3 h. ago Texas Target shooter 'executed girl, 4, in car seat after murdering grandpa'

Ethan Nieneker, 32, has been charged with murdering four-year-old Astrid Chow along with her grandad Adam Chow and a Target store worker during a shooting spree in Austin, Texas

Events

18 h. ago US national debt reaches a record $37 trillion, the Treasury Department reports

The U.S. government’s gross national debt has surpassed $37 trillion, setting a new record

Economics

3 d. ago Trump’s sweeping bill looms large over Democrats and Republican as they head for recess

Republicans see it as the epitome of Trump keeping his promises, while for Democrats it’s an opportunity to return from the political wildernessEarlier this summer, Republican lawmakers gathered around Donald Trump and applauded as he sat before a desk outside the White House and put his signature on what he calls his “one, big, beautiful bill”.But there were few claps for Mike Flood this week when the Republican congressman appeared before an auditorium of his Nebraska constituents to extol the tax and spending legislation’s benefits – just boos and jeers. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Trump’s sweeping bill looms large over Democrats and Republicans as they head for recess

Republicans see it as the epitome of Trump keeping his promises, while for Democrats it’s an opportunity to return from the political wildernessEarlier this summer, Republican lawmakers gathered around Donald Trump and applauded as he sat before a desk outside the White House and put his signature on what he calls his “one, big, beautiful bill”.But there were few claps for Mike Flood this week when the Republican congressman appeared before an auditorium of his Nebraska constituents to extol the tax and spending legislation’s benefits – just boos and jeers. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago ‘We are at war – bring it on’: Democrats ready to fight dirty to stop Trump

Republican push for gerrymandered congressional maps triggers down-and-dirty from new generation – will it work?It was a stirring speech that brought Democrats to tears. “When someone is cruel or acts like a bully, you don’t stoop to their level,” Michelle Obama told them in Philadelphia in 2016. “No, our motto is: ‘When they go low, we go high.’”Fast forward to Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, speaking in Chicago this week. “This is not the Democratic party of your grandfather, which would bring a pencil to the knife fight,” he insisted. “This is a new Democratic party. We’re bringing a knife to a knife fight, and we are going to fight fire with fire.” Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Democrats condemn Texas senator over alleged FBI role in locating lawmakers

John Cornyn claims FBI agreed to help return Democrats to state, sparking backlash amid GOP map pushUS politics live – latest updatesDemocrats harshly criticized Donald Trump and Republicans on Thursday after a US senator said the FBI had agreed to assist in locating Texas Democratic lawmakers who left the state to block Republicans from enacting a gerrymandered congressional map that would likely add five more Republican seats before next year’s midterm elections.Senator John Cornyn’s claim that the FBI would assist Republicans’ effort could not be independently confirmed. The FBI declined to comment. An administration official told NBC News this week the government did not plan on using federal agents to arrest Texas lawmakers and a federal law enforcement official told the outlet that as of Thursday morning, the agency had not assisted with trying to locate the lawmakers. None of the lawmakers have been charged with a crime. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Democrats respond to FBI agreement to locate Texas lawmakers: ‘We will not be intimidated’ – live updates

House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries accuses Trump administration of attempting to ‘weaponize law enforcement to target political adversaries’Vance urges Republicans in Indiana to redraw map to help tighten House gripDonald Trump on Wednesday celebrated a commitment by Apple to increase its investments in US manufacturing by an additional $100bn over the next four years.Apple’s plan to up its domestic investment comes as it seeks to avoid Trump’s threatened tariffs, which would increase the tech giant’s costs as it relies on a complex international supply chain to produce its iPhones. Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, warned during an earnings call in May that the tariffs could cost the company up to $900m that fiscal quarter alone. Continue reading...

Society

5 d. ago Democrats slam Texas senator Cornyn over alleged FBI role in locating fleeing lawmakers

Cornyn claims the FBI agreed to help return Texas Democrats, sparking legal and political backlash amid GOP map pushUS politics live – latest updatesDemocrats harshly criticized Donald Trump and fellow Republicans on Thursday after a US senator said the FBI had agreed to assist in returning Texas Democratic lawmakers who fled the state to stop a Republican effort to redistrict.US senator John Cornyn’s claim that the FBI will assist Republicans’ effort could not be independently confirmed. The FBI declined to comment. An administration official told NBC News this week the government did not plan on using federal agents to arrest Texas lawmakers and a federal law enforcement official told the outlet that as of Thursday morning, the agency had not assisted with trying to locate the lawmakers. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Democrats slam Texas senator over alleged FBI role in locating lawmakers

John Cornyn claims FBI agreed to help return Democrats to state, sparking backlash amid GOP map pushUS politics live – latest updatesDemocrats harshly criticized Donald Trump and fellow Republicans on Thursday after a US senator said the FBI had agreed to assist in returning Texas Democratic lawmakers who left the state to stop a Republican effort to redistrict.Senator John Cornyn’s claim that the FBI would assist Republicans’ effort could not be independently confirmed. The FBI declined to comment. An administration official told NBC News this week the government did not plan on using federal agents to arrest Texas lawmakers and a federal law enforcement official told the outlet that as of Thursday morning, the agency had not assisted with trying to locate the lawmakers. Continue reading...

Politics

6 d. ago Texas redistricting battle live updates: Beto O’Rourke’s group reportedly supporting fleeing Democrats’ expenses

Texas Tribune reports that the former Texas congressman has been a top funder covering the costs of Texas lawmakers’ exodus as they face a $500-a-day fineIn a post on his Truth Social platform, the president said he would “federalize” the city if local authorities failed to address crime, specifically calling for minors as young as 14 to be prosecuted as adults.Trump’s threat could theoretically take several forms. The constitution grants Congress broad authority over the federal district, though completely suspending local governance would likely require congressional legislation. Trump could also deploy federal law enforcement or national guard troops under executive authority, as he did during 2020 protests when federal forces cleared Lafayette Square outside the White House over local officials’ objections.Politically embattled Senator, Cryin’ Chuck Schumer, wants the Republicans to pay, as EXTORTION, TWO BILLION DOLLARS in order for the Radical Left Democrats to approve the hun...

Politics

6 d. ago Trump threatens to take ‘federal control’ of DC after Doge staffer attack – US politics live updates

President claims on social media that DC is ‘totally out of control’ and if the city doesn’t ‘get it’s act together’ he will have ‘no choice but to take Federal control’After taking six months to conclude that Vladimir Putin may not be a kindred transactional authoritarian leader but an ideological nationalist seeking the return of what “belongs to Russia”, the deadline Donald Trump set for the Russian president to agree a Ukraine ceasefire or face US sanctions on oil exports arrives on Friday.What Trump – who some had claimed was a Russian asset – does next to punish Putin could define his presidency. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago The US supreme court paved the way for Texas’s gerrymandering mess | Steven Greenhouse

In a 2019 case, John Roberts said federal courts shouldn’t intervene in such matters. Trump’s team is taking advantageWith Texas Republicans rushing to fulfil Donald Trump’s wish to gerrymander to the max, many Americans are no doubt wondering why there isn’t some referee to stop this hyperpartisan race to the bottom that is poisoning our democracy. The supreme court should be the referee that puts a halt to this ugly, undemocratic mess, but in a shortsighted, 5-4 ruling in 2019, the court’s conservative majority essentially told state legislatures that anything goes when it comes to gerrymandering. Their message was: no matter how extreme the gerrymandering, we’ll look the other way.Writing the majority opinion in that case, Rucho v Common Cause, chief justice John Roberts declared that gerrymandering was a political matter that federal courts shouldn’t intervene in (unless it involves racial discrimination). Many legal experts said the conservative justices were defaulting on the ...

Events

7 d. ago My travels in Trump’s Florida: Maga superstars, gen Z Republicans – and the shame of ‘Alligator Alcatraz’

Is the US in a new gilded age of inequality? On a 400-mile journey from a triumphant conservative youth summit to a hastily constructed immigration detention centre, the answer became clearer Anywhere but Washington: fearmongering, mass deportations and self-enrichment – videoThe mezzanine floor of the Tampa Convention Center buzzes chaotically with rightwing chatter: conspiracy theories, grievance politics and Christian nationalism. Look in any direction and someone in front of you, washed in sharp studio lights, is drawing a crowd and creating content.Ahead of me, Russell Brand sits on a white sofa, broadcasting live on the conservative video-streaming service Rumble – his guest is the “alt-right” influencer Jack Posobiec. To the left, along an alleyway lined with small broadcast booths, is the longtime Donald Trump adviser and self-proclaimed “dirty trickster” Roger Stone, who is holding court on a podcast. To the rear, on a large metal scaffold, is Steve Bannon’s War Room channe...

Politics

7 d. ago Florida prepares to build a 2nd immigration detention center to join 'Alligator Alcatraz'

Florida Gov_ Ron DeSantis’ administration is apparently preparing to build a second immigration detention center, awarding at least one contract for what’s labeled in state records as the “North Detention Facility.”

Politics

7 d. ago Texas senator asks FBI to help locate and arrest Democrats for leaving state

John Cornyn ramps us gerrymandering showdown between lawmakers and Trump administration seeking GOP seatsThe US senator John Cornyn of Texas has asked the FBI to aid Texas law enforcement in locating and arresting Democrats who left the state to forestall a plan sought by Donald Trump to aggressively redraw the state’s congressional map in a way that could help Republicans keep their House majority after the 2026 midterm elections.The senator’s request is a significant escalation in the fast-moving showdown that could set up a confrontation between the blue state leaders shielding the Democratic state lawmakerss and the Trump administration. Earlier on Tuesday, Texas Democrats denied a legislative quorum for the second day in a row by scattering across the country, with many decamping to Chicago, Illinois, where the Democratic governor, JB Pritzker, has vowed to protect them. Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago What does Texas redrawing its voting maps mean and why have Democrats left the state? Explained

At the behest of Donald Trump, the state is pushing to restructure congressional maps to add as many as five seats for RepublicansAt the insistence of Donald Trump, Republicans in Texas are pushing ahead with an effort to redraw their congressional map to pick up as many as five additional Republican seats.The decision has set off a cascading legal battle. State lawmakers have fled Texas as part of an effort to stop Republicans from passing the map. Democrats in other states have said they will retaliate, setting the stage for a nasty and prolonged redistricting tit-for-tat that could last for years. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Trump says Republicans are ‘entitled’ to five more congressional seats in Texas

House reconvened in afternoon, but enough Democrats remained outside state to deny quorum for second dayDonald Trump said on Tuesday that Republicans are entitled to the five more seats they could pick up if congressional maps proposed by Texas Republicans are passed.Trump called in for an interview with CNBC Tuesday morning, before Texas Democrats denied a legislative quorum for the second day in a row by fleeing the state, with many decamping to Chicago, Illinois, where the Democratic governor, JB Pritzker, has vowed to protect them. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Trump says Texas is ‘entitled to five more seats’ as DNC chair readies for ‘knife fight’: Live updates

President weighed in on Texas redistricting furore in CNBC interview on Tuesday morning as Democrats prepare to fight over gerrymandering plans

Events

7 d. ago ‘Has to sting’: MTG turned on GOP after Trump snubbed her ambitions to be governor, expert says

Former MAGA stalwart recently escalated her criticism of the Republican Party, less than a week after addressing speculation about a potential run for governor

Politics

7 d. ago Trump attacks blue states for accepting Texas Democrats while endorsing gerrymandered state map – live updates

President says ‘we are entitled to five more seats’ in Texas as state House battles over Republican-drawn congressional mapsFull report – Trump weighs in on Texas redistricting fightIt’s a quiet August Tuesday on the president’s schedule today. The only listed item on his agenda is an executive order signing at 4pm EDT. We don’t know the details of that just yet.Trump is also speaking on CNBC now, and we’ll bring you the latest from that interview. Continue reading...

Politics