The mother of Harry Dunn, a British teenager who died in a collision with a car driven on the wrong side of the road by Anne Sacoolas, an American woman who claimed diplomatic immunity, said she asked Donald Trump to ‘do the right thing’ when they met at the White House on Tuesday. The US president told Dunn’s parents that Sacoolas was in an adjoining room but they turned down the offer to meet her
Continue reading...Category Archives: Donald Trump
Biden warns Isis fighters will strike US over Syria withdrawal
Former vice-president said at Democratic debate ‘they are going to damage’ the US and blasted Trump for abandoning Kurdish allies
The former US vice-president Joe Biden warned during a Democratic debate on Tuesday night that Islamic State fighters would strike the US as a result of Donald Trump’s abrupt withdrawal of American forces in northern Syria.
“We have Isis that’s going to come here,” Biden said. “They are going to damage the United States of America. That’s why we got involved in the first place.”
Continue reading...Harry Dunn: parents of teenager killed in crash to attend White House meeting – live
Dunn was killed in UK collision involving diplomat’s wife Anne Sacoolas, who then flew back to US under apparent diplomatic immunity
Democratic front-runner Elizabeth Warren is on an absolute tweet storm today, linking America’s big dollar election donation system corrupt, calling out pay-for-play - and taking full advantage of comedy actor Kate McKinnon’s most recent depiction of her on Saturday Night Live.
I don't spend call time asking rich donors to throw big dollar fundraisers or underwrite my campaign. My call time is spent with grassroots donors, thanking them for chipping in whatever they can. Mind if I make just a few more? pic.twitter.com/TDo9EkNpA1
Action in the Trump-Ukraine impeachment inquiry is taking place behind closed doors today, so we’ll wait breathlessly for any revelations via participating lawmakers on Capitol Hill committees taking testimony from state department official George Kent.
Meanwhile, there is plenty else afoot in US politics.
Continue reading...Trump and Syria: the worst week for US foreign policy since the Iraq invasion?
A close ally is abandoned, and Isis is regrouping. The speed of the unravelling is breathtaking
In the week since Donald Trump’s fateful phone conversation with Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the US has entirely abandoned the Kurds, its most effective allies in the Middle East, and with them a Syria strategy that was five years in the making.
The Islamic State flag has been raised once more and the last vestige of US credibility as a reliable partner lies crushed under Turkish tank tracks. It has arguably been the worst seven days for US foreign policy since the invasion of Iraq.
Continue reading...Syria war criminals may find the law is finally closing in on them
After the latest atrocity by pro-Turkey forces, the long era of impunity may be near an end
Actual or suspected war crimes have been reported at every stage of Syria’s long-running civil war – and Turkey’s latest cross-border incursion has unleashed another wave of atrocities, including executions of civilians and other alleged crimes against humanity.
But despite huge amounts of documentary evidence collected since 2011 by the UN and independent human rights groups, the perpetrators of such crimes in Syria, whether they are governments, armed factions or individuals, have mostly escaped punishment. This has encouraged a sense of impunity among wrongdoers – and dismay among victims.
Continue reading...America’s origin myth, and its reputation at risk | Letters
Contrary to popular belief, the Florentine navigator Amerigo Vespucci has little to do with the name of the modern-day continent, writes Colin Moffat. Plus Patrick Billingham says Donald Trump has brought the US into disrepute
I fear Thomas Eaton (Weekend Quiz, 12 October) is giving further credence to “fake news” from 1507, when a German cartographer was seeking the derivation of “America” and hit upon the name of Amerigo Vespucci, an obscure Florentine navigator. Derived from this single source, this made-up derivation has been copied ever after.
The fact is that Christopher Columbus visited Iceland in 1477-78, and learned of a western landmass named “Markland”. Seeking funds from King Ferdinand of Spain, he told the king that the western continent really did exist, it even had a name – and Columbus adapted “Markland” into the Spanish way of speaking, which requires an initial vowel “A-”, and dropped “-land” substituting “-ia”.
Continue reading...Trump impeachment: Esper indicates Pentagon will cooperate with inquiry
- Secretary of defense cautions: ‘White House has a say as well’
- Robert Reich: Trump is an international mobster
Donald Trump’s secretary of defense said on Sunday the Pentagon would cooperate with the House’s impeachment inquiry, while cautioning that Trump may try to restrict his disclosure of information.
Related: Trump calls Rudy Giuliani a 'great guy' as impeachment pressure mounts
Continue reading...Trump calls Rudy Giuliani a ‘great guy’ as impeachment pressure mounts
- President had appeared to distance himself a day earlier
- Opinion: Rudy Giuliani is Trump’s real secretary of state
Donald Trump came to the defence of Rudy Giuliani on Saturday, only a day after he said he didn’t know if the former New York mayor was still his personal attorney and it was reported that Giuliani is under federal investigation in Manhattan.
Related: 'He has faults, but don't we all?': Trump supporters say he will defeat impeachment
Continue reading...Erdoğan has managed the unthinkable: uniting all the other Middle East rivals
Turkey’s Syria invasion following US withdrawal of its troops means that all bets are now off in the Middle East
By invading northern Syria last week, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan achieved what many thought impossible – uniting all the regional countries and rival powers with a stake in the country in furious opposition to what they see as a reckless, destabilising move.
A truculent nationalist-populist with dictatorial tendencies, Erdoğan has often cast himself as one man against the world during 16 consecutive years as Turkey’s prime minister and president. Now he really is on his own.
Continue reading...Acting homeland security secretary steps down
Kevin McAleenan was the fourth person to lead the department in two years
Donald Trump said on Friday that Kevin McAleenan was stepping down as the acting secretary of homeland security.
The president said McAleenan wanted to spend more time with his family and go to the private sector.
Continue reading...Acting homeland security secretary Kevin McAleenan steps down, Trump says – live
President says official is departing to ‘spend more time with his family and go to the private sector’
Here’s McAleenan’s statement:
I want to thank the President for the opportunity to serve alongside the men and women of the Department of Homeland Security. With his support, over the last 6 months, we have made tremendous progress mitigating the border security and humanitarian crisis we faced this year... pic.twitter.com/A4rTcZgJKF
Kevin McAleenan has resigned as acting secretary of homeland security.
McAleenan had only been in the position since April, when he was appointed acting secretary to replace Kirstjen Nielsen. Nielsen succeeded John Kelly in the job when Kelly was tapped to be Trump’s White House chief of staff. (Update to clarify: Elaine Duke served as acting secretary for six months between Kelly and Nielsen.)
Continue reading...Marie Yovanovitch’s testimony on Trump cracks the wall of silence
Ambassador’s decision to ignore state department gag and appear before the House committees will probably inspire others
No wonder the state department tried to stop Marie Yovanovitch from talking. The former ambassador’s written testimony to Congress expresses clearly and in the most solemn of settings, what growing numbers American diplomats have been feeling: that their institution is being left to rot.
It is too soon to say whether her evisceration of the state department delivered behind closed doors, will mark a turning point in Donald Trump’s struggle to hold on to his office. There will without doubt be a counter-attack.
Continue reading...Trump led ‘concerted campaign’ to oust me, former Ukraine envoy tells Congress
- Marie Yovanovitch defies White House to testify
- State department ‘attacked and hollowed out from within’
- Profile: who is former Ukraine envoy Marie Yovanovitch?
The former US ambassador to Ukraine, whose abrupt departure has become a focus of impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump, has told congressional investigators that the president personally pressured the state department to recall her as part of a “concerted campaign” against her.
At a closed-door hearing on Capital Hill, Marie Yovanovitch delivered a stinging denunciation of diplomacy under the Trump administration, saying the state department was being “attacked and hollowed out from within”.
Continue reading...US delays China tariff increase as Trump claims ‘substantial’ deal
- US had planned to raise tariffs on $250bn of goods to 30%
- Trump: ‘All would like to see something significant happen!’
Donald Trump announced a “very substantial phase one deal” to solve the long-running trade dispute with China.
After a two-day meeting in Washington between US and Chinese officials on Friday Trump announced a delay on plans to raise tariffs on $250bn worth of goods to 30% on 15 October.
Continue reading...Former world leaders warn US-China trade dispute could lead to new cold war
Kevin Rudd is among a coalition of former leaders who have urged the US and China to settle their differences
The ongoing trade war between the US and China, with its associated decoupling of the two powerhouse economies, was a step in the direction of a new cold war, a coalition of former world leaders has warned.
Writing on behalf of the global leadership foundation in an opinion piece published in the New York Times overnight, former prime ministers Kevin Rudd of Australia, Helen Clark of New Zealand and Carl Bildt of Sweden have urged presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping to end their trade dispute for the sake of the world at large.
Continue reading...What does Turkey’s military action in northern Syria mean? – video explainer
Turkey has pressed ahead with its assault on US-allied Kurdish forces in northern Syria, forcing thousands of civilians to flee airstrikes and shelling. The military action has deepened fears of a humanitarian and political crisis, as the Guardian’s Middle East correspondent, Bethan McKernan, explains
- Turkish president threatens to send 3.6m refugees to Europe
- ‘Now the war is coming to us’: Turkish towns in range of Kurdish shells
‘I’ll probably vote for him again’: will disappointed voters give Trump a repeat Iowa win?
In the latest instalment of our series on the counties in which voters swung from Obama to Trump, Chris McGreal reports from Howard county, Iowa, where Trump voters have plenty to dislike – but many would vote for him again
Donald Trump hasn’t made life easier for Aaron Schatz. He may even have made the Iowa dairy and grain farmer a little poorer. But Schatz can live with that, for now.
“This trade war with China, it’s dropped prices of our corn and beans but it’s something that needed to be done because China was unfair to us. I know we’re going to take a hit. Some of us are getting a little frustrated but we’re happy something’s being done,” he said.
Continue reading...‘Betrayal leaves a bitter taste’: spurned Kurds flee Turkish onslaught
As they seek safety away from Turkish shells, Syrian Kurds burn with anger at Donald Trump’s betrayal
Waiting at a roadside depot, Hussein Rammo, a stooped elderly Kurd, his eyes wet with tears, had the look of a broken man. “Betrayal leaves the bitterest taste,” he said, his voice at a whisper as he discussed Donald Trump’s decision to abandon Syria’s Kurds.
“I am 63 years old and I have never seen anything like this. Before there was regime oppression and now we are getting betrayal. This is worse.”
Continue reading...‘Lock him up!’ Trumps team up on Biden at vitriolic Minneapolis rally
Donald and Eric Trump repeat claims of improper behaviour by Joe Biden’s son in sign of how 2020 campaign will be fought
Donald Trump sought to weaponise Democrats’ impeachment inquiry to his electoral advantage on Thursday at a typically crude-but-effective rally in which he declared Joe Biden “was only a good vice president because he understood how to kiss Barack Obama’s ass”.
In his first campaign stop since the inquiry was announced, the US president and a 20,000-capacity crowd staged a formidable show of defiance at a basketball arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Trump mesmerised his fans for 102 minutes with a verbal cannon of conspiracy theories, blatant falsehoods, profane insults and anti-refugee bigotry.
Continue reading...US mayors seek to bypass Trump with direct role at UN climate talks
‘If cities are invited to be at the table, I believe they will help accelerate the work that needs to be done’ said LA mayor Eric Garcetti
US mayors are seeking to go over President Trump’s head and negotiate directly at next month’s UN climate change conference in Santiago, they said as they met in Copenhagen for the C40 World Mayors Summit.
Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti, who rallied US mayors to commit to the Paris climate agreement after Trump announced his intention to withdraw the country in 2017, said he would ask the UN secretary general, António Guterres, on Thursday to give American cities a new role in UN climate talks.
“I’m going to bring it up with the UN secretary general,” Garcetti said. “If cities are invited to be at the table, I believe they will help accelerate the work that needs to be done. Hopefully, we can do it in concert with our national governments, but [we can do it] even where there is conflict.”
Garcetti, who was announced on Wednesday as the next chair of the C40 group of global cities, said he would use his position to seek “a more formal role in the deliberations” at the conference.
“The United Nations works directly with cities all the time ... so they shouldn’t feel feel scared about jumping down to that local level,” he said.