Category Archives: Trump administration

US free-speech rights shredded despite Trump vow to be first-amendment champion

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Experts say free speech under attack in ways not seen since Nixon – and critics of president’s agenda are being targeted

A cornerstone of the Maga movement during the Biden administration was to accuse a mixture of the so-called “woke left” and the justice department of forcing America into the grips of a free speech crisis.

Common complaints were that nobody “can say anything any more” without being canceled or arrested for extremism. In the same breath, Maga broadly described the January 6 insurrection, which killed a police officer, as peaceful, accusing the Democrats of a communist conspiracy.

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‘Wake-up call’ for Australian universities as 70% suffer a fall in latest global ranking

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Australia still had two universities, the University of Melbourne and University of NSW, in the top 20 of the QS World University Rankings

Dozens of Australia’s top universities have dropped in a global ranking amid a “turbulent year” for higher education, as attacks from Donald Trump’s second administration exacerbated years of disruption for the embattled sector.

The University of Melbourne, Australia’s highest performer, dropped seven places to 19th in the QS World University Rankings, run by the global higher education specialist Quacquarelli Symonds, while the University of Sydney dropped from 18th in the world to 25th.

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Rodney Scott confirmed as head of CBP by US Senate despite ‘cover-up’ claim

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Senate backs Trump’s nominee to lead Customs and Border Protection despite accusation by former official

The US Senate on Wednesday confirmed Rodney Scott as commissioner of Customs and Border Protection (CBP), despite a former top official accusing him of orchestrating a “cover-up” over the death of a man detained while trying to enter the country from Mexico.

Scott was confirmed on a party-line vote, with 51 Republicans in favor and 46 Democrats opposed, along with three absences.

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New US visa rules will force foreign students to unlock social media profiles

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Diplomats to look for ‘indications of hostility towards citizens, culture or founding principles of United States’

Foreign students will be required to unlock their social media profiles to allow US diplomats to review their online activity before receiving educational and exchange visas, the state department has announced. Those who fail to do so will be suspected of hiding that activity from US officials.

The new guidance, unveiled by the state department on Wednesday, directs US diplomats to conduct an online presence review to look for “any indications of hostility toward the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles of the United States”.

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Iranian regime collapse would be serious blow for Russia

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While some in Moscow have tried to put positive spin on Israel’s assault, Kremlin risks losing key strategic partner

When a group of Russian and Iranian foreign policy officials arranged to meet in Moscow for a conference titled “Russian-Iranian cooperation in a changing world”, they probably did not anticipate just how timely that phrase would turn out to be.

Seated around a table on Wednesday at the President hotel near the Kremlin, officials from both sides were forced to confront a stark new reality: Iran’s regime – a key ally of Moscow – is facing its most serious threat in decades.

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Women more worried about economy under Trump than men, poll finds

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Exclusive: poll shows 62% of women and 47% of men across political spectrum say economy and inflation getting worse

Women across the political spectrum are more concerned about the state of the US economy and inflation under Donald Trump than men are, according to a new exclusive poll for the Guardian.

More Democrats than Republicans are now concerned about the economy following the president’s return to power. But pessimism was higher for women even among Republicans and independents, according to a new Harris poll.

More women said they are very worried about food prices (52% of women compared to 39% of men)

More women said they’re spending more time trying to find deals or go to more affordable stores (36% versus 26%)

More women said their financial security is getting worse because of their difficulty in affording essential goods and services (55% versus 46%)

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Trump brushes off US intel reports on Iran to align himself with Israel

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President has dismissed verdict by handpicked spy chief, Tulsi Gabbard, that Iran is not developing nuclear weapons

Tulsi Gabbard, the US director of national intelligence, delivered a concise verdict during congressional testimony this March: the intelligence community “continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme leader Khomeini has not authorized the nuclear weapons program that he suspended in 2003”.

As he rushed back to Washington on Tuesday morning, Donald Trump swatted aside the assessment from the official that he handpicked to deliver him information from 18 US intelligence agencies. “I don’t care what she said,” said Trump. “I think they were very close to having one.”

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‘Not our war’: bipartisan US lawmakers back resolution to block involvement in Iran

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Republican Thomas Massie joins with Democrats in effort to require Congress approval before Trump attacks Iran

As Donald Trump publicly threatens to join Israel in attacking Iran, an unlikely coalition of lawmakers has moved to prevent the president from involving US forces in the conflict without Congress’s approval.

On Tuesday, Republican congressman Thomas Massie, whose libertarian-tinged politics have often put him at odds with Trump, joined with several progressive Democrats to introduce in the House of Representatives a war powers resolution that would require a vote by Congress before Trump could attack Iran. Democrat Tim Kaine has introduced companion legislation in the Senate.

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Trump threatens to keep 25% tariff on UK steel imports over Port Talbot concerns

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Exclusive: Sources say US wants information on when importing of raw materials from abroad at Port Talbot site will stop

Donald Trump is threatening to keep 25% tariffs on some or all of its steel imports from the UK unless it gives specific guarantees over the Indian-owned steelmaking plant at Port Talbot in south Wales, sources have told the Guardian.

An agreement to reduce tariffs on UK car exports to the US and scrap them for the aerospace sector was signed off by the US president and Keir Starmer on Monday, on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada.

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Could US attack Iran’s Fordow nuclear site? Military movements offer a clue

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Refuelling aircraft were tracked heading east, potentially to support B-2 jets carrying bunker-buster bombs

The US has stepped up its military presence in the Middle East since the weekend but has left certain details vague to preserve operational ambiguity for Donald Trump as he considers whether the US will intervene in the Israel-Iran war.

Critically, there has been no new information about the deployment of B-2 bombers that would be used to attack Iran’s deep-lying nuclear enrichment site at Fordow with 13.6-tonne (30,000lb) bunker-buster bombs, designed to penetrate 60 metres of rock.

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Trump administration notches first big win in assault on higher education

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Federal judge dismissed lawsuit brought by faculty groups over government cuts to Columbia University funding

The Trump administration scored its most significant legal victory in its sweeping effort to reshape American higher education when a federal judge on Monday dismissed a lawsuit brought by faculty groups over the government’s cuts to Columbia University’s federal funding.

The lawsuit concerned the Trump administration’s cuts to $400m worth of federal funding to Columbia on the grounds it tolerated antisemitism during pro-Palestinian protests on campus. Columbia largely accepted the government’s terms for restoring funding – in an agreement widely panned as a capitulation of its own academic freedom – several days before the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) sued the Trump administration over the cuts.

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Democratic senator proposes curbing Trump’s war powers amid Israel-Iran conflict

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Tim Kaine introduces measure to prohibit US forces from taking action against Iran without approval from Congress

As Iran and Israel exchange missile attacks for a fourth day, Democrats in Washington are moving swiftly to reassert congressional authority over US military engagement in the region amid fears of American involvement in a broader conflict.

Tim Kaine, a Democratic senator of Virginia, on Monday introduced a war powers resolution that would prohibit US armed forces from taking direct action against Iran without explicit authorization from Congress or a declaration of war. The measure, like other attempts to claw back power from the executive branch, faces a steep climb in the GOP-controlled Congress, where Republicans have been mostly unwilling to challenge Donald Trump’s authority.

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Trump’s ‘revenge tax’ could threaten foreign investment into US, analysts say

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Concerns raised that section 899 could backfire and also undermine dollar’s safe haven status

Foreign investment into the US could be threatened by Donald Trump’s new “revenge” taxes, analysts have warned.

A provision within the president’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act will allow the US to apply higher taxes on foreign individuals, businesses and investors connected to jurisdictions that impose “unfair foreign taxes” on US individuals and companies.

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How a Pentagon account on X became Pete Hegseth’s personal cheerleader

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Department’s rapid response team is weaponizing the social platform to champion defense secretary and attack rivals

While it’s true no president or political leader has ever used social media quite as prolifically as Donald Trump, no recent secretary of defense has ever weaponized X or any other platform, quite like former Fox & Friends weekend host, Pete Hegseth.

Hegseth is actively reshaping the Pentagon in his own image since taking over, prompting a social media policy that has taken a dramatic turn towards supporting Hegseth’s every move and public appearance.

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Trump ally Ric Grenell says he’d ‘look at’ California bid if Kamala Harris runs

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Kennedy Center interim director says he would have consider running for California governor if Harris opts in

Donald Trump loyalist Ric Grenell says he would “have to” strongly consider running for California governor in 2026 if former vice-president Kamala Harris signs up to campaign for the position.

Grenell – a foreign policy adviser to the president and the interim director of Washington DC’s John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts – made the remark during an interview airing Sunday on the Politico podcast The Conversation with Dasha Burns.

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‘No Kings’ protests across US loom over Trump’s military parade

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Millions of people expected for potentially biggest day of demonstrations since president’s second term began

As tanks and soldiers parade through the streets of Washington on Saturday, millions of people around the country are expected to turn out in their communities to speak out against the excesses of Donald Trump’s administration in what’s expected to be the biggest day of protest since his second term began.

The protests, dubbed “No Kings”, are set to take place throughout Saturday in about 2,000 sites nationwide, from big cities to small towns. A coalition of more than 100 groups have joined to plan the protests, which are committed to a principle of nonviolence.

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Mahmoud Khalil: US judge denies release of detained Palestinian activist

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Setback for former student held since March as lawyers condemn government’s ‘cruel, transparent delay tactics’

A federal judge declined to order the release of Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, a setback for the former Columbia University student days after a major ruling against the Trump administration’s efforts to keep him detained.

Khalil, a green-card holder who has not been charged with a crime, is one of the most high-profile people targeted by the US government’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian campus activism. Despite key rulings in his favor, Khalil has been detained since March, missing the birth of his son.

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Trump to merge wildland firefighting forces, despite warning of chaos

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Order aims to centralize efforts, which are now split among five agencies and two cabinet departments

Donald Trump has ordered the US government to consolidate its wildland firefighting force into a single program, despite warnings from former federal officials that it could be costly and increase the risk of catastrophic blazes in the middle of peak wildfire season.

The order aims to centralize firefighting efforts, which are now split among five agencies and two cabinet departments. Trump’s proposed budget for next year calls for the creation of a new Federal Wildland Fire Service under the US interior department.

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Judge seems skeptical Trump can call in national guard and will rule ‘very soon’

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California governor Gavin Newsom filed suit challenging US president calling up troops to suppress protests against Ice

A federal judge expressed skepticism on Thursday with the Trump administration’s arguments that the president has the power to federalize national guard troops and deploy them to suppress protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles.

The US district judge, Charles Breyer, said he intends to rule on California’s request for an injunction halting the deployment “very soon”, and that he was hopeful his ruling would come by the end of the day. He said he would also decide on whether the justice department could stay the order pending appeal.

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Israel’s Iran threat is familiar, but it is unlikely to attack without US backing

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Israel has threatened to destroy Tehran’s nuclear programme before, ultimately holding back in absence of Washington’s support

The withdrawal of non-essential US personnel from parts of the Middle East and the anonymously sourced US reports in the past 24 hours that Israel is on the brink of an all-out attack on Iran are all deeply alarming, but they are also familiar.

The Israeli government has approached the same precipice, of a war to destroy Tehran’s nuclear programme, several times in the past two decades, going as far as honing detailed plans and conducting practice air sorties.

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