1 hour ago Hundreds of ‘Workers Over Billionaires’ Labor Day rallies take place across US

Protests denounce Trump administration’s policies and demand freedom, fairness and security for workersAs Labor Day rallies took place across the US, the Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson sharply denounced the Trump administration’s threat to deploy federal troops to the city as part of an immigration crackdown.“No federal troops in the city of Chicago,” said Johnson on Monday to a gathered crowd at the “Workers over Billionaires” demonstration in Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood. Continue reading...

Economics

11 h. ago Soldiers are doing landscaping in DC parks. I’m thrilled for them | Dave Schilling

They were deployed to fight crime. Instead, some are spreading mulch. It’s almost sweet – if you remove the contextIf soldiers are going to be deployed to your city, what would you prefer they do: point a rifle in your face or mow your grass? This is not a question I ever expected to have to consider in my days on this planet, but life is full of surprises. As part of Donald Trump’s military deployment to address Washington DC’s so-called “crime emergency”, national guard troops are being tasked with various groundskeeping duties around the United States capital. These duties include spreading mulch around cherry trees, picking up trash and general maintenance of public spaces. The president must have been too embarrassed to get Four Seasons Total Landscaping involved again, so he got the military to do it instead.It’s a real “swords into ploughshares” moment, or in this case, “M4 rifles into those grabber sticks you use to pick up plastic bottles full of piss.” It’s almost sweet, i...

Events

24 h. ago Judge stops U.S. from deporting group of unaccompanied Guatemalan children after some were loaded on planes overnight at Texas airport

The order comes as the Trump administration reportedly prepares to send federal agents to Chicago as part of its immigration crackdown

Society

52 h. ago Chicago mayor announces measures to ‘protect our people’ from imminent influx of federal agents on Trump’s orders

Brandon Johnson warns that the city could see ‘some type of militarized activity by the federal government’ within days

Politics

67 h. ago Colleges face financial struggles as Trump policies send international enrollment plummeting

Signs of a decline in international students have unsettled colleges around the U.S., but some schools are especially vulnerable

Politics

3 d. ago Chicago appears resigned to fate and is prepping for federal troop arrival – and it could happen next week

City officials have urged the administration to communicate with local law enforcement about its operations there

Politics

3 d. ago As Trump threatens more Guard troops in US cities, here's what the law allows

Since sending the National Guard to Los Angeles and Washington, President Donald Trump has openly mused about sending troops to some of the nation’s most Democratic cities — including Chicago and Baltimore — where he claims they are needed to crack down on crime

Politics

3 d. ago Chicago appears resigned to fate and is prepping for federal troop arrival

Chicago officials have urged the administration to communicate with local law enforcement about its operations in the city

Politics

5 d. ago America survived a coup attempt. Can it endure dictatorial creep? | Lawrence Douglas

Trump’s threat to deploy troops to Chicago is the latest example of a slow manipulation of the line between legal and illegalJanuary 6 demonstrated that longstanding democracies can readily resist a disorganized effort at a coup. They are less equipped to withstand the normalization of exceptional measures: the use of federal agents to quell domestic protest, the staging of police raids on the homes of leaders’ political opponents, the pretextual invocations of emergency powers. Each of these steps may seem temporary and targeted; they may even enjoy a thin patina of legality. But over time, a democratic order turns into what Ernst Fraenkel, a German-Jewish lawyer whose book The Dual State stands as one of the first and most perceptive examinations of Hitler’s regime, called a “prerogative state” – a government in which the executive “is released from all legal restraints and depends solely on the discretion of the persons wielding political power”.So let us be clear: Trump’s comman...

Events

5 d. ago National Guard called in to deal with ‘crime emergency’ in DC are now picking up trash outside the White House

The military was deployed as part of a ‘beautification and restoration mission’ in D.C., say officials

Events

6 d. ago Venezuela will deploy military vessels to Caribbean and other waters to combat drug trafficking

Venezuela is sending military vessels to the Caribbean Sea to combat drug trafficking

Events

6 d. ago Trump urges Democrats to ‘call him’ to send troops to their cities in apparent attempt to legitimize threats of federal takeovers – live

Despite criticism of repeated threats to take over police and send in National Guard, president claims Democratic leaders should demand takeoversLev Menand, a law professor at Columbia law school, said Donald Trump’s attempt to fire Federal Reserve chief Lisa Cook is a “procedurally invalid removal under the statute”.Menand, who authored a book about the Fed’s actions during the coronavirus pandemic, also said for-cause firings are typically related to misconduct while in office, rather than based on private misconduct from before an official’s appointment. Continue reading...

Politics

6 d. ago Trump’s threat to deploy troops to Chicago sparks fear and defiance in a city on edge

President Donald Trump’s threats to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago sent ripples through America’s third-largest city as residents defended their home against Trump’s escalating rhetoric toward violent crime, including claims Chicago is a “killing field.”

Politics

7 d. ago Trump says he wants ‘Department of War’ instead of defense department – US politics live

US president floats idea several times on Monday; Trump threatens again to send troops to Democratic-run cities amid misleading claim on crime in ‘red cities’National guard start carrying firearms in DC as Trump says Chicago may be nextThe justice department is alleging in a new court filing that three Smartmatic executives who were indicted last year on bribery and money-laundering charges transferred money from a 2018 voting machine contract with Los Angeles county into slush funds that were originally set up to pay bribes to election officials in Venezuela and the Philippines between 2012 and 2016 to obtain and retain lucrative election contracts.Prosecutors say one of the executives transferred an undisclosed amount from the $282m LA county contract into the slush funds in 2019 but did not say if anyone actually received bribes from the county’s money at that point. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker warns Trump ‘Do not come to Chicago’ with military troops

Illinois leaders said Trump’s threat to bring the military to Chicago was unwarranted and part of attempt to silence dissent

Events

7 d. ago Dr Pepper buys Peet’s owner in $18bn deal amid coffee industry tariff turmoil

Deal comes at a time when consumers are pulling back and Trump’s trade wars threaten to send coffee prices soaringKeurig Dr Pepper will buy the owner of Peet’s Coffee, Douwe Egberts and Kenco in an $18bn deal, then break itself in two, with one company selling coffee and the other selling cold beverages like Snapple, Dr Pepper, 7UP and energy drinks.The agreement announced Monday will essentially unwind the 2018 merger of Keurig and Dr Pepper and it arrives at a time when consumers are pulling back and the trade wars under Donald Trump threaten to send coffee prices soaring. Continue reading...

Economics

7 d. ago Trump fears he won’t get into heaven. I think he has nothing to worry about | Dave Schilling

His concerns are understandable after decades acting in his own best interest. On the other hand, he’s very rich“Will Donald Trump get into heaven?” I know this is a question weighing heavily on your mind right now. The current president of the United States is 79 years old, so we don’t have much time left to sort this one out. Trump clearly has eternity at the top of his agenda, having spoken on at least two occasions about what happens when we die. He called into a radio program called the Todd Starnes Show, which is a thing people listen to when the internet is out on their block. He waxed on about his military deployment in Washington DC, but also about the possible system that decides the fate of your everlasting soul. “There has to be some kind of a report card up there someplace, y’know, like: ‘Let’s go to heaven, let’s get into heaven.’ It’s sort of a beautiful thing,” he said to Starnes. He’s probably hoping they grade on a curve.On Fox News, Trump expressed serious doubt h...

Politics

7 d. ago National guard start carrying firearms in DC as Trump says Chicago may be next

Arming of some troops in US capital is latest escalation as president vows to target other cities led by Black DemocratsSome national guard units patrolling the US’s capital at the direction of Donald Trump have started carrying firearms, an escalation of the president’s military deployment that makes good on a directive issued late last week by his defense department.A defense department official who was not authorized to speak publicly said some units on certain missions in Washington DC would be armed – some with handguns and others with rifles. The spokesperson said that all units with firearms had been trained and were operating under strict rules for use of force. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Motherwell, Wishaw and Carluke MP backs major expansion of cadets in Lanarkshire

Under a new ‘30 by 30’ campaign, launched this week, Labour will expand cadet opportunities for a new generation of young people – boosting cadet forces by 30% by 2030.

Politics

7 d. ago ‘I would not feel safe’: Americans on the sorrow – and relief – of leaving Trump’s US for Europe

As relocation firms report a surge in inquiries, US citizens who have made the move talk about why they left – and what they think could happen back homeThe scramble began in November as news broke that Donald Trump had been re-elected. Benjamin and Chrys Gorman had long said they would leave the US before seeing Trump inaugurated again, giving them exactly 76 days to sell their home, cars and most of their belongings and move four people, three dogs and two cats to Barcelona.“I was saying: we’ve got more time than that, it won’t go that fast,” said Gorman. “My wife said no, we need to be out of here – not just on inauguration day, but a few days before. And she was so right.” Continue reading...

Politics