El Salvador ruling, townhall anger, Fed and UK women
Trump administration officials could face criminal contempt charges for violating a U.S. federal judge's order halting El Salvador deportations. Congressional Republicans hear from angry voters at townhalls. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says they'll wait for more data on the economy's direction before changing interest rates. And the UK's top court rules that the term ' woman ' refers only to biological women under equality laws.
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Trump officials could face criminal contempt over deportations, judge says
Republican town halls bring arrests, stun guns and voter worries about Trump
Powell says Fed remains in wait-and-see mode; markets processing policy shifts
In landmark ruling, UK's top court says legal definition of woman refers to biological sex
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NBC News
10 minutes ago
- NBC News
U.S. hits International Criminal Court judges with sanctions over investigation into Israel
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is slapping sanctions on four judges at the International Criminal Court over the tribunal's investigation into alleged war crimes by Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza and in the West Bank. The State Department said Thursday that it would freeze any assets that the ICC judges, who come from Benin, Peru, Slovenia and Uganda, have in U.S. jurisdictions. The move is just the latest step that the administration has taken to punish the ICC and its officials for investigations undertaken against Israel and the United States. 'As ICC judges, these four individuals have actively engaged in the ICC's illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America or our close ally, Israel,' Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement. 'The ICC is politicized and falsely claims unfettered discretion to investigate, charge, and prosecute nationals of the United States and our allies,' Rubio said. 'This dangerous assertion and abuse of power infringes upon the sovereignty and national security of the United States and our allies, including Israel.' In February, The Hague-based court's chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, was placed on Washington's list of 'Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons,' barring him from doing business with Americans and placing restrictions on his entry into the U.S. Khan stepped aside last month pending an investigation into alleged sexual misconduct. Within minutes of the administration's announcement, the court condemned its actions. 'These measures are a clear attempt to undermine the independence of an international judicial institution,' ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah said in a statement. The new sanctions target ICC Judge Reine Alapini-Gansou, who is from the West African country of Benin and was part of the pre-trial chamber of judges who issued the arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last year. She also served on the bench that originally greenlit the investigation into alleged Israeli crimes in the Palestinian territories in 2021. The 69-year-old was also part of the panel of judges who issued the arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2023. Last year, a court in Moscow issued a warrant for her arrest. From Slovenia, Beti Hohler was elected as a judge in 2023. She previously worked in the prosecutor's office at the court, leading Israel to object to her participation in the proceedings involving Israeli officials. Hohler said in a statement last year that she had never worked on the Palestinian territories investigation during her eight years as a prosecutor. Bouth Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza, from Peru, and Solomy Balungi Bossa, from Uganda, are appeals judges at the ICC. Each woman has worked on cases involving Israel. Neither the U.S. nor Israel is a member of and neither recognizes the legitimacy of the court, which has issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu for alleged war crimes over his military response in Gaza after the Hamas attack against Israel in October 2023. Israel strongly denies the allegations. During his first term in office, Trump targeted the ICC with sanctions, voicing displeasure with investigations into Israel and complaints about alleged war crimes said to have been committed by U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Those sanctions were rescinded by President Joe Biden 's administration in early 2021. Rubio said the U.S. would continue to take action to protect its and Israel's interests at the court. 'The United States will take whatever actions we deem necessary to protect our sovereignty, that of Israel, and any other U.S. ally from illegitimate actions by the ICC,' he said. Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch, said the Trump administration's sanctions 'aim to deter the ICC from seeking accountability amid grave crimes committed in Israel and Palestine, and as Israeli atrocities mount in Gaza, including with U.S. complicity.' 'U.S. sanctions on ICC judges are a flagrant attack on the rule of law at the same time as President Trump is working to undercut it at home,' Evenson said in a statement. 'Sanctions are meant to put a stop to human rights violations, not to punish those seeking justice for the worst crimes.'
Daily Mail
20 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Blow by blow, how Elon Musk tore apart friendship with Trump with one bombshell post after another on X, from endorsing his impeachment to wild claims about Jeffrey Epstein
The public feud that unfolded last night between Donald Trump and Elon Musk closely resembles a dispute between two children in the playground. For the first term, they were inseparable. Donald invited Elon to play in his castle with all his classmates, and together they ruled the yard. But after a while, Donald decided he didn't want Elon to stay. Last week, he asked him to leave the castle and hang out with other people for a while. Elon sulked all weekend. When he came back, he told the whole school how stupid Donald and his friends were. He also claimed the only reason Donald got into the castle instead of that older kid in the first place was because of him. Before long, they were both yelling nasty insults and accusing one another of being naughty. Elon agreed with one pupil who said Donald should be kicked out of his castle. Unfortunately, the two participants in this argument are grown men. One is the leader of the free world, and the other is the world's richest man. They wrote their insults on separate social media platforms that they own. And one of the statements made amid the war of words alleged that the President of the United States was covering up his links to a convicted paedophile and sex offender. Here's a blow-by-blow account of how the bromance between two titans of American politics and popular culture unfolded. One of the accusations made amid the war of words alleged that the President of the United States was covering up his links to a convicted paedophile and sex offender The Trump-Musk relationship at its height was unprecedented in Washington - a sitting president granting a billionaire tech CEO access and influence inside the White House and throughout his government. Musk spent nearly $300 million backing Trump's presidential campaign and other Republicans last year, and was made a special adviser once Trump returned to the Oval Office. For months, the tech mogul used social media platform X to amplify Trump's messages while attacking the bureaucracy and federal spending through his self-styled Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Now, not only has the tech giant left the Trump White House - he became its harshest and perhaps most consequential critic overnight The public feud was seemingly initiated by Musk just days after he departed DOGE, with the X CEO taking aim at the GOP's 'One Big, Beautiful Bill' - a tax and spend bill tabled by the Republicans that will also increase the government's debt ceiling. The controversial bill was passed by the House of Representatives last month and is now being scrutinised in the Senate. On Tuesday, Musk posted on his social media platform that the bill was an 'abomination' and went on to urge Senators to 'kill the bill' on Wednesday. 'This spending bill contains the largest increase in the debt ceiling in US history! It is the Debt Slavery Bill,' he wrote. 'Call your Senator, Call your Congressman, Bankrupting America is NOT ok! KILL the BILL.' Musk also declared that the planned additional spending and the debt ceiling hike included in the bill 'more than defeats all the cost savings achieved by the DOGE team '. The blatant attack on the bill raised eyebrows given Musk's deep connections with the Republican party and personal friendship with Trump. Yet, when the US President met privately with White House officials on Wednesday, there was little to suggest that a public spat was in the offing with Musk, whose financial backing and support on social media were instrumental in sealing his second term in the Oval Office. Two White House officials familiar with the matter told a Reuters reporter that Trump expressed confusion and frustration in the meeting about Musk's attacks on his sweeping tax and spending bill. But he held back, the officials said, because he wanted to preserve Musk's political and financial support ahead of the midterm elections. By Thursday afternoon, however, Trump's mood had shifted. He told his team it was time to take the gloves off - and so began a public squabble that caught the world's attention. Trump took to Truth Social to hit back at Musk following criticism of the One Big Beautiful Bill Sitting next to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in the Oval Office, Trump told reporters he was 'very disappointed' in his former adviser's criticism of the bill. 'I'm very disappointed with Elon. I've helped him a lot. He knew the inner workings of the bill better than anybody sitting here. He had no problem with it,' he said. 'All of a sudden he had a problem & he only developed the problem when he found out we're going to cut EV mandate,' Trump claimed, in reference to a phasing out of tax credits for purchases of electric vehicles. Musk quickly hit back on social media. 'False, this bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that almost no one in Congress could even read it!' he said. Trump went on to say during his meeting with Merz: 'Musk hasn't said bad about me personally, but I´m sure that will be next.' He was quickly proven right. Musk vented his anger directly at Trump, saying his tariffs 'will cause a recession in the second half of this year' and accusing him of lying. He also said it was 'very unfair' that the legislation would eliminate tax incentives for electric vehicles. The back-and-forth devolved from there. Trump posted again on Truth Social, writing: 'Elon was 'wearing thin', I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!' Musk immediately retorted on X: 'Such an obvious lie. So sad.' Within minutes, he went on to say that it might be time to create a new political party and shared a poll to his followers asking for their opinion. With each post, the spat became yet more virulent - until Musk dropped a new allegation which could one day prove to be the catalyst leading to the downfall of one - if not both - participants. 'Time to drop the really big bomb: (Donald Trump) is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT! 'Mark this post for the future. The truth will come out!' Trump's commitment to greater transparency in the run up to November's election had many Americans hoping that he would shed light on the deplorable activities of sex offender and disgraced financier Epstein - and the litany of rich and famous figures thought to have been involved with him. Epstein died by suicide in 2019 in a Manhattan jail - though there is widespread speculation he may have been murdered. Before he was elected, Trump said he would have 'no problem' releasing files related to Epstein, but almost six months into his presidency, no more information has been revealed. Following the wild allegation, Musk endorsed a post on X from Ian Miles Cheong, a right-wing activist and prominent supporter of the tech mogul, calling for Trump's impeachment. Musk endorsed a post on X from Ian Miles Cheong, a right-wing activist and prominent supporter of the tech mogul, calling for Trump's impeachment. Trump retorted on Truth Social by threatening to cut off Elon's companies from various lucrative government contracts. 'The easiest way to save money in our budget, billions and billions of dollars, is to terminate Elon's government subsidies and contracts,' Trump posted. Musk promptly fired back, with the SpaceX chief saying he would begin 'decommissioning' his company's Dragon spacecraft in response. The spacecraft is vital for ferrying NASA astronauts to and from the International Space Station. By Friday morning, it appeared the spat was over. In a statement, the White House played down the war of words, calling it an 'unfortunate episode from Elon, who is unhappy with the One Big Beautiful Bill because it does not include the policies he wanted.' Musk late last night appeared to extend an olive branch on social media, replying: 'You're not wrong' to a post from hedge fund manager Bill Ackman that called on the pair to reconcile and urged: 'We're much stronger together than apart'. Trump's aides are reportedly looking to organise a call between the president and his former 'First Buddy' later today to smooth over the fallout. Musk also walked back his statement about decommissioning the Dragon rocket. But the consequences of the spat were immediate. Musk yesterday said he would begin 'decommissioning' his company's Dragon spacecraft use to take astronauts to and from the International Space Station after Trump threatened to terminate government contracts with the tech mogul's companies Tesla's stock price plunged 14% on Thursday - wiping hundreds of billions of dollars off Musk's EV company's valuation. It also drove uncertainty among Trump's allies in Congress, who are working to pass the monumental spending package that Democrats and a small number of vocal Republicans oppose. The breakup could go on to drastically reshape both men's futures. For Trump, losing Musk's backing threatens his growing influence among tech donors, social media audiences and younger male voters - key groups that may now be harder to reach. It could also prove a damaging blow to Republican fundraising efforts ahead of next year's midterm elections. For Musk, however, the stakes are potentially even higher. The spat risks intensified scrutiny of his business practices that could jeopardise government contracts and invite regulatory probes, which might seriously threaten his companies' profits. A termination of government contracts, including for launching rockets and for the use of the Starlink satellite service, would prove devastating.
Reuters
39 minutes ago
- Reuters
Take Five: It's TACO time
June 6 (Reuters) - Uncertainty from Washington's tariff tactics remains rife, but investors realise that whatever U.S. President Donald Trump threatens doesn't tend to last long before he delays or backs down, meaning recent volatility has ebbed. This tendency to U-turn, dubbed the TACO trade - "Trump Always Chickens Out" - has caught on but it's also given investors something to bank on so they can focus on upcoming reads on inflation and trade. Here's a look at what's coming up for world markets from Kevin Buckland in Tokyo, Naomi Rovnick and Amanda Cooper in London and Alden Bentley in New York. The high-voltage volatility that shook markets in April and through May has subsided, with investors becoming accustomed to Trump's on-again-off-again approach to anything from tariffs to personal relationships - the meltdown with erstwhile DOGE chief and Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk being the latest. Wall Street's fear-gauge, the VIX index, has slipped back below the 20-line that many view as a watermark. Since Trump became the 47th president on January 20, the index has topped 20 on 47 occasions. In the five months prior to that, it breached that level 18 times. In the last month, there have been just seven days when the VIX has popped above 20, compared with every day from April 2 "Liberation Day" to early May. If anything, the TACO trade is taking some spice out of the market. Investors are hoping any rise in Wednesday's May consumer inflation report won't be as severe as feared, given Trump's erratic trade tactics. Recent data shows inflation falling close to the Federal Reserve's 2% target. Price pressures in manufacturing and services sectors are picking up, however. A good gauge of markets' long-term inflation view indicates only moderate concern. The inflation breakeven rate on five-year Treasury Inflation Protected Securities suggests investors believe the rate will average less than 0.3 percentage points above the target for the next five years. The Fed's most recent Beige Book showed economic activity is weakening, while costs and prices are rising across the different regions - a combination policymakers do not want to see. Traders expect the Fed to make no rate change at its June 18 meeting. Washington and Beijing's trade spat has brought a familiar issue back to the surface. China has a stranglehold on global supply of so-called rare earths, critical ingredients in almost every high-tech device out there, from cars to cruise missiles. When China cuts off supply, everything withers. The auto industry is feeling it. Suzuki (7269.T), opens new tab suspended production of the Swift subcompact, weeks after Ford (F.N), opens new tab did the same for its Explorer SUV. The White House has blasted Beijing for reneging on tariff rollbacks agreed in Geneva last month, but China is doing the same, lambasting the U.S. over revoked student visas and cutting-edge chip curbs. Chinese trade data on Monday will illuminate what's at stake, while inflation figures that day will show if Beijing's efforts to stoke domestic demand are working. April data trade data for the European Union on June 13 could offer a reasonably clean read on where things stood as Trump's on-off tariffs began to roll out. The EU is firmly in the U.S. president's crosshairs. Trump has said more than once the sole purpose of the EU is to "take advantage" of America, on the grounds that his country boasts a $200 billion trade deficit with the bloc in goods alone, making the EU its second-biggest goods trade partner behind China. EU sales of cars, steel, pharmaceuticals and luxury goods and apparel among other things are big business. Trump on May 23 said he would impose a 50% tariff on all EU imports, only to back down two days later by delaying the duties by a month after a "very nice call" with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Britain, often a prime target for bond vigilantes that attack indebted governments for financial mismanagement, has been pushed into these traders' peripheral vision by U.S. budget concerns. The Labour government's first spending review on Wednesday could bring the UK back into the spotlight. Even if finance minister Rachel Reeves manages to slash departmental spending, this will merely highlight how few cost-cutting options she has left, Bank of America says. UK public debt has swelled, leaving Reeves minimal headroom to avoid breaking self-imposed fiscal rules and less able to resist tax hikes. Still, businesses and borrowers still scarred by the gilt market riot after then Prime Minister Liz Truss' 2022 mini-budget may prefer higher taxes if that lowers the odds of bond vigilantes showing up.
