Photos of flooded Texas Hill Country, a region dotted with century-old summer camps
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The Guardian
10 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Pope Leo extends condolences to Texas flood victims: ‘We pray for them'
Pope Leo XIV on Sunday voiced his sympathies for the families whose lives have been upended by the flooding in Texas's Hill Country, which left about 80 dead – many of them children – and others missing. After reciting Angelus prayers at the Vatican, the American-born pontiff remarked in English: 'I would like to express sincere condolences to all the families who have lost loved ones, in particular their daughters who were in a summer camp in the disaster caused by flooding of the Guadalupe River in Texas. 'We pray for them.' The worldwide Roman Catholic church leader's comments were notable in that they addressed what is the deadliest natural disaster in his home country since he became the first US-born pope ever in May. They were also ecumenical in the sense that the girls' summer camp to which he referred is a Christian – though not specifically Catholic – institution. Communities along the Guadalupe River were overwhelmed early Friday after torrential rain triggered flash flooding. The river rose 26ft (8 meters) in 45 minutes after 1.8tn gallons of rain fell over a region including Kerr county, Texas. Most of those reported dead amid the flooding were in Kerr county. And many were in attendance at Camp Mystic, which over its 99-year history has hosted the loved ones of some of Texas's political elite. Former US first lady Laura Bush was a camp counselor there. Past Camp Mystic attendees included the daughters of former US president Lyndon B Johnson and Texas governor John Connally. In a statement, Bush and her husband, former US president George W Bush, described being 'heartbroken by the loss of the life and the agony so many are feeling'. 'Those who have lost their precious children are facing a grief no parents should ever know,' it added. 'We know our words cannot help, but we believe the prayers of so many Americans will.' The Bushes' statement also extended gratitude to the emergency responders and volunteers who were searching for those who remained missing as of Sunday, including at Camp Mystic. Leo, whose birth name was Robert Prevost, grew up in Chicago and was ordained a priest in 1982. He later became the worldwide leader of the Catholic religious order colloquially known as the Augustinian; led a diocese in Peru, of which he is also a citizen; and was made a cardinal by Pope Francis in September 2023. The 69-year-old headed the Vatican entity in charge of selecting new bishops globally before his fellow cardinals elected him to succeed Francis, who died in April. Shortly after his condolences Sunday for the victims of the deadly flooding in Texas, Leo arrived at the papal summer retreat of Castel Gandolfo to start a six-week vacation, his first break since his 8 May election led to a whirlwind period of introductory audiences, outings and Holy Year celebrations. Associated Press contributed reporting
Daily Mail
25 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Inside Barron Trump's outrageously lavish childhood as he bags himself first girlfriend
Barron Trump enjoyed an expensive education and lived in a home fit for a king during his childhood. The 19-year-old student, who is the only child of President Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trump, was born on March 20, 2006, and has remained largely out of the spotlight. Reports suggest that the teenager has got himself his first ever girlfriend but how many hundreds of thousands were spent on his education? Barron was born and raised in New York City and spent much of his childhood living at his dad's extravagant penthouse apartment, Trump Tower, in Manhattan. The home, worth an estimated $65million, boasts of breathtaking views of Central Park and the Manhattan skyline. According to reports, Barron has a floor of his own in the lavish residence, with the home located on the top three floors of Trump Tower. Barron attended school in New York City until 2017, when his dad took office for his first term in the White House. He then attended middle and high schools in different locations across the country. For his primary education, Barron went to Manhattan's prestigious Columbia Grammar and Preparatory School. Tuition at the elite school is billed at $64,340 per year and increases by about $1,000 once you enter high school. Trump started his first term as president halfway through the school year in January 2017, so Barron remained with Melania in New York to finish up his time at Columbia. In September 2017, he started sixth grade at St Andrew's Episcopal in Potomac, Maryland - just about a 45-minute car drive from Washington, D.C. The yearly middle school tuition at St Andrew's cost $52,290. Once Trump's first term was up in 2020, Barron moved to Palm Beach, Florida and finished school there, at Oxbridge Academy in West Palm Beach. He graduated from Oxbridge Academy in Palm Beach, Florida, last May. Barron is currently a student at NYU and has just completed his freshman year. He has returned to live at Trump Tower while he completes his college education. President Trump revealed last month his 'formula for good parenting.' 'I always said the same thing. I said: no drugs, no alcohol, no cigarettes. I also would say don't get tattoos, but I don't say it too strongly, because a lot of people have gotten tattoos, and that's what they choose to do,' he told The New York Post in a podcast interview.
Daily Mail
25 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Outcry after ICE arrests migrants at LA car wash on independence day
Liberal Los Angeles residents were outraged as ICE agents with bulletproof vests spent the Fourth of July holiday continuing to carry out Donald Trump 's mass deportation promise. One video showed a raid at a West Hollywood car wash, showing a man who alleged to have been in the country for 30 years. His son, who had been alerted to the raid, was left asking: 'Why? My dad is not a criminal. He was working at a car wash on 4th of July. My dad came to work today on the Fourth of July. He loves his country. We've been here as long as I've been around,' the son, who wouldn't identify himself, added. The owner of the Santa Palm Car Wash was reportedly in the bathroom when the raid happened and enraged that he had not been informed. They told NBC Los Angeles that they arrested several people who have worked at the car wash for decades in the span of ten minutes at around 11am. Another employee was seen being tackled in a nearby alley. The city of West Hollywood issued a statement criticizing federal officials for the holiday raid. 'On a day meant to honor the ideals of liberty, democracy, and freedom from oppression, we instead confront a deeply troubling reminder of federal overreach. Independence Day should be a time for reflection and reverence, not fear and persecution,' they said. Federal agents arrested around 1,600 people for deportation in Southern California over the holiday, The LA Times said. The mayhem Friday broke out just hours before the President signed his so-called 'big, beautiful bill' into law - a sweeping $150 billion package that boosts funding for the border wall, ICE enforcement and deportations, while slashing Medicaid. The massive tax and spending bill passed by the House on Thursday includes huge infusion of funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, tripling its annual budget for an agency that is under fire by Democrats. 'ICE gets $45 billion more to supercharge their kidnapping and disappearing of people of all legal statuses,' progressive Rep. Pramilla Jayapal, D-Wash., warned on Thursday after the bill passed. The additional ICE funding represents a nearly threefold increase in the agency's 2024 budget of around $10 billion, though additional funds were also provided to other border security efforts, like completing a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries noted on Thursday that 'a deportation machine will be unleashed on steroids' under the new legislation. The extra funding for ICE will help grow its migrant detention centers, boost its deportation efforts, and hire an estimated 10,000 additional agents. 'With this vote, Congress makes ICE the highest-funded federal law enforcement agency in history, with more money per year at its disposal over the next four years than the budgets of the FBI, DEA, ATF, US Marshals, and Bureau of Prisons combined,' Aaron Reichlin-Melnick of the left-leaning American Immigration Council posted on X. Republicans, however, were jubilant about the increased border security funding. 'I speak on behalf of the entire agency when I say that ICE is grateful to President Trump for putting in the hard work necessary to get the Big Beautiful Bill across the finish line — but the real win is for the American people,' acting ICE Director Todd Lyons wrote in response to the bill's passage. 'The unprecedented funding for ICE will enable my hard-working officers and agents to continue making America safe again by identifying, arresting, and removing criminal aliens from our communities.' Though not all of the funds are going directly to ICE, a significant portion will support ICE-related projects, particularly migrant detention and removal operations. Under the new legislation, $45 billion is earmarked to expand migrant detention capacity to more than 100,000 beds. Approximately $52 billion is allocated for the construction and maintenance of the border wall and related Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facilities. The bill also authorizes $10 billion in grant funding to reimburse states for border security expenses incurred during the Biden administration. Up to $6.2 billion is approved for enhanced border surveillance technology and vetting systems. Additionally, the bill includes $4.1 billion to hire more Border Patrol agents and $2 billion for retention and signing bonuses. The increased funding will help authorities process and deport the estimated 10 million migrants who entered the U.S. illegally under the Biden administration. 'The Big Beautiful Bill has officially passed! Here's what it means for CBP and the American people: 701 miles of new, modern border wall, 3,000 new Border Patrol agents to defend our borders, 5,000 new Customs officers to secure our ports of entry,' CBP posted on X. 'Massive upgrades to technology, infrastructure, and enforcement power. This is historic. Border security is national security—and under President Trump, we're getting the job done.'
