52 minutes ago Donald Trump announces picks for labor and treasury departments, CDC and surgeon general in flurry of nominations – live

Scott Bessent, Russ Vought, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Sebastian Gorka and Dave Weldon among choices for key posts in second Trump administrationTrump picks hedge-fund investor Scott Bessent for treasury secretaryTrump selects key Project 2025 figure Russ Vought to head budget officeIn a new interview on Friday, Matt Gaetz revealed that he will not be returning to Congress next year.Speaking to conservative talk show host Charlie Kirk, Gaetz, who withdrew his attorney general nomination yesterday, said:“I’m still going to be in the fight, but it’s going to be from a new perch. I do not intend to join the 119th Congress,” CNN reports.“There are a number of fantastic Floridians who’ve stepped up to run for my seat, people who have inspired with their heroism, with their public service. And I’m ...

Politics

4 hours ago I know who's REALLY running the White House! KENNEDY's hilarious (and terrifying) warning as Jungle Joe snoozes and World War Three looms

Is anyone else getting serious World War III vibes? The Russkies are threatening to bomb US air bases in Poland after launching nuclear-capable hypersonic missiles at Ukraine.

Events

11 hours ago Five actions Biden can take to protect civil liberties before Trump’s presidency

From confirming judges to closing detention centers, six experts address how the president can limit Trump’s impactIn less than two months, Donald Trump will take office, threatening several areas of American life and international policy. The president-elect has pledged to take aim at LGBTQ+ rights, specifically for transgender and gender-non-conforming people. He has promised to conduct mass deportations and raids as a part of a far-right approach to US immigration. And he is expected to roll back data collection practices on police misconduct and stifle any hope of passing police reform in Congress – specifically the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.Trump will largely be able to roll out his agenda, outlined in the 900-plus-page Project 2025 document, as Republicans took control ...

Politics

11 hours ago The heartbreaking reason behind Joe Biden's tie at his final G20 Summit

At the G20 Summit earlier this month, US President Joe Biden was seen donning a Beau Biden Foundation necktie in memory of his late son, who died from brain cancer back in 2015

Politics

12 hours ago Trump’s pick of Pam Bondi for attorney general doesn’t end transition drama – live updates

Trump’s contentious choice of Pam Bondi came after Matt Gaetz withdrew his nomination; attention remains on Pete Hegseth as controversies come to lightHegseth wrote of military taking sides in ‘civil war’Profile: Who is Pam Bondi?Trump’s cabinet and White House picks – so farIf confirmed by the Senate, Pam Bondi will assume the nation’s highest law enforcement role under Donald Trump’s administration as attorney general. The Guardian’s Abené Clayton reports on Bondi’s background:The Senate will not vote on four of Joe Biden’s appellate court nominees in order to hasten the processes of other nominations.Former health secretary Tom Price says he expects Trump to implement block grants for Medicaid. Continue reading...

Politics

13 hours ago California prepares to fortify state’s abortion access: ‘Fight for what’s right’

Lawmaker Mia Bonta outlines new bills package to protect reproductive rights in interview with the GuardianAs Donald Trump returns to the White House, anti-abortion groups are hoping this is their moment.With Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress and the US supreme court governed by a conservative supermajority, activists are pushing an extreme agenda, including a nationwide abortion ban, a prohibition on abortion pills, a “fetal personhood” doctrine that could restrict in vitro fertilization and attacks on contraception. Continue reading...

Politics

15 hours ago Elon Musk has cozied into Trump’s White House. How long will this bromance last? | Katrina vanden Heuvel

The absurd Musk-Trump pact might have a silver lining: their relationship, like Trump’s coalition at large, is fragileIt’s deja vu all over again, again. In the wake of Donald Trump’s decisive re-election, his transition team has moved to pack his cabinet and adviser positions with figures straight out of the Star Wars cantina – some of the most dangerous and bizarre sideshows from every corner of his chaotic galaxy.In the Trump Cinematic Universe, loyalty usurps qualification. That’s why Pete Hegseth, a Fox News host who wants to eliminate “woke” officials from the military, got tapped to oversee our national defense. And it’s why Matt Gaetz was asked to helm the very Department of Justice that was investigating him for alleged sex trafficking, before his abrupt withdrawal from conside...

Politics

16 hours ago Warren says Trump’s ‘unprecedented’ actions during transition risk security

US Senator Elizabeth Warren sounds alarm over president-elect’s refusal to sign MOU and failure to release ethics planDonald Trump’s refusal to cooperate with the outgoing Biden administration is putting national security at risk and weakening safeguards against corruption, the US Senator Elizabeth Warren has warned.The president-elect has broken from precedent by refusing to sign memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with the current White House team and failing to release a comprehensive ethics plan. Continue reading...

Events

18 hours ago Benjamin Netanyahu unlikely to be arrested in Britain after ICC ruling, says Home Secretary Yvette Cooper

Israeli premier condemns arrest warrants against him and his defence minister as ‘antisemitic’ and US president Joe Biden calls them ‘outrageous’

Society