US announced withdrawal of 5,000 soldiers last week after German chancellor said US was being ‘humiliated’ by Iran

Donald Trump has threatened to withdraw more US troops from Germany after stunning European leaders and some senior members of his own party by last week announcing the withdrawal of 5,000 soldiers from Germany.

The move left 30,000 US troops still in the country, according to CNN. But Trump threatened on Saturday that more cuts were coming. “We are going to cut way down, and we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000,” he told reporters on Saturday.

After correspondents’ dinner shooting, administration has rushed to capitalize in pursuit of its political goals

Less than 72 hours after a man was arrested for trying to assassinate Donald Trump at the White House, the justice department rushed to court to make an extraordinary filing.

The subject of the emergency was a lawsuit by the National Trust for Historic Preservation seeking to halt the construction of a new White House ballroom. A federal judge ruled earlier this month that construction had to stop, though an appeals court later paused that ruling.

Justices rule in landmark decision Louisiana must redraw congressional map, largely killing major civil rights law

• US politics live – latest updates

• Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email

The US supreme court has ruled that Louisiana will have to redraw its congressional map, in a landmark decision that effectively guts a major section of the Voting Rights Act.

In a 6-3 decision along partisan lines, the court rendered ineffective section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, the last remaining powerful provision of the 1965 civil rights law that prevents racial discrimination in voting. Section 2 has long been used to ensure minority voters are treated fairly in redistricting.

Subject of charges remains unclear, after earlier case over congressional testimony was dismissed

• US politics live – latest updates

• Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email

The justice department filed new criminal charges against James Comey, the former FBI director, on Tuesday, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Comey was charged over a picture he posted on Instagram last year in which sea shells were arranged to say “86 47”, CNN and the Associated Press reported. The post was taken as a threat to Donald Trump. The number 86 can be used as shorthand for getting rid of something, and Trump is the 47th president. Comey subsequently deleted the post and apologized, saying he didn’t realize the numbers were associated with violence. “It never occurred to me, but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down,” he wrote on Instagram.

Todd Blanche announces 11-count indictment over payments to informants in extremist groups including Ku Klux Klan

• Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox

The Southern Poverty Law Center, the prominent civil rights organization, has been indicted on federal fraud charges related to past payments it made to confidential informants to infiltrate extremist groups including the Ku Klux Klan, the justice department has announced.

In a statement, Bryan Fair, the SPLC’s chief executive, called the allegations “false” and said the justice department’s actions “will not shake our resolve to fight for justice and ensure the promise of the civil rights movement becomes a reality for all”.

Pugilistic presence has laid waste to civil rights decision – her take-no-prisoners approach has alarmed legal experts but earned president’s plaudits

When Donald Trump abruptly fired Pam Bondi earlier this month, he made it clear that an unmistakable priority for the justice department would be using the nation’s top law enforcement agency to seek retribution against his political rivals.

For months, Trump pressured Bondi to move ahead with prosecutions against James Comey, Letitia James, Adam Schiff and other rivals, even publicly venting his frustration with Bondi in October. The justice department eventually did secure indictments against Comey and James, but the cases later collapsed. Trump fired Bondi on 2 April, reportedly because he was angered by the department’s lack of progress in prosecuting enemies. Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, has since said Trump has the “right” to direct investigations at the justice department.

Maria Medetis Long had expressed doubts over case of John Brennan, whose agency said Russia boosted Trump in 2016

• Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox

A federal prosecutor leading the investigation into former CIA director John Brennan is no longer working on the case after expressing reservations about it, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The prosecutor, Maria Medetis Long, informed attorneys involved in the case she was no longer handling it, according to CNN, which first reported she was leaving the case. Medetis Long is a career attorney serving as the chief of the national security division in the US attorney’s office for the southern district of Florida. The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

California supreme court upholds lower court decision as Eastman says he will appeal to US supreme court

John Eastman, a lawyer who played a key role in Donald Trump’s efforts to subvert the 2020 election, officially lost his law license in California on Wednesday.

The California supreme court upheld a 2024 ruling from a state judge, who recommended Eastman be disbarred. Eastman “exhibited gross negligence by making false statements about the 2020 election without conducting any meaningful investigation or verification of the information he was relying upon”, Judge Yvette Roland wrote in 2024.