US news | The Guardian

The lessons of Zohran's victory are hopeful for the left and the Democrats - if the party takes them to heartIn a lifetime of activism, I have canvassed and phone-banked, raised money, and twisted arms for dozens of political candidates. Zohran Mamdani, the 33-year-old Indian-Ugandan democratic socialist and presumptive winner of the New York City Democratic mayoral primary, is the only one I've both supported without reservation and believed could win.Volunteering for a campaign always teaches you something. Often, it's discouraging - like the moment my partner and I saw Hillary Clinton's team selling lawn signs for $25 instead of blanketing Philadelphia by distributing them free, and predicted she'd lose. But the lessons of Zohran's victory are hopeful for the left and the Democrats - if the party takes them to heart.Judith Levine is a Brooklyn journalist and essayist, a contributing writer to the Intercept and the author of five books Continue reading...

Experts say the push to cut federal funding for programs that provide health coverage to children speaks to the lack of youth protections in the USEvery school year, midwife Lisa Isman meets dozens of eighth graders for an annual tour of the clinic where she works. Students gather first in the office's waiting room, where neon green couches, young adult romance novels and pamphlets on loneliness and sexual wellness greet them. On the tour of the Ungdomsmottagning - Swedish for youth clinic" - the students in this suburb of Stockholm, Sweden, will take a peek at the different exam rooms, meet clinic counselors, and pay a visit to the clinic's kondomeria", a cupboard decorated with condoms posed like action figures and stocked with a variety of brands.The required school tour is an opportunity for Isman and her colleagues to explain to students that, from ages 12 to 22, this is their clinic. And they can decide for themselves" whether to book an appointment, with or without their parents' involvement, Isman says. Continue reading...

Residents of Leavenworth are organizing against CoreCivic's efforts to reopen a problematic prisonIt was a lovely May evening in Leavenworth, Kansas, but instead of strolling along the Missouri River or gardening, a group of locals sat on squeaky folding chairs at the public library to discuss their mission: how to stop a private prison behemoth from warehousing immigrants down the road.This was happening in a famously pro-prison town, home to one of the oldest federal penitentiaries, and where Donald Trump won more than 60% of the vote in 2024. Besides the military and the Veterans Affairs medical center, prisons are the largest employer in this community, 30 miles north-west of Kansas City. With federal immigration detention facilities around the country packed due to the Trump administration's mass deportation efforts, the private prison industry is experiencing a boom. Stock prices of companies like GEO Group and CoreCivic soared as they gained scores of contracts. Continue reading...

Lead of Chrisley Knows Best said he doesn't have an apology to give' in interview after release from prisonA reality TV star who was imprisoned for defrauding banks of tens of millions of dollars before being pardoned in May by Donald Trump says there is nothing for him to be sorry about.I don't have an apology to give you or anyone else over the money that I've made," Todd Chrisley said in an interview with ABC News that was posted online Monday. Continue reading...

Using clever tactics and Messi clickbait, Egyptian creators racked up 14m views with highlights posted before kickoff. YouTube didn't catch on until it was too lateThis story was reported by Indicator, a publication that investigates digital deception, and co-published with the Guardian.It was Thursday morning in America and something didn't look right in the highlights of the Club World Cup match between Manchester City and Juventus.Suzi Ragheb provided research support and translation of one of the videos in Arabic. Continue reading...

Senators vote on potentially long list of amendments; White House confirms negotiations will restart after tech tax scrapped.This blog is now closed - please follow the latest in our new live blog hereNearly 300 current and recently terminated employees of the US Environmental Protection Agency published a declaration of dissent today, outlining five major concerns about how the Trump administration's politicization of science and severe job cuts were undermining the agency's mission.The declaration to administrator Lee Zeldin was sent as another expected round of staff reductions looms and as the agency undergoes a major reorganization, including the dissolution of its office of research and cancelling of billions of dollars in grants.Your decisions and actions will reverberate for generations to come. EPA under your leadership will not protect communities from hazardous chemicals and unsafe drinking water, but instead will increase risks to public health and safety. Continue reading...

Asset manager Aberdeen's surprise cut to funding research into inequality has left those that used its grants for good works reelingThe axe fell with shocking suddenness. On Thursday Aberdeen Group plc terminated its Financial Fairness Trust without notice and sacked the CEO, Mubin Haq, the chair and all the trustees, leaving eight staff dangling. The company tells me it plans to move in a different direction. That dreaded phrase marks the end of 16 remarkable years, during which the trust sponsored some of the most influential research into inequality and its financial causes.Aberdeen is a wealth management and investment company. I admired its willingness to fund research not in its own immediate interest, but for the sake of social improvement, as a sign that decent capitalism was possible. Now that's over. The mood has changed. Wildfires started by President Trump are engulfing global companies as his administration attempts to bar asset and retirement plan managers from considering environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in investment decisions and targets private sector diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives with executive orders. Companies doing good are at risk. I ask Aberdeen if that's why it has shut down the trust. It denies it strongly, saying it is just a natural evolution".Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

A biopic of Frantz Fanon and other remarkable new movies are finding success via social media, yet remain invisible at the big film festivalsFrance's involvement in the transatlantic slave trade was historically among the most significant in Europe. After Britain, France had the second biggest colonial empire. We know that 1.38 million people were deported in at least 4,220 documented French slave trade expeditions. Yet the stories of the lives of those people are almost entirely absent from the French collective imagination.Growing up in France, the only images of this crime against humanity I ever saw on screen were in US-made films. I learned about it from the 1970s TV series Roots and from Steven Spielberg's movie Amistad. Today in France, Hollywood films such as 12 Years a Slave or Django Unchained are still the references when it comes to depicting the horrors experienced by enslaved people.Rokhaya Diallo is a Guardian Europe columnist Continue reading...

Bryan Kohberger to be spared death penalty but will be given four consecutive life sentences, ABC News reportsBryan Kohberger, the man accused of killing four Idaho college students in 2022, has agreed to plead guilty to all counts, a move that would spare him from the death penalty, ABC News reported on Monday, citing a letter sent to victims' family members.Kohberger, who previously pleaded not guilty on charges of murder in the fatal stabbings, will be sentenced to four consecutive life sentences and waives all right to appeal, according to ABC News. Continue reading...

Voting continued as lawmakers proposed amendments that could prove tricky for Republicans. Key US politics stories from Monday 30 JuneSenate Republicans are racing to meet Donald Trump's self-imposed 4 July deadline to pass the president's massive tax-and-spending one big, beautiful bill". In a marathon session, senators convened at the Capitol to propose amendments to the legislation over many hours.Democrats, who universally oppose the bill, are expected to use the process to force their opponents into politically tricky votes that they will seek to wield against them in elections to come. Continue reading...

Advocates say the move could turn the tide for other British overseas territories battling for LGBTQ+ rightsA court in London has upheld a Cayman Islands law legalising same-sex civil partnerships, in a move that campaigners say could turn the tide for other British overseas territories battling for LGBTQ+ rights.On Monday, the privy council, the final court of appeal for the British overseas territory, rejected an appeal that had argued the Caribbean island's governor had no right to enact the bill, after lawmakers had rejected similar legislation. Continue reading...

Suspect set a wildfire then killed two firefighters and seriously wounded another in hours-long incidentAs a wildfire began to sow panic in a small northern Idaho mountain community, a group of firefighters who rushed to put out the blaze instead found themselves in an unexpected shootout.A man shot the firefighters who were battling a blaze in northern Idaho after they asked him to move his vehicle, killing two of them and wounding a third, a sheriff said on Monday. Continue reading...

The university has lost millions of dollars in federal grants and faces further hardship from a proposed endowment taxStanford University will cut $140m from its budget in the coming academic year, citing consequences from federal policy changes" including reductions in federal research support and an increase in the endowment tax". The news came in a letter Jon Levin, the university president, and Jenny Martinez, the provost, sent to faculty and staff last week.The budget cuts will likely necessitate staff layoffs, deepening the impact of a staff hiring freeze the university announced in February. The university will continue hiring faculty, although the pace may be somewhat slowed", Levin and Martinez wrote. The cuts exclude the School of Medicine, which will make its own budget reductions. Continue reading...

A great day for Britain, with seven winners as the champion was run close by Italian veteran Fabio FogniniAnswers to my game. Thank you all for playing.1) Wimbledon! The Southfields sign in the background and Waitrose plastic bag in the foreground were a bit of a giveaway. Continue reading...

White House says move will help stabilise country after ousting of Assad and could lead to broader sanctions reliefDonald Trump has signed an executive order to lift some financial sanctions on Syria in a move that the White House says will help stabilise the country after the ousting of Bashar al-Assad.The order was designed to terminate the United States' sanctions programme on Syria", a White House spokesperson said, cancelling a 2004 declaration that froze Syrian government property and limited exports to Syria over Damascus's chemical weapons programme. Continue reading...

Fluminense hit Inter early via German Cano and the Brazilians never looked back7 min: Darmian comes through the back of Cano, and is fortunate not to go into the book. Inter have already committed a couple of fouls, so their next miscreant might not be so fortunate.5 min: Inter try to reply immediately, Darmian making good down the right. But his cross is no use. What a start by Flu, though; the Brazilians, well, flew out of the traps and got right up in Inter's collective grille. They got their reward. Continue reading...

Officials file lawsuit over sanctuary city policies that limit cooperation with federal agenciesDonald Trump's administration has sued the city of Los Angeles over its immigration policies, claiming that city law discriminates against federal law enforcement and is obstructing the enforcement of immigration laws with sanctuary policies that bar local police from sharing information on people without legal status.Filed in the central district of California, the lawsuit says Donald Trump campaigned and won the presidential election on a platform of deporting the millions of illegal immigrants the previous administration permitted, through its open borders policy, to enter the country unlawfully". It is the latest in a string of lawsuits against so-called sanctuary jurisdictions - including New York,New Jersey and Colorado - that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Continue reading...

Homeland security and Doge merge immigration data with social security to create index it claims will stop voter fraudThe US Department of Homeland Security has for the first time built a national citizenship database that combines information from immigration agencies and the social security administration.The database was created in collaboration with the department of government efficiency" (Doge) in an effort to bridge the gaps between disparate information sources to make it easier to determine whether someone is a citizen, according to NPR, which first reported the details of the database. Continue reading...

Cuban person, 75, reportedly died in immigration detention last week, marking 13th migrant death in Ice jails in 2025The Trump administration is on track to oversee one of the deadliest years for immigrant detention as of late after the recent deaths of two men - one from Cuba and another from Canada - while in federal custody.A 75-year-old Cuban man died last week while being held by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice), CBS News reported, citing a notification sent to Congress. This would mark the 13th death in its facilities during the 2025 fiscal year, which began in October. Continue reading...

Suspect charged with 12 hate-crime counts over attack as officials say Karen Diamond died from severe injuries'An 82-year-old Colorado woman who was injured in a molotov cocktail attack on demonstrators in support of Israeli hostages this month has died, according to court documents filed on Monday.Karen Diamond died as a result of the severe injuries that she suffered in the attack", Boulder county district attorney's office said in a statement. Continue reading...

Currency sold off due to concerns economic policies threaten safe-haven role of US dollar-denominated assetsThe US dollar has had its worst first half-year in more than 50 years, as the financial markets over the last six months were dominated by geopolitical crises and Donald Trump's trade war.The dollar has fallen by more than 10% against a basket of currencies since the start of 2025. That is its worst performance over the first six months of any year since 1973, and the worst half-year since the second half of 1991. Continue reading...

Thom Tillis also announces he won't seek re-election after opposing Medicaid cuts in proposed budget billIt is inescapable this bill will betray the promise Donald Trump made," Thom Tillis, the North Carolina Republican senator, said on Sunday night, sandblasting the Senate version of the big, beautiful bill" that is meant to codify the president's agenda.Tillis made his speech on the Senate floor on Sunday night, a few hours after announcing he would not seek re-election in politically competitive North Carolina. Observers described it as fiery" and savage". But Tillis carefully avoided direct criticism of the president as he denounced proposed cuts to Medicaid, a lack of rigor in the legislative process and the Senate's headlong drive to an artificial deadline. Continue reading...

Letter reportedly threatens loss of all federal financial resources' over treatment of Jewish and Israeli studentsThe Trump administration has concluded that Harvard University violated federal civil rights law in its handling of Jewish and Israeli students, and it threatened the school with a potential loss of all federal financial resources" as a result, according to the Wall Street Journal.In a Monday letter addressed to the Harvard president, Alan Garber, administration attorneys stated that the university was aware Jewish and Israeli students felt unsafe on campus but failed to take meaningful action. The letter, obtained by the Journal, accused Harvard of deliberate indifference" toward those concerns. Continue reading...

Case filed when JD Vance was senatorial candidate claims that restrictions impede first amendment rightsThe US supreme court agreed on Monday to hear a case that could further erode restrictions on money in politics, in a challenge that comes in part from Vice-President JD Vance.The National Republican Senatorial Committee, National Republican Congressional Committee, Vance and Steve Chabot, a former Republican congressman from Ohio, are challenging limits set on how much political parties can spend in coordination with candidates. The case was filed when Vance was a senatorial candidate, in 2022. Continue reading...

Police find body of suspect, who they said started the fire intentionally to ambush first respondersA man armed with a rifle intentionally started a wildfire and then began shooting at first responders in a northern Idaho mountain community, killing two firefighters and wounding a third during a barrage of gunfire over several hours, authorities said.A shelter-in-place order was lifted on Sunday night after a tactical response team used mobile phone data to home in" on a wooded area where they found the suspect's body with a firearm nearby as flames rapidly approached, said Bob Norris, the Kootenai county sheriff. Continue reading...

Luis Alvarez being held in jail after police stopped him and said he was driving without headlights onA man who helped rescue a nine-year-old girl after she was attacked and badly injured by a shark in Florida has been detained by immigration authorities - and he could face deportation.Luis Alvarez was stopped in the early hours of 14 June after police said he was driving without headlights on, according to an arrest report seen by the Fort Myers News-Press. The paper revealed Alvarez was being held in jail by the US's immigration and customs enforcement (Ice). Continue reading...

Extremely tragic situation' as all six people onboard Cessna 441 bound for Montana died in crash on SundaySix people were killed when a small plane crashed minutes after taking off from an Ohio airport, officials said.The Cessna 441 with six people on board crashed near Youngstown-Warren regional airport on Sunday morning, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Authorities remained on the scene on Monday. Continue reading...

Trump administration says Jose Ramon Hernandez Reyes owned SUV Salvadorian allegedly used to smuggle migrantsCourt records show that the Trump administration has agreed to spare from deportation a key witness in the federal prosecution of Kilmar Abrego Garcia in exchange for his cooperation in the case.Jose Ramon Hernandez Reyes, 38, has been convicted of smuggling migrants and illegally re-entering the United States after having been deported. He also pleaded guilty to deadly conduct" in connection with a separate incident where he drunkenly fired a gun in a Texas community. Continue reading...

Missing stars and short on sparkle, the USMNT have still found something vital at this Gold Cup: a renewed sense of belief, identity and collective fightYou can, as they say, only beat the teams in front of you. You can only play with the guys you've got. And you can only overcome the challenges you are confronted with.When the United States men's national team gathered to embark on the ongoing Concacaf Gold Cup in early June, success at the regional championship was tricky to define for the seven-time champions. They would, after all, be appearing absent 10 regulars and entering an event that hardly offered up the world's strongest opposition. Continue reading...

President insulted Republican senator and threatened to back his primary challenger after he opposed domestic bill. Plus, how a generation of virgins' is leading America's next sexual revolutionGood morning.Thom Tillis announced yesterday that he would not run for re-election to the US Senate next year, one day after the North Carolina Republican's vote against Donald Trump's signature piece of domestic legislation prompted the president to launch a barrage of threats and insults - as well as promise to support a primary challenger to defeat him in their party's 2026 primary.What is the latest on Trump's big beautiful bill'? The US Senate opened debate on the sprawling domestic policy legislation yesterday. Formal debate on the measure began after Democrats forced Senate clerks to read the entire 940-page bill aloud, to underscore their argument that the public is largely unaware of what the package actually contains.Follow live updates here.What's happening with the planned ceasefire talks? Israeli officials are due in Washington for a new ceasefire push by the US, which is fuelling the war by providing weapons to the Israeli military. Israel's strategic affairs minister, Ron Dermer, is expected at the White House later today for talks on Iran and Gaza, an Israeli official said. Continue reading...

Experts stress that a weakened Iran isn't in a position to attack on US soil and doesn't want to invite Trump's wrathAs the war between Iran and Israel intensified, teasing the eventual involvement of the US military, American security agencies began to warn of a looming threat of Tehran-backed sleeper cells" known to be active stateside that could be called in for retaliatory attacks.But as the B-2 bombers struck nuclear sites across Iran and the Iranian military responded with a missile barrage on US bases in the region, a ceasefire took shape. In the end, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) - Iran's elite military and intelligence branch, wielding a global web of terrorist groups and agents acting on its behalf - didn't appear to sponsor or carry out any covert operations inside the US, nor has it since. Continue reading...

Working with the Trump administration, the data company could be used to target the president's opponentsDraw a circle around all the assets in the US now devoted to artificial intelligence.Draw a second circle around all the assets devoted to the US military.The 1920s were the last decade in American history during which one could be genuinely optimistic about politics. Since 1920, the vast increase in welfare beneficiaries and the extension of the franchise to women - two constituencies that are notoriously tough for libertarians - have rendered the notion of capitalist democracy' into an oxymoron.Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is a professor of public policy emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a Guardian US columnist. His newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com Continue reading...

Boy's Virginia home town commends remarkable heroism' after he singlehandedly rescued grandmother and siblingsA city in Virginia has awarded a hero's proclamation to a 12-year-old boy who rescued his grandmother and two younger siblings from a fire that burned their house down recently.The courage that Ramir Parker demonstrated when confronted with the blaze is a shining example of resilience, responsibility and the power of instinctive leadership in our youth", said the proclamation that officials in Petersburg gave to the local seventh-grade student. Continue reading...

Workers claim the company has used AI to deny requests for accommodation and policed an employee Slack channelDisabled corporate workers at Amazon have accused the company of engaging in systemic discrimination", aggressively quashing their attempts to organize, and using artificial intelligence systems that they allege do not comply with US disability laws.At the center of the Amazon workers' complaints are allegations that the company has denied requests for accommodations for disabled staff in an automated" or semi automated" way and have allegedly repeatedly removed messages and a petition from an employee Slack channel. Continue reading...

A lockdown order at the scene of a sniper ambush that killed two firefighters has been lifted after authorities found the body of a man with a firearm nearby. Police say firefighters were ambushed by sniper fire while responding to a blaze in a northern Idaho mountain community

The vicious reaction to his New York mayoral success tells us this: the establishment will not countenance mainstream voters making common cause with MuslimsZohran Mamdani's stunning win in New York's mayoral primary has been a tale of two cities, and two Americas. In one, a young man with hopeful, progressive politics went up against the decaying gods of the establishment, with their giant funding and networks and endorsements from Democratic scions, and won. In another, in an appalling paroxysm of racism and Islamophobia, a Muslim antisemite has taken over the most important city in the US, with an aim to impose some socialist/Islamist regime. Like effluent, pungent and smearing, anti-Muslim hate spread unchecked and unchallenged after Mamdani's win. It takes a lot from the US to shock these days, but Mamdani has managed to stir, or expose, an obscene degree of mainstreamed prejudice.Politicians, public figures, members of Donald Trump's administration and the cesspit of social media clout-chasers all combined to produce what can only be described as a collective self-induced hallucination; an image of a burqa swathed over the Statue of Liberty; the White House deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, stating that Mamdani's win is what happens when a country fails to control immigration. Republican congressman Andy Ogles has decided to call Mamdani little muhammad" and is petitioning to have him denaturalised and deported. He has been called a Hamas terrorist sympathiser", and a jihadist terrorist". Continue reading...

Former Chelsea manager answers your questions on life and work in the US, what she's looking forward to in this summer's Euros and pining for roast chicken

Makers of Aston Martins and Range Rovers expect high demand but British farmers say they have been used as collateralShiploads of Minis, Aston Martins and Range Rovers will set sail for the US on Monday as the UK-US trade deal kicks in, but British farmers say they have been used as collateral to save the car industry.Auto shipments across the Atlantic were down more than half in May after Donald Trump's imposition of a 25% tariff on 3 April on top of an existing 2.5% levy. Continue reading...

US Senate opens debate as budget office finds bill will also result in even bigger losses to healthcare coverage; Trump considers forcing journalists to reveal sources over Iran report - key US politics stories from Sunday 29 June at a glanceThe US Senate has opened debate on what Donald Trump calls his big beautiful bill" as new analysis says changes made to it in the chamber will add nearly $3.3tn to the nation's debt load while resulting in even steeper losses in healthcare coverage.The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office's analysis adds to the challenges for Republicans as they push to get the bill over the line by the US president's self-imposed deadline of 4 July. After release of the bill's new costs, Trump cajoled and threatened lawmakers from his own party, posting on his Truth Social platform: REMEMBER, you still have to get reelected." Continue reading...

Pride parades took place across the world over the weekend in support of LGBTQ+ rights.From New York to Madrid, marchers filled the streets with music and calls for equality. Many carried messages of protest, highlighting ongoing discrimination and growing political pressure in several countries. In Istanbul, police detained more than 50 people as they tried to take part in a Pride March, which authorities had banned as part of a years-long clampdown on LGBTQ+ events, an opposition politician said

Democrats required clerks to read aloud the 940-page bill focused on tax cuts, immigration policy and healthcareThe US Senate opened debate on Donald Trump's sprawling domestic policy legislation on Sunday, the package of tax cuts, increased spending on immigration enforcement, and drastic reductions in funding for healthcare and nutrition assistance that the president calls his big beautiful bill".Formal debate on the measure began after Democrats forced Senate clerks to read the entire 940-page bill aloud, to underscore their argument that the public is largely unaware of what the package Trump branded beautiful" actually contains, and to delay a final vote until Monday. Continue reading...

President insulted Republican senator and threatened to back his primary challenger after he opposed domestic billThom Tillis announced on Sunday that he will not run for re-election to the US Senate next year, one day after the North Carolina Republican's vote against Donald Trump's signature piece of domestic legislation prompted the president to launch a barrage of threats and insults - as well as promise to support a primary challenger to defeat him in their party's 2026 primary.In Washington over the last few years, it's become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species," Tillis said in a statement sent to reporters. Continue reading...

Amir-Saeid Iravani says Tehran is ready for negotiations but Trump's unconditional surrender is not negotiation'Amir-Saeid Iravani, Iran's ambassador to the United Nations, said on Sunday that the Islamic republic's nuclear enrichment will never stop" because it is permitted for peaceful energy" purposes under the treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.The enrichment is our right, an inalienable right, and we want to implement this right," Iravani told CBS News, adding that Iran was ready for negotiations but unconditional surrender is not negotiation. It is dictating the policy toward us." Continue reading...

Cause unknown after several homes faced extensive fallout, including collapses, firefighters sayOne person died and two others were injured after an explosion damaged several homes on Philadelphia's north side early on Sunday, according to authorities.Firefighters responded to a report of an explosion just before 5am, according to the Philadelphia fire department. Continue reading...