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Trump ally Richard Grenell sends series of hostile emails to Yasmin Williams despite saying he was too busy' to do soThe Kennedy Center's interim executive director, Richard Grenell - a staunch ally of Donald Trump - accused a professional musician of vapidness" after she emailed him over concerns of the now Trump-controlled center's rollbacks on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.Earlier this week, Yasmin Williams, an award-winning musician who has performed multiple times at the Washington DC-based performing arts center, emailed Grenell regarding the center's DEI plans, pointing to the cancellations of a concert by the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington as well as Finn, a children's musical about a shark who feels differently from other sharks. Continue reading...

This form of economic aggression is macho and myopic, yet countries including the UK refuse to give it upAmong the more improbable countries that Donald Trump punished most severely last week was Syria, with a 41% tariff in retaliation for its part in the raping and plundering" of the US economy. That should teach it a lesson for toppling Bashar al-Assad last year.The Damascus regime that subsequently came to power is pleading for help in keeping order and restoring its economy. But the chief obstacle is not Trump's absurd tariff - now reduced to 10%. It is the sanctions regime imposed on it for the past 14 years by the west, including Britain. The US prohibits nearly all trade and financial transactions, extending this to foreign companies engaged with the Syrian government. EU sanctions targeted crude oil, investments, banking, telecoms and more. No tariff could be as severe as this.Simon Jenkins is a Guardian columnistDo 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...

Trump administration is cancelling immigrants' names and legally obtained social security numbers, effectively wiping out their ability to work

Man who says he had previously left and re-entered the country multiple times alleges border officials called him retarded' and boasted Trump is back in town'When Jonathan returned from the US to Australia for a two-day trip to scatter his sister's ashes, he packed only two changes of clothes, leaving enough space in his small bag to carry the empty ashes urn to his home in the US. The trip was so brief he didn't even pack a laptop charger.The Australian says he was detained and deported when returning from the memorial in March, despite holding a working visa still valid for more than 15 months. He has been living on the US east coast for seven years - where his American partner, apartment, work studio and clients remain. Continue reading...

Col Susannah Meyers removed amid reports she distanced base from Vance's criticism of Denmark's oversight of territory Europe live - latest updatesThe head of the US military base in Greenland, a Danish territory coveted by Donald Trump, has been fired for criticising Washington's agenda for the island.Col Susannah Meyers, who had served as commander of the Pituffik space base since July, was removed amid reports she had distanced herself and the base from JD Vance's criticism of Denmark and its oversight of the territory during the US vice-president's visit to the base two weeks ago. Continue reading...

Xi Jinping makes move after urging EU to resist Trump's bullying'. Plus, the supreme court orders the US to help return a Salvadorian man it wrongly deported

We'd like to hear from small business owners in the UK and elsewhere about any impact of changing tariffsChina has raised tariffs on US imports to 125% in an escalation of the trade dispute between the world's two largest economies.US tariffs on Chinese goods now total 145%, while most other countries, including the UK, have maintained a 10% tariff on goods following Donald Trump's announcements on Wednesday pausing reciprocal" tariffs for 90 days. Continue reading...

Advocates braced for revamp of certification system as experts warn of political pressure being brought to bearAdvocates for academic freedom are bracing for what they expect to be the next phase of the government's effort to reshape higher education: an overhaul of the system accrediting institutions of higher learning.Donald Trump has made no secret of such plans. During the campaign, he boasted that accreditation would be his secret weapon" against colleges and universities the right has long viewed as too progressive. Continue reading...

As mass protest surges against Trump and Musk, how can we show up as effectively as possible?On Saturday I was heartened to be one of millions of Americans who took to the streets in cities and towns across the United States to stand against the most brazen power grab in modern history". While no official total tally of Hands Off!" participants is yet available, the anti-Donald Trump, anti-Elon Musk actions on Saturday were certainly among the largest single day protests in US history, with rallies in all 50 states.As we seem to be entering a new stage of popular protest movements, it's worth assessing the strategic value of protest, as well as the limits and potential liabilities. History is full of powerful examples of consequential bottom-up protest movements. The women's suffrage movement secured voting rights after decades of struggle. The civil rights movement dismantled Jim Crow segregation. The labor movement won the eight-hour workday, the weekend and much more. Protest was an essential tool for each of these movements. It can take many different forms, including mass demonstrations, boycotts, strikes, unruly disruption and civil disobedience. Continue reading...

European markets slip into red after China ups ante by increasing retaliatory tariffs on US goods to 125%

The US president has inadvertently united the country against him - and now his tariffs may make Canada rethink its dependence on US tradeDonald Trump is rather obviously the worst thing to happen to Canada since, well, the last time Americans tried to invade. But another possibility is brewing, if in a quiet, careful, Canuckian way: that he could also be one of the best.Trump's threats towards Canada appear delusional. But it's useless to ask if his remarks about the 51st state" are a joke. He doesn't joke about things he doesn't want, and the jokes are designed to soften the ground. He says Canada is freeloading militarily (because the two countries both defend the Arctic). He says the US is subsidising Canada economically (because Americans buy Canadian oil). He says fentanyl is flooding over the border (it isn't). He wants to renegotiate that border, calling it artificial" (like every other border on Earth). Now he has taken concrete action, slamming 25% tariffs on the crucial car industry (which was better integrated with the US in 1965 to help American companies sell more American cars). Trump's 90-day global tariff pause, announced Wednesday, does not apply to the tariffs on Canada.Chris Michael is a Guardian US live news editor, host of the Reverberate podcast and editor of Seascape: The State of Our Oceans Continue reading...

The defensive tackle is one of the most intriguing prospects in this year's draft. But the attributes that make him stand out could also be his downfallDesmond Watson is pro football's next very big thing: a 6ft 6in, 464lb defensive tackle who is poised to become the heaviest player ever selected at the NFL draft, which takes place later this month. He's a unicorn," his coach at Florida, Billy Napier, said last month. You'll go the rest of your career, and you'll never be around a guy that's that stature.A native of Plant City, Florida, the state's strawberry capital, Watson was the Gators' big man on campus, a larger-than-life folk hero to match the school's 7ft 9in basketball prospect. When Watson arrived at college, he already weighed 440lb - or about as much as a standup piano. Watson's legend grew once he cracked the team's starting lineup the following year. During a 2022 game against South Carolina, Watson left 89,000 fans gasping after he split a double team and ripped the ball away from his opponent in a hit reminiscent of Jadeveon Clowney's helmet-popping hit against Michigan in the 2013 Outback Bowl. (It's a wonder Spencer Rattler, the Gamecocks' 6ft 1in, 218lb quarterback, managed to tackle Watson to the ground afterwards.) At last year's Gasperilla Bowl, Watson's college swan song, the Gators handed the ball off to him to get a first down late in the game. I can do it all," he said afterward. Continue reading...

The Philadelphia boxer nicknamed Boots, touted as a future pound-for-pound No 1, carries sky-high expectations and an unfinished family legacy into the biggest fight of his lifeBozy's Dungeon never had a fixed address. For years it was tucked two blocks from the clattering El train in North Philadelphia, past strips of weathered rowhouses and corner stores. These days it sits in a quiet residential stretch of the Great Northeast. The location and sign on the door might change, but inside, it's always the same: a temple of toughness and repetition, where talk is cheap and fighters are made brick by brick, round after round. The ring is sacred, the rules unwritten but understood: work, wait, and one day, your shot will come. For Jaron Ennis, the amply gifted welterweight from Philly known as Boots, that day arrives Saturday night.Ennis, the International Boxing Federation's champion at 147lb, unbeaten over 33 professional fights with 29 wins inside the distance, will put it all on the line under the vaulted ceilings of Atlantic City's Boardwalk Hall against Eimantas Stanionis, a rugged, come-forward brawler from Lithuania who holds the World Boxing Association's version of the title. For Ennis, it's more than a unification bout. It's a prime opportunity to shed the perception that, despite his immaculate record and world champion status, he remains a fighter on the cusp rather than one firmly established at the top. Continue reading...

Professor Alexandra Bituikova explains how face-to-face local activism was crucial in bringing down Marian Kotleba, leader of the People's Party Our SlovakiaHaving grown up in Banska Bystrica in totalitarian Czechoslovakia, I vividly remember standing in the city's historic square a few days after 17 November 1989, the start of the Velvet Revolution, holding candles in solidarity with the students protesting in Prague. Never would I have imagined that 35 years later, I would be speaking at a rally in the same square, this time urging the preservation of democracy.Back then, when I was a young social anthropology academic at our local university, activism was far from my mind. But everything changed for me in 2013 when Marian Kotleba, leader of the neo-Nazi People's Party Our Slovakia, was elected as regional governor. The shock was enormous. No one I knew had believed that such an outcome was possible, yet it happened. Realising the dangers this posed, many like-minded individuals knew we couldn't stand by idly. Continue reading...

Beleaguered UK universities have a golden opportunity. If the government passes it up, it risks billions in revenueShocking stories told at a US universities conference in San Diego described Donald Trump's assaults on research grants, academics and students. Foreign students face deportation for infractions as minor as parking or speeding tickets. A reported 500 student visas have been suddenly revoked - with some students sent to deportation centres, and others told to self-deport". With a million foreign students warned by their universities not to travel abroad for fear of never getting back in, that's a strong deterrent to others deciding whether to study in the US.Jo Johnson, former minster for universities, King's College London visiting professor and chair of the Lords education committee, listening to this list of persecutions, spoke to me from San Diego. The UK should be extending the warmest of welcomes, a safe port in a storm," he says. Concerns about immigration numbers shouldn't enter the calculation about attracting foreign students. We need these highly motivated, highly educated people." He reels off the great benefits they bring: They are our second largest export after finance, bringing over 40bn to our economy. Our workforce needs them, with an ageing population and a falling birthrate." If Britain turns such students away, there will be global competition for them.Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Rumeysa Ozturk says she's experienced difficulty getting care and had her hijab ripped off without permissionRumeysa Ozturk, a Tufts University student who was detained by US immigration authorities last month, says she has had multiple asthma attacks since she was arrested and detained and has had difficulty getting medical attention.Ozturk, 30, was detained by masked, plainclothes officers as she walked in a Boston-area suburb on 25 March. A judge ordered that the Turkish national and doctoral student who was in the US on an F-1 student visa cannot be deported without a court order. But she remains detained at the South Louisiana Ice processing center in Basile. Continue reading...

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Trump told he's causing US economy worst self-inflicted wound'; supreme court orders Salvadorian man's return - key US politics stories from 10 April at a glanceIt was another day of chaos on Thursday as markets sank again after a short-lived rally . The optimism brought about by Donald Trump's retreat on global reciprocal" tariffs quickly evaporated amid investor fears over ongoing uncertainty. Near the end of a wild week - with the US imposing 145% tariffs on China and Beijing looking like it won't back down - the markets are weary.Stocks were even unresponsive to news on Thursday morning that the European Union announced it would suspend 25% retaliatory tariffs against US imports and new data showed inflation in the US cooled to 2.4% in March - both would typically be cause for optimism on Wall Street. Continue reading...

Eric Adams has briefed reporters on a sightseeing helicopter that crashed into the Hudson River. The mayor confirmed that all six people onboard were killed: three adults and three children. The pilot and a family from Spain were on a sightseeing tour when their helicopter went down

Justices uphold judge's order and say Trump officials must facilitate' return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to United StatesThe US supreme court upheld on Thursday a judge's order requiring Donald Trump's administration to facilitate the return to the United States of a Salvadoran man who the government has acknowledged was deported in error to El Salvador.US district judge Paula Xinis last week issued an order that the administration facilitate and effectuate" the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, in response to a lawsuit filed by the man and his family challenging the legality of his deportation. Continue reading...

Pilot and a family with three children who are believed to have been Spanish tourists were killed onboard aircraftA helicopter crashed into the Hudson River in New York on Thursday, killing all six people onboard, including the pilot and a family of Spanish tourists with three children.The sightseeing helicopter broke apart in midair and crashed upside down into the Hudson River between Manhattan and the New Jersey waterfront shortly after 3pm ET, leading to a huge response from emergency crews. Continue reading...

Justin Rose signed for a brilliant 65 to take a three-shot lead after an eventful first day at the 89th MastersNoah Kent qualified for this year's Tournament by finishing runner-up at the US Amateur. One of five amateurs in this year's field - along with US Amateur champion Jose Luis Ballester, NCAA individual title winner Hiroshi Tai, US Mid-Am champ Evan Beck and Latin American Amateur winner Justin Hastings - he's made back-to-back birdies at 3 and 4, and like Davis Riley before him, can now always say he once led the Masters. A fast start for Wolverhampton's Aaron Rai on debut, too, with birdies at 2 and 3. Rai has yet to make a serious impression on any of the majors, but he broke his PGA Tour duck last year at the Wyndham, formerly the Greater Greensboro Open, so knows what it takes to enter the winners circle. Sandy Lyle's first victory in the USA was at the Greater Greensboro, incidentally, for anyone interested in extremely tenuous omens.-2: Z Johnson (5), Kirk (5), Kent -a- (4), Rai (3) Continue reading...

Three-time champion is no longer a fan favourite, with Jack Nicklaus reflecting the lack of enthusiasm for himThe sun was out on opening day at Augusta, and you could catch the reflection bouncing off Phil Mickelson's big old grin as he walked on to the first tee from the next county. At 54, the American's smile seems to be the one bit of his game that's still in good trim. He cuts an odd figure around the grounds these days, in his aviator shades and LIV-branded kit. Mickelson is a six-time major champion, and three-time Masters winner, and by any measure one of the very best to ever do it. He ought to be one of the most popular men here but it can feel hard to find anyone in the clubhouse who hastwokind words about him torub together.I don't know what level Phil is competing at," said Jack Nicklaus in his morning press conference. I guess he's still playing. He's playing the LIV Tour, is he? I don't know if he's playing or not. I don't know. You never see that any more." Nicklaus is 85 now, and while he knows damn well which tour Mickelson is on these days, he evidently doesn't want to spend any of the time he has left watching him play on it. You know, Phil has been a good player, there's no question about that," Nicklausoffered. He has been competitive in an odd event here and there butnot really in the last few years." Ouch. Continue reading...

The uncertainty is keeping contractors from buying materials and discouraging would-be Good Samaritans from offering discountsCory Singer, co-owner of the homebuilding firm Dolan Design & Build, raced to start construction as quickly as possible in the wake of the Los Angeles wildfires. He was determined to stay ahead of the demand surge he saw coming and eager to help his clients begin to rebuild their lives.The firm broke ground in the Pacific Palisades on Saturday - one of the first companies to do so. Continue reading...

Six people have died after a helicopter crashed in the Hudson River in New York City. Media reports say a family of five from Spain and a pilot were onboard when it crashed. The New York fire department received a report of a helicopter in the water at 3:17 pm. The cause of the crash is not yet known

Possible escalation comes after university already accepted changes as pre-condition for restoring $400m in grantsThe Trump administration is considering placing Columbia University under a consent decree, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal, a dramatic escalation in the federal government's crackdown on the Ivy League institution.The university has already accepted a series of changes demanded by the administration as a pre-condition for restoring $400m in federal grants and contracts that the government suspended last month over allegations that the school failed to protect students from antisemitism on campus. Continue reading...

Sell-off comes amid anger from Democrats over retreat that rattled markets, while Republicans praise Trump's art of the deal' in action

Beijing and Pyongyang are aiding Russia in its war against Ukraine, and Moscow in turn is assisting their militariesThe top US commander in the Pacific has warned senators that the military support that China and North Korea are giving Russia in its war on Ukraine is a security risk in his region as Moscow provides critical military assistance to both in return.Adm Samuel Paparo, head of US Indo-Pacific Command, told the Senate armed services committee that China has provided 70% of the machine tools and 90% of the legacy chips to Russia to help Moscow rebuild its war machine". Continue reading...

The US president blinked first, but this is just a time-out. The threat to the global economy remains real.It was Donald Trump who blinked first. Never forget that. China is unlikely to overlook its importance. A week after launching an all-out global trade war, the US president paused significant parts of it for 90 days. Having insisted that he would stick with the random tariffs he imposed on most trading nations, Mr Trump suddenly decreed that he would reduce most of them to 10%. It was a major humiliation.Yet 10% is still a significant tariff to bear for nations exporting to the US. This is also only a pause until July, not a withdrawal, so the uncertainty remains. And huge tariffs still remain on China (now hiked to 145%), Canada and Mexico (both 25%), as well as on all US imports of steel, aluminium and cars (also 25%). MrTrump is now substituting a US-world conflict with a US-China one. The two largest economies in the world - which between them have generated around half of global economic growth in the 21st century - are, in effect, no longer doing business with each other. Continue reading...

Government sources say the UK also not given any advance warning of this week's changes to US tariffsKeir Starmer has admitted he has still not spoken to Donald Trump since the US president brought in trade tariffs, with government sources saying the UK was not given any advance warning of this week's changes to US tariffs.The prime minister defended his decision not to retaliate with tariffs on Thursday, after the UK did not appear to have been rewarded for holding off countermeasures. Continue reading...

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Some cases were related to activism and participation in protests against Gaza war, others were for 'minor crimes'

Supporters say bill is aimed at preventing noncitizens from voting in US elections, but critics say it's voter suppression

Mikal Mahdi, who killed a man in 2004, endured prolonged torture as child and didn't receive a fair trial, lawyers argueA 42-year-old man on South Carolina death row is fighting to stop his execution by firing squad, with his attorneys arguing he endured prolonged torture as a child and did not receive a fair trial.Mikal Mahdi is due to be killed on Friday, nearly 20 years after he was sentenced to death for the 2004 killing of James Myers, a 56-year-old off-duty public safety officer. Continue reading...

The quarter-finals got going with some sparkling highlights. We hand out honours and dishonours from the latest round of actionArsenal Continue reading...

The House, Senate and electoral college maps pose the party's biggest issue. It's time to focus on structural changesIt's much worse than the usual disarray. Even after hopeful election results last week, Democrats are shut out of power in Washington, bewildered over the 2024 election, and staggered by Donald Trump and Elon Musk's blitz to rapidly assert power over the media, universities and the courts, while dismantling huge swaths of the federal government.Exiled to the political wilderness, Democrats have blamed their messaging and messengers. They have sought different ways to talk about trans rights, abortion, immigration and populist economics. They have sought their own network of social media influencers and podcasters so that they can talk to young or occasional voters. Continue reading...

Retaliatory tariffs enforced hours after Trump announces a pause on dozens of levies except China. Plus, France could recognize Palestinian statehood

Exclusive: legislation, named after 2016 Trump slogan, would ban lobbyist gifts and revolving door' restrictionsThe California representative Ro Khanna is introducing legislation that would force White House officials to abide by strict anti-corruption measures after Donald Trump dismantled ethics rules established by his predecessor that turns the president's own catchphrase against him.The Drain the Swamp Act" - shared exclusively with the Guardian and deliberately invoking Trump's own 2016 campaign slogan - would convert into permanent law the ethics requirements previously established by executive order, including bans on lobbyist gifts and revolving door" restrictions. Continue reading...

Prices are likely to go up across the board, from blueberries to new cars, but exactly when and how is unclear. Here's what we know so farDonald Trump backed down on some of his largest tariffs Wednesday afternoon, though the trade war is far from over and the US is still imposing major levies on Chinese goods and a 10% tariff on the vast majority of its other imports.All imports are subject to 10% tariffs, with higher tariffs still in place for certain industries like steel, aluminum and cars. As of Wednesday, the president put a 125% tariff on all Chinese imports. Continue reading...

Mario Nawfal has interviewed Serbian, Belarusian and Slovakian leaders and Russian minister of foreign affairsAn online influencer whom Elon Musk frequently boosts on X has been conducting in-person interviews with Russian figures and key allies of Vladimir Putin.Musk, Donald Trump's billionaire ally and the owner of X, has consistently reposted and engaged with Mario Nawfal, a Dubai-based Australian influencer who with Musk has given a platform to far-right figures and movements around the world. Continue reading...

Beth Benike, whose products are manufactured in China, is terrified' what Trump trade war will mean for Busy BabyBeth Benike knew the tariffs were coming.The Minnesota veteran invented a placemat with bungee cords that hold toys or utensils, keeping them off the floor when babies toss them. It's one of several products she created for Busy Baby, a company she runs with her brother. They are manufactured in China. Continue reading...

The US is bombing Houthi rebels and supporting Netanyahu's campaigns as it sleepwalks into new conflictsThroughout the last presidential campaign, Donald Trump portrayed himself as the candidate who would bring peace to an unstable world. He promised to use his deal-making experience to negotiate an end to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and Israel's war on Gaza, among other global conflicts.If Kamala wins, only death and destruction await because she is the candidate of endless wars. I am the candidate of peace," Trump told a rally in Michigan on 1 November, as he urged Arab and Muslim American voters to choose him over the Democratic candidate, Kamala Harris. Continue reading...

The Knicks coach has long been accused of overworking his starters - a rep that resurfaced when Mikal Bridges spoke out. But a closer look at the data complicates that narrativeTom Thibodeau just became the fourth-winningest coach in New York Knicks history, passing Pat Riley on Saturday as his team notched their 49th win of the season. But as has often been the case with Thibodeau's coaching milestones, the moment wasn't met with pure celebration. Instead, familiar questions around a controversial overtone of his NBA coaching career loomed - namely, Thibs Minutes Syndrome.Thibodeau has long carried a reputation for running his starters into the ground, a narrative built on his unwavering reliance on his first unit and reluctance to tap into his bench. This year, Knicks starters lead the NBA in total minutes played by more than 500 minutes. And the concern isn't new: last year, as New York's best chance to make the NBA finals in decades unraveled amid a cascade of injuries, criticism of Thibodeau's substitution patterns resurfaced with a vengeance. Continue reading...

Pete Hegseth suggests military could return to Central American country to secure' strategically important canalThe US defence secretary has floated the idea of the country's troops returning to Panama to secure" its strategically vital canal, a suggestion quickly shot down by the Central American country's government.Pete Hegseth suggested during a visit to Panama that by invitation" the US could revive" military bases or naval air stations and rotate deployments of its troops to an isthmus the US invaded 35 years ago. Continue reading...

As I discovered then, global problems need international responses. By working together, we can protect jobs and living standards

With the country enveloped in gloom and facing mayhem from the US and Russia, it's hard to imagine a more fraught time to take powerGermany is about to get a new fitness trainer. So declared Markus Soder, one of the political leaders who have just announced a coalition agreement. In one of the quirks of the country's constitution, the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU) will play a significant role in the new administration, and Soder used his moment in the limelight to play the entertainer.It was a curious way to announce the arrival of a new government, expected to be sworn in during the first week of May. Since the elections of 23 February, Germany will have been in limbo for two and a half months, and all while Donald Trump rampages across the world.John Kampfner is the author of In Search of Berlin, Blair's Wars and Why the Germans Do It Better Continue reading...