Musk Ordered Starlink Internet Slowdown in Ukraine: Report

Elon Musk personally ordered a Starlink slowdown during Russia’s sweeping attacks on Ukraine, according to a Wall Street Journal report citing U.S. officials and people familiar with the matter. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is adamant the White House was not responsible. “We cannot direct a private company as to the decisions they make or … Read more

Russia Frees American Stephen Hubbard After 4-Year Detention

Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old retired American teacher from Michigan, is now on his way back to the United States after being detained in a Russian prison for more than four years. Russia accused him of fighting with the Ukrainian military, an allegation his family has always denied. NBC’s Raf Sanchez reports for TODAY.

Trump calls for data center ‘dividends’ in bid to win over midterm voters – US politics live

President’s social media post says sites should pay the communities where they will be located and comes amid growing unpopularity of facilities Sign up for Breaking News US email Witkoff announced this morning that Russia authorities had freed Hubbard, the first American known to be convicted of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine. Hubbard, who … Read more

Race for crucial midterms attracting vast sums of money on both sides | First Thing

Billionaire Michael Bloomberg is spending $80m to help Democratic candidates, while Trump has promised Republicans $400m. Plus a vital investigation into justice in Louisiana Good morning. Vast sums of money are being ploughed into November’s midterms, with the billionaire Michael Bloomberg spending $80m to help Democratic candidates, and Donald Trump announcing he intends to spend … Read more

University president sounds alarm as nearly half of students justify violence to stop ‘hate speech’

A new survey found that close to half of undergraduate students surveyed believe physical violence can be justified to stop “hate speech,” as one university president warns that higher education has “lost its way.” In the Buckley Institute’s 2026 National Undergraduate Student Survey, 45% of students said violence can be justified to stop what they … Read more

Katie Zacharia and Trump’s women problem – podcast

In this episode of Guardian Australia’s US politics podcast, co-hosts Jonathan Yerushalmy and Reged Ahmad look at how Katie Zacharia broke the record for shortest tenure as White House press secretary. They then examine the pattern of how women in the Trump administration are treated when they’re perceived to have made mistakes – versus how … Read more