The Guardian · US newsCornell University students staged a protest in solidarity with Jane Doe, a former classmate whose gang-rape allegations ignited a national uproar. Protesters demanded the school take firmer action against sexual violence on campus and called for an external inquiry into how the matter has been handled by Cornell's administration. In a civil lawsuit filed last month, Jane Doe alleged she was given drugs and alcohol and then sexually assaulted by several members of the campus chapter of the Chi Phi fraternity in October 2024 after she had become incapacitated. Doe named seven Chi Phi members as defendants in the suit, along with the fraternity chapter, a local bar, her own sorority and the university. Cornell, which has defended its response to the original report, shut down the Chi Phi chapter and imposed a range of disciplinary measures on the fraternity members involved, including expulsions and other sanctions. The men all denied any wrongdoing and none have been charged with a crime
Continue reading...
The Guardian · US news · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 8:50 AM
The Guardian · CaliforniaGavin Newsom said state’s threat-assessment center would be on heightened alert after president’s remarks
California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, on Tuesday directed the state’s emergency preparedness center to “actively monitor” possible threats to the state after Donald Trump suggested Iran could “take out” the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego.
Trump has faced a chorus of condemnation from Democratic leaders in California after his comments at a rally in Nebraska on Monday night, which the White House has suggested were being taken out of context.
Continue reading...
Shrai Popat and David Smith in Washington, Lauren Gambino and Dani Anguiano in Los Angeles · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 8:39 AM
The Guardian · US newsHaving seemingly written off the midterms, the Republican bigwigs are making their pitches for 2028. But the current commander-in-chief could be looking closer to home
The US midterm elections are a month away and it’s looking rough for the Republicans. I wouldn’t discount devious schemes behind the scenes, but, on the face of it, the president and his entourage seem to be flailing. Donald Trump is desperately dangling money in front of voters and promising “a big surprise”. Meanwhile, the vice-president, JD Vance, and the GOP senator Ted Cruz seem more concerned with fighting over who will be Trump’s heir than with the midterms.
If the polls are to be believed, Vance is the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination in 2028. But while he may have great name recognition, Vance is also unlikable. According to the CNN analyst Harry Enten, he is one of the least popular vice-presidents in history. He’s also apparently made enemies within his own party, largely because of his scepticism about the Iran war. His detractors include Cruz, who told MS Now in August that Vance wasn’t a shoo-in for the nomination. The party, Cruz said, was still figuring out the best candidate and needed “to decide who we are, what do we believe”.
Continue reading...
Arwa Mahdawi · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 7:46 AM
The Guardian · CaliforniaMärtha Louise and Durek Verrett launch defamation lawsuit in Los Angeles, claiming ‘coordinated series of devastating public attacks’
The Norwegian princess Märtha Louise and her husband, the American businessman Durek Verrett, are suing several former members of their inner circle for defamation over what they described as a “calculated betrayal of trust”.
Court documents filed in Los Angeles on 14 September claim the former friends and colleagues took “private access once afforded to them and weaponised it”. The accused include “former intimate partners, trusted business associates, a family member”.
Continue reading...
Miranda Bryant Nordic correspondent · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 6:59 AM
The Guardian · US newsWhat, exactly, about the drink is so distracting? The viral debate raises bigger questions about who defines ‘professionalism’
The great iced coffee debate of 2026 is the latest submission to the young-people-just-don’t-get-it discourse and, of course, it’s as polarizing as ever.
Recruiters say you shouldn’t bring iced coffee to interviews, while young people are (rightly) asking: what’s the big deal? It’s one of those conversations that makes me cringe, given just how eagerly it springs up from the generational divide plaguing mainstream culture. And as usual, gen Z are cast as the entitled morons who want to live life with no rules or responsibilities, all to the detriment of the millennials and gen X-ers who have to deal with them.
Tayo Bero is a Guardian US columnist
Continue reading...
Tayo Bero · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 6:00 AM
The Guardian · US newsWhile adherents to the racist theory condemn a shadowy global elite, Silicon Valley is working toward the replacement of humans with AI
Across the world, “great replacement” theory has been employed again and again as the political foundation for fascism. Some of its fundamental tenets, such as the view that “whites are a dying minority”, have been amplified by tech billionaires and their platforms.
According to the version of this theory most employed in Europe and the United States, white replacement theory, white populations are being “replaced” by non-white populations, a replacement engineered by a shadowy global elite. For example, the need for skilled labor is supposedly being used by global elites as an excuse to bring in non-white immigrants to replace white workers.
An AfD-led state government will develop a strategy for Saxony-Anhalt focused on technological upgrading, digitalization, and AI. This strategy is intended to help alleviate bottlenecks in the local labor market. Furthermore, it aims to avoid the immigration of skilled workers from culturally dissimilar backgrounds.
Some cultures have produced vital advances; others remain dysfunctional and regressive. All cultures are now equal. Criticism and value judgments are forbidden. Yet this new dogma glosses over the fact that certain cultures and indeed subcultures … have produced wonders. Others have proven middling, and worse, regressive and harmful.
Continue reading...
Jason Stanley · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 5:00 AM
The Guardian · US newsThe Hall of Famer says his successful college career helped him and his family thrive. Now he appears to be backing legislation that would help others
Last week, journalist Rob Parker called Deion Sanders a “sellout” for taking part in an advert promoting the Protect College Sports Act (PCSA). The “sellout” label is harsh, but reflects how disappointing it is for many people to see Sanders stumping for a bill that will hurt athletes.
The major points of contention around the PCSA, which the Senate passed last week and now awaits approval from the House, are a ceiling of around $49m that schools can direct to athletes, as well as a new transfer rule that would, except in a few specific circumstances, restrict players to one “free” transfer (if they move schools again, they’d have to wait a year to play for their next team). Former NFL player Domonique Foxworth has said that “the core of [the PCSA] is about reestablishing the power the NCAA had in the past – that the court system determined was illegal”.
Continue reading...
Andre Gee · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 3:00 AM
The Guardian · US newsThe allegations against seven men at Cornell University come amid a climate of belligerent sexism
Last month, a young woman filed a lawsuit against Cornell University, alleging that two years ago the university had failed to protect her from being raped by seven men at a fraternity house near the university campus. She also sued the fraternity.
The lawsuit has plunged the university into a crisis and invited criticism of the district attorney, Matthew Van Houten, who decided there wasn’t enough evidence to bring criminal charges against the seven men.
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 in the US and in the UK
Continue reading...
Robert Reich · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 3:00 AM
The Guardian · US newsNovember’s midterms bring parallels with a moment in October 1988. But Pinochet’s exit wasn’t the end of his influence
A malignant, monomaniacal president, deeply unpopular, faces an election that could restrict his power and end his domination of his country.
It is true that, to influence the outcome, he counts on a supine supreme court and his ability to legislate through executive decrees, as well as an onslaught of fake news accusing his opponents of being unpatriotic communists, true that he has colossal financial support from an entrenched oligarchy that has thrived thanks to his rightwing neoliberal policies, true that he has gone out of his way to limit the freedom of those who vote and true that he has absolute command of the armed forces.
Continue reading...
Ariel Dorfman · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 2:00 AM
The Guardian · CaliforniaGavin Newsom calls comments ‘deranged and dangerous’ after president tells Nebraska rally: ‘They can take out a city’
Can the Iran war cost Trump in the US midterm elections? Your questions answered
Leaders in California have denounced Donald Trump as “reckless” and “deranged” after the US president suggested Iran could “take out” Los Angeles and San Diego – two liberal cities in the blue state that has been a frequent target of his administration.
At a rally in ruby red Nebraska on Monday night, Trump told supporters that he hoped to see a “tremendous victory” in the fast-approaching November midterm elections. He then suggested high prices due to the war with Iran were a “small price to pay for keeping the world safe – keeping our country safe”.
Continue reading...
Lauren Gambino in Los Angeles · Tue, Oct 6, 2026, 1:04 AM
The Guardian · CaliforniaHilton faces heavy backlash from within his own party for ‘Just Try It’ ad amid his longshot bid for California governor
Can the Iran war cost Trump in the US midterm elections? Your questions answered
Steve Hilton, the Republican candidate for California governor, is receiving heavy criticism from members of his own party over a controversial, sexual innuendo-filled campaign ad that has been described as “creepy”.
The video entitled “Just Try It, California” was released last week and depicts two young women with brightly colored hair, sitting on a bed in front of a pride flag in low lighting. One nervously says “I can’t believe I’m doing this”, while another strokes her hair and coaxes “don’t be nervous, it’s not that bad” before guiding her to fill out a ballot for Hilton and aggressively commanding “lick it”.
Continue reading...
Dani Anguiano · Mon, Oct 5, 2026, 12:28 PM
The Guardian · US newsMaybe the key to life is being able to bench press 300lb at 75. But do we need more muscle-bound, angry guys around?
I loathe going to the doctor.
Not a controversial opinion, compared with some of the other ones in this section of the Guardian. I’m not exactly arguing for universal basic income or for Manchester City to be relegated to the Saudi Pro League here. No one looks forward to a doctor visit, with its recriminations for bad habits or various intrusive blood tests. People don’t have cocktail parties to celebrate their yearly check-up, and yet, it seems like every day, there’s a new reason to go get prodded by a stranger in a lab coat.
Continue reading...
Dave Schilling · Mon, Oct 5, 2026, 8:44 AM
