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Vice President Kamala Harris speaks in Raleigh, N.C., on Friday. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) During a speech Friday in North Carolina, Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party’s new presidential nominee, unveiled an aggressively populist economic agenda focused primarily on “lowering the cost of living.” The speech marked the first time Harris has delved into any significant detail about her governing vision — and clearly tried to differentiate herself on policy from President Biden, the man she recently replaced atop the ticket. “Today, by nearly every measure, our economy is the strongest in the world,” Harris said. “Still, we know that many Americans don’t yet feel that progress in their lives. Costs are still too high [and] it feels too hard to get ahead.” A quick guide to what Harris is proposing, and why. What was at stake for Harris on Friday? Heading into an election, voters almost always say the economy is their top concern — and that’s especially true today, after pand...

Biden Unloads on Trump Like Never Before Upper Marlboro, Maryland — President Joe Biden has come out swinging like never before against his one-time opponent, Donald Trump. “The guy we’re running against, what’s his name?” Biden asked as the crowd laughed during his first campaign trail appearance with Democratic nominee Kamala Harris on Thursday. “Donald Dump? Or Donald Whatever?” In a fiery 22-minute speech at a Prince George’s County gymnasium in Maryland, Biden roared about his policy accomplishments, poked fun at concerns about his age, and hit hard against the man who is no longer his opponent. Among adoring fans in a blue state, the president seemed perhaps even more determined to win in November than he did when he was actually on the presidential ticket. “Let me tell you what our Project 2025 is,” he said later. “Beat the hell out of them!” Trump’s Truly Terrifying Project 2025 Is Already Underway Walking on and offstage side-by-side with Harris, Biden strode slowly and sti...

Trump says he's 'entitled' to attack Harris, hits inflation efforts: 3 takeaways from NJ press conference WASHINGTON – Former President Donald Trump acknowledged Thursday that he has launched personal attacks against Vice President Kamala Harris as they fight for control of the White House – and claimed they are justified. "I think I'm entitled to personal attacks," Trump said during a news conference at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club that was slated to focus on the economy and the cost of living. Flanked by tables stacked with groceries, Trump did hit President Joe Biden and Harris' handling of the American economy. But he also leveled personal insults against his 2024 rival – and used demeaning language to address immigrants in the United States. Here are USA TODAY's top takeaways from the former president's news conference. I'm very angry at her' Trump said he is "angry" at Harris over the Biden administration's ha...

President Vladimir Putin ordered his army on Monday to "dislodge" Ukrainian troops who have entered Russian territory as authorities said more than 120,000 people had been evacuated away from the fighting. Kyiv launched a surprise offensive into Russia's western Kursk region last Tuesday, capturing more than two dozen settlements in the most significant cross-border attack on Russian soil since World War II. "One of the obvious goals of the enemy is to sow discord, strife, intimidate people, destroy the unity and cohesion of Russian society," Putin told a televised meeting with government officials. "The main task is, of course, for the defense ministry to dislodge the enemy from our territories," he said. Some 121,000 people have fled the Kursk region since the start of the fighting, which has killed at least 12 civilians and injured 121 more, regional governor Alexei Smirnov told the meeting with Putin. Authorities in Kursk announced on Monday they...

Hezbollah fired a barrage of rockets toward northern Israel on Sunday night, as Israeli forces remain on high alert for potential retaliation from Iran and its proxies following the assassination of a top Hamas leader last month. Rocket fire toward Israel by Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon has become a near-daily occurrence since the outbreak of war in Gaza, as fears grow over the possibility of an Iranian attack that could escalate into a wider regional conflict. The latest Hezbollah salvo was fired in support of the Palestinian people in Gaza and in retaliation for Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, the militant group said in a statement. It comes after Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that an Israeli strike on the town of Ma’aroub, southern Lebanon, injured 12 people including six children. About 30 rockets were launched from Lebanon, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said, adding that some fell into open areas and no injuries were reported. ...

The live conversation was initially delayed for almost an hour due to what Musk said was a 'DDoS' cyber attack. About 1 million people eventually tuned in. Donald Trump and Elon Musk. (AP) Hundreds of thousands of X users flocked to the platform on Monday night to hear owner Elon Musk speak with former President Donald Trump. But they would have to wait almost 45 minutes before the interview began because of what Musk called a denial of service attack. Once the problems were resolved, Musk kicked off the discussion by emphasizing this was a "conversation" — one that ultimately stretched over two hours long, beginning with a question about Trump's assassination attempt in July in Butler, Pa. Musk and the Republican nominee then worked their way through topics like immigration, foreign policy and the economy. Trump’s X interview, his third social-media-first appearance in recent weeks, took place over X Spaces, a feature in the X app that lets users listen in and j...

Mugdho (pictured) had a mathematics degree. His identical twin brother Snigdho said they were not only brothers but best friends Using his sleeve to wipe tear gas from his burning eyes, 25-year-old Mugdho weaves through the crowd, handing out bottles of water to the protesters whose demands for reform would soon topple Bangladesh’s leader. Fifteen minutes later, the university student would become a martyr of the protest movement, when a bullet pierced his forehead as he paused to rest during the searing afternoon heat in the capital Dhaka. Mugdho – whose full name was Mir Mahfuzur Rahman – was rushed to hospital by his friend and fellow protesters, but it was too late, his twin Snigdho – Mir Mahbubur Rahman – told CNN. “I just hugged him, and I cried.” The video of Mugdho handing out water before his death on July 18 punctured the social news feeds of millions across Bangladesh, galvanizing more people to take to the streets calling for justice for the lives lost. What began as peac...

The News The Philippines and Germany agreed a new defense deal Sunday as Manila seeks to bolster its diplomatic support to counter Beijing’s vast maritime claims in the South China Sea. The agreement focuses on “mutual understanding regarding capabilities, training [and] exchange of information,” said the Philippines’ defense minister, suggesting Germany could supply military equipment to the Philippines in the future. Berlin is “strongly opposed [against] any unilateral attempt to advance expansive claims” in the region, Germany’s defense minister said. China and the Philippines have sparred for months over South China Sea territory, and the two countries recently signed a “tentative agreement” to end hostilities. But Beijing has continued to express frustration toward Manila, prompting the Philippine government to look to Europe and the US for support. Know More The German-Philippine defense pact comes as China gets ready to appoint a new ambassador to Germany. Whomever Beijing ch...

The News The US, the UK, Australia, Sweden, France, Italy, Canada, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan have issued warnings to citizens to leave Lebanon; the UK has also deployed experts and military personnel to assist with a potential evacuation should a war between Israel and the militant group Hezbollah break out there. Several airlines have already canceled flights to and from Beirut, Lebanon’s only commercial airport, complicating any exit strategies. While many experts agree a war would be in no one’s favor, tensions in the region reached a new high after Israel struck Beirut last week, killing a top Hezbollah leader it blamed for a previous deadly strike on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. Hamas’ top political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was also killed in a strike in Tehran; Israel did not claim responsibility for the latter strike. Iran vowed “severe” retaliation against Israel after the Tehran strike, and Western officials believe that it could use Hezbollah — one of se...

Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 5.8% today, its biggest single-day decline since 2020. The slump was partially fueled by a sharp decline in the US economic outlook. The Japanese government raised rates on Wednesday, breaking from its historically dovish stance. Japan's stocks took a hit on Friday, fueled by economic concerns in the US and the Bank of Japan's interest-rate hike earlier this week. The Nikkei Stock Average closed at 35,909.70, down 5.8%, marking its largest daily decline since March 2020 after hitting record highs earlier this month. The drop comes just two days after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates in an effort to boost the yen's value amidst higher inflation. The BoJ raised rates from a range of 0% to 0.1% to a benchmark 0.25%. The decision was a surprising one, given that Japanese officials typically stray away from such hawkish actions. The bank raised interest rates for the first time in 17 years back in March, ending its negative interest-...

The children of two Russian intelligence agents, who were among the detainees released as part of a historic prisoner swap, only discovered their nationality when they were being flown to Moscow, the Kremlin said Friday. Their parents, Artem Dultsev and Anna Dultseva, were among 24 prisoners swapped as part of a complex, multi-country deal that saw high-profile American detainees and Russian dissidents freed in return. The pair had been posing as an Argentine couple in Slovenia where they were convicted of spying. Their two children flew back with them on Thursday from Turkey. The boy and girl “found out that they were Russian only when the plane took off from Ankara,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists. Russian President Vladimir Putin greeted them on the tarmac in Spanish as they didn’t speak Russian and didn’t even know who Putin was, according to Peskov. “When the children came down the plane’s steps – they don’t speak Russian – and Putin greeted them in Spanish, he...

NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump in an interview on Tuesday claimed Vice President Kamala Harris, who is married to a Jewish man, “doesn’t like Jewish people” and seemed to agree with a radio host who called second gentleman Doug Emhoff “a crappy Jew.” Trump, in an interview on WABC radio on Tuesday, claimed Harris looked uncomfortable while meeting last week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “You can see the disdain,” he said, adding, “No. 1, she doesn’t like Israel. No. 2, she doesn’t like Jewish people. You know it, I know it and everybody knows it and nobody wants to say it.” Trump has tried to capitalize on divisions in the Democratic Party over the Israel-Hamas war and sought to paint his political opponents as antisemitic while overlooking some of his own past comments and behavior, such as dining at his Florida club with a Holocaust-denying white nationalist. With Harris replacing President Joe Biden as the likely Democratic presidential nominee, Tru...

LONDON (AP) — Several suspects arrested in violent protests that erupted after the fatal stabbing of three children in northwest England made court appearances Friday as officials braced for more clashes that Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned and blamed on “far-right hatred.” Starmer vowed to end the mayhem and said police across the U.K. would be given more resources to stop “a breakdown in law and order on our streets.” Demonstrations are being promoted online over the coming days in towns and cities including Sunderland, Belfast, Cardiff, Liverpool and Manchester, using phrases including “enough is enough,” “save our kids” and “stop the boats.” John Woodcock, the British government’s adviser on political violence and disruption, said there was a “concerted and coordinated” attempt to spread the violence. “Clearly, some of those far-right actors have got a taste for this and are trying to provoke similar in towns and cities across the U.K.,” he told the BBC. The attack Monday o...