Nature, Published online: 02 September 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02753-xScientists are tinkering with plant genes to create crops that seed their own clones, with a host of benefits for farmers.

Nature, Published online: 02 September 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02535-5People who claim they can bend spoons by stroking them fail to convince researchers, and a pioneer of industrial research gets the recognition she deserves in our weekly dip into Natures archive.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, meets with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China, Tuesday, Sept 2, 2025. (Maxim Shemetov/Pool Photo via AP)2025-09-02T12:31:20Z Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that U.S President Donald Trumps administration is listening to the Kremlins justifications for its invasion of neighboring Ukraine and claimed that Moscow and Washington have come to a mutual understanding about the conflict.Putin said during a visit to China that the (Trump) administration is listening to us, as he complained that former President Joe Biden paid Moscows arguments no heed.Now we see this mutual understanding, its noticeable, Putin said at a bilateral meeting with pro-Russian Slovak President Robert Fico after talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing. We are very happy about this and hope this constructive dialogue will continue.But Russia faces possible punitive actions by Trump, who has expressed frustration at Putins lack of engagement in U.S.-led peace efforts and threatened unspecified severe consequences. The American president has made ending the three-year war one of his diplomatic priorities and hosted Putin at a summit in Alaska last month. Putin attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in the Chinese city of Tianjin with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who are also facing pressure from Trump. The SCO started out as a security forum viewed as a foil to U.S. influence in Central Asia but it has grown in influence over the years. After the summit, the Russian leader held talks with Xi in Beijing, and on Wednesday he was to attend a massive military parade there commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. In Beijing, Putin struck an apparently amenable tone about possible progress in some aspects of the discussions to stop the fighting, although his comments reflected no substantial change in Russias position. Western leaders have accused Putin of marking time in peace efforts while Russias bigger army seeks to overwhelm Ukrainian defenses. On the key issue of possible postwar security guarantees for Ukraine to deter another Russian invasion, Putin said it seems to me that there is an opportunity to find consensus. He didnt elaborate.While Putin reiterated that Moscow will not accept NATO membership for Ukraine, he also noted that he had never objected to Ukraine joining the European Union.He also said Russia can work with our American partners at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Europes largest and one of the 10 biggest atomic power plants in the world. Its fate has been a central concern of the war due to fears of a nuclear accident. Putin said Russia could also work with Ukraine on the Zaporizhzhia question if favorable conditions arise.Fico said he planned to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday in the Ukrainian city of Uzhorod, which lies on the border with Slovakia, to talk about Ukraines attacks on Russian energy infrastructure.Slovakia and Hungary, which refuse to provide arms to Ukraine, condemned recent strikes by Ukrainian troops against Russian oil infrastructure, namely the Druzhba oil pipeline. The two countries, as well as the Czech Republic, are exempt from a European Union ban on importing Russian oil, which they rely on.Fico told Putin he wants to normalize relations and develop business ties with Russia while continuing to import Russian oil and natural gas.___Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

California National Guard are positioned at the Federal Building, June 10, 2025, in downtown Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer, File)2025-09-02T13:30:42Z SAN FRANCISCO (AP) President Donald Trumps administration violated federal law in the use of National Guard troops during Southern California immigration enforcement operations and accompanying protests, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday.Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco did not require the remaining troops to be withdrawn, however. He set his order to go into effect on Friday.The order comes after California sued, saying the troops sent to Los Angeles over the summer were violating a law that prohibits military enforcement of domestic laws. Lawyers for Trumps Republican administration have argued the Posse Comitatus Act doesnt apply because the troops were protecting federal officers, not enforcing laws. They say the troops were mobilized under an authority that allows the president to deploy them.The judges decision comes as Trump has discussed National Guard deployments in Democratic-led cities like Chicago, Baltimore and New York. He has already deployed the guard as part of his unprecedented law enforcement takeover in Washington, where he has direct legal control. Trump federalized members of the California National Guard and sent them to the second-largest U.S. city over the objections of Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and city leaders. Trump did so under a law that allows the president to call the guard into federal service when the country is invaded, when there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government, or when the president is otherwise unable to execute the laws of the United States. Trump has pushed the bounds of typical military activity on domestic soil, including through the creation of militarized zones along the U.S.-Mexico border. Newsom posted on X, in an all-caps reflection of the presidents own social media style, DONALD TRUMP LOSES AGAIN. The courts agree -- his militarization of our streets and use of the military against US citizens is ILLEGAL. The White House did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.Breyers scathing ruling accused the Trump administration of willfully violating the law, saying it used troops for functions that were barred by their own training materials, refused to meaningfully coordinate with state and local officials and coached federal law enforcement agencies on the language to use when requesting assistance.These actions demonstrate that Defendants knew that they were ordering troops to execute domestic law beyond their usual authority, he wrote. The evidence at trial established that Defendants systematically used armed soldiers (whose identity was often obscured by protective armor) and military vehicles to set up protective perimeters and traffic blockades, engage in crowd control, and otherwise demonstrate a military presence in and around Los Angeles.Breyer also noted the Trump administrations possible plans to call National Guard troops into other U.S. cities.In Los Angeles, National Guard members joined an operation at MacArthur Park in downtown Los Angeles intended as a show of force against people in the U.S. illegally and those protesting the Trump administrations immigration crackdown. They also accompanied federal immigration officers on raids at two state-licensed marijuana nurseries in Ventura County, Army Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman testified. Sherman, who initially commanded the troops deployed to Los Angeles, testified during the second day of the trial that he raised concerns the deployment could violate the Posse Comitatus Act. He said soldiers were trained on the law and given materials that included a list of activities prohibited by the act, including doing security patrols and conducting traffic control, crowd control and riot control.Sherman said that while the Posse Comitatus Act prohibits troops from carrying out those actions, he was told by his superiors that there was a constitutional exception that permitted such activities when the troops are protecting federal property or personnel. ___This story has been corrected to show the judge is in San Francisco, not Washington.___ Associated Press writers Lindsay Whitehurst in Washington, Sudhin Thanawala in Atlanta and Mike Catalini in Trenton, N.J., contributed to this story. RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

The Brazilian Supreme Court holds the verdict and sentencing phase of a trial for those charged in an alleged coup plot to keep Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro in office after his 2022 election defeat, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)2025-09-02T04:01:24Z BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) A Brazilian Supreme Court panel opened the verdict and sentencing phase Tuesday in the trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro on allegations that he led a conspiracy to stay in power after losing the 2022 presidential election. The court panel scheduled sessions on five days through Sept. 12 to decide whether the far-right ex-leader is guilty of seeking to overturn the election result in which he was narrowly defeated by President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva.History teaches us that impunity, omission, and cowardice are not options for peace, Justice Alexandre de Moraes said as the trial commenced.De Moraes, who is presiding over the case and is considered a foe by Bolsonaro, also said that the role of the Supreme Court is to judge impartially regardless of threats or legal action, ignoring internal or external pressure. Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes speaks during the verdict and sentencing phase of a trial for those charged in an alleged coup plot to keep Brazils former President Jair Bolsonaro in office after his 2022 election defeat, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes speaks during the verdict and sentencing phase of a trial for those charged in an alleged coup plot to keep Brazils former President Jair Bolsonaro in office after his 2022 election defeat, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More That was an indirect swipe at President Donald Trump, who directly tied a 50% tariff on imported Brazilian goods to his allys judicial situation. Trump has called the proceedings a witch hunt against a political opponent, triggering nationalist reactions from many Brazilian politicians. Bolsonaro, who denies any wrongdoing, has repeatedly said the trial is politically motivated.He is under house arrest and was not present at the court on Tuesday. His lawyer Celso Vilardi told journalists that was because of Bolsonaros ill health. Bolsonaro is already banned from electionsOn Monday night, his sons Carlos and Jair Renan prayed along with other supporters during a vigil at the condominium where he is serving house arrest. The former leader was charged with five counts: attempting to stage a coup, involvement in an armed criminal organization, attempted violent abolition of the democratic rule of law and two counts involving destruction of state property.A guilty verdict on the coup plot charge alone carries a sentence of up to 12 years. Journalists work outside the Supreme Court prior to the verdict and sentencing phase of a trial for those charged in an alleged coup plot to keep Brazils former President Jair Bolsonaro in office after his 2022 election defeat, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) Journalists work outside the Supreme Court prior to the verdict and sentencing phase of a trial for those charged in an alleged coup plot to keep Brazils former President Jair Bolsonaro in office after his 2022 election defeat, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Seven other close allies of Bolsonaro are being tried alongside the former president, including Walter Braga Netto, his former running mate and defense minister, and Paulo Srgio Nogueira, another former defense minister.Brazils top electoral court has already banned Bolsonaro from running in elections until 2030 over abuse of power while in office and casting unfounded doubts on the countrys electronic voting system. A federal police investigation said efforts to disseminate fake news about Brazils voting system were part of a multipronged plan to keep Bolsonaro in office.The prosecution in the coup trial has alleged that the plot included a plan to kill Lula and de Moraes. It also says that a riot on Jan. 8, 2023, when Bolsonaro supporters ransacked top government buildings a week after Lula took office, was an attempt to force military intervention and oust the new president. Trial arguments wrapped up in August During the trial, the prosecution presented handwritten notes, digital files, message exchanges, and spreadsheets that they said were evidence of the conspiracy to keep Bolsonaro in power. Defense lawyers argued that the fact that Bolsonaro allowed the presidential transition to take place after the election undermines the allegation that he plotted to thwart it.The prosecution finished presenting its case in July and the defense wrapped up its arguments mid-August.Shortly thereafter, police accused Bolsonaro and his son Eduardo of obstruction of justice, saying the ex-president wanted to flee to Argentina last year and request political asylum. The Brazilian Supreme Court holds the verdict and sentencing phase of a trial for those charged in an alleged coup plot to keep Brazils former President Jair Bolsonaro in office after his 2022 election defeat, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) The Brazilian Supreme Court holds the verdict and sentencing phase of a trial for those charged in an alleged coup plot to keep Brazils former President Jair Bolsonaro in office after his 2022 election defeat, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Eduardo Bolsonaro moved to the U.S. earlier this year despite holding a seat in Brazils Congress and has sought sanctions against de Moraes. The Trump administration imposed sanction on de Moraes in late July, freezing any assets he might have in the U.S.Authorities see Bolsonaro as a flight risk. In the lead up to the verdict and sentencing phase, the Supreme Court ordered further security measures. On Saturday, De Moraes permitted the inspection of vehicles leaving Bolsonaros residence and mandated in-person surveillance of the area surrounding his home. Breaks with tradition of military coupExperts have labeled Bolsonaros trial as historic and highlighted that its the first time high-ranking officials accused of an attempted coup are being subjected to a criminal trial.A military dictatorship ruled Brazil for more than two decades between 1964 and 1985, an era for which Bolsonaro has expressed nostalgia. The government passed a sweeping Amnesty Law in 1979 and Brazil never prosecuted any of the military officials responsible for the widespread human rights violations during that era. Dawn breaks at the Supreme Court headquarters where the trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro begins in the case for allegedly leading a conspiracy to stay in power, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) Dawn breaks at the Supreme Court headquarters where the trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro begins in the case for allegedly leading a conspiracy to stay in power, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Brazils violent past has yet to be fully reckoned with, but this trial marks a historic departure from impunity, said Lucas Figueiredo, the author of several books about the countrys most recent dictatorship.History will tell whether it is 100% successful, but what we are seeing today is a movement that breaks with a tradition of military coups, he said.

Trader Patrick Casey works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, Aug. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)2025-09-02T05:55:24Z NEW YORK (AP) U.S. stocks are tumbling on Tuesday, and some of Wall Streets biggest stars are leading the way lower.The S&P 500 sank 1.2% and was on track for its worst loss in a month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 498 points, or 1.1%, as of 9:37 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was down a market-leading 1.4%. All three are still close to their recently set records. Nvidia and other companies that have benefited from the frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology were some of the heaviest weights on the market. They have soared for years on expectations that theyre at the vanguard of the next revolution for the global economy. But theyve also shot so high that critics say their prices have simply become too expensive.Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the move into AI, fell 2.3%. Broadcom, another chip giant, fell 2.1%. The overall stock market was feeling pressure from rising yields in the bond market, where the 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 4.27% from 4.23% late Friday. When bonds are paying more in interest, investors are less willing to pay high prices for stocks. Longer-term bond yields are on the rise around the world, in part because of worries about how difficult it will be for governments to repay their growing mountains of debt. In the United States, Treasury yields are feeling additional pressure from President Donald Trumps attacks on the Federal Reserve for not cutting interest rates sooner. The fear is that a less independent Fed will be less likely to make the unpopular decisions needed to keep inflation under control, such as keeping short-term interest rates higher than investors would like. Tuesday was also the first opportunity for trading in the U.S. Treasury market after a federal appeals court ruled that Trump overstepped his legal authority when announcing sweeping tariffs on almost every country on Earth, though it left the tariffs in place for now. While the tariffs have created confusion and may have hurt the U.S. job market, they also have brought in revenue that could help the U.S. government pay some of its debt. In another signal about increasing worries in financial markets, the price of gold rose 1% and was near its record. The metal has often provided a haven for investors in times of uncertainty.On Wall Street, Constellation Brands tumbled 6.4% after the beer, wine and spirits company warned that its seen a slowdown in purchases of its high-end beers, particularly among its Hispanic customers. That pushed it to slash its forecast for profit this fiscal year.Kraft Heinz slipped 1.4% after announcing that its splitting into two, a decade after a merger of the brands created one of the biggest food companies on the planet.One of the companies will include shelf stable meals and include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include the Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables brands. The official names of the two companies will be released later. Among the markets few gainers was PepsiCo, which jumped 3.5% after an investment firm said it sent suggestions to the companys board to reaccelerate its growth and boost financial performance. The investor, Elliott Management, has a history of buying into companies and then pushing for big changes that can lead to better stock performance. In stock markets abroad, indexes slumped across Europe, with Germanys DAX losing 2%. That was after a more mixed finish in Asia, where indexes rose 0.9% in Seoul but fell 0.5% in Hong Kong. ___AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.

A lesbian teacher died by suicide yesterday, September 1, the first day of school in France, after being harassed for years with homophobic graffiti by an unknown person.Authorities say that Caroline Grandjean-Paccoud, 42, of the rural community Anglards-de-Salers in central France, called the suicide prevention hotline at 10:30 a.m. yesterday morning just before going to a steep cliff near her town and throwing herself off, falling a distance of about 100 feet. Police, alerted by the crisis hotline, found her body soon after. Related Police suspect homophobia in murders of four men found floating in river Im in shock, Christophe Tardieux, a comic book illustrator who worked with Grandjean, told Le Parisien. Her wife contacted me at the end of the day to tell me the terrible news. Its a waste, and I dont think there was anything that could have been done to prevent it.Her death follows several years of anonymous harassment. In 2023, she was the only teacher in a small rural preschool in nearby Moussages, population 300, when someone painted the words Sale gouine (Dirty dyke) on a wall in the courtyard. It was the first of several messages over the next few months, others of which included Va crever sale gouine (Die, dirty dyke) and Gouine = Pdophile (Dyke = Pedophile). Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Grandjean-Paccoud said that she never came out publicly in the town, but she was married to a woman, and she suspected people knew about her sexual orientation. She filed five different police reports during that period, but the cases didnt move forward.The towns government suggested installing a security camera in the courtyard, but some of the parents objected, Thierry Pajot, a local union leader, told Le Parisien at the time. Some parents even threatened to stop sending their kids to school because of the harassment. Two days before the start of the 2024-2025 school year, there was more graffiti that said, Pedophile. Grandjean-Paccoud was put on a leave of absence for health reasons for the full school year, and the town announced on Facebook that two new teachers were being brought in.The regions educational director wanted Grandjean-Paccoud to take a position at a different school for her own safety, 20 Minutes reports, but she refused.Its too much! Pajot said. She said stop! This is blackmail.Nothing was done to help the teacher. We have the feeling that the town wanted her to quit so that they could find peace and quiet again. This town doesnt deserve a school from the Republic.Well, we might have some peace and quiet again, one mother of a child in the school told Le Parisien at the time. This harassment destroyed her, Pajot said. Especially since she wasnt supported by either the education directors, who wanted to send her to a different school, which she refused, nor by the town hall.Tardieux said that she was in a state of great fragility because of the anonymous harassment, and that there were several other events that occurred this past year that added to her feeling of injustice.First, the dismissal of her complaint, then an education inspector who she thought didnt help her this whole year got promoted, Tardieux said. Theres a message in the fact that she chose the first day of school to die. Madame Grandjean-Paccoud, recognized for her commitment, is a respected figure in the Cantal, the regions educational director said in a statement, referring to the region where she lived. After anonymous threats in 2024, she went on leave, but the academy of Clermont-Ferrand followed her situation closely and prepared for her return while respecting her wishes.The statement offered condolences to her wife, family, colleagues, and students.Editors note: This article mentions suicide. If you need to talk to someone now, call the Trans Lifeline at1-877-565-8860. Its staffed by trans people, for trans people. The Trevor Project provides a safe, judgement-free place to talk for LGBTQ youth at1-866-488-7386. You can also call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at1-800-273-8255.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Olympic champion Gabby Thomas will miss this month's track world championships with an Achilles tendon injury she's been dealing with since May.

Ending a year of speculation, it was announced Tuesday that Will Power would not be returning to Team Penske for an 18th season.

From home-court advantage in the first round to awards, here's what each team is playing for down the stretch.

From Purdue's Braden Smith to NC State's Will Wade, we're on early awards watch for these candidates from Top 25 teams.

Will Matthew Tkachuk be healthy enough to play? Can Tage Thompson crack the lineup? We look at some of the biggest topics coming out of the recent orientation camp.

Villages remain cut off in the remote, mountainous areas in the east that have been hardest hit by the disaster, which has killed at least 1,400 people.

Near the Indian border, many people who fled the recent India-Pakistan conflict have had to leave again, this time because of rising waters.

The Atlanta Beltline turned a mostly derelict 22-mile loop around the city into a wildly popular and profitable urban park. It also contributed to displacing longtime residents.

Ms. Malle, 39, succeeds Anna Wintour, a titan in fashion. There has to be a noticeable shift that makes this mine, Ms. Malle said in an interview.

The landslide leveled a village in the remote Marra mountains, a local rebel group said. Its leader appealed for urgent help, saying, This is a nightmare.

The post Taylor Swift Spoils Travis Kelce For Anniversary By Cracking Egg Over His Kibble appeared first on The Onion.

ST. LOUISAccording to several eyewitnesses who were inside local caf Panda Bubble Tea on Tuesday, no, 53-year-old man Aaron Strickland would not like popping boba in his drink. Maam, I am a veteran, a father of two adult children, and I hold a masters degree in business administration from Washington University, said an indignant Strickland, who reportedly crossed his arms and winced slightly at the young cashiers question. As I previously stated, I would just like a hot tea without any froufrou shit. I am a serious man, and I simply want a regular black tea with a little bit of regular whole milk. Strickland was later overheard muttering Oh for Christs sake after his drink arrived in a promotional LE SSERAFIM cup.The post No, Area 53-Year-Old Would Not Like His Drink With Boba appeared first on The Onion.

WESTFIELD, MASaying they had never seen such an ostentatious display, friends attending a barbecue yesterday at the home of Pete and Emily Brooks told reporters they were shocked to learn the couple were wealthy enough to have their own live-in children. They werent even self-conscious about itthey just said, These are our kids, as if it were completely normal, said neighbor Christine Powell, who was reportedly speechless upon realizing the children had their own private quarters for sleeping and leisure on a separate floor of the house. When you go over, the kids are just there, walking around, as though youve stepped back in time to the Victorian era. The children are with Emily and Pete day and night, and also accompany them on vacations. Could you imagine having the means to live like that? I heard a rumor they provide the kids with all of their meals as part of the arrangement, and cell phones too. According to sources, Powell was also aghast upon discovering that the couple had a live-in golden retriever.The post Couple So Wealthy They Have Own Live-In Children appeared first on The Onion.

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This time of year always inspires us to shake up our decor after all, fall is a season of change! As the temps dip and the air cools, we start looking around our homes for new style opportunities.These are three trends our editors are loving this year and you can shop them all at QVC! The iconic shopping destination has high-quality, stylish options for every home aesthetic, including decor to create the seasons latest looks.READ MORE...

FILE- This Feb. 21, 2018, file photo shows a display of Heinz Ketchup on display in a market in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)2025-09-02T10:25:43Z NEW YORK (AP) Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after a merger of the brands created one of the biggest food manufacturers on the planet.One of the companies, currently called Global Taste Elevation Co., will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese, Kraft Heinz said Tuesday. The other, currently called North American Grocery Co., will include legacy brands like Maxwell House, Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. The official names of the two companies will be released later. Kraft Heinz said in May that it was conducting a strategic review of the company, signaling a potential split. It expects the transaction to close in the second half of 2026. When the company formed in 2015, it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale. But shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz and other food producers have tried to follow those trends. In 2021, Kraft Heinz sold both its Planters nut business and its natural cheese business, vowing to reinvest the money into higher-growth brands like P3 protein snacks and Lunchables. But the company continued to struggle, and Kraft Heinzs net sales fell 3% in 2024. Kraft Heinzs brands are iconic and beloved, but the complexity of our current structure makes it challenging to allocate capital effectively, prioritize initiatives and drive scale in our most promising areas, Executive Chair Miguel Patricio said in a statement. The path to the merger of Kraft and Heinz began in 2013, when billionaire investor Warren Buffett teamed up with Brazilian investment firm 3G Capital to buy H.J. Heinz Co. At the time, the $23 billion deal was the most expensive ever in the food industry.3G was also behind the formation of Restaurant Brands International a merger of Burger King, Tim Hortons and Popeyes and Anheuser-Busch InBev. Its known for strict cost controls and so-called zero-based budgeting, which requires all expenses to be justified each quarter. The deal was intended to help Heinz, which was founded in 1869 in Pittsburgh, expand sales of its condiments and sauces on grocery store shelves. Heinzs new owners also set about cutting costs, laying off hundreds of workers within months.At the same time Kraft, based in Chicago, sought for a partner after a 2011 split from its snack division, which became Mondelez International.In 2015, Buffett and 3G decided to merge Heinz with Kraft. The merger created the 5th largest food and beverage company in the world, with annual revenue of $28 billion. Buffett and 3G each contributed $5 billion for a special dividend for Kraft shareholders.But the combined company struggled, despite layoffs of thousands of employees and other cost-cutting measures. Even at the time of the merger, many consumers were shifting away from the kinds of highly processed packaged foods that Kraft sells, like Velveeta cheese and Kool-Aid.Kraft Heinz also had trouble distinguishing its products from cheaper store brands. At Walmart, a 14-ounce bottle of Heinz ketchup costs $2.98; the same size bottle of Walmarts Great Value brand is 98 cents. In 2019, Kraft Heinz slashed the value of its Oscar Meyer and Kraft brands by $15.4 billion, citing operational costs and supply chain problems. But many investors blamed the companys leadership, saying its zeal for cost-cutting was hurting brand innovation.The companys net revenue has fallen every year since 2020, when it saw a pandemic-related bump in sales. In April, Kraft Heinz lowered its full-year sales and earnings guidance, citing weaker customer spending in the U.S. and the impact of President Donald Trumps tariffs.Carlos Abrams-Rivera will continue to serve as CEO of Kraft Heinz and will become CEO of North American Grocery Co. once the separation is complete. Kraft Heinz said that its board is working with an executive search firm to identify potential CEO candidates for Global Taste Elevation Co.Kraft Heinz has no plans to change its current headquarter locations in Chicago and Pittsburgh. The announcement follows the recent breakups of other big food companies. Late last month, Keurig Dr Pepper said it would buy the owner of Peets Coffee and then split itself in two, with one company selling coffee and the other selling cold beverages like Snapple, Dr Pepper, 7UP and energy drinks. Keurig and Dr Pepper merged in 2018.In 2023, Kellogg Co. also split into two companies. Mars bought one of the companies, dubbed Kellanova, which owned snack brands like Pringles. Italian confectioner Ferrero announced in July that it planned to buy WK Kellogg, the cereal company.Kraft Heinz shares fell 3% Tuesday.___Durbin reported from Detroit. DEE-ANN DURBIN Durbin is an Associated Press business writer focusing on the food and beverage industry. She has also covered the auto industry and state and national politics in her nearly 30-year career with the AP. twitter mailto

Car owner Roger Penske, left, and driver Will Power, of Australia, receive their "Baby Borg" trophies for winning last years race during the drivers meeting for the Indianapolis 500 IndyCar auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Saturday, May 25, 2019, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, file)2025-09-02T14:04:16Z CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Will Power, the consummate company man who won two IndyCar titles and the Indianapolis 500 for Roger Penske, will not return to Team Penske for an 18th season.The long-expected announcement was finally made Tuesday, two days after the season finale, and nearly a year after speculation began that Power would not be renewed when his contract expired as the team eyed a younger driver. Power turns 45 at the start of next season. As we sat down to talk about our future together, Will felt that it was time for him to make a change beginning with next season, Penske said in a statement. He has been an outstanding driver and teammate for our organization. His results speak for themselves, and we wish him the very best in the next phase of his career.As the season dragged on without any movement from Penske, Powers departure became more and more obvious. He showed up at the season-opener in March on his birthday weekend facing questions about the possibility of 23-year-old David Malukas replacing him at the end of the year. The speculation was never silenced by Team Penske, but Malukas was not confirmed as Powers replacement Tuesday. After Sundays season finale at Nashville Superspeedway, Power was both reflective and grateful for the time hed had at Penske, where he won 42 races, two championships, the Indy 500 and became IndyCars all-time pole-winner with 71. Its been the honor of my life to drive for Roger and the Penske organization, Power said. We have accomplished so much together, and I will always be grateful for my time with the team and my teammates who have supported me along the way. After much consideration, I felt like a change for me was the right move at this time. Power, with 45 career victories, ranks fourth on the all-time IndyCar wins list behind A.J. Foyt (67), Scott Dixon (59) and Mario Andretti (52). He passed Andretti as the greatest qualifier in series history. This season, he proved to be the best of the trio of Penske drivers he was most consistent, his win at Portland was the first of the season for Penske and hes shown despite his age hes still among the most competitive on the grid. Power was leading at Nashville and had positioned himself for the win until a mistake in the pits took him out of contention. He told his engineer on pit lane after the race he wasnt returning in 2026 in a conversation that had both engineer David Faustino and Powers wife, Liz, in tears. Power has won at least one race every season except 2023 the year his wife nearly died from a staph infection.Its not clear where Power will go, but the softest landing spot on the grid would be if Colton Herta leaves IndyCar for F2, the Formula 1 feeder system, in an effort to achieve the super license Herta needs to compete for the new Cadillac team in the global series. That would open a seat at Andretti Global and new owner Dan Towriss, who also owns the Cadillac F1 team, a NASCAR team, and multiple other organizations in various motorsports series, could use a veteran like Power as he attempts to bring the IndyCar program back to the top of the series.___AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing JENNA FRYER Fryer primarily covers motorsports for The AP with an emphasis on NASCAR, F1, IMSA and IndyCar. She is a New Jersey native based in Charlotte, North Carolina. twitter mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) shared a message on social media comparing trans people to Satan, calling it the truth.She shared a screenshot of a post from rightwing influencer Caroline C. Wilder that said, Transgenderism is the decision to, in pride, turn your back on God, decide that you will make yourself in your own image, live a life of self-worship, and adopt a new name in the process. Related Marjorie Taylor Greene celebrates child sex traffickers testimony: Trump has been vindicated! You know who else did this? Satan.The comment from a fringe member of the right wouldnt have had so much of an impact if a sitting member of Congress hadnt shared it. This is the truth, Greene wrote, sharing a screenshot of Wilders post.This is the truth. pic.twitter.com/KR5hX68R9t Marjorie Taylor Greene (@mtgreenee) August 28, 2025In the replies, Wilder expressed discontent at Greene for sharing her message without quote-tweeting, effectively preventing people from finding her account easily. Its always the big accounts, Wilder wrote.

The West African nation of Burkina Fasos ruling junta unanimously passed a law banning homosexuality yesterday.The law provides for a prison sentence of between two and five years as well as fines, said Justice Minister Edasso Rodrigue Bayala. If a person is a perpetrator of homosexual or similar practices, all the bizarre behavior, they will go before the judge. Related Ghana lawmakers introduce cruel anti-gay bill that also punishes LGBTQ+ activism He said that foreigners will be deported under the law. Burkina Faso has been under the rule of a military junta since September 2022, when former Interim President Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba who himself came to power in a coup dtat several months earlier was removed from his office. The civil unrest is a result of the governments inability to contain an Islamist insurgency. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today The Muslim-majority nation had been among the 22 out of 54 African states where same-sex relations were not criminalized. The one-time French colony didnt inherit anti-homosexuality laws found in many former British colonies.But the bill to ban homosexuality was supported by 71 unelected members of the transitional parliament yesterday as part of a wider set of family and citizenship law reforms popularized through an awareness campaign, officials said. The bill was initially approved by the military governments leader, Captain Ibrahim Traor, last year. Traor has been shifting the countrys focus away from its close relationship with France and toward Russia.The law goes into effect immediately.Human rights groups have accused the government of cracking down on human rights with mass arrests and conscripting critics into the military.In late 2024, neighboring Mali also banned homosexuality. Two other African nations Ghana and Uganda increased the punishments for homosexuality in recent years.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Anna Wintour has chosen Chloe Malle to be the next Vogue editor-in-chief though the job title has been renamed to "head of editorial content," according to the latest reports."Anna Wintour is clear-eyed, determined, and optimistic, but rarely daring," Lauren Sherman writes for Puck News. "Her tenure in the Cond Nast corporate suite has been defined by choosing editorial leaders whose visions would largely fit within hers. And this balance influenced her search for the next editor of American Vogue now called the head of editorial content."Who is Chloe Malle? See on Instagram Born and raised in New York City, Malle is 39 and has worked for Vogue since 2011. Over time, she became "editor of Vogue.com and the co-host of The Run-Through with Vogue podcast" alongside Chioma Nnadi, as outlined on Malle's author page on the publication's website.Malle subsequently worked "as an editor in the features department, then as a Contributing Editor." Eventually, she "edited the Flash section covering weddings, homes, parties and travel, the Met Gala special issues, and several Vogue books" such as Vogue Weddings: Brides, Dresses, Designers and Vogue Living: Country, City, Coast.Recently, Malle wrote the profile of Lauren Snchez Bezos on her wedding day to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos in June 2025. She's also written for publications including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Architectural Digest, among others.In June 2015, The New York Times wrote a story about "Chloe Franoise Malle, the daughter of Candice Bergen of New York and the late Louis Malle," marrying Graham McGrath Albert in Cahors, France. Bergen is the film and television actress known for Murphy Brown, Miss Congeniality, Book Club, and Boston Legal. Louis Malle is the famed French director of films including Elevator to the Gallows and Au Revoir, Les Enfants. At the time of her wedding, Malle, then 29, was Vogue's social editor, according to the Times.Sara Moonves and Nicole Phelps were also considered to become the new editor-in-chief of Vogue.Sara Moonves the editor-in-chief of W magazine and Nicole Phelps who has run verticals including Vogue Runway and Vogue Business were the other two names that Wintour considered before selecting Malle as her official successor, according to Puck."The fashion industry will support Malle in this position, and her pedigree will add to the allure," Sherman writes on Puck News. "She arrives with pop culture bona fides. She's also obviously smart and capable and even funny, as displayed via her dogged (no pun intended) pursuit of Dogue, a canine sendup of the magazine, which she's already published twice (probably once too many)."What is Anna Wintour doing next after leaving Vogue? Anna Wintour at the 2025 U.S. Open Tennis Championships in August 2025.Jean Catuffe/GC ImagesCoverage of Wintour's departure from her role as Vogue's editor-in-chief has largely missed an important detail: She's not really going anywhere.Wintour "is not 'stepping down' (as many headlines have mistakenly said), but instead shifting focus to her two global roles," a Cond Nast representative told the Daily Mail in June, noting that Wintour is still the global chief content officer and global editorial director of Cond Nast. "She will still be at shows, doing Met and Vogue World, etc. I imagine she will also be traveling to other markets more frequently now that she will have a bit more time to do so."In blunt terms, Wintour's choice to leave her lowest-ranking job (of all three positions she's held at Cond Nast) has been described as "God stepping down from being God."Why was the Vogue editor-in-chief role renamed to head of editorial content?Wintour appears to have told everyone in the running to become the new Vogue editor-in-chief that she was searching for a successor who could "transform the brand into a live-action content machine while [Wintour] spent more time abroad mentoring regional editorial leaders who were struggling to attract both advertisers and audiences in their respective markets," Puck News reports."Wintour doesn't aim to provoke. She seeks solutions, and Malle is the path of least resistance," Sherman writes. "Wintour is slated to make the announcement as early as Tuesday [September 2]."Are other Cond Nast publications also rebranding editor-in-chief roles?Yes, this has been the case for several top-ranking individuals at different verticals operating under Cond Nast.For instance, Katie Drummond (who runs WIRED) and Mark Guiducci (who runs Vanity Fair) are both referred to as global editorial directors of those brands not as editors-in-chief. Meanwhile, Samantha Barry (who runs Glamour), Amy Astley (who runs Architectural Digest), and Will Welch (who runs GQ) have all added the "global editorial director" label to their existing roles as editors-in-chief.The rebranding hasn't been consistent across the board, however, as Versha Sharma remains editor-in-chief of Teen Vogue and Fran Tirado is editor-in-chief of Them. David Remnick, who runs The New Yorker, is referred to as "editor" as well.

Nature, Published online: 02 September 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02799-xGenetic-sequencing techniques have uncovered the oldest host-associated microbial DNA ever recorded inside samples of teeth and bones from woolly and steppe mammoths.

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Gen. John "Jay" Raymond, Commander U.S. Space Command, left, and Chief Master Sgt. Roger Towberman, right, hold the flag as President Donald Trump gestures, during the presentation of the Space Force Flag in the Oval Office of the White House, May 15, 2020, in Washington. Secretary of the Air Force Barbara Barrett stands far left. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)2025-09-02T14:33:46Z WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trumps administration will announce on Tuesday that U.S. Space Command will be located in Alabama, reversing a Biden-era decision to keep it at its temporary headquarters in Colorado, according to two people familiar with the announcement.Trump is expected to speak Tuesday afternoon, and he will give the new location, according to the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to confirm the plans ahead of the official announcement. A Pentagon website set up to livestream the remarks describes the event as a U.S. Space Command HQ Announcement.The president will be making an exciting announcement related to the Department of Defense, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said. Space Commands functions include conducting operations like enabling satellite-based navigation and troop communication and providing warning of missile launches. In this photo released by the U.S. Air Force, Capt. Ryan Vickers stands for a photo to display his new service tapes after taking his oath of office to transfer from the U.S. Air Force to the U.S. Space Force at Al-Udeid Air Base, Qatar, Sept. 1, 2020. (Staff Sgt. Kayla White/U.S. Air Force via AP, File) In this photo released by the U.S. Air Force, Capt. Ryan Vickers stands for a photo to display his new service tapes after taking his oath of office to transfer from the U.S. Air Force to the U.S. Space Force at Al-Udeid Air Base, Qatar, Sept. 1, 2020. (Staff Sgt. Kayla White/U.S. Air Force via AP, File) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Alabama and Colorado have long battled to claim Space Command because it has significant implications for the local economy. The site also has been a political prize, with elected officials from both Alabama and Colorado asserting their state is the better location. Huntsville, Alabama, nicknamed Rocket City, has long been home to the Armys Redstone Arsenal and NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center. The Armys Space and Missile Defense Command is also located in Huntsville, which drew its nickname because of its role in building the first rockets for the U.S. space program. The announcement caps a four-year back-and-forth on the location of Space Command. The Air Force in 2021 identified Army Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville as the preferred location for the new U.S. Space Command. The city was picked after site visits to six states that compared factors such as infrastructure capacity, community support and costs to the Defense Department. President Donald Trump steps off Air Force One after arriving at Huntsville International airport, Sept. 22, 2017, in Huntsville, Ala. President Donald Trumps administration says U.S. Space Command will be based in Alabama, reversing a Biden-era decision to keep it in Colorado. The announcement was made Wednesday. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) President Donald Trump steps off Air Force One after arriving at Huntsville International airport, Sept. 22, 2017, in Huntsville, Ala. President Donald Trumps administration says U.S. Space Command will be based in Alabama, reversing a Biden-era decision to keep it in Colorado. The announcement was made Wednesday. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Then-President Joe Biden in 2023 announced Space Command would be permanently located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, which had been serving as its temporary headquarters. Bidens Democratic administration said that keeping the command in Colorado Springs would avoid a disruption in readiness.A review by the Defense Department inspector general was inconclusive and could not determine why Colorado was chosen over Alabama. Trump, a Republican who enjoys deep support in Alabama, had long been expected to move Space Command back to Alabama. SEUNG MIN KIM Kim covers the White House for The Associated Press. She joined the AP in 2022 and is based in Washington. Kim is also a political analyst for CNN. twitter mailto

Its now illegal in Michigan to make AI-generated sexual imagery of someone without their written consent. Michigan joins 47 other states in the U.S. that have enacted their own deepfake laws.Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed the bipartisan-sponsored House Bills 4047 and its companion bill 4048 on August 26. In a press release, Whitmer specifically called out the sexual uses for deepfakes. These videos can ruin someones reputation, career, and personal life. As such, these bills prohibit the creation of deep fakes that depict individuals in sexual situations and creates sentencing guidelines for the crime, the press release states. Thats something weve seen time and time again with victims of deepfake harassment, whove told us over the course of the six years since consumer-level deepfakes first hit the internet that the most popular application of this technology has been carelessness and vindictiveness against the women its users targetand that sexual harassment using AI has always been its most popular use.Making a deepfake of someone is now a misdemeanor in Michigan, punishable by imprisonment of up to one year and fines up to $3,000 if they knew or reasonably should have known that the creation, distribution, dissemination, or reproduction of the deep fake would cause physical, emotional, reputational, or economic harm to an individual falsely depicted, and if the deepfake depicts the target engaging in a sexual act and is identifiable by a reasonable individual viewing or listening to the deep fake, the law states.I Want to Make You Immortal: How One Woman Confronted Her Deepfakes HarasserAfter discovering this content, Im not going to lie there are times it made me not want to be around any more either, she said. I literally felt buried.404 MediaSamantha ColeThis is all before the deepfakes creator posts it online. It escalates to a felony if the person depicted suffers financial loss, the person making the deepfake intended to profit off of it, if that person maintains a website or app for the purposes of creating deepfakes or if they posted it to any website at all, if they intended to harass, extort, threaten, or cause physical, emotional, reputational, or economic harm to the depicted individual, or if they have a previous conviction.Have you been targeted by deepfake harassment, or have you made deepfakes of real people? Using a non-work device, you can message me securely on Signal at sam.404. Otherwise, send me an email at sam@404media.co.The law specifically says that this isnt to be construed to make platforms liable, but the person making the deepfakes. But we already have federal law in place that makes platforms liable: the Tools to Address Known Exploitation by Immobilizing Technological Deepfakes on Websites and Networks, or TAKE IT DOWN Act, introduced by Ted Cruz in June 2024 and signed into law in May this year, made platforms liable for not moderating deepfakes and imposes extremely short timelines for acting on AI-generated abuse imagery reports from users. That laws drawn a lot of criticism from civil liberties and online speech activists for being too overbroad; As the Verge pointed out before it became law, because the Trump administrations FTC is in charge of enforcing it, it could easily become a weapon against all sorts of speech, including constitutionally-protected free speech."Platforms that feel confident that they are unlikely to be targeted by the FTC (for example, platforms that are closely aligned with the current administration) may feel emboldened to simply ignore reports of NCII, the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative told the Verge in April. Platforms attempting to identify authentic complaints may encounter a sea of false reports that could overwhelm their efforts and jeopardize their ability to operate at all."A Deepfake Nightmare: Stalker Allegedly Made Sexual AI Images of Ex-Girlfriends and Their FamiliesAn Ohio man is accused of making violent, graphic deepfakes of women with their fathers, and of their children. Device searches revealed he searched for undress apps and ai porn.404 MediaSamantha ColeIf you do not have perfect technology to identify whatever it is we're calling a deepfake, you are going to get a lot of guessing being done by the social media companies, and you're going to get disproportionate amounts of censorship, especially for marginalized groups, Kate Ruane, an attorney and director of the Center for Democracy and Technologys Free Expression Project, told me in June 2024. For a social media company, it is not rational for them to open themselves up to that risk, right? It's simply not. And so my concern is that any video with any amount of editing, which is like every single TikTok video, is then banned for distribution on those social media sites.On top of the TAKE IT DOWN Act, at the state level, deepfakes laws are either pending or enacted in every state except New Mexico and Missouri. In some states, like Wisconsin, the law only protects minors from deepfakes by expanding child sexual abuse imagery laws.Even as deepfakes legislation seems to finally catch up to the notion that AI-generated sexual abuse imagery is abusive, reporting this kind of harassment to authorities or pursing civil action against ones own abuser is still difficult, expensive, and re-traumatizing in most cases.

The past seven months have been disastrous for American democracy and good government. Donald Trump has weaponized the Justice Department against his enemies, sent occupying forces into Democratic cities, and given the rich a tax break at the expense of everyone else. His lackeys have stripped the government of experts, destroying Americas leadership in science and health and replacing it with crackpot theories bound to cost lives. None of this would have been possible without the consent indeed, complicity of Republican politicians, particularly in Congress. At this point, the GOP and Trumpism are synonymous. And that means that there are no good Republican politicians. Related There are finally signs that some Democrats are growing a spine against Trump Identifying truly terrible Republican politicians has never been hard. They gleefully spout homophobic, anti-trans, sexist, xenophobic, and racist comments while tripping all over themselves to out-Trump Trump.Its the so-called serious Republicans who have proven that the party is beyond the bounds of saving. Time and again, given the chance to stand up to Trump and exercise some principles, they have chosen instead to cave, enabling his worst appointees to take office and his worst impulses to have free rein. Dive deeper every day Join our newsletter for thought-provoking commentary that goes beyond the surface of LGBTQ+ issues Subscribe to our Newsletter today Trumps Cabinet is filled with people who shouldnt be in any office, let alone the highest level of government. That was painfully clear last week when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the entity that protects the nations health, essentially imploded due to the bizarre beliefs of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has slashed the agencys workforce.Instead of scientists with decades of experience, we now have a Peter Thiel disciple, Jim ONeill, leading the CDC. Fortune summed up his background thusly: The new head of the CDC has no training in medicine and once helpedPeter Thiel develop man-made islands floating outside U.S. territory. The Republican most responsible for Kennedy taking office was Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), a physician who tied himself in knots to justify casting the deciding vote on Kennedys behalf. Cassidy claimed to accept Kennedys promise not to promote anti-vaccine nonsense, despite the fact that Kennedys career is premised on just that argument. Cassidys hesitation proved that he knew better, but he caved into pressure from Trump. Now the entire health of the nation is at risk, and Cassidy is feebly calling for oversight of the CDC as if that will ever happen.Kennedy is hardly the only wrecking ball sent sailing by GOP senators. As the nominee to run the Defense Department, Pete Hegseth had none of the qualifications necessary and a string of alarming accusations about abusing women and drinking problems. Yet, despite his clear lack of ability, Hegseth won confirmation, with a crucial vote coming from Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), who had made harassment against women in the military something she knew about first-hand a major issue. Even ostensibly normal Republicans betray their true colors in the face of Trumpism. Lori Chavez De-Remer, a GOP congresswoman from Oregon, was considered a reasonable choice as Trumps Labor Secretary. At Trumps marathon three-hour press briefing with his Cabinet last week, Chavez De-Remer embarrassed herself by praising Trump with the kind of language more suitable for a leader in North Korea.I invite you to see your big, beautiful face on a banner in front of the Department of Labor, said Chavez De-Remer. You are really the transformational President of the American worker. She also invited Trump to send ICE into Portland.Every time something blows up, there are the usual hand-wringings by the serious crowd. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) expressions of concern have become a running joke. The argument that Republican politicians seem to make to themselves is that they are better fighting in the party than outside of it. But at this stage of the game, whats the point of that fight? Its not as if the party can be salvaged any time soon. Trump has elevated the stakes so much that it really has become much more of a case of right versus wrong. Are deregulation and tax cuts worth sacrificing commitment to free and fair elections and an honest government?In fact, if anything, what keeps people from doing the right thing is fear. After he left the Senate, Mitt Romney spoke frankly about the fear his colleagues had of Trump fear for their careers, for their future earning power, and even fear for their physical safety. Instead of standing up which Romney did those that can no longer stand it chose the easy way out, opting to retire like Ernst and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC).As long as Republican politicians keep caving, there is no way to accept them as acting in good faith for the best interests of the country. No matter how concerned they may be, they are in partnership with Trump in destroying it. Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

A 29-year-old man has been released from jail after being arrested for rubbing chalk on his shoe as part of a protest against Floridas crackdown on rainbow crosswalks. On Friday night, Orestes Sebastian Suarez and his wife visited the Orlando crosswalk that, until recently, was painted rainbow to honor the victims of the Pulse nightclub tragedy. State officials painted over the memorial in accordance with Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) new anti-street art rules, which led protestors to continue restoring the rainbow with chalk. Related Delray Beach to defy Ron DeSantis & fight to keep its Pride crosswalk The site has been monitored by the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) and now includes signs declaring, No Impeding Traffic and Defacing Roadway Prohibited. In the wake of the new restrictions on even chalking the area, Suarez reportedly attempted a workaround, rubbing chalk on his shoe and then walking across the crosswalk. FHP arrested him for interfering with a traffic control device. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today We put some chalk down on the ground, and before we knew it, officers were approaching us, saying, hey, we want to talk to you, Suarez told WESH. I came, I identified myself, tried to do everything the correct way, and before I knew it, I was in the back of a squad car.The following day, a judge released him without charges after finding no probable cause. He then returned triumphantly to the crosswalk, where he danced and clapped his away cross in the rain as folks around him cheered. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) has now painted over the Orlando crosswalk twice. The first time, the department did so in the dead of nightwithout notifying city officials after repeatedly ordering municipalities across the state to remove their Pride intersections or face financial consequences.FDOT returned to paint over it again and began monitoring the site after protestors repainted it. But protestors have continued to return with chalk as police and highway patrol vehicles surveil. Robby Dodd, who lost friends in the Pulse tragedy, showed up to chalk last Sunday morning and called the police presence ridiculous.It feels weird because there could be anything else they could be doing right now other than watching us color. I mean, its chalk, itll wash away, and we understand that too, but meanwhile, taxpayer dollars are putting state troopers and OPD out here.In July, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy urged governors to remove any political messages, artwork, and markings on intersections not directly related to pedestrian or driver safety. He wrote on social media, Taxpayers expect their dollars to fund safe streets, not rainbow crosswalks.GOP officials claim the crosswalks distract drivers, but data says otherwise. TheBloomberg Philanthropies 2022 Asphalt Art Safety Studyfound that crashes involving pedestrians or cyclists drop 50% at painted intersections.It also reported a 25% decrease in conflicts between drivers and pedestrians, a 27% increase in drivers immediately yielding to pedestrians, and a 38% decrease in pedestrians crossing when the walk signal was not lit at intersections involving public art. The data also revealed that injuries resulting from crashes drop 37% in painted intersections. Nevertheless, cities across Florida are grappling with the mounting pressure to remove their Pride crosswalks amid a new anti-street art law recently signed by Gov. DeSantis. Some have complied while others have expressed their determination to resist. Last week, DeSantis slammed the cities that are pushing back on his mandates, accusing them of virtue signalling. He declared during a press conference, Were not doing the commandeering of the roads to put up messaging.While the Pride intersections are no doubt the motivation for the new no street art policy from the anti-LGBTQ+ DeSantis administration, the state is implementing the law across the board, presumably with the goal of making it appear not to target LGBTQ+ people.Officials are forcing municipalities to remove street murals expressing support for everything from racial justice to police forces. Some of thereported 400 muralson the list to be removed are also merely art pieces with no underlying message, including one outside a school in Tallahassee, created by students. At the same press conference, state Transportation Secretary Jared Perdue made clear that prior approval for street art by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is no longer relevant now that DeSantis has signed a law forbidding it.Pavement art is not allowed and were removing everything thats not compliant with state/federal standards and thats the approach that were taking, Perdue said.Lets be honest. We all know this is not about traffic safety. This is political, said Delray Beach Vice Mayor Rob Longduring a commission meeting. Its part of the same culture war climate where symbols of inclusion are targeted precisely because they represent acceptance. Its about erasing the visibility of our LGBTQ+ people at the same time when their rights are again under direct threat.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

LGBTQ leaders in Washington, DC, and in states deploying their National Guard to a militarized DC, speak out about the dangers to LGBTQ people in DC and to public safety at home. Dwayne Steward, Equality Ohio Executive Director You dont have to be from Ohio to know the dangerous history of injecting the National Guard [...]The post Bring Them Home: Deploying Our State National Guard for Political Purposes Endangers Public Safety first appeared on GLAAD.

Womens sports are overwhelmingly queer. From the WNBA to the National Womens Soccer League and now womens rugby, sapphics are dominating in the world of sports. There are 54 queer women currently competing in the 2025 Womens Rugby World Cup, and in case you thought it couldnt get any gayer, more than a dozen rugby players are either dating their teammates or their rivals.These sapphics love hard and play hard, sometimes playing together and other times battling it out against each other on the pitch. In the end, love always wins!rugbyAlev Kelter And Kathryn TrederSee on InstagramRugby stars Alev Kelter and Kathryn Treder have been playing together for years. They were teammates on the Loughborough Lightning, are currently both representing the U.S. in the Rugby World Cup, and are set to play together in the inaugural season of Elite Womens Rugby for the Bay Breakers. The two athletes got engaged in 2024, when Kelter proposed after winning a Bronze medal at the Paris Olympics.Marlie Packer and Rosie GalliganSee on InstagramAfter spending a few years on opposing teams, Marlie Packer and Rosie Galligan are now partners in life and on the pitch. The couple play together at home on the Saracens and are currently fighting it out side-by-side for England in the Rugby World Cup. Packer and Galligan got engaged in June 2025 in a sweet lakeside proposal they shared on social media. Mckenzie Carson and Sarah BernSee on InstagramCouple Mckenzie Carson and Sarah Bern are both rivals and teammates. They usually play on opposing teams, with Carson playing for Gloucester-Hartpury and Bern competing for Bristol Bears. But at this years Rugby World Cup the two star athletes are playing together for Englands Red Roses.Holly Aitchison and Hannah BottermanHolly Aitchison and Hannah Botterman first met in college, where they bonded over their love of rugby at Hartpury College, and a decade later, theyre partners in life and on the pitch. While the two have played on the same team before, they are about to be rivals with Aitchison joining the Sale Sharks ahead of the 2025-26 season and Botterman playing for Bristol Bears. Luckily, they are currently playing together in the Rugby World Cup where they are representing England.Dannah OBrien and Katie WhalenSee on InstagramDannah OBrien is currently in the Rugby World Cup competing for Ireland, but she normally plays alongside her partner Katie Whalen for Leinster. Giordana Duca and Michela SillariSee on InstagramItalian rugby stars Giordana Duca and Michela Sillari have been teammates over and over again during the course of their relationship. They played together in the delayed 2021 Rugby World Cup, competed on the same team in the Six Nations Championship, and are currently competing together in the 2025 World Cup games. Leia Brebner-Holden and Elis MartinSee on InstagramLeia Brebner-Holden is in a relationship with fellow rugby star Elis Martin. The two athletes played against each other when Brebner-Holden was playing for Gloucester-Hatpury and Martin was competing for Loughborough Lightning, but now both women are on the Lightning and currently competing together at the 2025 Rugby World Cup.Jasmine Joyce-Butchers and Alisha ButchersSee on InstagramThree-time Olympian Jasmine Joyce-Butchers may currently be representing Wales at the 2025 Rugby World Cup without her wife, Alisha Butchers, but they normally share the pitch together as part of the Bristol Bears. The two lovebirds got married in December 2023 and are now looking forward to welcoming their first child in November.Kayleigh Powell and Lucy BurgessSee on InstagramWales rugby star Kayleigh Powell is currently competing in the Rugby World Cup, but outside of the international competition, she plays alongside her girlfriend Lucy Burgess. Powell and Burgess used to play together on the Bristol Bears, and now both compete for the Harlequins.Charli Jacoby and Lori CramerSee on InstagramCharli Jacoby and Lori Cramer met through rugby and started dating about 18 months ago. While theyve been dating, theyve played together on the Exeter Chiefs and now are competing against each other in the Rugby World Cup. Jacoby is playing for the United States, while Cramer is competing for Australia.Julia Schell and Rachel MalcomSee on InstagramRugby stars Julia Schell and Rachel Malcom started dating about 18 months ago and while they were teammates on the Exeter Chiefs, they are now going head-to-head in the rugby World Cup. Schell is representing Canada and Malcom is the captain of Scotlands team.Kelsey Jones and Sarah BeckettSee on InstagramWelsh Rugby World Cup star Kelsey Jones and her partner, Sarah Beckett, play together for Gloucester-Hartpury, but earlier this year they got to experience what its like to be on rival teams. Jones played for Wales while Beckett represented England at the 2025 Six Nations Championship.Cliodhna Moloney-MacDonald and Claudia Moloney-MacDonaldSee on InstagramCliodhna Moloney-MacDonald and Claudia Moloney-MacDonald got married in May 2025 on the Greek Island of Rhodes, and after they wed, Claudia took Cliodhnas last name. They may be living in wedded bliss, but the two women are both teammates and rivals on the pitch. They play together for Exeter Chiefs, but are playing against each other in the Rugby World Cup where Cliodhna represents Ireland while Claudia competes for England.

On Sunday, CNN anchor Brianna Keilar challenged White House counterterrorism director Sebastian Gorka after he advanced a debunked narrative that transgender people are disproportionately responsible for mass shootings.The exchange came days after a massacre in Minneapolis, where 23-year-old Robin Westman, who was trans, opened fire during a back-to-school mass at Annunciation Catholic School, killing two children and wounding at least 17 others before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. While investigators probe Westmans motives for the Wednesday shooting, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey warned against scapegoating. Anybody who is using this as an opportunity to villainize our trans community or any other community out there has lost their sense of common humanity. Kids died. This needs to be about them, he said.Still, on national television, Gorka falsely argued there had been seven transgender shooters in recent years. Keilar pushed back, citing the U.S. Secret Service Threat Assessment Centers review of 172 mass attacks from 2016 to 2020, which found 96 percent of perpetrators were cisgender men. Are you missing the bigger picture here when you zero in on that instead of more broadly these school shooters as an epidemic? she asked.Related: Minneapolis mayor warns against villainizing trans community after shooting leaves 2 children deadGorka rejected the data as pseudo facts and pointed instead to a list he had posted on X, formerly Twitter. It included Audrey Hale, who killed six in Nashville in 2023; Alec McKinney, who in 2019 carried out the STEM School Highlands Ranch attack in Colorado; and Snochia Moseley, who killed three at a Rite Aid warehouse in Maryland in 2018. (@) But he also listed Dylan Butler, a 17-year-old who killed one student in Perry, Iowa, despite no evidence that Butler identified as transgender; Anderson Lee Aldrich, who murdered five in Colorado Springs at Club Q in 2022, though Aldrichs nonbinary claim is disputed given expressed anti-LGBTQ+ views; and Kimbrady Carriker, who killed five in Philadelphia in 2023, whom prosecutors said was not transgender.Related: No, transgender and nonbinary people are not frequently mass shootersWhen Keilar cited CNNs own count of 32 major school shootings since 2020, only three of which involved trans shooters, Gorka replied, Forgive me if I dont go with CNN stats. CNN has proven itself to be wholly inaccurate.The Advocate has previously reported that out of more than 4,600 mass shootings between 2014 and 2024, at most six involved transgender suspects, just 0.128 percent. Cisgender men committed the overwhelming majority.We cant stick with your facts because theyre not accurate, Keilar told Gorka. In fact, in two of the cases youve cited, theres no evidence the individuals were trans. Gorka shot back, accusing her of pushing an agenda and calling her corrections fake news.Human Rights Campaign press secretary Brandon Wolf, a survivor of the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting, said after the shooting that blaming trans people was wrong, dangerous, and dehumanizing.Watch Brianna Keilar correct Sebastian Gorka on live TV below. - YouTube www.youtube.com

A new video of August Alsina and his boyfriend Zu attending Atlanta Pride 2025 has gone viral over the weekend. While Alsina had already come out and previously acknowledged his relationship with Zu, the social media reaction to this viral video showcase how many fans were completely unaware of this couple.Zu shared a statement via Instagram Story on Monday, September 1 that reads:"This my first and only time addressing this, I don't give a fuck about any external validation whatsoever. I don't need anyone's likeness, But I'm a grown ass man, with his own mind and free will...if I ever do anything it's because I want to do it. l met August when I was already of age, an adult. Aug didn't even know me when I was 16 or 17 not sure where that came from yea there's a slight age difference but y'all pick and chooses who to judge when it comes to that. We will have known each other for 5 years toward the end of the year, so he's speaking in future terms because that's where we plan to make it.""I know I'm not an internet person and prioritize my peace before anything, and protect my relationship, because the media at times can seep in and tarnish beautiful dynamics. August is my boyfriend, and we're happy with each other, simple But I can see how being quiet, and trying to protect something of value to you, can allow some people to spin the narrative and create a bunch of different scenarios which aren't true.""Aug gives me a GREAT life, & I'm thankful," Zu concludes. "What y'all don't know is, that I run this relationship I call the shots, August just shows up and supports me in whatever I want to do. He supports my dream, he IS A DREAM! Nothing is ever forced on either end, hope this clears up any confusion Stay fly."Instead of writing a brand-new statement to address this situation, Alsina re-shared Zu's post from Instagram Story and wrote a short sentence over it:"My bul be chillin, all myserious n sht [laughing emojis] but I loveeee when the Yung God speaks!!"One of the main viral videos that prompted Alsina and Zu to disclose their relationship was shared by the TikTok page @ceomrmunter."August Alsina and his lil man friend cut or whatever. I think. Lol," the caption reads.This video alone (as seen below) garnered 3.3 million views and more than 293,000 likes as of this writing.@ceomrhunter#augustalsina and his lil man friend cut or whatever. I think. Lol . 3rd. Unlike fellow R&B singer Khalid who was outed on social media and felt forced to come out as a result Alsina had already acknowledged his sexuality. Nonetheless, Alsina clearly didn't intend to go public with Zu up until this viral video, which means that his privacy was still sort of violated.This story is still developing