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One in four Trump supporters has concerns about tariff policy

One in four Trump supporters has concerns about tariff policy

Independent2 days ago
A recent poll reveals that many of Donald Trump 's voters have reservations about his tariff policies, especially those targeting China.
Only half of Trump voters surveyed believe that his tariffs on China will ultimately benefit US companies.
Roughly one in four Trump voters expressed concerns that the tariffs are damaging the US's ability to negotiate trade agreements with other nations.
Trump's supporters are nearly evenly split on whether he should require Congressional approval to impose tariffs or if he should possess the sole authority.
While 46 per cent of Trump voters support tariffs on China even if they lead to higher domestic prices, a quarter of them also think these tariffs are detrimental to US companies.
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‘It's a concentration camp': Everything we know about Trump's new ‘Alligator Alcatraz' in the Florida Everglades
‘It's a concentration camp': Everything we know about Trump's new ‘Alligator Alcatraz' in the Florida Everglades

The Independent

time23 minutes ago

  • The Independent

‘It's a concentration camp': Everything we know about Trump's new ‘Alligator Alcatraz' in the Florida Everglades

The name given by Donald Trump and his allies to Florida 's new barebones immigrant detention camp is ghoulish enough: 'Alligator Alcatraz'. Critics, however, argue that it is nothing less than a concentration camp on American soil, designed to round up disfavored minorities even if they have committed no crimes. Rapidly built and opened in the space of just two weeks on a remote and rarely used airstrip in Florida's reptile-rich Everglades, the camp is intended to hold up to 5,000 people arrested by U.S. immigration authorities while they await deportation. Numerous detainees, their families, and their lawyers have already alleged inhumane and unsafe conditions, including maggoty food and overflowing toilets. Polling suggests that almost half of all Americans disapprove of the facility, with only 26 per cent of independent voters being in favor. So what exactly is Alligator Alcatraz, and what will happen to the so far 700-odd people detained there? Surrounded by alligators and pythons Long before his 2024 election victory, Donald Trump and his team were drawing up plans to deport millions of people every year — and hold them in vast new detention camps while their cases were processed. Alligator Alcatraz is a preview of that potential future. Rather than being the federal government, it's actually a project of Florida's Republican governor — and former Trump election rival — Ron DeSantis, who invoked emergency powers to seize the land last month. Who funded this remains unclear. DeSantis has said he will be reimbursed by the federal government, and Trump's homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, has said it will be "largely funded" by FEMA. Yet in court filings, the U.S. Justice Department has claimed that "not implemented, authorized, directed, or funded Florida's temporary detention center" — despite the fact that immigration enforcement is handled by the federal government. Regardless, Republicans have made no secret of their rationale. "You don't need to invest that much in the perimeter," claimed Florida's attorney general James Uthmeier. "If people get out, there's not much waiting for them other than alligators and pythons." And yes, 'Alligator Alcatraz' is now its official name. It's even emblazoned on road signs that lead to the facility. 'Packed into cages' The facility's construction is extremely basic — and its conditions are allegedly brutal. Detainees are kept in metal cages, with dozens of people packed into each one, housed inside gigantic heavy-duty tents in the sweltering heat. Even the staff appear to be based in temporary prefab huts and mobile trailers parked nearby. Detainees and their families have reported worm-infested food, routine medical neglect, unreliable air conditioning, and inadequate toilets that overflow and cover the floor with feces. Government officials have adamantly disputed these accusations, but have provided few details and have denied access to the media. In total, there are currently around 3,000 beds. 'They have no way to bathe, no way to wash their mouths, the toilet overflows and the floor is flooded with pee and poop,' said the wife of one 35-year-old Cuban detainee. "They eat once a day and have two minutes to eat. The meals have worms." At one point, detainees "all went on a hunger strike" in protest against the conditions, she said, adding that her calls with him were interrupted every three minutes by an automated voice saying the conversation was recorded. Lawyers have also reported being refused access and prevented from speaking to their clients. Leamsy 'La Figura' Izquierdo, a Cuban reggaeton artist arrested last week in Miami-Dade County for assault with a deadly weapon and transferred to Alligator Alcatraz, likewise told CBS News: 'There's no water to take a bath, it's been four days since I've taken a bath. "They only brought a meal once a day and it has maggots. They never take off the lights for 24 hours. The mosquitoes are as big as elephants." Another detainee said guards had taken away his Bible and told him that "here there is no right to religion". Democratic legislators who visited the camp say they're deeply concerned. While a bipartisan group was allowed to visit on July 12 — as required by state law — they were given a "sanitized" tour of still-empty areas with no detainees. Even then, their review was harsh. 'They are essentially packed into cages, wall-to-wall humans," said Florida congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. 'This place needs to be shut the hell down. They're abusing human beings." A spokesperson for the Florida state government said, "The reporting on the conditions in the facility is completely false. The facility meets all required standards and is in good working order." Who is detained there? In early July, Donald Trump claimed that the Florida facility would "handle the most menacing migrants, some of the most vicious people on the planet" — and said he wants to see similar facilities built in "many states". But what we know of Alligator Alcatraz's inmates conflicts with his description. According to The Miami Herald and Tampa Bay Times, only one-third of the 700 people currently being held there have any criminal conviction whatsoever. 250 detainees have been judged to have broken immigration law, which is a civil offence and not a criminal one. One detainee, who described the conditions as potentially "a form of torture", told CBS: "A lot of us have our residency documents and we don't understand why we're here." That fits the general pattern of Trump's detentions so far. Despite promising to prioritize "the worst of the worst", data suggests that only 8 percent of the estimated 185,000 people detained by ICE between October 1, 2024 and May 31, 2025 had been convicted of a serious crime. One-third of detainees had some kind of criminal conviction, but among that group, 75 percent had only committed low-level crimes such as traffic offenses. How long detainees will stay at Alligator Alcatraz is unclear, but immigration court proceedings can take months or years, and the Trump administration has said it will deny bail en masse. Hence, it could be a long time for some. Is it a concentration camp? Some critics believe so. Among them is the journalist Andrea Pitzer, author of One Long Night: A Global History of Concentration Camps, who made her case in a recent op-ed for MSNBC. "This facility's purpose fits the classic model: mass civilian detention without real trials targeting vulnerable groups for political gain based on ethnicity, race, religion or political affiliation rather than for crimes committed," Pitzer wrote. "We're still in the early stages of this arc, but... the history of this kind of detention underlines that it would be a mistake to think the current cruelties are the endpoint. America is likely just getting started." While the term 'concentration camp' is most associated with the Nazis, such camps have been widely used by numerous nations, including the U.K., the U.S., Spain, and the Soviet Union. Immigration lawyer Raul A. Reyes likewise argued in The Los Angeles Times that Alligator Alcatraz is a "national disgrace" that "will place detainees in life-threatening conditions". He further claimed the facility "appears intentionally designed to inflict suffering on detainees", citing supporters' "gleeful" attitude to the idea of federal detainees being eaten by alligators. The Florida Republican Party, and Uthmeier himself, are even selling Alligator Alcatraz merchandise, including baseball caps, water bottles, and beer koozies.

Putin has just discovered the scale of his latest miscalculation
Putin has just discovered the scale of his latest miscalculation

Telegraph

time33 minutes ago

  • Telegraph

Putin has just discovered the scale of his latest miscalculation

President Donald Trump has finally lost patience with Vladimir Putin. Having promised a 'major' announcement on Russia, Trump has now confirmed that the US will dramatically increase weapons supplies to Europe for use in Ukraine and threatened 100 per cent secondary tariffs on Russia's trade partners. Trump would only provide Russia with an off-ramp if Putin agreed to a ceasefire in Ukraine within 50 days. The announcement should put to bed any remaining speculation that the president was prepared to unilaterally surrender Ukraine to Russia. These concerns reached a fever pitch after his disastrous February Oval Office meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky and subsequent temporary moratorium on intelligence sharing and arms deliveries to Ukraine. Since Kyiv repaired trust with the Trump administration by agreeing to a 30-day ceasefire in Jeddah on March 11, the White House has viewed Russia as the primary obstacle to peace. Initially, Trump evidently believed that he could steer Russia towards peace through constructive dialogue. He regularly called Putin, and his envoy Steve Witkoff expressed openness to legitimising Russia's occupation of Ukrainian territory. But Putin treated these conciliatory gestures as displays of weakness and decided to escalate the war. Russia's record-setting drone and missile barrages on Ukrainian cities reflected Putin's confidence in his impunity and in Trump's unwillingness to escalate. Much like his underestimation of Ukrainian resolve and Western military assistance after his February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Putin's bombast has been caught cold. Trump's new measures do not satisfy all of Ukraine's expectations, but have the potential to deal serious harm to Russia's war machine and faltering economy. As Joe Biden's administration had only provided Ukraine with a small number of ATACM long-range missiles, these stocks were reportedly depleted by late January. Ukraine has been forced to largely rely on its drone innovations to strike targets deep inside Russian territory and its June 1 Operation Spiderweb attack on Russian strategic bombers was a signature triumph. While new US missiles will not unilaterally change the course of the war, they could broaden Ukraine's ability to strike Russian military and economic infrastructure. Even without additional US support, reports suggest that Ukraine was recently able to strike a major gas pipeline in Langepas in Russia's Tyumen Oblast that supplies military facilities in Chelyabinsk, Orenburg and Sverdlovsk. With more US aid, Ukraine's possibilities grow significantly. Much depends on the nature of the technology that the US is willing to export. Ukraine hopes that Trump will approve the delivery of the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM), a newly minted upgrade on ATACMs that is compatible with Himars systems. The PrSM has a strike radius of approximately 500km which is significantly higher than the 300km range for ATACMs. As the PrSM has not been authorised for delivery even to close Nato allies, F-16 compatible JASSM-ER missiles are more plausible options for Ukraine. These missiles can strike targets up to 925 km away and could fulfil Trump's braggadocio about approving strikes on Moscow. Even if he settles simply for more ATACMs, he will signal to Putin that he is no longer afraid of the Kremlin's nuclear bluff. Trump's secondary tariffs on Russia's main trade partners may be difficult to enforce without undermining other aspects of his economic agenda. Imposing tariffs on the United Arab Emirates, a key financial hub for Russian business elites, for example, might compromise the investment influx pledged during Trump's May trip to Abu Dhabi. These tariffs would also risk an escalation spiral in the US trade war with China and derail final-hurdle trade negotiations with India. As Russia has already largely decoupled itself from Western-dominated financial networks, the short-term economic repercussions for US trade partners in the developing world may be worse than for Russia itself. Nonetheless, any new tariffs will restrict Russia's import supply chains and compound rising inflation. If they are paired with new sectoral and individual sanctions, the damage to Russia's war economy could be profound. At the June 2025 St Petersburg Economic Forum, Russian Minister of Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov signalled a recession might be imminent. That risk has just jumped significantly. Trump has finally realised that Putin can only be stopped by intensifying economic and military pressure on his war machine. This realisation might not quickly end the war, but will be a relief to Ukrainians facing Russia's daily bombardments.

The one US city foreign tourists aren't snubbing as Trump boycott leaves popular destinations on brink
The one US city foreign tourists aren't snubbing as Trump boycott leaves popular destinations on brink

Daily Mail​

time33 minutes ago

  • Daily Mail​

The one US city foreign tourists aren't snubbing as Trump boycott leaves popular destinations on brink

As cities across the US attract a dwindling numbers of foreign tourists upset over Donald Trump 's presidency, America's biggest and brightest metropolis has managed to keep drawing visitors in. New York City 's tourism sector is not only surviving a boycott by non-citizens, but thriving. The Big Apple is expected to see 12 million foreign tourists this year, roughly the same as in 2024, according to the Wall Street Journal. During roughly the first half of the year, hotels in the Big Apple had an 82 percent occupancy rate - nearly 20 percent above the national rate. NYC's major attractions are even outdoing their numbers from 2024, when the city hosted a near–record 64 million tourists. Broadway shows are pulling in the most audience members since 2019, before the industry was rocked by pandemic restrictions, and museums in the city are also welcoming more visitors, the WSJ reported. 'In terms of overall demand, New York is holding up well nationally,' Gabe Buerkle, senior analyst at real–estate investment firm Cohen & Steers, told the WSJ. 'New York has remained an outperformer, benefiting from domestic tourism and business demand.' By comparison, Los Angeles - the next most popular US city among international tourists in 2024, according to a report by Euromonitor - is projected to see a decrease in international tourists this year. 'The LA Tourism and Convention Bureau is anticipating year-over-year reductions in total international visitors to LA by between 25 and 30 percent,' LAWA CEO John Ackerman told NBC. The third most popular US city for foreign travelers, Las Vegas, has also seen fewer tourists, with visits falling 7.8 percent from March 2024 to March 2025, according to Travel Weekly. Shrinking numbers of foreign tourists in the US can be at least partly attributed to Trump's presidency. Foreign travelers say they are finding it hard to secure visas under the Trump administration's policies. Canadian travel to the US was down 13 percent year-over-year in June, according to airport traffic through customs data, and European visitors were down 3 percent, analyst Buerkle said. Visits to the US are expected to decline by 5.1 percent in 2025, which will ultimately contribute to a $64 billion loss for the domestic tourism industry, according to Tourism Economics. The research firm originally forecasted a nearly 9 percent tourism jump this year, a prediction that was revised late last month because of 'polarizing Trump Administration policies and rhetoric.' 'There's been a dramatic shift in our outlook,' Adam Sacks, president of Tourism Economics, told the Washington Post. 'You're looking at a much weaker economic engine than what otherwise would've been, not just because of tariffs, but the rhetoric and condescending tone around it.' Regardless of national struggles, New York City appears to be on the up and up. Richard Born, owner of 28 properties including the popular Bowery Hotel, told the WSJ that business is booming. 'Every month this year has been equal or better than the corresponding month of the prior year,' Born said. 'No one is anticipating a falloff.'

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