The devastating toll of recent attacks and the advance of Russian troops are prompting questions at homeUkraine's audacious August incursion into Russian territory was a welcome fillip for national morale, and a message to foreign backers that Kyiv could still take the initiative after the disappointing counteroffensive of 2023. A more sober mood has now asserted itself with Moscow's retaliation for the humiliation.A strike on Lviv on Wednesday left at least seven dead and 53 injured, while another killed more than 50 people at a military training institution and hospital in Poltava the previous day. At the weekend, a 14-year-old girl was among at least seven people killed in Kharkiv when a bomb hit a playground. The Russian advance in eastern Ukraine also appears to be picking up steam, with tens of thousands preparing to flee. Losing Pokrovsk, a big logistics hub, would be a serious blow. There are also reports that Iran is expected to ship missiles to Russia imminently". Continue reading...

Ex-president diverts resources from states he boasted about winning while Biden was Democratic candidate

Grief and shock mix with fond memories of the two students and two teachers killed in Wednesday's shootingFour people were killed in the shooting on Wednesday at Apalachee high school outside Atlanta, Georgia. Two were students, both aged 14, and two were mathematics teachers.Christian Angulo, 14 Continue reading...

Identifying clusters of Black voters and their motivations can help tailor voter engagement strategies, organizers sayBlack voters in the US are often lumped into one bloc, but a new national survey has found that they are actually defined by specific clusters: legacy civil rights, secular progressives, next-gen traditionalist, rightfully cynical and race-neutral conservative.These clusters indicate that there are incredible differences within the Black community, in terms of how people think about democracy and their role in our democracy," said Katrina Gamble, CEO of Sojourn Strategies during a press conference on Wednesday, Continue reading...

I assumed Bianca wanted to regress to the role of little girl. But she had a story to share with them about a life well livedMy elderly neighbour said something to me that has haunted me for the past two years.She said, I am old. I could die soon. When? Two or three years? Even so, I would give up two years of my life to spend one afternoon with my mum and dad." Continue reading...

Conservatives think giving children free lunch at school is socialism, but vast, powerful private monopolies are freedomThe Trump campaign, flanked by an army of online trolls commanded by Elon Musk, has been struggling to settle on an attack line against the Democratic ticket. Of course, a decade or so ago no one would have thought a candidate unable to think of nasty nicknames had a problem; but Donald Trump has made us all ask stupider questions and have stupider thoughts. If in doubt, though - and no matter what any Democrat actually does or says - the Republican party will level the charges of socialism" and communism" against them.To state the obvious: free lunches - ensuring that poor kids won't go hungry - are not communism. The one time in recent history that the US clearly resembled the Soviet Union - empty shelves and long lines outside shops - was under Trump; to be sure, other countries also had supply chain problems during Covid-19, but the former president proved exceptionally irresponsible and incompetent. But there's another, less obvious similarity with the late Soviet Union in particular: the experience of being at the mercy of bureaucrats. No, not the DMV, but vast private corporations with quasi-monopoly power, something with which Trump's Republican party, unlike the Biden administration, is evidently fine.Jan-Werner Muller is a professor of politics at Princeton University and a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...

Maricopa county supervisor Bill Gates revealed he had post-traumatic stress in 2023. Now, he's passing the batonBill Gates, an election official in Arizona, revealed in 2023 that he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress from the threats that came along with his job.But he doesn't want to focus on that. The soon-to-be retired Maricopa county supervisor wants to talk about his new role, training the next generation of elections officials. Continue reading...

The firebrand lieutenant governor is being outspent, largely on ads using his own extreme rhetoric to define himThe North Carolina gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson's campaign ad spending appears to have completely collapsed in the wake of the Republican's mounting scandals and increasingly dire poll numbers.The lieutenant governor's apparent shortfall comes despite changes to North Carolina's campaign finance laws, which would make it easier for national donors to contribute to his campaign without leaving fingerprints on their money. Continue reading...

Tennis is still the main attraction at the US Open. But it has become a more of a background feature at a monument to conspicuous consumption and wealthThe latest harbinger of doom at the US Open isn't a bad call or a broken superstition. It's tennis balls the size of a pumpkin.As the action on court winds towards the finish, hordes of children can be observed overwhelming ushers to take up position in the front row with these giant balls, a pen and the expectation of a signature. For a player on the brink of defeat, these cherubic autograph seekers aren't just a sign that their tournament has come to an end. The autograph hoarders, as well as the cocktail fiends and commemorative towel collectors, reveal the extent to which the hunger for personal moments and mementoes has overshadowed the appetite for actual tennis. Continue reading...

For almost a century, opponents have removed the ic' from Democratic'. Is it doing them any good?The Democratic party? Robert F Kennedy Jr's never heard of it.On Tuesday, the former presidential candidate issued his latest condemnation of the Democrat party", endorsing a bizarre linguistic tradition among haters of the institution. As Donald Trump told a rally in 2018: I call it the Democrat party. It sounds better rhetorically." By better", of course, he meant worse", as he explained the next year: he prefers to say the Democrat party' because it doesn't sound good". Continue reading...

A pause for polio vaccinations is welcome, but the disease's presence is a window on the true cost of Israel's warIn August, a 10-month-old baby in Gaza was partly paralysed from polio, the first confirmed case there in 25 years. The paralysis is probably permanent, and there are no treatments for polio. We have a safe and effective vaccine to prevent serious disease, but the ongoing war in the region has meant vaccination campaigns have stopped. A polio outbreak seems inevitable given that the disease spreads through dirty water and rubbish, which surrounds those living in tents in camps.Fortunately, a series of nine-hour pauses over sequential days has been agreed so that children can be vaccinated as part of an emergency UN health campaign. The first of these three-day periods concluded on Tuesday; the next will continue to the end of the week. But whether the fighting will stop completely is a major worry: Israeli forces have attacked hospitals, schools, aid trucks and UN workers in the past. UN agencies like the World Food Programme are no longer sending staff into Gaza after Israeli forces opened fire on a marked World Food Programme truck - even after the vehicle had received clearances from Israeli authorities. It's all very well agreeing a pause on paper; the true test will be whether it is honoured in real life.Prof Devi Sridhar is chair of global public health at the University of EdinburghDo 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...

Jails where NaphCare is contracted have seen the highest death tolls compared with any healthcare providerWhen Isaiah Trammell experienced a mental health episode while detained at Ohio's Montgomery county jail in February last year, he pleaded for a blanket, a mat and a phone call.He was denied them because he was on suicide precautions. Continue reading...

Michigan, Pennsylvania, New Mexico and Nevada submit election deniers who attempted elect Trump in 2020State Republican parties have nominated 14 of the 84 fake electors from the 2020 presidential election to serve again as Republican party presidential electors, an indication of the legitimacy that election deniers continue to hold in some quarters of the GOP.The Republican parties of Michigan, Pennsylvania, New Mexico and Nevada have each nominated one or more electors who attempted to submit themselves as electors for Donald Trump and Mike Pence in 2020 despite the former president losing in their states. Continue reading...

As gambling revenue has increased in recent years, so has the need for gambling prevention and treatment - but the industry has largely avoided this issueThe gambling industry contributes billions to the US economy, provides jobs and has become a popular form of entertainment. Legislators and government officials celebrate the huge tax revenue generated by this booming industry.But this financial focus should not overshadow the importance of addressing the growing number of problem gamblers. Continue reading...

FBI says it investigated suspect and his father a year ago. Plus, con artist Anna Sorokin to don ankle monitor on Dancing With the Stars

Officials from civil rights division to investigate two prisons that have been plagued by allegations of endemic' abuseThe US justice department has opened a civil rights investigation into sexual abuse by staff at California's women's prisons, which have for years been plagued by misconduct scandals.The department said on Wednesday that it was investigating the state's two women's prisons - the Central California Women's Facility (CCWF) in Chowchilla and the California Institution for Women (CIW) in Chino - and would evaluate whether the state protects incarcerated residents from sexual abuse by correctional employees. Continue reading...

What happens to our hearts when we are encased in a field of malevolence and hatred that daily threatens our stability and peace?I have been thinking about fascism long before I even knew I was thinking about it. I lived for years inside the mind, the home, the terror of my tyrannical father who used violence as the methodology to sustain his power over every aspect of our existence. In order to achieve that power he separated and divided us. He isolated us, used us against each other and made us lonely.Hannah Arendt wrote about loneliness in the Origins of Totalitarianism, published in 1951: What prepares men for totalitarian domination in the non-totalitarian world is the fact that loneliness, once a borderline experience usually suffered in certain marginal social conditions like old age, has become an everyday experience." Continue reading...

The NFL season kicks off on Thursday night. Which rookies will impress? Will Aaron Rodgers make it out of the first quarter? And who will win it all?Who else? Patrick Mahomes, pretty much like he has been the last five seasons, will be the NFL's main focal point. Mahomes, entering his eighth NFL season, has led the Chiefs to three Super Bowl victories and another AFC title, and he won't turn 29 until next month. He is prolific, intelligent, inventive - and, as important, durable. Dave Caldwell Continue reading...

The Conservative leadership race reveals a party still banging the same old drums. Natural Tory voters are looking on askanceTwo months on from the Tories' worst election result in its history, none of its prospective leadership candidates inspire confidence in a fast bounce-back. Research by More in Common found that 70% of the public either didn't know who could win the next election for the Tories, or thought none of them could. James Cleverly, third place in Wednesday's vote among MPs, did best: 8% of respondents believed he could turn things round. Results are starkest for Mel Stride (still in the contest by the skin of his teeth): 1% of general voters and 1% of 2024 Conservative voters polled think he stands a chance. Priti Patel is now out of the race, but Tom Tugendhat, Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick all hover around 5% of general voters, perhaps reflecting the fact they've done little to distinguish themselves from one another - instead chasing the same fervid, anti-immigrant dreamscape. But surely the worst finding is that voters are starting to find the party weird".It's a word that's been deployed to devastating effect in the US, where Tim Walz detonates it folksily against Donald Trump and the entire Republican party. That stuff is weird. They come across weird," he said. It is a line he has repeated in slightly different iterations across the pre-campaign trail. Walz could be talking about anything: Trump's rambling speeches, or his hair, or the spectacle of a billionaire blatantly fighting for the interests of capital with grand, pugnacious rhetoric about the working man. It's all weird. A poster doing the rounds on social media reads: We're not perfect, but they're nuts! Vote Democrat". It's close, but it's no bullseye: often the Republican stance is perfectly sane, in the sense that self-interest is sane and seeking victory is sane. But it's still, objectively, weird.Zoe Williams is a Guardian columnistThis article was corrected on Thursday 5 September 2024 to say that James Cleverly came third in Wednesday's leadership vote. Previously, the article said he had come second. Continue reading...

I feel safe in the capital. An hour's drive away, white-pride tattoos remind me that we Berliners can't take our safe, hedonistic lives for granted any moreI live on an island. I tend to forget this, but now with the last days of summer still perfect for a swim, I decide to drive an hour out of Berlin to a lake - and I'm instantly reminded of it. The first things I notice: idyllic nature, clean air - and a lot of neo-Nazis. It's not even hard to recognise them: in many parts of eastern Germany they stroll around with a puffed-out chest and unambiguous symbols tattooed on their arms, printed on their shirts or stuck to their cars.Of course, in Berlin we have neo-Nazis, too, but their presence is more subtle. It certainly gives you a greater sense of security when you are not constantly confronted with white-pride slogans and you are not the only person of colour in a 500-metre radius. You will always find someone in this island to make eye contact with. Outside, it's better if you don't.Fatma Aydemir is a Berlin-based author, novelist, playwright and a Guardian Europe 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...

Tim Pool, Dave Rubin and Benny Johnson addressed allegations that a company they were associated with had been paid to publish videos with messages in favour of Russia

Two students and two teachers were killed at a Georgia high school in the US, in a mass shooting authorities say was committed by a 14-year-old male student at the school. At least nine others were taken to the hospital following the incident at Apalachee high school in Winder, about 50 miles north-east of Atlanta. Chris Hosey, director of the Georgia bureau of investigation, said the suspect would be charged as an adult with four counts of murder

Authorities say suspect, 14, also wounded nine others, with FBI later saying they had investigated him and his father a year ago

Ex-president repeats false claims to Sean Hannity of asylum seekers and crime and says: We're going to heal our world'Donald Trump lobbed his usual insults and accusations at Kamala Harris and Tim Walz during a town hall aired on Fox News and then falsely claimed that migrants from around the world are pouring into the US.The pre-taped interview aired Wednesday evening. The former president walked onto the stage in a Pennsylvania arena to cheers, applause and chants of USA" from his supporters. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed. Here is our full story on US conservative influencers saying they are victims' of a Russian disinformation campaign.Half of gen-Z voters said they will vote for Kamala Harris in November, according to a new NBC News poll published today.The poll shows one-third of gen-Z voters said they plan to vote for Donald Trump, and 1 in 10 said they do not plan to vote in the presidential election. Continue reading...

Daughter of former vice-president Dick Cheney is the latest GOP member to publicly renounce ex-presidentLiz Cheney, the Republican former representative of Wyoming, has endorsed Kamala Harris for president. The former legislator made the pronouncement on Tuesday at an event at Duke university in North Carolina. This move makes her the latest Republican to publicly say that they will not be supporting Donald Trump.I don't believe we have the luxury of writing in candidates' names, particularly in swing states," Cheney, daughter of former Republican vice-president Dick Cheney, told the crowd. And as a conservative, as somebody who believes in and cares about the constitution, I have thought deeply about this and the present danger that Donald Trump poses, not only am I not voting for Donald Trump, I am voting for Kamala Harris." Continue reading...

Campaigns had clashed over whether candidates should be audible while opponent is speakingKamala Harris and Donald Trump have accepted the rules for the presidential debate in Philadelphia, due to air on ABC next week, the network said on Wednesday - including muted mics when the other candidate is speaking.ABC News said in a release that Harris, the Democratic nominee, and Trump, her Republican rival, have qualified for the debate under the established criteria, and both have accepted the following debate rules". Continue reading...

US vice-president and Democratic nominee for president makes remarks before campaign stop in New Hampshire

Kamala Harris has called a deadly shooting at a high school in Georgia a 'senseless tragedy' during a speech in North Hampton, New Hampshire. The US vice-president and Democratic nominee for president paused before she began a speech about economic matters on the election campaign trail to address the incident. Four people have been confirmed dead and multiple others injured. The suspect, a 14-year-old boy, is currently in custody

The British No 1 continued his breakthrough run in New York as he defeated an injury-affected Alex de Minaur 6-3, 7-5, 6-2Muchova breaks: Haddad Maia 0-2 Muchova* (*denotes next server)Muchova leads their head-to-head 3-0, by the way, and Tim Henman says on Sky that he has her down as a comfortable winner today in straight sets. Both are big talents, both are former top-10ers - but I'd give Muchova the edge too. And she's likely to stay calmer under pressure if this match does get closer than Henman expects. Continue reading...

After judge found evidence was intentionally withheld in July, involuntary manslaughter charges were dismissedA prosecutor who led the case against Alec Baldwin has asked a New Mexico judge to reconsider the decision to dismiss the involuntary manslaughter charge against the actor in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of the western movie Rust.The case against Baldwin was dismissed in dramatic fashion in July when, halfway through the trial, a judge found the prosecution and law enforcement had intentionally withheld evidence in the case that could have been favorable to the actor. Continue reading...

A Georgia high school has been put on lockdown amid reports of a deadly shooting. Helicopter footage from WSB-TV showed crowds gathered in and around Apalachee high school's football stadium as students were evacuated. The county sheriff's office said police and fire service personnel rushed to the school after a reported active shooting and that a suspect was in custody

Group Poder NC Action seeks to create culturally relevant voter engagement initiatives that speak directly to LatinosUna chingona always knows when to use her own voice."So begins the first installment of a telenovela geared toward young Latina voters. Chingonas, which means empowered women in Mexican Spanish, are the target audience for the non-profit Poder NC Action - a Latino North Carolina-based voter engagement group. This year, the largest ever cohort of young North Carolina-born Latinos will be eligible to vote in a presidential election. Continue reading...

This Democratic campaign isn't about breaking the glass ceiling'. Maybe that's the best way of beating TrumpThere are lots of differences between the presidential candidacies of Kamala Harris and Hillary Clinton, but, rhetorically at least, there's one disparity that stands out. In 2008, when Clinton lost to Obama in the Democratic primaries, she referred to putting 18 million cracks in the glass ceiling". Accepting the Democratic nomination in 2016, she said: We just put the biggest crack in the glass ceiling." And later that year, when she held what would turn out to be her terrible, deflated election night party, it was at the Jacob K Javits Centre, a convention hall in Manhattan that has, er, a glass ceiling. It's notable, therefore, that several weeks into Harris's candidacy, she's not touching Clinton's ceiling with a 10ft barge pole.As a piece of imagery, the glass ceiling got very old very quickly, so that even by the time Clinton had it on heavy rotation, it was already emptied of meaning. Even without the phrase's all right, Grandma" vibe, it makes basic political sense for Harris to avoid using an image associated with the failed candidacy of the only other woman to be a major-party nominee for president. What's curious is the decision her team has apparently made not only to eschew that particular phrase, but to handle with slightly more delicacy the nature of her candidacy. If Harris wins, she will, of course, not only be the first female president, but the first Black female president, and the first president, woman or otherwise, of south Asian descent. Pointing out this fact is not a major rhetorical part of the campaign.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...

Michael Royce Sparks was arrested last week after he was found under a home at Olive Dell RanchA southern California man has been charged with the murder of two of his neighbors in a local nudist community.Michael Royce Sparks, 62, was charged on Tuesday with two counts of murder with special circumstances in the deaths of Stephanie Menard, 73, and her husband, Daniel, 79, court records show. Continue reading...

Tim Sheehy, locked in tight race with incumbent Democrat John Tester, repeatedly referred to Crow tribe at fundraisers

Instead of banning arms sales, the Labour government should show Israel's far right ministers that they cannot act with impunity Azriel Bermant is a senior researcher at the Institute of International Relations PragueDavid Lammy's announcement that the UK would be suspending 30 arms export licences to Israel kicked off a storm in the UK, in Israel and even in the US. Boris Johnson accused the Labour government of abandoning" Israel and handing victory to Hamas. Back in April, Johnson claimed that a UK ban on arms sales to Israel would be the death wish of western civilisation."Johnson and his fellow Conservatives ought to know that Tory governments in particular have followed a longstanding tradition of banning arms to Israel - from Edward Heath blocking the provision of spare parts for Israeli tanks and denying access to US air force planes resupplying arms to Israel in 1973, to Margaret Thatcher's blanket ban on arms sales to Israel in the wake of its invasion of Lebanon in 1982.Azriel Bermant is a senior researcher at the Institute of International Relations Prague and a visiting researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), Tel Aviv UniversityDo 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...

Family of William Bryan alleges Dr Thomas Shaknovsky removed liver instead of spleen during surgical procedureThe family of a 70-year-old man from Alabama who died last month say that his death was a result of a doctor removing the wrong organ during a surgical procedure in Florida.William Bryan, 70, and his wife Beverly were visiting their rental property in Okaloosa county this summer when Bryan suddenly began experiencing left-sided flank pain, according to law firm representing his wife, Beverly. Bryan then went to hospital, and was admitted for further studies pursuant to concern for an abnormality of the spleen. Continue reading...

Republican Voters Against Trump is rolling out new advert featuring ex-Trump voters vowing to never again back him

Ginni Thomas writes thank you so, so, so much' to group for fighting effort to rein in wayward supreme court justices

As Benjamin Netanyahu refuses to bow to pressure, the US charges Hamas's top leaders over their roles in the 7 October attack

Jettisoned by Fox News, the rightwing gadfly has a reduced audience but was still influential in the rise of JD VanceIn spring of last year, Tucker Carlson was on the outs.The former prime-time host had been booted from the Fox News channel where he had made his name. Ensconced in his remote Maine home, Carlson launched a new show on what was then called Twitter, but as his viewer figures quickly plunged, consensus opinion was that Carlson's position as a news and political tastemaker, someone capable of creating Republican stars and taking down careers, was over. Continue reading...

Epidemiologists push newly approved booster vaccines as current virus strain threatens at-risk groupsInfectious disease experts say many people are not taking the latest Covid-19 wave in the US seriously enough and are not getting vaccinated or using antiviral drugs when sick, despite a summer wave that was larger and came earlier than anticipated.Epidemiologists are saying that while symptoms of this wave are more mild than earlier strains, the virus remains a threat - particularly for older adults and people with underlying health conditions. Continue reading...

Lion of Judah enrolls poll workers in Trump-aligned swing state tour, which experts say could be hazard to democracy'A Christian political operative has teamed up with charismatic preachers to enroll election skeptics as poll workers across the country, using a Donald Trump-aligned swing state tour to enlist support in the effort.Joshua Standifer, who leads the group called Lion of Judah, describes the effort as a Trojan horse" strategy to get Christians in key positions of influence in government like Election Workers", which will help them identify alleged voter fraud and serve as the first step on the path to victory this Fall", according to his website. Continue reading...

Strike started on 16 August over firm's delays in bargaining a new contract since the process began in JuneMore than 17,000 AT&T workers in the US south-east remain on strike as the Communications Workers of America have accused the company of unfair labor practices for attempting to further delay bargaining a new union contract.The workers, technicians, customer service representatives and others who install, maintain and support AT&T's network have been on strike since 16 August in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Continue reading...