Leftists make waves and Trump flexes muscles: US primary season takeaways 20. September 2026 (12:00) Candidates have been selected for November’s midterms – have Republicans and Democrats made the right choices?Primary season has official concluded in the United States, with Democrats leading the polls among voters amid widespread economic anxieties, a war with Iran and Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda continuing into the end of the year.Democratic and Republican voters have selected contenders for key races in the 3 November midterms that will decide the balance of power in Congress, and the future of both parties. Democrats have been rocked by the primary victories of leftwing candidates. Republicans have doubled down on backing the president’s policies, despite his low approval ratings. And both parties are navigating the fallout from a series of scandals that have forced some candidates from the race, while others decided to press on. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
As White House shields the AI gold rush, Trump family and other allies strike it rich – with few guardrails 20. September 2026 (12:00) It’s not clear that financial interests are driving White House policy, but they run parallel even as resistance mountsDonald Trump’s sons, through a series of AI-linked defense and technology ventures, have picked up a $620m Pentagon loan, a Marine Corps robotics contract and an undisclosed air force drone deal in the past year. His longtime friend Michael Dell won a Pentagon contract worth nearly $9bn. And this week, as public support for artificial intelligence sinks to some of the lowest levels ever recorded, the president went to bat for the industry. .“The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades,” he posted on Truth Social Monday. “There is a SICK conspiracy going on against AI and Data Centers.” It was the first of many aggressively pro-AI posts he would make this week. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK minister warns of impact of Trump’s Iran war on next month’s budget 20. September 2026 (11:15) Bridget Phillipson says Burnham’s past criticisms of US president not an issue as PM prepares to meet Trump at UNNext month’s budget will be made more difficult by Donald Trump’s war with Iran, one of Andy Burnham’s cabinet ministers has said, while adding she did not expect the prime minister’s previous disparaging comments about the US president to be an issue.Burnham is expected to meet Trump early next week at the UN general assembly summit in New York, the pair having previously spoken twice by phone since Burnham entered No 10. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
The gunzels’ grand final: Melbourne Tramaroos’ campaign derails at European TramDriver Championship 20. September 2026 (10:16) The Warsaw event saw 26 teams compete across a series of demanding tasks, inspired - to varying degrees - by tram drivers’ day-to-day tasksGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastIt’s the grand final for gunzels. But despite having one of the largest tram networks in the world, Melbourne’s Tramaroos finished second last at this year’s European TramDriver Championship, just ahead of London.The event, held in Warsaw on Saturday, saw 26 teams compete across a series of demanding tasks, inspired – to varying degrees – by tram drivers’ day-to-day work. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Victims say Home Office attempt to curtail spycops inquiry will result in a ‘cover-up’ 20. September 2026 (10:00) Shabana Mahmood is concerned about length and £144m cost of inquiry into intrusive police surveillanceVictims of intrusive police surveillance have accused the government of seeking to cut short the spycops public inquiry that has been examining widespread misconduct committed by undercover officers.The independent judge-led inquiry is scrutinising how officers, who spied on tens of thousands of political activists over more than four decades, carried out abuses such as deceiving women into sexual relationships and fathering children. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
