‘Fanning the flames': Maxine Waters blasted for ‘defending' LA protests
Sky News host Rita Panahi says Democratic Representative Maxine Waters 'defending' the protesters responsible for ongoing riots in Los Angeles.
Ms Waters has been brutally denied entry into a detention facility as riots across Los Angeles erupt.
'Maxine Waters had plenty of fears, fever dreams about Trump and his supporters starting trouble, but it's the left, always the left resorting to violence,' Ms Panahi said.
'Now as California descends into a lawless, violent protest, she's fanning the flames with this sort of talk.'
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West Australian
an hour ago
- West Australian
AUKUS review: Pentagon's Elbridge Colby orders inquiry to ensure defence agreement aligns with ‘America First'
The Trump Administration's biggest AUKUS sceptic has ordered a review into whether the US should pull out of the submarine deal with Australia, just days after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese refused America's request to lift defence spending. The inquiry was directed by AUKUS-sceptic Elbridge Colby, the Pentagon's Deputy Under Secretary of Defence for Policy, the Financial Times reported . A US Defence official said the review was 'part of ensuring that this initiative of the previous Administration is aligned with the President's America First agenda.' 'As Secretary Hegseth has made clear, this means ensuring the highest readiness of our servicemembers, that allies step up fully to do their part for collective defence, and that the defence industrial base is meeting our needs,' the official said in a statement. 'This review will ensure the initiative meets these common-sense, America First criteria.' Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Beijing would be cheering at the news. 'News that the Trump Administration is considering backing away from AUKUS will be met with cheers in Beijing, which is already celebrating America's global pullback and our strained ties with allies under President Trump,' Senator Shaheen said. 'Scrapping this partnership would further tarnish America's reputation and raise more questions among our closest defence partners and our reliability.' Mr Colby is one of the America First movement's fiercest critics of what he views as shirker allies. He was also the first in US President Donald Trump's orbit to voice concerns about AUKUS. When asked by The Nightly, at a speaking engagement in London, he said he would have been quite sceptical about the deal if it were put to him to sign off on. 'My concern is why are we giving away this crown jewel asset when we most need it?' he said 12 months ago. 'AUKUS is only going to lead to more submarines collectively in 10, 15, 20 years, which is way beyond the window of maximum danger, which is really in this decade. 'So the benefits are questionable and the viability is also questionable.' However, Mr Colby retreated from some of his criticisms and directed most of his ire toward European NATO allies, who have subsequently begun to pledge massive defence spending increases prompting his praise. By contrast, in the last few days he has been issuing statements on X about the need for Indo-Pacific allies to heed Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth's call for more defence funding. Mr Hegseth asked Defence Minister Richard Marles to raise defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP at a meeting on the sidelines of the Shangri-la Dialogue in Singapore. Currently, Labor plans to spend 2.3 per cent of GDP on defence by the middle of the next decade. Mr Marles responded by saying he was 'totally up for a conversation' but refused to confirm the figure Mr Hegseth requested. The Defence Secretary released the figure in a statement three days later. Since then, Labor has become more strident in its opposition and said the decision is for Australia, not the US to make. Mr Albanese told the Press Club this week he had not been provided with any capabilities that need funding and was not going to commit to a blind yardstick method of government spending. Australia has already paid the first US$500 million ($760 million) to buy up to three nuclear-powered submarines from the United States, under a deal first struck with the Biden Administration by former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Mr Marles paid the cheque in Feburary when he first met Mr Hegseth after President Trump's inauguration. At the time, Mr Hegseth said Mr Trump was aware and supportive of AUKUS and this was recently further backed by comments the President's personally appointed Ambassador to the UK, Warren Stephens, made at an event in London, alongside UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. It is unclear if Mr Colby's review is the act of a lone operator or represents a change in the stance of the Administration, which is often ideologically split on key policy areas. AUKUS is the most expensive and ambitious defence acquisition project in Australia's history and aims to buy and then build nuclear-powered submarines at a cost of $368 billion. But because Australia cannot build nuclear-propelled submarines and faces an urgent capability gap with the Collins Class boats reaching their end of life, it is reliant on purchasing off-the-shelf Virginia-class boats from the Americans and then co-building an SSN AUKUS version of submarine with the British. The UK government put on a brave face. A government spokesperson said the review was 'understandable.' 'It is understandable that a new administration would want to review its approach to such a major partnership, just as the UK did last year,' the spokesperson said. 'The UK will continue to work closely with the US and Australia at all levels to maximise the benefits and opportunities which AUKUS presents for our three nations.'
Sky News AU
2 hours ago
- Sky News AU
Simmering United States-China trade tensions send nuclear stocks soaring, Global X ETFs' Scott Helfstein reveals
Australian uranium miners have been on a tear since the calamity of United States President Donald Trump's 'Liberation Day' spooked investors and sent stocks around the globe plummeting. Uranium mining is a cyclical industry, one which fluctuates along with the business cycle, and was devastated by the turmoil from President Trump's trade war before strongly rebounding. Global X ETFs' head of thematic solutions Scott Helfstein told Sky News' Business Now the uranium sector's rebound was a sign of strength in the the wider economy. 'What we're actually seeing in the last few weeks, since we have moved past peak US-China tensions, we're seeing cyclical areas like copper miners, uranium miners, industrials start to rally and come back,' he said. 'That is a sign of good secular growth or expectations for good secular growth.' He noted while there was a 'sense of negative sentiment' among investors, underlying economic factors were stable. 'The hard economic and fundamentals from a corporate and a GDP (gross domestic product) perspective have remained really strong,' Mr Helfstein said. Uranium miner Paladin Energy has surged more than 50 per cent since the early April wipeout from "Liberation Day". Boss Energy has added more than 80 per cent, Deep Yellow has jumped more than 60 per cent and Bannerman Energy has soared about 45 per cent. Similarly, the world's largest publicly traded uranium miner and Swedish powerhouse Cameco Corp is up more than 70 per cent since early April. The climb comes as the ASX 200 has experienced wild turbulence since the beginning of the year. China and the US placed massive tariffs on one another, but agreed last month to reduce these to undergo trade negotiations. US and Chinese officials said on Tuesday they had agreed on a framework to get their trade truce back on track and remove China's export restrictions on rare earths, but offered little sign of a durable resolution to longstanding trade tensions. The ASX 200 hit a peak in mid-February before slowly dropping after President Trump began revealing his trade policies - including tariffs on aluminium, steel and automotive parts. The index plummeted in early April after the sweeping 'Liberation Day' tariffs were slapped on most nations around the world. President Trump temporarily pausing these levies and a boost of investor confidence has led to a gradual rise of the ASX 200.
The Advertiser
7 hours ago
- The Advertiser
California governor warns 'democracy under assault'
Hundreds of US Marines have arrived in Los Angeles under orders from President Donald Trump, ratcheting up tensions in America's second largest city, as California's governor warns "democracy is under assault". Trump's extraordinary measures of sending National Guard and Marines to quell protests, which broke out in response to his immigration raids, fuelled demonstrations for a fifth day in Los Angeles on Tuesday and sparked protests in several other cities. As Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom traded fulminations, the city's mayor said the protests were limited to about five downtown streets, but declared a curfew for parts of the downtown area due to violence and looting. Police arrested another 197 people on Tuesday - more than double the total number of arrests to date. Democratic leaders have raised concerns over a national crisis in what has become the most intense flashpoint yet in the Trump administration's efforts to deport migrants living in the country illegally, and then crack down on opponents who take to the streets in protest. "This brazen abuse of power by a sitting president inflamed a combustible situation, putting our people, our officers and even our National Guard at risk. That's when the downward spiral began," Newsom said in an a video address. "He again chose escalation. He chose more force. He chose theatrics over public safety. ... Democracy is under assault." Newsom labelled the deployments an illegal waste of resources. He and the state sued Trump and the Defense Department on Monday, seeking to block the deployment of federal troops. Trump in turn has suggested Newsom should be arrested. Trump, voted back into office last year largely for his promise to deport undocumented immigrants, used a speech honouring soldiers on Tuesday to defend his decision. He told troops at the Army base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina: "Generations of Army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores only to watch our country be destroyed by invasion and third-world lawlessness". "What you're witnessing in California is a full-blown assault on peace, on public order and on national sovereignty, carried out by rioters bearing foreign flags," Trump said, adding his administration would "liberate Los Angeles". Demonstrators have waved the flags of Mexico and other countries in solidarity for the migrants rounded in a series of intensifying raids. Homeland Security said Monday its Immigration and Customs Enforcement division had arrested 2000 immigration offenders per day recently, far above the 311 daily average in fiscal year 2024 under former President Joe Biden. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced a curfew for 2.5sq/km of downtown Los Angeles that will run from 8pm Tuesday (1pm Wednesday AEST) until 6am for several days. State and local officials have called Trump's response an extreme overreaction to mostly peaceful demonstrations. Bass emphasised at a press conference the distinction between the majority of demonstrators protesting peacefully and a smaller number of agitators she blamed for violence and looting. A curfew had been considered for several days but Bass said she decided to impose one after 23 business were looted on Monday night. In what has become a daily ritual, police forced demonstrators away from the streets outside the Metropolitan Detention Centre, where many detained migrants are held. Multiple groups of protesters snaked through downtown Los Angeles, monitored or followed by police armed with less lethal munitions. Protests also took place in other cities including New York, Atlanta and Chicago, where demonstrators shouted at and scuffled with officers. Some protesters climbed onto the Picasso sculpture in Daley Plaza, while others chanted that ICE should be abolished. About 700 Marines were in a staging area in the Seal Beach area about 50km south of Los Angeles, awaiting deployment to specific locations, a US official said. There were 2100 National Guard troops in the Los Angeles area on Tuesday, more than half the 4000 to be activated. The Marines and National Guard troops lack the authority to makes arrests and will be charged only with protecting federal property and personnel. Hundreds of US Marines have arrived in Los Angeles under orders from President Donald Trump, ratcheting up tensions in America's second largest city, as California's governor warns "democracy is under assault". Trump's extraordinary measures of sending National Guard and Marines to quell protests, which broke out in response to his immigration raids, fuelled demonstrations for a fifth day in Los Angeles on Tuesday and sparked protests in several other cities. As Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom traded fulminations, the city's mayor said the protests were limited to about five downtown streets, but declared a curfew for parts of the downtown area due to violence and looting. Police arrested another 197 people on Tuesday - more than double the total number of arrests to date. Democratic leaders have raised concerns over a national crisis in what has become the most intense flashpoint yet in the Trump administration's efforts to deport migrants living in the country illegally, and then crack down on opponents who take to the streets in protest. "This brazen abuse of power by a sitting president inflamed a combustible situation, putting our people, our officers and even our National Guard at risk. That's when the downward spiral began," Newsom said in an a video address. "He again chose escalation. He chose more force. He chose theatrics over public safety. ... Democracy is under assault." Newsom labelled the deployments an illegal waste of resources. He and the state sued Trump and the Defense Department on Monday, seeking to block the deployment of federal troops. Trump in turn has suggested Newsom should be arrested. Trump, voted back into office last year largely for his promise to deport undocumented immigrants, used a speech honouring soldiers on Tuesday to defend his decision. He told troops at the Army base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina: "Generations of Army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores only to watch our country be destroyed by invasion and third-world lawlessness". "What you're witnessing in California is a full-blown assault on peace, on public order and on national sovereignty, carried out by rioters bearing foreign flags," Trump said, adding his administration would "liberate Los Angeles". Demonstrators have waved the flags of Mexico and other countries in solidarity for the migrants rounded in a series of intensifying raids. Homeland Security said Monday its Immigration and Customs Enforcement division had arrested 2000 immigration offenders per day recently, far above the 311 daily average in fiscal year 2024 under former President Joe Biden. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced a curfew for 2.5sq/km of downtown Los Angeles that will run from 8pm Tuesday (1pm Wednesday AEST) until 6am for several days. State and local officials have called Trump's response an extreme overreaction to mostly peaceful demonstrations. Bass emphasised at a press conference the distinction between the majority of demonstrators protesting peacefully and a smaller number of agitators she blamed for violence and looting. A curfew had been considered for several days but Bass said she decided to impose one after 23 business were looted on Monday night. In what has become a daily ritual, police forced demonstrators away from the streets outside the Metropolitan Detention Centre, where many detained migrants are held. Multiple groups of protesters snaked through downtown Los Angeles, monitored or followed by police armed with less lethal munitions. Protests also took place in other cities including New York, Atlanta and Chicago, where demonstrators shouted at and scuffled with officers. Some protesters climbed onto the Picasso sculpture in Daley Plaza, while others chanted that ICE should be abolished. About 700 Marines were in a staging area in the Seal Beach area about 50km south of Los Angeles, awaiting deployment to specific locations, a US official said. There were 2100 National Guard troops in the Los Angeles area on Tuesday, more than half the 4000 to be activated. The Marines and National Guard troops lack the authority to makes arrests and will be charged only with protecting federal property and personnel. Hundreds of US Marines have arrived in Los Angeles under orders from President Donald Trump, ratcheting up tensions in America's second largest city, as California's governor warns "democracy is under assault". Trump's extraordinary measures of sending National Guard and Marines to quell protests, which broke out in response to his immigration raids, fuelled demonstrations for a fifth day in Los Angeles on Tuesday and sparked protests in several other cities. As Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom traded fulminations, the city's mayor said the protests were limited to about five downtown streets, but declared a curfew for parts of the downtown area due to violence and looting. Police arrested another 197 people on Tuesday - more than double the total number of arrests to date. Democratic leaders have raised concerns over a national crisis in what has become the most intense flashpoint yet in the Trump administration's efforts to deport migrants living in the country illegally, and then crack down on opponents who take to the streets in protest. "This brazen abuse of power by a sitting president inflamed a combustible situation, putting our people, our officers and even our National Guard at risk. That's when the downward spiral began," Newsom said in an a video address. "He again chose escalation. He chose more force. He chose theatrics over public safety. ... Democracy is under assault." Newsom labelled the deployments an illegal waste of resources. He and the state sued Trump and the Defense Department on Monday, seeking to block the deployment of federal troops. Trump in turn has suggested Newsom should be arrested. Trump, voted back into office last year largely for his promise to deport undocumented immigrants, used a speech honouring soldiers on Tuesday to defend his decision. He told troops at the Army base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina: "Generations of Army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores only to watch our country be destroyed by invasion and third-world lawlessness". "What you're witnessing in California is a full-blown assault on peace, on public order and on national sovereignty, carried out by rioters bearing foreign flags," Trump said, adding his administration would "liberate Los Angeles". Demonstrators have waved the flags of Mexico and other countries in solidarity for the migrants rounded in a series of intensifying raids. Homeland Security said Monday its Immigration and Customs Enforcement division had arrested 2000 immigration offenders per day recently, far above the 311 daily average in fiscal year 2024 under former President Joe Biden. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced a curfew for 2.5sq/km of downtown Los Angeles that will run from 8pm Tuesday (1pm Wednesday AEST) until 6am for several days. State and local officials have called Trump's response an extreme overreaction to mostly peaceful demonstrations. Bass emphasised at a press conference the distinction between the majority of demonstrators protesting peacefully and a smaller number of agitators she blamed for violence and looting. A curfew had been considered for several days but Bass said she decided to impose one after 23 business were looted on Monday night. In what has become a daily ritual, police forced demonstrators away from the streets outside the Metropolitan Detention Centre, where many detained migrants are held. Multiple groups of protesters snaked through downtown Los Angeles, monitored or followed by police armed with less lethal munitions. Protests also took place in other cities including New York, Atlanta and Chicago, where demonstrators shouted at and scuffled with officers. Some protesters climbed onto the Picasso sculpture in Daley Plaza, while others chanted that ICE should be abolished. About 700 Marines were in a staging area in the Seal Beach area about 50km south of Los Angeles, awaiting deployment to specific locations, a US official said. There were 2100 National Guard troops in the Los Angeles area on Tuesday, more than half the 4000 to be activated. The Marines and National Guard troops lack the authority to makes arrests and will be charged only with protecting federal property and personnel. Hundreds of US Marines have arrived in Los Angeles under orders from President Donald Trump, ratcheting up tensions in America's second largest city, as California's governor warns "democracy is under assault". Trump's extraordinary measures of sending National Guard and Marines to quell protests, which broke out in response to his immigration raids, fuelled demonstrations for a fifth day in Los Angeles on Tuesday and sparked protests in several other cities. As Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom traded fulminations, the city's mayor said the protests were limited to about five downtown streets, but declared a curfew for parts of the downtown area due to violence and looting. Police arrested another 197 people on Tuesday - more than double the total number of arrests to date. Democratic leaders have raised concerns over a national crisis in what has become the most intense flashpoint yet in the Trump administration's efforts to deport migrants living in the country illegally, and then crack down on opponents who take to the streets in protest. "This brazen abuse of power by a sitting president inflamed a combustible situation, putting our people, our officers and even our National Guard at risk. That's when the downward spiral began," Newsom said in an a video address. "He again chose escalation. He chose more force. He chose theatrics over public safety. ... Democracy is under assault." Newsom labelled the deployments an illegal waste of resources. He and the state sued Trump and the Defense Department on Monday, seeking to block the deployment of federal troops. Trump in turn has suggested Newsom should be arrested. Trump, voted back into office last year largely for his promise to deport undocumented immigrants, used a speech honouring soldiers on Tuesday to defend his decision. He told troops at the Army base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina: "Generations of Army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores only to watch our country be destroyed by invasion and third-world lawlessness". "What you're witnessing in California is a full-blown assault on peace, on public order and on national sovereignty, carried out by rioters bearing foreign flags," Trump said, adding his administration would "liberate Los Angeles". Demonstrators have waved the flags of Mexico and other countries in solidarity for the migrants rounded in a series of intensifying raids. Homeland Security said Monday its Immigration and Customs Enforcement division had arrested 2000 immigration offenders per day recently, far above the 311 daily average in fiscal year 2024 under former President Joe Biden. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced a curfew for 2.5sq/km of downtown Los Angeles that will run from 8pm Tuesday (1pm Wednesday AEST) until 6am for several days. State and local officials have called Trump's response an extreme overreaction to mostly peaceful demonstrations. Bass emphasised at a press conference the distinction between the majority of demonstrators protesting peacefully and a smaller number of agitators she blamed for violence and looting. A curfew had been considered for several days but Bass said she decided to impose one after 23 business were looted on Monday night. In what has become a daily ritual, police forced demonstrators away from the streets outside the Metropolitan Detention Centre, where many detained migrants are held. Multiple groups of protesters snaked through downtown Los Angeles, monitored or followed by police armed with less lethal munitions. Protests also took place in other cities including New York, Atlanta and Chicago, where demonstrators shouted at and scuffled with officers. Some protesters climbed onto the Picasso sculpture in Daley Plaza, while others chanted that ICE should be abolished. About 700 Marines were in a staging area in the Seal Beach area about 50km south of Los Angeles, awaiting deployment to specific locations, a US official said. There were 2100 National Guard troops in the Los Angeles area on Tuesday, more than half the 4000 to be activated. The Marines and National Guard troops lack the authority to makes arrests and will be charged only with protecting federal property and personnel.
