Category: US politics

The latest picture of Donald Trump for the front cover of Time Magazine appears to reference a famous portrait of a convicted Nazi war criminal, according to a new report.
The image, released ahead of the print issue’s publication next week, shows the president with hands clasped leaning over the Resolute Desk, and he is framed between two flags behind him. “TRUMP’S WORLD,” the caption reads.
Social media users were quick to point out that the image and its composition is reminiscent of a famous 1963 portrait of German Industrialist Alfried Krupp, which was taken by Arnold Newman for Newsweek.
During World War II, Krupp ran a major arms manufacturer for the Nazis and was later convicted as a war criminal for his company's use of Jews, prisoners of war and others as slave labor. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison, but served only three and was later pardoned.
In the psychologically charged image, which Newman, who was Jewish, initially refused to take, Krupp is also seen leanin..

A devastating explosion at an explosives plant in Tennessee, which claimed 16 lives and was felt over 20 miles away, originated in an area where workers were mixing explosive materials in kettles, triggering other nearby explosives, authorities revealed on Friday.
The blast, which occurred on October 10 at the Accurate Energetic Systems factory in Bucksnort, an unincorporated community approximately 60 miles (97 kilometers) southwest of Nashville, completely destroyed the facility.
Officials confirmed that the remains of two victims have yet to be identified.
While the on-site investigation has concluded, determining the precise cause of the catastrophe could still take several months, according to Brice McCracken, the special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives at the National Center for Explosives Training and Research.
In addition to locating victims' remains, the on-site work involved removing and disposing of explosives that didn't..

CloseTrump shows off gold ballroom he claims has been 'wanted for 150 years'President Donald Trump revealed the “friends” who convinced him to walk back on plans to send federal troops to San Francisco.
“I got a great call from some incredible people, some friends of mine, some very successful people, ”Trump said at a roundtable Thursday.
The president spoke of “Marc” and “Jensen”, appearing to reference Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.
The president had earlier posted on social media that he was preparing to “surge” troops to the California city Saturday but changed his mind after friends “in the area” asked him to hold off because Mayor Daniel Lurie was “making substantial progress.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom threatened to sue the Trump administration if he sent the National Guard to the state, while former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggested that if federal law enforcement violates California law, local police could arrest them.
Before Trum..

As the fragile ceasefire in Gaza continues to hold, Palestinians have been returning to what is left of their lives after two years of relentless bombardment.
But thousands of those who survived Israel’s assault on the enclave face the challenge of life-altering injuries they suffered during the conflict.
There are more than 6,000 prosthetics currently needed in Gaza, many of which are for children, according to the World Health Organisation.
And there are precious few people on the ground who have the expertise to help them.
open image in galleryFive-year-old amputee Sila Abu Aklan uses a walker to move around at her grandmother's house in Gaza CityHeba, from NGO Humanity & Inclusion, is one of just eight prosthetic technicians left in Gaza. She examines people’s amputations, measures their stumps and makes moulds for both leg and arm prostheses.
“We see people living with amputations whose stories of loss are heartbreaking and unimaginable,” the mother-of-two said. “Many of t..

CloseRussia conducts nuclear triad drills involving ground, naval, air forcesDonald Trump has unleashed harsh new sanctions on two of Russia’s largest oil companies, the first such sanctions in his second term as US president.
The Treasury Department said on Wednesday it was sanctioning Rosneft and Lukoil in response to Russian president Vladimir Putin’s “refusal to end this senseless war”.
In a statement, the department lashed out at Moscow’s “lack of serious commitment to a peace process to end the war in Ukraine”.
It said the sanctions would “increase pressure on Russia’s energy sector and degrade the Kremlin’s ability to raise revenue for its war machine and support its weakened economy”.
The decision came after Trump had cancelled a planned meeting with Putin, telling reporters on Wednesday that it “just didn’t feel right to me”.
“Every time I speak with Vladimir, I have good conversations, and then they don’t go anywhere. They just don’t go anywhere,” he said.
Earlier in the da..

As the government shutdown enters its 22nd day, some Republicans in both chambers are floating an idea few in their party had ever even entertained: getting rid of the legislative filibuster to bring an end to the morass.
In recent years, Democrats have floated changing the filibuster. Former senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema blocked attempts to create a carveout to codify a new version of the Voting Rights Act. They hoped to do so again with abortion rights as the Supreme Court planned to overturn Roe v Wade in the Dobbs v Jackson decision, only to fail.
But now, some hard-right Republicans are floating the idea.
“My thought is, is that I'm not willing to see children in my state go hungry, which is literally happening now, over some Senate procedure,” Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) told The Independent.
Hawley came to the Senate in Donald Trump’s first presidency, after then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell torpedoed the filibuster for Supreme Court nominees.
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Elon Musk’s hostilities with Sean Duffy reignited Tuesday with the billionaire accusing the Trump administration’s Transport Secretary of “trying to kill NASA” and attacking him with crude comments online.
The richest man in the world’s onslaught of criticism comes just a day after Duffy told CNBC that Musk’s rocket company was falling “behind” the administration’s timeline for getting humans back to the moon, and that he would now be opening up the government contract to others – including the Jeff Bezos-owned Blue Origin.
“We’re not going to wait for one company,” Duffy, who is also the Acting Administrator for NASA, said.
“We’re going to push this forward and win the second space race against the Chinese. Get back to the moon, set up a camp, a base and from there we’re gonna figure out how we can get to Mars,” he said.
The SpaceX boss posted a series of posts on his social media platform X in response to Duffy’s remarks, including a GIF of a famous exchange in which an anchor asked..

Bernie Sanders on Tuesday defended Graham Platner, the Maine oysterman running against Republican Susan Collins in the state’s marquee Senate race, who has come under fire amid allegations of racist social media posts.
“In all due respect, alright, what I'm worried about? 50,000 Americans may die unnecessarily,” the Vermont senator told The Independent when asked about some old Reddit posts from Platner that have sparked allegations of racism.
Democrats are now fretting after the progressive insurgent oysterman vying for the party’s nomination to challenge the five-term senator has come under fire for a series of inflammatory posts on Reddit and also for having a tattoo that bears a striking resemblance to Nazi ink.
Pressed further about Platner’s comments about sexual assault, Sanders defensively shot back, “Have you served four tours of duty?”
Sanders, a socialist Independent who caucuses with the Democrats, has endorsed Platner — and he’s campaigned for him in Maine.
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U.S. Border Patrol agents operating in Chicago have now been equipped with body cameras, a development confirmed on Monday during a court hearing addressing the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.
This initiative follows a judge's order amid complaints of increasingly combative tactics and over 1,000 arrests.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis mandated that uniformed agents must activate cameras where they are available during arrests, frisks, building searches and deployments to protests.
Kyle Harvick, deputy incident commander with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, informed the judge that every Border Patrol agent involved in Operation Midway Blitz “now has a body-worn camera”.
He added that 201 Border Patrol agents are stationed in the Chicago area, with other federal agencies, such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, also participating in the operation.
U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis mandated that uniformed agents must activate cameras where ..

Hulu saw its rate of cancellations double after Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show was temporarily pulled from the air, according to a new report.
Last month, ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! for about a week following comments the comedian made about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
His suspension caused a wave of outcry from celebrities, politicians and others who believed pulling the show was a violation of free speech protections. Some went as far as to boycott Hulu and Disney+, streaming services of Disney, which is the parent company of ABC.
The rate of Hulu subscription cancellations spiked to 10 percent in September, up from 5 percent in August, according to data from subscription-analytics firm Antenna. Similarly, the rate of Disney subscription cancellations rose to 8 percent from 4 percent.
open image in galleryHulu saw its rate of cancellations double after Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show was temporarily pulled from the air, according to a new report (..