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Politics
Policy, power, and the news of the day.
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Belgium unites to enjoy national team’s World Cup success over USA and Trump
Fans across Belgium watched 4-1 win in early hours Victory ‘a real slap in the face for Trump and Infantino’ Belgium fans reacted with jubilation after the national team trounced the USA in a World Cup game that was overshadowed by the controversy over Donald Trump’s lobbying to overturn the suspension of the striker Falorin Balogun. Belgium’s prime minister, Bart De Wever, has yet to comment on the national team’s triumph, but the official Instagram account of his cat offered a sardonic, albeit indirect sign of satisfaction. Maximus, De Wever’s beloved cat, was shown lying on a rug holding a soft toy in the image of the US president. “I slept really well last night. And you?” reads the speech bubble in Dutch. Continue reading...
New York man sues ICE for sending officers to his house after he emailed agency head
David Streever had emailed acting ICE director after an immigration officer fatally shot Minneapolis resident Renee Good An upstate New York resident sued US Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) for sending federal officers to his house with a warning over an email he sent to the agency’s one-time head. David Streever, who is a US citizen, was on a trip to Finland when two officers showed up to his Rochester home in June and presented his wife with a warning notice informing him that the email he sent months earlier was considered a threat, his attorneys said. Streever sent the email in January to Todd Lyons, then the acting director of ICE, after an immigration officer fatally shot Minneapolis resident Renee Good in a confrontation caught on video during an anti-ICE demonstration. Continue reading...
Fresh doubt over Marine Le Pen presidential bid as court orders electronic tag
Court shortens electoral ban but custodial sentence could complicate far-right leader’s campaign hopes A French court of appeal has upheld Marine Le Pen’s conviction for embezzling European parliament funds but shortened her ban on running for elected office, potentially reopening a narrow path for the far-right leader to run in the 2027 presidential race. However, the court also handed Le Pen a three-year jail term, with two years suspended and one year in which she must wear an electronic ankle tag for monitoring. This could make a presidential campaign politically and logistically difficult. Continue reading...
Why is Trump attacking ‘communists’? Because he’s run out of cards to play | Robert Reich
With the economy, foreign policy and immigration all going poorly for the president, he’s scrambling before the midterms Trump has run out of cards to play in the midterm elections, which is why he’s now talking about the “communist menace”. He can’t talk about the economy because prices continue to rise faster than wages, which means most Americans are getting poorer. He can’t talk about foreign policy because his war in Iran has been a debacle, his tariffs an utter failure, and he obviously hasn’t settled the war in Ukraine on “day one”. He can’t talk about immigration because his raids and mass deportations have become so unpopular. Continue reading...
Ex-Nato chief behind defence review says Starmer’s military spending plan is too little, too late
George Robertson warns prime minister’s defence investment plan fails to meet scale of challenge facing the UK The former Nato chief who led the government’s defence review has criticised the prime minister’s plan to pay for it, calling the defence investment plan (Dip) insufficient and overly delayed. George Robertson, the former Nato general secretary, told MPs on Tuesday the Dip had damaged confidence in the defence industry and among Britain’s allies who are gathering in Ankara this week for the Nato summit. Continue reading...
EU rejects suspending biometric border controls despite 20 ‘difficult spots’
Officials admit new post-Brexit EES system is ‘not perfect’, as airports and airlines voice fears over delays The EU has rejected calls by airports and airlines to suspend the implementation of new fingerprinting and facial recognition border controls even though it admits there are “20 difficult spots” with queue chaos. With only a week to go before the peak summer holiday season starts, EU officials admit the new entry/exit system (EES) is “not perfect” but will tell travel industry representatives that a full suspension is “not needed” and “not possible”. Continue reading...
Wimbledon 2026 quarter-finals: Sinner, Osaka, Djokovic and Gauff in action – live
Quarter-final action, under way in SW19 from 1pm (BST) Wildcard Fery extends Wimbledon fairytale | Mail Daniel Wotcha and welcome to Wimbledon 2026 – day nine! Now we’re getting serious. Two show courts, 10 players in form, and each of them tingling, contemplating the feeling of a lifetime. Continue reading...
Woman suspected of Monaco bombing found shot dead near Kyiv
Anastasiia Berezovska was being sought by police over attack that seriously injured a Ukraine-born businessman A woman suspected of carrying out last week’s bomb attack in Monaco that seriously injured a Ukraine-born business tycoon has been found shot dead near Kyiv, in the latest twist in a case that has shaken the wealthy Mediterranean principality. Ukrainian prosecutors said on Tuesday the woman had been found with a gunshot wound to the head and that two men had been arrested in connection with the case, including an officer with Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) and a former law enforcement officer. Continue reading...
Prince Harry begins visit to the UK as ruling expected in court battle with Daily Mail publisher – latest updates
Result of court case against Associated Newspapers Limited expected this afternoon The Duke of Sussex, who arrived in the UK on Monday, had been hoping to stay at his father’s official residence for one night this week while he visits London. He is also going to Birmingham as he takes on a series of charity engagements including promoting the Invictus Games. Continue reading...
Half of Americans struggle to afford groceries and gas, exclusive poll finds
About 57% of polled Americans also believe economy is worsening in grim portrait of cost of living crisis, according to Harris survey for the Guardian Ninety-five per cent of Americans believe the US is suffering an affordability crisis, as many report trouble with the rising cost of groceries and gas, according to an exclusive new poll conducted for the Guardian. The survey, conducted by Harris Poll, paints a bleak picture of how people feel about the US economy amid the war in Iran and ahead of the key midterm elections this fall. Continue reading...
What will define Elon Musk’s legacy? Doge cuts to USAID Ebola programs
Experts say cuts have hindered the response to DRC’s Ebola outbreak and resulted in ‘significant numbers’ of deaths Elon Musk has an Ebola problem. SpaceX stock dropped precipitously after its initial public offering, and Tesla faces a wave of lawsuits. But instead of focusing on his companies, Musk has posted frequently on X about the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which he helped dismantle – or, in his words, feed into the woodchipper – last year. “Elon’s USAID crash-out over the past week has been a thing to behold,” said Jeremy Konyndyk, a former top USAID official who oversaw the agency’s Ebola response in 2014-2015 and the president of Refugees International. “In a way, it’s helpful that Elon is doing this, because it’s putting attention back on the issue of what he did last year.” Continue reading...
Bank of England plans to ease capital rules despite AI stability fears
Central bank’s financial policy committee members voice concern on trimming big lenders’ financial buffers Business live – latest updates The Bank of England is planning to loosen capital requirements for major UK lenders, even as policymakers expressed concern about the threat to financial stability from rapid AI developments and debt-fuelled stock investments. The central bank said on Tuesday it was looking to remove and loosen some rules introduced after the 2008 financial crisis that determine the size of the financial cushion required to absorb losses and protect consumers and taxpayers when things go wrong. Continue reading...
Perth man fighting for life after robot vacuum cleaner explosion
Lachie Perrem suffered life-threatening injuries after the explosion on Thursday destroyed his share house in Brabham A Perth man has spent five days fighting for his life after a robot vacuum cleaner explosion set fire to his home. Lachie Perrem, aged in his 20s, was rushed to hospital on Thursday with life-threatening burns from a blaze that left his fiancee and housemates without their home. Continue reading...
Bombs explode near Damascus hotel housing Macron on Syria visit
Blasts did not interrupt French president’s visit but are setback for Syrian leaders’ attempt to project stability Explosions rocked Damascus near the hotel where French president, Emmanuel Macron, was staying on Tuesday, wounding at least 18 people, Syrian authorities said. Macron was in the presidential palace for a meeting with the Syrian president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, when two improvised explosive devices detonated near the Four Seasons hotel where Macron was reported to be staying. Continue reading...
Israeli officer shown throwing stun grenade into car during West Bank raid
Border police officer under investigation after CCTV footage shows him shouting at car’s occupants and throwing device Israeli police have opened an investigation after CCTV footage showed a border police officer throwing a stun grenade into a car carrying young Palestinians during a raid on the Qalandiya refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. The footage from Sunday, released by the Israeli rights group B’Tselem, shows an officer approaching a car and shouting at its occupants. Continue reading...
Key Democratic figures call on Graham Platner to ‘immediately’ withdraw from Senate race – US politics live
Maine’s party leadership calls for Platner to withdraw after after sexual assault allegation emerges Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. Maine’s Democratic party leadership has called for US Senate candidate Graham Platner to withdraw from the race, as the scandal-hit Marine veteran loses support from his previously most vocal backers. Trump’s latest attempt to delay payment of a $5.8m judgment for defaming a magazine columnist whom a jury determined he sexually abused has been emphatically rejected by a federal court judge. More here . Trump rang the bell of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) from the White House to mark the first trading day for Trump accounts, a government initiative that provides children with a $1,000 investment account. It is the first joint opening of the exchanges, and the first time the bell had been rung at the White House. More here . National guard soldiers on patrol in Memphis shot and killed a man that authorities in the Tennessee city said turned and pulled a gun on the troops during a chase. The shooting took place at about 4am on Sunday as the soldiers responded to a report of gunfire. The Tennessee national guard was deployed controversially by the state’s governor, Bill Lee, in October to support the federal push by Donald Trump, his fellow Republican, to tackle perceived crime surges in Democratic-run cities. More here . Continue reading...
Thames Water creditors ‘will bid for company even if it is nationalised’
Group of 100 investors still discussing £10bn rescue proposal with officials from regulator Ofwat, says report Business live – latest updates Thames Water’s creditors are willing to pursue their bid for the debt-laden company even if the next likely prime minister, Andy Burnham, brings it into temporary nationalisation. The group of 100 institutional investors, which hold about £14bn of Thames’s senior debt, are still discussing its £10bn rescue proposal for the struggling company with officials from the regulator Ofwat, and they have held meetings in recent days. Continue reading...
How will the US supreme court’s ruling on TPS affect 1.3 million immigrants?
Ruling is huge blow for residents with temporary protected status, many of whom have resided here legally for decades The US supreme court dealt a huge blow this term to roughly 1.3 million immigrants in the US, many of whom have resided in the country legally for decades with temporary deportation protections that the Trump administration will now be able to end much more easily. How does the justices’ ruling affect these people and what happens next? Continue reading...
The US supreme court’s ruling on trans people in sports is an assault on bodily autonomy | Judith Levine
Laws banning trans athletes claim to defend science, fairness, and women’s safety. They do the opposite Last week, the US supreme court ruled that states may restrict participation in girls’ and women’s sports to “biological females” and exclude transgender athletes from competing. In the past six years, 27 states have enacted such bans; before the court were challenges to West Virginia’s Save Women’s Sports Act and Idaho’s Fairness in Women’s Sports Act . The majority opinion , penned by justice Brett Kavanaugh, upholds the laws’ legality under Title IX, the federal statute that guarantees women’s equal participation in college sports, and their constitutionality under the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment. It also vindicates Donald Trump’s February 2025 executive order “ Keeping Men out of Women’s Sports ”. That directive withdraws funding from “educational programs that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities, which results in the endangerment, humiliation, and silencing of women and girls and deprives them of privacy”. US policy, the order continues, will “oppose male competitive participation in women’s sports more broadly, as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth”. Continue reading...
Red scare revived as Trump leads push to attack Democrats as ‘communists’
In wake of primary wins by leftwing candidates in New York and elsewhere, president has resorted to well-worn tactic Moments after Donald Trump rang the ceremonial opening bell on Monday, starting the trading day from the Oval Office, 232 miles north on Wall Street, the US senator Ted Cruz celebrated the president’s new savings accounts as his administration’s “New Deal”. “But instead of having government taking care of everyone,” the Republican senator declared, “Trump accounts are about making every child and every American a capitalist.” Continue reading...
Why does JD Vance keep saying loony things? | Margaret Sullivan
Scratch their surface and you see exactly what he’s trying to do: stand up strong for intolerance and corruption Given how impetuous Donald Trump is, his vice-president, JD Vance, strikes some Americans as a more stable alternative. A good bet, some of the Maga faithful believe, as the 2028 Republican nominee for president, and the eventual occupant of the Oval Office. Every bit as rightwing as Trump but more serious and predictable – that seems to be Vance’s pitch to the public. And he clearly wants to be president; he’s as ambitious as they come. Margaret Sullivan is a Guardian US columnist writing on media, politics and culture Continue reading...
Female US rower reflects on ‘surreal’ record-breaking journey from California to Hawaii
Kelsey Pfendler, 32, says she hopes her solo 2,400-mile trek across the mid-Pacific inspires other women to take risks A Grand Canyon river-rafting guide who recently became the first US woman to row solo from California to Hawaii – traveling in record time – says she hopes her accomplishment inspires other women to push their limits and take risks. “It’s really motivating to think [that], maybe one day, I will get to see another woman work even harder to do what I did,” Kelsey Pfendler, 32, told ABC’s Good Morning America program on Monday, three days after completing the record-setting journey across the mid-Pacific. “And it would be so special to watch.” Continue reading...
So it’s Trump 1, Belgium 4 – and the world rejoices. Nothing like failed chicanery to bring us together, is there? | Marina Hyde
Joy is unbounded and when it dies down perhaps the guilty will be held to account for cheating and facilitation: perhaps they won’t. Still, enjoy the moment Oh dear. Such a shame to see the US lose at football after their insanely embarrassing president cheated for them . Still, it really brought the world together. The last time this many people cheered on a Belgian resistance, it was 1914 and the Germans had just crossed the Meuse. As you’ll be aware, the US were dumped out of their own World Cup on Monday night by a wholly superior Belgium, after Donald Trump boasted that he’d personally intervened in three phone calls with Fifa president Gianni Infantino to get the red card shown to US striker Folarin Balogun rescinded. Yes, the US cheats at football. Pass it on. You’ve heard a lot about shithousery during this tournament. We have even, excruciatingly, seen a few American commentators attempt to use the word in conversation. Guys, please, just – no . It’s not for you. You have ’erbs, “a couple things”, and “a ways to go”. But let’s call the events of the past few days by the name they deserve in all the languages of the world: Whitehousery. Marina Hyde is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
‘Serious consequences’: Farage attacks Sky News after question about George Cottrell
Reform UK leader confronts journalist after question about gifts from friend and convicted fraudster UK politics live – latest updates Nigel Farage has said Sky News bosses face “serious consequences” in an outburst triggered by questions over fresh revelations about his finances. The Reform UK leader has faced renewed scrutiny after the Sunday Times revealed he had received funding from his longtime ally, the convicted fraudster George Cottrell. Continue reading...