Naoise Dolan: Donald Trump's cruel stance on immigration now has eerie echoes in our own far right
US approach can serve as a warning for our politicians
Today at 21:30
We knew the break-up would be bad. Bad and public.
Ever since Elon Musk bankrolled Donald Trump's political comeback last year, the world has watched a psychological experiment unfold. Can two narcissists — not as in 'self-absorbed individuals', more like 'people who would almost certainly meet the full diagnostic criteria for Narcissistic actual Personality Disorder' — be friends?
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
26 minutes ago
- Irish Times
Trump orders 2,000 national guard troops to LA amid protests over immigration crackdown
Donald Trump on Saturday ordered the deployment of 2,000 national guard troops to Los Angeles , after an immigration crackdown sparked mass protests for a second day and police in riot gear used tear gas on bystanders. The California governor, Gavin Newsom, said in a statement on X that the federal government was 'moving to take over' the California national guard. Mr Newsom said the mobilisation was 'purposefully inflammatory' and warned that it would 'only escalate tensions'. 'The federal government is taking over the California National Guard and deploying 2,000 soldiers in Los Angeles – not because there is a shortage of law enforcement, but because they want a spectacle,' he said later. 'Don't give them one.' READ MORE The defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, wrote on X that national guard troops were being mobilised 'IMMEDIATELY' and threatened to send 'active duty Marines' if the unrest continued. Tensions this week started on Friday, when protesters clashed with law enforcement officials conducting immigration raids on multiple locations in the city's downtown. On Saturday, US immigration authorities extended enforcement action into Paramount, a majority Latino area southeast of Los Angeles, and were met with more protests outside an industrial park. Police and protesters mostly stayed at a distance, kicking tear gas canisters back and forth amid streams of white gas. Among several hundred protesters, a handful were bloodied by projectiles. More than a dozen people were arrested and accused of impeding immigration agents, according to the US attorney's office for the central district of California. A Los Angeles sheriff's department spokesperson said their office arrested two people for assaulting an officer, that one demonstrator threw a Molotov cocktail, and that three deputies had been struck, with minor injuries. The sheriff's office said the department 'was focused solely on traffic management and crowd control' and was not involved in any federal law enforcement operations. By Saturday evening, protests in Paramount had dwindled from their peak on Saturday afternoon, but some protesters and authorities were engaged in a tense standoff. Protesters had also gathered in nearby Compton, amid reports that a few were hurling glass bottles at police, and police were deploying tear gas. On its end, the Trump administration moved aggressively. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Saturday evening accused California's Democratic leaders of having 'completely abdicated their responsibility to protect their citizens'. 'The Trump administration has a zero-tolerance policy for criminal behaviour and violence, especially when that violence is aimed at law enforcement officers trying to do their jobs,' she said in a statement, announcing that Mr Trump had signed a memo late Saturday night ordering the national guard deployment. The memo asserts that the demonstrations impeded 'execution of laws' and therefore 'constitute a form of rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States'. Mr Trump, according to the memo, federalised the state's national guard troops under what is known as Title 10 authority, which places them under federal, rather than state, control. Mr Newsom said there was no such need. On Saturday afternoon, he made assurances that the Los Angeles police department was available to authorities and that his administration was in close contact with city and county officials. 'There is currently no unmet need,' he said. Police form up behind a burned car during a clash with protesters after a raid was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Paramount, California. Photograph: EPA Mr Newsom directed the California highway patrol to deploy additional officers to maintain public safety on state highways and roads and work to keep the peace. 'The federal government is sowing chaos so they can have an excuse to escalate. That is not the way any civilised country behaves,' Mr Newsom also said. In a tweet, the governor called Mr Hegseth's threats to deploy active-duty Marines against American citizens 'deranged'. Writing on Truth Social, Mr Trump insulted Mr Newsom and Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass's handling of the protests and said the federal government would 'step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved!!!' Earlier on Saturday, Tom Homan, the White House 'border tsar', was the first to say the administration would mobilise the national guard. It is not the first time the national guard has been deployed in Los Angeles. Troops also were sent in during the 1992 Los Angeles riots, but their deployment at the time came at the request of the California governor and, unlike this time, amid widespread unrest. The Secretary of Defense is now threatening to deploy active-duty Marines on American soil against its own citizens. This is deranged behavior. — Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) Ms Bass called reports of civil unrest across the Los Angeles area 'deeply concerning' and said the city was in 'direct contact' with law enforcement and officials in Washington. On Friday, Ice officers had arrested dozens of people as they executed search warrants at multiple locations, including outside a clothing warehouse, where a tense scene unfolded as a crowd tried to block agents from driving away. Advocates for immigrant rights say people were also detained outside Home Depot stores and a doughnut shop. During afternoon protests at a federal detention facility in downtown LA on Friday, David Huerta, the president of the California branch of the Service Employees International Union, was arrested amid a police response that included tear gas and flash-bangs. Mr Huerta, who was injured and detained, released a statement to the Los Angeles Times from the hospital, saying: 'What happened to me is not about me. This is about something much bigger.' 'This is about how we as a community stand together and resist the injustice that's happening. Hard-working people, and members of our family and our community, are being treated like criminals. We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice,' he added. DHS said in a statement that recent Ice operations in Los Angeles had resulted in the arrest of 118 immigrants. California leaders were quick to condemn the raids. Ms Bass said the activity was meant to 'sow terror' in the nation's second-largest city. 'I am deeply angered by what has taken place,' she said. 'These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city. We will not stand for this.' Mr Newsom said: 'Continued chaotic federal sweeps, across California, to meet an arbitrary arrest quota are as reckless as they are cruel. Donald Trump's chaos is eroding trust, tearing families apart, and undermining the workers and industries that power America's economy.' Mr Newsom also condemned Huerta's arrest, saying: 'David Huerta is a respected leader, a patriot, and an advocate for working people. No one should ever be harmed for witnessing government action.' The arrests by immigration authorities in Los Angeles come as Mr Trump and his administration push to fulfil promises to carry out mass deportations across the country. – Guardian
The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
Trump sends 2,000 troops to LA as protesters tear gassed in violent clashes with cops over immigration crackdown
PRESIDENT Donald Trump has ordered 2,000 National Guard troops into Los Angeles as federal immigration raids erupted into chaos. It prompted violent street clashes between protesters and law enforcement on Saturday night in an explosive showdown over immigration enforcement. 4 Law enforcement stand during a protest in Compton, California Credit: AP 4 A demonstrator waves a Mexican national flag next to a car on fire during a protest following federal immigration operations in Los Angeles Credit: AFP 4 Law enforcement clashes with demonstrators during a protest following federal immigration operations Credit: AFP 4 Protesters demonstrating against operations conducted by federal immigration authorities clash with law enforcement officials in Compton Credit: Shutterstock Editorial Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed that "active duty Marines" are on "high alert", ready to mobilize from Camp Pendleton if the violence continues. The dramatic escalation came after demonstrators hurled flaming projectiles, set cars ablaze, and swarmed federal vehicles in response to ICE raids targeting undocumented migrants. Threatening to send in the Marines, Hegseth wrote on X: 'The violent mob assaults on ICE and Federal Law Enforcement are designed to prevent the removal of Criminal Illegal Aliens from our soil… and a huge NATIONAL SECURITY RISK.' More to follow... For the latest news on this story, keep checking back at The U.S. Sun, your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, sports news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures, and must-see videos . Like us on Facebook at
RTÉ News
an hour ago
- RTÉ News
Coining it: Donald Trump's love affair with crypto
Donald Trump once dismissed cryptocurrency as "a scam" but in recent months he and his family have become heavily involved in the digital currency marketplace and have reportedly made billions of dollars in the process. The Trump administration has cut regulations for the crypto industry, while the Trump family is simultaneously profiting from the sector. There are calls for investigations into the US President's crypto business dealings amid claims of conflicts of interest, and accusations that Mr Trump is abusing his position to enrich himself. From crypto critic to crypto fan In July 2019, during his first term as US President, Donald Trump made his dislike of cryptocurrencies very clear in a post on Twitter, now X. "I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air," Mr Trump wrote. "Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity," he added. In June 2021, Mr Trump told Fox Business that bitcoin "just seems like a scam". In another interview with Fox Business later that year, he said that investing in cryptocurrencies was like a "disaster waiting to happen." "I like the currency of the United States," Mr Trump said. He claimed that investing in cryptocurrencies "hurts the United States currency" and "we should be invested in our currency." In the space of just three years, Mr Trump's views on crypto had utterly changed. "Bitcoin mining may be our last line of defense against a CBDC," he posted on Truth Social in June 2024. CBDC refers to a central bank digital currency, which is a digital currency issued by a central bank rather than by a commercial bank. "Biden's hatred of Bitcoin only helps China, Russia, and the Radical Communist Left. We want all the remaining Bitcoin to be MADE IN THE USA!!! It will help us be ENERGY DOMINANT!!!" Mr Trump wrote. As the presidential election race ramped up last summer, the Trump campaign announced that it was starting to accept crypto donations. "Demonstrating President Trump's success as a champion of American freedom and innovation, we proudly offer you a chance to contribute to the campaign with cryptocurrency," the campaign website stated. In July last year, Mr Trump addressed a bitcoin conference in Nashville vowing to be an ally of the crypto industry if he was returned to the White House. "This afternoon I'm laying out my plan to ensure that the United States will be the crypto capital of the planet and the bitcoin superpower of the world and we'll get it done," Mr Trump told the conference. "The Biden-Harris administration's repression of crypto and bitcoin is wrong and it's very bad for our country," he added. World Liberty Financial In September last year, Donald Trump formally announced his support for a Trump family crypto venture called World Liberty Financial. The company's homepage describes itself as being "Inspired by Donald J Trump" and shaping a new era of finance. Visitors to the site can purchase a crypto token called $WLFI. In March 2025, World Liberty announced it would launch USD1, a dollar-backed stablecoin. "We're leading a financial revolution by dismantling the stranglehold of traditional financial institutions and putting the power back where it belongs: in your hands," the site states over a large photo of Mr Trump. The US President is listed as 'Chief Crypto Advocate' in the 'Meet our Team' section of the website, along with his sons Eric, Donald Jr and Barron. One of the co-founders of World Liberty Financial is Mr Trump's Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff. He has been accused of blurring the lines between diplomacy and business amid claims that he and his son have been promoting World Liberty's crypto interests while on visits to the Middle East. Last month, it was announced that an Abu Dhabi state-backed investment firm would make a major $2 billion investment using the USD1 stablecoin. $TRUMP meme coin In January 2025, days before his inauguration, Donald Trump announced the launch of his new meme coin $TRUMP. "Join my very special Trump Community. GET YOUR $TRUMP NOW," Mr Trump posted on Truth Social. Meme coins are cryptocurrencies inspired by internet memes, jokes, or cultural trends. "Their value is largely driven by community sentiment, social media hype, and celebrity endorsements," according to Forbes. Days after her husband announced his new meme coin, the US First Lady Melania Trump launched a cryptocurrency token of her own with $Melania being offered for sale. Last month, Mr Trump hosted a black-tie event at his golf club just outside Washington DC for the top buyers of his $TRUMP meme coin. Weeks earlier, the US President had begun promoting a competition that would reward 220 buyers of the crypto token with a private dinner. The top 25 investors were invited to an additional "exclusive private VIP reception" with Mr Trump. Democratic Congressman Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee, has demanded the release of the guest list of invitees at the dinner, claiming they had "purchased access to the President". Mr Raskin said a majority of the buyers were likely foreign nationals who would have been barred from donating to the Trump campaign. "I write today to demand that you release the names of all the attendees at this dinner and provide information about the source of the money they each used to buy $TRUMP coins, so that we can prevent illegal foreign government emoluments from being pocketed without congressional consent," Mr Raskin wrote in a letter to the president. "Publication of this list will also let the American people know who is putting tens of millions of dollars into our President's pocket so we can start to figure out what - beyond virtually worthless meme coins - they are getting in exchange for all this money," the letter stated. The White House has insisted that there is no conflict of interest for President Trump, as his assets are held in a trust managed by his children. Asked recently about potential conflicts of interest, Donald Trump Jr told CNBC that the family got into crypto out of necessity as they had been "de-banked". "We got into politics and all of a sudden (the banks) wouldn't take our call," he said. Trump's crypto assets valued at $2.9 billion A recent report from the US watchdog State Democracy Defenders Fund found that as of mid-March 2025, Mr Trump's crypto assets were valued at $2.9 billion, representing approximately 37% of his total wealth. This included assets from the $TRUMP meme and the $WLFI governance token. The State Democracy Defenders Fund said Mr Trump's entanglements with the cryptocurrency industry could pose serious risks to democratic institutions and public trust. The report entitled 'Trump's Crypto Conflicts of Interest' found that Mr Trump and his allies are embracing crypto as both a fundraising tool and policy agenda. "Rather than divest his crypto assets to avoid any possible conflict of interest, President Trump seems to have positioned himself to maximise profiting from them by adopting a less aggressive regulatory and enforcement programme than his predecessor," said Virginia Canter, Chief Anti-Corruption Counsel for State Democracy Defenders Fund. "Reduced oversight could undermine US national security interests by emboldening terrorists and extremists, who have increasingly used crypto for anonymous financing, while foreign governments may view his crypto businesses as an open invitation for corruption," Ms Canter said. The report concludes that the Trump administration has taken a more lenient approach towards crypto enforcement. It points to a change in criminal policy at the Department of Justice, and highlights recent cases being dropped or stayed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), signaling a favorable regulatory and enforcement stance toward digital assets. During his first presidential campaign, Donald Trump successfully wooed blue-collar union members, coal miners and steelworkers who felt abandoned by the Democrats. Winning over these disaffected voters helped him to claim the White House in 2016. Eight years later, in a similar way, he focused on the crypto community, promising to undo the regulations and restrictions introduced by Joe Biden. He secured their votes and millions in crypto donations. But this was not just about getting elected. Mr Trump has deregulated an industry that his family now profits from, investors can get access to the president by buying his cryptocurrency and his envoy has been accused of blurring the lines between official Government diplomacy and business promotion. He may have once dismissed cryptocurrency as a scam used by criminals, but the man who likes to see himself as the ultimate dealmaker may well have found his biggest earner yet.
