Good morning.<\/p>\n
Donald Trump declared his first year back in office a success<\/a> during his rambling State of the Union address, despite his return to the presidency being plagued by low public approval ratings.<\/p>\n At nearly two hours, his speech on Tuesday evening was the longest State of the Union ever and was littered with exaggerated, misleading and false claims. He maintained a triumphant tone, despite the address coming after months of chaos \u2013 including an immigration crackdown in Minneapolis that caused the deaths of two US citizens, and weak progress on cutting the cost of living.<\/p>\n Recent surveys have shown that many voters disagree with Trump\u2019s sunny take on his record. A Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll<\/a> released this week found just 39% of voters view his presidency positively, and others have found him to be failing on key issues such as the economy and immigration<\/a>.<\/p>\n What misleading and false claims did Trump make? He presented the US economic situation positively, when job gains slowed in 2025; claimed that Iryna Zarutska was killed by an immigrant (false); and claimed that energy prices have fallen, when household energy bills have risen. Here are the biggest false claims, debunked<\/a>.<\/p>\n US military puts pressure on Anthropic to bend Claude safeguardsThe defense secretary, Pete Hegseth. Photograph: Al Drago\/Reuters<\/p>\n US military leaders are putting pressure on the AI firm Anthropic to relax its safeguards<\/a> on its powerful model, Claude, which is used by the Department of Defense.<\/p>\n Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, was among leaders who met Anthropic executives on Tuesday, and gave Dario Amodei, the Anthropic CEO, until the end of Friday to agree to the department\u2019s terms or face penalties, Axios reported.<\/p>\n Anthropic labels itself as the most safety conscious of the main AI firms \u2013 and has been locked in weeks of disagreement with the Pentagon over how the military, which wants total access to Claude\u2019s capabilities, can use the large language model.<\/p>\n Kash Patel hindered FBI investigations, whistleblower tells top DemocratKash Patel with Pam Bondi in Washington earlier this month. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo\/EPA<\/p>\n A top Senate Democrat has alleged that the FBI director, Kash Patel\u2019s, personal travel<\/a> and decision-making have compromised important investigations, citing a whistleblower report.<\/p>\n Senator Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the Senate judiciary committee, on Tuesday wrote a letter to two government watchdogs saying Patel had \u201cseemingly engaged in what amounts to irresponsible joyriding on DoJ and FBI-operated aircraft at the expense of the American taxpayer and to the detriment of ongoing bureau operations\u201d.<\/p>\n In other news \u2026Tony Gonzales in the US Capitol in 2022. Photograph: Tom Williams\/AP<\/p>\n The congressman Tony Gonzales refused growing calls to resign from his fellow Republicans on Tuesday after the representative from Texas was accused of having an affair with a staffer who later died by suicide<\/a>.<\/p>\n A Chicago man jumped into a freezing lake to save a baby after its stroller was blown into the water, telling the Guardian: \u201cAll I did was a human act.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n Russian firms have directed $8bn of trade through British island territories since Moscow\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, a new analysis has found<\/a>.<\/p>\n A man stabbed four people to death in the street in a town west of Tacoma, Washington, on Tuesday morning after breaching a no-contact order, authorities have said<\/a>.<\/p>\n Stat of the day: Russia\u2019s military spending has \u2018doubled in real terms since 2021\u2019 as thinktank says it can fight throughout 2026Russian soldiers on patrol in the Kursk region. Photograph: AP<\/p>\n Russia will be able to keep fighting against Ukraine throughout 2026 despite emerging economic and manpower pressures, while its missile and drone threat to Europe is growing, according to a leading military thinktank. Even if these pressures cause Moscow to cut back on military spending this year, it would come after this expenditure \u201cdoubled in real terms since 2021\u201d<\/a>, said Fenella McGerty, a defence finance expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.<\/p>\n Well actually: How to start practising yoga\u2018I define yoga as a tool to come in touch with yourself,\u2019 says Rodrigo Souza, a yoga teacher. Illustration: Carmen Casado\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Yoga\u2019s health benefits \u2013 from reducing stress to balance and flexibility \u2013 are well known. But some people shy away from the practice, or do not know where to start, because they feel their bodies don\u2019t look or move a certain way. Experts say this is a narrow way of thinking about yoga. Here is how to give it a go with no new equipment or expensive classes.<\/a><\/p>\n Don\u2019t miss this: \u2018I suddenly went blind 2,000 miles from home\u2019Photographer and youth worker Gary Williamson. Photograph: Gary Calton\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Gary Williamson was 18 and backpacking around Europe when it happened: reading a book, he started to notice the words blurring<\/a>, and by the next morning he could not make out the text. He eventually managed to hitch a ride back home from Gibraltar to the UK on a lorry. Williamson talks about the excellent advice he was given upon his diagnosis \u2013 he has the genetic condition Leber hereditary optic neuropathy \u2013 and his path to becoming a youth worker and photographer.<\/p>\n Climate check: How Trump\u2019s big climate finding repeal could actually hurt big oilThe Trump administration\u2019s repeal of the endangerment finding was initially seen as a boon for big oil. Composite: EPA, AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s revoking of an important climate finding could inadvertently hurt<\/a> big oil, legal experts have said. Earlier this month, the Environmental Protection Agency repealed the \u201cendangerment finding\u201d, a 2009 determination that established that greenhouse gases threaten public health. But oil companies have used the determination as a legal defense, claiming emissions should be regulated by the EPA under the Clean Air Act, not the courts. After the repeal of the determination, that legal argument faces a major test in an forthcoming climate lawsuit.<\/p>\n Last Thing: Now everyone can come to the cottage as Heated Rivalry house listed on AirbnbBarlochan Cottage, Shane Hollander\u2019s holiday home in Heated Rivalry. Photograph: Airbnb<\/p>\n Heated Rivalry fans can relive some of the hit television show\u2019s steamiest moments by visiting Barlochan Cottage<\/a>, on the shores of Ontario\u2019s Lake Muskoka, after the house was listed on Airbnb. And it seems there was more than chemistry keeping the ice hockey rivals warm \u2013 they were able to stay toasty while stripping off owing to the cottage\u2019s underfloor heating, Alisha Bishop, a senior associate at Trevor McIvor Architect, explained.<\/p>\n Sign up<\/p>\n Sign up for the US morning briefing<\/p>\n First Thing is delivered to thousands of inboxes every weekday. If you\u2019re not already signed up, subscribe now<\/a>.<\/p>\n Get in touch<\/p>\n