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Exclusive: legislation creates a program to cancel all existing patient debt and block creditors from collecting past medical billsTwo prominent progressive lawmakers, the Vermont senator Bernie Sanders and California congressman Ro Khanna, revealed on Wednesday a new bill aimed at eliminating medical debt.The bill, introduced with Oregon senator Jeff Merkley and Michigan congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, would create a federal grant program to cancel all existing patient debt and amend the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to block creditors from collecting past medical bills. The legislation would also update billing requirements for medical providers and alter the Consumer Credit Reporting Act to prevent credit agencies from reporting information related to unpaid medical bills, alleviating the risk of such debt damaging patients' credit histories. Continue reading...

Defense attorney in conspiracy case cites Guardian reporting in seeking police messages on activists opposed to training centerGeorgia's deputy attorney general said in court that he didn't think police in the state were using Signal to communicate about the law enforcement training center colloquially known as Cop City" - despite being presented, in a motion from defense attorneys, with evidence from the Guardian of law enforcement leadership ordering officers to download the encrypted phone app last year for that very purpose.Defense attorneys have been seeking the Signal messages from Atlanta police and other law enforcement agencies that may be relevant to their clients' cases from the deputy attorney general, John Fowler, since February, according to their 15 March motion. Continue reading...

Appeals court said it would allow Trump to challenge decision not to disqualify Willis over relationship with her deputyThe Georgia state court of appeals on Wednesday said it would consider an appeal from Donald Trump of an order allowing Fani Willis, the district attorney, to continue prosecuting his election interference case in Fulton county.In a one-page order, the appeals court said it would allow Trump to challenge the decision not to disqualify Willis over her relationship with Nathan Wade, a special prosecutor she hired to lead the Trump case. Scott McAfee, the trial judge overseeing the case, ruled in March that Willis could stay on the case as long as Wade resigned. Wade subsequently resigned the same day McAfee issued his decision. Continue reading...

Third-party US presidential candidate says 2010 issue caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died'Robert F Kennedy Jr, the third-party candidate for US president, said a health problem he experienced in 2010 was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died", the New York Times reported.The startling words were contained in a divorce case deposition from 2012 the Times said it obtained. Continue reading...

Princeton University students have been protesting in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza since 25 April, their goal being to get the US university to divest from Israel. The Guardian spoke to some of the students and faculty at the encampment to hear their reasons for being there, and how they feel they have been portrayed by the media Continue reading...

About 99% of car-interior air samples contained at least one flame retardant considered a carcinogen or potential carcinogenThe use of flame retardants in auto interior seats pollutes the air in car cabins with the highly toxic chemicals, putting those who spend significant time in cars at the most risk, peer-reviewed research in the US has found.About 99% of car-interior air samples contained at least one flame retardant the government considers a carcinogen or potential carcinogen, and most show additional, similar flame retardants linked to reproductive disorders and neurological problems, including reduced IQ in children. Continue reading...

The school's student paper reported arrests as hundreds of Washington DC police dismantled the impromptu tent villageHundreds of Washington DC police, some deploying pepper spray, cleared a pro-Palestinian encampment at George Washington University early on Wednesday, in the latest clash between law enforcement and protesting students to sweep the US.The GW Hatchet student paper reported that at least a dozen people had been arrested as the impromptu tent village was dismantled in University Yard. The Metropolitan police department said the arrests had been made for assault of a police officer" and unlawful entry". Continue reading...

My day-to-day fashion style is that of an unmade bed. One attempt to smarten up had horrible consequencesI hate getting dressed up. Watching the Met Gala red carpet makes my legs go all itchy. As a child, getting dressed up entailed putting on trousers which had wool in them. And wool made me itch like hell. They'd be the same trousers I'd been forced into the last time I'd been dragged off, in an ecstasy of discomfort, to the wedding of a distant cousin. Alterations would be necessary. I'd stand there while my mum faffed away with pins, ignoring my wails of protest. They are PICKY, I would bleat. Even thinking about wool makes me itch like hell. Wool is my hell. In Room 101, all they'd have to do is put me in a tight-fitting, 100% wool boilersuit and their work would be done.Eventually, perhaps embarrassed by a child behaving as if he had fleas, action was taken. Silk linings were sewn into the cursed, itchy, picky, scratchy trousers to shield my little legs from the misery. This helped, but only up to a point. Merely knowing the wool was there made me itch. This Little Lord Fauntleroy, covertly clad in silk, would still move gingerly, aching for the moment he could take the bloody things off. Continue reading...

Spurred by 2022 Ticketmaster fiasco, law requires sellers to disclose all fees, prohibits sales of more than one copy of a ticketPeople buying tickets online for concerts, sporting events and other live events in Minnesota will be guaranteed more transparency and protection under a so-called Taylor Swift bill" signed into law on Tuesday by the governor, Tim Walz.The law, prompted by the frustration a legislator felt at not being able to buy tickets to Swift's 2023 concert in Minneapolis, will require ticket sellers to disclose all fees upfront and prohibit resellers from selling more than one copy of a ticket, among other measures. The law will apply to tickets bought in Minnesota or other states for concerts or other live events held in Minnesota. Continue reading...

Last night's membership vote is a step in the right direction, but this remains a closed, elite institutionBritain's old boys' club" suffered a blow last night. The Garrick Club - an exclusive gentlemen's club in central London and relic of some 19th-century fantasy of male dominance - voted to allow women to become members for the first time in almost 200 years. About 60% of the votes were in favour.

State auditor, tasked with managing tip line, has been swamped with hoax reports made to protect trans people from inquiriesTransgender activists have flooded a Utah tip line created to alert state officials to possible violations of a new bathroom law with thousands of hoax reports in an effort to shield trans residents and their allies from any legitimate complaints that could lead to an investigation.The onslaught has led the state official tasked by law with managing the tip line, the Utah auditor John Dougall, to bemoan getting stuck with the cumbersome task of filtering through fake complaints while also facing backlash for enforcing a law he had no role in passing. Continue reading...

Lawyers for former Trump attorney attempt to explain failure to meet accounting obligations in bankruptcy caseNobody seems interested" in helping Rudy Giuliani meet accounting obligations in his ongoing bankruptcy case, lawyers for the former New York mayor, presidential hopeful and Trump attorney said in a court filing on Tuesday.Unfortunately, the debtor originally had an accountant who was helping," the filing said. However, he had a change of heart and indicated that he no longer wished to help prepare the monthly operating reports. Continue reading...

As brick-and-mortar retail stores compete with e-commerce, chains are spending heavily to immerse customers in bespoke fragrancesWhen Dallas Pratt worked at an outpost of Aesop in an outdoor shopping mall outside Chicago, one of her and her co-workers' favorite ways of drawing in new customers was making a concoction they called sidewalk tea". They would put a few drops of scented lotion in a cup of hot water, and then they would pour it onto the slab of concrete outside the shop. As the water evaporated, the smell of the lotion would fill the air.It drew people in," Pratt tells me. They asked questions. They spent time." And, crucially, they bought stuff. Continue reading...

The US paused shipment of 3,500 bombs over fears they would fuel killing in Rafah, it has emerged. Plus, Ukraine says it foiled Zelenskiy assassination plot

The closer Nato hugs Ukraine, the more Putin is sure to brandish his nuclear arms, and the greater the risk he uses themFrustrated by the precarious state of Ukraine's war effort and the long delays in US aid, leaders in France and Britain have stepped up their promises to Ukraine in the last few days. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, repeated in an interview last week that he might send ground forces to shore up beleaguered Ukrainian defenses. Meanwhile, speaking in Kyiv, the British foreign minister, David Cameron, gave Ukraine the green light to strike into Russian territory, clearly signaling that the UK wants a more aggressive approach to the war.Their frustration is understandable, as is the temptation to get more directly involved in the war, with more powerful weapons and more guarantees of long-term backing for Ukraine. Perhaps with enough time and a lot more effort, and if Washington can maintain its focus amid all the crises bearing down on it, Ukraine could eventually regain its footing on the battlefield. It might then be able to start taking back some of the territory it has lost to Russia - perhaps in 2025, or maybe the year after that.Christopher S Chivvis is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace where he directs the program on American Statecraft. He served as the US national intelligence officer for Europe from 2018-2021 Continue reading...

The veepstakes' see prominent Republicans discarding any last shreds of integrity to impress Trump. It's a grim omenKristen Welker, the moderator of NBC's Meet the Press, did her best to pin down Tim Scott last Sunday.Would the junior senator from South Carolina state that he will accept the results of the 2024 presidential election no matter who wins? Pretty basic stuff, you'd think, but apparently not.Margaret Sullivan is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...

Freddie O'Connell is leading his progressive city in a heavily Republican state with equanimity and a spirit of cooperationTennessee's legislative session concluded in late April with some laws that alarm liberals, such as a bill to arm teachers and school staff. But the relatively progressive city of Nashville emerged largely unscathed by the GOP-dominated legislature.In fact, Nashville's legislative fortunes improved markedly this term, with approval for a massive redevelopment project, created at the behest of the mayor, Freddie O'Connell, to accompany the construction of a new stadium for the Tennessee Titans across the river from the city's tourist-friendly downtown. Continue reading...

Red' Harris and Jovanna Gardne allegedly involved in murder of person cooperating in inquiry into over 100 staged truck accidentsTwo clients of a television stuntwoman-turned-attorney helped orchestrate the shooting death of another of the lawyer's clients who was cooperating with a federal investigation into their purported roles in an insurance fraud scheme involving more than 100 staged truck accidents, prosecutors allege in a newly obtained indictment.Ryan Red" Harris, 35, and Jovanna Gardne, 39, face charges of witness tampering through murder in the 2020 slaying of Cornelius Garrison in New Orleans, according to federal court filings unsealed Monday but arbitrarily withheld from public release by officials until Tuesday. Continue reading...

The center was a dominant defensive force at his peak but mental and physical problems took their toll while he was still in his prime playing yearsIt was Christmas Eve 2014 when Larry Sanders, the budding star center for the Milwaukee Bucks, knew it was over. The night before, his team had lost by seven points at home to a middling Charlotte Hornets squad and the Bucks' new coach, Jason Kidd, was angry. Milwaukee, who were hovering around .500, were slated to have the holiday off to spend with family but Kidd changed those plans and decided his roster should practice - as punishment. The players had to cancel flights and alert their family of the change - something, of course, they did not want to do. During the Christmas Eve practice, Sanders went full-on. He didn't lollygag but, peeved, he also didn't back away from engaging his coach in confrontation. Afterwards, while he was the last one left in the locker room, his body started to break down.I was cramping from my ears to my toes," Sanders tells the Guardian. Full body cramps." Continue reading...

The English-born left back is the latest MLS academy graduate to draw interest from Europe's elite clubsDown the years, it has been common for US Soccer to track young English talent who also hold American passports. From Fulham's Antonee Robinson to Milan's Yunus Musah, the US has benefited from players gaining an education across the Atlantic. But New York City's Christian McFarlane looks set to do the reverse, a sign of the growing influence of MLS academies.The left-back was born in England but moved to New York at three years old. Over the past 18 months, McFarlane has represented the USMNT and England at youth level, keeping his options open before committing to any one country. The 17-year-old also has the option of playing for Jamaica, but why complicate matters more? Continue reading...

Ending an unsafe relationship does not always end abuse. In my experience, it has only escalated the efforts to control and destroy meI left an abusive relationship almost a decade ago, but my abuser has kept a noose around my neck every day since.At the time we had four young children, including a 12-month-old baby. Continue reading...

The adult film star testifies in a hush-money trial that could land the ex-president and Republican frontrunner behind barsAt 10.30am Tuesday in a New York City courtroom, five words changed the course of American history: The people call Stormy Daniels."Daniels, now a household name, is an adult film actor at the center of a hush-money criminal trial that could land Donald Trump, the former president and present Republican presidential frontrunner, behind bars. Continue reading...

John Hostettler of Indiana, whom pro-Israel groups deemed antisemitic', loses to Mark Messmer, who led opponents with 40% of voteRepublican John Hostettler has lost his House primary in Indiana, delivering a victory to pro-Israel groups who sought to block the former congressman from returning to Washington. The groups attacked Hostettler as insufficiently supportive of Israel at a time when criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu's government has hit new highs because of the war in Gaza.When the Associated Press called the eighth district primary race at 7.49pm ET, less than an hour after the last polls closed in Indiana, Mark Messmer led his opponents with 40% of the vote. Messmer, the Indiana state senate majority leader, will advance to the general election in November, which he is heavily favored to win because of the district's Republican leanings. The victor will replace Republican congressman Larry Bucshon, who announced his retirement earlier this year. Continue reading...

Officials made announcement Tuesday, as demolition crews prepared to use explosives in continued cleanup effortThe body of the last missing construction worker killed in the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in March has been recovered, officials announced Tuesday, as demolition crews prepared to use explosives in the ongoing cleanup effort.Officials said the crew of the Dali will remain on board the grounded container ship while crews conduct a controlled demolition to break down the largest remaining span of the fallen bridge. Continue reading...

The adult film actor Stormy Daniels offered the most lurid, explosive testimony so far in the trial against the former president

The $130,000 hush-money payment to Daniels is at the center of the trial. Trump complained that he should've been given more notice about Tuesday's witness, Associated Press reports

Charged Lemonade drinks, which can contain 302mg of caffeine, are being eliminated after multiple lawsuitsPanera Bread will pull its infamous Charged Lemonade drinks after the highly caffeinated beverages were connected to at least two deaths and prompted lawsuits.The Charged Lemonades, which contain upwards of 178mg of caffeine for the regular size and 302mg for the large, are being eliminated by the restaurant chain amid a recent menu transformation", a Panera spokesperson told NBC News. Continue reading...

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Stormy Daniels undercuts some of Trump's defenses as his lawyer suggests Daniels has a propensity to embellishStormy Daniels, whose alleged sexual affair with Donald Trump prompted a hush-money scheme at the heart of the criminal case brought by the Manhattan district attorney, described in excruciating detail on Tuesday her encounters with the former US president.The testimony from Daniels appeared to be embarrassing for Trump, who shook his head at times, and was notably freewheeling - to the extent that the presiding judge sustained multiple objections, even as he denied a mistrial motion on the basis that key parts of her account were prejudicial. Continue reading...

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Organization will become Scouting America after decades of turmoil and flagging membership numbersThe Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.The organization steeped in tradition has made seismic changes after decades of turmoil, from finally allowing gay youth to welcoming girls throughout its ranks. With an eye on increasing flagging membership numbers, the Irving, Texas-based organization announced the name change Tuesday at its annual meeting in Florida. Continue reading...

It's a moment of truth for Biden's policy on Israel and the Palestinians - and at the least will make continued prevarication harder to disguiseWhen Israeli troops paraded through the Rafah crossing with an oversized star of David on Tuesday morning, they were making a point to Hamas - and at the same time driving up to the very edge of Joe Biden's red line".The Biden administration avoids that phrase at all costs. Its top officials also served Barack Obama, who drew a red line he did not enforce over Syria's chemical weapons. But there is no hiding from the fact that they have clearly and repeatedly stated US opposition to a Rafah offensive, absent proper humanitarian provision for the more than 1 million people sheltering there. Continue reading...

In a blow to reproductive rights advocates and Democrats, judge rules procedures were not followed for constitutional amendmentA New York judge on Tuesday blocked a politically important abortion rights amendment from appearing before voters on the November ballot, dealing Democrats a setback as the party moved to focus battleground races in the state around abortion access.State supreme court justice Daniel J Doyle found that state lawmakers failed to follow procedural rules around passing constitutional amendments, incorrectly approving the amendment before getting a written opinion on the language from the attorney general. Continue reading...

Trump's disgraced former attorney somehow frittered away almost $120,000 in January. As a cash-strapped millennial, I'm delighted to share some money-saving tipsBankruptcy" is a surprisingly amorphous term. For poor people, it means not having any money. For corporations and the super-wealthy it means a nifty legal strategy that can shield their riches from lawsuits. And for Rudy Giuliani, the disgraced former mayor of New York City and personal attorney of Donald Trump, it means being forced to try to subsist on a measly $43,000 (34,200) a month.Half a million dollars in spending money a year might seem a princely sum to the common man, but Sir" Rudy (recipient of an honorary knighthood) is anything but. We're talking about a gentleman with elevated tastes here: a bon vivant who, during a legal battle with his estranged third wife, was accused of spending $7,000 on fountain pens and $12,000 on cigars over a five-month period. In that same timeframe, his ex-wife's lawyer claimed he spent $286,000 on his alleged lover, $165,000 on personal travel and $447,938 for his own enjoyment". That's a lot of enjoyment. Continue reading...

When asked what advice an eminent surgeon might give other doctors, I brace myself for another mountain I can't climbWhat's a Festschrift?" my youngest asks.In German it means celebration writing'," I say, I'm going to an academic conference to honour a doctor." Continue reading...

At least 16,000 without power after 17 tornadoes struck plains region on Monday with 40 homes damaged in Sooner stateMore than 10 million people in parts of Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky have been warned that they face severe thunderstorms on Tuesday, including some strong tornadoes, as the southern plains continue to be battered by extreme weather.As many as 17 tornadoes struck the plains region on Monday night, leaving at least 16,000 homes and businesses without power and bringing destruction to small towns across the area. Continue reading...

The Israeli PM has rejected the latest deal. Both he and Hamas's leadership must stop playing politics with people's livesThe latest twists and turns in negotiations to end the war in Gaza appear labyrinthine and confusing. But it's really not that complicated. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, must compromise on the outstanding details of the proposed ceasefire deal and Hamas's weekend counter-offer - and immediately halt Israel's criminal bombing of Gaza and reckless military incursions into refugee-populated areas around Rafah.For its part, Hamas must honour previous understandings about the staged release of Israeli hostages and cease its crude, last-minute haggling, especially about exactly how many Palestinian detainees, and which ones, are freed in return. Its priority should be alleviating the plight of Gaza's civilians, not scoring points. Its demands that Israel agree a permanent" end to the war at this stage were always unrealistic.Simon Tisdall is the Observer's foreign affairs commentatorDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...

Roll up for a buffet of baffling outfits, celebs scared stiff of Anna Wintour and an utter refusal to acknowledge the outside worldTuesday is officially the morning after the Met Gala of the night before, when we civilians get to press our noses up against the glass of our phone screens and pass unsparing judgment on dresses whose trains alone cost more than HS2.If you haven't sat in mismatched pyjamas huffing toast while remarking what an unacceptable misstep Lana Del Rey's mosquito net was, and how Chanel seems to be going tits up, then you have simply failed to capitalise on the digital banquet spread out for you. These are dark times, and nothing but ... gratitude, I think? ... should be shown for film director Taika Waititi's decision to come dressed as a brown pleather three-piece suite, while his wife, Rita Ora, presented as the ribbon curtain tacked over their back door to keep the flies off it.Marina Hyde is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Ronnie Wiggs strangled his wife as she was in a hospital for a procedure related to her ongoing kidney dialysis treatmentA 75-year-old Missouri man strangled his wife to death in a hospital bed while claiming that he could no longer afford to pay for her ongoing kidney dialysis treatment, according to authorities.Ronnie Wiggs has been jailed on a count of second-degree murder in connection with a femicide that starkly demonstrates how US women in general face disproportionately high levels of violence at the hands of intimate partners and family caregivers. Continue reading...

Kathy Hochul made comment at California conference to showcase upstate AI center before apologizing on Monday nightThe governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, has rapidly backtracked on remarks she made on Monday after she came under a blizzard of criticism for saying that Black children in the Bronx did not know the word computer".Hochul had intended her appearance at the Milken Institute Global Conference in California on Monday to showcase Empire AI, the $400m consortium she is leading to create an artificial intelligence computing center in upstate New York. Instead, she dug herself into a hole with an utterance she quickly regretted. Continue reading...

US labor department announced that Fayette Janitorial Service agreed to $650,000 fine and mandate to no longer employ minorsA Tennessee-based sanitation company has agreed to pay more than half a million dollars after a federal investigation found it illegally hired at least two dozen children to clean dangerous meat processing facilities in Iowa and Virginia.The US labor department announced on Monday that Fayette Janitorial Service LLC entered into a consent judgment, in which the company agrees to nearly $650,000 in civil penalties and the court-ordered mandate that it no longer employ minors. The February filing indicated federal investigators believed at least four children had still been working at one Iowa slaughterhouse as of 12 December. Continue reading...

FAA examining whether employees may have falsified records after firm said it might not have properly carried out checks

Israel takes control of only gateway for aid between Egypt and Gaza. Plus, Trump threatened with jail over gag order breaches

Prosecutors, witnesses, jurors - all are in the ex-president's sights and it could lead to violence, former federal prosecutors and judges sayDonald Trump's verbal assaults on judges, prosecutors, witnesses, jurors and the broader US justice system, are undermining the rule of law and American democracy while fueling threats and potential violence against individuals involved with the legal cases against him and egging on his extremist allies, former federal prosecutors and judges say.In his campaign to win the presidency again, and in the midst of various criminal and civil trials, Trump has launched multiple attacks on the American legal system on his Truth Social platform to counter the 88 federal and state criminal charges he faces. Continue reading...