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      Trump’s cannabis reform would revolutionise US policy. Just don’t expect the ‘war on drugs’ to end | Kojo Koram

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      Rescheduling marijuana might seem an unlikely move for a Republican president – but it perfectly coheres with his ‘America First’ worldviewFor decades, the issue of cannabis reform was firmly viewed as a leftist pipe dream. To most conservatives, particularly US Republicans, legalising weed was as realistic as nuclear disarmament, or abolishing national borders.Think of the phrase “war on drugs” and the first people that probably come to mind are Republican presidents Nixon, Reagan and George HW and George W Bush. Although the clampdown reached its harshest levels during the presidency of Mr “I didn’t inhale” Bill Clinton, it always seemed as if the GOP owned the position of being “tough on drugs”. As recently as 2023, Mitch McConnell, then Senate Republican leader, reaffirmed this reputation by stating that: “Democrats are struggling with the basics. This should not be this hard. Drugs belong off our streets.”Dr Kojo Koram is professor of law and political economy at Loughborough University, and writes on issues of law, race and empire. He is the author of Uncommon Wealth: Britain and the Aftermath of Empire Continue reading… More

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      ‘A shifting system’: concerns over students’ civil rights rise as DoJ changes priorities

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      Under Trump, the department that once rooted out race- and disability-based discrimination has begun opening investigations over antisemitism and transgender policiesThe 10-year-old was dragged down a school hallway by two school staffers. A camera captured him being forced into a small, empty room with a single paper-covered window.The staffers shut the door in his face. Alone, the boy curled into a ball on the floor. When school employees returned more than 10 minutes later, blood from his face smeared the floor. Continue reading… More

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      ‘You don’t have to do it alone’: how US cities are helping each other resist ICE

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      From LA to Charlotte, organizers are learning from others’ strategies to protect residents amid federal crackdownsWhen Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) set its sights on Chicago in September, Chicagoans sprang into action to protect their immigrant neighbors: teaching each other how to recognize and safely document ICE agents, setting up “know your rights” trainings, and distributing whistles en masse so people could loudly alert anyone in the vicinity when ICE was spotted.In the months since, whistles have become a popular raid alert tool in other cities across the country – New Yorkers wear them around their necks to warn neighbors, the people of New Orleans blast them outside ICE facilities and Charlotte residents used them to ward off Customs and Border Protection officials. While strongly associated with Chicago, the tactic is actually one that city organizers learned in part from groups in Los Angeles. Its spread is illustrative of the many ways cities are helping inspire and equip one another in the face of often unlawful federal activities. Continue reading… More

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      Five key moments in the assault on the rights of women and girls in 2025

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      Since Trump’s second term began in January, global healthcare, especially for sexual and reproductive health, has been under constant attackThis time last year, women’s rights organisations were bracing themselves for a second Trump term. Few were prepared for the chaos that would be unleashed in January. The volume and speed of executive orders coming out of the White House were seen as a deliberate tactic to overwhelm and create panic. In many ways it worked – there was confusion, anger and exhaustion as organisations scrambled to fill the gap left by the USAID freeze. But that was just the beginning.The US administration has been the key driver, supported by intense advocacy work by ultra-conservative groups using the moment to strengthen global ties with political allies. Continue reading… More

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      She has stage four cancer. Her husband is a federal worker. Will she survive the Trump administration?

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      Michaela’s husband is away 14 hours a day amid Trump’s ban on remote work, the threat of layoffs is ever-present and their health premiums are set to multiplyMichaela felt a sharp pain shoot from her hip while she bent over to water some plants in early May 2025. Then she fell over and couldn’t get back up.Her husband called an ambulance and she spent the night in a hospital, where, at 57, she found out she had a mass on her spine. It was metastatic breast cancer. Continue reading… More

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      Behold, it’s the Trump who stole Christmas | Robert Reich

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      The president continues to preach austerity and hate to people struggling to make ends meet. No wonder voters are turning on himTrump gave what was billed as a “Christmas speech” in rural Pennsylvania this past week that began with his “wishing each and everyone one of you a very merry Christmas, happy New Year, all of that stuff” and boasting that now, under his presidency: “Everybody’s saying ‘merry Christmas’ again.”He then claimed – contrary to the experience of nearly everyone in the crowd – that he had gotten them “lower prices” and “bigger paychecks”. He also asserted that anyone having difficulty making ends meet should just cut back on buying stuff. “You can give up certain products. You can give up pencils … Every child can get 37 pencils. They only need one or two,” he said, adding: “You don’t need 37 dolls for your daughter. Two or three is nice. You don’t need 37 dolls.”Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is a professor of public policy emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a Guardian US columnist and his newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com. His new book, Coming Up Short: A Memoir of My America, is out now Continue reading… More

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      Figures reveal stark reality of US funding cuts as 1,394 family planning clinics shut

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      Survey by world’s largest network for sexual and reproductive health shows devastation to services, particularly in Africa and the Middle East, and amplification of anti-rights voicesCuts to US aid funding have directly led to the closure of more than 1,000 family planning clinics, new figures shared with the Guardian reveal.Millions of people have been left without access to contraceptives or care, including those who have suffered sexual assault, as part of a “radical shift towards conservative ideologies that deliberately block human rights”, according to the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF). Continue reading… More

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      Trump files up to $10bn lawsuit against BBC over edit of Capitol speech – as it happened

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      This live blog is now closed. You can find more of our US politics coverage hereDonald Trump sues BBC for up to $10bn over edit of January 6 speechCNBC reported last week that Trump could sign an executive order “as soon as Monday” that would allow for reclassification of marijuana, citing a person familiar with the matter.Trump first floated the idea that he was “looking at reclassification” in August, and the Washington Post (paywall) was first to report last week that he’s planning to direct agencies to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug, similar to some common prescription painkillers. Continue reading… More