For Democrats, it’s Bernie Sanders v centrists as race still unsettled

The Vermont senator claimed a ‘great victory’ on Tuesday night – but he was trailed closely by a pair of midwestern moderates

After the Iowa caucuses failed to produce a clear winner last week, the results of the New Hampshire primary on Tuesday night helped crystalize the presidential primary - only insomuch as it appears to be a fiercely contested battle between Bernie Sanders and any candidate who can stop him.

From a sports arena in Manchester on Tuesday night, the Vermont senator and self-declared democratic socialist claimed “a great victory” and declared the “beginning of the end of Donald Trump”, while his rivals sought to convince Democrats nervous about a Sanders nomination that they were the most viable alternative.

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New Hampshire primary: most polls close with Sanders favorite to win – live

  • Most polls now closed but some places open for another hour
  • Sanders leads with Buttigieg trailing, and Klobuchar on the up
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Tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang, who has signaled in recent days that the future of his candidacy depends on the results in New Hampshire, thanked his supporters as most of the state’s polls closed.

I am so proud of this campaign. Thank you to everyone who got us here.

It is 7 pm ET, so most New Hampshire polls have now closed, although a few polling locations will remain open for another hour.

Depending on the results, it could be a relatively early night -- especially in comparison to the days-long debacle that was the reporting of results for the Iowa caucuses.

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Joe Biden calls student ‘lying, dog-faced pony soldier’ at rally – video

In an exchange between Joe Biden and a 21-year-old college student in New Hampshire, she challenges him about his poor performance in the Iowa caucuses. Biden responds by asking her if she has ever been to a caucus. When she replies yes, he says – reportedly believing that he was quoting from a film – 'No you haven't! You're a lying, dog-faced pony soldier.'  A videoclip of the exchange has goes viral

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Trump puts Cuban doctors in firing line as heat turned up on island economy

After US allies expel foreign health missions, Havana warns that patients will pay the highest price for campaign against its scheme

A Cuban medical programme that has helped some of the world’s poorest communities has become the latest target of the Trump administration’s escalating attempts to pressure Havana’s faltering economy.

Dubbed “Cuban doctors”, the celebrated – if controversial – humanitarian medical mission was founded more than half a century ago in the aftermath of Fidel Castro’s revolution, in part to enhance the country’s international influence.

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Buttigieg v Sanders: Democrats gaining frontrunner status as ‘polar opposites’

A day ahead of the New Hampshire primary, Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders remain on a collision course.

Related: Sheldon Adelson to donate $100m to Trump and Republicans, fundraisers say

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Sanders and Buttigieg campaigns request partial recanvass of Iowa caucuses – as it happened

The rallies still rage in New Hampshire tonight, but that’s it from us. Stay tuned for more news from our stellar politics team, who will have updates.

At the Trump rally in Manchester, a familiar chant has appeared to have turned on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

New Hampshire crowd chants "Lock her up!" after President Trump alluded to Nancy Pelosi "mumbling terribly behind me" during the State of the Union.

"There was a little anger back there," he said. "We're the ones who should be angry, not them." https://t.co/2OrQPtHreq pic.twitter.com/TkKtm2MxgM

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Democrats step up attacks against each other as New Hampshire primary looms

Sanders maintains lead over other candidates, according to CNN poll, while Biden under pressure to revive campaign

Leading Democratic presidential candidates have stepped up attacks against each other ahead of the New Hampshire primary, with Joe Biden saying Bernie Sanders’ democratic socialism would turn off voters in moderate states in a general election against Donald Trump.

Sanders has maintained his lead over the other 10 candidates going into Tuesday’s vote, according to a CNN poll released on Sunday, with former mayor Pete Buttigieg in second, Biden in third and the Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren in fourth.

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Facebook and Twitter reject Pelosi’s request to remove edited Trump video

President posted video of House speaker tearing State of the Union address interspersed with clips of Trump lauding honorees

Facebook and Twitter have refused House speaker Nancy Pelosi’s request to remove a video posted by Donald Trump that was misleadingly edited to show her repeatedly tearing a paper copy of his State of the Union address while he was honoring a Tuskegee Airman and other attendees.

“The American people know that the President has no qualms about lying to them – but it is a shame to see Twitter and Facebook, sources of news for millions, do the same,” Drew Hammill, Pelosi’s chief of staff, said on Twitter. “The latest fake video of Speaker Pelosi is deliberately designed to mislead and lie to the American people, and every day that these platforms refuse to take it down is another reminder that they care more about their shareholders’ interests than the public’s interests.”

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Klobuchar campaign says it has raised $2m in less than 24 hours since debate

Hefty cash haul shows Minnesota senator’s resilience after strong debate performance – but can she prosper in Tuesday’s primary?

Senator Amy Klobuchar has raised $2m since Friday’s 2020 Democratic debate, her campaign said on Saturday, in the latest sign of her resilience in the presidential primary contest.

Related: Alexander Vindman lawyer attacks Trump over 'obviously false statements'

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‘Hijabi clout’: the Muslim women unknowingly used by 2020 campaigns

Sabirah Mahmud was in a Biden video. Ayanna Lee was in an ad for Warren. Neither of them consented, nor do they support those candidates

With the 2020 election well underway in the US, political advertisements with messages of hope and inclusivity have been flooding social media feeds and inboxes all across the country.

Sabirah Mahmud, a high school student and the national logistics director for the US Youth Climate Strike was surprised on 2 February when she came across footage of herself in a video ad for Joe Biden’s presidential campaign, after a friend texted her. But the main shock was that it happened despite the fact she is a vocal Bernie Sanders supporter.

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Democratic debate: candidates clash on healthcare and race – video highlights

Democratic presidential candidates clashed in a televised debate in New Hampshire on Friday night at the end of a week dominated by the Iowa caucuses chaos and Donald Trump's acquittal.

Attacks were focused against Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders, the two candidates who declared victory in Iowa, as the hottest topics discussed were healthcare and race

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Democratic candidates zero in on Buttigieg and Sanders at tense debate

Competing visions for the party were on display as moderate candidates challenged progressives ahead of New Hampshire primary

Democratic presidential candidates clashed on Friday night in a tense televised debate that was dominated by attacks against Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders, the two candidates who declared victory after the Iowa caucuses.

In the week that Donald Trump was acquitted in his impeachment trial and days ahead of the New Hampshire primary, the competing visions for the Democratic party were on show as moderate candidates challenged the progressives, and those with more Washington experience called out the relative political newcomers.

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Trump ‘not happy’ with impeachment witness Vindman, hints at ‘decisions’ on his position – live

  • Trump essentially confirmed reports on Lt Col Alexander Vindman
  • President also denied reports Mulvaney is on his way out
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With Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders still neck and neck amid the ongoing Iowa debacle (still no official winner), and Buttigieg surging into a position as surprise threat in New Hampshire, Sanders has been chewing the fat at the traditional Politics & Eggs breakfast in event the Granite State.

“I’m reading some headlines from newspapers about Pete Buttigieg,” he said. “Pete Buttigieg has most exclusive billionaire donors of any Democrats, that was from Forbes. The Hill: Pete Buttigieg tops billionaire donor list. Fortune: Pete Buttigieg takes lead as big business candidate in 2020 field. Washington Post: Pete Buttigieg lures even closer look from Wall Street donors following strong Iowa caucus performance. Forbes magazine: here are the billionaires backing Pete Buttigieg’s presidential campaign,” Time reports.

(FACT) Of the eight candidates in the BOSTON GLOBE and EMERSON polls of New Hampshire from February 6-7, only *two* increased their standing poll-to-poll: Pete Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren—who many would call the top moderate and top progressive option for New Hampshire voters. pic.twitter.com/RAJYHXVdLR

Donald Trump retweeted this afternoon two tweets that recommended he fire Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, an adviser on the national security counsel who testified in the impeachment trial. This morning, Trump said he wasn’t happy with Vindman and that decisions would be made about his post. Here are the tweets – one is from November.

I’d fire him. I listened to his testimony in the SCIF. He’s a leaker, not a whistleblower. Vindman was upset that @realDonaldTrump didn’t follow the script Vindman prepared for the phone call. Current Commander in Chief doesn’t take orders from a Lt. Col.!https://t.co/a9KYrfiVFN

Vindman's behavior is a scandal. He should be removed from the @RealDonaldTrump White House ASAP to protect our foreign policy from his machinations. https://t.co/mgL9X9w75M

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Donald Trump’s ‘incredible’ week in three minutes – video report

The president of the United States was greeted by applause for his State of the Union address where he painted a picture of his vision of the future of the US on Tuesday. The following day, Trump was acquitted of impeachment in the Senate with all but one Republican voting in his favour.

On Thursday, Trump held a speech he called a 'celebration'. A Gallup poll has put Trump’s approval rating at 49%, the highest level for that survey since 2017. And on top of that, the Democratic primary race got off to a slow and embarrassing start in Iowa after technical difficulties delayed results by almost 24 hours

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Power is everything – and progressives forget that at their peril | Jonathan Freedland

As Boris Johnson and Donald Trump know, being in office means setting your own agenda

You take comfort where you can. Especially at a time like this, when the side of progress is beleaguered, when left or liberal values are taking a hammering on every front, apparently losing every battle, it’s natural to cling to whatever blanket of consolation we can find. When a single week can see Britain leave the European Union and Donald Trump bragging and swaggering in vengeful celebration as he escapes punishment for a high crime he clearly committed, the need for soothing can become intense. One such solace is that, despite the concrete defeats visible all around us, the left is somehow “winning the argument”.

Related: Without the BBC we could be facing a post-truth dystopia | Jonathan Freedland

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Qassim al-Rimi: US forces killed al-Qaida leader in Yemen, Trump confirms

Al-Rimi had claimed responsibility for a shooting at a Florida naval base, where a Saudi aviation trainee killed three American sailors

Donald Trump confirmed on Thursday that a counter-terrorism operation in Yemen killed Qassim al-Rimi, an al-Qaida leader who claimed responsibility for last year’s deadly shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola, where a Saudi aviation trainee killed three American sailors.

Unconfirmed reports of his death, including indicative tweets from the president, have been circulating since 31 January, but the neither the Department of Defense nor the CIA had issued official confirmation.

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Trump responds to impeachment acquittal with rambling, vitriolic speech – as it happened

  • Trump speaks at White House for first time since acquittal
  • Report shows Iowa caucus results ‘riddled with inconsistencies’
  • Buttigieg lead over Sanders narrowing in Iowa results
  • Help us cover the critical issues of 2020. Consider making a contribution

Related: Trump unleashed: what's next for a president who feels invincible?

Both Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders have claimed victory in Iowa, even as technical delays and reporting issues have prolonged the delay in tallying the Democratic caucus votes. Sanders has touted his raw vote tally; Buttigieg holds a narrow lead in the number of state delegate equivalents he’s amassed.

Both candidates will be speaking tonight in a CNN town hall ahead of the New Hampshire primary contest next week. Deval Patrick and Amy Klobuchar will be participating as well, answering questions from supporters and network hosts.

Related: Sanders and Buttigieg nearly tied in Iowa amid new claims of counting errors

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‘Dirty cops, leakers and liars’: Trump on impeachment acquittal – video

Donald Trump spoke in the White House to supporters and Republicans in what he called 'a celebration' on Thursday, after being acquitted of impeachment in the Senate. 

The senators found Trump not guilty of the first article of impeachment, abuse of power, by a 52-48 tally, and not guilty of the second article of impeachment, obstruction of Congress, by a 53-47 tally.

Trump said the Democrats that impeached him were 'vicious and mean' saying Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi were 'horrible' people

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Donald Trump alludes to Mitt Romney and Nancy Pelosi in speech after acquittal – video

The US president referenced support for his impeachment from both Mitt Romney and the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, at the national prayer breakfast. He added: 'When they impeach you for nothing, then you are supposed to like them. It is not easy'

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‘Don’t do this again’: Schumer and McConnell clash over Trump acquittal – video

The US senators Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer both held press conferences after the Senate acquitted Donald Trump on two impeachment charges. Schumer, the Democratic Senate minority leader, said Americans knew that ‘this was one of the largest cover-ups in the history of our nation’, while McConnell, the Republican Senate majority leader, warned the House of Representatives: ‘Don’t do this again’

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