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The bill sets a discretionary spending level of $1.66tn for fiscal 2024 and still faces opposition from hardline House RepublicansUS congressional negotiators on Sunday revealed a bill to fund key parts of the government through the rest of the fiscal year that began in October, as lawmakers faced yet another threat of a partial shutdown if they fail to act by Friday.The legislation sets a discretionary spending level of $1.66tn for fiscal 2024, a spokesperson for Democratic Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said. It fills in the details of an agreement that Schumer and Republican House of Representatives speaker Mike Johnson set in early January. Continue reading...

College announces new member activities are suspended pending investigation of possible activities that threatened people's safetyProgram activities of fraternities and sororities at the University of Maryland have been suspended indefinitely, the university announced.The University of Maryland's decision comes after the University of Virginia suspended its Kappa Sigma chapter and all fraternity events following an alleged hazing incident last month which left a student injured. Continue reading...

Court did not specify what ruling, planned for Monday, will be issued, but decision to come a day before state's primary electionThe US supreme court plans to issue at least one ruling on Monday, the day before Colorado holds a presidential primary election in which a lower court kicked Republican frontrunner Donald Trump off the ballot for taking part in an insurrection during the 6 January 2021 US Capitol attack.The supreme court, in an unusual Sunday update to its schedule, did not specify what ruling it would issue. But the justices on 8 February heard arguments in Trump's appeal of the Colorado ruling and are due to issue their own decision. Continue reading...

Donors raise more than $100,000 for man who gave his $17.74 paycheck for 136.50 hours of work to relief efforts in GazaDonors have raised more than $100,000 for an incarcerated man in the US who, earning 13 cents an hour in a California prison doing janitorial and porter work, donated his paycheck of $17.74 to Gaza relief efforts.Last month, Los Angeles-based filmmaker Justin Mashouf who has been in correspondence with the 56-year old man - known only by the name Hamza - shared photos on social media of Hamza's October time log and a check of $17.74 with the words, California department of corrections and rehabilitation." Continue reading...

From Rashford's screamer to Chelsea's struggles, we hand out honors (and dishonors) from the top-flight weekendPhil Foden is in the middle of the biggest heat check since Mark Ruffalo in Poor Things. He was the best player on the pitch in City's 3-1 win in the Manchester derby, finishing with two goals, including a now trademark stunner from the edge of the box. Continue reading...

Donald Trump confused Barack Obama for Joe Biden at a rally in Virginia, triggering further questions about the age of the likely Republican presidential nominee who has made a string of such gaffes. Trump said: 'Putin has so little respect for Obama that he's starting to throw around the nuclear word'. The crowd reportedly went silent as Trump referenced Obama, who left office more than seven years ago. It was the third time Trump had made the same blunder in the past six months

Largest fire in state history so far scorched 1.1m acres and killed two people, while thousands of livestock were killed or euthanizedFerocious winds continue to thwart firefighters across a broad swathe of Texas on Sunday where the second largest wildfire in US history is only 15% contained after six days.As of Sunday morning the Smokehouse Creek Fire has so far scorched almost 1.1m acres - 1,700 sq miles - across the Texas Panhandle in the north of the state, as well as tens of thousands of acres in Oklahoma. Continue reading...

Results are latest blow to Biden's election campaign which has faced a barrage of criticism over his ageA majority of voters in the US believe Joe Biden is just too old to be an effective president, according to a new poll by the New York Times and Siena College.According to the poll's results, 73% of all registered voters believe Biden is too old to be effective, in turn revealing spreading concerns about the 81-year-old president's mental competency. Continue reading...

Richmond crowd reportedly went silent as 77-year-old mixed up the president and ex-president for third time in past six monthsDonald Trump confused Barack Obama for Joe Biden at a rally in Virginia on Saturday, triggering further questions about the age of the likely Republican presidential nominee who has made a string of such gaffes.It also comes at a time of similar concerns about the Biden. At 77 and 81 respectively, Trump and Biden are the oldest people to run for the presidency in US history. Continue reading...

The progressive congresswoman doesn't have the funds of her opponents, but she has a record of being on the right side'Barbara Lee has never lost an election.That is quite a feat, given that she has built a career championing unpopular, even radical causes. Continue reading...

Candidate says she does not feel bound to Republican National Committee pledge anymore as RNC is now not the same'Nikki Haley on Sunday declined to say she would support Donald Trump in the coming presidential election if he won the Republican party's nomination to face Joe Biden in the race for the White House.The former South Carolina governor is the last serious opposition to Trump who seems almost certain to become the nominee, despite a raft of legal problems and the multiple trials he faces linked to his businesses, attempts to subvert American democracy and alleged hush money pay-offs to former lovers. Continue reading...

Howard University's the Hilltop chronicles one of the US's most storied HBCUs and is helping a new generation of journalists navigate institutional racismMalcolm X, one of the most evasive and non-specific individuals I've ever met (with his objectives and radical plans he would have to be), is perhaps one of the most clever artists of appealing to the emotions that I've ever seen. Bayard Rustin was not' in my estimation a fair match for Mr X. (Dr Martin Luther King would have been.)"So begins an account of a debate between the civil rights leaders Malcolm X and Bayard Rustin that took place at Howard University in Washington. Along with a visit by the British anti-apartheid activist Trevor Huddleston, a student theatre production of Rashomon and an advert for Lucky Strike cigarettes, it is part of the mix in a 1961 issue of the Hilltop, the oldest Black collegiate newspaper in America. Continue reading...

Activists warn of creeping restrictions on expression' as bill forbidding schools from displaying flags is expected to clear senateTennessee is poised to become the first state to in effect ban Pride flags in public and charter school classrooms, prompting outrage from the LGBTQ+ community.The Tennessee house advanced a bill, HB 1605, that forbids schools, teachers or faculty from displaying flags other than the US flag and the Tennessee state flag in public schools. The bill would also allow a parent of a child who attends, or who is eligible to attend" a Tennessee public or charter school to sue their school district if a Pride flag is displayed anywhere students may see the object". Continue reading...

The ex-White House chief strategist is no longer in daily contact with Trump, but his influence on the Maga right remains totalWearing an olive green jacket over a black shirt, Steve Bannon blew the doors off a subject that most other speakers had tiptoed around. Media, I want you to suck on this, I want the White House to suck on this: you lost in 2020!" he roared. Donald Trump is the legitimate president of the United States!"

Rugby league may not be the world game - yet - but the NRL's showcase event in Las Vegas has proven it is capable of thriving on a global stage.Rugby League has a long and sordid history of promising the world and delivering an atlas, the big dreams only matched by the bigger failures to execute. Not any longer. Over 40,000 fans attended the first premiership matches in the United States in what was a dazzling result for the NRL.The dream of Peter V'Landys to take rugby league to America launched a new reality for the NRL with two outstanding games living up to the unprecedented hype that surrounded the event. The steak matched the sizzle. Continue reading...

Two goals and two assists for the Uruguayan striker in Saturday's Florida derby underline why Inter Miami are more than just MessiIf Inter Miami are to transition from glamour expansion club to true MLS Cup contenders - as the bookmakers suspect - the catalyst was evident within 10 minutes of the Florida derby against Orlando City.It wasn't Leo Messi magic that gave the home side a rapid two-nil lead, but two instinctual, clinical finishes from his former Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez. Continue reading...

Interstate closures, avalanche warnings and gale-force winds as storm pummels region with up to 10ft of snowA powerful blizzard pummeling California brought double-digit feet of snow; 190mph wind gusts; closures of a main trucking artery, national parks and ski resorts; and even a tornado. And that was just day one.Ski resorts in the Sierra foothills reported more than 2ft of snow accumulated in the 24 hours from Thursday evening to Friday evening. Snowfall at the Northstar ski resort in Truckee, California, was up to 44 inches (1 meter) since Thursday afternoon. Continue reading...

Former president is awarded all 39 state delegates for November's national convention in Milwaukee, WisconsinDonald Trump continued his march toward the GOP nomination at the Michigan Republican party convention on Saturday, sweeping all 39 delegates.The delegates awarded will fuel Trump ahead of Tuesday, 5 March, when 15 states will hold primaries and Trump's nomination could be all but decided. The Michigan state party delegates met on Saturday at the sprawling Amway Plaza Hotel in Grand Rapids, huddling in 13 separate meeting rooms representing the state's 13 congressional districts. Continue reading...

Personnel battle to keep largest wildfire in state history from turning more of the Panhandle into a parched wastelandFirefighters in Texas faced rising temperatures, whipped-up winds and dry air Saturday in their battle to keep the largest wildfire in state history from turning more of the Panhandle into a parched wasteland.Firefighters were focused on containing the fire along its northern and eastern perimeters, where aggressive gusts from the south-west threatened to spread the flames and consume more acreage, according to Jason Nedlo, a spokesperson with the team of firefighters battling the Smokehouse Creek fire, which began Monday and has claimed at least two lives. Continue reading...

Wim Wenders' film Perfect Days is on to something with its depiction of main character Hirayama's calm, habitual lifeHirayama loves his routine. The protagonist of Wim Wenders' transcendent new film Perfect Days wakes up each morning and follows the same ritual. He makes his bed, trims his moustache, shaves, waters his saplings, and gets a can of coffee from a dispenser just outside his apartment before he enters a small blue van to head to work as a toilet cleaner in Tokyo.On his way to work, he fits a cassette into his tape-player and listens to a range of popular musicians - from Lou Reed to Van Morrison, Nina Simone to the Animals. After his shift, he sits alone in a park with his milkshake and sandwich, and takes a picture of the trees and the sky. Continue reading...

Move is to comply with state law passed by Governor Ron DeSantis that prohibits public funding of DEI programsThe University of Florida is terminating all its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) positions to comply with a state law passed in January that prohibits state or federal funds from being used to fund the programs.The university, with more than 30,000 undergraduates, said in a memo issued on Friday that it was closing its office of the chief diversity officer, eliminating DEI positions and administrative appointments, and halting DEI-focused contracts with outside vendors. Continue reading...

Despite concerns about the state of the world, Americans have soured on their global policing roleIf Joe Biden believes his record as a world leader will help him get re-elected in November, he may have another think coming. His term began with catastrophe in Afghanistan, was thrown into turmoil by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and is ending on a desperately sour note in Gaza. Add in US-China standoffs and a proxy war with Iran, and the old foreign policy hand begins to look decidedly cack-handed.That was partly the message from Michigan last week, where younger voters used the Democratic presidential primary to signal dismay over Biden's unstinting backing for Israel's war with Hamas. For sure, he has gradually become more critical of Benjamin Netanyahu's criminal clique - and is finally pushing a ceasefire. But his lethal, almost callous misjudgments following 7October will not be forgotten. Continue reading...

The president has a 47% disapproval rating, but it's a mixed bag when accounting for double haters' - those who dislike Trump tooStrong voter disapproval of Joe Biden's job performance has reached 47% - the highest negative polling number at any point in his presidency, according to a survey published on Saturday.The Siena College-conducted poll, commissioned by the New York Times, showed that Biden currently lags behind likely Republican candidate Donald Trump 43% to 48% in registered voters nationally. Continue reading...

The education department said it will launch an inquiry after the non-binary teen died after a fight at an Oklahoma public schoolFederal authorities have announced an investigation into allegations of bullying involving Nex Benedict, the non-binary teen who died last month after a fight with classmates in a women's bathroom at their high school in Oklahoma.The US Department of Education said in a letter on Friday that it was investigating whether Owasso public schools, outside Tulsa, had failed to appropriately respond to alleged harassment of students" - a violation of federal law. Continue reading...

Aaron did not die in vain. He has already inspired so many to stand up for truth and justiceOn Monday 26 February, at 3.43pm, I got a text from a friend.Have you seen the news out of DC today about the air force member? Let me know if you need to talk tonight or later this week." I replied and explained that I had seen the headlines, and that it saddened me. She texted: Since he was based in San Antonio I wondered if he was someone you crossed paths with or had friends in common with."Levi Pierpont is a conscientious objector Continue reading...

The talkshow host's embrace of the weight-loss drug threatens to disrupt our persistent association of weight with moralityBig news in the weight-loss world this week: Oprah Winfrey is exiting WeightWatchers. The talkshow host has been the public face of the company for almost a decade but is stepping away from the board and donating all her shares to charity to eliminate any perceived conflict of interest around her taking weight-loss medications". Continue reading...

President says US will insist' Israel does more to facilitate help, saying children's lives are on the line' Middle East crisis - live updatesJoe Biden twice confused Gaza with Ukraine as he was announcing that the US would provide desperately needed aid to Palestinians.The US president, 81, confirmed on Friday that humanitarian assistance would be airdropped into Gaza and said the US would insist" Israel did more to facilitate help for those affected by famine and the effects of war, saying: Children's lives are on the line". Continue reading...

Prosecution alleges Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was in charge of firearms safety, was sloppy' and left weapons unsecuredWitnesses in the trial of Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the armorer in the troubled western Rust, this week described a chaotic set where safety was secondary" before the shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.Gutierrez-Reed, who was responsible for ensuring that all firearms on the set were safe, is on trial for charges of involuntary manslaughter and tampering in connection with the 23 October 2021 shooting. She is the first to go on trial, and proceedings are expected to have major implications for Alec Baldwin, who will face trial in July. Continue reading...

Dillon and his newborn son Archer Glass each had a one in 1,461 chance of being born on a leap dayAfter being born on a leap day in 1996, Dillon Glass faced thin odds of having his own child be born on the same day.But that is exactly what happened on Thursday, when his baby boy Archer was born at 7.47am at Iowa Methodist medical center in Des Moines, Iowa, according to what the hospital's parent corporation said to news outlets as well as on social media. Continue reading...

Turning Point USA and co-founder Charlie Kirk are raising $108m to mobilize Trump voters and clean house' of election officialsTurning Point USA, a far-right youth group known for its fundraising prowess and for promoting election-conspiracy theories, is mounting a seven-figure voter-mobilization drive via its advocacy arm in the swing states of Arizona, Georgia and Wisconsin.Arizona-based TPUSA, a non-profit co-founded in 2012 by then 18-year-old Charlie Kirk that's become a key ally in Donald Trump's Maga ecosystem, has launched the drive through Turning Point Action, which has raised tens of millions of dollars and is hiring hundreds of full-time employees in the three states, according to its spokesperson, Andrew Kolvet. Continue reading...

The state GOP had ousted its party chair, Kristina Karamo, in January, but she has not accepted her removal, dividing membersMichigan Republicans are gathering in Grand Rapids for a convention they hope will be less fraught than the last four months of chaotic power struggle within the state Republican party.During Saturday's convention, the party will choose most of the delegates it will send to the Republican national convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in July to formally choose the party's 2024 presidential candidate (Tuesday's primary, which Trump won, determined the rest). Continue reading...

As an influential constant in government and policy formation, Gove has been key to the process of rightwing radicalisationOn the ever more common journey from the centre right to the far right, there are two contrasting routes conservative parties can follow. One is to welcome in demagogues such as Lee Anderson and Suella Braverman, and to borrow or indulge their extreme ideas, or only half-condemn them - thus publicising them further - in the hope that this cynical process will attract a wider range of reactionary voters. In countries widely thought of as nostalgic and disillusioned, such as contemporary Britain, it is assumed that there are a lot of these voters, however much the Tories' terrible poll ratings suggest the contrary.For a week now, the Conservatives' contortions and divisions over Anderson's toxic conspiracy theories have demonstrated the political risks of the demagogue approach. However, there is another way for rightwing parties to radicalise that is more subtle, less controversial and often more successful. It involves more mainstream, less abrasive conservative politicians - people generally regarded and presented by the media as reasonable - exploring and promoting hard-right ideas and turning them into policies, while insisting that nothing harsh or reckless is going on. Continue reading...

The interior designer, tastemaker and fashion icon has died aged 102. Here are some of her most stylish looks from an extraordinary life Continue reading...

Peter Cichuniec one of two paramedics convicted of criminally negligent homicide for role in 23-year-old's death after police stopA former Colorado paramedic has been sentenced to five years in prison in the 2019 killing of Elijah McClain after he was stopped by Aurora police.Peter Cichuniec was one of two paramedics convicted of criminally negligent homicide for their roles in the 23-year-old's death, which sparked years of protests and changes in the law. A jury also found Cichuniec guilty of second-degree assault. The outcome marks an extremely rare instance of a paramedic being found criminally liable and facing a prison sentence for a death in police custody. Continue reading...

The Fulton county DA argues her relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade is not a conflict - judge will rule on whether that mattersIs the appearance of impropriety enough to change the trajectory of the Donald Trump trial in Georgia?That's one legal question Scott McAfee, the Fulton county superior court judge, will wrestle with as he contemplates whether to throw the Fulton county district attorney Fani Willis and special prosecutor Nathan Wade off the trial of the former president and co-defendants in the sprawling racketeering and election interference case. Continue reading...

Residents in California urged to shelter in place as possible record 12ft of snow forecast to be dumped over weekendA dangerous winter storm has arrived in California, battering the Sierra Nevada with snowfall, gale-force winds and blizzard conditions as authorities urge residents to shelter in place and prepare for power outages.Perilous conditions in the mountain region are expected to get significantly worse on Friday evening and over the weekend, with a high risk of whiteout conditions, near-zero visibility and avalanches across the mountain range, making travel impossible, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). The severe weather, which forecasters described as life-threatening, could break snowfall records. Continue reading...

Activists protest against fashion designer's use of leather, urging her to use vegan alternativesVictoria Beckham's show at Paris fashion week was interrupted by protesters from the animal rights group Peta, who invaded the runway to protest against her use of animal products.Protesters wore white T-shirts that read turn your back on animal skins" and animals aren't fabric". They walked alongside models on the catwalk, holding up placards that read: Viva vegan leather". Continue reading...

Over much of recorded history, marriage was more about property than love. Perhaps it can now become something else

Trump's last remaining Republican primary challenger says I don't think there should ever be a president that's above the law'Asked if she thought Donald Trump would follow the US constitution if he is elected for a second term as president, Nikki Haley said: I don't know."I don't know. I don't - I don't know," the former South Carolina governor, Trump's last opponent for the Republican presidential nomination, told NBC's Meet the Press in an interview to be broadcast in full on Sunday. Continue reading...

Supreme court rejects Democratic lawsuit challenging new maps drawn by Democratic governor Tony EversThe liberal-controlled Wisconsin supreme court on Friday rejected a Democratic lawsuit that sought to throw out the battleground state's congressional maps, marking a victory for Republicans who argued against the court taking up the case.The decision not to hear the congressional challenge comes after the court in December ordered new legislative maps, saying the Republican-drawn ones were unconstitutional. The GOP-controlled state legislature, out of fear that the court would order maps even more unfavorable to Republicans, passed maps drawn by the Democratic governor, Tony Evers. Evers signed those into law on 19 February and urged the court to take up the congressional map challenge. Continue reading...