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A well-financed campaign to build a casino in the heart of New York’s theater district collapsed Wednesday as a government-appointed panel voted down the proposal.Opposition to the project was led by community groups who said a casino would lure unsavory people and theater interests who argued it would cut into Broadway’s business.The Caesars Palace Times Square project, a venture whose sponsors include rap musician and entrepreneur Jay-Z’s company Roc Nation, failed to clear a key hurdle at the Community Advisory Committee. The CAC, which is composed of representatives of state and local officials, voted down the proposed $5.4 billion project by 4-2.  City Council Member Erik Bottcher said he voted no after “countless” conversations with constituents.”This is not a decision I took lightly,” Bottcher, who had been considered a swing vote on the proposal, said in an Instagram post.”All economic development opportunities deserve strong consideration. I believe casinos must clear a particularly high bar, requiring a uniquely strong degree of community buy-in before being sited in a neighborhood,” he added.”Despite extensive outreach by the applicants, that level of support has not materialized.”The vote follows two rowdy public meetings at which the CAC heard from dozens of backers and opponents of the casino. Supporters of the project included construction unions, neighboring restaurants and business groups that viewed the casino project as a source of additional customers.Other Caesars supporters included the Reverend Al Sharpton, whose organization was poised to oversee a new $15 million civil rights museum financed by the casino coalition if the Times Square proposal had been built.But Broadway League President Jason Laks, who led the opposition, praised CAC members “who looked at the facts, listened to the residents, and stood up for this neighborhood and the theater community.” “This was a vote to protect the magic of Broadway for the one hundred thousand New Yorkers who depend on it for their livelihoods, and for the tens of millions who come from around the world to experience it,” Laks said in a statement. “A casino can go anywhere, but Broadway only lives here.”

President Donald Trump’s administration has not offered a credible legal justification for US strikes targeting alleged drug smugglers, experts say, warning that he appears to be claiming an unlawful “license to kill.”The US military has destroyed at least two boats carrying a combined 14 people who were allegedly transporting drugs across the Caribbean this month, with Trump posting videos of the strikes on his Truth Social platform.Typical practice would be to interdict a boat, detain its crew and seize its cargo. But Trump has opted to use deadly force instead, saying the traffickers are “terrorists” who threaten US national security and interests and making clear the strikes are part of a continuing campaign.Trump “seems to be asserting a license to kill outside the law, because they haven’t shown that this is legal, and they haven’t really even tried to seriously make an argument on that front,” said Brian Finucane, senior adviser for the International Crisis Group’s US Program.The strikes are “remarkable and unprecedented,” said Finucane, who previously advised the US government on legal issues related to counterterrorism and the use of military force.He noted that they differ from strikes targeting militants during the “War on Terror,” as that conflict began with the 9/11 attacks on the United States, and was also waged against “organized armed groups” with “military style hierarchies.”- No ‘coherent legal argument’ -Trump has justified taking military action by saying “violent drug trafficking cartels POSE A THREAT to U.S. National Security, Foreign Policy, and vital U.S. Interests.”Finucane said they are “throwing out these legal terms,” but “they’re not actually using them to make a coherent legal argument.”Trump confirmed a new US strike on a suspected drug trafficking boat from Venezuela on Monday that killed three people, then said the following day that Washington had “knocked off” three boats in total, without elaborating.That came after US forces earlier this month blew up a boat with 11 people onboard, which Washington claimed was operated by the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.The strikes have contributed to soaring tensions between the United States and Venezuela, which were already heightened over the deployment of American warships in the region that Washington says are to combat trafficking but which Caracas views as a threat.Some US lawmakers — almost all Democrats — have pushed back against the Trump administration over the strikes.”There is no legal authority that lets the President kill people in international waters based on accusations with no proof or due process,” Democratic US Representative Don Beyer said in a post on X.- ‘Manipulation of law’ -Senator Rand Paul, a Republican, clashed with Vice President JD Vance after the first strike earlier this month, saying it is “despicable and thoughtless” to “glorify killing someone without a trial.”And more than two dozen senators sent a letter to Trump asking for answers on the first strike, saying his report to Congress on it “provided no legitimate legal justification and was scant in details regarding the legal or substantive basis for this or any future strikes.”United Nations rights experts have condemned the killing of the alleged traffickers, saying that “international law does not allow governments to simply murder alleged drug traffickers.””Under international law, all countries must respect the right to life, including when acting on the high seas or in foreign territory,” said the experts, including the special rapporteurs on extrajudicial executions and on protecting human rights while countering terrorism.Mary Ellen O’Connell, a professor at the University of Notre Dame, said “the small speed boats allegedly carrying drugs for a criminal gang meet none of the conditions for lawful self-defense.””Without a justification under the law of self-defense, the human right to life prohibits intentional killing of people with military force,” said O’Connell, an expert in international law on the use of force, international dispute resolution, and international legal theory.”It is time to end the manipulation of law to license killing. The human right to life requires following peacetime law unless the real conditions of actual hostilities exist,” she said.

The US Treasury Department’s chief of staff is anticipated to join the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a key role as its number-two official, a source told AFP on Wednesday.Dan Katz, who currently works with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, is expected to be selected as the next first deputy managing director of the IMF. The source was familiar with the matter, and spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the topic.No formal announcement has been made by the Washington-based lender.A Treasury spokesperson declined to comment, and the Fund did not immediately respond to queries.The United States, which is the biggest shareholder in the Fund, typically nominates its top deputy. This is subject to approval within the organization.By convention, the European Union traditionally nominates the IMF’s chief.Katz, who is chief of staff at the Treasury, was a senior official in the department during US President Donald Trump’s first administration as well.The source familiar with the matter noted that Katz has longstanding ties with Bessent and previously consulted for the Treasury chief’s hedge fund.Katz has worked with Goldman Sachs as an investment banker in the past, and is a graduate of Yale University.In the current Trump administration, Katz has helped steer the Treasury’s international economic strategy, including on Ukraine, and was involved in Washington’s trade and economic talks with Beijing.His potential nomination to the IMF comes after Gita Gopinath left the role in August to return to Harvard University.Gopinath joined the IMF in 2019, becoming the first female chief economist in its history, before being promoted to first deputy managing director in 2022.In the role, she had represented the IMF at multilateral gatherings like the Group of Seven and Group of 20 meetings. She also played a leading role in the Fund’s work, including on monetary and fiscal policies, debt and international trade.

The US Federal Reserve is poised to make its first interest rate cut of 2025 on Wednesday, but it battles competing forces in the path forward — with heightened political pressure and likely divisions among its ranks.There is little doubt that the US central bank will lower rates at the end of its two-day policy meeting, and markets widely expect a 25 basis points reduction spurred by a weakening employment market.Less certain, however, are the pace and size of further cuts to come.On Wednesday, the Fed’s rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) opened its second day of deliberations at 9:00 am US Eastern time (1300 GMT) as scheduled, said a spokesperson.Even before the committee convened early Tuesday, moves by President Donald Trump cast uncertainty over its composition.Trump, who has pushed for months for the central bank to slash rates, moved in August to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook, sparking a legal fight that could have prevented her from attending the rate meeting.Trump also nominated a key economic adviser to the Fed’s board of governors after another official unexpectedly resigned last month, setting in motion a confirmation process that concluded at the eleventh hour.Stephen Miran, who has been chairing the White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), was sworn in as a Fed governor right before the FOMC gathering.He has come under fire from Democratic lawmakers for taking a leave of absence rather than resigning from his White House role, a decision he attributed to the short tenure ending January 31 that he fills.- Dissent -Economists expect to see more divisions among the FOMC, as policymakers walk a tightrope balancing the risk of higher inflation due to Trump’s new tariffs and a deteriorating jobs market.Typically, the Fed might be inclined to keep rates at a higher level to bring inflation back to its two-percent target — or slash rates to support a weakening labor market.This time, employment concerns are anticipated to win out, even as inflation remains notably above 2.0 percent.But the economic picture means that officials could dissent in both directions even if most vote for a 25 basis points cut — a situation not seen since 2019.”That’s not a good place to be,” said KPMG chief economist Diane Swonk.”It’s the stagflation reality that we’re living in now,” she said, even if it is just a “mild bout.” This refers to a situation of sluggish growth and rising prices.Fed governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, who voted against the FOMC’s last decision to hold rates steady — instead seeking a rate cut — could now dissent in favor of a bigger 50 basis points reduction.Miran could also join them, analysts say.But officials like Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid might favor another path, pushing to keep rates unchanged to curb inflation.”It could be the first meeting where three governors dissent since 1988,” said Deutsche Bank economists in a recent note.Since its last cut in December, the Fed has held interest rates at a range between 4.25 percent and 4.50 percent.- ‘Political attention’ -Miran’s confirmation — without resigning from the CEA — also risks a sense of political influence over Fed decisions, EY chief economist Gregory Daco told AFP.Economists will be monitoring the outcome of the FOMC’s vote and whether Miran pushes for a large rate cut that Trump has repeatedly advocated for.Separately, the legal battle by Cook — the first Black woman on the Fed’s board of governors — could have broader implications for the bank.A federal appeals court ruled late Monday that Cook could remain in position while challenging her removal over alleged mortgage fraud.But the Trump administration plans to appeal this outcome, potentially bringing the case to the Supreme Court.”The backdrop that we’re experiencing, where there is increased political attention on the Fed, is concerning,” Daco said.”History has showed that in times when a central bank is under political influence, the economic outcomes are suboptimal,” he added.This could mean higher inflation, lower growth and more financial market volatility.

The co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s has resigned from the ice cream brand after saying his company known for its social activism has lost “the independence to pursue our values” under the ownership of British giant Unilever.Jerry Greenfield’s announcement follows the company’s failure in 2022 to block Unilever from selling its ice cream in West Bank settlements, which Ben & Jerry’s said would run counter to its values.Greenfield said he could “no longer, in good conscience, and after 47 years, remain an employee” of the Vermont-based company, according to a statement published on X by co-founder Ben Cohen late on Tuesday.The brand was founded by the two school friends in 1978 and acquired by Unilever in 2000. It is now owned by the Magnum Ice Cream Company, a Unilever subsidiary. Greenfield said his firm “has been silenced, sidelined for fear of upsetting those in power” at a time when the current US administration is “attacking civil rights, voting rights, the rights of immigrants, women and the LGBTQ community.””It’s profoundly disappointing to come to the conclusion that that independence, the very basis of our sale to Unilever, is gone,” he added.A Magnum spokesperson said the company remains committed to Ben & Jerry’s mission and legacy.”We disagree with (Greenfield’s) perspective and have sought to engage both co-founders in a constructive conversation on how to strengthen Ben & Jerry’s powerful values-based position in the world,” the spokesperson said.In May, the 74-year-old Cohen was removed from a US Senate hearing after shouting “Congress pays for bombs to kill children in Gaza” and startling Health Secretary  Robert F Kennedy Jr.A longtime critic of Israeli policy, Cohen last year joined prominent Jewish figures in an open letter opposing the pro‑Israel lobby AIPAC.Unilever is in the process of spinning off Magnum, which is expected to begin standalone operations by mid-November.

Britain readied to roll out a supersized royal welcome for Donald Trump’s unprecedented second state visit on Wednesday, with King Charles III set to greet the US president amid tight security and out of sight of noisy protesters.From a carriage ride with the monarch to a flypast and a lavish state dinner in the nearly 1,000-year-old Windsor Castle, the UK is going the extra mile to dazzle and flatter the unpredictable Trump.A huge security operation will keep the 79-year-old Republican far away from demonstrators and the British public -among whom polls indicate Trump remains unpopular -with the extraordinary show of pomp and pageantry unfolding entirely behind closed doors, and outside London.Knowing that Trump is obsessed with Britain’s royals and loves showy displays of pomp, Britain has turned up the pageantry to the max as he becomes the first US president to receive a second UK state visit.The trip will involve what British officials call the biggest military ceremonial welcome for any state visit in living memory — even bigger than when Queen Elizabeth II hosted Trump in 2019.Trump will also get the first joint flypast by US and UK fighter jets at an event of its kind, and the largest guard of honour at a state visit, featuring 120 horses and 1,300 troops.It’s all designed to appeal to a US leader who this year crowed “LONG LIVE THE KING!” about himself on social media before the White House posted a fake magazine cover of him wearing a crown.- ‘Warm my heart’ -The question for Britain is whether the red carpet welcome will win over Trump, whose unpredictability on everything from tariffs to Ukraine and Gaza has caused global turmoil.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will be hoping Trump leaves on Thursday feeling the warm glow of royal soft power — but there are no guarantees.Trump appeared to be feeling the love as he arrived by helicopter at the US ambassador’s official residence in London on Tuesday with First Lady Melania Trump.”A lot of things here warm my heart,” said the president, whose mother hailed from Scotland and who owns two golf resorts the country.He described Charles, 76, who is undergoing treatment for cancer, as “my friend”.The Republican may also relish a chance to escape a turbulent period at home in the United States, where the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk has caused deep turmoil.But the spectre loomed of late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who is providing domestic headaches for both Trump and Starmer and who has caused the royal family considerable embarrassment.Police arrested four people after they projected images of Trump and Epstein onto Windsor Castle late Tuesday. Thousands were expected to attend protests planned in London on Wednesday.Trump’s day will begin with heir to the throne Prince William and his wife Catherine welcoming him and Melania to Windsor Castle, the home of the British royals for nearly a millennium.Charles and his wife Queen Camilla are then due to join them for a carriage procession through the grounds of Windsor estate towards the castle — again behind closed doors.The Trumps will lay a wreath on the tomb of Queen Elizabeth II, who died in 2022.- Shadow of Epstein -Trump will also witness a military band ceremony, ending with a flypast by US and British F-35 military jets and the Royal Air Force’s Red Arrows display team.The president and Charles will wrap up the day with a white-tie state banquet, where they are due to make speeches.Starmer will host Trump on the second day of the visit on Thursday at his country residence, Chequers.The pair will be buoyed by British pharmaceutical group GSK’s announcement that it will invest $30 billion in the United States over the next five years but talks could turn awkward on several fronts.Starmer in particular faces political troubles at home, after sacking his UK ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, over a furore involving the diplomat’s connection to the late Epstein.

Authorities have shared their most detailed account yet of the investigation set off by the killing of American conservative activist Charlie Kirk, which concluded with a suspect surrendering to police.  Here are key details Utah County prosecutor Jeffrey Gray released about the case centering on 22-year-old suspect Tyler Robinson:- ‘Sniper positions’ -When a lone gunshot rang out during Kirk’s outdoor event on September 10, a Utah Valley University police officer believed the weapon to be a rifle “because of its sound,” Gray said, and began looking for “potential sniper positions.” About 160 yards (150 meters) away, the officer spotted a roof area “as a potential shooting position.”There, he found “impressions in the gravel” consistent with the body of a “person in a prone shooting position.”Security surveillance footage confirmed that an individual dressed in dark clothing was on the roof at approximately 12:15 pm local time, Gray said.That revelation marked the start of a 33-hour manhunt.- The attack -The apparent suspect entered campus at 11:51 am local time, wearing a black shirt with an American flag in the center, a dark baseball cap and large sunglasses, Gray said.His appearance gave few clues, but the suspect’s posture appeared to indicate that he was hiding something.”The suspect keeps his head down. He is seen walking with an unusual gait, with very little bending in his right leg, consistent with a rifle being hidden in his pants,” Gray said.Security cameras also caught the suspect descending from the roof immediately after the shooting and fleeing campus on foot.A rifle with a scope was found in the woods nearby, wrapped in a towel.”The rifle contained one spent round and three unspent rounds,” Gray said. The unspent rounds were engraved with enigmatic messages: “hey fascist catch” followed by arrow symbols believed to be a video game cheat code, the famed anti-fascist song “oh, Bella ciao, Bella ciao, Bella ciao, ciao, ciao” and “if you read this, you are gay, lmao.”Robinson’s DNA was discovered on the gun’s trigger, the shell casing, two cartridges and the towel, authorities said.That’s not all the evidence that identified him.- A parent knows -The next day, Tyler Robinson’s mother saw footage of the shooter on the news and thought he resembled her son.But when she called, “he said he was at home sick,” like he had been the day before, Gray said.Robinson’s father also recognized “that the rifle that police suspected the shooter used matched a rifle that was given to his son as a gift.”Robinson’s mother told investigators her son had recently “become more political and had started to lean more to the left” to embrace gay and trans rights, Gray said.”She stated that Robinson began to date his roommate, a biological male who was transitioning genders. This resulted in several discussions with family members, but especially between Robinson and his father, who have very different political views.”Robinson described his father as becoming “hardcore MAGA” since Trump returned to the White House, Gray said, referring to the president’s “Make America Great Again” movement.When his parents reached him by phone, Robinson hinted at being the shooter, saying he didn’t want to go to prison, and that he was ready to take his own life. Robinson’s parents worked to convince him to surrender.- A hidden note -After the shooting, Robinson exchanged messages with his roommate.”Drop what you’re doing. Look under my keyboard,” Robinson wrote.There, a note read: “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I’m going to take it.”Excerpts of that conversation, per court documents:Roommate: “What you’re joking, right?”Robinson: “I am still okay, my love, but I’m stuck in Orem for a little while longer yet. Shouldn’t be long until I can come home, but I gotta grab my rifle still. To be honest, I had hoped to keep this secret till I died of old age. I am sorry to involve you.”Roommate: “You weren’t the one who did it, right?”Robinson: “I am, I am, I’m sorry.”Roommate: “Why?”Robinson: “Why did I do it? I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out. If I am able to grab my rifle unseen, I will have left no evidence.” Robinson told the roommate he’d been planning the shooting for a bit over a week before adding:”I’m worried what my old man would do if I didn’t bring back grandpa’s rifle. How the f will I explain losing it to my old man?” Robinson then adds later: “Delete this exchange…I’m going to turn myself in willingly.”Thirty-three hours after the shooting, Robinson did just that.

Britain will roll out a supersized royal welcome for Donald Trump’s unprecedented second state visit on Wednesday, with the king to greet the US president who has compared himself to a monarch.From a carriage ride with King Charles III to a flypast and a lavish state dinner in the nearly 1,000-year-old Windsor Castle, Britain is going to unprecedented levels to dazzle and flatter the mercurial Trump.A huge security operation will keep the 79-year-old Republican far away from protests and the British public -among whom polls show Trump remains unpopular -with the extraordinary show of pomp and pageantry unfolding entirely behind closed doors.Knowing that Trump is obsessed with Britain’s royals and loves showy displays of pomp, Britain has turned up the pageantry to the max as he becomes the first US president to visit Britain twice.The trip will involve what UK officials call the biggest military ceremonial welcome for any state visit in living memory — even bigger than when Queen Elizabeth II hosted Trump in 2019.Trump will also get the first joint flypast by US and UK fighter jets at an event of its kind, and the largest guard of honour at a state visit, featuring 120 horses and 1,300 troops.It’s all designed to appeal to a US leader who this year crowed “LONG LIVE THE KING!” about himself on social media before the White House posted a fake magazine cover of him wearing a crown.- ‘Warm my heart’ -The question for Britain is whether the red carpet welcome will win over Trump, whose unpredictability on everything tariffs to Ukraine and Gaza has caused global turmoil.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will be hoping that Trump leaves on Thursday feeling the warm glow of some royal soft power, but there are no guarantees.Trump appeared to be feeling the love as he arrived by helicopter at the US ambassador’s official residence in London on Tuesday with First Lady Melania Trump.”A lot of things here warm my heart,” said the president, whose mother hailed from Scotland and who has two golf courses in Britain.He described Charles, 76, who is undergoing treatment for cancer, as “my friend.”The Republican may also relish a chance to escape a turbulent period at home in the United States, where the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk has caused deep turmoil.Trump’s day will begin with heir to the throne Prince William and his wife Catherine welcoming him and Melania to Windsor Castle, the home of the British royals for nearly a millennium.King Charles and Queen Camilla are then due to join them for a carriage procession through the grounds of Windsor estate towards the castle — again behind closed doors.The Trumps will lay a wreath on the tomb of Queen Elizabeth II, who died in 2022.- Shadow of Epstein -Trump will also witness a military band ceremony, ending with a flypast by US and British F-35 military jets and the Royal Air Force’s Red Arrows display team.The president and Charles will wrap up the day with a white-tie state banquet, where they are due to hold speeches.The lavish welcome, however, stands in contrast to public opinion in Britain, where polls show Trump remains unpopular.Demonstrators projected images of Trump and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein onto Windsor Castle late Tuesday, while protests are planned in London on Wednesday.Starmer will host Trump on the second day of the visit on Thursday at his country residence Chequers for talks that could turn awkward on several fronts.The British premier in particular faces political troubles at home, after sacking his UK ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, over a scandal involving the diplomat’s connection to the late Epstein.Trump has also been dragged into the scandal, while insisting it is a “hoax.”

The casino industry’s quest to bring gambling to Manhattan faces a key test this week when an advisory panel weighs a Times Square proposal that has enraged much of Broadway.Backers of the venture, including the rap musician and entrepreneur Jay-Z, have characterized the proposed $5.4 billion Caesars Entertainment gaming and hospitality venture a boon to New York, bringing an infusion of customers to a theater district whose restaurants and small businesses suffered during the pandemic. But opponents of the site, led by the Broadway League and some neighborhood groups, are battling a project they see as cutting into theater ticket sales and attracting unsavory characters to New York’s theater mecca.The two sides squared off last week at a rowdy public hearing, where Broadway League President Jason Laks was cheered by a sea of theater union workers in red “Vote No” t-shirts as he made his case.”We represent 100,000 New Yorkers who work in our industry,” said Laks, who has described the casino as an “existential” threat. “Please protect Broadway and its workers and vote down this casino.” But gaming giant Caesars and real estate firm SL Green have amassed a formidable coalition of their own, including a construction workers union and the Reverend Al Sharpton, whose organization will oversee a new $15 million civil rights museum financed by the casino coalition if the Times Square proposal goes through.Addressing the panel, Sharpton hailed Jay-Z’s stake in the venture through his Roc Nation company as a vital step towards greater diversity.”Let us be real clear that with all of the stuff that’s gone out against this proposal, there is not one Black or Brown owner of a Broadway theater in 2025,” said Sharpton. “So if this casino is established, it will be the first time we will have an institution on Broadway that has diversity at an ownership level.”The Caesars Palace Times Square Community Advisory Committee is set to vote on the project Wednesday morning at a public meeting, held near an office highrise that would be converted into a site that would also house 992 hotel rooms and restaurants by celebrity chefs.- Community largess -The Times Square project is one of eight candidates in metropolitan New York vying for up to three state casino licenses. The competition includes a Manhattan site near the United Nations Building, as well as a Queens venue championed by billionaire Steve Cohen, who has aggressively courted community and political support.Those chosen will pay at least $500 million for a license, plus tax payments that will help fortify New York’s fiscal profile at a time when President Donald Trump has pushed through social program cuts that will hit the state budget. Caesars estimates its project will bring New York $7 billion in direct taxes in its first decade.The process follows through on a 2013 state constitutional approved by voters expanding casino gambling that was cast by then-Governor Andrew Cuomo as a means to create jobs in economically depressed upstate regions. New York state has already granted the four upstate licenses. Downstate casino candidates approved by their community boards would then be considered by a state gaming facility location board in a process expected to yield licenses by the end of 2025.Backers of the Caesars project have argued that the proposal will create a “halo effect” beyond the casino walls by bringing more consumers than can be handled by the site’s lodging and dining capacity. The venture has promised $250 million in community investments, including Broadway ticket vouchers for casino customers, funding for tuition and health programs and millions in public safety and public bathrooms. This includes $10 million to support historic Black theaters in New York in a project with the actor Wendell Pierce.Some speakers backing Caesars called Times Square a “perfect” place for a casino compared to a residential neighborhood, alluding to billboards and other flashy fare that already dominate the area.But opponents described a casino as a beyond-the-pale solution that preys on seniors and other vulnerable populations, hitting out at Caesars’ largesse as cover for a bad idea. Some warned of a rise in crime, prostitution and child trafficking.”What we’re talking about is allowing a parasite to come into our community and take from it, because that’s what casinos are about,”  said long-term theater workers union member Bill Hubner. “They’re about making money. It’s not about art. It’s not about culture.”

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday extended a delay on enforcing a ban against TikTok until December 16, marking the fourth postponement of a law designed to force the app’s sale from its Chinese owner.The announcement, made through an executive order, came despite Trump telling reporters earlier Tuesday that the United States and China had reached a deal over a new ownership structure for the US business of the hugely popular video-sharing app.The extension follows previous delays issued in January, April and June as the administration navigates the complex legal and national security implications surrounding TikTok’s operations in the United States.The latest delay was set to expire on Wednesday, which would have enabled a US law signed in 2024 by then-president Joe Biden to force the closure of TikTok in the United States because of its Chinese ownership.The legislation was designed to address national security concerns over TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance and its potential ties to the Chinese government.But Trump, whose 2024 election campaign relied heavily on social media and who has said he is fond of TikTok, put the ban on pause.The app has faced scrutiny from US officials who worry about data collection and content manipulation. TikTok has repeatedly denied sharing user data with Chinese authorities and has challenged various restrictions in federal court.”We have a deal on TikTok; I’ve reached a deal with China. I’m going to speak to President Xi (Jinping) on Friday to confirm everything,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday as he left the White House for a state visit to Britain.”We have a group of very big companies that want to buy it,” Trump said, adding that he would “hate to see value like that thrown out the window.”China also confirmed what both sides on Monday called the “framework” of a deal that would be finalized in the phone call between the two leaders.TikTok boasts almost two billion global users.According to the Wall Street Journal, under the new arrangement, TikTok’s US business would be controlled by an investor consortium including cloud giant Oracle and venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, with the Chinese owners keeping less than 20 percent of the US business, in accordance with the law.Both companies have very close ties to the Trump White House, and Oracle already plays a major role in TikTok’s US infrastructure.Parent company ByteDance’s existing US investors, including Susquehanna International, KKR and General Atlantic, would be part of the group owning roughly 80 percent of the new company.One of the major questions is the fate of TikTok’s powerful algorithm that helped the app become one of the world’s most popular sources of online entertainment.The preliminary deal was negotiated over two days of talks in Madrid between US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng.Under the executive order, the US Justice Department is prohibited from taking enforcement action not only during the extended period, but also retroactively for any conduct that occurred since the ban was originally set to come into force — on January 19, 2025 — the day before Trump’s inauguration.