Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Nicola Slawson

First Thing: Trump ‘manufactured crisis’ to justify plan to send national guard to Chicago, leading Democrat says

Members of the national guard walk near the White House in Washington DC
Members of the national guard walk near the White House in Washington DC on 21 August. Photograph: Al Drago/Reuters

Good morning.

Planning is under way to send national guard troops to Chicago, an official at the Pentagon confirmed to ABC News on Sunday.

Earlier on Sunday, Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader and New York Democratic congressman, said Donald Trump had “manufactured a crisis” to justify sending federalized national guard troops into Chicago next, over the heads of local leaders.

The national guard is normally under the authority of the individual states, deployed at the request of the state governor and federalized – deployed by the federal government – only in a national emergency and at the request of a governor.

  • What did the government say? “We won’t speculate on further operations. The department is a planning organization and is continuously working with other agency partners on plans to protect federal assets and personnel,” a Department of Defense official said, according to ABC.

  • Is the White House planning to send national guard troops to any other states? Pentagon officials confirmed to Fox News that up to 1,700 men and women of the national guard were poised to mobilize in 19 mostly Republican states to support Trump’s anti-immigration crackdown.

Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre’s memoir to be published posthumously

The posthumous memoir of Virginia Giuffre, one of Jeffrey Epstein’s most prominent accusers, will be published in the autumn, a publisher has announced.

Giuffre had been working on Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice, with the award-winning author and journalist Amy Wallace before her death earlier this year. The 400-page book will be released on 21 October, according to the Associated Press.

Giuffre had completed the manuscript before she took her own life in April, the publisher Alfred A Knopf said.

  • What did Giuffre say about the book? Giuffre wrote to Wallace 25 days before her death, stating that it was her “heartfelt wish” the memoir be released “regardless” of her circumstances. “The content of this book is crucial, as it aims to shed light on the systemic failures that allow the trafficking of vulnerable individuals across borders,” the email reads.

Russia accuses Ukraine of strike on nuclear plant in wave of drone attacks

Moscow has accused Kyiv of launching dozens of drone attacks, including one that sparked a fire at a nuclear power plant, as Ukrainians marked 34 years since the country gained independence from the Soviet Union.

The drone attack on the Kursk nuclear power plant in western Russia, 37 miles (60km) from the border with Ukraine, caused damage to an auxiliary transformer and forced a 50% reduction in the operating capacity of a reactor, Russian authorities said. Ukraine did not immediately comment on the alleged attack.

  • What was the impact of the attack at the nuclear plant? The fire sparked by the drone, which was shot down, had been extinguished and there were no casualties or increased radiation levels, a spokesperson for the plant said on Sunday.

In other news …

Don’t miss this: ‘I would not feel safe’: Americans on the sorrow – and relief – of leaving Trump’s US for Europe

Since Trump’s return to power, relocation firms from London to Lisbon and Madrid to Milan say they’ve seen a surge in the number of inquiries from Americans. Undaunted by the gains made by the far right across the continent, many Americans cite a desire to escape the US’s increasingly polarised climate and an administration whose wide range of targets has included immigrants, diversity measures and political opponents.

… or this: How to save the American university

It is no secret that American universities are in the fight of a lifetime. With billions of dollars in federal support on the line, their ability to fund their research activities is clearly at stake. This is how they can survive – with their souls intact.

Climate check: States vow to fight Trump official’s stop-work order on offshore wind farm

The Democratic governors of Rhode Island and Connecticut promised on Saturday to fight a Trump administration order halting work on a nearly complete wind farm off their coasts that was expected to be operational next year. The Revolution Wind project was about 80% complete, with 45 of its 65 turbines already installed.

Last Thing: Medvedev’s match-point meltdown sparks chaotic scenes at US Open

The US Open descended into chaos yesterday when a photographer came on to the court as Daniil Medvedev faced matchpoint, bringing the first-round match to a standstill and sparking a spectacular meltdown from the Russian.

Sign up

First Thing is delivered to thousands of inboxes every weekday. If you’re not already signed up, subscribe now.

Get in touch

If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email newsletters@theguardian.com

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.