big budgets. Andrew Pulver has detailed analysis of how that may work on a financial level, sifting through the detritus of Trump's all-encompassing ignorance to explain why so many US films shoot overseas. Los Angeles film productions have declined in recent years so naturally, rather than creating incentives for more US shoots in the heart of the American film industry, Trump figures the best way to go about it is make it more expensive to shoot elsewhere. Continue reading...
Industry says levies would hit supply chains, making medicines potentially unaffordable for some US patientsAmericans would suffer most if Donald Trump imposed tariffs on imports of pharmaceuticals, as medications would become more expensive and potentially unaffordable for some people, drugmakers have warned.Drugmakers have been braced for targeted border taxes - similar to the 25% levies on steel, aluminium and car imports - after the US president threatened to hit the sector and announced an investigation last month. Last week, Trump hinted at a possible reprieve for companies, saying they would be given time to move their operations to the US, But after that it's going to be a tariff wall put up, and they won't be happy about it," he added. Continue reading...
Is their motto never complain, never explain' or never stop complaining, never stop explaining'? Either way, it's not working for themThe royal family's motto has been never complain, never explain" for as long as anyone asking anything as tedious as a question can remember. Royal watchers trot it out as a devilish smart move by a public relations master-breed. They've cracked the code of how to retain their dignity, their mystery, their effortless superiority and, maybe in a fair wind, even divinity: simply never say anything.Personally, I always found it a bit of an impediment to having any feelings for them. Sure, don't explain if you don't want to, but complaining to each other is 90% of human intimacy. It's hard to have a relationship without it, even an imaginary one. Continue reading...
Five others injured while police say more than one person may have been firing a gun in Arizona restaurantThree people are dead and five others were injured after a shooting at a restaurant in a suburb of Phoenix, Arizona, on Sunday night, police said, adding that there may have been more than one person firing a gun.Police received calls reporting shots around 7.45pm at El Camaron Gigante Mariscos & Steakhouse, Officer Moroni Mendez of Glendale police department said during a briefing. Continue reading...
Corner shop felines are already beloved by New Yorkers - and thanks to Michelladonna's TikTok interviews', they're going globalGrowing up in Ridgewood, Queens, the comedian Michelladonna (real name: Michelle Reiss), knew she could always count on seeing Lulu, a black-and-white striped cat, whenever she ran into the corner store for a snack. She counts Lulu as a close confidante, a silent witness to the goings-on of the neighborhood who knows everyone's gossip.I have literally gone to Lulu at the end of the night and been like, Hey girl, let's talk,'" says Michelladonna, who is 26. That's just part of life here: you say hi to the cat, you greet the manager, and then you continue your day." Continue reading...
A banjo player and a Black Maga influencer, among others, now attend Trump administration press briefingsA disgraced ultra-conservative banjo player ousted from his Grammy-winning band; a far-right conspiracy theorist with alleged ties to Russia; a TikTok creator known as Maga Malfoy" for his resemblance to the Harry Potter character; and an extremist social media influencer" once banned from Twitter for posting a video depicting sexual abuse of a child.These are just some of the new media" personalities courted by the White House to take part in a series of alternative briefings championed by Donald Trump's press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. Continue reading...
Comments from legal team and Trump administration officials could prevent Luigi Mangione from getting a fair trialDuring a 25 April proceeding in Luigi Mangione's Manhattan federal court case for allegedly murdering UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson last year, the judge implored prosecutors to watch what they say - including top honchos of Donald Trump's justice department.Judge Margaret M Garnett pointed prosecutors to a district court policy barring lawyers on both sides from making public commentary that could impede Mr Mangione's right to a fair trial". Continue reading...
Merz takes charge this week, as German industry buckles and social fractures deepen. He will struggle to bring a wary public with himA few weeks before Germany's federal election in late February, Friedrich Merz was forced to backpedal after a daring gambit went awry. His attempt to win votes by forcing through a hardline crackdown on migration had caused a rebellion in his own Christian Democratic party (CDU). Instead of positioning himself as a strong leader, he undermined the entire German political establishment.Merz's strategy involved breaking a taboo by relying on far-right nationalists to pass legislation for the first time in Germany's postwar history. The move fractured the country's normally consensus-driven centrist parties in the Bundestag, sparked mass protests and led to a rare public rebuke from the former chancellor and CDU leader Angela Merkel.Chris Reiter and Will Wilkes are the authors of Broken Republik: The Inside Story of Germany's Descent into Crisis. The German edition is Totally kaputt? Wie Deutschland sich selbst zerlegt
Patsy Widakuswara, lead plaintiff in lawsuit fighting order to dismantle Voice of America, says US government is becoming more aggressiveThe lead plaintiff in a lawsuit fighting Donald Trump's order to dismantle Voice of America has said the media has to resist as the administration becomes increasingly aggressive against the press.I never in a million years thought I would have to fight for freedom of the press in the United States of America. And yet here we are," says Patsy Widakuswara, the White House bureau chief for the broadcasting network. As journalism is under attack, it feels empowering to fight back. We need more people to resist and fight back." Continue reading...
Trump says he doesn't know' if he has to uphold constitutional due process and won't rule out using military force to take Greenland - key US politics stories from 4 May at a glanceDonald Trump has said he sees himself as leaving office at the end of his current term and not seeking a third one - something he has not previously always been consistent on even though a third term is widely seen as unconstitutional.I'll be an eight-year president, I'll be a two-term president. I always thought that was very important," Trump said, acknowledging the constitutional constraints preventing him from seeking a third term. But he added that some people want him to serve a third term, which is prohibited by a constitutional amendment passed in 1947. Continue reading...
President calls films national security threat' and claims he called on commerce department to immediately enact tariffDonald Trump on Sunday announced on his Truth Social platform a 100% tariff on all movies produced in Foreign Lands", saying the US film industry was dying a very fast death" due to the incentives that other countries were offering to draw American film-makers.In his post, he claimed to have authorised the commerce department and the US trade representative to immediately begin instituting such a tariff. Continue reading...
Antihero reject movie starring Florence Pugh and Sebastian Stan a great reset' as Alec Baldwin's Rust falls flatMarvel Studios' Thunderbolts* opened with $76m in domestic ticket sales, according to studio estimates on Sunday, kicking off the summer box office with a solid No 1 debut that fell shy of Marvel's more spectacular launches.All eyes had been on whether Thunderbolts* - a team-up of antihero rejects similar to Avengers - could restore the Walt Disney Company superhero factory to the kind of box office performance the studio once enjoyed so regularly. The results - similar to the debuts of Eternals ($71m) and Ant-Man and the Wasp ($75m) - suggested Marvel's malaise won't be so easy to snap out of. Continue reading...
The Australian extended his lead in the drivers' standings as he beat teammate Lando Morris to the top of the podium in FloridaOK, first, a bunch of Bon Jovi references upon seeing the great singer hovering around the track. Slippery When Wet" is the winner, of course.Formation lap done. Here we go ... Continue reading...
Officials warn people to stay clear of area in Simi Valley after two homes sustained structural damage from collisionA small plane crashed into a neighborhood in Simi Valley on Saturday afternoon, killing two people and a dog aboard the aircraft and damaging two homes, authorities said.Fire crews responded, and police cordoned off the streets, warning people to stay clear of the area. Smoke could be seen billowing from the roof of one home in the Wood Ranch section of the community, which lies nearly 50 miles (80km) north-west of Los Angeles. Continue reading...
PBS's Paula Kerger and NPR's Katherine Maher say they're looking at legal options to defend against White HouseThe heads of embattled US public broadcasters, National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), defended themselves against efforts by the Trump administration to cut off taxpayer funding, with both telling a Sunday political talk show they were looking at legal options.PBS's chief executive, Paula Kerger, told CBS News's Face the Nation that Republican-led threats to withdraw federal funding from public broadcasters had been around for decades but are different this time". Continue reading...
Audrey Backeberg who disappeared at age 20 in 1962 was found living out of the state, county sheriff's office saysA Wisconsin woman missing for more than 60 years has been found alive and well", according to authorities.In a press statement, Wisconsin's Sauk county sheriff's office said that 82-year old Audrey Backeberg, who initially disappeared in July 1962 at the age of 20, had been found living out of the state. The sheriff's office did not disclose which state Backeberg was found in. Continue reading...
Conditions are increasingly desperate. The resumption of humanitarian relief is essential to save civilian livesShameful. That was the word that Gideon Sa'ar, Israel's foreign minister, used to describe proceedings at the international court of justice (ICJ) last Monday. The United Nations asked the court to determine whether Israel must allow aid to enter Gaza, two months after it cut it off again just before the ceasefire deal collapsed. Supplies are running out. Unicef says that thousands of children have already experienced acute malnutrition.Mr Sa'ar's complaint is that Israel is unfairly targeted. The separate international criminal court case against Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, and Yoav Gallant, the former defence minister, also focuses on the alleged starvation of civilians. It is truethat withholding food is a common weapon in war, yet has rarely been the focus of international legal cases, in part because intent is hard to prove. It is the rhetoric of Israeli officials, suggests Dr Boyd van Dijk, anexpert on the Geneva conventions, which has changed that. Continue reading...
President has repeatedly expressed idea of expansion into autonomous territory within fellow Nato member DenmarkDonald Trump would not rule out using military force to gain control of Greenland, the world's largest island and an autonomous territory within Denmark, a fellow Nato member with the US.Since taking office, the US president has repeatedly expressed the idea of US expansion into Greenland, triggering widespread condemnation and unease both on the island itself and in the global diplomatic community. Greenland is seen as strategically important both for defense and as a future source of mineral wealth. Continue reading...
One of US's biggest airports, in New York area, experiences 210 delays and 88 cancellations amid aviation safety fearsFlight delays continued on Sunday as a major crisis gripped one of the US's biggest airports amid aviation safety fears.As of Sunday morning, there were 210 delays and 88 cancellations at Newark Liberty international airport (EWR) in New Jersey, according to FlightAware. The large airport is one of the major hubs for New York city and its surrounding area. Continue reading...
by Nina Lakhani, Lauren Almeida and agencies on (#6X25B)
JP Morgan boss says Buffett represents everything good about American capitalism and America itself'Leading figures in the business world have lined up to pay tribute to Warren Buffett after the 94-year-old announced he would retire as chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway and hand over the reins to his vice-chair, Greg Abel.Buffett shocked an arena full of shareholders over the weekend when he announced he would step down as the CEO and chair of the trillion-dollar conglomerate at the end of this year. Continue reading...
Longstanding Trump ally's LindellTV aims to expose election fraud - and sell branded dream sheets'Millions of votes were stolen in the presidential election - only in the 2020 one, the 2024 one was fine. Freedom is under attack! DEI judges are going after Americans! President Trump is keeping his promises. Freedom is making a comeback! Bed sheets, any size, any color, are available for $25 a set if you use the promo code L77, offer is for a limited time only.Welcome to LindellTV, a strange mashup of a rightwing conspiracy theory news channel and bedroom-focused shopping platform. Continue reading...
President also says he sees himself as leaving office at the end of his current term and not seeking a third oneDonald Trump said I don't know" when asked if he needed to uphold the US constitution when it comes to giving immigrants the right of due process as he gave a wide-ranging TV interview broadcast on Sunday.At the same time the US president also said he saw himself as leaving office at the end of his current term and not seeking a third one - something he has not previously always been consistent on even though a third term is widely seen as unconstitutional. Continue reading...
Trump and Musk's Doge agency have spread confusion and uncertainty among government employeesIn the 100 days since Donald Trump returned to power, the new administration has driven tens of thousands of federal workers from a civil service it has denigrated as bloated" and corrupt". Among its first targets: probationary workers like Cindi Hron.Hron, a landscape architect with the US Forest Service, was one of thousands abruptly fired across the agency on 14 February, in an action some now refer to as the Valentine's Day massacre, executed by Elon Musk's newly empowered department of government efficiency", or Doge. Continue reading...
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