2 h. ago Supreme Court pauses judge’s order for Trump to unfreeze USAID payments in first DOGE test for justices

High court temporarily blocks judge’s order just before midnight deadline to restart aid payments

Events

4 h. ago Trump calls on Supreme Court to block USAID payments in first DOGE test for justices

Trump administration calls on high court to block judge’s order in fight over foreign aid payments

Politics

13 h. ago 'Radical far left' grant given to Edinburgh festival by US State Department slammed by Trump administration

Donald Trump’s government has criticised funding grants made during the Biden administration

Politics

15 h. ago Emergency fundraisers offer a lifeline to groups who've lost foreign aid

Several nonprofit groups launched fundraising campaigns last week to help organizations who have lost funding because of the Trump administration’s freeze on foreign assistance

Politics

27 h. ago Republican budget blueprint to fund Trump’s agenda narrowly passes House

Vote passes 217-215 in win for president as Democrats assail proposal over planned cuts to social safety-net programsRepublicans unified behind a budget blueprint, a major step toward delivering Donald Trump’s sprawling tax-cut and immigration agenda over unanimous opposition from Democrats – and deep concerns that it would slash social safety net programs – to advance Trump’s 2025 agenda.The vote on passage was 217-215, with one Republican voting in opposition and no Democrats supporting the controversial measure. One Democrat did not vote. Continue reading...

Politics

28 h. ago Trump loses in court three times – on USAID, refugees and frozen funds – within 90 minutes

Trump faces three major setbacks to his agenda from Biden-appointed judges

Events

34 h. ago Judge gives Trump administration two days to unfreeze funds for US foreign aid

A federal judge has given the Trump administration less than two days to release billions of dollars in blocked funding for U.S. foreign aid

Politics

42 h. ago Middle East latest: US suspension of funds leaves UN health operations in Gaza in limbo

A U.N. official says a Trump administration move to suspend funding to the World Health Organization has frozen $46 million for its operations in Gaza

Economics

65 h. ago Confusion at US agencies over whether to comply with Elon Musk email demanding workers justify their jobs – US politics live

Government agencies give conflicting advice after email from Elon Musk demanding employees list accomplishments from past weekThe Trump administration has blocked a crucial step in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) process for funding medical research, likely in violation of a federal judge’s temporary restraining order on federal funding freezes.The NIH has stopped submitting study sections – meetings in which scientists peer review NIH grant funding proposals – to the Federal Register after the Trump administration paused health agency communications. By law, study sections must appear on the register 15 days in advance of meetings.Those who ignored President Trump’s executive order to return to work have now received over a month’s warning.Starting this week, those who still fail to return to office will be placed on administrative leave. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago ‘We have nothing now’: Myanmar’s exiled media face existential crisis after Trump severs aid

Organisations that take extreme risks to document atrocities, corruption and war crimes fear for their future after USAid cutsEach month Su Myat secretly crosses the border from Thailand into Myanmar to report on her conflict-ridden homeland, covering military airstrikes and illegal scam compounds that have become a haven for organised, transnational crime.The editor of the online news outlet ThanLwinKhet News, Su is part of a community of exiled journalists from Myanmar whose organisations are facing an existential crisis due to US president Donald Trump’s decision to freeze foreign aid. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Trump halts medical research funding in apparent violation of judge’s order

Health department orders NIH to hold Federal Register submissions – critical step in process for funding studiesThe Trump administration has blocked a crucial step in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) process for funding medical research, likely in violation of a federal judge’s temporary restraining order on federal funding freezes.The NIH has stopped submitting study sections – meetings in which scientists peer review NIH grant funding proposals – to the Federal Register after the Trump administration paused health agency communications. By law, study sections must appear on the register 15 days in advance of meetings. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Alarm as bird flu now ‘endemic in cows’ while Trump cuts staff and funding

Experts say current US outbreak is unlikely to end without intervention with further mutation of virus likelyA newer variant of H5N1 bird flu has spilled over into dairy cows separately in Nevada and Arizona, prompting new theories about how the virus is spread and leading to questions about containing the ongoing outbreaks.The news comes amid a purge of experts at federal agencies, including employees who were responding to the highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the US Department of Agriculture. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Federal judge blasts Trump administration for dodging order to resume USAID funding after freeze

Department of Justice continues to drag its feet on court orders

Politics

5 d. ago Trump administration restores legal aid for unaccompanied immigrant children

A stop-work order had been issued to government-funded attorneys to cease counsel for about 26,000 minorsThe Trump administration has rescinded its decision to cut off legal aid for unaccompanied immigrant children, just three days after it ordered government-funded attorneys across the country to immediately stop their work.The Acacia Center for Justice and the Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef) confirmed that the stop-work order affecting non-profits that provide legal counsel for about 26,000 unaccompanied minors had been lifted. Continue reading...

Events

5 d. ago Trump declares 'See you in court' in brutal transgender face

There was a tense exchange in the White House Friday as President Trump threatened to slash federal funding to Maine over transgender athletics and the state's governor threatened to sue.

Politics

5 d. ago ‘See you in court’: Democratic governor confronts Trump at the White House over trans sports ban

Trump threatened to pull federal funding from Maine after Governor Janet Mills said she won’t be ‘intimidated’ by his executive order targeting trans athletes

Politics

5 d. ago US Senate passes budget resolution to fund Trump’s deportation plan

Bill approving $175bn for border security and extra $150bn for Pentagon faces tough challenge in HouseUS politics live – latest updatesThe US Senate has passed a budget resolution that paves the way for funding Donald Trump’s mass deportation plan after his “border czar” said there were insufficient funds for the operation.A 10-hour marathon session – dubbed a “vote-a-rama” – concluded in the early hours of Friday morning with a 52-48 vote almost entirely on party lines in favor of a spending structure that would see $175bn reserved for border security, including Trump’s prized border wall with Mexico, and a $150bn boost to the Pentagon budget. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Senate passes budget funding Trump’s mass deportations; Pentagon reportedly delays firing civilians – US politics live

Republicans approve spending plan that will pay for hardline immigration policies; sackings on hold amid concerns they could hit military readinessMass firings could cause ‘monumental’ bill, say expertsNational security adviser Mike Waltz told a crowd of Donald Trump loyalists that he believes the president will receive the Nobel peace prize.“This is the presidency of peace. He’s going to end the war in Europe. He is going to end the wars in the Middle East. He is going to reinvest the United States and our leadership in our own hemisphere, from the Arctic to the border to Panama all the way down to our good friends in Argentina,” Waltz told the Conservative Political Action Conference.The pause comes after CNN reported on Wednesday that the mass terminations, which could affect over 50,000 civilian employees across the Pentagon, could run afoul of Title 10 section 129a of the US code. Following that report, Pentagon lawyers began reviewing the legality of the planned terminations m...

Politics

5 d. ago Senate passes budget funding Trump’s mass deportations; federal workers brace for more firings – US politics live

Senate Republicans approve spending plan that will pay for hardline immigration policies; mass layoffs get all-clear after judge lifts blockMass firings could cause ‘monumental’ bill, say expertsThe defense department will delay a plan to fire civilian employees on probation as it assess whether the move complies with the law and if it affects military readiness, CNN reports.The cuts were to be made as part of Donald Trump’s effort to dramatically downsize the federal government, which is being led by Elon Musk’s “department of government efficiency”. Here’s more, from CNN:The pause comes after CNN reported on Wednesday that the mass terminations, which could affect over 50,000 civilian employees across the Pentagon, could run afoul of Title 10 section 129a of the US code. Following that report, Pentagon lawyers began reviewing the legality of the planned terminations more closely, the officials said.That law says that the secretary of defense “may not reduce the civilian workforce ...

Politics

5 d. ago International aid groups axe thousands of jobs in wake of Trump funding freeze

Fears that cuts will ‘decimate’ ability to react to crises as sector loses expertise and skills at every level, report findsSome of the world’s largest aid organisations are axing thousands of jobs as a result of US president Donald Trump’s freeze on overseas aid, potentially “decimating” the sector’s ability to react to future crises.Those that have already announced job cuts include the International Rescue Committee, Danish Refugee Council, Norwegian Refugee Council and war zone-focused Norwegian People’s Aid. Continue reading...

Politics