Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) chair Richard Collier-Keywood and director of rugby Dave Reddin have defended their positions amid criticism of the Union’s handling of regional restructuring.
DUBAI — President Trump has signed an executive order vowing to use all measures, including U.S. military action, to defend the energy-rich nation of Qatar — though it remains unclear just what weight the pledge will carry.
The text of the order, available Wednesday on the White House’s website but dated Monday, appears to be another measure by Trump to assure the Qataris following Israel’s surprise attack on the country targeting Hamas leaders as they weighed accepting a ceasefire with Israel over the war in the Gaza Strip.
The order cites the two countries’ “close cooperation” and “shared interest,” vowing to “guarantee the security and territorial integrity of the state of Qatar against external attack.”
“The United States shall regard any armed attack on the territory, sovereignty or critical infrastructure of the state of Qatar as a threat to the peace and security of the United States,” the order says.
“In the event of such an attack, the United States shall take all lawful and appropriate measures — including diplomatic, economic, and, if necessary, military — to defend the interests of the United States and of the state of Qatar and to restore peace and stability.”
The order apparently came during a visit to Washington on Monday by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump organized a call by Netanyahu to Qatar during the visit in which Netanyahu “expressed his deep regret” over the strike that killed six people, including a member of the Qatari security forces, the White House said.
Qatari officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump’s order. However, the Qatari-funded satellite news network Al Jazeera prominently reported about it Wednesday under the headline: “New Trump executive order guarantees Qatar security after Israeli attack.”
The true scope of the pledge remains in question. Typically, legally binding agreements, or treaties, need to receive the approval of the U.S. Senate. However, presidents have entered international agreements without the Senate’s approval, as President Obama did with Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
And ultimately, any decision to take military action rests with the president. That uncertainty has clouded previous U.S. defense agreements in Trump’s second term, such as NATO’s Article 5 guarantees.
Qatar, a peninsular nation that sticks out into the Persian Gulf, became fantastically wealthy through its natural gas reserves. It has been a key U.S. military partner, allowing America’s Central Command to have its forward operating base at its vast Al Udeid Air Base. President Biden named Qatar a major non-NATO ally in 2022, in part due to its help during America’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.
In the aftermath of the Israeli attack, Saudi Arabia entered a mutual defense agreement with Pakistan, bringing the kingdom under Islamabad’s nuclear umbrella. It’s unclear whether other Gulf Arab countries, worried about Israel as well as Iran as it faces reimposed United Nations sanctions over its nuclear program, may seek similar arrangements as well with the region’s longtime security guarantor.
“The Gulf’s centrality in the Middle East and its significance to the United States warrants specific U.S. guarantees beyond President Donald J. Trump’s assurances of nonrepetition and dinner meetings,” wrote Bader al-Saif, a history professor at Kuwait University who analyzes Gulf Arab affairs.
Weekly insights and analysis on the latest developments in military technology, strategy, and foreign policy.
European nations are beefing up security in Copenhagen amid an ongoing wave of reported drone sightings in the Baltics and Scandinavia. The movement of counter-drone systems, advanced radars, a German frigate, a French helicopter and troops is designed to protect this week’s European Union meetings in the Danish capital.
While Denmark has called the drones part of a “hybrid attack,” officials there have stopped short of saying definitively who is responsible, Reuters noted. However, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has suggested it could be Moscow, calling Russia the primary “country that poses a threat to European security.” The Kremlin denies any involvement.
Regardless of who is behind these incursions, NATO is taking the potential threat from these drones seriously.
The Swedish government “has just decided to task the Swedish Armed Forces with supporting Denmark with military anti-drone capabilities in connection with this week’s summits in Copenhagen,” Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on X Monday morning. “Specifically, this involves a unit contribution with anti-drone capabilities, so-called Counter UAS. The unit will be led by the Danish Armed Forces and contribute to their support of the Danish police operation in connection with this week’s summits.”
In addition, Sweden will also “lend a handful of powerful radar systems to Denmark for a period of time,” Kristersson added. “Among the best radar systems in the world. This is Swedish engineering that we can be truly proud of. The radar systems were already sent yesterday.”
Asked by The War Zone for details about exactly what kinds of counter-drone and radar systems are being deployed to Copenhagen, the Swedish MoD declined to comment.
Regeringen har precis fattat beslut om att ge Försvarsmakten i uppdrag att stödja Danmark med militär antidrönarförmåga i samband med veckans toppmöten i Köpenhamn. Konkret handlar det om ett förbandsbidrag med antidrönarförmåga, så kallad Counter UAS.
Germany has deployed the Sachsen class air defense frigate FGS Hamburg to Copenhagen, the Danish Defense Ministry (MoD) announced on Sunday.
“Here, the ship will contribute to strengthening Denmark’s surveillance of the airspace in connection with the upcoming EU summit in Copenhagen,” the ministry said in a statement. “The German frigate is part of NATO’s Baltic Sentry activity, which is intended to strengthen NATO’s presence along the alliance’s eastern flank.”
The Hamburg’s port call is part of a larger NATO effort to beef up Baltic Sentry in response to the drone incursions, the alliance told us Monday morning. The operation was stood up early this year in response to several instances of undersea cables being cut in suspected acts of sabotage and is now being expanded.
“FGS Hamburg (F220), assigned to NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 1, made a port call in Copenhagen yesterday and will support ongoing Baltic Sentry enhanced vigilance activities,” Cmdr. Arlo Abrahamson, a NATO spokesman, told The War Zone Monday morning. “The presence of FGS Hamburg operating near Denmark for Baltic Sentry sends a message of assurance and cohesion within the Alliance.”
“Following recent drone incidents in Denmark, NATO is conducting even more enhanced vigilance with new multi-domain assets in the Baltic Sea region, including Denmark, under Baltic Sentry,” Abrahamson added. “These assets include multiple intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance platforms and air-defense frigates. These actions demonstrate the flexibility and agility of this enhanced vigilance activity to broaden the mission beyond solely the protection of [critical underwater infrastructure] CUI. It is also a tangible example of Allies’ resolve to act decisively to protect and defend Allies.”
❗️The 🇩🇪German Navy frigate FGS Hamburg (F220) called at the port of 🇩🇰Copenhagen as part of NATO’s Operation Baltic Sentry to protect the Baltic region. pic.twitter.com/N1G6ikczXG
In addition to deploying the Hamburg, Germany is also providing Denmark with “counter-small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (C-sUAS) capabilities, which utilize detection systems that employ radar, optical and acoustic technologies,” The Associated Press noted.
France has deployed “35 personnel, a Fennec helicopter, and active counter-drone assets” to Denmark “in response to the recent upsurge in unidentified drone flights in Danish airspace,” the French Defense Ministry said in a statement, adding the drones were a “serious threat.”
📍 Danemark | Appui aux forces armées danoises @forsvaretdk face à la recrudescence de vols de drones non identifiés dans l’espace aérien 🇩🇰 dans le cadre du sommet 🇪🇺 de Copenhague les 1er et 2 octobre 2025.
— Armée française – Opérations militaires (@EtatMajorFR) September 29, 2025
Prior to the announcement of the asset deployments, the Danish military set up a XENTA-C counter-drone radar system at Copenhagen Airport, which you can see in the following video.
While these assets can detect and, in some cases, shoot down drones, it is unclear exactly how NATO officials will react should more UAVs be spotted. Abrahamson, the NATO spokesman, declined to comment on what rules of engagement the Hamburg is operating under, for instance.
As Europe bolsters the airspace over Copenhagen, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for a counter-drone “shield” to protect NATO skies.
“Ukraine proposes to Poland and all our partners to build a joint, fully reliable shield against Russian aerial threats,” Zelensky said Monday in an address to the Warsaw Security Forum delivered via video link. “This is possible. Ukraine can counter all kinds of Russian drones and missiles and if we act together in the region we will have enough weapons and production capacity.”
While NATO officials are reluctant to blame Russia directly, Zelensky on Sunday accused Moscow of usingoil tankers to launch and control drones targeting European countries. The Ukrainian president cited intelligence reports as he called for tougher sanctions against Moscow’s energy trade.
In a video statement earlier on X, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that there is now intelligence information which indicates Russia is using oil tankers to launch and operate drones over several countries in Europe, with him calling for the Baltic Sea to be closed… pic.twitter.com/YgGgulfmKr
The increasing concern about protecting NATO’s skies began after the aforementioned drone incursions into Poland and ramped up after a flight into Estonian airspace by three Russian MiG-31 Foxhound interceptors. The recent mystery drone sightings have ramped up the angst.
Then there was the hugely publicized rash of thousands of drone sightings late last year in the New Jersey area that sparked widespread panic. The vast majority of those cases, however, turned out to be mistaken identity, with only about 100 even deemed worthy of further investigation. It is unclear at this point how many sightings in Europe are also wrongly labeled as drones, but this appears to be the case in many of them. The chronic lack of domain awareness for these threats by federal and military forces only adds to this confusion.
Recently, we wrote about the creation of a quick reaction force (QRF) by U.S. Northern Command to help bases in the U.S. defend against drones. It is initially designed to be one team out of Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado. The concept, however, shows just how far behind the U.S. is when it comes to countering the threat from small drones because the QRF will take up to 24 hours after an initial incursion to arrive on scene. Similar lack of preparedness exists with America’s allies in Europe.
The scrambling to deploy a hodgepodge of owned and borrowed counter-drone assets to Copenhagen amid the current drone wave is further proof of this.
One could ask whether the not-insignificant cost of the special election is the best use of taxpayer dollars, or if the sum would be better spent, as veteran GOP strategist Ken Khachigian suggested in a recent Wall Street Journal opinion piece, “on firefighters, police officers, schoolteachers and road repairs.”
The chairman of California’s Democratic Party, Rusty Hicks, placed a more concrete price tag on the virtues of Proposition 50, suggesting to the Bay Area News Group that money spent on the special election would be offset — and then some — by the billions California would otherwise lose under President Trump’s hostile regime.
There is, however, an added, if intangible, cost to Proposition 50: Effectively disenfranchising millions of conservative and Republican-leaning Californians, who already feel as though they’re ignored and politically impotent.
Under the Democratic gerrymander, the already-meager Republican House contingent — nine of 52 California House members — could be cut practically in half. Starting in January 2027, the state’s entire Republican delegation could fit in a Jeep Wagoneer, with plenty of room to spare.
This in a state where Trump received over 6 million votes in 2024.
The cost of California’s special election is estimated at $282.6 million. The campaign is effectively a roll out for a Newsom presidential bid.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
The would-be autocrat issuing diktats from the Oval Office may be odious to many. But making people feel as though their vote is irrelevant, their voice is muzzled and they have no stake in our political system because elections are essentially meaningless — at least as far as which party prevails — is not a recipe for a contented and engaged citizenry, or a healthy democracy.
We already have a chief executive who has repeatedly demonstrated that he sees himself as the president of red America, of those who support him unequivocally, with everyone else regarded as evil or subversive. We’ve seen how well that’s worked out.
Is the solution electing a governor for blue California, who — if not openly scorning the state’s millions of Republicans — is willing to render them politically powerless?
Proponents of Proposition 50 say the measure is needed to offset Republican gerrymanders in Texas and other states.
Your friendly columnist put the question to those seven Democrats. What do they say to Republican voters who already feel disregarded and politically unrepresented? As governor, is there a place for them in your vision of California?
Most, as you’d expect, vowed to be a governor for all: Red, blue, independent, libertarian, vegetarian.
Former Rep. Katie Porter noted she served a purple Orange County district and won support from voters of all stripes “because they knew I wouldn’t hesitate to stand up for anyone — no matter to what party they belong — who makes life harder for California families.” She said in a text message she’d bring “that same tenacity, grit and courage” to Sacramento.
Toni Atkins, a former Assembly speaker and state Senate leader, texted that she’s “made it a priority to listen to every Californian — Democrat, Republican, and Independent.” Assailing Republicans in Congress, she described Proposition 50 as “a way to fight back now” while eventually reverting to the independent redistricting commission that drew up the current congressional lines.
Xavier Becerra, the state’s former attorney general and a member of Joe Biden’s cabinet, said he would work to see that all Californians, regardless of party, benefit from his leadership on healthcare, housing and making the state more affordable. Doing that, he texted, requires fighting Trump and “Republican extremists” seeking to rig the midterm elections.
Betty Yee, the former state controller, just finished a campaign swing through rural California, where, she said, voters asked similar questions along the lines of what about us? Those vast reaches beyond the state’s blue coastal enclaves have long been a hotbed of resentment toward California’s ruling Democratic establishment.
Yee said she urged voters there to “look at your representation now.” The Republican-run Congress, she noted, has approved budget cuts that threaten to shut down rural hospitals and gut badly needed social safety-net programs. “How is that representing your interest?” she asked.
Tony Thurmond, the state schools superintendent, said much the same.
“One of the reasons that I support this measure is because California Republicans in Congress who voted for the ‘big, beautiful bill’ voted for a bill that they knew was going to throw millions of people off of health insurance,” Thurmond said. “And that’s troubling, and I actually think that this is a way to counter that action and to make changes in Congress.”
Villaraigosa called Proposition 50 “a temporary … direct response to MAGA’s election rigging efforts in Texas.” Cloobeck texted, “This is not the way it should be, but democracy and California are under attack, and there is no way in hell I’m not going to FIGHT.”
There’s a certain presumption and paternalism to the notion that California Democrats know what’s best for California Republicans.
But as Thurmond noted, “They have a right to vote it down. We’re putting it in front of the voters and giving them a chance to exercise their viewpoints, democratically.”
Every Californian who casts a ballot can decide what best suits them.
Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez interrupts presenter Max Kellerman to defend boxing, saying it is a big sport with or without UFC chief Dana White, who is promoting Saturday’s fight between Alvarez and Terence Crawford.
The White House has reiterated President Donald Trump’s remarks that US troops will not be deployed to Ukraine as part of any security guarantees under a peace deal with Russia. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the US may instead provide coordination and air support.
WASHINGTON — President Trump on Tuesday offered his assurances that U.S. troops would not be sent to help defend Ukraine against Russia after seeming to leave open the possibility the day before.
Trump also said in a morning TV interview that Ukraine’s hopes of joining NATO and regaining the Crimean peninsula from Russia are “impossible.”
The Republican president, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other European leaders held hours of talks at the White House on Monday aimed at bringing an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine. While answering questions from journalists, Trump did not rule out sending U.S. troops to participate in a European-led effort to defend Ukraine as part of security guarantees sought by Zelensky.
Trump said after his meeting in Alaska last week with Russian President Vladimir Putin that Putin was open to the idea of security guarantees for Ukraine.
But asked Tuesday on Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends” what assurances he could provide going beyond his term that American troops would not be part of defending Ukraine’s border, Trump said, “Well, you have my assurance, and I’m president.”
Trump would have no control over the U.S. military after his term ends in January 2029.
The president also said in the interview that he is optimistic that a deal can be reached to end the Russian invasion, but he underscored that Ukraine will have to set aside its hope of getting back Crimea, which was seized by Russian forces in 2014, and its long-held aspirations of joining the NATO military alliance.
“Both of those things are impossible,” Trump said.
Putin, as part of any potential deal to pull his forces out of Ukraine, is looking for the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as recognition of Crimea as Russian territory.
At the end of Monday’s White House gathering, Trump said he is trying to arrange a meeting between Putin and Zelensky, followed by a trilateral meeting involving himself and the two warring leaders. Details and possible locations were not discussed, but an international arrest warrant for Putin could complicate any such meetings.
French President Emmanuel Macron said it could happen “in Europe” and he’s advocating for Geneva, although he said it could be another “neutral” country. He noted in an interview with French television TF1-LCI broadcast Tuesday that Istanbul hosted the most recent bilateral discussions, in 2022.
Meanwhile, Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis said his country would be prepared to organize such a summit, Swiss public broadcaster SRF reported.
Asked about the complication posed by the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Putin, Cassis said “the aim of receiving Mr. Putin in Switzerland without him being arrested is 100% achievable … of course, if he comes to Switzerland for the purposes of peace, for such a multilateral conference, not if he comes for private matters.”
Cassis said arranging for Putin to avoid arrest would require “a certain procedure,” but it could be done “in a few days.”
In the “Fox & Friends” interview, Trump said Putin and Zelensky are getting along “a little better than I thought,” noting the “tremendous bad blood” between them.
He said his perception of their relationship is why he’s arranging for them to meet one-on-one soon, instead of a three-way meeting with himself as sort of a mediator.
“I think they’re doing OK. I wouldn’t say they are ever going to be best friends, but they’re doing OK,” the president said.”
“You know, they’re the ones that have to call the shots,” Trump said. “We’re 7,000 miles away.”
The White House meeting with Zelensky included the leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Finland, the European Union and NATO.
Trump said the European leaders were not in the room when he spoke with Putin on Monday. He said he thought it would have been disrespectful to handle the phone call that way since Putin and the European leaders meeting with him at the White House haven’t had the “warmest relations.”
But despite that, he said that he has managed to maintain a “very good relationship” with Putin.
Superville and Madhani write for the Associated Press.
Trump administration officials question data amid condemnation of dismissal of Bureau of Labor Statistics head.
The White House has defended United States President Donald Trump’s firing of the top official responsible for compiling employment statistics after her dismissal raised concerns about the future credibility of crucial economic data.
Trump fired Erika McEntarfer, the director of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), on Friday, claiming without evidence that the latest jobs report had been “rigged” to make him look bad.
On Sunday, Kevin Hassett, the director of the White House National Economic Council, denied that Trump was “shooting the messenger” and questioned the accuracy of the figures showing much weaker hiring than previously reported.
“The president wants his own people there so that when we see the numbers, they’re more transparent and more reliable,” Hassett told NBC News’s Meet the Press, calling the downward revision of jobs growth for May and June “unprecedented” and a “historically important outlier”.
“And if there are big changes and big revisions – we expect more big revisions for the jobs data in September, for example – then we want to know why. We want people to explain it to us.”
Speaking on Fox News later on Sunday, Hassett again poured doubt on the official figures, suggesting without evidence that employment statistics can sometimes contain “partisan patterns”.
“I think what we need is a fresh set of eyes at the BLS, somebody who can clean this thing up,” he told Fox News Sunday.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer also defended Trump’s dismissal of McEntarfer, saying the president had “real concerns” about the jobs data.
“You want to be able to have somewhat reliable numbers,” Greer told CBS News’ Face the Nation.
“There are always revisions, but sometimes you see these revisions go in really extreme ways. And it’s, you know, the president is the president. He can choose who works in the executive branch.”
The latest employment figures released on Friday showed that 258,000 fewer jobs were created in May and June than previously estimated, and that a fewer-than-expected 73,000 jobs were added in July, undermining Trump’s insistence that the economy has not been negatively affected by his sweeping tariffs.
Trump said on Sunday that he would announce a new BLS director, as well as a candidate to fill the position left open by the resignation of Federal Reserve governor Adriana Kugler, within the next few days.
Trump’s dismissal of McEntarfer, a career bureaucrat who was appointed with overwhelming bipartisan support in 2024, has prompted condemnation from economists and both Republican and Democratic lawmakers.
In a statement on Friday, The Friends of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a group co-led by former BLS directors William Beach and Erica L Groshen, accused Trump of politicising the statistics agency and undermining confidence in official government data.
“US official statistics are the gold standard globally,” the group said.
“When leaders of other nations have politicised economic data, it has destroyed public trust in all official statistics and in government science.”
Aug. 3 (UPI) — Economists are lining up to defend Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner Erika McEntarfer, who was fired by President Donald Trump on Friday over his allegations that the agency manipulated a report showing low job growth for July.
“It has been the honor of my life to serve as Commissioner of BLS alongside the many dedicated civil servants tasked with measuring a vast and dynamic economy. It is vital and important work and I thank them for their service to this nation,” McEntarfer said on social media Friday.
Her firing came after the July report had shown that jobs growth was slower than expected as the unemployment rose, with the United States only adding 73,000 new jobs for the month — down from 147,000 new jobs added in June.
“Today’s jobs numbers were rigged in order to make Republicans and me look bad,” Trump had said Friday afternoon in a Truth Social post.
Former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers called Trump’s accusations a “preposterous charge” in an interview with ABC News’ “This Week” program Sunday.
“These numbers are put together by teams of literally hundreds of people following detailed procedures that are in manuals. There’s no conceivable way that the head of the BLS could have manipulated this number,” Summers said.
Summers said that the numbers in the job report were “in line” with data and information being reviewed in the private sector and criticized Trump for his “authoritarian” removal of McEntarfer.
“Firing statisticians goes with threatening the heads of newspapers. It goes with launching assaults on universities. It goes with launching assaults on law firms that defend clients that the elected boss finds uncongenial,” he said. “This is really scary stuff.”
Bill Beach, McEntarfer’s predecessor, appeared in an interview with CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday where he likewise called the move by Trump “totally groundless” and dangerous.
“The commissioner doesn’t see the numbers until Wednesday before they’re published. By the time the commissioner sees the numbers, they’re all prepared. They’re locked into the computer system,” Beach said.
Beach said that the only thing the commissioner can do before the jobs report is published is review the text accompanying the data, as he explained part of the process of how they’re compiled.
“What I think really upset the president on Friday were the revisions to May and June, big revisions. But that’s because, like every time we publish on Friday, there are revisions to the previous two months,” he said. “This is a survey. And a survey has sample returns.”
Beach said the jobs reports are compiled from surveys that are sent out to Americans and hundreds of thousands of businesses each month. But the BLS doesn’t receive all the returns in time, keeping the window for responses open an extra two months.
“What you saw on Friday was the effect of trying to do a better job, getting more information,” Beach said.
During his interview, Beach was asked if he would believe future report numbers compiled by the BLS after a successor for McEntarfer is found.
“I will, because I know the people who work there. They are some of the most loyal Americans you can imagine. They have worked in every kind of political circumstance. They are completely devoted to producing the very best gold standard data possible,” he said. “And that’s why BLS is the finest statistical agency in the entire world. Its numbers are trusted all over the world. So, I will trust those numbers.”
Still, White House officials aimed Sunday to double down on the president’s claim that the data was being manipulated, without evidence.
White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett was interviewed on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday and said that the BLS needs a “fresh set of eyes.”
“There have been a bunch of patterns that could make people wonder,” he said. “And I think the most important thing for people to know is that it’s the president’s highest priority that the data be trusted and that people get to the bottom of why these revisions are so unreliable.”
The far-right political activist Laura Loomer, who is not an official member of the Trump administration but has positioned herself as an informal chief adviser on personnel matters, called the BLS situation a “vetting crisis.”
“Great job by President Trump who just announced he is firing Biden holdover Erika McEntarfer, the Commissioner of Labor Statistics,” she said on social media. “Every single Biden holdover must be FIRED.”
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — An Ohio city whose Haitian migrants were disparaged by a Donald Trump falsehood last year as he pitched voters on his plans for an immigration crackdown is now bracing to defend the community against possible deportation.
A group of about 100 community members, clergy and Haitian leaders in Springfield gathered this week for several days of training sessions as they prepare to defend potential deportees and provide them refuge.
“We feel that this is something that our faith requires, that people of faith are typically law-abiding people — that’s who we want to be — but if there are laws that are unjust, if there are laws that don’t respect human dignity, we feel that our commitment to Christ requires that we put ourselves in places where we may face some of the same threats,” said Carl Ruby, senior pastor of Central Christian Church.
Ruby said the ultimate goal of the group is to persuade the Trump administration to reverse its decision to terminate legal protections for hundreds of thousands of Haitians in the U.S. under Temporary Protected Status, or TPS.
“One way of standing with the Haitians is getting out the message of how much value they bring to the city of Springfield,” he said. “It would be an absolute disaster if we lost 10,000 of our best workers overnight because their TPS ends and they can no longer work.”
In lieu of that, Ruby said, participants in the effort are learning how to help Haitians in other ways. That includes building relationships, accompanying migrants to appointments with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and providing their families with physical shelter.
A speaker addresses a training session July 29, 2025, at Central Christian Church in Springfield, Ohio, which advised community and church leaders on how to support and shelter immigrants facing deportation.
(Obed Lamy / Associated Press)
A city in the crosshairs
Springfield found itself in an unwelcome spotlight last year after Trump amplified false rumors during a presidential debate that members of the mid-size city’s burgeoning Haitian population were abducting and eating cats and dogs. It was the type of inflammatory and anti-immigrant rhetoric he promoted throughout his campaign.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced in June that it would terminate TPS as soon as Sept. 2 for about 500,000 Haitians who are already in the United States, some of whom have lived here for more than a decade. The department said conditions in the island nation have improved adequately to allow their safe return. The United Nations contradicts that assertion, saying that the economic and humanitarian crisis in Haiti has only worsened with the Trump administration’s cuts in foreign aid.
The announcement came three months after the administration revoked legal protections for thousands of Haitians who arrived legally in the United States under a humanitarian parole program as part of a series of measures implemented to curb immigration. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned a federal judge’s order preventing the administration from revoking the parole program.
Last month, a federal judge in New York blocked the administration from accelerating an end to Haitians’ TPS protections, which the Biden administration had extended through at least Feb. 3, 2026, citing gang violence, political unrest, a major earthquake in 2021 and other factors.
Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said at the time that the Trump administration would eventually prevail and that its predecessors treated TPS like a “de facto asylum program.” In the meantime, the government has set the expiration date back to early February.
TPS allows people already in the United States to stay and work legally if their homelands are deemed unsafe. Immigrants from 17 countries, including Haiti, Afghanistan, Sudan and Lebanon, were receiving those protections before Trump took office for his second term in January.
Participants hold a discussion in a breakout session during a training hosted by the group Undivided at Central Christian Church in Springfield, Ohio, aimed at teaching community and church leaders how to support and shelter immigrants facing deportation July 29, 2025.
(Obed Lamy / Associated Press)
Residents ponder next steps
Charla Weiss, a founding member of Undivided, the group that hosted the Springfield workshop, said participants were asked the question of how far they would go to help Haitian residents avoid deportation.
“The question that I know was before me is, how far am I willing to go to support my passion about the unlawful detainment and deportation of Haitians, in particular here in Springfield?” she said.
Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a longtime supporter of the Haitian community, was briefed by Springfield leaders during a visit to the city Friday. He told reporters that the state is bracing for the potential of mass layoffs in the region as a result of the TPS policy change, a negative for the workers and the companies that employ them.
“It’s not going to be good,” he said.
Lamy and Smyth write for the Associated Press and reported from Springfield and Columbus, Ohio, respectively.
Sharon Osbourne said Ozzy, her husband of 43 years, died “surrounded by love” on Tuesday following a journey with Parkinson’s disease, which affectsthe central nervous system
01:09, 24 Jul 2025Updated 01:14, 24 Jul 2025
A fiery throwback clip of Sharon Osbourne fiercely defending her late husband Ozzy is going viral(Image: VH1)
A fiery throwback clip of Sharon Osbourne protecting her husband Ozzy is going viral following the rock icon’s death.
Fans have praised Sharon’s loyalty as, in the clip, the mum of three hits back at Megan Hauserman, then a contestant on Rock of Love: Charm School, who had insulted Ozzy. Megan had said: “The only thing you’ve managed to do as a celebrity is to watch your husband’s brain turn into a vegetable.”
But Sharon turned to the audience and said: “I feel so sorry for her,” before standing up, calmly taking a sip from her cup — and then hurling the rest of the drink in Megan’s face. The explosive exchange happened during the 2008 series of Sharon’s show, which saw contestants compete to develop proper etiquette in order to win $100,000 (£73,000).
Megan, a model and actress, was eliminated in episode four of her series, shortly after the showdown with Sharon, then aged 56 and a household name in the music and TV industries in the US and the UK. She told her audience: “They can f*** with me… I don’t give a sh** — but not my family.”
Sharon unleashed on Megan Hauserman who struck a nerve when she insulted Ozzy(Image: VH1)
Security scrambled on the stage as tensions escalated on the VH1 programme. Following the feisty confrontation, Megan sued Sharon for battery and distress, while Sharon countersued, saying the reality star had assumed the risk and broken their TV agreement by suing. The case quietly settled in 2011 for an undisclosed six-figure sum.
Since then, Megan, 43, has starred in her own short-lived, infamous dating show: Megan Wants a Millionaire. It was axed during the first – and last – season with just three episodes airing in 2009.
Social media users took aim at Megan this week as the Rock of Love: Charm School clip re-emerged online. They also lauded Sharon’s loyalty, with one user stating: “The way she loved Ozzy is something not common… She really, REALLY loved her husband.” Another posted: “Ozzy was so blessed to have someone as loving as she was.”
Sharon hurled a coloured liquid at Megan(Image: VH1)
A further fan posted: “Ozzy was the king of metal, but she was the queen. Never attack royalty.” Another comment reads: “GO Sharon. She doesn’t play when it comes to her man.”
And music manager Sharon, 72, expressed her heartbreak at Ozzy’s passing this week. The TV personality, who has been a judge on The X Factor, said in a family statement: “It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.”
She married Ozzy in Hawaii, US, in July 1982 and went on to have three children; Jack, Kelly, Aimee, with the music legend. The family’s light-hearted reality TV series, The Osbournes, was a huge hit and ran for three seasons between 2002 and 2005. Ozzy died on Tuesday “surrounded by love” following a battle with Parkinson’s disease.
More than a dozen religious leaders from an array of faiths marched to the steps of the Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday night, flowers in hand, calling for an end to the federal immigration raids they say have torn families apart and resulted in racial profiling.
At the start of the procession in Plaza Olvera, the Rev. Tanya Lopez, senior pastor at Downey Memorial Christian Church, recounted how last week she watched as plainclothes federal agents swarmed a constituent in the parking lot of her church. Despite her attempts to intervene, she said, the man was detained, and she doesn’t know where he is now.
“All of our faith traditions teach us to love our neighbor, to leave the world with less suffering than when we find it, and this is creating trauma that will be unable to be undone for generations,” Lopez said.
Religious leaders from multiple faiths left flowers on the steps of the Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles in honor of people detained in recent immigration raids.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Federal enforcement actions have played out across Southern California this week as the Trump administration carries out its vows to do mass deportations of immigrants in the country without documentation. Initially, President Trump focused his rhetoric on those who had committed violent crimes. But shortly after he took office, his administration made clear that it considers anyone in the country without authorization to be a criminal.
The religious leaders marching Wednesday called for a halt to the raids, saying immigrants are integral to the Los Angeles community and deserve to be treated with respect and dignity, regardless of documentation status.
They carried their message through downtown, marching from Plaza Olvera to the Federal Building, dressed in colorful garb reflecting Jewish, Sikh, Muslim and Catholic traditions, and uniting in song and prayer, in Spanish and English.
They called out to God, Creator, the Holy One, and prayed for healing and justice. They prayed for the hundreds of people who have been detained and deported and the families they’ve left behind.
Father Brendan Busse of Dolores Mission Church looks out over the crowd participating in an interfaith protest Wednesday in downtown Los Angeles.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
In the crowd, Talia Guppy held purple flowers to her chest as she sang along. Guppy said she learned that members of her Episcopalian church, St. Stephen’s Hollywood, had been detained during the raid of the Ambiance Apparel factory in downtown L.A. Her church has since moved its services online to accommodate people afraid to venture from their homes.
“We’re out here for them,” she said. “We’re going to keep the hope and keep the faith until we get justice for them.”
At the end of the procession, the marchers approached the steps of the Federal Building. Officers from the Department of Homeland Security poured out of the building and guarded the entrance as clergy leaders lined the steps. Inside, behind semireflective doors, rows of U.S. Marines stood at the ready.
The leaders called for peace and laid flowers on the steps in tribute to those who have been detained.
“We come with flowers, and we will keep coming with flowers as long as our loved ones are held in cages,” said Valarie Kaur, a Sikh leader. She turned her attention to the officers at the doors, who stood stoic, and questioned how they wanted to be remembered by history. Then she placed flowers by their feet.
Sikh leader Valarie Kaur leaves a flower at the feet of federal officers standing guard at the Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
In the crowd, protesters held signs with images of the Virgin Mary and Mexican flags. The clergy asked them to be ready to defend their neighbors in the coming days.
Father Brendan Busse, a Jesuit priest at the Dolores Mission Church in Boyle Heights, said he has felt the impact of the raids within his church. Devoted members are no longer in the pews. Others call asking whether it is safe to come to church. The fear is palpable.
“We need to be a safe space for people, not just in our church, but in the whole neighborhood,” he said. “I can’t guarantee to anybody that we are a totally safe space, but to at least give them a sense that in the difficult moment we’re at, that we stand together.”
This article is part of The Times’ equity reporting initiative,funded by the James Irvine Foundation, exploring the challenges facing low-income workers and the efforts being made to addressCalifornia’s economic divide.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei says Iran is ‘for the time being’ focused on targeting Israeli sites only as conflict enters sixth day.
Iran has warned that any intervention by the United States in its conflict with Israel would risk an “all-out war”, as the regional rivals traded missile fire for a sixth day.
After President Donald Trump hinted at greater US involvement in the conflict and sent warplanes to the region, Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Wednesday pledged that Iran would defend itself with “all force”.
Here are some key takeaways from an exclusive interview the Iranian official gave to Al Jazeera.
Will Iran attack US forces?
Baghaei said Iran is “under an attack by a genocidal regime”, adding it will defend itself with “full force” against Israel’s “war of aggression”.
He said Iran is “for the time being” focused on targeting Israeli sites only, and Tehran trusts its neighbours would not allow the US to use their territory for attacks against it.
“Right now, we focus on defending ourselves from attacks from Israel, and that is why we have been very careful, very responsible, very calculated in our response to these attacks. We have targeted military bases, security bases inside the occupied lands, so for the time being, we are focused on that,” he said.
“We have very good relations with Arab countries, and they are very cognisant of the fact that Israel has been trying to drag others into the war … We are sure our Arab countries hosting US bases would not allow their territory to be used against their Muslim neighbours,” he added.
“I trust that the understanding between Iran and our neighbouring countries would not allow any third party to abuse their territory,” he said.
Is Iran willing to engage in diplomacy?
According to Baghaei, “diplomacy never ends”. But he said Tehran no longer trusts Washington.
“We were in the middle of [nuclear] negotiations [with the US], and all of a sudden, Israel started attacking Iran. And no one can imagine in our region, not only in Iran, that Israel started this war without a prior green light from the US,” he said.
“So I think what is at stake is the credibility of a country that is supposed to be a global power. What is at stake is the international law that has been almost annihilated because of all the atrocities committed in occupied Palestine and in Syria and elsewhere,” he noted.
Baghaei said Iran is in contact with other countries, including Russia, because it is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. “We expect everyone that has leeway, that has a mandate under the UN Security Council, to act to help achieve a resolution in condemnation of this attack,” he said.
Will Iran give up its nuclear programme?
Israel has said its attacks on Iran came to stop Tehran from building nuclear weapons. Iran has repeatedly denied that it seeks nuclear bombs and that its nuclear programme is peaceful.
Baghaei argued: “Where are the IAEA’s violation reports? The true criminals bomb inspected facilities.”
“Our nuclear programme has been part and parcel of our right under the NPT [Non-Proliferation Treaty]. So we have not done anything wrong under international law. Our nuclear programme started in the 1950s and it has continued for the past five decades completely peacefully,” he said.
He accused Israel of attacking a “peaceful installation” in Iran and questioned why members of the NPT allowed the attack to happen.
“This is completely banned under international law. This is completely criminal. And in accordance with Article 573 of [the UN convention on nuclear safety, as adopted by the International Atomic Energy Agency] IAEA … the threat of attack against a country’s peaceful installation constitutes a threat to peace and security,” he noted.
“Now, we are witnessing a serious breach of peace … so I think the international community must make Israel and its supporters accountable for what they have done in their aggression against Iran.”
In the minds of liberals, democracy is a society that is open, tolerant, and diverse. However, history demonstrates that the most tolerant regimes occasionally have to go beyond, even if that means violating their own principles, in order to remain. This paradox is exactly what explains the concept of militant democracy: a variety of democratic self-defense that gives the right to restrict some of the rights because the main one—the democratic order—still has to be protected.
What Is Militant Democracy?
The idea of militant democracy was first discussed by a German scholar called Karl Loewenstein in the 1930s. While Loewenstein was exploring the downfall of the Weimar Republic, he claimed that democracies must not be passive if they are to survive against those who want to destroy them from within.
Within this concept, a democratic power is no longer the weak and helpless one. It may, thus, use legal and constitutional means to prevent radical parties—be they fascist, communist, or religiously radical—from abusing the very freedoms that democracy grants them to commit their acts of treason, thereby driving the democracy to annihilation.
Tools of Democratic Self-Defense
Modern-day militant democracies employ various instruments to secure their foundations:
· Prohibiting extremist parties or movements (e.g., the ban of the neo-Nazi SRP by Germany in 1952 and of the Communist Party in 1956)
· Constitutional clauses that forbid organizations if they are considered “hostile to democracy”
· Limiting freedom of expression or gathering when these are used for the propagation of hate or the establishment of an authoritarian regime
· Ensuring the loyalty of public officials towards the democratic values through monitoring of their activities
Through these tools, the democracies are the ones that are controversial with these questions of moral and political problems. Can a democracy still be accepted if it restricts participation? Does the suppression of any kind of speech in order to defend tolerance at the end of it actually lead to the loss of that?
Between Protection and Overreach
Critics point out that militant democracy may be misused. Governments might use it as an excuse not to protect democracy but, instead, to go after their opponents. The purges in Turkey after the coup are, for instance, examples of such self-preservation. However, they are considered by many to be the signs of an authoritarian regime.
The demarcation between “anti-democratic” and just “illiberal” is often very vague. The populist parties—like Fidesz in Hungary or Law and Justice in Poland—are acting within the democratic systems but openly negate the liberal norms. Should the concept of militant democracy be applied to them? And who is in charge of making this decision?
A 21st-Century Comeback
Nowadays, as authoritarianism is on the rise and there are more and more cases of disinformation, the concept of militant democracy is coming back.
Besides the extremist groups of the right and left, Verfassungsschutz also keeps an eye on parties that they consider to be actively working against the constitutional order in Germany.
Recently, in France and Austria, the government has decided to prohibit some Islamist organizations because they are not compatible with republican values.
Since the time Ukraine has been waging a war with Russia, it has forbidden the pro-Russian parties on the basis of national security.
At the level of the European Union, instruments such as Article 7 and the Conditionality Regulation are a manifestation of the concept of militant democracy in a power-sharing setting—they are means of pursuing the protection of the Union’s constitutional identity through the people’s mandate within the Union.
In Romania, the candidacy of Călin Georgescu, an intellectual nationalist and a local United Nations official, became a disaster because they effectively eliminated him from the race for political office. While his presidential bid was embraced by some segments of the public, his past affiliations and unorthodox views have led to institutional resistance and public denunciation. Proponents of this view claim that elites are overreaching; on the other hand, some people see it as a safety measure to prevent the spread of the extremist ideologies that are hidden under the pop era rhetoric—thus, the example of militant democracy.
A Difficult Balance
Militant democracy is a fascinating concept because it tries to protect democracy, but at the same time it can weaken it. The experience of the Weimar Republic is a very interesting one—it shows that democracies can be destroyed from the inside, usually due to their own excessive tolerance and lack of decisiveness. This is still true today. Democracies are at risk not only from external sources but also from insiders who use democratic freedoms to destroy democracy. This paradox makes the concept of militant democracy very important, yet quite complex: it is a protective agent intended to defend democratic order, but if it is used in a wrong way, it can become the very thing that it is fighting against.
Simultaneously, to protect democracy is not supposed to turn into a justification for the expansion of authoritarianism and political repression masked as democratic defense. There is a danger of misuse—where governments turn militancy democracy instruments into weapons to repress the political opposition that is not only to limit the protests or to consolidate power—that is always there. Hence, it is necessary that these steps are taken in a just, honest, and respectful way of the law. The rightfulness of the militant democracy rests on strict control and fidelity to democratic principles, guaranteeing that the attempts to defend democracy are not those that undermine the democratic matter.
To sum up, a militant democracy isn’t about limiting ideas but rather about saving a democratic space where ideas are not only allowed but also protected by safeguards that ensure the democratic order. The idea also asks for a subtle synergy—sufficient determination to make sure that anti-democratic elements cannot trick freedoms while being open enough to keep political pluralism and healthy discussions alive. In the current era, where we have witnessed an upsurge in populism, foreign meddling, and internal rifts, this equilibrium has become more vital than ever. Tolerance can’t be boundless if democracy wants to live on; hence, there have to be conditions—very cautiously and equitably implemented—that serve as the defense of democracy against those who are plotting to conquer it from the inside.
After Gareth Southgate resigned from the role of senior team boss following Euro 2024, Carsley had a six-game spell in charge of the Three Lions, winning five matches and losing one and guiding England back to the top tier of the Nations League.
He is now back at under-21 level and recently signed a new deal with the Football Association that lasts until 2027.
“It’s important I just do a good job, I’m just trying to do it again [win the Euros],” said Carsley. “The priority is the Euros and I won’t be taking my eye off of that.
“Hopefully we’ll be good to watch. That’s what you want. You want people back home watching the next generation of England players and being excited by it.”
There are 16 nations in the tournament in Slovakia, with England placed in Group B, along with Czech Republic, Germany and Slovenia, with the top two from each section moving into the quarter-finals.
Carsley’s 23-man squad includes Newcastle full-back Tino Livramento, who has one cap for the senior side, along with plenty of players with Premier League experience, including Liverpool’s title-winning duo Jarell Quansah and Harvey Elliott.
Other players named include Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson, Tottenham’s Archie Gray, Brighton’s Jack Hinshelwood, Bournemouth’s Alex Scott, Manchester City’s James McAtee and Ipswich’s Omari Hutchinson.
Arsenal winger Ethan Nwaneri, at 18, is the youngest player in the England squad after a breakthrough season for the Gunners, which saw him score nine goals in all competitions.
West Bromwich Albion forward Tom Fellows is a late addition to the squad, replacing Jobe Bellingham, who has been included in Borussia Dortmund’s squad for the Fifa Club World Cup after joining the German club from Sunderland earlier this week.
Fellows had travelled to Slovakia as an additional training player.
Goalkeepers: James Beadle (Brighton), Teddy Sharman-Lowe (Chelsea), Tommy Simkin (Stoke).
Defenders: Charlie Cresswell (Toulouse), Ronnie Edwards (Southampton), CJ Egan-Riley (Burnley), Tino Livramento (Newcastle), Brooke Norton Cuffy (Genoa), Jarell Quansah (Liverpool).
Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest), Archie Gray (Tottenham), Hayden Hackney (Middlesbrough), Jack Hinshelwood (Brighton), Tyler Morton (Liverpool), Alex Scott (Bournemouth).
Forwards: Harvey Elliott (Liverpool), Tom Fellows (West Bromwich Albion), Omari Hutchinson (Ipswich), Sam Iling Jnr (Aston Villa), James McAtee (Manchester City), Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal), Jonathan Rowe (Marseille), Jay Stansfield (Birmingham).
EU official says a trade deal ‘must be guided by mutual respect, not threats’ after the US president says talks with the bloc are ‘going nowhere’.
The European Union has said it will defend its interests after United States President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 50-percent tariff on all goods from the 27-member bloc.
The EU’s top trade official, Maros Sefcovic, said in a post on X that he spoke on Friday with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on the issue.
“The EU is fully engaged, committed to securing a deal that works for both,” he said, adding that the EU Commission remains ready to work in good faith towards an agreement.
“EU-US trade is unmatched and must be guided by mutual respect, not threats. We stand ready to defend our interests.”
Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that he is “recommending” a huge 50 percent duty on the EU starting on June 1 since talks with them “are going nowhere”.
Trump disembarks Air Force One as he arrives in New Jersey, the United States, on May 23, 2025 [Nathan Howard/Reuters]
Speaking later in the Oval Office, the Republican president emphasised that he was not seeking a deal with the EU but might delay the tariffs if more European companies made major investments in the US.
“I’m not looking for a deal,” Trump told the reporters. “We’ve set the deal. It’s at 50 percent.”
European leaders warned the tariffs will hurt both sides.
German economy minister Katherina Reiche said everything must be done “to ensure that the European Commission reaches a negotiated solution with the United States” while French foreign minister Laurent Saint-Martin said the bloc prefers de-escalation but is “ready to respond”.
If implemented, the tariffs would mean that the EU will have higher import taxes on its hundreds of billions worth of exported goods compared with China, which had its tariffs cut earlier this month to allow more negotiations between Washington, DC, and Beijing.
In early April, Trump announced a 20 percent tariff on most EU goods but brought it down to 10 percent until July 8 to allow time for more negotiations.
Trump has complained that existing frameworks are “unfair” to US companies as the European bloc sells more goods to its ally than it buys from it.
Trump on Friday also warned that the US tech giant Apple could also be hit with a 25 percent import tax on all iPhones not manufactured but sold in the US.
His announcements online dealt another blow to stock markets both in the US and in the EU, with the S&P 500 down about 0.8 percent and the pan-European STOXX 600 index falling about 1.2 percent.
May 5 (UPI) — Former Vice President Mike Pence credited leaders from both parties for coming together to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election amid the Jan. 6, 2021, riots at the U.S. Capitol.
Pence delivered the remarks Sunday as he was presented the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for his rejection of the pressure placed upon him by President Donald Trump and the actions of the rioters to complete the process of certifying the election results.
“Our institutions held that day, not because of any one person, but because leaders in both political parties, Republicans and Democrats, did their duties,” Pence said.
“So I came tonight to give credit where credit is due, but also to say in these divided times, in these anxious days, I know in my heart that we will find our way forward as one nation.”
Pence also said he felt “profoundly unworthy” to receive the award and gave credit to two of his advisors at the time as well as his wife Karen and daughter Charlotte, who both remained in the Capitol with him.
He further praised the U.S. Capitol Police for their actions amid the riots.
“When I think of that fateful day four years ago, the only heroes I saw were wearing uniforms,” he said.
Pence didn’t make mention of Trump’s pardons of more than 1,000 people involved with the attack on the Capitol and decision to commute the sentences of some found guilty on related charges, but did briefly touch on what Trump has done since his return to power.
“I believe in a strong defense, limited government, the right to life, and I’m going to go out on a limb and say that might put me in the minority in this room,” Pence admitted to the crowd at Kennedy’s presidential library in Boston. “But I also have differences with members of my own party, on spending and tariffs, and my belief that America is the leader of the free world and must continue to stand with Ukraine until the Russian invasion is repelled and a just and lasting peace is secured.”
“At the time, I thought Vice President Pence was just doing his job,” said Caroline Kennedy, daughter of John F. Kennedy at the presentation, “Only later did I realize that his act of courage saved our government and warned us about what could happen and is happening right now.”
Pence said in the past that former President Kennedy was a childhood hero of his who had helped inspire him to go into public service. “To be here tonight, bearing witness to a journey that Kennedy helped inspire in my small life is more meaningful than I can possibly express,” he said.
Pence oversaw Congress as it counted Electoral College votes to certify Joe Biden‘s victory when Trump supporters attacked the Capitol. He refused to submit to pressure from Trump overturn the results of the 2020 election.
“Jan. 6 was a tragic day,” Pence said. “But it became a triumph of freedom. And history will record that our institutions held.”
“It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.” That’s one of Walt Disney’s most popular quotes, often used in the context of the theme park marvels imagined by the company he created.
Over the decades Walt Disney Imagineering, the secretive arm of the Walt Disney Co. devoted to theme park experiences, has dreamed up a room full of singing birds and flowers, brought to life a mini New Orleans, captured the idealism of space flight and re-envisioned modern transportation, to name just a few of its many varied accomplishments.
For its latest trick, Imagineering will attempt to resurrect a life of sorts, that is to fully animate a highly accurate robotic creation of one of the most recognizable figures of the 20th century, Walt Disney himself. First unveiled last summer at the company’s fan convention D23, the goal, said Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro at the event, is to capture “what it would have been like to be in Walt’s presence.”
That means finding a middle ground between romanticism and realism.
Imagineers Jeff Shaver-Moskowitz, left, and Tom Fitzgerald,\ are principals on “Walt Disney — A Magical Life,” which will debut in the Main Street Opera House at Disneyland on July 17. The show will feature a lifelike robotic figure of Walt Disney.
(Mike Pucher / Disneyland Resort)
On Wednesday morning, Imagineering previewed for a select group of media the upcoming show “Walt Disney — A Magical Life,” set to premiere July 17 to coincide with Disneyland’s official 70th anniversary, when it will temporarily displace an attraction centered on a robotic Abraham Lincoln. An early sculpt of what would become the animatronic was revealed, one complete with age spots on Disney’s hands and weariness around his eyes — Imagineers stressed their intent is faithful accuracy — but much of the attraction remains secretive. The animatronic wasn’t shown, nor did Imagineering provide any images of the figure, which it promises will be one of its most technically advanced.
Instead, Imagineering sought to show the care in which it was bringing Disney back to life while also attempting to assuage any fears regarding what has become a much-debated project among the Disney community. When D’Amaro unveiled “A Magical Life” last summer, he did so noting he had the support of the Disney family, singling out Disney’s grandnephew, Roy P. Disney, who was in the audience.
Yet soon a social media missive critical of the attraction from Walt’s granddaughter would go viral. It raised anew ethical questions that often surround any project attempting to capture the dead via technology, be it holographic representations of performers or digitally re-created cinematic animations, namely debates surrounding the wishes of the deceased and whether such creations are exploitative. “Dehumanizing,” wrote Joanna Miller in her Facebook post on the figure.
The animatronic somewhat represents a shift in thinking for the Walt Disney Co., as the majority of its robotic figures are representations of fictional characters or overly-saturated political figures such as those in Florida’s Hall of Presidents, in which new politicians are added while they are living. Arguably, the Walt Disney Co. first tested the public’s willingness to embrace a resurrected Disney via a holographic-like projection for its touring “Disney 100: The Exhibition,” which initially raised some eyebrows.
Longtime Imagineer Tom Fitzgerald, known for his work on beloved Disney projects such as Star Tours and the Guardians of the Galaxy coaster in Florida, said Wednesday that “A Magical Life” has been in the works for about seven years. Asked directly about ethical concerns in representing the deceased via a robotic figurine, Fitzgerald noted the importance of the Walt Disney story, not only to the company but to culture at large.
Disney Imagineers at work on the wardrobe of Walt Disney for the new animatronic show, “Walt Disney — A Magical Life.” Seen here is a close-up of the stitching of a logo for Palm Springs’ Smoke Tree Ranch, a favorite retreat of Disney’s. The locale will be represented on Disney’s tie.
(Mike Pucher / Disneyland Resort)
”His life story had been told in these other formats already,” Fitzgerald says, referencing the film “Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream,” which currently airs at Florida’s Hollywood Studios. “What could we do at Disneyland for our audience that would be part of our tool kit vernacular but that would bring Walt to life in a way that you could only experience at the park? We felt the technology had gotten there. We felt there was a need to tell that story in a fresh way.”
Disneyland, in contrast to the company’s other parks around the globe, places a premium on historical attractions, in part because it’s the only park Disney walked in. The park’s patriarch even had a small apartment on Main Street, U.S.A., in which he would occasionally spend the night. After its initial run during the 70th celebration, “A Magical Life” will play in tandem with “Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln” thanks to a newly constructed revolving stage. A new pre-show gallery will feature a mini-re-creation of Disney‘s apartment and also unveil some never-before-seen artifacts, such as early master plans of Disneyland.
The figure, essentially, was created in part to anticipate criticism. Fitzgerald notes modern audiences, with the ability to zoom in on a character via smartphone, are far more discerning. The animatronic will aim to represent Disney in 1963. Disney died in 1966 at 65.
“He needs to be able to speak with his hands. Hands, very important,” Fitzgerald says. “When you watch Walt Disney talking, he’s very expressive with his hands when he talks. He also has expressive eyebrows, which many of you had heard about. When he speaks, he speaks with his eyebrows. … One of the things I discovered in watching the footage, he doesn’t blink when he speaks.” Thus, when animating the figure’s eye movements, Fitzgerald says, there was much discussion over his “blink profile,” ensuring it matched up with filmed footage.
Though the exact arc of the show, which will run about 17 minutes, wasn’t revealed, Fitzgerald and fellow Imagineer Jeff Shaver-Moskowitz, who was instrumental in the recent reimagining of Disneyland’s Toontown, noted that all dialogue will be taken directly from Disney’s speeches. The setting will be in Disney’s office, and for much of the show Disney will be leaning on his desk, although the figure was teased as being able to stand up.
Fitzgerald and Shaver-Moskowitz note that they researched Disney’s shoe size, looked at molds of his hands and even attempted — and failed — to find out which hair products Disney used. He will be wearing a tie emblazoned with the logo for Palm Springs’ Smoke Tree Ranch, a favorite retreat of Disney’s.
“We didn’t order an animatronic to look like Walt,” Shaver-Moskowitz says. “We built a Walt animatronic to deliver a performance that was specifically Walt.”
Veteran Imagineer Tom Fitzgerald reviews storyboards associated with “Walt Disney — A Magical Life,” which launches July 17 at Disneyland. The show will include a robotic figure of Walt Disney as well as a short film.
(Mike Pucher / Disneyland Resort)
Yet can any animatronic capture the essence of a human, even a theatrical interpretation of one?
“You could never get the casualness of his talking,” Disney’s granddaughter Miller wrote in her post. While those who know the Disney family have confirmed the veracity of the post, attempts to reach Miller have been unsuccessful. Members of the Walt Disney family are said to be divided, with many supporting the animatronic and some others against it, say those in the know who have declined to speak on the record for fear of ruining their relationships.
“He was so fascinated with technology, and also the intersection between technology and art,” says Kirsten Komoroske, executive director of the Walt Disney Family Museum, of Disney. Multiple descendants of Disney’s sit on various boards that the Family Museum is associated with, and Komoroske says those working with the institution have pledged their support of the animatronic. “They really feel that he would have liked this project.”
Others who knew Disney, such as legendary Imagineer Bob Gurr, the designer of the Disneyland Monorail, the Matterhorn Bobsleds and more, as well as a pivotal collaborator on the Lincoln figure, have confirmed that they have seen the animatronic but have chosen not to discuss it. “I am embargoed,” Gurr told The Times, adding only that the public would have “quite a reaction.”
Imagineers were asked about Miller’s comments. Dusty Sage, executive editor of Disney fan site Micechat, told the audience he has spoken with Miller and her primary concern was that Disney never wanted to be turned into a robotic figure.
“In all our research, we never found any documentation of Walt saying that,” Shaver-Moskowitz says. “We know that it’s anecdotal and we can’t speak to what was told to people in private and we can’t speak to Joanna’s specific feelings about the project. But we have worked very diligently for many years with the Walt Disney Family Museum and members of the Disney and Miller family. … We’ve taken care to make sure that the family is along the journey with us and we feel that we’ve presented a faithful and theatrical presentation that keeps Walt alive in the medium that he pioneered.”
The Walt Disney Co. has made a significant effort over the years to mythologize Disney. Statues of Disney can be found at both Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, and trinkets bearing his image, including an ornament of the latter, can occasionally be spotted for sale in the park’s gift shops. The reality of who Disney was has arguably become obscured.
“Walt Disney — A Magical Life” will walk a fine line when it opens, attempting to inspire a new generation to look into Disney’s life while also portraying him as more than just a character in the park’s arsenal.
“Why are we doing this now?” Fitzgerald says. “For two reasons. One is Disneyland’s 70th anniversary is an ideal time we thought to create a permanent tribute to Walt Disney in the Opera House. The other: I grew up watching Walt Disney on television. I guess I’m the old man. He came into our living room every week and chatted and it was very casual and you felt like you knew the man. But a lot of people today don’t know Walt Disney was an individual. They think Walt Disney is a company.”
And now nearly 60 years after his death, Disney will once again grace Main Street, whether or not audiences — or even some members of his family — are ready to greet him.
