Category Archives: US Politics

Palestinian civilians ‘didn’t deserve to die’ in Israeli strikes, US chief security adviser says

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Jake Sullivan’s comments are a marked softening of the Biden administration’s hardline support of Israel

Thousands of Palestinians killed in Israel’s attacks on Gaza over the past three weeks “did not deserve to die”, according to the US national security adviser, in a marked softening of the Biden administration’s hardline support of Israel.

In an interview with ABC News on Sunday, Jake Sullivan, the White House’s chief security adviser, said Hamas is “hiding” behind civilians but that doesn’t lessen Israel’s “responsibility under international humanitarian law and the laws in war to do all in their power to protect the civilian population”.

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Does Biden’s unwavering support for Israel risk his chance for re-election?

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Half of young Americans are skeptical of US support for Israel, and campus protesters demand a ceasefire in Gaza

Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.

On Wednesday night, Joe Biden basked in the pageantry of a state dinner – white-jacketed violinists, golden chandeliers dotted with pink roses, a vivid wall display of 3D paper flowers. But soon after toasting the Australian prime minister in a pavilion on the White House south lawn, the US president had to step away to be briefed on a deadly mass shooting in Maine.

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Mike Pence suspends campaign for Republican presidential nomination

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The former vice-president to Donald Trump says that after prayer and deliberation he concludes ‘it is not my time’

Mike Pence, the former vice-president under Donald Trump, has suspended his campaign to become the Republican nominee for president in the 2024 election.

Pence announced at an event held by the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas on Saturday that he was dropping out of the race, in which he has been lagging, along with others, far behind frontrunner Trump.

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Judge orders Ivanka Trump to testify in family’s civil fraud trial – US politics live

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Donald Trump’s daughter could appear on witness stand in New York civil fraud trial as early as next week

George Santos has been a target of protesters and hecklers from practically the day he arrived in the Capitol, and there were plenty of those waiting for him as he departed federal court this morning:

Santos was there to enter a “not guilty” plea to a slate of new federal charges, and learn he would stand trial on the allegations on 9 September.

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New House speaker Mike Johnson praised ‘18th-century values’ in speech

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Louisiana congressman told audience at 2013 anti-abortion event Americans should live by 250-year-old religious and moral values

Before entering elected office, Mike Johnson, the new Republican speaker of the US House, praised “18th-century values” and told an audience that Americans should live by them when it came to morality and religion.

In video footage of a forum hosted in 2013 by Louisiana Right to Life, an anti-abortion group, Johnson, a devout Baptist and then an attorney for rightwing groups and causes, is asked about the “condition of conscience” in Europe and Canada regarding abortion policy.

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George Santos pleads not guilty to new fraud charges

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Republican accused of making tens of thousands of dollars in unauthorized charges on credit cards belonging to campaign donors

US congressman George Santos pleaded not guilty on Friday to revised charges accusing him of several frauds, including making tens of thousands of dollars in unauthorized charges on credit cards belonging to some of his campaign donors.

The New York Republican appeared at a courthouse on Long Island to enter a plea to the new allegations. He had already pleaded not guilty to other charges, first filed in May, accusing him of lying to Congress about his wealth, applying for and receiving unemployment benefits, even though he had a job, and using campaign contributions to pay for personal expenses like designer clothing.

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Congressman Dean Phillips to launch Democratic primary bid against Biden

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Minnesota representative has voted for majority of Biden’s legislative agenda but says it’s time for next generation of leaders

Dean Phillips, a Democratic congressman from Minnesota who is relatively unknown on the national US stage, is set to launch a long-shot campaign to primary Joe Biden in New Hampshire on Friday.

The New Hampshire secretary of state’s office confirmed Phillips is scheduled to file paperwork to get on the ballot there on Friday morning.

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Mike Johnson’s speaker win reveals the iron grip Trump still has on Republicans

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The previously little-known rightwinger from Louisiana shows all the hallmarks of the ex-president’s voice

After engineering this month’s unceremonious defenestration of the hapless Kevin McCarthy, some far-right Republicans openly dreamed of installing their hero Donald Trump to replace him as speaker of the House of Representatives.

Trump himself, meanwhile, suggested that only Jesus Christ was certain to be elected to the role – apparently overlooking practical concerns of presumed unavailability.

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Mike Johnson helped Trump on January 6 – now he’s a threat to democracy

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Louisiana congressman known as ‘Maga Mike’, elected House speaker Wednesday, is staunch Trump supporter and election denier

The Louisiana congressman Mike Johnson, whom Republicans in Congress elected as their speaker after more than three weeks of leaderless chaos, played a key role in Donald Trump’s attempts to subvert the results of the 2020 election.

Johnson amassed enough support to win the speakership because of his allegiance to Trumpian ideals, earning him the nickname on the far right of “Maga Mike”. A litmus test of sorts for the speakership was alignment with rightwing views, including believing in a stolen election, though the firebrand approach of failed speaker candidate Jim Jordan soured moderate members, despite his election-denying bonafides.

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Aukus will ‘get done’ despite jitters in Congress, Biden tells Albanese at White House meeting

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Getting approval for nuclear submarine plan through legislature a question of ‘not if, but when’

Joe Biden has played down congressional jitters over the Aukus nuclear-powered submarine deal and has revealed he assured Xi Jinping that the countries involved are not aiming to “surround China”.

The US president welcomed the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, to the White House and insisted he was “confident that we’re going to be able to get the money for Aukus because it’s overwhelmingly in our interest”.

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Nearly one in four Americans believe political violence justified to ‘save’ US

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Support for political violence increased over past two years, poll finds, offering snapshot of America’s deepening polarisation

Nearly one in four Americans believe that political violence may be justified to “save” the country, a national opinion poll has found.

The 14th annual American Values Survey, carried out by the non-profit Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) in partnership with the Brookings Institution thinktank, offers a snapshot of America’s deepening polarisation and willingness to contemplate taking up arms.

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Tom Emmer reportedly faces substantial opposition in bid for House speaker – US politics live

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Up to 26 Republicans may sink Minnesota lawmaker Emmer’s chance to become next House speaker, reports say

Per the Hill, here’s a breakdown of the full vote totals from the first ballot:

As you can see, Tom Emmer received the most votes, but other candidates received more votes overall. It’s a secret ballot, so members don’t necessarily know each other’s choice, but we’ll see if Emmer picked up more support from other candidates in the second round of balloting.

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Republicans nominate Tom Emmer for House speaker

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It remains unclear whether House majority whip – the third nominee in three weeks – can win enough support on the floor

Tom Emmer of Minnesota emerged as House Republicans’ new speaker nominee after five rounds of voting on Tuesday, but it remained unclear whether the House majority whip could win enough support on the floor to capture the gavel.

Ahead of the Tuesday vote, seven House Republicans had launched speakership bids: Emmer, Jack Bergman of Michigan, Byron Donalds of Florida, Kevin Hern of Oklahoma, Mike Johnson of Louisiana, Austin Scott of Georgia and Pete Sessions of Texas.

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Trump is ‘single most dangerous threat’ to the US, warns Republican Liz Cheney

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Moderate, whose opposition to former president had cost her a congressional seat, considers a 2024 presidential run

Donald Trump is “the single most dangerous threat” the US faces as he seeks a return to the Oval Office, according to Liz Cheney, the moderate Republican whose opposition to her party leader’s presidency had cost her a congressional seat she held for six years.

“He cannot be the next president because if he is, all of the things that he attempted to do but was stopped from doing by responsible people … he will do,” Cheney – the daughter of former congressman, defense secretary and vice-president Dick Cheney – said on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday. “There will be no guardrails. And everyone has been left warned.”

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Who are the Republican candidates for House of Representatives speaker?

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Nine congressmen had registered by Sunday’s noon deadline following Jim Jordan’s failed bid to claim the gavel

After more than two weeks of failing to choose a speaker, Republicans in the US House plan to reconvene on Monday to begin the process of nominating a third candidate to try to get the 217 votes needed to secure the speakership.

So far, Steve Scalise, the No 2 Republican in the House, and Jim Jordan, the far-right congressman, have both failed in their bids.

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Mitch McConnell backs Biden’s $106bn aid request for Israel and Ukraine

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Republican Senate minority leader says he and president are ‘in the same place’ on support linked to both conflicts

Mitch McConnell offered a strong endorsement on Sunday of the Joe Biden White House’s $106bn aid proposal to Israel and Ukraine, saying he and the president were essentially “in the same place” on the issue.

McConnell, the powerful Republican leader in the Senate, also rebuffed some of his GOP colleagues in the Senate who have called for a package separating assistance for the two countries, saying it would be “a mistake” during an interview on CBS’s Face the Nation.

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Ilhan Omar fears for family’s safety after barrage of threats over Israel criticism

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Minnesota congresswoman blames ‘dishonest smearing’ for surge in violent threats in wake of Israel-Hamas conflict

Ilhan Omar, a Muslim US representative, said she fears for her family’s safety after receiving an onslaught of threats for criticizing Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.

The Democratic congresswoman from Minnesota opened up in a statement about the increase in Islamophobic remarks and threats she has received, including threats directed at her family. NBC News first reported on the statement, which was later shared with the Guardian.

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Jim Jordan forced out of House speaker race after losing secret ballot

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Republican colleagues vote against Ohio congressman’s continued bid after his third failed attempt to corral support

Jim Jordan of Ohio was forced out of the House speakership race on Friday after his Republican colleagues voted against his continued bid for the seat in a secret ballot after his third failed attempt to corral enough support to win the gavel.

Jordan’s lost bid followed a contentious week on Capitol Hill, during which he and his allies attempted to cajole more moderate Republicans into backing Jordan.

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Jim Jordan says he’s ‘going back to work’ after losing secret ballot for House speaker candidacy – as it happened

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This live blog is now closed. For latest reporting on Jim Jordan and the House speaker race, you can read our latest report:

The number of Republicans who show up for today’s vote will also be a factor in determining whether Jordan wins or loses.

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports that the GOP congressman Derrick Van Orden will not be in attendance, as he’s on a trip to Israel:

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Republicans continue effort to erode US child labor rules despite teen deaths

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Violations have soared but legislative effort to strengthen protection for young workers have received little support

Child labor violations have been soaring in the US, but efforts to render solutions through legislation have received little support, and Republicans at the state level continue pushing bills that would roll back current child labor protections.

In most recent fiscal year, the US Department of Labor wage and hour division reported 835 cases of child labor violations affecting 3,876 minors, and 688 minors employed in violation of hazardous occupation, a 283% increase since 2015. Civil penalties against employers totaled just under $4.3m.

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