40 m. ago Trump heads to Texas a week after devastating floods – US politics live

President reportedly backing away from abolishing FEMA but is still describing tragedy as a ‘once-in-every-200-year deal’ as at least 120 have diedAt least eight core members of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have left their positions in the last six months, Politico reported on Friday, citing internal records and sources familiar with the matter.A senior White House official explained the departures by pointing to the fact that many DOGE staffers were special government employees, a designation that has a required end date, the report said. Continue reading...

Politics

63 m. ago People with UK links to get priority under France migration deal, says Cooper – UK politics live

Home secretary says ‘genuine refugees’ or those targeted by smuggling gangs could also benefit under scheme which is expected to bring around 50 or so migrants a week from FranceBritain expects EU to approve migration deal, says CooperOne of the joys, or perils, of being prime minister is that every summer you get invited to Scotland for a sleepover with the royal family. They tend to view these trips with mixed feelings. The king is seen as a great host, as was his mother, but some PMs grumble that Balmoral is freezing cold, and stuffy, and the rituals of a Scottish country home can feel a bit odd if you are not used to that sort of thing.Donald Trump hasn’t been made a king yet, but obviously he would like to be one and he too has invited the PM to Scotland this summer. According to Reuters, Trump will be visiting Scotland later this month, reportedly to check up on his golf courses, and he has invited Starmer to join him. “Starmer has accepted,” Reuters says. Continue reading...

Politics

1 hour ago Donald Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ is the ultimate betrayal of his base | Sidney Blumenthal

The measure exposes the most elaborate charade in recent US political history. But betrayal is Trump’s operating principleDonald Trump’s so-called “big, beautiful bill”, which will eviscerate the living standards, healthcare and aspirations of his white, working-class base, conclusively draws the curtain down on his Maga populist conceit, the most elaborate charade in recent American political history.The price will be staggering: $1tn in cuts to Medicaid; throwing 17 million people off health coverage closing rural hospitals and women’s health clinics; battering food assistance for families, children and veterans; the virtual destruction of US solar and wind energy manufacturing; limiting access to financial aid for college; and, according to the Yale Budget Lab, adding $3tn to the national debt over the next decade, inexorably leading to raised interest rates, which will depress the housing market. These are the harsh, brutal and undeniable realities of Trumpism in the glare of da...

Politics

2 h. ago Reeves ‘disappointed’ after UK economy unexpectedly shrinks for second month in a row

It followed a 0.3 per cent contraction in April, when US president Donald Trump announced tariffs

Politics

2 h. ago Trump declares himself Superman as he puts his airbrushed face on stacked superhero's body

The bizarre AI-generated image comes as die-hard MAGA followers have been advocating the burning of their iconic red hats due claims from Donald Trump's White House about Jeffrey Epstein

Politics

3 h. ago Texas floods latest: Over 120 dead as Kerr County ‘repeatedly denied funding’ for flood warning system

President Donald Trump is set to survey the damage in the hard-hit county where Camp Mystic campers and staff are among the 96 dead

Events

3 h. ago US set to be host to biggest sporting events with guests it doesn’t want | Emma John

Donald Trump is closing the borders even though the World Cup and 2028 Olympics will take place in his countryCall it big, beautiful timing. On Tuesday, Fifa announced it had taken an office in Trump Tower. On Wednesday, Donald Trump announced he would attend the Club World Cup final. And who could begrudge the US president a little sporting entertainment after the week he has had? Those Nobel peace prize applications don’t write themselves.Trump’s attendance at a tournament that we can be 95% sure he doesn’t understand is, doubtless, a huge coup and political victory for football. This is a sport that only a decade ago was openly considered un-American, scrawled into the rightwing commentator’s list of pet peeves between meteorologists and Judy Blume. Ann Coulter described soccer’s growing popularity as a “sign of the nation’s moral decay”. Glenn Beck likened it to Obamacare: “It doesn’t matter how you try to sell it to us, it doesn’t matter how many celebrities you get we want not...

Politics

5 h. ago UK economy shrinks for second month in a row after unexpected slump in May

It followed a 0.3 per cent contraction in April, when US president Donald Trump announced tariffs

Politics

6 h. ago MAGA meltdown as Donald Trump supporters burn iconic red caps in fury at 'cover

Supporters of Donald Trump have been left incensed by the Justice Department's recent declaration that Jeffrey Epstein had no 'client list' - and they are now calling for the burning of the iconic red hats

Politics

7 h. ago Trump plans to tour Texas flood damage as the scope of the disaster tests his pledge to shutter FEMA

President Donald Trump is visiting Texas on Friday to assess catastrophic flooding that has killed at least 120 people

Events

7 h. ago Donald Trump's tariffs will see some companies struggle to stay afloat

Businesses lacking managerial experience or cash reserves may find uncertainty challlenging, writes Amy Flavell

Politics

8 h. ago Donald Trump takes another swipe at Canada with alarming new threat

Donald Trump has threatened Mark Carney's Canada, a large country already feeling the pain of the new US administration's global steel, aluminium and auto tariffs

Events

8 h. ago Donald Trump's MAGA hats burned in protest as President faces backlash from own supporters

Supporters of Donald Trump are calling for his own supporters to burn the iconic red MAGA hats as anger continues to grow over the Epstein Files, with the President also facing criticism from his own supporters

Politics

10 h. ago Donald Trump branded 'condescending' after bizarre remarks to Liberia’s President

Donald Trump was visibly surprised when he addressed Joseph Boakai, Liberia’s President, but comments made to the 80-year-old politician have since caused a stir

Politics

10 h. ago Rubio in bind as he seeks to reassure Asia, even as region faces punishing Trump tariffs

Questions over US commitment to the region coupled with Trump’s tariff polices could be a boon to ChinaEven as they face among the most punitive tariffs globally, US secretary of state Marco Rubio has sought to reassure southeast Asian nations of Washington’s commitment to the region, saying countries there may get “better” trade deals than the rest of the world.In his first official visit to Asia, Rubio met foreign ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in Malaysia on Thursday, telling his counterparts the US has “no intention of abandoning” the region. His visit came days after president Donald Trump renewed his threat to impose severe tariffs across many southeast Asian countries if they did not strike deals by 1 August. Continue reading...

Politics

13 h. ago Keir Starmer accepts invitation to visit Donald Trump in Scotland

US president is set to officially open a new golf course at his resort on the North Sea coast at MenieKeir Starmer has accepted an invitation to visit US president Donald Trump during his expected trip to Scotland this month, according to a report.The details of the visit, including the date, are still being finalised, Reuters reported. The White House has not commented on the report. Continue reading...

Politics

13 h. ago US state department announces plan to lay off nearly 15% of its domestic staff

Several hundred bureaus will be merged or eliminated after supreme court sided with Trump administrationThe US state department has announced that it plans to move forward with mass layoffs as part of the most significant restructuring of the country’s diplomatic corps in decades. Officials say the cuts will align their mission with Donald Trump’s vision of America first.The layoffs, which are commonly called reductions in force (or RIFs), along with voluntary redundancies, will affect nearly 15% of the state department’s domestic staff. A senior state department official said that was close to 1,800 people. The restructuring will also see several hundred bureaus merged or eliminated entirely. The department advises the president and leads the US in foreign policy issues. Continue reading...

Politics

14 h. ago Donald Trump's top general 'p****** everyone off' as UK nuclear submarine deal on brink

Elbridge Colby, the Pentagon's Deputy Under Secretary of Defence for Policy, has unilaterally launched a review of the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine deal after expressing his scepticism

Politics

14 h. ago Florida lawmakers who were denied access to 'Alligator Alcatraz' sue DeSantis

Five Florida state lawmakers who were denied access to a new immigration detention center in the Everglades are suing Gov. Ron DeSantis

Politics

16 h. ago Lula threatens 50% tariff on US goods in retaliation for Trump levy on Brazil

Brazilian president says ‘if he charges us 50%, we’ll charge him 50%’ after Trump cited trial of Bolsonaro to justify tariffBrazil threatened to hit back against Donald Trump’s plan to introduce 50% tariffs on its exports with its own 50% tariff on US goods, setting the stage for a precipitous trade war.“If he charges us 50%, we’ll charge him 50%,” Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the Brazilian president, told local news outlet Record, a day after Trump threatened to impose steep duties on Brazilian goods and accused the country of conducting a “witch-hunt” against its former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is facing a trial over his attempt to overturn his 2022 election defeat. Continue reading...

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