61 m. ago US House will vote next week on bill compelling release of Epstein files

Mike Johnson announced move hours after swearing in Adelita Grijalva, whose signature triggered vote Mike Johnson, the US House speaker, told reporters on Wednesday he will put the bill compelling the release of government files related to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein on the House floor next week.“We are gonna put that on the floor for [a] full vote next week, soon as we get back,” the speaker told reporters, as the chamber gathered to debate legislation to reopen the government. Continue reading...

Politics

1 hour ago Arizona’s Adelita Grijalva sworn in after seven weeks in move that triggers Epstein vote

Mike Johnson, the House speaker, had prevented the representative from taking her seat after a special electionArizona Democratic Adelita Grijalva was sworn in by Mike Johnson, the US House speaker, on Wednesday, ending a contentious seven-week standoff that prevented the incoming representative from taking her seat and clearing the path for a vote to release the Jeffrey Epstein files.House Democrats burst into applause on the House floor when Grijalva took the oath of office during a ceremonial swearing in, shortly before the chamber was poised to take up legislation that would end the longest federal government shutdown in US history. The ceremony comes seven weeks after Grijalva won a late September special election to succeed her father, the longtime representative Raúl Grijalva, who died in March. Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago US House begins voting on bill that could end longest ever government shutdown

House Democrats vow to vote no but Republican leaders optimistic legislation to reopen government will passUS politics – live updatesThe House on Wednesday began voting on legislation that would end the longest government shutdown in US history, as Democrats voiced fury that the Senate-brokered compromise fails to extend expiring healthcare subsidies.The House returned to Washington to vote after a more than 50-day absence ordered by the Republican speaker, Mike Johnson, to pressure Senate Democrats into reopening the government.The measure’s passage would be welcome news for the White House, which is looking to end the shutdown. Continue reading...

Politics

4 h. ago Arizona’s Adelita Grijalva sworn in after seven weeks in move that could force Epstein vote

Mike Johnson, the House speaker, had prevented the representative from taking her seat after a special electionArizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva was sworn in by Mike Johnson, the US House speaker, on Wednesday, ending a seven-week standoff that prevented the incoming congresswoman from taking her seat and clearing the path for a vote to release the Jeffrey Epstein files.House Democrats burst into applause on the House floor when Grijalva took the oath of office during a ceremonial swearing in, shortly before the chamber was poised to take up legislation that would end the longest federal government shutdown in US history. The ceremony comes 49 days after Grijalva won a late September special election to succeed her father, the longtime congressman Raúl Grijalva, who died in March. Continue reading...

Politics

6 h. ago Christmas Karma review – Dickens adaptation has as much Yuletide spirit as a dead rat in the eggnog

Gurinder Chadha’s leaden update of the hardy seasonal chestnut with Kunal Nayyar is joyless and nausea-inducingKeen though I always am to indulge any and every new riff on Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, and keen also to hear from Bend It Like Beckham director Gurinder Chadha, this cynically Christmassy movie is leaden, unconvincingly acted and about as welcome as a dead rat in the eggnog. It’s the worst Christmas film since last year’s Red One, in which Dwayne Johnson played the head of security for Santa Claus and more or less had us all rooting for anyone who could beat up Father Christmas.In this one, Big Bang Theory star Kunal Nayyar lifelessly and joylessly plays a Scrooge variant called Mr Sood, part of the Ugandan south Asian community expelled by Idi Amin in his childhood, and embittered by early poverty. An early romance soured because of his obsession with money, and he has become a grasping and unpleasant old guy in London (cue stock footage of the London skyline) in the ra...

Events

6 h. ago Adele to make her acting debut alongside Hollywood stars Aaron Taylor

The Hello singer, 37, will swap the stage for the studio as she signs up to star in fashion designer Tom Ford's new flick.

Politics

8 h. ago Michael Wolff and Mike Johnson’s comments this week eerily foreshadowed Trump

Wolff and Johnson both made remarks about the Epstein files saga in the days just before Democrats dropped the never-before-seen emails

Politics

9 h. ago Mike Johnson to swear in Democrat who could force Epstein vote after weeks

Arizona representative-elect Adelita Grijalva to be sworn in after House speaker prevented her from taking her seatMike Johnson, the US House speaker, is expected to swear in Democratic representative-elect Adelita Grijalva on Wednesday afternoon, ending a seven-week standoff that prevented the incoming Arizona legislator from taking her congressional seat and clearing the path for a vote to release the Jeffrey Epstein files.Johnson’s office announced Grijalva will take the oath of office on the House floor at approximately 4pm ET, ahead of a vote to reopen the federal government. The ceremony comes 49 days after Grijalva won a late September special election to succeed her father, the longtime congressman Raúl Grijalva, who died in March. Continue reading...

Politics

16 h. ago US House to vote on bill that could end longest ever government shutdown

House Democrats vow to vote no but Republican leaders optimistic legislation to reopen government will passUS politics – live updatesThe House on Wednesday was poised to vote on legislation that would end the longest government shutdown in US history, as Democrats voice fury that the Senate-brokered compromise fails to extend expiring healthcare subsidies.The House returned to vote on Washington after speaker, Mike Johnson, kept the chamber out of session for more than 50 days. The move would be a welcome sign for the White House, which is looking to speed through the process should the vote succeed. Continue reading...

Politics

20 h. ago Who is Robbie Gibb, the man at the heart of the BBC scandal with links to Boris Johnson?

BBC staffers and leading political figures are calling for Sir Robbie Gibb to step down from the BBC board. So, who is the Tory ‘agent’ at the centre of a tangled web of politics and media interests, asks Katie Rosseinsky

Politics

20 h. ago Australia’s injury woes continue with scares for Josh Hazlewood and Sean Abbott

Scott Boland is already set to deputise for Pat Cummins, while Lance Morris and Spencer Johnson are also sidelined.

Events

20 h. ago In Japan's Northern Alps, residents battle monkeys to protect homes and farms

In Japan's Northern Alps, residents are chasing monkeys to keep them away from farms and homes

Events

26 h. ago Billionaire Tory donor throws his support behind Nigel Farage and gifts £200,000 to Reform UK

Lord Bamford, who has given more than £9million to the Tories and even hosted Boris Johnson 's wedding, revealed his latest intentions over the weekend.

Economics

26 h. ago Swearing in of Democrat Adelita Grijalva 7 weeks after winning House election could force vote on releasing Epstein files

Texas Democratic congresswoman’s signature on Khanna-Massie resolution will trigger vote on the Epstein files

Politics

28 h. ago Why Republicans not extending Obamacare tax credits helps Democrats in the long run

Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia tells Eric Garcia that House Speaker Mike Johnson cannot renew ACA credits ‘without having November 2026 make November 2025 look like a picnic’

Politics

29 h. ago Biohacker Bryan Johnson reveals he takes a psychedelic drug once a month to increase his lifespan

The 48-year-old, who claims to be more than a decade younger biologically than his actual age, has long been an advocate of psychedelics for their mind-altering effects.

Politics

53 h. ago An emerging shutdown deal doesn't extend expiring health subsidies. Here's what could happen to them

A legislative package that could end the weekslong government shutdown leaves out any clear resolution on the expiring Affordable Care Act tax credits that have made private health insurance less costly for millions

Events

54 h. ago BBC board member with Tory links ‘led charge’ in systemic bias claims, say insiders

Sources say Robbie Gibb amplified criticisms of Trump, Gaza and trans rights coverage, and had ‘a lot of oxygen in the room’‘Make no mistake – this was a coup’: the extraordinary downfall of the BBC’s top bossesA BBC board member with links to the Conservative party “led the charge” in pressuring the corporation’s leadership over claims of systemic bias in coverage of Donald Trump, Gaza and transgender rights, the Guardian has been told.Sources said Robbie Gibb, Theresa May’s former communications chief who was appointed to the BBC’s board during Boris Johnson’s time as prime minister, amplified the criticisms in key board meetings that preceded the shock resignation of the director general, Tim Davie, and the head of BBC News, Deborah Turness. Continue reading...

Politics

55 h. ago Senate Democrats defend breaking ranks to end shutdown as Johnson to finally swear in Arizona’s Adelita Grijalva

Decision to advance bill that would reopen government has sparked furor from party and base; House speaker to swear in Democratic representative when chamber returns, a month after her election winSenate Democrats who defected in shutdown vote: ‘This was the only deal’How each senator voted on legislation to end US government shutdownThe eight Democratic and Independent senators who broke ranks with the party to advance a bill that would end the government shutdown – the longest in US history – have defended their decisions amid furor from their party and base.“What happened tonight is not the closing of a chapter. It’s the opening of an opportunity. What the chapter does close is the damaging shutdown that is only getting worse, that is only going to impact more and more people,” said Angus King, the Independent lawmaker from Maine who caucuses with Democrats. Continue reading...

Politics

57 h. ago Mike Johnson hauls Republicans back to Washington as government shutdown inches closer to ending: Live updates

New agreement would fund government through the end of January and allows time for further negotiations on other issues

Politics