‘Radical left media’ is trying to destroy country, claims Trump – US politics live

Key events

Show key events only

Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature

Four arrested after images of Trump and Epstein projected on to Windsor Castle ahead of president’s visit

Four people have been arrested after images of Donald Trump alongside deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were projected on to Windsor Castle, where the US president is set to be hosted by King Charles during his state visit to Britain.

Trump arrived in Britain late on Tuesday for an unprecedented second state visit, and will be greeted by Charles on Wednesday for a day of pomp at Windsor Castle, about 25 miles west of London.

Earlier on Tuesday, protesters unfurled a massive banner featuring a photograph of Trump and Epstein near Windsor Castle, and later projected several images of the two on to one of the castle’s towers.

The police said in a statement four adults were arrested on suspicion of malicious communications after an “unauthorised projection” at Windsor Castle, which they described as a “public stunt”. The four remain in custody.

Democrats in the US House of Representatives last week made public a birthday letter Trump allegedly wrote to Epstein more than 20 years ago, though the White House has denied its authenticity.

The letter was also projected on to the castle, along with pictures of Epstein’s victims, news clips about the case and police reports.

The release of the letter has brought renewed attention to an issue that has become a political thorn in the president’s side.

Fired CDC chief will testify Kennedy pressed her to endorse vaccine recommendations without evidence

Fired Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Susan Monarez will tell senators that health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr pressured her to endorse new vaccine recommendations before seeing scientific evidence, according to a copy of the testimony she plans to give during a Wednesday hearing.

According to a copy of the prepared remarks, obtained Tuesday by the Associated Press, Monarez will tell senators that Kennedy gave her an ultimatum: “Pre-approve” new vaccine recommendations from a controversial advisory CDC panel that Kennedy has stocked with some medical experts who doubt vaccine safety or be fired.

That panel is expected to vote on new vaccine recommendations later this week.

Monarez, initially handpicked by Kennedy and nominated by president Donald Trump, was fired just weeks into the job over disagreements on vaccine policies. She is set to appear before the Senate’s powerful health committee to discuss her firing.

“Even under pressure, I could not replace evidence with ideology or compromise my integrity,” Monarez will say in her opening testimony to senators. “Vaccine policy must be guided by credible data, not predetermined outcomes.”

She said she was “fired for holding the line on scientific integrity.”

Monarez also notes that Kennedy directed her to fire a number of high-ranking CDC officials without cause.

The Senate hearing will focus on the impact the turmoil at the nation’s leading public health agency, which is responsible for making vaccine recommendations to the public, will have on children’s health.

It will also undoubtedly serve as an opportunity for Monarez and former chief medical officer Debra Houry, who will also testify before the committee, to respond to a number of Kennedy’s contentious claims about their final days at the agency.

Kennedy has denied Monarez’ accusations that he ordered “rubber-stamped” vaccine recommendations.

Bondi faces rightwing backlash for saying she’ll target ‘hate speech’ after Kirk killing

Eric Berger

US attorney general Pam Bondi’s pledge that the Trump administration will “absolutely target” people who use “hate speech” after in the wake of the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk has prompted criticism of the idea from across the political spectrum, including from prominent conservatives.

Bondi said on a podcast hosted by Katie Miller, the wife of the rightwing White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, that there is “free speech and then there’s hate speech, and there is no place, especially now, especially after what happened to Charlie, in our society”.

Legal experts and conservative pundits have condemned the comments because there is no “hate speech” exception in the first amendment right to speech and as such, targeting people for their charged rhetoric would be unconstitutional.

“There is no unprotected category of speech in the constitution or in the case law called ‘hate speech’,” said Heidi Kitrosser, a Northwestern University law professor. “By being so vague and by talking about speech that doesn’t fit into any legal category, she is basically opening the door for taking action against anyone who engages in speech that the president or the Department of Justice or Stephen Miller doesn’t like.”

Kirk, the founder of the powerful rightwing youth activist group Turning Point and a close ally of Donald Trump, was killed on 10 September at Utah Valley University during one of his signature events in which he debated students.

The murder was part of a wave of political violence in the United States, including attempted assassinations of the US president and the assassination of Melissa Hortman, the Democratic speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives, and her husband.

While some people on both sides of the aisle have spoken about the need for respectful dialogue, Trump and others in his administration have continued to largely blame the violence on the left and warned of a “vast domestic terror movement” prompting fears he plans a broad crackdown on his political opponents.

JD Vance guest-hosted Kirk’s podcast this week, during which the vice-president urged people to call the employers of people celebrating Kirk’s murder and said that the administration would “work to dismantle the institutions that promote violence and terrorism in our own country”.

When asked about Bondi’s comments on Tuesday, Trump told an ABC News reporter: “We’ll probably go after people like you because you treat me so unfairly. It’s hate. You have a lot of hate in your heart. Maybe they’ll come after ABC.”

Bondi also threatened to prosecute an Office Depot employee who reportedly refused to print flyers for a vigil for Kirk.

Opening summary

Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. I’m Tom Ambrose and I will be bringing you all the latest news lines over the next few hours.

We start with news that Donald Trump has vowed to stop the “radical left media” from “destroying” the nation. Taking to his social media platform Truth Social, the president said that he had received “amazing” feedback on his case against the New York Times.

“The predominant feeling and sentiment is, “IT’S ABOUT TIME!” he wrote. “The Radical Left Media is working hard to destroy the U.S.A. We are going to stop them at each and every level!!!”

In a $15bn case filed in the Florida courts, Trump has accused the NYT of spreading “false and defamatory” content about him.

A spokesperson for the NYT said: “This lawsuit has no merit. It lacks any legitimate legal claims and instead is an attempt to stifle and discourage independent reporting. The New York Times will not be deterred by intimidation tactics. We will continue to pursue the facts without fear or favour and stand up for journalists’ first amendment right to ask questions on behalf of the American people.”

The case is the latest of several multibillion-dollar lawsuits Trump has launched against US media outlets since his return to the White House.

In other developments:

• Utah county attorney Jeff Gray formally announced charges against Tyler Robinson, the suspect accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk. Prosecutors have charged Robinson on seven counts, including aggravated murder, and will seek the death penalty. Later, Robinson made his first court appearance at a virtual hearing, wearing an anti-suicide smock, where Utah judge Tony F. Graf ruled Robinson qualifies for a court-appointed attorney and granted a pre-trial protective order for Erika Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk. The next hearing in Robinson’s case is scheduled for September 29, and will be conducted virtually.

• FBI director Kash Patel faced questions from the Senate judiciary committee during a more than four hour long hearing. The hearing twice included a shouting match between Patel and Democratic senator Cory Booker and later Adam Schiff. Patel defended his leadership of the FBI, denying that he has politicized the agency and ordered firings of agents and personnel over their work on cases related to Trump or the January 6 attack on the US Capitol. Patel also defended his actions over prematurely posting on social media that the suspect in Charlie Kirk’s killing had been found, only for that person to be released. Democratic senator Dick Durbin and others said Patel’s actions pointed to his lack of experience and “sparked mass confusion” during the investigation.

• The Trump administration will appeal the court decision blocking Trump’s bid to fire Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook. Yesterday, a US appeals court declined to allow Trump to fire Cook, in the latest step in a legal battle that threatens the Fed’s longstanding independence.

• Four people have been arrested after images of Donald Trump alongside deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were projected on to Windsor Castle, where the US president is set to be hosted by King Charles during his state visit to Britain. Trump arrived in Britain late on Tuesday for an unprecedented second state visit, and will be greeted by Charles on Wednesday for a day of pomp at Windsor Castle, about 25 miles west of London.

• Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Trump has invited him back to the White House on September 29. The trip will be the fourth time Netanyahu, a vocal supporter of Trump’s, has visited the White House since Trump’s second term began in January.

• California governor Gavin Newsom joined a host of Democratic influencers and officials for a virtual rally in support of Proposition 50, also known as the Election Rigging Response Act. The act seeks to redraw California’s political map, in response to efforts by politicians in Republican-led states to do the same.