AFP USA

President Donald Trump on Sunday said Washington would send Patriot air defense systems to Kyiv and hinted at new sanctions on Russia, once again voicing displeasure with Russian leader Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s war in Ukraine.The US president’s announcement of the much-needed weapons for Ukraine came after he earlier said he would make a “major statement… on Russia” on Monday.The announcement could come amid a diplomatic flurry set for Monday, with the US special envoy starting his latest trip to Ukraine and Trump set to meet with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Washington. Moscow’s offensive on Ukraine has lasted for more than three years, with attacks intensifying this summer and US-led negotiations so far yielding no results to end the fighting.”We will send them Patriots, which they desperately need,” Trump said Sunday, without specifying how many weapons he would send to Ukraine.”I haven’t agreed on the number yet, but they’re going to have some because they do need protection,” he told reporters at Joint Base Andrews, as he returned from watching the FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey.The White House has U-turned from an announcement earlier this month that it would pause some arms deliveries to Kyiv, instead announcing a new deal which would involve NATO paying the United States for some of the weapons it sends to Ukraine.”We basically are going to send them various pieces of very sophisticated military and they’re going to pay us 100 percent for them,” Trump said.”It’ll be business for us,” he added.Rutte’s 10:00 am (1400 GMT) Oval Office meeting will be closed to media, and he is slated to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio as well.Earlier this week, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine was “close to reaching a multi-level agreement on new Patriot systems and missiles for them.”Trump also repeated that he was “disappointed” in Putin, as he grows increasingly exasperated with the Russian leader.”Putin really surprised a lot of people. He talks nice and then he bombs everybody in the evening,” said the disgruntled Trump on Sunday.Last week, Trump accused Putin throwing “bullshit” at Washington on Ukraine — openly frustrated with the seeming impasse.When he first returned to the White House in January, Trump insisted he could work with the Russian leader to end the war, holding off on hiking sanctions unlike European allies.But Russia has for months refused a ceasefire proposed by the United States and Kyiv.Trump has repeatedly voiced displeasure with Putin in recent days, and on Sunday hinted he might finally be ready to toughen sanctions as momentum grows for a deterrent package in Congress.When asked about whether he would announce any sanctions against Russia, Trump responded: “We’re going to see what we will see tomorrow, OK?” and repeated plans to meet with Rutte.- ‘Sledgehammer’ -Earlier on Sunday, US senators touted a bipartisan bill that would arm Trump with “sledgehammer” sanctions to use against Russia.The sanctions bill would allow Trump “to go after Putin’s economy, and all those countries who prop up the Putin war machine,” Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told broadcaster CBS news.It “would give President Trump the ability to impose 500 percent tariffs on any country that helps Russia,” said Graham, adding that those could include economies that purchase Russian goods like China, India or Brazil.”This is truly a sledgehammer available to President Trump to end this war,” said Graham.”Without a doubt, this is exactly the kind of leverage that can bring peace closer and make sure diplomacy is not empty,” Zelensky said about the proposed bill in an X post.Graham and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal were also due to meet NATO’s Rutte on Monday night.Blumenthal told CBS news they would also discuss the legally thorny issue of unlocking frozen Russian assets in Europe and the United States for access by Ukraine.”The $5 billion that the United States has also could be accessed, and I think it’s time to do it,” said Blumenthal.

Tesla will give its shareholders the option to invest in artificial intelligence startup xAI, billionaire owner of both companies Elon Musk said on his social media platform X.”It’s not up to me… We will have a shareholder vote on the matter,” Musk said in response to a social media user suggesting that the electric car maker take a stake in xAI, which recently acquired X.”If it was up to me, Tesla would have invested in xAI long ago,” the world’s richest man said.According to the Wall Street Journal, another company controlled by Elon Musk, SpaceX, will invest $2 billion into xAI as part of its $5 billion capital raise.Responding to an X user who cited the WSJ’s news story, Musk said that “it would be great” but would depend on “board and shareholder approval.”Since the launch of xAI — which developed the generative AI assistant Grok — Musk has floated the potential synergies between the AI start-up and his two crown jewels, SpaceX and Tesla.According to the Financial Times, the businessman is seeking a valuation between $170 and $200 billion for xAI in a new funding round.Launched in July 2023, xAI is hoping to catch up with its major generative AI competitors, OpenAI (ChatGPT), Anthropic (Claude) and Google (Gemini). The start-up has invested heavily in a gigantic data center in Memphis, Tennessee, which Musk claims will become the “most powerful AI training system in the world.”He has purchased another plot of land nearby to create more data centers, which are essential for developing and running large-scale artificial intelligence models. According to Bloomberg, xAI is costing over a billion dollars every month as it builds upgraded models, with its expenses far exceeding its revenues.xAI’s virtual assistant Grok has been the source of a series of controversies. After an update on July 7, some of the chatbot’s responses praised Adolf Hitler and suggested that people with Jewish surnames were more likely to spread online hate.  On Saturday, xAI apologized for offensive posts, announcing that it had corrected the instructions that had led, according to the company, to these slip-ups.

Dark sci-fi office drama “Severance,” gritty hospital series “The Pitt” and buzzy teen murder saga “Adolescence” are expected to pile up nominations for this year’s Emmys when the contenders for television’s Oscars are revealed Tuesday.Nominees will be announced in a live-streamed ceremony starting at 8:30 am (1530 GMT), after which final-round voting begins for the 77th Emmy Awards, set for September 14.Here are five things to look out for:- Innie/Outie vs ER -After last year’s record-breaking 18 Emmys for Japan-set historical epic “Shogun,” this year’s competition looks to be more nuanced.Apple TV+’s “Severance,” in which employees of biotech company Lumon have their memories surgically separated between their “innie” work lives and their “outie” personal lives, looks to be atop most predictions.”It’s a really great show that is going to get… a ton of nominations,” Deadline awards expert Pete Hammond told AFP.”It’ll be stronger than it was” in its first season, added Hammond, who sees star Adam Scott as a sure bet for a best drama actor nod.”The Pitt” — HBO Max’s take on the travails of a Pittsburgh emergency room team during one 15-hour shift, covered effectively in real time — has won over critics and audiences alike. It stars “ER” veteran Noah Wyle.”It’s ER on steroids!” Hammond quipped.But Wyle’s chances to win for best actor are crimped by Scott and a shortlist of other performers including Oscar winner Gary Oldman in Apple’s dysfunctional spy drama “Slow Horses” or Pedro Pascal in HBO’s apocalyptic video game adaptation “The Last of Us.”In the supporting acting categories, the many stars of “The White Lotus” are expected to earn nominations.- Comedy crapshoot -In the comedy categories, perennial favorites “Hacks” and “The Bear” are expected to do battle once again. HBO Max’s “Hacks” — starring Jean Smart as a stand-up comedian who locks horns with her dysfunctional millennial assistant — won for best comedy and best actress in September last year.”The Bear,” a dark satire set in the Chicago restaurant world, took the top prize at the previous ceremony (held in January 2024 due to Hollywood strikes), and star Jeremy Allen White has two trophies for best actor.”The Bear” is eligible this time for its lackluster third season, but the recent launch of its fourth season — which has received excellent reviews — could work in its favor, Hammond says.”That may be what Academy members will be looking at when they’re actually voting for the season that wasn’t well reviewed,” he said.The comedy juggernauts are also facing a newcomer — Apple’s “The Studio,” a satire that eviscerates the film industry starring Seth Rogen, who also wrote and produced the show. There is nothing Hollywood loves more than a show about… Hollywood.- Is ‘Adolescence’ unbeatable? – In the limited series categories, Netflix’s “Adolescence” — which follows the case of a 13-year-old British boy accused of murdering a female classmate — is the wide favorite.”It’s close to a sure thing in terms of getting nominations across the board,” Hammond said, adding: “I don’t see what’s going to come up and beat it in the limited series category.”Breakout young star Owen Cooper is widely expected to earn a nomination for limited series supporting actor, and series creator Stephen Graham is a shoo-in for best actor.The four-part series was lauded for its production values, with each episode shot in one take.Another Netflix contender in these categories is “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” a true-crime saga about a pair of California brothers in prison for killing their parents, after what they say was years of sexual and physical abuse.Alfonso Cuaron’s “Disclaimer,” starring Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline, and “The Penguin,” with Colin Farrell as the comic book villain, are expected to win acting nominations.- Big day for Apple TV+? -In recent years, streaming services have led the charge for Emmy nominations, with traditional networks relegated to a handful of nods.With “Severance,” “The Studio,” “Disclaimer” and “Slow Horses,” Apple TV+ could have its best year yet.”Normally we see HBO and Netflix leading the thing,” Hammond said, but he predicted: “Apple is going to have the best year they’ve ever had in terms of nominations.”- From nominations to gala -Harvey Guillen (“What We Do in the Shadows”) and Brenda Song (“Running Point”) will unveil the nominations on Tuesday.Voting members of the US-based Television Academy will then have a month to catch up on their viewing before final-round voting begins in mid-August.The September 14 gala will be hosted by comedian Nate Bargatze.

A congressional inquiry into the attempt to assassinate US President Donald Trump at a campaign rally a year ago on Sunday lamented “inexcusable” failures in the Secret Service’s operations and response, and called for more serious disciplinary action.On July 13, 2024, a gunman shot the then-Republican presidential candidate during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, grazing his ear. One bystander was killed and two other people in addition to Trump were wounded before a government sniper killed the gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks.”What happened was inexcusable and the consequences imposed for the failures so far do not reflect the severity of the situation,” said the report released by the US Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.The dramatic incident energized Trump’s bid to return to the White House, with his campaign using a photo of him bloodied and pumping his fist as he was hurried offstage to woo voters.The report did not shed new light on the gunman’s motive, which still remains a mystery, but accused the Secret Service of “a cascade of preventable failures that nearly cost President Trump his life.””The United States Secret Service failed to act on credible intelligence, failed to coordinate with local law enforcement,” said the committee’s Republican chairman Rand Paul. “Despite those failures, no one has been fired,” he added. “It was a complete breakdown of security at every level — fueled by bureaucratic indifference, a lack of clear protocols, and a shocking refusal to act on direct threats. “We must hold individuals accountable and ensure reforms are fully implemented so this never happens again.”- ‘Mistakes were made’ -The Secret Service cited communication, technical and human errors and said reforms were underway, including on coordination between different law enforcement bodies and establishment of a division dedicated to aerial surveillance.Six unidentified staff have been disciplined, according to the agency. The punishments range from 10 to 42 days’ suspension without pay, and all six were put into restricted or non-operational positions.Earlier this week, while reflecting on the assassination attempt, Trump said “mistakes were made” but that he was satisfied with the investigation.In an interview with his daughter-in-law on Fox News’ “My View with Lara Trump,” Trump said the sniper “was able to get him from a long distance with one shot. If he didn’t do that, you would have had an even worse situation.””It was unforgettable,” Trump has previously said of the events. “I didn’t know exactly what was going on. I got whacked. There’s no question about that. And fortunately, I got down quickly. People were screaming.”On the anniversary of the attack, Trump told reporters “God was protecting me,” adding that he did not like to think “too much” about the assassination attempt.”It’s a little bit of a dangerous profession being president, but I really don’t like to think about it too much,” he said.

Donald Trump experienced the agony and the ecstasy of football on Sunday as he was booed at the final of the FIFA Club World Cup — even as he joined in some high-spirited celebrations with champions Chelsea.The US president was front and center as the winners took to the stage, grinning broadly in his red tie and clapping and jumping with the players as the jubilant Blues lifted the gleaming trophy, which he had presented to captain Reece James.But moments earlier, loud booing could be heard among cheers and applause as Trump walked onto the pitch for the presentation with FIFA president Gianni Infantino — before the music in the stadium was turned up.Earlier, the Republican billionaire was also applauded as he and First Lady Melania Trump arrived for the match at the MetLife stadium in New Jersey, just outside New York City.But when a jumbotron screen briefly showed Trump saluting to the US national anthem, yet more boos could be heard in the giant stadium, before the camera quickly cut away.The scorn did little to dampen the president’s spirits as he handed out trophies to the star players including the Golden Ball for best player to Cole Palmer, followed by handshakes and medals to the defeated Paris Saint-Germain.He later called the crowd “tremendous.””We had a great time,” he told reporters as he landed at Joint Base Andrews outside the US capital Washington after the match. The Republican’s appearance at the game also came on the first anniversary of the assassination attempt that he survived at an election rally in Pennsylvania.Trump has made no secret of his desire to use this year’s club championship and next year’s 2026 World Cup as symbols of the “Golden Age of America” during his second term in the White House.Next year’s World Cup, the final of which will be held at the same stadium, will coincide with the 250th anniversary of America’s independence.Trump has even set up a White House task force to ensure next year’s championship — hosted jointly with Canada and Mexico — goes smoothly.- ‘He loves it’ -Trump has fostered a close relationship with Infantino, who has been a frequent visitor to the White House.The president has kept the Club World Cup trophy next to his desk in the Oval Office since the FIFA president dropped by in March.Infantino, who is no stranger to dealing with hard-nosed world leaders including Russia’s Vladimir Putin ahead of the 2018 World Cup, thanked Trump for his support on Saturday.He said Trump had “embraced immediately the importance of the FIFA Club World Cup, and of course of the World Cup next year.”Infantino also joked that Trump “certainly loves as well the trophy” — whose gold-plated curves match the gilded makeover that the president has given the Oval Office.But Trump’s fondness of football, or soccer as he would say, is also personal.The president’s 19-year-old son Barron is a fan, as Infantino pointed out in a press conference at FIFA’s new office in Trump Tower in New York on Saturday.Asked if Trump liked the game, Infantino replied: “Well I think he does. In his first term as president of the United States, there was a soccer goal in the garden of the White House.”He then explained to me that his son loved football, and that he loved the game. And of course when you are a parent, you love what your children love, so I think that he loves it.”As a boarding school student at the New York Military Academy, Trump himself also reportedly played the game for a season.- ‘Go home’ -But in typical form, Trump has also mixed political controversy with his football fandom.Hosting Italian side Juventus in the Oval Office in June, he delivered a diatribe on transgender people in sports before asking the players: “Could a woman make your team, fellas?”Most of the players looked bemused before Juventus general manager Damien Comolli replied: “We have a very good women’s team.””He’s being very diplomatic,” said Trump.Trump’s hardline immigration crackdown — part of his “America First” policy — has meanwhile sparked fears that football fans will be discouraged from coming to the United States for the 2026 World Cup.In May, Vice President JD Vance said that fans would be “welcome to come… but when the time is up, they will have to go home.”

The United States military teamed with Panamanian police to conduct a series of new exercises aimed at protecting the Panama Canal, amid tensions over alleged Chinese influence along the prized trade route.To kick off the drills, three US Army helicopters arrived in Panama on Sunday — two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters and a CH-47 Chinook — landing at the Panama-Pacific Airport, formerly the US Howard base.Michael Palacios, subcommissioner of Panama’s National Aeronaval Service — known as SENAN — said the exercises would prepare Panama’s forces, as well as countries in the region, against any threats to the security and defense of the canal.US soldiers conducted similar exercises in Panama a month ago, under a bilateral agreement that allows Washington to use Panamanian air and naval bases for training without establishing its own bases. The agreement sparked protests in the Central American country, and came amid pressure from US President Donald Trump, who threatened to reclaim the canal.He has repeatedly claimed that China has too much influence over the canal, which handles about 40 percent of US container traffic and five percent of world trade. In April, Trump called for the free transit of American commercial and military ships through the inter-oceanic route, claiming the canal would “not exist” without the US. But Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino said the toll fees are regulated by the Panama Canal Authority, an autonomous governing body overseeing the trade route.US presence in Panama remains a sensitive issue, as it evokes a time when Washington had an enclave of military bases in the country before the canal was handed over to Panamanians on the last day of 1999.SENAN officials said the US maneuvers will last until Friday and will respect “national sovereignty.”Palacios said the exercise has been held for 23 years.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said Sunday that Brussels would continue to hold off on hitting back at US steel and aluminium tariffs, as it seeks a deal to avoid broader 30-percent levies.US President Donald Trump on Saturday threw months of painstaking negotiations into disarray by announcing he would hammer the 27-nation bloc with the sweeping tariffs if no agreement is reached by August 1.”The United States has sent us a letter with measures that would come into effect unless there is a negotiated solution, so we will therefore also extend the suspension of our countermeasures until early August,” von der Leyen told journalists.”At the same time, we will continue to prepare for the countermeasures so we’re fully prepared,” she added.The European Commission president insisted that the European Union has “always been very clear that we prefer a negotiated solution. This remains the case, and we will use the time that we have now till August 1″.The move by von der Leyen will spur hope that Trump’s latest threat — in which he also targeted Mexico — has not killed off the progress made in negotiations so far between Brussels and Washington.The European Union’s current suspension of its retaliation over US steel and aluminium tariffs had been set to expire overnight Monday to Tuesday. – ‘Ready to respond’ -Brussels has readied duties on US goods worth around 21 billion euros ($24 billion) in response to the levies Trump slapped on metal imports earlier this year.But it announced in April it was holding off on those measures to give space to find a broader trade agreement with the Trump administration.”Since the very beginning, we have worked and now are ready to respond with countermeasures. We’ve prepared for this, and we can respond with countermeasures if necessary,” von der Leyen said.EU trade ministers meet in Brussels Monday to discuss the bloc’s response to Trump’s latest move — and how strong a line to take with Washington. On Sunday Chancellor Friedrich Merz told the ARD broadcaster that if the threatened tariffs came into effect they would “overtake a lot of the efforts we have been making” towards reviving the economy and would “hit our exporters to the core”.He said he agreed with French President Emmanuel Macron, who said on Saturday the EU had to “step up the preparation of credible countermeasures” in the event of no deal before August 1.In his statement Saturday, Macron also urged the European Commission — which negotiates on behalf of all EU countries — to “resolutely defend European interests”.- Meloni’s warning -Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a statement Sunday: “A trade war within the West would weaken us all in the face of the global challenges we are confronting together.”Europe has the economic and financial strength to assert its position and reach a fair and sensible agreement,” she added.Since returning to the presidency in January, Trump has unleashed sweeping stop-start tariffs on allies and competitors alike, roiling financial markets and raising fears of a global economic downturn.But his administration is coming under pressure to secure deals with trading partners after promising a flurry of agreements.So far, US officials have only unveiled two pacts, with Britain and Vietnam, alongside temporarily lower tit-for-tat duties with China.The European Union, alongside dozens of other economies, had been set to see its US tariff level increase from a baseline of 10 percent on July 9, but Trump pushed back the deadline to August 1.In a letter published on Saturday, Trump cited the United States’s trade imbalance with the bloc as justification for the new 30-percent levies.The EU tariff is markedly steeper than the 20-percent levy Trump had unveiled in April — before hitting pause as markets went into meltdown.burs-jj/giv

“Superman” the latest big-budget action film featuring the iconic DC superhero, powered to the top of the North American box office in its debut weekend with $122 million in ticket sales, industry estimates showed Sunday.The Warner Bros. and DC Studios film — directed by James Gunn — stars up-and-comer David Corenswet as the Man of Steel, and “The Marvelous Mrs Maisel” star Rachel Brosnahan as his perennial love interest Lois Lane.”This is an outstanding domestic opening for the 7th episode in a superhero story that’s been filmed for over 75 years,” said analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research. “Mr Gunn chose not to rely on big stars. The storytelling and filmmaking are doing the work here.””Jurassic World: Rebirth” — the latest installment in the blockbuster dinosaur saga — slipped to second place in its second week of release at $40 million in the United States and Canada, Exhibitor Relations said.The Universal film, starring Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey and Mahershala Ali, takes viewers to an abandoned island research facility for the original Jurassic Park theme park, where secrets — and genetically mutated dinosaurs — are lurking. “F1: The Movie,” the Apple and Warner Bros. flick starring Brad Pitt as a washed-up Formula One driver who gets one last shot at redemption, took third place at $13 million.”How to Train Your Dragon,” Universal and DreamWorks Animation’s live-action reboot of the popular 2010 film, came in at fourth place with $7.8 million.”It’s summertime and the big pictures are loud and visually dazzling: ‘Superman,’ ‘Jurassic,’ ‘F1,’ and ‘How to Train Your Dragon’,” Gross said. “Audiences want to be transported and taken away, and they’re getting what they want.”Disney/Pixar Animation’s latest original film “Elio,” the story of a young boy who is mistaken by aliens as an intergalactic ambassador for Earth, finished up the top five with $3.9 million.Rounding out the top 10 were:”28 Years Later” ($2.73 million)”Lilo & Stitch” ($2.7 million)”Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning” ($1.5 million)”M3GAN 2.0″ ($1.4 million)”Materialists” ($720,000)

Donald Trump will on Sunday showcase his unexpected attachment to a sport in which “America First” remains a dream, for now.The US president is attending the final of the newly expanded FIFA Club World Cup in his latest use of the beautiful game as a soft power political weapon.His appearance at the MetLife stadium in New Jersey, where Paris Saint-Germain face Chelsea, is very much a trial run for the World Cup final, which will take place in the same stadium next year.Trump has made it clear he sees both tournaments, as well as the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, as showpieces for what he calls the “Golden Age of America” during his second term.The billionaire Republican’s close friendship with FIFA president Gianni Infantino, a frequent visitor to the White House, is also a factor in his appearance.Trump has kept the Club World Cup trophy next to his desk in the Oval Office since Infantino dropped by in March.But Trump’s embrace of football, or soccer as he would say, is also personal.The president’s 19-year-old son Barron is a fan, as Infantino pointed out in a press conference at FIFA’s new office in Trump Tower in New York on Saturday.Asked if Trump liked the game, Infantino replied: “Well I think he does. In his first term as president of the United States there was a soccer goal in the garden of the White House.”He then explained to me that his son loved football, and that he loved the game. And of course when you are a parent, you love what your children love, so I think that he loves it.”As a student at the New York Military Academy, Trump himself also reportedly played the game for a season.- ‘Go home’ -Trump’s apparent fondness for football may seem unusual for a country where, despite growing popularity, the sport still lags behind American football, basketball and baseball.The former reality TV star has, however, always had an eye for popularity, power and influence. And football in its own way brings all three.Trump pointed out when Infantino visited the White House in March that the United States won the right to host the 2026 World Cup in 2018, during his first term as president.He said he was “so sad” because he assumed he would not be president when the tournament came around — but his 2020 election loss meant that he would after all.The FIFA Club World Cup has meanwhile proved more successful than its critics predicted, with around 2.5 million people attending games across the country and some gripping games.Infantino, who is no stranger to dealing with hard-nosed leaders around the world, thanked Trump for his support on Saturday.He said Trump “embraced immediately the importance of the FIFA Club World Cup, and of course of the World Cup next year.”Infantino also joked that Trump “certainly loves as well the trophy” — whose gold-plated curves match the gilded makeover that the president has given the Oval Office.But in typical form Trump has also mixed political controversy with his football fandom.Hosting Italian side Juventus in the Oval Office in June, he delivered a diatribe on transgender people in sports before asking the players: “Could a woman make your team, fellas?”Most of the players looked bemused before Juventus general manager Damien Comolli replied: “We have a very good women’s team.””He’s being very diplomatic,” said Trump.Trump’s hardline immigration crackdown — part of his “America First” policy — has meanwhile sparked fears that football fans will be discouraged from coming to the United States.In May, Vice President JD Vance said that 2026 World Cup fans were “welcome to come… but when the time is up they will have to go home.”

US President Donald Trump’s top immigration officials on Sunday defended the use of aggressive snatch and detain tactics by masked and armed federal agents, days after a federal judge ruled that arrests were being made “based upon race alone.”Trump’s border czar Tom Homan and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem made the administration’s case on the Sunday talk shows, just a day after a farm worker died in California after being injured in a raid on a legal cannabis farm.On Friday, District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong ordered a halt to “roving patrols” targeting suspected undocumented migrants in Los Angeles, saying a person’s race, language or workplace was not sufficient justification.”Physical description cannot be the sole reason to detain and question somebody,” Homan said on CNN’s “State of the Union,” adding: “It’s a myriad of factors.”But he acknowledged that appearance was one of those factors, and said there were sometimes “collateral arrests” of innocent people in targeted raids.He said the administration would comply with the judge’s decision but fight it on appeal.Noem called the judge’s ruling “ridiculous” and slammed what she called the “political” nature of the decision.”We always built our operations, our investigations on case work, on knowing individuals that we needed to target because they were criminals,” Noem said on “Fox News Sunday.”Trump, who campaigned on a pledge to deport millions of undocumented migrants, has taken a number of actions aimed at speeding up deportations and reducing border crossings.As a so-called “sanctuary city” with hundreds of thousands of undocumented people, Los Angeles has been in the crosshairs of the Trump administration since the Republican returned to power in January.After ICE raids spurred unrest and protests last month, Trump dispatched the National Guard and US Marines to quell the disruption.California’s Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom has said the troops were not necessary to address the mostly peaceful protests, but his legal efforts to have them removed have failed so far.On Thursday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents raided a cannabis farm in Ventura County outside Los Angeles. About 200 migrants were detained and clashes erupted with protesters.One worker being chased by ICE agents fell from the roof of a greenhouse, and died on Saturday.Homan called the death “sad” but specified that the man was not in ICE custody at the time of his death.