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FEUD rumours have reignited inside a huge UK boyband after fans spotted a major clue on their social media.

The group had massive hits between 2009 before it was disbanded in 2014, with plans to bring the boys back together.

But now it seems The Wanted aren’t reuniting, and stars Max George and Nathan Sykes might not be talking at all.

Fans on Reddit noticed that the pair have unfollowed each other on Instagram, cutting off social media communication.

One wrote, “Not to sound parasocial or anything, but for some context, I have been a fan of The Wanted since 2012.

“I have been following all 5 of them on Instagram from 2014 before their breakup.

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“I remember vividly most of them unfollowing each other and specifically Max unfollowing all of them and then ofc all of them followed each other back after Tom announced his diagnosis.

“I couldn’t help but just check for fun to see if the boys are all following each other, and couldn’t help but notice Max and Nathan unfollowed each other?

“I wonder if there’s any beef between them lol.”

The band was first formed in 2009 by Max, Nathan, Jay McGuiness, Siva Kaneswaran and the late Tom Parker.

Max and Siva made The Wanted 2.0 following the death of Tom after his shock death back in 2022.

Another fan replied to the Reddit thread, saying, “I’ve always suspected Max and Nathan had a falling out before they broke up the first time.”

A third said, “It’s a real shame because teenage me loved Nathan and Max’s interactions.

“I remember when Nathan used to comment on Max’s ig posts around 2 years ago.

“They haven’t followed each other in a very long time.

“I think there’s some beef there but I don’t know what.”

Outside of the feud rumours, Max has only recently jetted out to America to support Siva at his first-ever stateside gig in Las Vegas.

The show, at the M Resort Spa Casino’s events space, M Pavilion, marked the duo’s first show in the US since reforming as The Wanted 2.0.

Nathan Sykes and Jay McGuinness did not appear on stage for the Vegas gig.

Meanwhile, Nathan has been busy getting married, with his nuptials alongside his girlfriend of six years confirmed earlier this month.

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The pair were first seen together in public photos in November 2018 and announced their engagement in December 2022.

A stunning wedding ceremony snap shared on the couple’s social media accounts showed the happy two on their special day.

The Ipswich fighter came in at 17st 5lb (110 kg), consistent with his recent bouts.

“This is the one before the one. All the work is done. Training is ticked off. All the hard work is put in. Let’s get some rest now. Big night coming up tomorrow,” he added.

Spitalfields Market in east London saw more than fresh produce on the scales as the two heavyweights squared up for the final time before fight night.

Parker winked at the camera and bobbed along to the music.

As he flexed his muscles, he looked hefty and powerful as he tipped the scales at 18st 10lb (119 kg), just five pounds lighter than his career-heaviest.

It is a far cry from the 16st 12lb (107 kg) version who lost his world title to Anthony Joshua in 2018.

“We’re weary, we’re cautious, but I’m going to fight fire with fire and I’m going to get to him,” Parker said.

Oct. 23 (UPI) — All-electric vehicle maker Rivian Automotive has announced it is laying off 4.5% of its workforce amid mounting market pressures, the company said Thursday.

In a memo sent to employees, company founder and CEO RJ Scaringe said the cuts involve restructuring of its marketing, vehicle operations, sales and delivery and mobile teams, according to CNBC.

“These were not changes that were made lightly,” Scaringe said in the memo. “With the changing operating backdrop, we had to rethink how we are scaling out go-to-market- functions. The news is challenging to hear, and the hard work and contributions of the team members who are leaving are greatly appreciated.”

Rivian ended 2024 with just under 15,000 employees.

Scarigne’s memo did not say exactly how many employees would be let go, but according to The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the plan, the layoffs would affect more than 600 employees.

Rivian and other elective vehicle makers are facing difficult sales and marketing conditions following the end of a $7,500 dollar tax credit for EV purchases in the new federal budget.

Demand has also been lower than expected for Rivian amid regulatory issues. The automaker also lacks new products until next year and faces a cash shortage. It lost $1.1 billion during the second quarter.

This is the latest in a series of layoffs. Rivian furloughed between 100 and 150 workers in its commercial and manufacturing teams between September 2024 and June.

Rivian is scheduled to release at least 150,000 R2 SUVs in 2026, which will be more widely available to consumers than previous models.

The company also recently started construction on its third manufacturing facility outside of Atlanta, where it plans to build the R2 and other models.

The company has struggled to maintain a sales pace with its current lineup of vehicles. Its sales are projected to drop by 16% in 2025 compared to last year.

MYLEENE Klass stunned in a daring low cut top as she stepped out for a star-studded event.

The TV personality, 47, cut a glamorous figure in the all-black ensemble as she attended Global’s Audio & Entertainment Upfronts party on Tuesday evening in London.

The Calm Classics radio host was joined by a flurry of her Global colleagues, including Sian Welby, Jordan North, Emily Maitlis and Chris Stark for the starry event.

Myleene showed a hint of cleavage in the braless number, which she simply paired with black heels and a gold-detailed watch.

Her honey blonde wavy locks were styled with a simple middle parting as she beamed a smile for cameras.

It comes as the star put her stalker hell behind her after a crazed fan sent her an “accumulation” of concerning items.

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Peter Windsor, 61, was convicted of stalking Myleene and her Classic FM colleague Katie Breathwick after bombarding them with creepy letters and gifts.

The 61-year-old allegedly sent Myleene items with “sexual overtones” – including a Catwoman outfit and set of handcuffs.

He also called her a “naughty vixen” and sent a police uniform to the Classic FM studio, Birmingham Crown Court heard.

Giving evidence, Myleene said she was informed in an email in August last year that an “accumulation” of items had been sent to her.

She became upset when she was asked about being told how Royal Mail had “intercepted” an air pistol addressed to her.

She said “it just felt extreme on every front” after she was shown a list of items and photographs of letters Windsor allegedly sent.

The ITV star added: “It was very clear very quickly that it was a highly volatile selection of items.

“It was a huge shock, especially the extent to which it had escalated.

“It was pretty overwhelming when you have the accumulation of a bundle of this information. It’s pretty terrifying.”

It also emerged that Windsor was arrested but not prosecuted after sending a letter in October 2020 to Ms Sturgeon when she was Scottish First Minister.

Following his conviction earlier this month, Myleene said: “After a horrific year, my family and I finally have peace.”

Posting to her 500,000 fans on social media, she added: “Thank you for your love and support.”

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said she plans to scrap “needless form filling” in a bid to boost business growth.

Speaking at a regional investment summit in Birmingham, the chancellor said the reforms would boost growth and “make the UK a top destination for global capital”.

Ahead of the Budget next month, Reeves acknowledged that “for too many people” the economy was “not working as it should”.

The government has been criticised by firms who say increased employers’ National Insurance contributions and the Employment Rights Bill add to the burdens facing businesses.

The chancellor said the changes will save firms almost £6bn a year by the end of the parliamentary term.

The measures include plans to reform the company merger process. New “simpler corporate rules” will remove requirements for small businesses to submit lengthy reports to Companies House, the Treasury said.

The changes will apply to over 100,000 firms such as family-run cafes.

Earlier on Tuesday, Business Secretary Peter Kyle defended Labour’s approach to business, telling the BBC the government would implement changes in a way that is “pro-worker and pro-business”.

The measures could include temporary exemptions for new AI software from regulation, Kyle told the Today programme.

“In certain circumstances when new AI technology is being developed, we can remove it from all regulation for a period of time to give it the space to really grow, to develop, to be commercialised really rapidly,” he said.

This, he said, would enable the tech to be used “to benefit the health, the wealth, the education of our nations”.

“We’ll use that in a very targeted, a very safe way.”

The government has pledged to reduce the administrative cost of regulation by a quarter by the end of this Parliament.

Kyle said the previous government “did not do enough on deregulation” despite pledging to do so, particularly after Brexit.

“If you look at some of the reporting that needs to be done by directors, for example, directors’ reports to Companies House, I’m eliminating a great deal of that today because some of it is just so unnecessary,” he said.

But pushed on whether the government’s changes to employment rights would add costs to businesses, Kyle insisted that the changes would be fair for both employers and employees.

“We are making sure that the rights and responsibilities that people have in the workplace as employers and as employees [are] right for the age we’re living in.”

Jane Gratton, the deputy director of public policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said the plans would be welcomed by businesses.

“The burden of unnecessary red tape and bureaucracy ramps up their costs and damages competitiveness,” she said.

Tina McKenzie, policy chair at the Federation of Small Businesses, said Tuesday’s announcement will “ring hollow” if the chancellor raises taxes for employers in next month’s budget.

“The true test of whether Rachel Reeves will deliver for business will be at the Budget – small firms and entrepreneurs have heard these warm words on regulation before.

“The burden of compliance – in terms of money, time, and stress – weighs heavily on small firms, and cutting it needs to be a project undertaken by every part of the government.”

But the Liberal Democrats’ Treasury spokeswoman Daisy Cooper said: “If the chancellor was serious about cutting red tape she would tackle the mind-blowing two billion extra pieces of business paperwork created by Brexit by pursuing an ambitious tailor-made UK-EU customs union.”

A new supersonic aircraft that could travel from New York to London in just three hours and 40 minutes is being developed by a firm called Boom Supersonic, and early tests seem positive

Supersonic air travel could be making a triumphant return to the skies, nearly two decades after the iconic Concorde was grounded.

A company is currently developing a new supersonic aircraft that could whisk passengers from New York to London in a mere three hours and 40 minutes, taking the mantle of the long-mothballed Concorde. By 2029, it’s suggested that travellers could once again experience supersonic journeys, with flight times significantly shorter than those offered by current commercial airlines.

Concorde’s last flight was 22 years ago, on November 26, 2023, when it departed London’s Heathrow Airport and landing in Bristol, England, greeted by a cheering crowd gathered behind fences near the runway. When at its best, the plane could fly at 1,354 mph. That is more than double the top speed of a Boeing 747, which peaks at a miserly 614mph.

There are numerous reasons why no one has filled the void left by Concorde over the past few decades. We looked into some of those reasons in depth last year.

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A crucial development has now increased the odds of a supersonic company taking to the skies again, and making a business success of doing so. In June 2025, the United States passed a key piece of legislation lifting the longstanding ban on supersonic travel over land. That means the potential US market has increased hugely.

The new plane, dubbed the Overture by Boom Supersonic, is already undergoing testing. The Overture would fly at Mach 1.7 and twice as fast over water. Major airlines including United Airlines, American Airlines, and Japan Airlines have placed orders and preorders for the Overture to join their fleets, reports the Express.

The aircraft could accommodate between 60-80 passengers and would cruise at an altitude much higher than standard passenger jets, at 60,000 feet.

The original Concorde faced backlash due to its noise levels, but these updated models aim to tackle this issue with modern noise-reduction technology. By 2029, US airline United has announced plans to purchase 15 new supersonic airliners and “return supersonic speeds to aviation”.

The new Overture aircraft will be manufactured by a Denver-based company named Boom. According to Boom, the plane will operate on a minimum of 600 routes.

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Discussing supersonic flights, Nicholas Smith, holidays digital director at Thomas Cook and eSky online travel agency, told Express.co.uk: “While it’s thrilling to imagine this aviation icon back in the skies, it’s unlikely to appeal to the average holidaymaker from the UK jetting off to Benidorm for a week in the sun.

“We see the future of mainstream air travel heading towards larger, more efficient aircraft designed to carry more people, not fewer.

“That said, a modern relaunch focused on sustainability, digital innovation, and safety could carve out a niche for high-end, short-haul luxury routes – such as London to New York in under four hours. It’s not a mass-market solution, but for time-sensitive premium travellers, it could once again become the pinnacle of prestige flying.”

Travel times on routes such as London to New York or Los Angeles to Washington could be slashed to just two hours – a significant reduction from the current six to seven hours.

Federal authorities are now pursuing a misdemeanor charge against David Huerta, president of Service Employees International Union California, who was arrested during the first day of a series of immigration raids that swept the region.

Prosecutors originally brought a felony charge of conspiracy to impede an officer against Huerta, accusing him of obstructing federal authorities from serving a search warrant at a Los Angeles workplace and arresting dozens of undocumented immigrants on June 6.

On Friday, court filings show federal prosecutors filed a lesser charge against Huerta of “obstruction resistance or opposition of a federal officer,” which carries a punishment of up to a year in federal prison. The felony he was charged with previously could have put him behind bars for up to six years.

The U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles declined to comment.

In a statement, Huerta’s attorneys, Abbe David Lowell and Marilyn Bednarski, said they would “seek the speediest trial to vindicate David.” The lawyers said that “in the four months that have passed since David’s arrest, it has become even clearer there were no grounds for charging him and certainly none for the way he was treated.”

“It’s clear that David Huerta is being singled out not for anything he did but for who he is — a life-long workers’ advocate who has been an outspoken critic of its immigration policies. These charges are a clear attempt to silence a leading voice who dared to challenge a cruel, politically driven campaign of fear,” the statement read.

The labor union previously stated that Huerta was detained “while exercising his First Amendment right to observe and document law enforcement activity.” Huerta is one of more than 60 people charged federally in the Central District of California tied to immigration protests and enforcement actions.

Two recent misdemeanor trials against protesters charged with assaulting a federal officer both ended in acquittals. Some protesters have taken plea deals.

In a statement Friday, Huerta said he is “being targeted for exercising my constitutional rights for standing up against an administration that has declared open war on working families, immigrants, and basic human dignity.”

“The baseless charges brought against me are not just about me, they are meant to intimidate anyone who dares to speak out, organize, or demand justice. I will not be silenced,” he said.

Huerta was held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles for days, prompting thousands of union members, activists and supporters to rally for his release. California Democratic Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla also sent a letter to the Homeland Security and Justice departments demanding a review of Huerta’s arrest.

A judge ordered Huerta released in June on a $50,000 bond.

The case against Huerta centers on a June 6 workplace immigration raid at Ambiance Apparel. According to the original criminal complaint filed, Huerta arrived at the site around noon Friday, joining several other protesters.

Huerta and other protesters “appeared to be communicating with each other in a concerted effort to disrupt the law enforcement operations,” a federal agent wrote in the complaint.

The agent wrote that Huerta was yelling at and taunting officers and later sat cross-legged in front of a vehicle gate to the location where law enforcement authorities were serving a search warrant.

Huerta also “at various times stood up and paced in front of the gate, effectively preventing law enforcement vehicles from entering or exiting the premises through the gate to execute the search warrant,” the agent wrote in the affidavit.

The agent wrote that they told Huerta that if he kept blocking the Ambiance gate, he would be arrested.

According to the complaint, as a white law enforcement van tried to get through the gate, Huerta stood in its path.

Because Huerta “was being uncooperative, the officer put his hands on HUERTA in an attempt to move him out of the path of the vehicle.”

“I saw HUERTA push back, and in response, the officer pushed HUERTA to the ground,” the agent wrote. “The officer and I then handcuffed HUERTA and arrested him.”

According to a statement from SEIU-United Service Workers West, SEIU California State Council, and the Service Employees International Union, “Huerta was thrown to the ground, tackled, pepper sprayed, and detained by federal agents while exercising his constitutional rights at an ICE raid in Los Angeles.” Video of his arrest went viral.

“Despite David’s harsh treatment at the hands of law enforcement, he is now facing an unjust charge,” the statement read. “This administration has turned the military against our own people, terrorizing entire communities, and even detaining U.S. citizens who are exercising their constitutional rights to speak out.”

Acting U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli, posted a photo on the social media site X of Huerta, hands behind his back, after the arrest.

“Let me be clear: I don’t care who you are — if you impede federal agents, you will be arrested and prosecuted,” Essayli wrote. “No one has the right to assault, obstruct, or interfere with federal authorities carrying out their duties.”

In an interview with Sacramento TV news oulet KCRA last month, Essayli referred to Huerta as Gov. Gavin Newsom’s “buddy” and said he “deliberately obstructed a search warrant.”

While speaking with reporters in June, Schiff said Huerta was “exercising his lawful right to be present and observe these immigration raids.”

“It’s obviously a very traumatic thing, and now that it looks like the Justice Department wants to try and make an example out of him, it’s all the more traumatic,” Schiff said. “But this is part of the Trump playbook. They selectively use the Justice Department to go after their adversaries. It’s what they do.”

Oct. 16 (UPI) — President Donald Trump announced a deal Thursday between his administration and a pharmaceutical company that could reduce the cost of some fertility medications.

Administration officials say the deal between the government and EMD Serono will help millions of U.S. women who have trouble conceiving afford the cost of medications that could help.

“In the Trump administration, we want to make it easier for couples to have babies, raise children and start the families they’ve always dreamed about,” Trump said during his Oval Office announcement.

The president said during the announcement that EMD Serono, the world’s largest fertility drug manufacturer, has agreed to provide discounts for the drugs it sells in the United States, including Gonal-f, which is used to treat infertility by men and women.

A fertility drug cycle typically costs between $5,000 and $6,000, the administration said, and only about 30% of families have access to employer insurance that will cover the treatment. Women trying to conceive can require different amounts of the drug.

Trump said his administration is working with employers to make it easier for them to offer supplemental insurance coverage for fertility treatments.

“As a result of these actions, the per-cycle cost of drugs used in IVF will fall by an estimated 73% for American consumers, and the numbers are going to actually be very substantially higher as time goes by when it really kicks in,” Trump continued during the announcement.

Trump blamed inflated fertility drug prices as a reason for the high cost of IVF treatment, and claimed the cost for the procedure is 700% times more expensive in the United States than in the rest of the world.

Seroni said in its statement that IVF patients will be able to buy Gonal-f at an 84% discount.

Termination notices went out to 150 NBC News Group employees Wednesday as the financial health of the traditional television business continues to erode.

The cuts have been anticipated for months as NBC is seeing declines in TV ratings and ad revenue that are not being fully offset by a growing digital business.

Audience migration to streaming platforms has put pressure on legacy outlets across the media industry, leading to layoffs and cost-cutting.

A representative for the NBC News Group, which produces “Today,” “NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas” and “Dateline,” declined to comment on the layoffs.

The cuts are also attributed to the spinoff of cable networks MSNBC and CNBC, according to a person briefed on the plans who was not authorized to comment. As of last week, NBC News no longer shares resources with the two outlets, which will become part of a new company called Versant. Some NBC News veterans have decided to join MSNBC, which will be renamed MS NOW.

Versant is the new stand-alone home for most of Comcast’s cable networks, including USA Network, the Golf Channel, CNBC and MSNBC. Comcast is spinning off the channels because it believes the mature outlets face a bleak future due to pay TV cord-cutting and are an albatross weighing down its stock price.

Some of the job losses are expected to be mitigated by a reallocation of resources aimed at bolstering the division’s digital operations. The employees affected by the cuts have been encouraged to apply for 140 jobs currently open across the NBC News Group.

The cuts amount to 2% of the NBC News Group, which also includes local TV stations owned by NBC and Telemundo.

A recent memo from NBC News Group Chair Cesar Conde said the division is launching a subscription streaming service later this year, although details have not been made public. The company already has NBC News Now, a free ad-supported streaming channel.

More cuts across the TV news business are expected through the end of the year. A significant reduction in staffing is expected at CBS News following the merger of parent Paramount with Skydance Media.

ABC News was hit hard by a 6% staff reduction across the ABC TV network enacted in March by parent Walt Disney Co. Those cuts followed a layoff of 40 news staffers in October 2024.

The White House says it will release a list of programmes to be cut on Friday after earlier eliminating 4,200 positions at a range of government departments.

President Donald Trump has renewed his threat to cut “Democrat programmes” as the United States government shutdown heads into its fifteenth day without resolution.

“The Democrats are getting killed on the shutdown because we’re closing up programmes that are Democrat programmes that we were opposed to… and they’re never going to come back in many cases,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday, according to ABC News.

Trump said a list of programmes may be released as soon as Friday, although he did not provide further details in his remarks. He said that “Republican programmes” would be safe.

Trump has already used the government shutdown to pause or cut $28bn in federal funding for infrastructure and energy projects in Democrat-leaning states like California, Illinois and New York.

The White House has also started making cuts to the federal workforce. About 4,200 employees from eight government departments and agencies received “reduction-in-force notices” on Friday, according to CNBC.

Major cuts were made at the Treasury Department, the Health and Human Services Department, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Some programmes on the chopping block included those historically supported by Republicans as well as Democrats. They included the entire staff of the Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, which works with low-income communities, according to CNBC.

There are about 2.25 million civilian federal employees, according to the Congressional Budget Office, of whom some 60 percent work in the Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security.

Approximately 750,000 federal employees have been on furlough since the shutdown began two weeks ago, while “essential” workers have continued working without pay until they can be reimbursed when the shutdown ends.

The White House says it will take the unusual move of reallocating $8bn in existing funds to keep paying military and coastguard personnel throughout the shutdown, although historically, they also work without pay.

The Senate remains deadlocked over a government spending bill needed to end the shutdown.

A Republican-backed spending bill, which would have extended government funding to November 21, on Monday failed in a vote of 49 to 45, broadly down party lines.

The bill needs 60 votes to pass, but Republicans have failed to sway more Democrats to their side after gaining the support of a few individual legislators. Democrats are blocking the bill to force Republicans to negotiate on healthcare subsidies.

Vice President JD Vance said Sunday there will be deeper cuts to the federal workforce the longer the government shutdown goes on, adding to the uncertainty facing hundreds of thousands who are already furloughed without pay amid the stalemate in Congress.

Vance warned that as the federal shutdown entered its 12th day, the new cuts would be “painful,” even as he said the Trump administration worked to ensure that the military is paid this week and some services would be preserved for low-income Americans, including food assistance.

Still, hundreds of thousands of government workers have been furloughed in recent days and, in a court filing Friday, the Office of Management and Budget said well over 4,000 federal employees would soon be fired in conjunction with the shutdown.

“The longer this goes on, the deeper the cuts are going to be,” Vance said on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.” “To be clear, some of these cuts are going to be painful. This is not a situation that we relish. This is not something that we’re looking forward to, but the Democrats have dealt us a pretty difficult set of cards.”

Labor unions have already filed a lawsuit to stop the aggressive move by President Trump’s budget office, which goes far beyond what usually happens in a government shutdown, further inflaming tensions between the Republicans who control Congress and the Democratic minority.

The shutdown began Oct. 1 after Democrats rejected a short-term funding fix and demanded that the bill include an extension of federal subsidies for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. The expiration of those subsidies at the end of the year will result in monthly cost increases for millions.

Trump and Republican leaders have said they are open to negotiations on the health subsidies, but insist the government must reopen first.

For now, negotiations are virtually nonexistent. Dug in as ever, House leaders from both parties pointed fingers at each other in rival Sunday appearances on “Fox News Sunday.”

“We have repeatedly made clear that we will sit down with anyone, anytime, anyplace,” said House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York. “Republicans control the House, the Senate and the presidency. It’s unfortunate they’ve taken a my-way-or-the-highway approach.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) blamed Democrats and said they “seem not to care” about the pain the shutdown is inflicting.

“They’re trying their best to distract the American people from the simple fact that they’ve chosen a partisan fight so that they can prove to their Marxist rising base in the Democratic Party that they’re willing to fight Trump and Republicans,” he said.

Progressive activists, meanwhile, expressed new support for the Democratic Party’s position in the shutdown fight.

Ezra Levin, co-founder of the leading progressive protest group Indivisible, said he is “feeling good about the strength of Dem position.” He pointed to fractures in the GOP, noting that Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene publicly warned last week that healthcare insurance premiums would skyrocket for average Americans — including her own adult children — if nothing is done.

“Trump and GOP are rightfully taking the blame for the shutdown and for looming premium increases,” Levin said. “Their chickens are coming home to roost.”

And yet the Republican administration and its congressional allies are showing no signs of compromise on Democratic demands or backing away from threats to use the opportunity to pursue deeper cuts to the federal workforce.

Thousands of employees at the departments of Education, Treasury, Homeland Security and Health and Human Services as well as the Environmental Protection Agency are set to receive layoff notices, according to spokespeople for the agencies and union representatives for federal workers.

“You hear a lot of Senate Democrats say, well, how can Donald Trump possibly lay off all of these federal workers?” Vance said. “Well, the Democrats have given us a choice between giving low-income women their food benefits and paying our troops on the one hand, and, on the other hand, paying federal bureaucrats.”

Democrats say the firings are illegal and unnecessary.

“They do not have to do this,” said Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “They do not have to punish people that shouldn’t find themselves in this position.”

Peoples writes for the Associated Press.

The U.S. Air Force will not add eight-bladed NP2000 propellers to any more of its aging C-130H Hercules transport planes, curtailing a previous upgrade plan as it continues to transition more fully to the newer C-130J variant. The NP2000s, which give H models a boost in thrust and fuel efficiency, and help reduce maintenance demands while increasing reliability, are among several upgrades that have been helping to keep the older Hercules aircraft going.

The Pentagon recently released a budget reprogramming document, dated September 29, 2025, detailing the movement of various funds into a general-purpose modernization account. This included nearly $24 million that had been set aside for upgrading C-130Hs with NP2000 propellers. Congress must approve any such reallocation of money from one part of the defense budget to another.

“Funds are available for transfer to the Defense Modernization Account, Defense-Wide, from a congressional increase for the C-130H NP2000 Eight Bladed Propeller due to the completion of the modification effort for the fleet,” the document states. “Efficiencies in quantity were achieved due to additional C-130J procurement, which reduced the number of C-130H NP2000 Eight Bladed Propeller modifications required as remaining unmodified C-130Hs will be divested.”

The Air Force “completed [NP2000] installations on 90 C-130H aircraft in June 2025,” according to the service’s most recent budget request for the 2025 Fiscal Year, but it is unclear if that represents the total number of aircraft upgraded to date. However, it would seem that this figure is at least close to the total, given that the Air Force expects to only have 92 C-130Hs left in inventory at all by the end of Fiscal Year 2026. This includes examples assigned to Air National Guard units. As of 2021, the service planned to upgrade the propellers on around 140 H models. The Air Force first began flying H variants of the C-130 in the mid-1970s.

The Air Force also has 10 LC-130Hs, which are specially configured for operations in and around the polar regions, and have received NP2000 propellers. A portion of the U.S. Navy’s fleet of C-130T transport and KC-130T tankers, which are derived from the H model, also now sport the new propellers.

The NP2000 has long been standard on the Navy’s E-2C and E-2D Hawkeye airborne early warning and control aircraft and C-2 Greyhound carrier on-board delivery (COD) planes, as well.

Work to replace the four-bladed propellers on the Air Force’s C-130Hs with NP2000s, coupled with new electronic control systems, dates back to the mid-2010s. The propellers can give H model Hercules aircraft up to 20 percent extra thrust, reducing the distance needed for takeoff by around 984 feet (300 meters), depending on various factors, according to Collins Aerospace, the current contractor behind the upgrade package. The increase in thrust also translates to a bump in fuel economy.

In addition, the NP2000s vibrate less than the four-bladed propellers originally found on the C-130H, contributing to reduced maintenance requirements. They also have the benefit of being quieter and more reliable.

The Air Force had further combined with NP2000s with additional upgrades to the Rolls-Royce (formerly Allison) T56 series turboprop engines that power the C-130H, offering further performance and maintenance benefits, as you can read more about here.

As the budget reprogramming document notes, the Air Force’s priority now is on acquiring more C-130Js. New Rolls-Royce AE 2100-series turboprops and six-bladed propellers are among the improvements found on the J models compared to earlier variants.

By 2029, the Air Force expects the C-130H fleet to have dropped in size to just 61 aircraft, according to its Fiscal Year 2026 budget request. When the service expects to retire the very last of its H variants, including the remaining specialized LC-130Hs, is unclear. Work is now moving forward to at least supplement the latter fleet with new LC-130Js.

If nothing else, the NP2000 upgrade program for the Air Force’s C-130H fleet has come to an end.

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CALVIN Klein is practically retail royalty when it comes to boxers, and a multipack has been slashed by 46% in the Amazon Prime Day sale.

A three-pack of classic black boxers would usually costs £42, but shoppers can pick up the set for £22.87 for a limited time.

Calvin Klein 3-Pack Boxers, £22.87 (was £42)

Calvin Klein boxers are the most popular men’s underwear for an reason, and the deal works out as just £7.60 per pair.

Stock is selling seriously fast, but other colourways have also been slashed.

Fashion fans can also get a three-pack with a red, white and blue pairs for £22.91.

The boxers would make the perfect Christmas gift for men, or as a treat to yourself.

Amazon’s Big Deal Days sale is running until tomorrow, but as one of the bestsellers so far, it’s likely that all sizes will be gone before the deal expires.

For more of the best discounts, read our roundup of the best Prime Day deals, which we’re constantly updating with more deals.

Amazon Prime Day: the 10 best deals

The Amazon Prime Big Deal Days sale kicks off today and runs until midnight tomorrow (Wednesday 8th October) – here’s our pick of the best deals.

*If you click on a link in this boxout we will earn affiliate revenue

1. Amazon Fire TV Stick HD, £19.99 (was £39.99) – buy here
2. Poounur Fitness Smartwatch, £23.99 (was £129.99) – buy here
3. Ninja 7.6L Foodi Dual Zone Digital Air Fryer, £119 (was £218.99) – buy here
4. BaByliss Air Style 1000 £29.99 (was £75) – buy here
5. LKOUY Portable Charger, £12.99 (was £59.99) – buy here
6. Silentnight
7. Remington Shine Therapy 45mm Hair Straightener, £29.99 (was £79.99) – buy here
8. Apple iPhone 16e, £494 (was £549) – buy here
9. Amazon Fire HD 10 tablet, £69.99 (was £149.99) – buy here
10. Felix 40-pack Jelly Wet Cat Food, £9.48 (was £14.77) – buy here

When the sale lands, you’ll find more top bargains here:

Just remember, you’ll need to sign up to Amazon Prime to take advantage of these bargains.

The classic designer boxers have received brilliant ratings from shoppers, with over 5,700 five-star reviews on the Amazon website.

One wrote: “I recently purchased these Calvin Klein underwear for my partner, and he’s extremely pleased with the quality, comfort, and fit. 

From the moment they arrived, I could tell they were made from high-quality materials, and they definitely live up to the reputation Calvin Klein has for premium undergarments. 

The fit is absolutely spot-on, and my partner says they are some of the most comfortable underwear he has ever worn.”

Another added: “The fit is so precise it feels like Calvin Klein himself took my measurements.

Five stars is an insult, these deserve their own constellation.”

Amazon has been cutting prices across all sections, and shoppers can save on everything from Dyson Airwrap alternatives to Samsung tablets reduced from £260 to £146.

The Federal Reserve just cut interest rates. The goal was, basically, to protect the U.S. economy from falling into a recession.

Wall Street is expecting additional rate cuts from here, which could lead to positive outcomes for these three consumer goods companies. Each one comes with a different set of risks and potential rewards. Here’s why these stocks could be worth examining today, before more rate cuts are made.

Image source: Getty Images.

1. Target isn’t resonating with consumers right now

Target (TGT) is a large big box retailer, offering a range of products under one roof. It competes directly with Walmart (WMT 0.64%). That’s an important comparison point because Target is doing poorly right now and Walmart is doing quite well. To put numbers on that, Target’s same-store sales fell 1.9% in the second quarter of 2025 while Walmart’s same store sales rose 4.6% in its U.S. locations.

The big difference is that Target’s business model is to offer a more premium experience, while Walmart is squarely about its everyday low prices ethos. Consumers worried about the economy and inflation, which The Motley Fool’s research shows can ravage the buying power of the dollar, appear to be voting with their feet. However, if Federal Reserve rate cuts lead to a growth uptick, consumers could trade back up to Target.

Just such a shift has happened before, so expecting it to happen again isn’t a big stretch in a sector driven by consumer sentiment. That said, Target’s shares are down more than 40% from their 52-week high, making them look relatively cheap. And the Dividend King is offering an attractive 5% yield that’s backed by over five decades of annual dividend increases.

2. Lululemon is a luxury basics clothing retailer

The story around Lululemon (LULU -0.75%) is roughly similar to that of Target. Lululemon makes athletic wear basics. However, the cost of these basics is very high, so it is really a luxury retailer. To be fair, there’s a fashion twist here and the company has made past design missteps that can’t be ignored. But overall, it has been on trend more than it has been off trend.

But one thing Lululemon can’t control is the swings in the economy and how customers react to those swings. The company’s second quarter results weren’t bad if you take a top-level view of the income statement, with revenues up 7% and same-store sales up 1%. But that was entirely driven by international growth, with sales up just 1% in the Americas and same store sales off by 4%.

It clearly looks like consumers in the Americas are pulling back on what are really discretionary purchases, despite the basic nature of the items. If rate cuts make consumers more confident in the economy again, that trend could change. With the stock down more than 50% from its 52-week high, there could be some turnaround appeal here for more aggressive investors.

3. Coca-Cola is boring and doing fairly well

Coca-Cola (KO -0.83%), the last stock up on this list, is appropriate for conservative investors. The shares are only down around 10% from their 52-week highs. But that’s enough to have pushed the stock’s price-to-sales and price-to-earnings ratios below their five-year averages. It wouldn’t be fair to suggest that Coca-Cola is trading hands at fire-sale prices, but it does appear fairly priced to a little cheap. The stock doesn’t go on sale very often, so this could be a good opportunity for long-term investors who place a high value on dividends.

On the dividend front, the beverage giant is a Dividend King with over six decades of annual dividend increases behind it. The yield is notably above the market at nearly 3.1%. And it is one of the largest and best-run consumer staples companies on the planet. If you are risk averse, Coca-Cola is a solid option. And economic growth driven by rate cuts could make it that much easier for consumers to justify splurging on what is basically very expensive water.

There’s plenty of benefit to go around from rate cuts

Federal Reserve rate cuts are a bit of a blunt instrument when it comes to impacting the economy. But they can be very effective at freeing up capital for investment. If there are more rate cuts to come, as Wall Street seems to expect, Target, Lululemon, and Coca-Cola could all benefit if the outcome is continued, if not stronger, economic growth. The upside at Target and Lululemon is more material, but Coca-Cola shows that even the most conservative investors can get in on the rate-cut investment opportunity.

The Trump administration this week escalated its efforts against renewable energy when it announced the cancellation of $7.56 billion in funding for projects in 16 states, including California.

The U.S. Department of Energy said the 223 canceled projects — all of which are in states that favored Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election — were terminated because they “did not adequately advance the nation’s energy needs, were not economically viable, and would not provide a positive return on investment of taxpayer dollars.”

But while the cuts took aim at blue states, they will affect Trump’s base as well: The terminated projects span districts represented by 108 Democratic members of Congress and 28 Republicans. In California, that includes large swaths of the Central Valley and Inland Empire, which largely leaned toward Trump in 2024.

Russell Vought, director of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget and a top Trump administration official, said in a post on X that the canceled projects were using “Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left’s climate agenda.”

The biggest cut was $1.2 billion for California’s ambitious project to develop clean hydrogen known as the Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems, or ARCHES. It was awarded by the Biden administration as part of a competitive nationwide effort to develop hydrogen projects. The idea is that the hydrogen, which burns at a very high temperature, will be able to replace planet-warming fossil fuels in some industry and transportation uses.

The ARCHES project is a public-private partnership that would create at least 10 hydrogen production sites around the state, primarily in the Central Valley. It would also help transition two large gas-fired power plants — Scattergood in Los Angeles and the Lodi Energy Center in San Joaquin County — to 100% renewable hydrogen, and develop more than 60 hydrogen fueling stations in areas including Fresno, Riverside, Orange and San Joaquin counties.

In all, it would deliver an estimated 220,000 jobs, including 130,000 construction jobs and 90,000 permanent jobs, according to the state. California is pursuing hydrogen in addition to renewables such as offshore wind, solar power and geothermal energy to help diversify its supply, meet growing demand driven by artificial intelligence data centers, and reach its target of 100% carbon neutrality by 2045.

The Trump administration said terminating the clean energy projects will save taxpayers money.

One district with a project that’s been cut is the northern San Joaquin Valley, represented by Tom McClintock (R-Elk Grove). McClintock said he strongly supports the Energy Department’s decision.

“$7.5 billion comes out to about $60 taken from the average earnings of every family in America,” McClintock said. “Call me old fashioned, but I think that companies should make their money by pleasing their customers and not by using government to take money that families have earned.”

The Times also reached out to Reps. Vince Fong (R-Bakersfield), Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale), Keven Kiley (R-Rocklin), Ken Calvert (R-Corona), Young Kim (R-Anaheim Hills) and Jay Obernolte (R-Big Bear Lake), whose districts are touched by the ARCHES hub and other terminated projects.

A representative for Fong said his office was dealing with issues related to the U.S. government shutdown and so was unable to comment. None of the others responded.

Jesse Lee, senior advisor with the nonprofit group Climate Power, said the cancellations may not save taxpayers money, but cost them. The administration this year has canceled a $7 billion program to help low-income households install solar panels on their homes and halted the development of off-shore wind projects, among other efforts.

“Having these projects come to fruition is really the only chance we have at insulating people from skyrocketing utility bills year after year,” Lee said — particularly in the face of energy-thirsty AI. “The only way to have a prayer of meeting that demand is through these kinds of clean energy projects.”

Lee believes the actions could come back to haunt the party in the midterm elections. Since Trump took office in January, at least 142 clean energy projects have been canceled affecting what his group estimates is at least 80,500 jobs — not including the latest round of cuts announced this week. About 47% of those jobs were in congressional districts represented by Republicans, according to Clean Power’s energy project tracker.

Democratic officials in California said the Energy Department’s latest cuts amount to political retaliation. They were announced on the first day of the shutdown, which the administration blames on Democrats.

“The cancellation of ARCHES is vindictive, shortsighted, and proof that this Administration is not serious about American energy dominance,” California Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla wrote in a joint letter to Energy Secretary Chris Wright dated Thursday, in which they urged him to restore its funding.

“The cancellation of this award threatens the future promise of hydrogen energy, leaving us behind the rest of the world,” the senators said. “The ARCHES hub is a key strategic investment into American energy dominance, energy technology prominence, manufacturing job growth, and lowering energy costs for American families.”

The cuts come as the Trump administrations eases the path for production of fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal, including this week’s announcement that it will open 13 million acres of federal lands for coal mining and provide $625 million to recommission or modernize coal-fired power plants. Coal has become increasingly uncompetitive with either natural gas or solar power.

Large-scale renewable energy and carbon capture projects in red states such as Wyoming, Ohio, Texas, Louisiana and North Dakota that received funding from the Energy Department were not subject to the cuts.

Other canceled awards in California include $630 million to the California Energy Commission for grid resilience upgrades; $500 million to the National Cement Company of California for a carbon-neutral cement production facility; $87 million to Redwood Coast Energy Authority for grid updates benefiting tribal communities; $50 million to Southern California Edison for a battery energy storage project; and $18 million to the Imperial Irrigation District to modernize its electrical grid, bolster resiliency against power outages and catalyze renewable energy usage.

“We are disappointed as we did a great deal of work to win the $18.3 million matching grant from the DOE to help modernize our electrical grid and enhance reliability for our customers,” said Robert Schettler, a spokesman for the Imperial Irrigation District located in southeastern California. “Despite this setback, we will reevaluate the scope as the project is a necessity.”

Officials with ARCHES called the administration’s decision a “short-sighted move that abandons America’s opportunity to lead the global clean energy transition.” They said they hope to keep the project moving forward even without the federal grant; ARCHES has also secured more than $10 billion in private funding agreements.

“Despite the loss of federal funding, we will press forward with our state, private, and international partners to build the infrastructure, train the workforce, and establish the supply chains that will power a modern, resilient energy economy,” ARCHES board chair Theresa Maldonado said in a statement.

WASHINGTON — Hopes for a quick end to the government shutdown faded Friday as Republicans and Democrats dug in for a prolonged fight and President Trump readied plans to unleash layoffs and cuts across the federal government.

Senators were headed back to the Capitol for another vote on government funding on the third day of the shutdown, but there has been no sign of any real progress toward ending their standoff. Democrats are demanding that Congress extend healthcare benefits, while Republicans are trying to wear them down with day after day of voting on a House-passed bill that would reopen the government temporarily, mostly at current spending levels.

“I don’t know how many times you’re going to give them a chance to vote no,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said at a news conference Friday. He added that he would give Democratic senators the weekend to think it over.

Although Republicans control the White House and both chambers of Congress, the Senate’s filibuster rules make it necessary for the government funding legislation to gain support from at least 60 of the 100 senators. That’s given Democrats a rare opportunity to use their 47 Senate seats to hold out in exchange for policy concessions. The party has chosen to rally on the issue of healthcare, believing it could be key to their path back to power in Washington.

Their primary demand is that Congress extend tax credits that were boosted during the COVID-19 pandemic for healthcare plans offered under the Affordable Care Act marketplace.

Standing on the steps of the U.S. Capitol on Thursday, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said, “Understand this, over the last few days and over the next few days, what you’re going to see is more than 20 million Americans experience dramatically increased healthcare premiums, co-pays and deductibles because of the Republican unwillingness to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits.”

The shutdown gamble

Democrats are running the high-risk strategy of effectively voting for a government shutdown to make their stand. Trump has vowed to make it as painful as possible for them.

The Republican president has called the government funding lapse an “unprecedented opportunity” to make vast cuts to federal agencies and potentially lay off federal workers, rather than the typical practice of furloughing them. White House budget director Russ Vought has already announced that he is withholding billions of dollars for infrastructure projects in states with Democratic senators.

On Friday morning, Vought said he would withhold $2.1 billion for Chicago infrastructure projects to extend its train system to the city’s South Side.

Jeffries has displayed no signs of budging under those threats.

“The cruelty that they might unleash on everyday Americans using the pretense of a shutdown is only going to backfire against them,” he said during an interview with the Associated Press and other outlets at the Capitol.

Still, the shutdown, no matter how long it lasts, could have far-reaching effects on the economy. Roughly 750,000 federal employees could be furloughed, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, and they could lose out on $400 million in daily wages. That loss in wages until after the government reopens could drive down wider demand for goods and services.

“All around the country right now, real pain is being endured by real people because the Democrats have decided to play politics,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson on Friday.

Who will take the blame?

The American public usually spreads the blame around to both major political parties when it comes to a government shutdown. While Trump took a significant portion of the blame during the last partial government shutdown in 2018 as he demanded funding for a U.S.-Mexico border wall, this standoff could end differently because now it is Democrats making the policy demands.

Still, lawmakers were relentlessly trying to make their case to the American public with a constant beat of news conferences, social media videos and livestreams. Congressional leaders have been especially active.

Both sides expressed confidence that the other would ultimately be found at fault. And in the House, party leaders seemed to be moving further apart rather than closer to making a deal to end the shutdown.

Jeffries on Thursday called for a permanent extension to the ACA tax credits. Meanwhile, Johnson and Thune told reporters that they would not negotiate on the tax credits until the government is reopened.

Talks in the Senate

A few senators have engaged in bipartisan talks about launching negotiations on extending the ACA tax credits for one year while the Senate votes to reopen the government for several weeks. But those discussions are in their early stages and appear to have little involvement from leadership.

As senators prepared for their last scheduled vote for the week on Friday, they appeared resigned to allow the shutdown to continue at least into next week. Thune said that if the vote failed, he would “give them the weekend to think about it” before holding more votes.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), in a floor speech, called for Republicans to work with her and fellow Democrats to find “common ground” on the ACA subsidies, saying their expiration would affect plenty of people in states with GOP senators — especially in rural areas where farmers, ranchers and small business owners purchase their own health insurance.

“Unfortunately, right now our Republican colleagues are not working with us to find a bipartisan agreement to prevent the government shutdown and address the healthcare crisis,” she said. “We know that even when they float ideas — which we surely do appreciate — in the end the president appears to make the call.”

Groves and Brown write for the Associated Press. Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro, Kevin Freking and Joey Cappelletti contributed to this report.

A top Trump administration official on Wednesday said the U.S. Department of Energy will cut billions of dollars in funding for energy projects in Democratic states.

“Nearly $8 billion in Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left’s climate agenda is being canceled,” said Russell Vought, director of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, in a post on X.

“The projects are in the following states: CA, CO, CT, DE, HI, IL, MD, MA, MN, NH, NJ, NM, NY, OR, VT, WA,” Vought said.

All 16 states listed did not vote for Trump in the 2024 election.

Vought said more information about the cuts would come from the U.S. Department of Energy, which also announced this week that it will open 13 million acres of federal lands for coal mining and provide $625 million to recommission or modernize coal-fired power plants.

In a news release, the department confirmed that it had terminated more than 300 financial awards associated with 223 projects, amounting to $7.56 billion. The department did not specify the project names or locations, but said the awards had been issued by multiple offices, including the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations and the Office Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

According to the DOE, the projects were canceled following a review that found they did not “adequately advance the nation’s energy needs, were not economically viable, and would not provide a positive return on investment of taxpayer dollars.” About a quarter of the awards had been issued by the Biden administration between election day in November and Trump’s inauguration in January, the agency said.

California Senator Adam Schiff said Vought’s post amounts to political retaliation.

“Our democracy is badly broken when a president can illegally suspend projects for Blue states in order to punish his political enemies,” Schiff wrote on X. “They continue to break the law, and expect us to go along. Hell no.”

Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro described the move as “purely vindictive” and said it will result in higher energy prices across the country.

“Terminating critical energy projects in Democratic states weaponizes policy for political revenge and will only drive energy bills higher, increase unemployment, and eliminate jobs,” DeLauro said in a statement. “It is reckless and betrays both common sense and public trust.”

California and other states on Vought’s list have been working to advance clean energy projects such as solar power and offshore wind. Republican states working on similar efforts — such as Texas, the largest producer of wind energy in the U.S. — were not among Vought’s list of cuts, despite also receiving funding from the Department of Energy.

Vought, one of the authors of the conservative platform document Project 2025, has been actively involved in reshaping the federal government during the second Trump administration. Vought on Wednesday also announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation was freezing $18 million for two infrastructure projects in New York City “to ensure funding is not flowing based on unconstitutional [Diversity, Equity and Inclusion] principles.” The projects include a train tunnel connecting New York and New Jersey and a subway line running along Second Avenue in New York City.

His posts came on the first day of the U.S. government shutdown.

The recipients of the canceled awards will have 30 days to appeal the termination decisions, according to the DOE, which said some of the projects included in the announcement have already begun that process.

A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily halted a Trump administration plan to reduce disaster relief and anti-terrorism funding for states with so-called sanctuary policies for undocumented immigrants.

U.S. District Judge Mary S. McElroy granted the temporary restraining order curtailing the cuts at the request of California, 10 other states and the District of Columbia, which argued in a lawsuit Monday that the policy appeared to have illegally cost them hundreds of millions of dollars.

The states said they were first notified of the cuts over the weekend. McElroy made her decision during an emergency hearing on the states’ motion in Rhode Island District Court on Tuesday afternoon.

California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta cheered the decision as the state’s latest win in pushing back against what he described as a series of unlawful, funding-related power grabs by the Trump administration.

“Over and over, the courts have stopped the Trump Administration’s illegal efforts to tie unrelated grant funding to state policies,” Bonta said. “It’s a little thing called state sovereignty, but given the President’s propensity to violate the Constitution, it’s unsurprising that he’s unfamiliar with it.”

Neither the White House nor the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the funding and notified the states of the cuts, immediately responded to a request for comment Tuesday.

Sanctuary policies are not uniform and the term is imprecise, but it generally refers to policies that bar states and localities — and their local law enforcement agencies — from participating in federal immigration raids or other enforcement initiatives.

The Trump administration and other Republicans have cast such policies as undermining law and order. Democrats and progressives including in California say instead that states and cities have finite public safety resources and that engaging in immigration enforcement serves only to undermine the trust they and their law enforcement agencies need to maintain with the public in order to prevent and solve crime, including in large immigrant communities.

In their lawsuit Monday, the states said the funding being reduced was part of billions in federal dollars annually distributed to the states to “prepare for, protect against, respond to, and recover from catastrophic disasters,” and which administrations of both political parties distributed “evenhandedly” for decades before Trump.

Authorized by Congress after events such as Sept. 11 and Hurricane Katrina, the funding covers the salaries of first responders, testing of state computer networks for cyberattack vulnerabilities, mutual aid compacts between regional partners and emergency responses after disasters, the states said.

Bonta’s office said California was informed over the weekend by Homeland Security officials that it would be receiving $110 million instead of $165 million, a reduction of its budget by about a third. The states’ lawsuit said other blue states saw even more dramatic cuts, with Illinois seeing a 69% reduction and New York receiving a 79% reduction, while red states saw substantial funding increases.

Bonta on Tuesday said the administration’s reshuffling of funds based on state compliance with the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement priorities was illegal and needed to be halted — and restored to previous levels based on risk assessment — in order to keep everyone in the country safe.

“California uses the grant funding at stake in our lawsuit to protect the safety of our communities from acts of terrorism and other disasters — meaning the stakes are quite literally life and death,” he said. “This is not something to play politics with. I’m grateful to the court for seeing the urgency of this dangerous diversion of homeland security funding.”

Homeland Security officials have previously argued that the agency should be able to withhold funding from states that it believes are not upholding or are actively undermining its core mission of defending the nation from threats, including the threat it sees from illegal immigration.

Other judges have also ruled against the administration conditioning disaster and public safety funding on states and localities complying with federal immigration policies.

Joining California in Monday’s lawsuit were Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington, as well as the District of Columbia.