Category Archives: US News

Coronavirus live news: WHO says Covid-19 is ‘easily the most severe’ crisis it has faced

Posted on by

Global cases doubled in last six weeks; deaths pass 650,000; Amazon’s treatment of workers investigated. Follow the latest updates

Hotels and restaurants in Kyrgyzstan have been converted into makeshift hospitals after widespread complaints about the lack of hospital beds to treat coronavirus patients, AP reports.

The head of the Chinese centre for disease control and prevention says he has been injected with an experimental coronavirus vaccine in an attempt to persuade the public to follow suit when one is approved, AP reports.

Continue reading...

Gold eases from new $1,980 record as dollar lifts ahead of Fed meeting – business live

Posted on by

Gold rally cools amid profit-taking

Julie Palmer, partner at business advisory and restructuring firm Begbies Traynor, says:

The success of Greggs has been the envy of the high street in recent years, however, even the bakery chain hasn’t been immune to the impact of Covid-19 which has forced its stores to close and eaten away at its top line.

For Greggs, achieving rent reductions from landlords will be first on the tick list, and indeed this has been a priority for many on the high street. But once these costs have been reduced its push to return to success will begin. And given its track record of marketing & PR success with its famous vegan sausage roll, I wouldn’t be surprised to see another high profile campaign on the horizon that captures the sentiment of a nation experiencing seismic change.

Let’s have a look at today’s corporate news. Greggs, Britain’s biggest bakery chain (known for its vegan sausage roll) has warned that sales won’t get back to pre-pandemic levels for as long as physical distancing continues.

But it’s fared better than other retailers: sales are now running at 72% of the 2019 level. All of its 2,050 stores reopened by July, after being forced to close during the Covid-19 lockdown imposed on 23 March. Greggs made a £65.2m loss before tax in the first half, compared with a £36.7m profit a year ago.

Continue reading...

‘Egregious’ distancing violations at Hamptons charity concert – Cuomo

Posted on by

New York governor says event featuring Goldman Sachs CEO and Chainsmokers breached Covid-19 rules

  • Coronavirus – latest updates
  • See all our coronavirus coverage

    • New York health authorities are to investigate a charity concert in the Hamptons, which included performances by the Goldman Sachs chief David Solomon and DJ duo the Chainsmokers, over “egregious” social distancing violations.

    The drive-in event, Safe & Sound, had space for about 600 cars and was held in Southampton village on Saturday. It was the first in a series of such concerts planned for the US, according to the organisers’ website.

    Continue reading...

    Mrs America’s Uzo Aduba: ‘It’s worth examining the shortcomings of our feminist heroes’

    Posted on by

    She stole the show in Orange Is the New Black. Now the actor is playing the first black woman to seek the US presidency – and rejecting suggestions she gets a ‘Hollywood smile’

    Shirley Chisholm was a woman of many firsts. She was the first black woman elected to Congress, the first black candidate to seek the presidency, and the first woman, full-stop, to participate in a US presidential debate. She introduced more than 50 pieces of legislation, most championing racial, economic and gender equality, and is often credited as paving the way for Barack Obama. In doing so, she occupied a space that many black women recognise: the solitary seat as the only such face at the table.

    Uzo Aduba, who plays Chisholm in the acclaimed new FX series Mrs America, says that this was a key factor in bringing this formidable politician to life. “That feeling of being the ‘only’,” she says, speaking via Zoom with a warm smile on her face. “It was important to get that right.”

    Continue reading...

    Trump’s national security adviser tests positive for coronavirus

    Posted on by
    • White House insists ‘no risk’ of Trump being exposed
    • Photos of Robert O’Brien’s Europe trip show lack of mask usage
    • US politics – live updates

    The national security adviser, Robert O’Brien, has tested positive for the coronavirus, but the White House insisted there was “no risk” of Donald Trump being exposed.

    Related: Texas hospital forced to set up 'death panel' as Covid-19 cases surge

    Continue reading...

    Ghislaine Maxwell: lawyers ask judge to stop accusers from posting evidence online

    Posted on by

    Lawyers don’t want women who claim Maxwell abused them to use evidence from criminal case to boost lawsuits by posting online

    Lawyers for Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell asked a judge to stop her accusers from using evidence in the criminal case to boost civil lawsuits by posting materials to the internet.

    The lawyers say attorneys for women who claim Maxwell recruited and abused them should be subject to the same secrecy rules as prosecutors and Maxwell’s defense lawyers.

    Continue reading...

    Coronavirus live news: Belgium set to tighten restrictions; China reports highest new cases since April

    Posted on by

    Vietnam evacuates 80,000 tourists from Danang; Spain’s Covid-19 deaths could be 60% higher; global deaths near 650,000

    In the US, more than 40 people were infected with the coronavirus after attending a multi-day revival event at a north Alabama Baptist church, the Associated Press reports.

    “The whole church has got it, just about,” Al.com quoted pastor Daryl Ross of Warrior Creek Missionary Baptist church in Marshall County as saying.

    My colleagues over in the US of A have launched their live blog, with coverage of the coronavirus pandemic in the country, its election campaign, protests in Portland and other cities and a lot more besides.

    Click the link below to follow their latest updates.

    Related: US nears 150,000 Covid-19 deaths as Republicans and Democrats pitch opposing plans – live

    Continue reading...

    US nears 150,000 Covid-19 deaths as Republicans and Democrats pitch opposing plans – live

    Posted on by

    On Friday, the US supreme court ruled against a Nevada church which said coronavirus-inspired limits on attendance were unconstitutional. Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the court’s four liberals on the case, causing further angst on the right.

    Now, the Associated Press reports that “more than 40 people were infected with the coronavirus after attending a multi-day revival event at a north Alabama Baptist church, according to the congregation’s pastor.

    “The whole church has got it, just about,” Al.com quoted pastor Daryl Ross of Warrior Creek Missionary Baptist Church in Marshall county as saying.

    The pastor says the churchgoers, including himself, tested positive after the congregation held a series of religious services featuring a guest pastor over several days last week.

    Related: John Roberts sides with supreme court liberals over Nevada church Covid opening

    There has been another night of trouble in Portland, where protesters for policing reform and against structural racism have been out every night since the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis at the end of May.

    Once again, confrontations centered on the federal courthouse in downtown Portland, where agents sent in by Trump are based.

    Ammunition and destructive devices recovered at Lownsdale Square Park (Photo) https://t.co/k4ZmvTzlh6 pic.twitter.com/xHaLZM8uWi

    Related: Portland: protesters bring down fence as confrontation with Trump agents rises

    Continue reading...

    I’m bewildered that Trump would imperil America by abandoning the Paris agreement | Ban Ki-moon

    Posted on by

    The world needs America’s leadership – walking away will do nothing to stop the consequences of climate change

    The Paris agreement to tackle climate change is an extraordinary opportunity. In a remarkable display of unity, almost every nation on Earth has agreed to make critical changes that will help humanity avoid disaster. By aiming to limit global warming to 1.5C, it represents the world’s best chance of adapting to a crisis that threatens our planet’s very existence. But Donald Trump is walking away.

    This decision is politically shortsighted, scientifically wrong and morally irresponsible. By leaving the Paris agreement, he is undermining his country’s future.

    Continue reading...

    US envoy to South Korea posts video shaving off his controversial moustache

    Posted on by

    The US embassy in Seoul has posted a video on Twitter of Harry Harris visiting a barbershop to remove his moustache months after his facial hair became the subject of unusual criticism. The US ambassador says he shaved it off because of the summer heat and having to wear a face mask.

    He has faced criticism for his moustache before. Commentators have said his facial hair reminded South Koreans of that of Japanese governor generals when Korea was a Japanese colony from 1910-45 

    Continue reading...

    Anti-fascists linked to zero murders in the US in 25 years

    Posted on by

    As Trump rails against ‘far-left’ fascism, new database shows leftwing attacks have left far fewer people dead than violence by rightwing extremists

    Donald Trump has made warnings about the threat of antifa and “far-left fascism” a central part of his re-election campaign. But in reality leftwing attacks have left far fewer people dead than violence by rightwing extremists, new research indicates, and antifa activists have not been linked to a single murder in decades.

    A new database of nearly 900 politically motivated attacks and plots in the United States since 1994 includes just one attack staged by an anti-fascist that led to fatalities. In that case, the single person killed was the perpetrator.

    Continue reading...

    ‘These are his people’: inside the elite border patrol unit Trump sent to Portland

    Posted on by

    Bortac, a quasi-militarised outfit equivalent to the Navy Seals, has been deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan

    In January 2011, James Tomsheck, then a top internal affairs investigator inside US Customs and Border Protection, attended a meeting of about 100 senior CBP leaders in a hotel in Irvington, Virginia.

    Amid the sanitized splendor of the hotel ballroom, he vividly recalls hearing the nation’s then highest-ranking border patrol agent, David Aguilar, laying out his vision for the future. Border patrol, the former CBP deputy commissioner said, was to become the “marine corps of the US federal law enforcement community”.

    Continue reading...

    Body of John Lewis makes final Selma bridge crossing – video

    Posted on by

    The late US congressman John Lewis has crossed Selma’s Edmund Pettus bridge for the final time as remembrances continue for the civil rights icon.

    A crowd began gathering near the bridge that became a landmark in the fight for racial justice when Lewis and other civil rights marchers were beaten there 55 years ago on “Bloody Sunday,” a key event in the fight for voting rights for African Americans.

    Continue reading...

    Flag lowered at US consulate in Chengdu as China takes control

    Posted on by

    Troops posted outside building as Chinese authorities take over diplomatic mission

    Chinese authorities have taken over the US consulate general in Chengdu, marking the diplomatic mission’s official closure and a new low point in ties between the world’s largest economies.

    At dawn on Monday, the American flag outside the consulate was lowered while police held back crowds that had gathered over the weekend to watch. At 10am, the mission was closed, according to China’s foreign ministry.

    Continue reading...

    In 100 days, the climate emergency may be even more serious. That’s why we’re launching this series | John Mulholland

    Posted on by
    • The day after the election, the US is poised to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement.
    • The Guardian believes the climate emergency is the defining issue of our time. Make a contribution today to support our journalism.

    On 4 November, the day after the presidential election, the US is poised to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement. The agreement, which came together after years of diplomacy by the Obama administration and other global leaders, commits 200 countries to chart a new course in efforts to combat climate change.

    But very soon the United States may not be one of them.

    Continue reading...

    The US withdrawal from the Paris climate accord will hurt people of color most | Adrienne Hollis

    Posted on by

    The Paris agreement threw a lifeline to millions of people of color facing a premature death. Trump is tearing that away

    It’s official – in 100 days the United States will formally withdraw from the Paris climate agreement. The impact of Donald Trump’s decision, taken three years ago, is already being felt by environmental justice communities.

    Racism is the driving force behind why certain people and places face disproportionate environmental exposure to toxic substances, adverse climate change effects, Covid-19 infections and deaths. This raises the question: was withdrawing from the Paris agreement also a racist decision? How will this morally incomprehensible policy change affect Black, Latinx, Indigenous and other communities of color?

    Continue reading...

    Germany by far most admired country, with US, China and Russia vying for second – global poll

    Posted on by

    Annual Gallup survey casts doubt on Mike Pompeo’s claim that the US is ‘perfectly positioned’ to lead the free world in rivalry with China

    Germany is the most admired country in the world for the third year running, leaving the US in a tight battle for distant second place with China and Russia, according to a new global leadership poll.

    The annual poll, conducted by Gallup, casts more doubt on US secretary of state Mike Pompeo’s claim on Friday that the US was “perfectly positioned” to lead the free world in a new ideological rivalry with the Chinese Communist Party.

    Continue reading...

    Tom Cotton calls slavery ‘necessary evil’ in attack on New York Times’ 1619 Project

    Posted on by
    • Republican gives interview to Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
    • Senator wants to ‘save’ US history from New York Times

    The Arkansas Republican senator Tom Cotton has called the enslavement of millions of African people “the necessary evil upon which the union was built”.

    Related: Trump aims barb at Reagan Foundation in fundraising coin kerfuffle

    Continue reading...

    Coronavirus US: polls put Biden ahead of Trump as deaths top 1,000 a day – live

    Posted on by

    Shortly before he departed on Air Force One from Morristown Municipal Airport en route to Washington, Donald Trump announced that he will not be throwing out the ceremonial first pitch before a Red Sox-Yankees game at Yankee Stadium next month due to scheduling conflicts.

    “Because of my strong focus on the China Virus, including scheduled meetings on Vaccines, our economy and much else, I won’t be able to be in New York to throw out the opening pitch for the @Yankees on August 15th,” he wrote on Twitter. “We will make it later in the season!”

    Because of my strong focus on the China Virus, including scheduled meetings on Vaccines, our economy and much else, I won’t be able to be in New York to throw out the opening pitch for the @Yankees on August 15th. We will make it later in the season!

    The news website ProPublica has published a database containing complaint information for thousands of New York City police officers days after a federal judge paused the public release of such records.

    The Associated Press reports:

    ProPublica posted the database Sunday, explaining in a note to readers that it isn’t obligated to comply with judge Katherine Polk Failla’s temporary restraining order because it is not a party to a union lawsuit challenging the release of such records.

    Deputy managing editor Eric Umansky said ProPublica requested the information from the city’s police watchdog agency, the Civilian Complaint Review Board, soon after last month’s repeal of state law that for decades had prevented the disclosure of disciplinary records.

    Continue reading...

    Trump aims barb at Reagan Foundation in fundraising coin kerfuffle

    Posted on by
    • Campaign and Republican party told to stop selling ‘iconic’ coins
    • President ties predecessor to Washington Post, a familiar target

    Donald Trump famously fell out with the Bush family and has regularly claimed to be the greatest Republican president since the first, Abraham Lincoln. He has largely avoided attacking another claimant to that title, Ronald Reagan. Until now.

    Related: Biden holds daunting lead over Trump as US election enters final stretch

    Continue reading...