Category Archives: US News

Trump campaign distances itself from new ‘Patriot party’

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Trump team rejects claims by new party’s founder that they are holding joint fundraising activities

Donald Trump’s campaign has sought to distance him from efforts to create a “Patriot party”, an idea the former president has reportedly toyed with since his election defeat.

On Monday, the former president’s campaign committee, Donald J Trump for President (DJTFP), disavowed claims by a new political action committee (PAC) called the Patriot party, that the two were part of a joint fundraising campaign. It coincided with Trump setting up the “Office of the Former President”, in Florida.

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US House delivers article of impeachment against Donald Trump to Senate

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Senate trial will be the first-ever of a former US president, however the chances that Republicans will convict him are slim

The US House delivered its article of impeachment against Donald Trump to the Senate on Monday evening, setting the stage for the first ever Senate trial of a former US president.

For the second time in just over a year, nine House impeachment managers carried an impeachment charge against Trump in a ceremonial procession across the US Capitol, where just a few weeks ago a violent mob laid siege to the building in a deadly assault on the seat of American government.

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US watchdog to investigate whether officials made ‘improper attempts’ to alter election result – live

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Here’s more on South Africa and coronavirus travel restrictions in relation to the US.

The White House confirmed Joe Biden is signing an order today imposing a ban on most non-US citizens entering the country who have recently been in South Africa, starting on Saturday.

The Treasury Department is taking steps to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill, as was planned in the Obama administration.

Psaki says the Treasury Department is taking steps to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill, as was planned in the Obama administration.

NEW: White House says Treasury Dept. is "taking steps to resume efforts" to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill.

Press Sec. Psaki says the Biden admin. is "exploring ways to speed up that effort." pic.twitter.com/c4bARsGf1Z

Related: She Came to Slay: Tubman biography looks beyond Underground Railroad

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New York Times fires editor targeted by rightwing critics over Biden tweet

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Lauren Wolfe was let go two days after tweeting she had ‘chills’ at seeing Joe Biden’s plane land at Joint Base Andrews

A row has broken out over accusations that a New York Times journalist was fired after being targeted by rightwing critics for tweeting she had “chills” at seeing Joe Biden’s plane land at Joint Base Andrews.

Lauren Wolfe, who had been working as an editor at the Times, posted the message on 19 January, as Biden arrived ahead of his inauguration as president the next day.

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Dominion Voting Systems sues Giuliani for $1.3bn over baseless election claims

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Complaint accuses ex-mayor of having ‘manufactured and disseminated’ conspiracy theory related to voting machines

Dominion Voting Systems, the voting equipment manufacturer at the centre of baseless election fraud conspiracy theories pushed by Donald Trump and his allies, has sued the former president’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani in a $1.3bn defamation lawsuit.

Related: Schumer promises quick but fair trial as Trump impeachment heads to Senate

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Forbes drops Bermuda trip for entrepreneurs to escape Covid ‘gloom’

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Invitation for people on magazine’s ‘30 under 30’ list is dropped hours after Guardian inquiry

A place on one of Forbes’s “30 under 30” lists has long been a marker of status and potential for a group the magazine has proclaimed as the US and Canada’s “brashest entrepreneurs”.

In a time of global crisis, they were offered an additional reward this week: a month-long trip to a five star hotel and beach club in Bermuda, “one of the most desirable destinations in the world”, to escape from the “monotony and gloom” of the coronavirus pandemic.

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California lifts its statewide Covid stay-at-home orders

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Announcement comes after months of a surge in cases and as the governor is sued for restrictions on outdoor dining

California lifted its stay-at-home order statewide Monday after four-week projections showed intensive care unit capacity to be above 15% in beleaguered regions for the first time in weeks.

The announcement follows months of a relentless case surge that exhausted the healthcare system statewide and made California the first US state to record 3m Covid-19 infections. It also comes as more than 50 wine country-based restaurants and wineries have filed a lawsuit against Gavin Newsom, California’s governor, over the state’s restrictions on outdoor dining.

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How to make Bernie Sanders’ inauguration mittens

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Feel the Bern, not the cold, with your own pair of winter-proof hand warmers – here’s how to stitch them at home

While it was Michelle Obama’s hair that brought the glamour to Joe Biden’s inauguration day, it was Bernie Sanders’ mittens that delivered the memes. Sitting at the event in a winter coat and mittens, arms and legs crossed, he was the yin to the rest of the Capitol’s sharp-suited yang – and promptly Photoshopped into Edward Hopper paintings, scenes from Glee and the vice-presidential debate, replacing the fly atop Mike Pence’s head.

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Mitch McConnell ‘plays the long game’ to retain some power as it slips away

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Out of power in the chamber, the Republican now faces unruly politicians and pressure over how to handle Trump impeachment

For Mitch McConnell, the top Republican in the Senate, the first few days of Joe Biden’s presidency have not been about fighting the new Democratic majority in government. They have been about gaming out how much power he now has.

Related: Trump impeachment: Pelosi to formally send article of impeachment to Senate today – live

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Jon Bon Jovi on wealth, love and his ugly tussle with Trump: ‘It was seriously scarring’

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The big hair and bombast have long gone and the thoughtful singer-songwriter remains. He talks about politics, pain and meeting his wife of 40 years in history class

Jon Bon Jovi is singing Livin’ on a Prayer to me. No, this is not another crazy lockdown dream; it is actually happening.

“Tommy used to work on the docks …” he begins, strumming a guitar he produces out of nowhere, his still impressive bouffant (“I’m the only man in my field brave enough to let it go grey!”) bouncing in time to the music.

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Sarah Sanders, former Trump press secretary, to run for Arkansas governor – reports

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A formal announcement is expected on Monday as the 38-year-old bids to succeed her father, Mike Huckabee, in the state leadership role

Sarah Sanders, Donald Trump’s former chief spokeswoman and one of his closest aides, is running for Arkansas governor, according to multiple reports.

Sanders, who left the White House in 2019 to return to her home state, planned to announce her bid on Monday, according to Associated Press and Reuters, citing anonymous sources.

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Fauci says he was the ‘skunk at the picnic’ in Trump’s Covid team

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Public health expert says he could not resign as someone had to push back against ‘nonsense’

Dr Anthony Fauci was the “skunk at the picnic” in Donald Trump’s White House coronavirus taskforce, the top US public health expert told the New York Times in a candid interview on Sunday.

Related: Deborah Birx says Covid deniers in Trump White House 'derailed' response

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Trump plots revenge on Republicans who betrayed him as Senate trial looms

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Republican divisions over Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial came into clearer focus on Sunday, as the former president spent his first weekend out of office plotting revenge against those he says betrayed him.

Related: Can Trump do a Nixon and re-enter polite society? Elizabeth Drew doubts it

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Coronavirus live: UK lockdown ‘long way’ from lifting, says Hancock; Israel still seeing cases after first Pfizer jab administered

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Health secretary says case rate too high to ease restrictions; first Pfizer dose does not immediately prevent infection, says Israeli health minister

Egypt has launched a Covid vaccination campaign, with the first shots of the Sinopharm’s vaccine given to healthcare workers in the Suez Canal city of Ismailia.

Italy will take legal action against Pfizer and AstraZeneca over delays in deliveries of Covid vaccines, with the aim of securing the doses rather than seeking damages, the foreign minister, Luigi Di Maio, said on Sunday.

Di Maio said on RAI state television:

We are working so our vaccine plan programme does not change. We are activating all channels so the EU commission does all it can to make these gentlemen respect their contracts.

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Can Trump do a Nixon and re-enter polite society? Elizabeth Drew doubts it

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Asking if Donald Trump can rehabilitate himself in US public life as did a disgraced president before him, legendary Washington reporter Elizabeth Drew was not optimistic.

Related: Chaos of Trump's last days in office reverberates with fresh 'plot' report

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Undoing Trump’s legacy: Biden wastes no time in first 100 hours as president

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The Democrat has kicked off his presidency with a blitz of executive orders and measures – here are the key themes

On Sunday afternoon, the US will reach the 100th hour of Joe Biden’s presidency. Already, there has been a blitz of executive actions and a bewildering pace of change. Four years after Donald Trump set about undoing Barack Obama’s legacy, Obama’s vice-president appears to be returning the gesture with interest.

Related: Chaos of Trump's last days in office reverberates with fresh 'plot' report

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Larry King, talk-show titan who lit up worlds of politics and showbiz

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The CNN host had a profound effect on American broadcasting – and the heart of the brand was 7,445 editions of Larry King Live over 25 years

A measure of Larry King’s impact on American television journalism was that for three decades, the easiest way of giving fictional cinematic politicians credibility was a scene in which they appeared on King’s CNN show.

His peak year was 1998, in which King, who has died aged 87, shared the big screen with John Travolta as a minimally disguised Bill Clinton in Primary Colors, Warren Beatty as a maverick Democrat senator in Bulworth, and Will Smith in the conspiracy surveillance thriller Enemy of the State.

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Joe Biden urged to commute sentences of all 49 federal death row prisoners

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Led by two prominent African American congresswomen, 35 Democrats have urged Joe Biden to commute the sentences of all 49 federal prisoners left on death row – days after the Trump administration finished its rush to kill 13 such prisoners.

Related: 'This is not justice': supreme court liberals slam Trump's federal executions

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Chaos of Trump’s last days in office reverberates with fresh ‘plot’ report

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Ex-president, whose Senate trial will start in two weeks, reportedly planned to oust acting attorney general in bid to overturn election

Donald Trump was at his Florida resort on Saturday, beginning post-presidency life while Joe Biden settled into the White House. But in Washington and beyond, the chaos of the 45th president’s final days in office continued to throw out damaging aftershocks.

Related: Deborah Birx 'always' considered quitting Trump coronavirus taskforce

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Larry King, famed cable news interviewer, dies aged 87

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Broadcaster and celebrity interviewer had been hospitalized in Los Angeles with symptoms of coronavirus

Larry King, the American broadcaster and cable news interviewer of celebrities and public figures, has died. He was 87 and had been hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai medical center in Los Angeles with symptoms of the coronavirus.

Related: Larry King: 'The secret of my success? I'm dumb'

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