US news | The Guardian

Predator drones and armored personnel carriers have become commonplace in US cities. Congress has the power to fix thisAmerica's main streets are a warzone. This should trouble every American, irrespective of their political leaning. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are near impossible to realize when our streets are policed so militarily. Our nation's founders would be outraged, so as we commemorate the 250th anniversary this year of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, it's worth evaluating how far off the mark we are in maintaining that much-vaunted freedom and liberty.This past year, especially, witnessed a troubling militarization of the streets, with Donald Trump's deployment of ICE and the national guard in multiple US cities, including Washington DC, Chicago, Los Angeles and Minneapolis. There is substantial documentation of immigration enforcement using military-grade equipment transferred from the Pentagon. And from Chicago to California, homeland security officers' use of flash-bang grenades, predator drones, and armored personnel carriers is now commonplace. But to be clear, Americans were already seeing their streets militarized due to the Pentagon's 1033 Program, which was created by Congress in the 1990s and provides war equipment free of charge to America's police forces. This militarization of law enforcement is now a local, state and federal agency problem. Continue reading...

Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, crushes our people and calls it freedom. We want engagement, not escalationThe day that will be remembered as one of the darkest days of the long and troubled US-Cuban relationship is 29 January. That was the day that Donald Trump declared Cuba an unusual and extraordinary threat" to US national security, introduced a full-scale fuel blockade around the island, and turned off the lights for their home, schools and hospitals.For Cubans Americans like me, the consequences of Trump's declaration are not abstract. They are immediate, and devastating. Our families are running out of food. Our friends are unable to access medicine. While Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, speaks in the name of our freedom", he actively starves our communities of their most basic needs.Danny Valdes is an activist from Miami and co-founder of Cuban Americans for Cuba Continue reading...

With its roots in religious doctrine, the modern move to house, clothe and protect immigrants started in the 1980sWhen Donald Trump fired Department of Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem on Thursday, she said sanctuary cities had made her job hard.Sanctuary cities do give us a challenge because it makes it difficult at times for law enforcement to do their work," she told local police executives from across the country at a conference in Nashville. And we see that many times when a city cooperates with the federal government, cooperates with our federal officers, that it is safer." Continue reading...

Alberto Gutierrez Reyes died in a California hospital in February after suffering chest pain and shortness of breathA man under the custody of federal immigration agents died in a California hospital last month after suffering from chest pain and shortness of breath, with one local official alleging the detainee was denied medical care before his death.According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Alberto Gutierrez Reyes, from Mexico, died on 27 February at a medical center in Victorville, California, just two days after the 48-year-old reported feeling faint" and was transferred to the medical center. Continue reading...

In the early hours of 5 November, ICE agents dragged Juana Avila out of her van, handcuffed and detained her in Cottage Grove, Oregon. Emely, her daughter, soon arrived on the scene and explained her mother had a green card and was carrying it with her. The officers proceeded to handcuff Juana and put her in their SUV. Juana's arrest was part of a lawsuit that secured a major victory for immigrants' rights in Oregon. The lawsuit challenged ICE's tactic of detaining people without warrants or probable cause, a practice advocates say has fuelled widespread racial profiling and chaotic arrests Continue reading...

The former homeland security chief was an incompetent figurehead of cruelty. Her departure reflects Trump's political weaknessWas it the blanket that did it? On Thursday, Donald Trump announced he fired Kristi Noem, the secretary of homeland security, in a post on Truth Social. Noem, at the time, was giving a press briefing in Nashville, and did not seem aware that she had been fired; she later posted on social media to thank the president for the new role that he had created for her as a golden parachute: Envoy to the Shield of the Americas", which sounds like something from a children's superhero cartoon. Noem's dismissal comes after a chaotic time at the department, in which she had endured successive national outcries over ICE kidnapping operations and the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti; corruption and mismanagement scandals within the department; rumors about an alleged extramarital relationship with her top aide and former Trump campaign chief, Corey Lewandowski; and scrutiny over her award of a lucrative advertising contract to a personal ally. Noem's tenure at DHS seems to have been marked by state violence, managerial incompetence, and shockingly unprofessional conduct. Last month, the Wall Street Journal reported that Lewandowski summarily fired the pilot of a plane Noem was traveling on when a blanket (or possibly a bag) she had used on her flight was not retrieved for her when she switched planes. The pilot had to be quickly rehired because there was no one else to fly the secretary home.Noem's ousting comes just days after her contentious testimony at a pair of Senate committee hearings, at which even Republican House members made a point of being seen to criticize her on camera. Just hours before Trump's announcement, the Senate had failed yet again to pass a measure which would resume funding for DHS; the department has been the subject of a congressional funding battle in which a partial government shutdown has flowed from Democrats' demands that new limits be placed on the department's immigration enforcement activities.Moira Donegan is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...

Stopgap measure' designed to keep oil flowing into global market as Middle East crisis disrupts crude shipments

For over two decades the Brecksville-Broadview Heights Bees have ruled Ohio high school gymnastics. On Saturday, they pursue a remarkable 23rd consecutive state titleAs Brecksville-Broadview Heights gymnasts, seniors Rachel Kirin and Kyla Haverdill know that there's only one expectation for how the season ends on Saturday: with the Ohio high school state title.It's definitely a lot of pressure," said Haverdill, who has been doing gymnastics since she was a baby. Most people don't understand that - it's just so expected." Continue reading...

Re-establishing diplomatic relations will support Venezuela's economy, US state department claims, amid push for minerals accessVenezuela and the US are restoring diplomatic ties, the two countries announced Thursday, in a new sign of thawing relations after Washington ousted former president Nicolas Maduro.The announcement came as US interior secretary Doug Burgum wrapped up a two-day trip to Venezuela, part of US president Donald Trump's push for greater access to the country's mineral wealth. Continue reading...

As the Spanish PM decries the war in Iran, other politicians are unable - or unwilling - to speak against the US presidentOn Wednesday morning, Pedro Sanchez delivered a 10-minute televised address with the rather bland title: An institutional declaration by the prime minister to assess recent international events."The speech's words, however, were anything but beige. Hours after Donald Trump had threatened to cut off trade with Spain over its government's refusal to allow two jointly operated bases in Andalucia to be used to strike Iran, Sanchez set out his thinking. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed.

Firing of US homeland security secretary is first major personnel shakeup of Trump's second term - key US politics stories from 5 March at a glanceKristi Noem is out of a job.Donald Trump on Thursday announced he was replacing his embattled homeland security secretary, capping weeks of bipartisan complaints about her leadership after immigration agents killed two US citizens and reports emerged that she was involved in a personal relationship with a top deputy. Continue reading...

Early in a life of service, LaFayette did the risky groundwork for the voter registration campaign in Selma, AlabamaBernard LaFayette, the advance man who did the risky groundwork for the voter registration campaign in Selma, Alabama, that culminated in the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, has died.Bernard LaFayette III said his father died Thursday morning of a heart attack. He was 85. Continue reading...

Andrew Paul Johnson, 45, of Florida among several January 6 defendants charged with new crimes

Suspect identified as Ivan Miller, 22, found after he was tracked in one of the victims' vehicles, authorities say

Backlash grew against homeland security secretary after slew of controversies from Trump's immigration crackdownKristi Noem's year-long tenure as homeland security secretary has been plagued by controversies as she led an aggressive immigration crackdown that hasprompted protests and lawsuits.There have been scandals, legally dubious deportations condemned by human rights groups, taxpayer-funded publicity campaigns, and false claims about US citizens. Continue reading...

Many will regard the ex-secretary of homeland security, Trump's first fired cabinet member, as the worst yet seenKristi Noem once led a dog to a gravel pit and ended its life with the cold precision of a mafia hit. On Thursday, the homeland security secretary confronted the grim truth that she, too, was expendable.Noem became the first cabinet member fired in Donald Trump's second term, a striking contrast to the revolving-door chaos of his first. Like other members of Team Trump, she had assumed that ostentatious displays of fealty to the president would insulate her. Continue reading...

The US president welcomed the 2025 MLS Cup champions in a ceremony beset by tangents and awkward asidesNine minutes and 43 seconds. As Inter Miami's players stood behind the dais at the East Room in the White House with club owner Jorge Mas stood to the left and Lionel Messi to the right; with MLS commissioner Don Garber sat alongside Fifa World Cup 2026 task force executive director Andrew Giuliani in an audience replete with celebrities and sports stars, it took nine minutes and 43 seconds for US president Donald Trump to talk about why any of them were there.Inter Miami won the 2025 MLS Cup; a solid win in an exciting final that merited this traditional visit for champions of US pro sports leagues. But in those minutes and seconds before it was acknowledged, Trump did as he did with Juventus players in an Oval Office appearance during last summer's Club World Cup: he made sports figures the wallpaper for his political and cultural aims. Trump provided an update of sorts on his administration's sudden and ongoing war against Iran, alluded to a potential conflict with Cuba and offered his own glowing assessment on the supposedly booming US economy. All the while, Luis Suarez, Messi and every other Miami player gazed blankly from behind him. Continue reading...

Democratic-backed measure that would have forced US to withdraw troops failed by a vote of 212-219

Trump-backed US senator and ex-MMA fighter a vocal supporter of ICE's red-blooded American patriots'

Emmanuel Damas, a Haitian asylum seeker, was being held at the Florence correctional center before he died

Markwayne Mullin, Republican senator and Maga ally, to replace Noem as Democrats cheer departure of disaster'

Critics sceptical Pentagon chief's plan for increased military force - amid rising US intervention - will stop drug gangsPete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, has urged Latin American countries to adopt a more aggressive approach against drug cartels, warning that the Trump administration may otherwise act unilaterally in the region.Hegseth's remarks come in a context of escalating US intervention in the region, both militarily and in elections, which culminated in the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro - the first US ground military attack on a South American country. Continue reading...

As part of his Maha agenda, health secretary wants schools to incorporate 40 hours of instruction

In leaked chats, students at Florida International University referenced Nazis and made antisemitic and racist remarksIt only took three weeks for a group chat for conservative students at Florida International University (FIU) to become a place where participants eagerly used racist slurs, prompting widespread condemnation from community leaders.Abel Alexander Carvajal, secretary of Miami-Dade county's Republican party and a student at FIU's College of Law, reportedly started the chat after the killing of Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, in September 2025. Continue reading...

Lawmakers cite consistent pattern' in which Americans are being killed without justice or accountability'

The US and Israel started a war that is escalating rapidly, with repercussions beyond the region tooThere will be no quick or easy wins - even on US and Israeli terms. They have celebrated assassinating Iran's supreme leader; their offensive has also killed more than 1,000 civilians so far, including scores of children, according to a US-based rights group. As Iran retaliates, hoping America's allies will try to rein it back, it is targeting US bases and civilian sites across the region - even in Oman, which was at the forefront of efforts to stave off the war. Gulf powers are increasingly irate, though wary of acting on threats to go beyond defensive action. Israel has ordered hundreds of thousands of civilians to leave a vast swathe of southern Lebanon, blaming Hezbollah's retaliation for the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.Those who warned that the US-Israeli attack on Iran would lead to war engulfing the Middle East have proved, if anything, conservative in their predictions. A Hezbollah-launched drone hit an RAF airbase in Cyprus at the weekend. On Wednesday, Azerbaijan reported strikes on an airbase (though Iran denied responsibility, as it did over a missile fired towards Turkey). The day before, the US sank an Iranian warship 2,000 miles away, in waters close to Sri Lanka, as it returned from multilateral exercises with India - killing at least 87 people. And governments around the world face soaring energy prices and rattled markets thanks to Iran's chokehold on the strait of Hormuz.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...

The US president has made the easily debunked claim that there are no wind farms in China Continue reading...

Under RFK Jr and the Maha movement, Republicans have claimed the mantle - but their actions are full of contradictionsOn 25 February, in her opening remarks at her Senate confirmation hearing, Casey Means, Donald Trump's nominee for surgeon general, called on the US government to address key drivers of chronic disease, including ultraprocessed foods, industrial chemical exposure" and other factors. The same month, in a provocative Super Bowl ad for the federal government's RealFood.gov site, Mike Tyson warned of the dangers of processed food. The recent developments confirm what's becoming conventional wisdom: the GOP is now the party of healthy food.It's not just Robert F Kennedy Jr's high-profile moves on red food dyes or the USDA food pyramid. Conservative politicians and influencers are now attacking chemical additives, plastics, and ultra-processed ingredients as drivers of chronic disease. Republicans see Maha, the make America healthy again" movement, as a rare cultural wedge that resonates outside the party's Maga base. The GOP's own polling memos show that Kennedy's movement could be their single most promising midterm strategy. Continue reading...

Is the Islamic Republic a messianic theocracy or a brittle dictatorship? It's neither - as those attacking it are finding outWhen the US and Israel launched coordinated strikes against Iran on 28 February, the campaign was structured like a textbook air war: destroy defences, degrade retaliatory capabilities and decapitate leadership. Iranian air defences - already battered in last summer's war - were further dismantled to secure uncontested skies. Missile factories, drone infrastructure and naval assets were hit to erode Iran's ability to retaliate. And a steady cadence of precision strikes removed senior commanders in what amounted to a sustained attempt to disorient Tehran's decision-making.From a purely operational perspective, the advantages have been stark. Once skies are open, the war becomes cheaper: plentiful, relatively inexpensive munitions can replace the long-range systems that defended airspace typically demands.Ali Vaez is Iran project director and senior adviser to the president at the International Crisis GroupDo 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...

In Dallas and Williamson counties, voters faced long lines, extended wait times and confusion about voting locationOn Tuesday, Texas held its Democratic and Republican primaries ahead of the upcoming November midterms. Democratic voters chose between Jasmine Crockett, the anti-Trump firebrand congresswoman, and James Talarico, the populist state representative, in an election that attracted national attention. Crockett conceded the race and endorsed Talarico on Wednesday, but only after claiming late on election night that she wasn't ready to concede because of a voting issue in Dallas.We don't have any of the results because there was a lot of confusion today," Crockett told supporters at her election-night party: We were able to keep the polls open, but I can tell you now that people have been disenfranchised." Crockett received 45.6% of the vote, compared to Talarico's 53.1%. Continue reading...

Camp East Montana facility, part of the Fort Bliss army base, has repeatedly been criticized for harsh living conditions

Trade court directs customs to repay importers with interest after supreme court ruled tariffs unlawfulA US trade court judge on Wednesday ordered the government to begin paying potentially billions of dollars in refunds to importers who paid tariffs that the supreme court said last month were collected illegally. Richard Eaton, a judge of the US Court of International Trade in Manhattan, ordered the government to finalize the cost of bringing millions of shipments into the US without assessing a tariff, according to a court filing. He ordered the refunds to be made with interest.When merchandise is brought into the United States, an importer pays an estimated amount at entry which is then finalized around 314 days later, a process known as liquidation. Eaton directed Customs and Border Protection to finalize the entry cost on shipments without the tariff being assessed, resulting in a refund. Continue reading...

The Guardian asked US readers about the military action in Iran - their responses were largely disapprovingAs hundreds of civilians and some US service members have been killed in the aftermath of the 28 February strike against Iran by the United States and Israel, the Guardian asked readers in the US what their thoughts are on the latest military action in Iran.Their responses were largely disapproving, with some acknowledging that the Iranian regime needed to be toppled, even with a high cost. Continue reading...

Only one person working job that today would be called deportation officer' has died from act of violence, Guardian review showsSince Donald Trump returned to the presidency, homeland security officials have consistently argued that deportation officers are facing unprecedented threats.To better understand the dangers facing those officers, the Guardian examined the agency's own tracking of its fallen officers, as well as recent violent incidents targeting immigration officers flagged by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Continue reading...

Conspiracy claims have erupted over the star's appearance. These days, I can't blame people for endless skepticismLast week, my ex-wife texted me. She usually does that when my son falls off his skateboard or learns a new expletive to say on the playground. This time was different. Have you seen Jim Carrey?" she asked, apropos of nothing we had discussed previously. It was as if she was asking me if I'd seen her misplaced keys.No, I have not seen Jim Carrey. Have you looked under the couch?" I replied.Dave Schilling is a Los Angeles-based writer and humorist Continue reading...

US-Israeli strikes have continued to hit Iran, leaving a second police station in rubble and damaging residential buildings in Tehran.Intense waves of airstrikes have also hit dozens of military positions, frontier posts and police stations along northern parts of Iran's border with Iraq in what appears to be preparation by the US and Israel for a new front in their war

Harris's 2024 campaign lacked authenticity and conviction. We can't afford to repeat the mistakes of the pastI've got some good news and some bad news for you today. The bad news is, well, everything. As you may have noticed, the world is on fire. The good news, however, is that a savior may be at hand. Kamala Harris, a politician who has never won a presidential primary and lost the popular vote to Donald Trump in 2024, hasn't ruled out running for president again.Harris has kept a fairly low profile since November 2024, focusing most of her energy on promoting 107 Days, her account of her truncated presidential run, and appearing as the guest of honour at the 2025 Australian Real Estate Conference. But she has also made it clear that she still has an eye on the White House: in an interview with the BBC last October, Harris said she was not done" with politics and strongly suggested she might run for president again. Harris echoed these sentiments in a conversation with the podcaster Sharon McMahon last week. I might," she said when asked if she will run again.Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Experts warn backing Iran's ethnic communities could increase the risk of a chaotic civil war. Plus, Pam Bondi subpoenaed by US House in Jeffrey Epstein investigation

President has succeeded in completely politicizing' justice department, experts say, using it to punish his enemiesDonald Trump's Department of Justice (DoJ) has increasingly become his administration's political wing" with criminal investigations of economic and political foes and an FBI raid of a Georgia election office seeking evidence for Trump's debunked claim that his 2020 election loss was rigged, say ex-prosecutors.The shifts at the DoJ have been especially marked since the start of 2026 and the growing politicization of the department - headed by Trump's loyalist attorney general, Pam Bondi - was symbolized on 19 February , when a large banner with Trump's picture was unfurled over the door of the DoJ headquarters. Continue reading...

At the Third Way conference in Charleston, centrists debated ways to win - and were sure electoral success lies with themJoe Walsh half jumped out of his seat when discussion at the Third Way conference in Charleston turned to how Democrats sound to voters.Tone! My God!" the former Republican congressman shouted. The Democrats come across as, like, professors, academics, elites. I mean, my God, rip off your freaking sport coat and talk to me! Listen to me like a regular human being." Continue reading...

Israel's role in drawing the US into a war on Iran is attracting healthy scrutiny. It's also creating a permission structure for antisemitismThe joint US-Israel military strikes on Iran have forced a reckoning that American political culture has been approaching for years, but has perhaps never had to face as head-on as it does right now. It is a reckoning that contains two urgent, legitimate, and partially contradictory imperatives - and neither should be abandoned.Let us start with one simple truth. Israel's role in drawing the United States into military action against Iran warrants serious scrutiny. Whatever one believes about the strategic logic of the strikes, the process by which the United States came to participate in them raises profound questions about the relationship between the two countries. The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, has claimed that the US struck Iran partly because it knew Israel was going to act unilaterally and feared the blowback. In other words, Israeli strategic priorities shaped American military timing, and by extension, American casualties. Continue reading...

The Americans finished fifth in the medal table in 2022. A strong team will be looking to improve that record in Italy in the coming daysThe first-time Paralympian only turned 19 at the start of March, but she has been in the news for her skiing prowess since she was a second-grader. She's also going to Italy on a roll, having reached the podium in two World Cup downhill races in early February. In the 2024-25 season, she had two World Cup podium finishes in giant slalom, and she took bronze in giant slalom and fifth in slalom at the world championships, where the other three events were canceled. Though she was born without her lower right arm, she was still an honorable mention All-State softball player in Colorado. Continue reading...

When presidents ask the country to support a war, honesty is not optionalThe bombs fell in our name before any of us knew. Then the president saw fit to inform us.Legal scholars and politicians alike began debating whether they were constitutional. Markets responded within hours. Cities across the United States moved to heightened alert amid fears of retaliation. Continue reading...

The tournament is celebrating its 20th anniversary and some of the best players on the planet are competing for a title that means somethingFor years, while football fans salivated over Fifa World Cups, and basketball and hockey enthusiasts enjoyed an endless parade of NBA and NHL stars at the Olympics, baseball fans had bupkis, with no legitimate international tournament to speak of. Instead, there was something called the Baseball World Cup. Played without a Yankee, Cub or Dodger in sight, but with representatives from teams including the Montgomery Biscuits, Mexico Red Devils and Winnipeg Goldeyes, few fans in North America knew it existed, or when it was played. The only team with legit talent, Cuba, with players who could play in Major League Baseball, but did not because of politics, dominated the tournament.Then in 2006 came a breakthrough with the debut of the 16-nation World Baseball Classic, which featured legitimate professional stars. The platform was built, the mysterious Cubans finally got to play in the US and the fans came. The tournament averaged nearly 19,000 fans a game, and that included the empty seat, Australia-Italy type match-ups. The face paint was bright, the vibes were October-like and the games were compelling; Japan held off Cuba as they took the maiden crown. The WBC passed its first test with a flourish and moved boldly into the future. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed.