‘Confused and fearful’: New Yorkers grapple with Trump immigration policies

Residents of Jackson Heights, one of New York’s most diverse neighborhoods, are concerned the new ‘public charge’ rule will put families at risk

In a packed room in Jackson Heights – one of the most diverse neighborhoods in New York and the US as a whole – cancer survivor Blanca Palomeque explains how the Trump administration’s new policies will force immigrants into making impossible decisions.

The 56-year-old from Ecuador, who was treated for ovarian cancer in the US before applying for her green card 11 years ago, explains how if the new “public charge” rule – which will penalize immigrants for using benefits – had been in place then, “I don’t know what I would have done”.

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Oleg Smolenkov: alleged US spy who gave Russia the slip

A Montenegro holiday reportedly provided cover for a defection that until this week had left little trace

In June 2017, the Kremlin aide Oleg Smolenkov and his family flew from Moscow to Tivat, a coastal resort in Montenegro favoured by Russian tourists. He never came back, and his colleagues never heard from him again. A murder inquiry was launched and soon dropped for lack of leads.

That was the last anyone heard of Smolenkov until this week, when Russian media named him as a CIA spy spirited out of Russia by the agency for his own safety. CNN first revealed the existence of a US source inside the Kremlin earlier this week.

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‘Few acts more horrific’: former US priest jailed for 30 years for child sexual abuse

Catholic priest Arthur Perrault convicted of ‘long-term’ abuse of altar boy in New Mexico in 1990s

A former Roman Catholic priest who fled to Morocco before he was returned to the United States and convicted of sexually abusing an altar boy in New Mexico in the 1990s, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison.

The US district judge, Martha Vazquez, imposed the sentence on Arthur Perrault, 81, a onetime Air Force chaplain and colonel.

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Bankrupt California utility blamed for deadly wildfires agrees to $11bn payout

PG&E to pay insurers of claimants from two years of blazes, including Paradise fire that left 86 dead, in tentative deal

A utility company with a history of sparking wildfires has agreed to pay $11bn to a group of insurance companies representing claimants from deadly northern California wildfires in 2017 and 2018.

The tentative agreement includes insurance claims from the town of Paradise, where 86 died last November, Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) said in a statement Friday.

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Felicity Huffman sentenced to 14 days in prison for college bribery scandal

Actor pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy and fraud after admitting to paying $15,000 to boost daughter’s SAT scores

The actor Felicity Huffman was sentenced on Friday to 14 days in prison for paying $15,000 to rig her daughter’s SAT scores in the college admissions scandal that ensnared dozens of wealthy and well-connected parents.

Related: The US college admissions scam toolkit: bribes, fake profiles and playing 'stupid’

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Greta Thunberg joins young activists in climate protest outside White House – live

Swedish teen climate activist and other youth advocates demand action from the US to address the climate crisis

A Taliban negotiating team has reportedly arrived in Russia just days after Trump said potential peace talks with the group were “dead.”

The AP reports:

Russian state news agency Tass cited the Taliban’s Qatar-based spokesman Suhail Shaheen as saying the delegation had held consultations with Zamir Kabulov, President Vladimir Putin’s envoy for Afghanistan.

The visit also was confirmed to The Associated Press by a Taliban official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters.

This may well be the most terrifying thing you read on this Friday the 13th. Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter and senior adviser, told a group of donors last month that she got her moral compass from her father.

At a mid-August fundraiser in Jackson Hole, Wyo., Ivanka Trump was asked to name the personality traits she inherited most from her parents.

Without much of a pause, Trump told the crowd of roughly 120 high-end donors that her mother gave her an example of how to be a powerful, successful woman.

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Donald Trump blames lightbulbs for his orange hue – video

Donald Trump has blamed energy-efficient lightbulbs for his sometimes orange appearance. Speaking before an audience of Republican legislators in Baltimore on Thursday evening, he addressed criticism of his recent plans to weaken regulations on environmentally friendly bulbs. 'The bulb that we're being forced to use, number one, to me, most importantly, the light's no good,' he said. 'I always look orange. And so do you! The light's the worst'

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Edward Snowden in exile: ‘you have to be ready to stand for something’ – video

Edward Snowden has spent the last six years living in exile in Russia and has now decided to publish his memoirs, Permanent Record. In the book he reflects on his life leading up to the biggest leak of top secret documents in history, and the impact this had on his relationship with his partner, Lindsay Mills. The Guardian's Ewen MacAskill, who helped break Snowden's story in 2013, has been given exclusive access to meet him


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Trump explains his distinctive orange hue: it’s the lightbulbs

  • President says energy-efficient bulbs do him no favours
  • ‘The light’s no good. I always look orange. And so do you!’

It’s been the subject of intense debate among late-night comedians and Donald Trump’s many online critics: why, in certain circumstances, does the president of the United States sometimes appear … orange?

Related: House panel demands documents from Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon – live

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US election 2020: highlights from the third Democratic presidential debate – video

The candidates gathered in Houston, Texas, for the latest Democratic debate represented the top tier of the large field campaigning for the party’s 2020 nomination. But how did each of them fare during a night of policy cut and thrust, some mutual admiration and also some caustic attacks – on each other and Donald Trump

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How did each candidate in the Democratic debate do?

Klobuchar, Booker, Buttigieg, Sanders, Biden, Warren, Harris, Yang, O’Rourke and Castro – all 10 hopefuls rated

The candidates gathered in Houston, Texas, for the latest Democratic debate represented the top tier of the large field campaigning for the party’s 2020 nomination. But how did each of them fare during a night of policy cut and thrust, some mutual admiration and also some caustic attacks – on each other and on Donald Trump.

Related: Biden clashes with Warren and Sanders in lively Democratic debate

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Beto O’Rourke on gun control: ‘Hell yes, we’re going to take your AR-15’ – video

Presidential contender Beto O'Rourke does not shy away from saying he would require citizens to turn in their military-style weapons when asked about gun control during Thursday night's Democratic debate.  'Hell yes, we’re going to take your AR-15, your AK-47,' O’Rourke said in one of the biggest lines of the night. O'Rourke added: 'We're not going to allow it to be used against our fellow Americans any more.' He said some people at a gun show accepted the weapons were not needed for hunting. 

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Democratic debate: the five key takeaways

Biden was Biden but despite a smaller field sparks failed to fly with Warren, while O’Rourke had a good night – as did Obama

The Democratic debate in Houston was a mix of smackdown, backslapping and policy gab-fest as the 10 top-tier candidates faced off against each other while at least 10 others were only able to watch from the sidelines, having failed to qualify.

Related: Biden clashes with Warren and Sanders in lively Democratic debate

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Democratic debate: Warren and Sanders clash with Biden over healthcare – live

The 10 candidates on stage in Houston offered competing visions based on Obamacare and Medicare for All

Joe Biden is taking a question on gun control and once again arguing he has the best (and certainly the longest) record on the issue. “I’m the only up here who’s ever beat the NRA,” the former vice president and senator said.

Biden then similarly applauded Beto O’Rourke for his efforts to help his hometown of El Paso heal from the mass shooting that killed 22. Biden originally referred to the former congressman as “Beto.” He then apologized and O’Rourke interjected, “Beto is good.”

In the midst of a discussion on race and criminal justice, Ari Berman, author of Give Us the Ballot, has made this important point:

You know what else is racist? Preventing people from voting. There have been 29 presidential debates in 2020 & 2016 and no questions about voting rights

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Trump opens protected Alaskan Arctic refuge to oil drillers

The Bureau of Land Management will offer leases to the 1.6m-acre coastal plain which is home to threatened polar bears

The Trump administration is finalizing plans to allow oil and gas drilling in a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge that has been protected for decades.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will offer leases on essentially the entire 1.6m-acre coastal plain, which includes places where threatened polar bears have dens and porcupine caribou visit for calving. Drilling operations are expected to be problematic for Indigenous populations, many of which rely on subsistence hunting and fishing.

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Google Earth reveals remains of man missing for 22 years in Florida lake

Remains were of William Moldt, who went missing in November 1997 at the age of 40 after leaving a nightclub

It took 22 years, but a missing man’s remains were finally found thanks to someone who zoomed in on his former Florida neighborhood with Google satellite images and noticed a car submerged in a lake, authorities said.

The skeletal remains were of William Moldt, who went missing in 1997 at the age of 40, according to the Palm Beach county sheriff’s office.

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Man Trump called ‘my African American’ says president has ‘white superiority complex’

  • Trump singled out Gregory Cheadle at California rally in 2016
  • Cheadle quits Republican party for pursuing ‘pro-white agenda’

Gregory Cheadle – a black man who Donald Trump referred to as “my African American” during a rally – has announced he is leaving the Republican party, citing the president’s “white superiority complex”.

Related: El Paso shooting suspect indicted on murder charges – live

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Russia asks Interpol for help over alleged CIA mole’s whereabouts

  • Oleg Smolenkov reportedly taken to safety by US agents in 2017
  • ‘Interpol was presented with questions about his disappearance’

Russia has asked the United States via Interpol to provide information on the whereabouts of a former member of Vladimir Putin’s administration who is believed to have been a CIA informant.

The alleged CIA mole, named this week by Russian media as Oleg Smolenkov, was whisked to safety by US intelligence agents during a family holiday in Montenegro in June 2017, CNN reported earlier this week.

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