
‘It's harder to be funny about politics' — Carl Hiaasen on Trump's America
I 've been reading Carl Hiaasen novels for more than 30 years. I've even read his selected columns for the Miami Herald, where he worked for almost 50 years, so I was excited to meet him, albeit via Zoom from Florida, the state he has done so much to celebrate and satirise. He's a youthful 72, with something of the professor about him, but a cool professor, not a mad professor, or a nerd professor. His Scandinavian ancestry gives him a Sven-Goran Eriksson vibe, although his people were Norwegians, not Swedes.
He's been writing blackly humorous tales — more caper than thriller — bemoaning the cultural, political and environmental despoliation of the Sunshine State for almost four decades. All that time, the wetlands he played in as a kid have kept making way for malls and houses, roads and golf courses. One irony in his latest book, Fever Beach, is that it features an orange grove under threat from development. Back in the day, campaigners opposed the draining of swamps to plant the citrus trees. Does he, I ask, think he's getting anywhere?
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The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Trump basks in triumph as supreme court kicks away another guardrail
He strode into the White House briefing room feeling invincible. In his own telling, he had fixed the Middle East. He had made Nato pay up. He had pacified the heart of Africa. And now Napoleon Trump had once again just been crowned emperor by the US supreme court. 'We've had a big week,' Donald Trump, orange hair shimmering, blue tie drooping below the waist, mused from a lectern anointed with the presidential seal. 'We've had a lot of victories this week.' The highest court had just handed the president another win by curbing the power of federal judges to impose nationwide rulings impeding his policies – though it left unresolved the issue of whether he can limit birthright citizenship. Unable to contain his glee, Trump came to talk to the press – something his predecessor Joe Biden rarely did – to goad the 'fake news' while basking in glory from the Maga-friendly media. The president hailed the court's decision as a 'monumental victory for the constitution, the separation of powers and the rule of law' and gloated – with some hyperbole – that 'there are people elated all over the country'. He looked forward to taking aim at targets such as birthright citizenship, sanctuary city funding and refugee resettlement. In the abstract, there is a reasonable debate to be had over how much power the judiciary should have to curb an elected leader's agenda. The attorney general, Pam Bondi, has described it as a 'bipartisan problem' that has plagued five different presidents. A decade ago Barack Obama expressed frustration when a district court temporarily blocked his executive actions on immigration. In the court's majority opinion, the conservative justice Amy Coney Barrett rejected liberal justice Ketanji Brown Jackson's contention that they were neglecting their duty to protect the people from government overreach. 'Justice Jackson decries an imperial Executive while embracing an imperial Judiciary,' Barrett wrote. But context is everything. Trump has marginalised Congress, sued the media in an effort to chill free speech, assailed cultural institutions and universities and deployed the military against peaceful protesters. The courts have been leading the way in safeguarding democracy from his authoritarian impulses. Now they too are on the ropes. Asked by a reporter if the supreme court decision concentrates too much power in the White House, Trump insisted: 'The question is fine but it's the opposite. The constitution has been brought back.' Yet the supreme court that decided to make the strongman even stronger contains three Trump appointees and last year found that former presidents have presumptive immunity from prosecution for 'official acts' – in effect putting Trump above the law. The four criminal investigations that once dogged him now feel like ancient history. Trump was asked a question by a reporter from LindellTV, a news organisation founded by Mike Lindell, a conspiracy theorist and founder of MyPillow, about whether he would like to see a justice department investigation of the judges whose rulings allowed the cases to proceed against him while he was out of office. 'I love you,' Trump said in response to the question, adding: 'I hope so.' It has been exactly 12 months since he debated with Biden and discovered an opponent in chronic decline. Democrats panicked and imploded, Trump survived an assassination attempt and rode his good fortune all the way to the White House. It is small wonder that the 79-year-old now considers himself untouchable, acting with impunity at home and abroad, holding freewheeling press conferences like Friday's without fear of consequences. 'Illegal crossings at the border are at zero now,' a reporter said. Trump interjected: 'Zero! Does everyone hear that?' A cameraman in the briefing room shouted: 'Trump 2028!' Later Trump reiterated his claim that Iran's nuclear sites had been obliterated and lamented: 'We had some fake news for a little while – the same people that covered the Hunter Biden laptop was from Russia … I don't believe that they're going to go back into nuclear anytime soon.' He also used the briefing to take a swipe at Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve, for not lowering interest rates. 'We have a man who's not a smart man, and he probably has Trump Derangement Syndrome.' Later on Friday the White House would host leaders from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda to sign a peace deal to end years of fighting. Trump cheerfully admitted: 'I'm a little bit out of my league in that one because I didn't know too much about it.' He also noted that the US would gain access to critical minerals in the region. Trump even ruminated on threats to his life, including proxy groups from Iran that may issue threats, and referenced the bullet that struck his ear last summer in an attempted assassination. He gets 'that throbbing feeling every once in a while', he said. 'What I do is a dangerous business. You know, I tell the story of the car companies and different people in different professions. You have race car drivers, as an example, one-tenth of 1% die. Bull riders, one-tenth of 1%. That's not a lot, but people die. When you're president, it's about 5%. If somebody would have told me that, maybe I wouldn't have run. This is a very different profession.' As raised hands in the room clamoured for attention his political lizard brain spotted an opportunity to bash his predecessor. 'This is the opposite of Biden. Biden would take a half a question and he'd leave without answering it … You tell me when it gets boring, OK?'


Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Democrat Wyden presses Bessent to commit to US sanctions on Russia
WASHINGTON, June 27 (Reuters) - The top Senate Finance Committee Democrat pressed U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday to commit to enforcing Ukraine-related sanctions against Russia and to clarify comments about Russia rejoining an international bank payments network. In a letter to Bessent, Senator Ron Wyden also sought answers on how the U.S.-Ukraine critical minerals deal and investment agreement would help improve Ukraine's post-war security and not benefit any entity or country that aided Russia's war effort. Wyden cited Bessent's comments during his confirmation hearing that he was prepared to strengthen Russian sanctions, including on oil majors, if Trump requested this to help end the Ukraine war, which Bessent called "one of the greatest tragedies of my adult life." "I ask that you reaffirm your commitment to stringently enforce these sanctions and answer questions about how you envision other measures pursued by this administration, including agreements with Ukraine, potentially working in conjunction with these sanctions," Wyden wrote. The Oregon Democrat, who has opposed most of Trump's trade and tax agenda advanced by Bessent, asked the Treasury chief to explain comments he made to Fox News Channel in which he did not rule out bringing Russia back into the SWIFT international banking network. Russia was expelled from the payments messaging system after its invasion of Ukraine in 2022. "Would Treasury allow Russian banks to rejoin SWIFT absent a comprehensive peace agreement with Ukraine that fully addresses Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine?" Wyden asked in a series of questions for Bessent to answer. Wyden also asked whether Bessent would continue the U.S. Treasury's implementation of commitments by G7 leaders to curtail Russia's use of the international financial system to support its war against Ukraine. A Treasury spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wyden's letter.


The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Your Nike shoes are about to cost a whole lot more thanks to Donald Trump, company warns
Nike warned that tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump will cost the company about $1 billion as it looks to make 'surgical' price increases in the fall. The company is shifting production away from China, where Nike makes about 16 percent of the footwear it imports into the U.S., Chief Financial Officer Matthew Friend told investors Thursday. 'We will optimize our sourcing mix and allocate production differently across countries to mitigate the new cost headwind into the United States,' Friend said on the call. The sports giant appears to be unloading some of the burden of the tariffs onto customers. Last month Nike announced it was increasing prices for adult apparel and equipment by $2 to $10 from June 1. It forecast that footwear costing between $100 to $150 would rise by $5, while shoes costing above $150 would increase by $10. There were some exceptions — the price of children's products, Nike Air Force 1s or Jordan products would not rise. 'We regularly evaluate our business and make pricing adjustments as part of our seasonal planning,' Nike previously said in a statement, without mention of the tariffs. Nike also reported a quarterly profit of $211 million, or 14 cents per share. Revenue totaled $11.1 billion. Both edged out Wall Street projections. Nike, Adidas, Under Armour and Puma were among 76 companies that signed a letter in April addressed to Trump, asking for a footwear exemption from reciprocal tariffs. The letter warned tariffs would 'become a major impact at the cash register for every family.' The potential for higher prices from Trump's tariffs have raised alarms for families, notably those who already spend a good chunk of money on equipment needed to participate in sports. Trump and his Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said late Thursday that the U.S. and China have signed an agreement on trade, but provided no details. Elsewhere, Trump on Friday said he was suspending all trade talks with Canada — and making plans to force Americans to pay high import taxes on its goods — after the northern ally's finance department confirmed plans to collect a digital services tax.