Category Archives: Donald Trump

George Floyd memorial: lawyer says ‘pandemic of racism’ led to killing – live

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With protests over police brutality and the death of George Flloyd continuing around the US today, a short report from our voting rights editor on events this afternoon in Brooklyn, New York City:

Thousands of protestors converged on Brooklyn’s Cadman Plaza today for a memorial for George Floyd. The event was attended by Floyd’s brother, Terrence, who addressed the crowd with calls for solidarity and peaceful protest in memory of his brother.

Emotional and heartfelt speech from George’s Floyd’s brother Terrence today at the memorial in Cadman Plaza. #blacklivesmatter #powertothepeople #georgefloyd pic.twitter.com/UpE5J6euor

Rev Al Sharpton also used his eulogy at the memorial service for George Floyd to announce that, with the Floyd family, he would organise a march on Washington on 28 August to demand reform of the criminal justice system.

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‘Slide to illiberalism’: ex-general joins chorus of condemnation of Trump

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John Allen warns that politicisation of the military could be the beginning of the end of ‘the American experiment’

The retired marine general who led the global coalition against Isis and commanded US forces in Afghanistan has warned that Donald Trump’s actions this week could start a US “ slide into illiberalism” and the beginning of the end of “the American experiment”.

In denouncing the president for his response to the George Floyd protests, John Allen became the latest in a string of venerable military figures to have gone public over what they describe as the threat posed by Trump to the non-political nature of the armed forces, and more broadly to US democracy.

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Ukrainian prosecutors find no evidence against Hunter Biden

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Audit probed energy company Burisma, of which Biden was a board member from 2014-2019

An audit of thousands of old case files by Ukrainian prosecutors found no evidence of wrongdoing on the part of Hunter Biden, the former prosecutor general, who had launched the audit, told Reuters.

Ruslan Ryaboshapka was in the spotlight last year as the man who would decide whether to launch an investigation into former vice president Joe Biden and his son Hunter, in what became a key issue in the impeachment of President Donald Trump.

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Trump hankers for roar of the crowd while Biden takes campaign virtual

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Despite the pandemic, the president can’t wait to get back packed rallies while his Democratic rival practices caution. Each thinks he has a winning strategy

Donald Trump wants to be nominated by a Republican national convention with all the trappings of a normal, packed event: the thronging crowds, the balloon drop, the scores of sideshow events. Meanwhile, former vice-president Joe Biden and senior Democratic officials are strongly considering a partially or completely virtual convention.

Related: Can Joe Biden convince protesters he would be a 'transformational' president?

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George Floyd killing: reports over 10,000 arrested; ex-defense secretary denounces Trump – live

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James Mattis accuses Trump of dividing US and ordering military to violate constitutional rights of Americans

Associated Press are reporting that more than 10,000 people have now been arrested in protests against racism and police brutality in the wake of George Floyd’s death. It’s not an official figure, but comes from their own tally of arrest reports.

The AP figures show that Los Angeles has had more than a quarter of the national arrests, followed by New York, Dallas and Philadelphia. Many of the arrests have been for low-level offences such as curfew violations and failure to disperse. Hundreds were arrested on burglary and looting charges.

If you’ve been following the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag on social media you may have been surprised this morning by a sudden flood of Korean characters and the repeated phrase: “We stand against racial discrimination. We condemn violence. You, I and we all have the right to be respected. We will stand together.”

The source of this is the world’s biggest K-Pop band, BTS, who posted on social media this morning:

우리는 인종차별에 반대합니다.
우리는 폭력에 반대합니다.
나, 당신, 우리 모두는 존중받을 권리가 있습니다. 함께 하겠습니다.

We stand against racial discrimination.
We condemn violence.
You, I and we all have the right to be respected. We will stand together.#BlackLivesMatter

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Governments and WHO changed Covid-19 policy based on suspect data from tiny US company

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Surgisphere, whose employees appear to include a sci-fi writer and adult content model, provided database behind Lancet and New England Journal of Medicine hydroxychloroquine studies

The World Health Organization and a number of national governments have changed their Covid-19 policies and treatments on the basis of flawed data from a little-known US healthcare analytics company, also calling into question the integrity of key studies published in some of the world’s most prestigious medical journals.

A Guardian investigation can reveal the US-based company Surgisphere, whose handful of employees appear to include a science fiction writer and an adult-content model, has provided data for multiple studies on Covid-19 co-authored by its chief executive, but has so far failed to adequately explain its data or methodology.

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George Floyd killing: thousands march peacefully in New York, defying curfew – live

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In Los Angeles, thousands took to the streets. Mayor Eric Garcetti took a knee with protestors, even as crowds chanted, “defund the police”.

In New York, thousands of protesters defied curfew and remained on the streets, as officers began making arrests.

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Justin Trudeau lost for words over Trump handling of George Floyd protests

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Canadian prime minister pauses for 20 seconds before saying: ‘We all watch in horror and consternation what’s going on in the United States’

Justin Trudeau, when asked about US president Donald Trump threatening to use the military to quell protests over the police killing of George Floyd, paused for more than 20 seconds before responding that Canadians were observing events in the US with horror.

“We all watch in horror and consternation what’s going on in the United States,” the Canadian prime minister said on Tuesday at a daily news briefing, after a reporter pressed him on Trump’s idea of using soldiers against protesters.

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Mark Zuckerberg defends decision to allow Trump to threaten violence on Facebook

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CEO says decision was ‘tough’ but ‘thorough’ as company faces harsh criticism and public dissent from employees

Mark Zuckerberg is standing by his decision to allow Donald Trump to threaten violence against George Floyd protesters on the platform despite harsh criticism from civil rights leaders and public dissent from his own employees, including a public resignation.

In a video conference with staff on Tuesday, Zuckerberg said that his decision to not remove Trump’s warning on social media on Friday that “when the looting starts the shooting start” was “tough” but “pretty thorough”, the New York Times reported. The company usually holds an all-staff meeting on Thursdays, but the session was moved up to address growing discontent among employees, hundreds of whom staged a “walkout” on Monday by requesting time off.

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‘How did we get here?’: Trump has normalised mayhem and the US is paying the price

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More than 100,000 have died in a pandemic and troops are on the streets. The rate of fresh affronts has outpaced the ability to digest them

The sheer tumult of the Trump era, the unceasing torrent of events that were unthinkable even hours before, has left a nation constantly off balance, unable to find its bearing and grasp how far it has traveled.

The developments of the past 24 hours were a reminder of how slippery the downward slope has been. 

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Trudeau speechless at Trump’s reaction to Floyd protests – video

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The Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, was silent for 21 seconds in reaction to a question on Donald Trump's handling of protests across the US over the killing of George Floyd by a white police officer.

Trudeau said Canada also had to face up to 'systemic discrimination' and become allies against it

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‘A wake-up call for the nation’: Joe Biden addresses the killing of George Floyd – video

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Joe Biden has addressed the killing of George Floyd and the protests that his death has sparked. During a speech in Philadelphia, the Democratic presidential candidate said Floyd’s last words, 'I can’t breathe', were a 'wake-up call for our nation'. Biden also sought to draw a clear distinction between himself and Donald Trump, saying the US president was 'part of the problem'

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Mark Zuckerberg criticised by civil rights leaders over Donald Trump Facebook post

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Activists say Facebook boss’s decision to leave ‘shooting threat’ up sets dangerous precedent

Civil rights leaders have criticised Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to take no action against a Facebook post from Donald Trump appearing to threaten to start shooting “looters”, after a Monday night meeting with the company’s executives ended in acrimony.

“We are disappointed and stunned by Mark’s incomprehensible explanations for allowing the Trump posts to remain up,” Vanita Gupta, Sherrilyn Ifill and Rashad Robison said in a statement. “He did not demonstrate understanding of historic or modern-day voter suppression and he refuses to acknowledge how Facebook is facilitating Trump’s call for violence against protesters.

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‘Words of a dictator’: Trump’s threat to deploy military raises spectre of fascism

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The president suggested the US could use troops against Americans – true to the instincts of a man surrounded by sycophants

“When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross,” goes an oft-quoted line of uncertain origin.

On Monday evening, Donald Trump, with four US flags behind him, threatened to send in the military against the American people, then crossed the road to pose for a photo outside a historic church while clutching an upside-down Bible.

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Fauci says his contact with Trump has ‘dramatically decreased’

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Comments likely to raise fears he is being squeezed out of White House as coronavirus continues to ravage US

Anthony Fauci, the government’s top public health expert and a member of the national coronavirus taskforce, said on Monday that he was no longer in frequent contact with Donald Trump, which is likely to spark fresh fears that he is being frozen out of the White House.

The pandemic continues to ravage communities across the United States, where the death toll on Monday had reached 105,000, and last month Fauci warned the US Congress during a hearing that the virus was not yet under control.

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Trump threatens to deploy military against protesters as teargas fired outside White House – live

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Bobby Rush, an Illinois congressman and a Civil Rights era leader who co-founded the Illinois chapter of the Black Panthers in 1967, responded to Trump’s Rose Garden address with this:

We are living in a police state. https://t.co/YjO8x7QZjt

The Episcopal bishop of DC told The Washington Post that she was “outraged” after the officers cleared peaceful protestors gathered near the White House with tear gas and rubber bullets, to clear the way for Donald Trump to take photos outside St. John’s Church.

The Episcopal bishop of DC – who oversees the DC church Trump just stopped at – tells the @washingtonpost she is "outraged" and that neither she nor the rector was asked or told… “that they would be clearing with tear gas so they could use one of our churches as a prop.." 1/3

"We so disassociate ourselves from the messages of this president. We hold the teachings of our sacred texts to be so so grounding to our lives and everything we do and it is about love of neighbor and sacrificial love and justice." @Mebudde Bishop Mariann Budde 3/3

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Facebook employees hold virtual walkout over Mark Zuckerberg’s refusal to act against Trump

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  • Workers dissatisfied with decision to not remove the president’s post
  • An oversight board member is involved in a racist speech controversy

Facebook employees are staging a rebellion over Mark Zuckerberg’s refusal to act against Donald Trump, expressing their dissatisfaction with their boss on social media in a rare public display of dissent and, in some cases, staging a “virtual” walkout.

Disagreement came from employees at all levels of the company, including some senior staff. Particular criticism was levelled at Zuckerberg’s personal decision to leave up the Facebook version of a tweet sent by Trump in which the president appeared to encourage police to shoot rioters. By contrast, Twitter hid the message behind a warning.

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Donald Trump offers to invite Vladimir Putin to expanded G7 summit

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US president initiated call with Russian leader, according to Kremlin account, where they discussed pandemic, oil and space

Donald Trump has offered to invite Vladimir Putin to an expanded G7 meeting in September, but the invitation has already been adamantly opposed by the UK and Canada.

According to a Kremlin account on Monday, the US president initiated the call, in which the two leaders talked about the coronavirus pandemic, oil prices and cooperation in space, as well as Trump’s postponement of a planned G7 summit at Camp David this month and the inclusion of other countries.

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‘It could have a chilling effect’: why Trump is ramping up attacks on mail-in voting

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Trump is sowing doubt about mail-in voting at a time when it may be the safest way for people to cast their ballots

Donald Trump is escalating baseless attacks on mail-in voting in what appears to be an obvious effort to sow doubt about the fairness of the 2020 election.

The president has long made false accusations about voter fraud, claiming without evidence that 3-5 million Americans voted illegally in the 2016 election. But his barrage against mail-in voting is particularly alarming ahead of an election during the Covid-19 pandemic, where there is likely to be severely limited in-person voting and many Americans will probably vote by mail for the first time. Advocates worry voters who don’t want to risk their health and vote in person could also be swayed by Trump’s rhetoric, not feel comfortable voting by mail, and simply choose not to vote at all.

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America’s seniors ebb away from Trump as coronavirus response disappoints

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The country’s most reliable voting bloc are also the most vulnerable to the virus, which looks to be benefiting Biden

At a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden last week, a maskless Donald Trump appealed directly to a constituency that could determine his political fate in November’s election: America’s seniors. 

Related: Biden sets solemn tone as Trump waits 15 hours to mark Covid-19 milestone

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