raging

SACRAMENTO — Thousands of rebels gathered outside the state Capitol on Saturday, mindlessly trampling the lawn in their Hokas, even as the autumnal sun in Sacramento forced them to strip off their protective puffer vests.

With chants of “No Kings,” many of these chaotic protesters spilled off sidewalks into the street, as if curbs held no power of containment, no meaning in their anarchist hearts.

Clearly, the social order has broken. Where would it end, this reporter wondered. Would they next be demanding passersby honk? Could they dare offer fiery speeches?

The answer came all too soon, when within minutes, I spotted clear evidence of the organized anti-fascist underground that U.S. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi has been warning us about.

The “Raging Grannies of Sacramento” had set up a stage, and were testing microphones in advance of bombarding the crowd with song. These women wore coordinating aprons! They had printed signs — signs with QR codes. If grandmothers who know how to use a QR code aren’t dangerous, I don’t know who it is.

Ellen Schwartz, 82, told me this Canadian-founded group operates without recognized leaders — an “international free-form group of gaggles of grannies,” is how she put it, and I wrote it all down for Kash Patel.

Within moments, they had robbed Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews of their most famous duet: “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,” mutilating it into “super callous fragile racist narcissistic POTUS.”

Ellen Schwartz, 82, is a member of the “Raging Grannies,” a group that protested at the “No Kings” rally in Sacramento on Saturday.

(Anita Chabria / Los Angeles Times)

Not to be outdone by the Silent Generation, 2-year-old Rhea also showed up, first clinging to her mom, then toddling around on her own as if she owned the place. This is a kid to keep an eye on.

Since Rhea cannot yet speak about her political beliefs, her parents gave me some insight into why she was there.

“I’m not sure if we’ll still have a civilization that allows protest very long, so I want her to at least have a memory of it,” said her dad, Neonn, who asked that their last names not be used. Like many Americans, he’s a bit hesitant to draw the eye of authority.

Kara, Rhea’s mom, had a more hopeful outlook.

“America is the people, so for me I want to keep bringing her here so that she knows she is part of something bigger: peace and justice,” she said, before walking off to see the dinosaurs.

Kara holds her 2-year-old daughter, Rhea, at the rally in Sacramento.

(Anita Chabria / Los Angeles Times)

Dinosaurs, that’s right. And tigers. And roosters. And unicorns. Even a cow hugging a chipmunk, which I believe is now illegal in most of the South.

Yes, folks, the Portland frog has started something. The place was full of un-human participants acting like animals — dancing with abandon, stomping around, saying really mean things about President Trump.

Meanwhile, the smell of roasting meat was undeniable. People, they were eating the hot dogs! They were eating the grilled onions! There were immigrants everywhere selling the stuff (and it was delicious).

I spoke to a Tyrannosaurus Rex and asked him why he went Late Cretaceous.

“If you don’t do something soon, you will have democracy be extinct,” Jim Short told me from inside the suit.

Jim Short, left, and his wife, Patty Short, donned dinosaur costumes at the “No Kings” rally in Sacramento.

(Anita Chabria / Los Angeles Times)

His wife, Patty, was ensconced in a coordinating suit, hers brown, his green. Didn’t they worry about being labeled anti-American for being here, as House Speaker Mike Johnson and others have claimed?

“I’m not afraid,” Patty said. “I’m antifa or a hardened criminal or what’s the other one?”

“Hamas?” Jim queried. “Or an illegal immigrant?”

“I think people need more history,” Patty said.

I agree.

And the day millions of very average Americans turned out to peacefully protect democracy — again — may be part of it.

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is doubling down on its trade war against much of the world despite increasingly harrowing economic numbers emerging at home, with stock markets and Treasury yields tumbling Friday on news of the most significant slowdown in job growth since the pandemic.

Government data showed the U.S. economy added 73,000 jobs in July — far fewer than expected — and issued revised numbers for the prior two months that showed only 19,000 jobs were created in May, and 14,000 in June, amid widespread uncertainty over President Trump’s tariff policies and deep cuts to government employment.

The unemployment numbers came a day after Trump signed an executive order increasing tariffs on 66 countries, further roiling a decades-old system of global trade.

The chair of the White House council of economic advisors reacted to the unemployment report by saying the numbers are “not what we want to see.” But Trump responded by directing his team to fire the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an ostensibly nonpartisan position responsible for overseeing the statistical analysis of jobs data, suggesting the numbers were politically “manipulated.” She was fired hours later.

“I was just informed that our Country’s ‘Jobs Numbers’ are being produced by a Biden Appointee, Dr. Erika McEntarfer, the Commissioner of Labor Statistics, who faked the Jobs Numbers before the Election to try and boost Kamala’s chances of Victory,” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social.

McEntarfer was confirmed by a Senate vote of 86-8 in January 2024. He did not offer evidence to support his accusations of manipulated data, either for this year or before the 2024 election.

“We need accurate Jobs Numbers. I have directed my Team to fire this Biden Political Appointee, IMMEDIATELY. She will be replaced with someone much more competent and qualified. Important numbers like this must be fair and accurate, they can’t be manipulated for political purposes.”

Paradoxically, Trump and his team also seemed to acknowledge the authenticity of the numbers by blaming the chair of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, for the unflattering results.

For months, Powell has resisted pressure from Trump to lower interest rates amid concerns over stubbornly high inflation — and the prospect that prices will increase further if the president’s trade war persists. The Federal Reserve chairmanship is another position meant to operate with independence.

“Inflation has cooled, wages have increased, unemployment is stable, and the private sector is growing,” Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said in a statement to The Times. “President Trump’s America First agenda has ensured new jobs go to American citizens, instead of illegals or foreign-born workers. The tariffs are raking in billions of dollars to make our country wealthy again. Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell needs to cut rates so our economy can continue to boom.”

At the closing bell, the Dow Jones industrial average had fallen over 500 points, while the NASDAQ was down over 2.25%. The U.S. dollar fell against other currencies. But the most telling moves may have occurred in the bond market, which saw the most drastic slumps in 10-year and two-year Treasury yields in a year.

The increased unemployment rate, to 4.2%, came off government data reported earlier in the week that showed a dramatic decrease in imports and consumer demand to the United States, figures that have temporarily inflated economic growth numbers. Overall, economists are warning that U.S. gross domestic product could grow less than 2% this year, its worst performance since the height of the pandemic.

Trump has had issues with unemployment data for many years, often using one of his favorite terms, “fake,” to describe them. During his 2016 campaign, he argued that unemployment was worse than the government figures showed; once in the White House, he suggested the official data understated the strength of the economy.

The timing of the latest jobs report comes at a politically inopportune moment for Trump, who had set Friday as a deadline for countries around the world to negotiate trade deals with the United States on his terms, or else face steep tariff rates.

Only a handful of framework agreements were struck — with the European Union, South Korea, Japan, the United Kingdom and Vietnam, among others — while dozens of other nations were hit with rate hikes. Major trading partners faced brutal increases, including Brazil, which now faces a 50% rate on most goods, and India, hit with 25% import duties.

Switzerland was slammed with a 39% rate, but most countries on the list released by the White House were given 15% tariff rates. The new import taxes are to take effect Aug. 7.

Economists have warned since April 2, when Trump declared “Liberation Day” from a global system of free trade, that his new policies would devastate the U.S. economy, raising prices and slowing growth in the short term while depressing living standards for years to come.

“The good news,” Trump wrote on Friday, “is that Tariffs are bringing Billions of Dollars into the USA!”

Tariff discussions remain unresolved for Canada and Mexico, two of the United States’ largest trading partners. Though Trump said this week that Friday was a firm deadline and would not be extended, on Thursday he said new tariffs on some Mexican goods would be delayed 90 days while the two countries continue to negotiate.

Canada, on the other hand, remains at an impasse with the president over his demands.

“We will continue to negotiate with the United States on our trading relationship,” Mark Carney, Canada’s prime minister, said in a statement, but, “the Canadian government is laser focused on what we can control: building Canada strong.”

“We can give ourselves more than any foreign government can ever take away,” he added.

The Love Island villa erupts tonight after the girls get to watch the boys unknowingly talk about them and date three new bombshells, with Helena stating she is ‘raging about the disrespect’

Love Island series 12 has already surprised islanders and viewers with twists and turns, including already dumping two islanders, but the villa is about to explode in a new teaser for the upcoming episode. After seeing three new bombshells enter the ‘boys night out’, the girls are fuming and it could be the last bump in the road for some couples.

The boys left the villa earlier in the day for drinks, but what they didn’t know was that the girls would be watching their every move on a giant TV back in the main villa. Shortly after they all established where they stood in their relationship, three new bombshells entered and caused a stir for the girls watching.

The three bombshells include 24-year-old teaching assistant Malisha from Broxbourne, Commercial Banking Executive Yasmin, 24, and Insurance Development Executive Emily, 24, from Aberdeen.

After the girls watched the other half of their couple flirt with the new bombshells, Helena was not best pleased and said: “My man basically saying I’m a massive red flag because of something I’ve done in the past and I’m a big party girl…?” Alima responds: “Double standards”. Helena continues and says, “I’m raging about the disrespect.”

But they don’t have long to debrief about the boys as suddenly their one-on-one dates start playing on the big screen and they rush back to secretly listen in to more chats.

Opening up to the new bombshell on what he is looking for, Harry said: “The main thing is ambition; someone that wants a family, I’m 30 and ready for it, I’ve got my s*** together.” Discussing Shakira, Harry adds: “Potentially there’s unfinished business, I think she knows that as well, it’s just not the right time. She has pride, she’s only 22, but she’s ahead of her years and has a lot of self-respect.”

Yasmin eagerly asks Harry, “Are you open to getting to know other people, or do you like what you’ve got with Helena?

The islanders then get a sneak peek into Conor’s date with bombshell Emily. Conor tells Emily: “Whatever I do, I wanna be respectful, I’m definitely going to get to know you…” Unknowing to Conor, this comment goes down well with the girls watching, with the other half of his couple, Toni, labelling him “My respectful king.”

Later, the boys and bombshells return to the Villa and spot the huge screen and quickly realise what’s been happening. The boys aren’t happy, to say the least, about the girls being a fly on the wall during their chats, as Dejon says, “boys chat stays in the boys chat!”

But it is too late for that as Helena has some beef with Harry about what he said during the boys chat, and Meg tells Dejon exactly how she’s feeling about watching his date, telling him: “You failed the test.”

Harry and Helena head to the terrace and she tells him: “I dunno where we go from here…I don’t know how we can move forward…” Meanwhile, Conor chats to Emily in the snug, as he tells her: “The vibe I’ve got, we’re on the same wavelength, everything you said – I want someone to look after me and listen to me – I feel like that’s me”.

*Love Island continues tonight at 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX.

Follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.

PAKISTAN says it has launched a military operation against India with 25 missiles strikes.

It is the latest esclation in tensions between the two nuclear-armed rivals after a week of clashes on the border and in Kashmir.

2

2

Pakistan’s military said it used medium-range Fateh missiles to strike more than 25 military sites.

They claimed to have attacked airbasess and weapons depots in the Indian states of Gujarat, Punjab and Rajasthan, as well as locations in India-administered Kashmir.

Pakistan dubbed the attack “Operation Bunyan ul Marsoos”.

India military officials called Pakistani’s strikes a “blatant escalation” and said they had come under attack by drones and “other munitions”.

Islamabad blamed New Dehli for “continuous provocation” – with the attack coming after Indian missiles hit targets in late on Tuesday.

India claimed it had been hitting back over the deaths of 26 tourists in a terror attack in Kashmir.

New Dehli blames Islamabad for the attack – and has repeatedly accused Pakistan of being a haven for terrorists.

The US has already called on both sides to step back from the edge of a potentially devastating war.

Trump’s secretary of state Marco Rubio said Washington would help starting “constructive talks in order to avoid future conflicts” .

More to follow… For the latest news on this story keep checking back at The Sun Online

Thesun.co.uk is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.

Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thesun and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSun.