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The US Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure edged up in August as tariffs filtered through the economy, while analysts warn of further cost pressures after President Donald Trump unveiled a slew of upcoming duties.But personal spending also rose last month, pointing to resilience in consumption — a key driver of the world’s biggest economy.The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index rose 2.7 percent last month on a year-on-year basis, up from July’s 2.6 percent, the Department of Commerce said Friday.But the PCE price index, when excluding the volatile food and energy sectors, increased at a rate of 2.9 percent, the same as in July.Trump told reporters Friday that the country had “virtually no inflation,” stressing that the economy was doing well.But both PCE figures are notably above the central bank’s longer-run inflation target of two percent, adding to pressure on the Fed as it adjusts interest rates.The Fed walks a tightrope between reining in inflation and maintaining the labor market’s health.This month, policymakers lowered rates for the first time in 2025 as employment weakened. But inflation continues to inch up, even if tariffs have had a relatively limited impact on costs for now — complicating the path forward.Trump this year slapped a sweeping 10-percent duty on imports from almost all trading partners, before hiking this to various steeper levels on dozens of economies.Businesses have been grappling with higher costs as a result, although they have not passed the burden on to consumers entirely — partly as they stocked up on inventory in anticipation of tariffs and also as they are wary of how much price hikes buyers will tolerate.- Shaky ground -“The PCE price indexes show inflation creeping higher as tariffs push up a range of goods prices,” said Oxford Economics’ deputy chief economist Michael Pearce in a statement.He estimates that about two-thirds of the tariff burden has fed through to consumers.But, he cautioned, “the range of new sectoral tariffs announced overnight mean further price pressures are likely on the way.”On Thursday, Trump announced in a series of social media posts that he would slap steep duties on imports of heavy trucks, kitchen cabinets and other furniture, as well as certain branded or patented pharmaceutical products come October 1.The range of tariff levels goes from 25 percent for trucks to 100 percent on branded pharmaceuticals — unless companies built their manufacturing plants in the United States.The recent spending momentum “lacks firm foundations,” warned economists Samuel Tombs and Oliver Allen of Pantheon Macroeconomics.The full effects of tariffs have yet to be seen, they said, while real after-tax income will likely remain stagnant through the end of the year, given weakness in the jobs market.For now, on a month-on-month basis, the PCE price index was up 0.3 percent in August, also picking up slightly from July’s level.Personal spending rose 0.6 percent in the month, up from 0.5 percent in July, the report showed.

US President Donald Trump called Friday for more of his political opponents to face criminal charges as he cheered the indictment of former FBI director James Comey and branded him a “dirty cop.”The Republican’s comments step up an extraordinary, undisguised campaign of retribution against those who oppose him that defies decades of norms in US politics.”Frankly I hope there are others,” Trump told reporters at the White House when asked about Comey’s indictment on Thursday.”It’s not revenge. It’s also about the fact that you can’t let this go on.”Presidents have historically bent over backward — at least in public — to show clear separation between the White House and the Justice Department. Trump has smashed that precedent, making clear he intends to influence Comey’s case — and others.Comey was charged with making false statements and obstruction of justice in connection with the probe he conducted into whether Trump colluded with Russia to win the 2016 election.”He’s a dirty cop, he’s always been a dirty cop,” Trump told reporters about Comey, echoing an earlier post on his Truth Social network in which he declared him guilty.The charges against the former FBI chief came days after Trump publicly urged Attorney General Pam Bondi to take action against Comey and others he sees as enemies.They included Leticia James, who as New York’s state prosecutor brought a civil fraud case against Trump, and California Senator Adam Schiff, who led the prosecution at the president’s first impeachment in 2019.Asked who would be next for prosecution, Trump said: “It’s not a list, but I think there will be others.”Trump has used his office since returning to power in January to pressure a huge variety of individuals and institutions that either opposed him in the past or, as in the case of several media outlets, had sought to maintain their independence from him.Current FBI chief Kash Patel on Friday denied accusations from Democrats that the Comey charges were politically linked.”The wildly false accusations attacking this FBI for the politicization of law enforcement comes from the same bankrupt media that sold the world on Russia Gate — it’s hypocrisy on steroids,” Patel posted on X.- ‘Not afraid’ -The charges against Comey are the most dramatic instance yet of Trump’s retribution drive.Comey faces up to five years in prison if convicted, according to federal prosecutor Lindsey Halligan, who was appointed by Trump just days ago to pursue the case. A former personal lawyer to the president, she has no experience as a prosecutor.In a video posted on Instagram, Comey said “I’m not afraid” and denied any wrongdoing.Comey has been prominent during Trump’s second term, as a critic of what he says are the Republican’s efforts to weaponize the justice system for his own political use.But Trump’s feud with Comey goes back to the early days of his tumultuous first term when Comey was the director of the FBI.Trump fired Comey in 2017 amid a probe into whether any members of the Trump campaign had colluded with Moscow to sway the 2016 presidential vote — an issue that dogged the Republican throughout his first term.Trump has vowed to take revenge on all who investigated him in the affair, which he brands the “Russia hoax.” And his intelligence chiefs have issued reports casting the original probes as politically motivated and flawed.But the case against Comey has been criticized as deeply flawed from the start.The five-year statute of limitations on his alleged lying to Congress expires Tuesday, forcing prosecutors to rush to indict. The chief prosecutor for the Eastern District of Virginia declined to press charges but then left her job under pressure from Trump — and was replaced by the inexperienced Halligan.

Donald Trump has shocked the global drug industry by announcing 100-percent tariffs on all branded, imported pharmaceutical products — unless companies are building manufacturing plants in the United States.With just five days left until the US president is set to impose the harshest measures yet in his global trade war, analysts have been racing to figure out which nations, firms and drugs could be affected.While plenty of uncertainty remains, there do appear to be some exemptions. Major exporter the European Union says a previous trade deal shields the bloc from the tariffs.- Which products will be hit? -Trump announced late Thursday he would impose a 100-percent tariff on “any branded or patented Pharmaceutical Product” unless the company has started construction on a manufacturing plant by October 1.The statement indicates that generic medicines — cheaper versions of drugs produced once patents expire — are exempt.Neil Shearing, an economist at Capital Economics, said this exemption would have limited impact because while “90 percent of US drugs consumption volumes go toward generic drugs”, they account for “just 10 percent or so of spending values”.Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said that “most of the big pharma producers already produce their drugs for the American market in the US”.However there are many popular exceptions — such as the blockbuster weight-loss drugs Wegovy and Mounjaro — as well as some cancer treatments that are all made in Europe, she added.Last year, the US imported nearly $252-billion worth of drugs and other pharma products, making it the second-largest import in value after vehicles, according to the Department of Commerce.- Which countries could be spared? -The EU said Friday that a trade deal sealed with the US in July shielded the bloc.”This clear all-inclusive 15 percent tariff ceiling for EU exports represents an insurance policy that no higher tariffs will emerge for European economic operators,” EU trade spokesman Olof Gill said.Tariffs on medicine “would create the worst of all worlds” by increasing costs, disrupting supply chains and preventing patients from getting life-saving treatment, Nathalie Moll of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations said in a statement to AFP.Macro Angel Talavera from Oxford Economics said the July trade deal should in principle protect EU companies– but it remains “far from clear”.Switzerland — which is home to pharma giants Roche, Novartis and AstraZeneca — was likely most at risk because the country is not a member of the EU, he said. Denmark, where Ozempic and Wegovy producer Novo Nordisk has a major impact on the national economy, was also under threat, he added.The pharma sector in Ireland — whose exports to the US represent roughly 12 percent of GDP, according to Shearing — was among the European groups calling for urgent talks to avert the looming tariffs. A British government spokesperson said the UK was “actively engaging with the US and will continue to do so over the coming days”.In Asia, Japan and South Korea are thought to be shielded by trade deals, while India mostly exports generic drugs, according to Louise Loo at Oxford Economics.”Singapore, focused on high-value patented drugs, faces the greatest risk,” she added.- What are pharma firms doing? -Trump had previously threatened even steeper tariffs of 200 percent on pharmaceuticals in July.Aiming to protect themselves from Trump’s protectionist policies, pharma giants have announced around $300 million in investments in the US in recent months. “Although many pharma companies have pledged to build plants in the US, construction may not have started yet, as these plants are complex to build,” Brooks said.However Trump was clear that he defined building as “breaking ground” on construction sites.Swiss pharma giant Novartis said on Friday that “we have ongoing construction and expect to announce five new sites to be under construction before end of year”.A spokesperson for Bayer said the German company was “assessing the situation”. Other major firms contacted by AFP have yet to respond.

US President Donald Trump on Friday followed up his cheering of the indictment of political opponent James Comey by branding the former FBI director a “dirty cop” and declaring him guilty.Presidents have historically bent over backward — at least in public — to show clear separation between the White House and the Justice Department. Trump has smashed that precedent, making clear he intends to influence Comey’s case.”He is a Dirty Cop, and always has been,” Trump said in a statement on his Truth Social platform.”He just got unexpectedly caught” and “a very big price must be paid!” Trump wrote.Comey was charged late Thursday with making false statements and obstruction of justice in connection with the probe he conducted into whether Russia interfered in the 2016 election that Trump won and if he colluded with the Russians.The charges on Thursday came days after Trump publicly urged Attorney General Pam Bondi to take action against Comey and others he sees as enemies.Trump, who just hours earlier had insisted he had nothing to do with the case, swiftly went on social media to celebrate.”JUSTICE IN AMERICA!” he wrote, calling Comey “one of the worst human beings this Country has ever been exposed to.”Trump has used his office since returning to power in January to pressure a huge variety of individuals and institutions that either opposed him in the past or, as in the case of several media outlets, had sought to maintain their independence from him.The charges against Comey are the most dramatic instance yet.Comey faces up to five years in prison if convicted, according to federal prosecutor Lindsey Halligan, who was appointed by Trump just days ago to pursue the case. A former personal lawyer to the president, she has no experience as a prosecutor.- Trump’s Russia ties -In a video posted on Instagram, Comey said “I’m not afraid” and denied any wrongdoing.Comey has been prominent during Trump’s second term, as a critic of what he says are the Republican’s efforts to weaponize the justice system for his own political use.But Trump’s feud with Comey goes back to the early days of his tumultuous first term when Comey was the director of the FBI.Trump fired Comey in 2017 amid a probe into whether any members of the Trump campaign had colluded with Moscow to sway the 2016 presidential vote.The controversy over Russia’s involvement — and links to the 2016 Trump campaign, as well as to Trump himself — dogged the Republican throughout his first term.Trump has vowed to take revenge on all who investigated him in the affair, which he brands the “Russia hoax.” And his intelligence chiefs have issued reports casting the original probes as politically motivated and flawed.However, the intelligence community’s original findings that Russia meddled in the tumultuous 2016 US election have been backed up by committees both in the House of Representatives and the Senate.The case against Comey has been criticized as deeply flawed from the start.The five-year statute of limitations on his alleged lying to Congress expires Tuesday, forcing prosecutors to rush to indict. However, the chief prosecutor for the Eastern District of Virginia declined to press charges, reportedly because there was not enough evidence.She then left her job under pressure from Trump, who appointed Halligan and exhorted her to “get things moving.”

Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau blasted the opening tee shots as the 45th Ryder Cup between the United States and Europe began Friday in an electric atmosphere at Bethpage Black.US President Donald Trump was among 50,000 spectators expected for the opening day as the Americans and Europeans renewed golf hostilities for the 45th time in the biennial rivalry.Rahm’s first shot went well into the right rough while DeChambeau smashed his ball into the fairway 10 yards shy of the green at the first hole, to the delight of the crowd.Trophy holders Europe seek the first road triumph by either side since their 2012 “Miracle at Medinah” while the Americans try to win back the Cup after losing two years ago in Rome.US fans chanted “We want Bryson” in the high-pressure crucible of the first tee, with 5,000 fans watching from the largest grandstand in Ryder Cup history, creating an intense scene from the start.”The first tee, first match, wherever you play home or away, it’s intense and pure energy,” Europe captain Luke Donald said.Americans DeChambeau and Justin Thomas faced Europe’s Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton in the first of four foursomes (alternate shot) matches to begin the day, with four four-ball (best ball) matches set for the afternoon.”We’ve got a big responsibility and role. We’re going to be going up against a great team,” DeChambeau said. “They’re a formidable force, but we want to send a message.”US captain Keegan Bradley wants to excite the home supporters from the start with two-time major winners DeChambeau and Thomas, draped in an American flag as they walked out to huge roars from US fans.”They are both fiery players,” said Bradley. “They are both relishing the opportunity to lead out our team. They are just two guys that thrive in that role.”When the main gates opened under pitch black skies at 5 am (0900 GMT), hundreds of fans stampeded along a floodlight-illuminated path to the main grandstands at the first tee, a race with passion worthy of any Olympic distance event, to grab a coveted spot for the opening spectacle.American fans — clad in red, white and blue — chanted “U-S-A” and Europe supporters, wearing blue and yellow, sang out, “Ole, Ole, Ole,” to stir the excitement and tighten the nerves for the first shots by some of golf’s biggest stars.Extra security measures were in place for Trump’s appearance. Details have not been revealed but a source told AFP plans have been made for the afternoon.Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, whose six wins this year include the British Open and PGA Championship, and world number three Russell Henley were in the second foursomes match for the Americans against Europe’s Matt Fitzpatrick and Ludvig Aberg.World number two Rory McIlroy, who won the Masters in April to complete a career Grand Slam, joined Tommy Fleetwood for Europe in match three against Collin Morikawa and Harris English.The morning session’s final match saw Americans Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay pitted against Europe’s Robert MacIntyre and Viktor Hovland.- Aggressiveness is good -“Aggressiveness is probably going to be a good strategy,” Hovland said. “You’re going to have to play like you’re trying to birdie almost every hole.”The format features four morning foursomes matches and four afternoon four-ball matches on Friday and Saturday with 12 concluding Sunday singles matches.The Americans will need 14.5 points to win the Cup. Europe, winners in 10 of the past 14 meetings, need only 14 of 28 points to retain the trophy.The US team leads the all-time rivalry 27-15 with two drawn, but Europe lead 12-9 with one drawn since their team was expanded beyond Britain and Ireland in 1979.

US President Donald Trump’s announcement of steep new tariffs on medicines and other goods drew pushback from some allies on Friday, with the EU claiming immunity for its pharmaceutical industry under an earlier trade deal.The announcement late on Thursday evening, which included a 100 percent levy on pharmaceuticals, is the harshest trade policy by the president since last April’s shock unveiling of “reciprocal” tariffs on virtually every US trading partner across the globe.Starting October 1, “we will be imposing a 100% Tariff on any branded or patented Pharmaceutical Product, unless a Company IS BUILDING their Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Plant in America,” the Republican wrote on his Truth Social platform.The European Union said on Friday a July deal with Washington shielded the bloc from tariffs higher than 15 percent on its drug exports.”This clear all-inclusive 15 percent tariff ceiling for EU exports represents an insurance policy that no higher tariffs will emerge for European economic operators,” EU trade spokesman Olof Gill said.A European pharmaceutical industry group also warned that tariffs on medicines would “create the worst of all worlds.””Tariffs increase costs, disrupt supply chains and prevent patients from getting life-saving treatments,” Nathalie Moll, director general of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations, said on Friday.Trump’s latest move was also criticized by US ally Australia, which exported pharmaceutical products worth an estimated $1.35 billion to the United States in 2024, according to the UN’s Comtrade Database.Australian Health Minister Mark Butler said on Friday that the higher rates were “not in the American consumers’ interest… particularly given the degree to which their exporters to Australia benefit from that free trade as well.”- Big rigs -In a separate post, Trump wrote of a 25 percent tariff on “all ‘Heavy (Big) Trucks’ made in other parts of the world” to support US manufacturers such as “Peterbilt, Kenworth, Freightliner, Mack Trucks and others.”Foreign companies that compete with these manufacturers in the US market include Sweden’s Volvo and Germany’s Daimler, which includes the Freightliner and Western Star brands.Shares in both companies were sharply lower in after-hours trading in Europe, although Volvo recovered when trading resumed.Trump said the truck tariffs were “for many reasons, but above all else, for National Security purposes!”The Trump administration launched a so-called Section 232 probe this year into imports of trucks to “determine the effects of national security,” setting the stage for Thursday’s announcement.Section 232 is a trade law provision that gives the president broad authority to impose tariffs or other restrictions on imports when they’re deemed a threat to national security.Trump has made extensive use of Section 232 to initiate investigations and impose tariffs on imported goods as part of his efforts to bolster US manufacturing and punish countries that he says are taking advantage of the US.The real-estate tycoon also targeted home renovation materials, writing “We will be imposing a 50% Tariff on all Kitchen Cabinets, Bathroom Vanities and associated products,” from October 1.”Additionally, we will be charging a 30% Tariff on Upholstered Furniture,” he added.According to the United States International Trade Commission, imports in 2022, mainly from Asia, represented 60 percent of all furniture sold, including 86 percent of all wood furniture and 42 percent of all upholstered furniture.Shares in home furniture retailers Wayfair and Williams Sonoma, which depend on these imported goods, tumbled in after-hours trading following the announcement.- Protectionist policies -The tariff onslaught will rekindle fears over inflation in the US economy, the world’s biggest.Trump is on a mission to rebuild manufacturing through protectionist policies that mark a complete reversal of modern US policy to maintain an open and import-dependent economy.His administration has imposed a baseline 10 percent tariff on all countries, with higher individualized rates on nations where exports to the US far exceed imports.Trump has also used emergency powers to impose extra tariffs on trade deal partners Canada and Mexico, as well as on China, citing concerns over fentanyl trafficking and illegal immigration.It was not yet clear how these new tariffs that kick in next week would factor into the existing measures.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was expected to deliver a defiant message to the UN on Friday against a Palestinian state, but faces rare pressure from US President Donald Trump who seeks a deal on Gaza.Netanyahu will address the United Nations General Assembly days after France, Britain and several other Western powers took the landmark step of recognizing a state of Palestine, acting out of exasperation over Israel’s relentless two-year offensive in Gaza.The longest-serving prime minister in Israeli history has long rejected a Palestinian state and his far-right allies have mulled annexing the West Bank to kill any real prospect of an independent Palestine.But Trump, normally a staunch ally of Netanyahu, has warned against annexation as he pitches a peace plan on Gaza that would include the disarmament of Hamas, whose grisly October 7, 2023 attack triggered the Israeli reprisals.”I will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “No, I will not allow it. It’s not going to happen.”Trump spoke on Thursday by telephone with Netanyahu, who is expected to head Monday to Washington.With Netanyahu facing an International Criminal Court arrest warrant over war crime allegations, including using starvation as a weapon, the Israeli prime minister took an unusual route to New York that included flying over the narrow Strait of Gibraltar.Steve Witkoff, Trump’s real-estate friend turned global negotiator, was seen entering the tightly guarded luxury hotel where Netanyahu was staying in Manhattan.Around 20 protesters and a similar number of Netanyahu supporters were spotted outside.”War criminals don’t deserve any peace of mind. They don’t deserve any sleep,” said Andrea Mirez, a young woman among the protesters.Activists have planned a march from Times Square on Friday that will call for Netanyahu’s arrest, to coincide with his speech.Israel’s offensive has killed more than 65,500 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to health ministry figures in the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers reliable.The October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas killed 1,219 people, also mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally from Israeli official figures, in the deadliest day in the country’s history.- ‘It must end now’ -French President Emmanuel Macron called a special summit Monday that led to recognition of a Palestinian state by France, Britain, Canada, Australia and Portugal, among other Western powers.Western governments said they were frustrated by Israel, which in recent weeks pressed ahead with a massive new offensive in Gaza, where virtually the entire population has already been displaced.”What is happening in Gaza is indefensible, it is inhumane, it is utterly unjustifiable and it must end now,” British Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy told the General Assembly on Thursday.Netanyahu has lashed out at Western critics and at the United Nations, which he calls biased. He has also not been afraid to defy Trump, pursuing  military action in Iran, Qatar and Syria despite US diplomatic efforts.”I think that Netanyahu’s tone will be strident in the extreme,” said Richard Gowan, who follows the United Nations for the International Crisis Group.”He is not coming to the UN to defend or explain his campaign in Gaza. He is coming to castigate the UN as an institution for its failure to back Israel, and in particular to condemn those countries that recognized Palestine earlier this week,” he said.Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas addressed the General Assembly on Thursday by video after the United States took the rare step of refusing him a visa.Abbas said there should be no future for Hamas, which is a rival to his Palestinian Authority, and condemned both the October 7 attacks and antisemitism.Gowan doubted that Abbas’s speech would affect Netanyahu.”It is clear that Netanyahu is not just opposed to the idea of a Palestinian state run by Hamas, but to the basic idea of a Palestinian state, period,” Gowan said.

The Trump administration is in talks to take an equity stake in Lithium Americas, which would insert the government into another private enterprise in the latest challenge to American free-market traditions.The move comes on the heels of Trump announcements establishing government holdings in struggling semiconductor giant Intel and the rare earth company MP Materials. Trump also secured a “golden share” for Washington in United States Steel as a condition of its sale to Japan’s Nippon Steel. Talks are still ongoing on the Lithium Americas stake, part of a renegotiation of a US Department of Energy loan held by the Canadian mining company and General Motors, said a Trump administration official.The White House has characterized the stock holding arrangements as a boon for taxpayers that points to Trump’s prowess as a dealmaker, while asserting that day-to-day management will be left to companies. But free-market advocates have reacted with various degrees of alarm to a trend they see as undermining the strength of the US system and stoking crony capitalism. In the US system, the government sets up the rules governing the private sector but generally stays out of it thereafter as firms respond to market signals.”It undermines competition,” said Fred Ashton, director of competition policy at American Action Forum, who believes inserting the state into private enterprise leads to inefficiency and benefits politically favored firms over those less connected.”We know the president likes to win so there’s no way the government lets these firms fail,” Ashton said.Trump administration officials recently made use of the US Steel golden share. The company had planned to keep paying 800 workers while idling an Illinois factory, but decided to keep the plant running after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick invoked the golden share, according to a Wall Street Journal report.”You need to let an executive of the company conclude the best use of the capital,” said governance expert Charles Elson of the University of Delaware, who criticized the White House intervention.”The government is not in the business of picking winners and losers in the capital system,” he said. “That’s why we have a capital system.”- Bipartisan consensus -It is not unprecedented for the US government to hold equity stakes. In response to the 2008 financial crisis, the US government amassed holdings in insurer AIG, General Motors and fellow automaker Chrysler as a condition of government support packages.But the Treasury Department sold off the shares after the crisis ended, reflecting a bipartisan consensus, according to Michael Strain of the American Enterprise Institute think tank, who said presidents from Ronald Reagan to Barack Obama embraced the free market.”Obama would have laughed out of the room the suggestion that the government take an equity stake in a manufacturing company,” Strain said in a recent column that also criticized the White House’s tying of Nvidia and AMD export licenses to payments to the government.Obama “understood that in America’s system of democratic capitalism, the government does not own or shake down private companies,” Strain said in the piece headlined “Is Trump a State Capitalist?”Strain, in an interview, predicted a “massive amount of crony capitalism” under Trump compared with the norm, but said the shifts will be too limited to significantly tilt the US macroeconomy given its size and tradition.Ashton said he agrees that US status as a free market economy is not seriously in question. But he believes Trump’s conduct is distorting company behavior, noting reports that Apple may take a stake in Intel following Apple CEO Tim Cook’s August White House visit when he presented Trump with a 24-carat gold piece.”It’s become so murky,” Ashton said. “We don’t know whether it’s a business decision because it’s a business decision or whether it’s a business decision because they have to please the White House in some way.”

A man convicted of killing a gas station clerk was put to death by nitrogen gas in Alabama, one of two executions carried out in the United States on Thursday.Geoffrey West, 50, died at 6:22 pm US Central Time (2322 GMT) as he was executed for the 1997 murder of Margaret Berry, a 33-year-old mother of two, during a robbery in the town of Attalla.In a statement released by his attorney, West apologized and said he’d been confirmed as a Catholic on Wednesday, adding “I urge everyone, especially young people, to find God.” Blaine Milam, 35, was put to death by lethal injection around 20 minutes later in Texas for the 2008 killing of Amora Carson, the 13-month-old daughter of his girlfriend, during an “exorcism.”According to court documents, the child was “beaten, strangled, sexually mutilated, and had twenty-four human bite marks covering her entire body in what the medical examiner called the worst case of brutality he had ever seen.”In a final statement, Milam thanked the state corrections department for allowing him to join a faith-based program on death row. “I love you all, bring me home Jesus,” Milam said, according to the department.Milam’s lawyers had sought to halt his execution on the grounds he is intellectually disabled but the appeals were rejected by the courts.Milam’s case was among those featured in a 2013 Werner Herzog documentary called “On Death Row.”There have been 33 executions in the United States this year, the most since 2014, when 35 inmates were put to death.Florida has carried out the most executions — 12 — followed by South Carolina and Texas.The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, while three others — California, Oregon and Pennsylvania — have moratoriums in place.President Donald Trump is a proponent of capital punishment and on his first day in office called for an expansion of its use “for the vilest crimes.”Trump signed a presidential memorandum on Thursday directing federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in Washington, the nation’s capital, in appropriate cases.

Former FBI director and prominent Donald Trump critic James Comey was indicted Thursday on two criminal counts as the US president escalated a campaign of retribution against political foes.The charges came days after Trump publicly urged Attorney General Pam Bondi to take action against Comey and others he sees as enemies — a stunning departure from the principle that the Justice Department must be free of White House pressure. Comey was charged with making false statements and obstruction of justice in connection with the probe he conducted into whether Russia interfered in the 2016 election that Trump won and if he colluded with the Russians.Trump hailed the indictment, saying Comey is “one of the worst human beings this Country has ever been exposed to.”Trump has waged a relentless blitz in his second term against enemies real and perceived, but the charges against Comey are the most dramatic instance yet.Comey faces up to five years in prison if convicted according to federal prosecutor Lindsey Halligan, who was appointed by Trump just days ago. She is a former personal lawyer to the president who has no experience as a prosecutor.”No one is above the law,” Bondi said in a statement as the Justice Department announced charges against Comey for committing “serious crimes.”Trump said earlier Thursday he has nothing to do with the charging of Comey but he had already hinted publicly that he appointed Halligan to go after him and others.In a video posted on Instagram, Comey said “I’m not afraid” and denied any wrongdoing.- Russian influence -Trump fired Comey in 2017 amid a probe into whether any members of the Trump campaign had colluded with Moscow to sway the 2016 presidential vote.During Trump’s second term, Comey has been an outspoken critic of what he says are the president’s efforts to use the justice system as a tool for political gain.  Trump’s first stint in the White House was dogged by controversy over Russian involvement in trying to influence the 2016 election in which he surprised many by winning the White House — as well as his own links to Russia.Since returning to power this year, he has moved quickly to use his powers to attack the investigation into the election.His intelligence chiefs have issued reports casting the original probes as politically motivated and flawed. Trump himself repeatedly calls the entire issue the “Russia hoax.”However, the intelligence community’s original findings that Russia meddled in the tumultuous 2016 US election have been backed up by committees both in the House of Representatives and the Senate.Halligan, the prosecutor, was working under intense pressure from Trump because the five-year statute of limitations on Comey’s testimony to Congress that is at the heart of the case expires Tuesday.She was appointed to the high-profile post of US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia following the resignation last week of the previous US attorney, Erik Siebert.Siebert stepped down after reportedly telling Justice Department leaders there was insufficient evidence to charge Comey or New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is also in Trump’s crosshairs for bringing a civil case against him for business fraud.- Convicted felon Trump -Trump, the first convicted felon to serve as US president, has taken a number of punitive measures against his perceived enemies and political opponents.He has stripped former officials of their security clearances, targeted law firms involved in past cases against him and pulled federal funding from universities.Trump was the target of several investigations after leaving the White House in 2021.The FBI raided his Mar-a-Lago home in 2022 as part of a probe into mishandling of classified documents and Trump was charged by Special Counsel Jack Smith with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 election.Neither case came to trial, and Smith — in line with a Justice Department policy of not prosecuting a sitting president — dropped them both after Trump won the November 2024 vote.