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US president assumed mantle of elder statesman, defending his foreign policy record and urging Gaza deal

The volume of inappropriate emergency presentations via ambulance invites puzzlement that people could be so seemingly frivolous with a precious assetYour ankle has hurt for months, what brought you in today?"It's quiet on Sundays." Continue reading...

The Republican party has more than its share of mean and misguided representatives. But Robinson, the man running for governor of North Carolina, has a good claim to have outdone them allDo you have: a) unconventional scientific opinions; b) an inability to keep your thoughts and genitals to yourself; c) a soft spot for slavery; and d) a US passport?If you answered yes" to most of the above, then congratulations, you've got what it takes to be a Republican politician. As you may have noticed, the main qualification for serving as a Republican lawmaker appears to be bizarre and unexpected behaviour. You couldn't invent some of these people. Continue reading...

Country musician to be honored in statuary hall collection alongside memorial of civil rights leader Daisy BatesA bronze statue of the country musician Johnny Cash was set to be unveiled on Tuesday at the US Capitol as one of two representations there for the state of Arkansas.The US House speaker, Mike Johnson, and the chamber's minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, were to join the state's congressional delegation, the governor, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and members of the late, Grammy-winning singer's family for the unveiling. Continue reading...

Entourage" is too wan a word for this motley crew of enforcers, concealers, NDA experts and crisis PRsI'm afraid I shrieked when I read that Michael Cole - longterm publicist for the late former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed - cannot come to the phone these days. If you covered a certain phase of British public life, you would know that Michael Cole could always come to the phone. Coming to the phone was what Michael Cole did, always to emit some hugely pompous shitblast in defence of his master, who is now the subject of multiple rape and sexual assault allegations. Alas, Michael is currently so shocked that no emission has been forthcoming. Instead, his wife was deployed to inform the press that Michael is not giving any interviews or talking at the moment". However, she did claim he found the women's allegations terribly distressing" and that of course" he had been unaware of all of it.From spokesman to sending out your spokeswife ... I would say life comes at you fast, but of course it doesn't. Fayed ran his entire race without his years of alleged sexual crimes catching up with him, and though he is not entombed in a pyramid on the roof of Harrods, as he wished, he certainly got away with it all. When he died, Cole rushed out to inform Radio 4's Today programme that his former boss was fascinating ... larger than life ... full of great humanity". Yeah - not the third one.Marina Hyde is a Guardian columnistInformation and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, or 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.htmlA year in Westminster: John Crace, Marina Hyde and Pippa Crerar

One person voted before issue reported and system for overseas and military voters corrected mistakeKamala Harris's name initially didn't appear as a candidate for president on Montana's online absentee voting system for residents who are overseas or serving in the military, the secretary of state's office there said on Monday.The system went live on Friday morning. One person had voted when another voter reported the name of Harris, the Democratic vice-president, was not displayed on the electronic system, officials said.Guardian staff contributed reporting Continue reading...

East Germany's social fabric is torn after decades of neglect. Without repairing it, we can never hope to truly fend off fascismSunday was election day in my state of Brandenburg. The morning was sunny, unseasonably warm, yet already in autumnal gold. Normally I just cross the road to vote, but due to a lack of poll clerk volunteers, I had to drive 8km to one of the next villages. Following Google Maps, I ended up on a road so rocky that only tractors might brave it. The thin layer of recent asphalt had cracked over the GDR gravel. At the bottom of the potholes lay the Prussian cobble stones.I was greeted by three poll clerks: a middle-aged woman, a grey-haired bulky man and an adolescent with a decidedly military haircut. Grabbing my voting slip, I couldn't help being moved for a moment by the beauty of democracy. Here I was, about to make a cross they would probably deem degenerate or totalitarian, knowing full well that I deemed theirs fascist. Statistically, two of them would vote for the far-right AfD. Our parish has again come out with more than 50% for the far right, as it did back in May for the European elections. And yet, neither I or anyone else in the polling station ended up with a black eye. The clerks didn't even hiss we know where you live".Eva von Redecker is a German philosopher and nonfiction writerDo 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...

Company may be ordered to recognize union amid allegations employees were threatened during electionMobilizing workers at a Trader Joe's store on New York's Lower East Side marginally lost a union election last year. They may ultimately get their union after all.The general counsel of the US's top labor watchdog is seeking an order demanding that Trader Joe's recognize and bargain with the union, Trader Joe's United, amid allegations that employees were threatened and disparaged from unionizing. Continue reading...

Tens of thousands of people have fled their homes in southern Lebanon. Plus, in contrast to GOP narratives, murder fell by 11% from 2022 to 2023

The truth is plainer than ever: the Israeli leader needs forever wars to keep himself in power. Innocent lives just don't matterBenjamin Netanyahu must be stopped. The horror unfolding in Lebanon is another crime, to add to all the others. Are Britain, the US, the UN and everyone else who supposedly cares about civilian lives, human rights and international law really going to look away while Israel's out-of-control prime minister does it again? That shocking prospect beggars belief.Again" in this context means Netanyahu turning southern Lebanon, maybe the whole country, into a sort of second Gaza. More than 41,000 Gazan Palestinians, mostly civilians, have died since the 7 October Hamas atrocities. Nearly 500 people were killed by Israeli forces in Lebanon on Monday, including many children. Tens of thousands fled their homes. How many more innocents is this man going to kill before he's out of office?Simon Tisdall is the Observer's foreign affairs commentatorDo 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...

Prosecutors raise concerns about lack of evidence as family of victim supports saving Williams from the death penaltyMissouri is slated to execute a man on death row on Tuesday, despite objections from prosecutors who have suggested he was wrongfully convicted.Marcellus Khaliifah" Williams, 55, is due to be killed by lethal injection even after the office of the St Louis county prosecuting attorney, which originally convicted him, sought to have his case overturned. Prosecutors have raised concerns about the lack of DNA evidence linking Williams to the 1998 killing of Lisha Gayle and have said that Williams did not get a fair trial. Continue reading...

GOP state lawmakers are already targeting trans people with discriminatory policies. A second-term Trump is likely to use the US government to launch a catastrophic' rollback of LGBTQ+ rightsOne morning in February, 16-year-old Levi Hormuth took off school, his parents called out of work, and the three began a five and a half hour drive.The purpose of the 350-mile trip from their home in St Charles county, Missouri, to Chicago, Illinois, was a routine doctor's appointment. Continue reading...

Republicans' worst fear is voters turning up in droves to support abortion rights in ballot referendums in swing statesIf you're tired of breathlessly following the horserace polling of the presidential and congressional races, you might consider instead breathlessly following the horserace polling of ballot initiatives to protect reproductive rights. In a sense, they're more revealing.Pending some outstanding court challenges from Republicans - whose dogged commitment to leaving this issue to the states" curiously disappears when they realize they're going to lose - up to 10 states will have abortion referendums on the ballot this year. And it happens that they'll share that ballot with competitive Senate races in states like Montana, Nevada, Arizona, Florida and Maryland. Continue reading...

Swedish driver made a name for herself in Europe but now she aims of winning championships in the United StatesWhen drag racer Ida Zetterstrom discusses her craft, she describes her racing decisions as a series of thoughtful if/then statements. This is misleading. The time in which she can alter her actions is best measured in tenths of seconds. There's no time for thinking - it's all muscle memory perfected over decades in the cockpit. A slight miscalculation can leave her car spinning without traction at the starting line, or worse.When it comes to the actual run, I should be 100% wide open [on the gas]," she says. I should never have to [re-adjust] the throttle or anything like that because, if you do that - first of all, the run is not going to be good. You will never, ever have a good run. Plus, the risk of blowing the engine up is super, super high." Continue reading...

Donald Trump told supporters at a rally in Pennsylvania that their state was critical to his ability to win back the White House and encouraged them to turn out to vote, though he also called early voting 'stupid stuff'. He said: 'If we win Pennsylvania, we win the whole thing. It's very simple.' Pennsylvania swung for Joe Biden in 2020 and polls show Kamala Harris holds a slight lead there in this year's race

Union declines to put planemaker's proposal for 30% pay rise over four years and improved pension to a vote

This blog has now closed. You can read our latest story hereKamala Harris has seen a surge in favorability among voters and is increasingly viewed as the candidate most likely to bring change, a NBC News poll released on Sunday found.Among registered voters nationwide, the vice-president is ahead by five percentage points, with 49% support against Donald Trump's 44%. She is also seen as the candidate more likely to bring change", a potentially significant finding given that other surveys have found many Americans believe the country is on the wrong track. Among respondents, 47% say Harris represents change, while 38% say the same of Trump. Continue reading...

Ex-president gives meandering address in swing state and paints dark vision of America under Democratic ruleDonald Trump returned to Pennsylvania, telling his rally attendees that their state was critical to his ability to win back the White House and encouraging them to turn out to vote, though he also called early voting stupid stuff".If we win Pennsylvania, we win the whole thing," Trump said, soon after taking the stage more than 45 minutes later than scheduled. It's very simple." Continue reading...

Cornelius Smith said he and Justin Johnson shot Young Dolph after brother of rival rapper Yo Gotti put a hit on himA Memphis man testified on Monday that he and a second person shot and killed rapper Young Dolph after Big Jook, the brother of rapper Yo Gotti, put a hit on him.Cornelius Smith identified himself and Justin Johnson as the two people seen on a 17 November 2021, surveillance video exiting a white Mercedes outside a Memphis, Tennessee, cookie store about 30 seconds after Young Dolph entered the store and then opening fire in broad daylight. Continue reading...

Murder dropped by more than 11% in largest single-year decline in decades while rape and other crimes also fellMurder dropped by more than 11% from 2022 to 2023, the largest single-year decline in two decades, according to FBI data released on Monday.Meanwhile, the broader category of violent crime nationwide decreased about 3%, said the data, which is audited and confirms earlier reporting from unaudited statistics. Continue reading...

State senator Mike McDonnell refuses to back plan that would give Trump possible edge in event of a tied electionA Republican attempt to change the electoral system in Nebraska to give Donald Trump a possible advantage in the event of a tied presidential election has been rebuffed after a state legislator refused to back the plan.Mike McDonnell, a former Democrat who crossed to the Republican party this year, said he would not vote to change the midwestern state's distribution of electors to the same winner-takes-all process that operates in most of the US. Continue reading...

Prospects of ex-president's victory could be higher as some Harris supporters unnerved by small lead in swing statesDemocrats are increasingly worried that pollsters are undercounting Donald Trump's voter support, rating his prospects of winning November's presidential election as much higher than headline opinion polling figures suggest.While most national surveys show consistent, though moderate, leads for Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, some supporters are unnerved by the small margin of her advantage in three northern battlegrounds - Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin - which are deemed must-wins in her quest for the White House. Continue reading...

More than 200 people in three lawsuits detail abuse for decades by officers, nurses, kitchen staff and chaplainsMore than 200 men and women were sexually abused as children while in custody at juvenile detention centers in Illinois, according to lawsuits filed on Monday, the latest in a string of complaints alleging decades of systemic child sex abuse.Three lawsuits filed on Monday detail abuse from 1996 to 2021, including rape, forced oral sex and beatings by corrections officers, nurses, kitchen staff, chaplains and others. Continue reading...

Ahmad Alissa, who killed 10 people in Boulder in 2021 and pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, faces life in prisonA mentally ill man who killed 10 people at a Colorado supermarket in 2021 has been found guilty of murder and faces life in prison.Jurors reached their verdict on Monday in the trial of Ahmad Alissa. Continue reading...

Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine could develop into a category 2 hurricane called HeleneThe south-east of the United States is on high alert as an evolving storm system could result in another hurricane just as the region recovers from the impact of Hurricane Francine.From Florida to Louisiana, the US Gulf coast is preparing for Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine and watching closely how it develops. Continue reading...

Michael Kuilan, 44, and Antonio Venti, 52, charged for distributing fentanyl-laced heroin that killed Gentili, 52The second of two men charged with distributing the heroin and fentanyl that caused the death in February of the New York transgender activist Cecilia Gentili has pleaded guilty, authorities announced on Monday.Gentili, 52, died from fentanyl-laced heroin that authorities say she received from Michael Kuilan, 44, and Antonio Venti, 52, who in March were charged with distributing the narcotics. Continue reading...

A pyrrhic victory for social democrats in the latest state election offers scant consolation. The German far right continues to strengthenThe name of Germany's beleaguered chancellor, Olaf Scholz, was not on the ballot on Sunday, as his home state of Brandenburg went to the polls. But it might as well have been. Approval ratings for the coalition of Social Democrats, Greens and liberals that he leads have plunged to record lows. Earlier this month, a far-right party shockingly won a regional election for the first time since the second world war. Had Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) repeated that feat in Brandenburg - an eastern state that Mr Scholz's Social Democratic party (SPD) has controlled since reunification - the knives would have been out for a leader whose party fears a rout in federal elections next year.In the event, disaster was averted. By a narrow margin, the AfD finished second, not first, as the SPD benefited from tactical voting to keep it at bay. But the good news for the chancellor ends there. Even allowing for the particular political dynamics of eastern Germany, a dismal September for the coalition government risks holing it below the waterline. In elections in Brandenburg, Saxony and Thuringia, the Greens struggled even to reach the 5% threshold necessary for parliamentary representation. The liberal Free Democratic party (FDP) was all but extinguished from the political map. In Brandenburg, the long-serving SPD state premier, Dietmar Woidke, retained office only after effectively disassociating himself from the national party and Mr Scholz. Continue reading...

Suleman, who made headlines for giving birth to the first surviving octuplets, announces granddaughter's birthNatalie (formerly Nadya) Suleman - the so-called Octomom" - has added yet another young addition to her already impressively large family. The mom of 14 announced Sunday on her Instagram that she is now a grandmother to a baby girl.Suleman, 49, accompanied the announcement with a photo of an infant's tiny foot behind a pink baby blanket. Continue reading...

Like any parent, I am easily victim to the emotional blackmail of a young child at a loose end. But maybe we should be easier on ourselves these school holidays

Mike Johnson announces compromise after decoupling government funding from Trump-backed citizenship billUS congressional leaders have agreed to a short-term funding deal in a move that averts a damaging pre-election government shutdown and also amounts to a snub for Donald Trump.The prospect of a shutdown at the expiration of the current government funding on 30 September had been looming after Republicans insisted on tying future funding to legislation that would require voters to show proof of US citizenship - known as the Save Act and backed by Trump but opposed by Democrats. Continue reading...

A draw represents a missed opportunity after Arsenal's defensive diligence and gamesmanship frazzled Pep Guardiola at the Etihad

Seventeen people injured in shooting outside nightclub after being caught in crossfire, police sayA manhunt in Alabama for a suspect in the shooting outside a nightclub that killed four people and wounded 17 on Saturday night entered its second full day on Monday.The shooting in Birmingham was at least the 24th mass murder in the US so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. The archive defines a mass murder as one in which four victims are killed or wounded. Continue reading...

Suspect also maintained a list of dates and venues where Trump was to appear, justice department says

Lina Khan made remark on largest-ever US grocery merger, which FTC is seeking to block, on CBS's 60 MinutesThe chairperson of the US's Federal Trade Commission has warned that the largest-ever planned grocery merger would increase costs for everyday shoppers despite promises to the contrary by those at the center of the $24.6bn deal.Lina Khan made the remarks on Sunday on CBS's 60 Minutes while discussing plans for Kroger and Albertsons to merge, something that the FTC is seeking to block. Continue reading...

Departures from campaign for North Carolina governor include senior adviser and campaign managerSeveral top employees on Mark Robinson's campaign to become North Carolina's next governor have quit their posts after a media report found compelling evidence that the Republican candidate previously described himself as a black Nazi, spoke favorably of reinstating slavery and shared other disturbing thoughts on a porn message forum.The departures announced on Sunday include the campaign's senior adviser, campaign manager and finance director, among others.

Corporations such as ExxonMobil and Blackstone also big funders of climate crisis, new trade union report findsSome of the world's largest companies have been accused of undermining democracy across the world by financially backing far-right political movements, funding and exacerbating the climate crisis, and violating trade union rights and human rights in a report published on Monday by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC).Amazon, Tesla, Meta, ExxonMobil, Blackstone, Vanguard and Glencore are the corporations included in the report. The companies' lobbying arms are attempting to shape global policy at the United Nations Summit of the Future in New York City on 22 and 23 September. Continue reading...

Survey by PEN America suggests bans nearly tripled nationwide from previous year's figureMore than 10,000 books were banned in US public schools from 2023 to 2024, according to a report, marking a stark increase over the year before as Republican-led states pass new censorship laws.The survey from PEN America suggested that bans of books nearly tripled nationwide, from 3,362 the previous year. Continue reading...

Experts worry H5N1 virus is more widespread than is being reported as they call for stricter mandates from USDAAfter three more herds in California's Central valley tested positive for bird flu, questions have been raised about the whether true extent of the outbreak in the US is much wider than recognized, given inadequate or nonexistent biosecurity and a persistent lack of testing.The new cases, revealed by officials at the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), bring the total in California to eight affected herds discovered this month. Continue reading...

Democratic nominee says she accepted a debate invitation from CNN but her Republican rival said it was too late'. Plus, the hidden life of Elizabeth Taylor - as seen by her sonGood morning.Kamala Harris has challenged Donald Trump to debate her again before November's election, telling supporters in New York that her rival seems to be looking for an excuse" to dodge a second round.Where are the polls now? Harris appears to have a narrow lead over Trump - but in the swing states that decide the vote, the picture is mixed.Who does Zelenskyy think this global conflict' could involve? He listed Israel, Lebanon, Iran, Taiwan, China, as well as many African countries". Continue reading...

Ridicule should remain an important part of Harris's playbook as Trump's campaign continues to spew execrable liesWhile presidential campaigns always distort and distend time in strange ways, this election already feels like it's stretched on surreally for eons - long enough that several distinct and quite different feeling periods have been pressed into the fossil record.Recall for instance, if you can, the Republican primary. For many months, Republican insiders who should have known better and were paid handsomely to know better pushed the idea that Florida's governor, Ron DeSantis, or even one of his lesser-known and lesser-resourced rivals, stood a real chance of defeating Donald Trump for the nomination - even as the former president remained firmly at the top of the polls and his challengers struggled to articulate a rationale for their campaigns to a still staunchly pro-Trump base. There were never any real grounds for this, but the press mocked up a race for DeSantis and his fellow also-rans anyway, complete with the most irrelevant series of debates in the history of American presidential politics.Osita Nwanevu is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...

In 2021, I see I sent my home-alone eldest 12 unanswered messages over three days. I have to face facts: they're just not that into meTexting your teenage son is like texting a guy who has no interest in you" goes a meme that has re-emerged recently, piercing in its accuracy. I am so proud of you, I love you, have a great day," the ur-version goes; OK," the son replies. Longer versions feature a litany of lengthy mum texts - offers of food, solicitous inquiries, general expressions of love - met with single-syllable son replies. Occasionally, there's the teen son equivalent of a booty call: a request for cash (or food).I feel the truth of it to my core, and it trails on into their 20s. I considered myself relatively sanguine about my sons leaving home: there was no sobbing into pillows or sniffing left-behind sweaters. I thought I projected unconditional yet stable maternal support and appropriate boundaries. Our WhatsApps, however, tell a different, unhinged story: my sons keep in touch in a normal, loving, if laconic way, but my messages - quantity and content - give me a full-body cringe. Continue reading...

The former New York Jets first-round pick is enjoying a career-best run of form in Minnesota. And he may offer a lesson for quarterback-needy teams elsewhereNot long ago, it looked like Sam Darnold's days in the NFL were numbered. The No 3 overall pick in 2018 by the New York Jets had bounced around teams over the past few years and was set to be a backup this fall to the Minnesota Vikings' first-round draft pick, JJ McCarthy. A preseason knee injury for McCarthy pressed Darnold into action, though, and the veteran has made the most of the chance. In a 34-7 romp over the Houston Texans on Sunday, Darnold completed 17 of his 28 passes, only getting 181 yards through the air but avoiding interceptions and firing four touchdowns to four different receivers. Darnold has been one of the league's most efficient quarterbacks in all three weeks this season, and the Vikings are 3-0.Darnold was a college star at Southern California, but his NFL career had mostly been cascading disappointment. If Darnold had never gotten on the field this year, it's possible that the defining image of his career would have been an ESPN graphic from the time he got mononucleosis in 2019, or perhaps another moment that season when a hot mic caught Darnold becoming so befuddled by the New England Patriots defense that he said he was seeing ghosts". For an early draft pick, Darnold had become a sideshow. Until now. Continue reading...

Last autumn, I pared back the clutter to face the white walls of my flat in the bright light of day. It was the start of a more guilt-free approach to healingWhen Jenny Diski decided she would journey to Antarctica, she did so with the four walls of her bedroom in mind. White walls, icy mirrors, white sheets and pillowcases, white slatted blinds," the author wrote in her late-1990s travelogue, Skating to Antarctica. Opposite my bed, in the very small room, a wall of mirrored cupboards reflects the whiteness back at itself, making it twice the size it thought it was."This gave her a pure moment of gratification each morning, and a feeling of expansiveness. A boundless feeling that, when she traced it back, had emerged among the white hospital sheets of London's Maudsley psychiatric unit, where she had been a patient at the age of 21.Kat Lister is the author of The Elements: A WidowhoodDo 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...

Putin will not stop unless he is forced to. It's time to change the way we think about nuclear deterrence, and commit to securing victoryThe western strategy towards supporting Ukraine is dominated by concerns about potential nuclear escalation and the possibility that Russia's invasion could trigger a third world war. It is clear that no democratic state, including Ukraine, wants to see such an outcome. However, over-cautious preventive measures that allow Russia to prevail in its aggression could themselves become escalatory. Excessive apprehension may inadvertently provoke the very outcome the west seeks to avoid.A current topic of global discussion is whether President Joe Biden will approve Ukrainian strikes on military targets within Russian territory using US-supplied weapons. The UK government is waiting for Washington's decision before taking further action. Yet the length of this debate points to a deeper issue: the absence of a unified strategy between Ukraine and its allies for achieving victory and ending the war. The western coalition, led by the US, continues to prioritise avoiding escalation, even if this slows down Ukraine's defence efforts.Andriy Zagorodnyuk is a former Ukrainian defence minister and chair of thinktank the Centre for Defense Strategies in KyivDo 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...