Liz Oyer tells of how she refused to ‘rubber-stamp a political favor’ in gun rights case involving Trump ally Mel Gibson

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Liz Oyer, a former pardon attorney, condemned Todd Blanche, Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, over his Wednesday testimony to the Senate judiciary committee. Blanche fired Oyer after she refused to recommend restoring firearms rights to the actor and Trump ally Mel Gibson, who was previously convicted of domestic violence.

“I declined to rubber-stamp a political favor for a friend of the president, and it cost me my job,” the former US pardon attorney told the committee on the second day of Blanche’s confirmation hearing.

White House press secretary returns to briefing room to defend president amid reporting that his 9pm address will be about US elections

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The average price of diesel fuel in the US has increased again to more than $5 a gallon, according to the AAA, and the average price of gas is almost $4, returning to their highs before the June memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran.

It’s a reminder to consumers and truckers of the costs of the Iran war and the unpredictable rhetoric from both Washington and Tehran. A year ago today, the AAA says, the average price for a gallon of diesel was $3.72, almost a dollar and a quarter less than it is now.

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In his opening statement before senators today, Todd Blanche, said that he is “pleased to testify again today to tell everybody here that we are doing just that-we are keeping America safe”.

The nominee for attorney general, who has been leading the justice department in an acting capacity since Pam Bondi was fired in April.

Lindsey Graham’s younger sister appointed by South Carolina’s governor three days after senator’s death

• Darline Graham Nordone: Lindsey Graham’s sister and interim US senator

Darline Graham, the sister of the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham, was sworn in to temporarily fill his Senate seat on Tuesday, just three days after his sudden death.

Graham was appointed by Henry McMaster, South Carolina’s governor, to fill the remainder of her brother’s current term.

Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett appear before House lawmakers in rare testimony to ask for more protection

Supreme court justice Amy Coney Barrett told House lawmakers that a sharp rise in threats against her and other justices is increasingly affecting her personal and family lives.

Barrett and fellow supreme court justice Elena Kagan made the case for increased security in rare House testimony to discuss the court’s budget request. The last time a sitting justice answered questions on Capitol Hill was 2019.

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Konstantin Sokolov, a Russian-born private equity investor in Chicago, will serve as chairman of a new state department enterprise fund overseeing more than $200m designated for a central Asia trade corridor, including investments in transportation, energy infrastructure and critical minerals, the Guardian has learned.

The state department confirmed his appointment on Friday.

The former US Senate candidate’s spectacular fall has upended the Maine Senate race and left voters fuming at the party

Almost exactly one year ago, Graham Platner, who has no political experience, was cherry-picked by out-of-state political activists.

According to a person familiar with the campaign, Daniel Moraff and Leanne Fan, who have made a name for themselves by recruiting populist candidates across the country, traveled to Maine and rented a house near Platner’s home in Sullivan to convince him to run for the US Senate. Throughout the process, Moraff became Platner’s “right-hand man”, the person described, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of backlash.

Earlier this week, Graham Platner, the Democratic candidate for Senate in Maine, was accused by a former partner of sexual assault. Platner denies the allegations, but on Wednesday, he suspended his campaign, accusing the “political establishment” of tanking his candidacy. But this is only the most recent scandal to have surfaced around Platner’s campaign — over the past year, the oyster farmer and combat veteran was revealed to have a tattoo that closely resembled a Totenkopf (a widely recognized Nazi symbol), a long paper trail of racist, misogynist and homophobic posts on Reddit, and in June, the New York Times published allegations from three former partners about Platner’s “toxic” behavior in their relationships, including, in several cases, physical intimidation (allegations Platner denied).

As Democrats regroup and evaluate their dwindling chances to flip the Senate in November, hosts Kai Wright and Carter Sherman are joined by Guardian political reporters Lauren Gambino and Shrai Popat to ask why voters flocked to Platner, why they were reluctant to abandon him as the scandals came out — and what the whole mess says about who gets the privilege of political redemption.

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Former Olympic canoeist David Hearn has pleaded not guilty to vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool.

Hearn, 67, from Maryland, was arrested last month after stopping by the pool on a bike ride. He told several outlets that he was detained for almost five hours after he reached into the water to inspect what he described a piece of the blue liner that was partially detached from the bottom of the pool as he was curious what it felt like.

Democratic nominee, dogged by controversy since entering contest, says ‘for the movement to continue, it can’t be me’

• Woman accuses Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner of sexual assault

Graham Platner, the Democratic nominee for US Senate in Maine, is suspending his campaign following sexual assault allegations.

Platner announced his decision in an 11-minute video posted to social media on Wednesday evening, in which he angrily accused the Democratic establishment and corporate media of “using these allegations to take away all of the things we need to run a campaign” and acting “as judge, jury and executioner”.

Frustration mounts that Maine nominee has not withdrawn over sexual assault claim as Trump says Platner ‘in a bind’

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Graham Platner, the embattled Democratic nominee for US Senate in Maine, has been accused of trying to influence the process of picking his replacement as frustration mounts that he has not yet withdrawn from the race.

Platner has publicly said he is “taking the time to reflect on the best path forward” after an allegation of sexual assault, which he denied, was published on Monday.

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• Graham Platner ends Maine Senate campaign after sexual assault allegation

• Maine contenders: the Democrats who could replace Graham Platner

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During a bilateral meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Nato summit in Ankara, Donald Trump was asked about Iran, and he repeated his earlier criticism.

On Wednesday, while speaking to reporters alongside Mark Rutte, the Nato secretary general, Trump said that memorandum of understanding signed last month by the US and Iran is “over”, in the wake of the latest strikes.

Democrats weigh options as controversial Senate nominee faces calls to drop out of race after sexual assault allegation

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Top Democrats are considering their options as Graham Platner, the party’s candidate for US Senate in Maine, faces growing calls to withdraw after a sexual assault allegation.

While Platner has denied the claims, first reported by Politico on Monday, they sparked a chorus of criticism. He said he was “taking the time to reflect on the best path forward” in the wake of the story.

Sanders, one of Platner’s earliest and most influential backers, is latest to call on him to withdraw from Maine race

The progressive senator Bernie Sanders called on Graham Platner to withdraw from the US Senate race in Maine, citing “very serious allegations” of sexual assault, hours before the embattled nominee faced another claim of sexual misconduct.

While Platner has denied the new allegations, reported by Politico, and later by the Washington Post, the initial report prompted a wave of prominent Democrats to urge him to stand aside as the party’s nominee in the consequential Senate contest.

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• How could Democrats replace Graham Platner?

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Donald Trump said he had a “very good talk” withVladimir Putin, ahead of arriving in Turkey.

This comes amid a wave of recent Russian strikes across Ukraine that have killed at least 21 people. The US president said that he also spoke with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy ahead of the Nato summit.

Several top Democratic figures call on beleaguered Maine Senate candidate, who denies accusation, to step down

Calls for Graham Platner, the Democratic candidate for US Senate in Maine, to withdraw his candidacy intensified on Monday after a woman accused him of sexual assault in an exclusive report by Politico.

While Platner denied the claims, many top Democratic figures quickly called on the beleaguered nominee to step down.

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• Woman accuses Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner of sexual assault

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Cruz just thanked Donald Trump for “getting rid of that ridiculous red card” – apparently in reference to Folarin Balogun. The US striker received a straight red card from referee Raphael Claus after a video review, but Fifa have now lifted Bolagun’s one-match ban, making him now available to play for the USA in their knockout match against Belgium on Monday.

As my colleagues covering the World Cup note, despite the move being considered excessively harsh, Fifa’s disciplinary code does not permit appeals against straight red cards, with officials from the world governing body and US Soccer confirming after the game that the sanction could not be challenged.

President, in latest AI-generated social media post, targets prominent celebrities who have spoken out against him

Donald Trump on Thursday posted an AI-generated social media video portraying himself as a doctor who claims to have cured some of his most prominent celebrity critics – including Rosie O’Donnell – of the fictional condition “Trump derangement syndrome”.

Outside the AI fantasy, O’Donnell said her assessment of the president remained unchanged. In a statement, she offered her own diagnosis: “He’s quite ill-and getting worse daily. The 25th amendment exists for exactly this reason. Remove. Impeach. Convict.”

Abdul El-Sayed, backed by Bernie Sanders, leads polls ahead of Haley Stevens and Mallory McMorrow in primary

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has thrown her support behind Abdul El-Sayed, the doctor and progressive Democrat seeking the party’s nomination in Michigan’s closely watched US Senate race.

In an interview with the New York Times, Ocasio-Cortez – an influential congresswoman on the left of the Democratic party – endorsed El-Sayed, a former public health director. “Despite our ideological differences and whatever disagreements there are in the party, every single one of us sees this moment as existential,” she said.