7 h. ago Trump signs orders stepping up immigration crackdown and ‘unleashing America’s law enforcement’ – US politics live

Executive orders target sanctuary cities, give legal help for police accused of misconduct and require truck drivers to speak EnglishHere is an extract from The Atlantic’s piece on Trump’s first 100 days – in an interview secured after initially being canceled by the president over previous reporting from the journalists, who then reached the president on his cellphone – detailing some of the key development’s of his second term so far.The president seemed exhilarated by everything he had managed to do in the first two months of his second term: He had begun a purge of diversity efforts from the federal government; granted clemency to nearly 1,600 supporters who had participated in the invasion of the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, including those caught beating police officers on camera; and signed 98 executive orders and counting (26 of them on his first day in office). He had fired independent regulators; gutted entire agencies; laid off great swaths of the federal workforce; and...

Politics

17 h. ago ‘No safe seat’: could Democrats make Florida a swing state again?

Democratic candidates cutting in to GOP leads in local elections and protests against Trump provide faint pathUS politics live – latest updatesDemocrats in Florida believe that strong performances in two congressional races this month have erected signposts towards restoring its status as a crucial swing state.It might appear a lofty conviction given no Democratic candidate has won a statewide election since 2018, and any remaining notion of Florida being purple was dispelled by Donald Trump’s victory over Kamala Harris by more than 13 percentage points in November. Continue reading...

Politics

18 h. ago Trump’s justice department appointees remove leadership of voting unit

Section is responsible for enforcing laws designed to prevent voter discrimination, raised alarm about voting rights enforcementUS politics live – latest updatesDonald Trump’s appointees at the Department of Justice have removed all of the senior civil servants working as managers in the department’s voting section and directed attorneys to dismiss all active cases, according to people familiar with the matter, part of a broader attack on the department’s civil rights division.The moves come less than a month after Trump ally Harmeet Dhillon was confirmed to lead the civil rights division, created in 1957 and referred to as the “crown jewel” of the justice department. In an unusual move, Dhillon sent out new “mission statements” to the department’s sections that made it clear the civil rights division was shifting its focus from protecting the civil rights of marginalized people to supporting Trump’s priorities. Continue reading...

Politics

19 h. ago Trump to step up immigration crackdown with extra powers for law enforcement – US politics live

Press secretary says president also to sign executive orders increasing pressure on sanctuary cities and statesHere is an extract from The Atlantic’s piece on Trump’s first 100 days – in an interview secured after initially being canceled by the president over previous reporting from the journalists, who then reached the president on his cellphone – detailing some of the key development’s of his second term so far.The president seemed exhilarated by everything he had managed to do in the first two months of his second term: He had begun a purge of diversity efforts from the federal government; granted clemency to nearly 1,600 supporters who had participated in the invasion of the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, including those caught beating police officers on camera; and signed 98 executive orders and counting (26 of them on his first day in office). He had fired independent regulators; gutted entire agencies; laid off great swaths of the federal workforce; and invoked 18th-century ...

Politics

32 h. ago Tracy is about to begin chemo and she’s also getting evicted. Welcome to Australia’s housing crisis

The 63-year-old, who may have to live in a camper van, wants to see the major political parties do more for older AustraliansElection 2025 live updates: Australia federal election campaignGet our afternoon election email, free app or daily news podcastIn three weeks Tracy Adams starts chemotherapy for bowel cancer. She will also be evicted from her home.The 63-year-old has been living in her Queensland rental for five years and, despite her landlords knowing she has just been diagnosed with cancer, they have told her to go.Sign up for the Afternoon Update: Election 2025 email newsletter Continue reading...

Events

3 d. ago FBI arrests Wisconsin judge and accuses her of obstructing immigration officials

Hannah Dugan apprehended in courthouse where she works after agency says she helped man evade authoritiesUS politics live – latest updatesThe FBI on Friday arrested a judge whom the agency accused of obstruction after it said she helped a man evade US immigration authorities as they were seeking to arrest him at her courthouse.The county circuit judge, Hannah Dugan, was apprehended in the courthouse where she works in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, at 8.30am local time on Friday on charges of obstruction, a spokesperson for the US Marshals Service confirmed to the Guardian. Continue reading...

Events

3 d. ago Pete Hegseth’s controversial chief of staff leaves post unexpectedly

Exit comes after Joe Kasper was implicated as orchestrator of power grab that led to dismissal of three Pentagon officialsUS politics live – latest updatesJoe Kasper, the controversial chief of staff to the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, who was central to a dramatic power struggle at the Pentagon, has left his post, in an unexpected departure.Despite Hegseth’s assurances just days ago in a TV appearance on the Fox & Friends show that Kasper would merely transition to “a slightly different role” within the department, Kasper confirmed to Politico in a Thursday interview he will instead return to government relations and consulting, maintaining only limited Pentagon ties as a special government employee. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Reform UK on course to win in two mayoral contests – UK politics live

Polling predicts victory for party in Greater Lincolnshire and Hull/East Yorkshire with the Greens possibly taking West of EnglandThere are six mayoral elections next week. Two of them are for single-authority mayors (Doncaster and North Tyneside), but the others are for combined-authority mayors (or regional mayors – like metro mayors, but not just covering city regions). Today YouGov has released polling covering all four of these contests and it suggests Reform UK is on course to win two of them easily. And the Green party is narrowly ahead in a third, the poll suggests.Here are the polling figures.In theory the Tories should be winning in Lincolnshire as they hold most of the parliamentary seats in the area and have dominated local politics forever. But it’s also the most Reform-friendly part of the country. It contains Richard Tice’s constituency and numerous seats in which they came second. Plus their candidate is a former Tory MP – Andrea Jenkyns, famous for her Boris Johnson...

Politics

3 d. ago Swiss leader says Trump administration foresees ‘privileged’ talks with 15 countries on US tariffs – US politics live

Karin Keller-Sutter, Swiss president, says Switzerland is among 15 countries with which US plans to hold negotiations to reach deals over tariffsThe Swiss president says Switzerland is among 15 countries with which the United States plans to conduct “privileged” negotiations to help reach a deal after sweeping US tariffs on dozens of countries that have shaken global markets, reports the Associated Press (AP).Karin Keller-Sutter, in an interview with broadcaster SRF published Friday, said she was “satisfied” with talks in Washington this week that included an International Monetary Fund conference and her one-on-one meeting with US treasury secretary Scott Bessent. Keller-Sutter also serves as Switzerland’s finance minister. “The United States has defined a group of 15 countries with which it wants to find a quick solution in this tariff question. Switzerland is part of this group of these 15 countries,” she told reporters separately late on Thursday in Washington, according to the ...

Politics

3 d. ago Reeves hints at priority as she says ‘trading relationship with Europe arguably more important’ than US – UK politics live

Chancellor said she understood the focus on possible deal with US, but added the EU remained ‘our nearest neighbours and trading partners’Water company bosses face up to two years in prison if they cover up illegal sewage spills under new laws coming into force, PA Media reports. PA says:The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said no prison sentences have been handed to water company executives since privatisation despite widespread illegal sewage discharges, and the tougher penalties were essential because some firms have obstructed investigations.Environment secretary Steve Reed said: “Bosses must face consequences if they commit crimes. There must be accountability. From today, there will be no more hiding places.”I’m now pretty optimistic that we are moving in a good direction.In the end, I think everybody understands that this is about our security in Europe. It requires cooperation between democracies, friends, allies, countries with the same values.The...

Politics

4 d. ago Trump tariffs: President vents at China over Boeing as Beijing denies claims of trade deal talks

Beijing called claims of trade talks ‘groundless as trying to catch the wind’ and having ‘no factual basis’ as Trump insisted they were happening

Politics

4 d. ago Trump denies aid for Arkansas after storms that killed more than 40 people

Latest denial of disaster funding comes as Trump has repeatedly stated he wants to eliminate FemaUS politics live – latest updatesDonald Trump has denied federal disaster relief funds to the people of Arkansas, which saw dozens of people die from a series of deadly tornados last month, as legislators plead for him to reconsider.More than 40 people have been found dead after a series of tornados and severe storms hit Arkansas and neighboring states Mississippi and Missouri in March, according to CNN. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago Trump to meet with top Atlantic editor who was accidentally added to Hegseth Signal group chat – live

President says he will meet with Jeffrey Goldberg and two Atlantic reporters to ‘see if it’s possible for The Atlantic to be ‘truthful’’South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has said he talked about the war in Ukraine and the need to foster good bilateral relations with the US in his phone call with Donald Trump.“We both agreed that the war should be brought to an end as soon as possible to stop further unnecessary deaths... to meet soon to address various matters regarding US-South Africa relations,” Ramaphosa wrote in a post on X. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Trump tariffs live: President vents at China over Boeing as Beijing denies claims of trade deal talks

Lawsuit comes as president warned he could re-impose higher tariffs in as little as two weeks

Politics

4 d. ago Civil rights advocates say Trump order guts protections against discrimination

Order directs federal agencies to ‘deprioritize enforcement’ of laws where policies have discriminatory effectsUS politics live – latest updatesDonald Trump’s executive order on Wednesday eliminating “disparate-impact liability” from federal civil rights enforcement has sparked condemnation from legal and civil rights advocates who argue it guts protections that have shielded Americans from discrimination for decades.The order directs federal agencies to immediately “deprioritize enforcement” of laws where policies have discriminatory effects, even without discriminatory intent – a cornerstone of modern civil rights protection. It also instructs the attorney general to begin repealing or amending regulations implementing Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago US interior agency to fast track fossil fuel and mining permits over ‘fake emergency’

Department cites Trump’s ‘energy emergency’ declaration to expedite permissions from multiple years to 28 daysUS politics live – latest updatesThe US interior department has announced plans to radically fast track permitting for projects involving fossil fuels and mining citing Donald Trump’s ‘energy emergency’ declaration that many experts say does not exist.The move would reduce to a maximum of 28 days permitting procedures that previously could take multiple years, the department said late Wednesday. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago China calls reports of ongoing US tariff talks ‘baseless’ while Trump claims administration ‘actively’ seeking deal – live

Spokesperson for China’s ministry of commerce says any claims of progress in China-US negotiations are ‘without factual evidence’South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has said he talked about the war in Ukraine and the need to foster good bilateral relations with the US in his phone call with Donald Trump.“We both agreed that the war should be brought to an end as soon as possible to stop further unnecessary deaths... to meet soon to address various matters regarding US-South Africa relations,” Ramaphosa wrote in a post on X. Continue reading...

Economics

4 d. ago ‘Like a slap in the face’: Trump officials cut hundreds of millions to combat gun violence and opioid addiction

DoJ told over 350 groups that promised funding would be cut because it ‘no longer effectuates’ department prioritiesHundreds of millions of federal grant dollars meant to prevent and respond to gun violence, opioid addiction and support victims of violent crimes were cut this week by the Trump administration. The US department of justice emailed more than 350 organizations on Tuesday to tell them that the promised funding was being terminated. According to a termination notice shared with the Guardian, the Department of Justice said the money was rescinded because it “no longer effectuates Department priorities”.Instead, the department intends to focus on “more directly supporting certain law enforcement operations, combatting violent crime, protecting American children, and supporting American victims of trafficking and sexual assault, and better coordinating law enforcement efforts at all levels of government”, the notice read. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago UK deal with EU will not return to ‘arguments of the past’, minister says

Exclusive: Nick Thomas-Symonds says growth is highest priority of talks as Keir Starmer prepares to meet EU chiefNick Thomas-Symonds: A new deal with the EU is exactly what Britain needs. Here’s how Labour will achieve itUK politics live – latest updatesThe UK’s new deal with the EU will be a break from “debates and arguments of the past,” the UK’s chief negotiator, Nick Thomas-Symonds, has said, pledging that growth would be the highest priority of the talks.It comes as Keir Starmer prepares to meet the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, in London, as momentum builds towards a crucial EU-UK summit in May. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Trump tariffs live: Dozen US states sue to stop ‘insane’ policy as president threatens more global levies

The lawsuit comes as the president warned he could re-impose the higher tariffs in as little as two weeks

Politics