Government shutdown draws near as Democrats push for healthcare funding

Top Senate Republican says Democrats see shutdown as ‘politically advantageous’ as 30 September deadline looms

The US government is drawing nearer to a potential shutdown after Donald Trump told Republicans on Friday “don’t even bother dealing with” the Democrats, whose congressional leaders are refusing to support spending bills that do not include their healthcare priorities.

Congress is up against an end-of-the-month deadline to approve legislation funding the federal government, otherwise many departments will stop work and employees will be told to stay home. While the Senate and House of Representatives have made some progress on passing the 12 appropriations bills that make up the budget, it seems certain that Congress will need to pass a short-term measure to keep the government open beyond 30 September.

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Trump can block Medicaid funds to ‘defund’ Planned Parenthood, court rules

Reproductive rights group condemns ruling as ‘backdoor abortion ban’ and says 200 US clinics may face closure

The Trump administration can move forward with its plan to “defund” Planned Parenthood by blocking it from receiving reimbursements from Medicaid, the US government’s insurance program for low-income people, a federal appeals court ruled late Thursday.

The ruling from the first US circuit court of appeals lifts a lower court’s preliminary injunction, which had stopped the Trump administration from enacting a provision of its tax and spending bill that axed Planned Parenthood’s ability to participate in Medicaid for one year.

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World's first AI minister will eliminate corruption, says Albania's PM

Named Diella, the new minister will help Albania "leapfrog" bigger, more advanced countries, says Edi Rama.

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UK says 'great news' British national freed in Belarus release deal

Julia Fenner was given a long jail term after being detained while entering Belarus in March 2024.

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South African rapist in bid to block Netflix documentary about his life

Thabo Bester, who allegedly faked his death in prison and escaped, says the documentary is defamatory.

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Killing of Trump ally lays bare America's bloody and broken politics

Charlie Kirk's killing is another episode of gun violence in America and the latest in a line of recent political violence.

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John Lennon’s killer denied parole for 14th time

Mark David Chapman, 70, is serving 20-years-to-life sentence in New York after fatally shooting Beatle in 1980

The man who killed John Lennon outside the former Beatle’s Manhattan apartment building in 1980 has been denied parole for a 14th time, according to New York prison officials.

Mark David Chapman, 70, appeared before a parole board on 27 August, and the decision was recently posted online by the state department of corrections and community supervision.

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Boris Johnson under pressure to explain how private office follows funding rules

Office is part-funded by public duty costs allowance, which should only be used to support public work of former PMs

Boris Johnson is under mounting pressure to explain how his private office complies with rules over taxpayer subsidies after further revelations about how his staff appear to be overseeing his global commercial operations.

A leak of data from the Office of Boris Johnson appears to show all three of his staff helping Johnson’s business and profit-making ventures.

Secretly lobbied the UAE for a billion-dollar private venture in a potential breach of ethics rules. His work as a “principal adviser” for Bia Advisory, a “climate finance solutions” firm seeking backing from Abu Dhabi’s $300bn investment fund, involved courting a top Emirati official Johnson hosted in No 10 when he was prime minister.

Approached Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, on behalf of Evgeny Lebedev. The Evening Standard owner, whom Johnson made a peer, was seeking a business relationship between his newspaper and Musk, who bankrolled Donald Trump’s ascent to the White House.

Secured contracts with a combined total of more than £850K in separate deals with GB News and Associated Press, the owner of the Daily Mail. GB News suggested some of the information was incorrect but confirmed an ongoing arrangement with Johnson.

Earned more than £5m from less than two years of paid speeches, for some of which he charged $350,000 (£259,000). The 34 speeches include a conference leadership in Delhi, a blockchain symposium in Singapore and a bizarre turn as the headline act at the 50th birthday party of a German pharmaceuticals company boss.

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Surprise as Ivory Coast's ex-first lady cleared to contest presidency

Simone Gbagbo will run against President Alassane Ouattara, who is seeking a controversial fourth term.

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Trump asks Supreme Court to allow billions in foreign aid cuts

The administration is seeking an emergency order as it tries to claw back funds allocated by Congress.

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