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The husband of Dolly Parton, Carl Dean, died Monday aged 82, the country music superstar said, after nearly 60 years of marriage kept out of the spotlight despite the singer’s chart-topping fame.”Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years,” Parton wrote in a post on X.The singer-songwriter and actor met Dean in 1964 outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat in Nashville, Tennessee on the day she moved to the country music capital.She was 18 and he was 21.”I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face (a rare thing for me),” said the “Jolene” singer, known for her glamour and gravity-defying hairdos, according to a post on her website.”He seemed to be genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about,” she added.The pair married two years later in May 1966 in a simple ceremony attended only by Parton’s mother, the preacher and his wife.The low-key wedding was a fitting start for the couple’s 58-year marriage, with Dean managing to stay away from the cameras.The Nashville native worked as an asphalt paver as his wife’s music career rocketed to earn her the title of the “queen of country music”.The pair enjoyed a simple private life far from the spotlight.”We like to get out in our little RV and just be simple,” Parton told People magazine in 2015.”I love to read, I love to cook, I love to be with my husband.” The couple never had children.Dean was born in 1942 to Edgar “Ed” Henry Dean and Virginia “Ginny” Bates — whom Parton affectionally referred to as Mama Dean and said she was her best friend, according to the singer’s website.Carl Dean leaves behind two siblings, Sandra and Donnie.

Taiwanese chip-making giant TSMC will invest at least $100 billion in the United States to build “cutting edge” manufacturing facilities, President Donald Trump said on Monday, announcing the latest blockbuster financial pledge by a private company since his return to office.Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s new investment will come on top of their existing commitments and will go into “building five cutting edge fabrication facilities,” Trump said during a White House event, flanked by TSMC chief executive C.C. Wei.He added that much of the funding would be invested in the US state of Arizona, where TSMC — the world’s largest chipmaker — has already invested heavily, and would create “many thousands” of high-paying jobs.TSMC has long faced demands to move more of its production away from Taiwan, amid fears that supplies of the critical technology could be disrupted in any conflict with Beijing.The company pledged during former president Joe Biden’s administration to invest more than $65 billion in three factories in Arizona, one of which began production in late 2024.Trump recently ratcheted up the pressure on TSMC and other chip manufacturers by publicly mulling the introduction of 25 percent tariffs on all semiconductor chips made outside the United States.Taiwan will review the investment “in accordance with the law” and ensure that the “most advanced manufacturing processes will remain in Taiwan,” President Lai Ching-te’s office said.Taiwan Premier Cho Jung-tai said the island looked forward to “continuing to cooperate with friendly countries for mutual benefits.”However, he said it was important that Taiwan maintain its “key position” in the global chip supply chain and “ensure that we are leading in key technologies.”Monday’s announcement brings the total amount committed by TSMC to around $165 billion, Wei said.”We are going to produce many chips to support AI progress, and to support smartphones’ progress,” he said.- ‘Silicon shield’ -The new investment will help expand the firm’s US footprint to include “three new fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities and a major R&D (research and development) team center,” while supporting 40,000 construction jobs over the next four years, TSMC said in a statement.The concentration of chip manufacturing in Taiwan has been described as a “silicon shield” against a possible invasion or blockade by China, which claims the island as part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control.There are concerns Taiwan could lose that protection if its companies build too many factories overseas.”Taking away Taiwan’s technology sector will reduce the power of Taiwan’s ‘silicon shield’,” said James Yifan Chen, assistant professor in the Department of Diplomacy and International Relations at Tamkang University in Taiwan.”Taiwan without semiconductor and tech industries will be like Ukraine without nuclear weapons.”- Tariff threats -Trump has called on companies to create more manufacturing jobs in the United States since regaining the White House, while threatening to impose steep levies on those who do not comply.His administration has already imposed a 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods and imposed a 25 percent tariff on Canada and Mexico from Tuesday, alongside an additional levy of 10 percent on goods from China.Trump said on Monday there was “no room left for Mexico or for Canada” to avoid the tariffs, which came into effect early on Tuesday.Trump has invited executives from some of the world’s largest companies, including OpenAI and Oracle, to the White House since his January 20 inauguration to tout investments worth hundreds of billions of dollars in US manufacturing.The amount announced since inauguration day in January totals more than $1 trillion, including a commitment from Apple to invest $500 billion over the next four years.These gargantuan sums are sure to please Trump’s supporters. His critics point to some similarly ambitious targets pledged during his first term in office that failed to materialize.

Donald Trump will promise a “renewal of the American dream” on Tuesday in his first address to Congress since returning to office, laying out a vision of extended presidential power and a reshaped world order.The Republican president’s speech comes after a whirlwind first six weeks in office, in which the United States has been roiled by a radical bid led by billionaire Trump advisor Elon Musk to overhaul the federal government by closing down agencies and firing many workers.The 78-year-old Trump has also caused turmoil on the global stage, pausing military aid for Ukraine as he pivots toward Russia, vowing to “own” Gaza and unleashing tariffs against US allies.The White House said the theme of the speech at 9:00 pm (0200 GMT Wednesday) would be “the renewal of the American dream,” in social media posts linking to a story on Fox News, the administration’s preferred outlet.Fox said Trump would cover four areas: his second term’s achievements so far at home and abroad, the economy, a push for Congress to pass border funding and Trump’s plans for “peace around the globe.””President Trump is the greatest orator we’ve ever had in the Oval Office. Every time he’s done one of these addresses, Americans have been overwhelmingly blown away,” his Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller told reporters on Monday.”It’s an opportunity for President Trump, as only he can, to lay out the last month of record-setting, record-breaking unprecedented achievements and accomplishments that have made this the most successful opening to any presidency.” Trump himself promised in a post on his Truth Social platform on Monday that the address to Congress “WILL BE BIG” and vowed that “I WILL TELL IT LIKE IT IS!”In a sign of Musk’s influence in Trump’s administration, the world’s richest person will reportedly attend the joint session of the House and Senate.- Economic pressure -Trump’s address at the US Capitol comes just over four years after his supporters stormed the building following his 2020 election defeat.Trump is likely to strike a triumphant tone as he returns to a Republican-controlled Congress, determined to exert more executive power than any president in decades.Trump, who notoriously painted a picture of “American carnage” when he was inaugurated for his first term, is expected to tout the record blitz of executive orders he has signed since his return to the White House.Together with Musk, Trump has shown his intent to push through his “Make America Great Again” agenda — even if it means testing the constitutional limits of his authority or straining ties with allies.Trump has moved to unilaterally dismantle federal agencies, fired thousands of government workers, ended diversity programs and begun holding undocumented migrants at the US military base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba as part of his crackdown on foreigners without papers.On the world stage, Trump will discuss his efforts to redefine US foreign policy.He said on Monday that he would “let you know” during the speech about progress towards resolving the Ukraine conflict, after freezing military aid to Kyiv and stunning the world by starting talks with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.His speech will come just four days after an extraordinary clash in the Oval Office with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, which left US support for Kyiv hanging in the balance.Trump’s presidential offensive has left the Democrats, already stunned by their 2024 election defeat, flailing for ways to counter him and his hogging of the news cycle.But with his poll numbers softening, Trump will also know he faces pressure to deal with stubborn issues facing Americans — most importantly inflation.Trump’s tariffs threaten to weigh on the economy, with US stocks closing sharply lower on Monday after he confirmed the levies would come into effect one minute into Tuesday against major trading partners Mexico and Canada.

US President Donald Trump suspended military aid to Ukraine on Monday, a White House official said, sharply escalating pressure on Kyiv to agree to peace negotiations with Russia.The move comes just days after a stunning public clash between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Trump, who is seeking a rapid end to the war. Trump earlier on Monday had declined to rule out a pause when quizzed by reporters, but any disruption in the flow of US arms to the front line would rapidly weaken Ukraine’s chance of beating back Russia’s invasion.”The President has been clear that he is focused on peace. We need our partners to be committed to that goal as well,” a White House official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.”We are pausing and reviewing our aid to ensure that it is contributing to a solution,” the official added. Congressional Democrats immediately condemned the pause as dangerous and illegal. “My Republican colleagues who have called Putin a war criminal and promised their continued support to Ukraine must join me in demanding President Trump immediately lift this disastrous and unlawful freeze,” said Gregory Meeks, top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.Trump also warned he would “not put up” much longer with Zelensky’s defiance, and said Ukraine’s leader should be “more appreciative” of US support.Speaking at the White House, Trump said Zelensky “won’t be around very long” without a ceasefire deal with Moscow.The pause has gone into effect immediately and impacts hundreds of millions of dollars of weaponry in the process of being sent to Ukraine, The New York Times reported.Zelensky for his part said Monday he was seeking for the war to end “as soon as possible.”The comment came after Zelensky accused Russia — which invaded Ukraine in 2014 and greatly expanded the conflict in 2022 — of not being serious about peace.He insisted tough security guarantees were the only way to end the war.But Trump’s stance has upended US support for Ukraine, and Washington’s allies more broadly, and stoked concern about Washington pivoting to Russia.- European support -After weekend crisis talks in London, Britain and France are investigating how to propose a one-month Ukraine-Russia truce “in the air, at sea and on energy infrastructure” — potentially backstopped by troops on the ground.Zelensky said discussions were still focusing on the “first steps,” adding: “An agreement on ending the war is very, very far away” — a comment that angered Trump.Zelensky added in a video statement that “real, honest peace” would only come with security guarantees for Ukraine, which agreed to denuclearize in 1994 only in exchange for protection provided by the United States and Britain.”It was the lack of security guarantees for Ukraine 11 years ago that allowed Russia to start with the occupation of Crimea and the war in Donbas, then the lack of security guarantees allowed Russia to launch a full-scale invasion,” Zelensky said.Russia dismissed the comments, accusing him of not wanting peace — echoing US criticism after he was shouted down Friday in the Oval Office.On the ground, Ukrainian officials reported fatalities from a Russian missile strike on a military training facility some 130 kilometers (80 miles) from the front line.A respected military blogger said between 30 and 40 soldiers were killed and 90 more wounded in the attack near Dnipro on Saturday.- ‘Deliberate’ escalation? -Trump has previously called Zelensky, president since 2019, a “dictator” for not holding elections, even though martial law precludes any vote because of the war. Zelensky dismissed calls for him to resign, repeating his pledge to do so only if Ukraine were given NATO membership, which Russia — and now the United States under Trump — opposes.In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov blamed Zelensky for Friday’s blow-up with Trump and Vice President JD Vance, saying he “demonstrated a complete lack of diplomatic abilities.””He doesn’t want peace,” Peskov told reporters.On Monday Vance told broadcaster Fox News he was confident Zelensky would “eventually” agree to peace talks with Moscow.”I think Zelensky wasn’t yet there, and I think, frankly, now still isn’t there,” Vance said. “But I think he’ll get there eventually. He has to.”But Germany’s likely next chancellor, Friedrich Merz, said the astonishing White House clash was a “deliberate escalation” by Trump.US and Russian officials have held talks on ending the war, enraging Kyiv and Europe for being sidelined, and prompting fears that any deal could threaten Ukraine’s future.

Taiwanese chip-making giant TSMC will invest at least $100 billion in the United States to build “cutting edge” manufacturing facilities, President Donald Trump said Monday, announcing the latest blockbuster financial pledge by a private company since his return to office.Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s new investment will come on top of their existing commitments, and will go into “building five cutting edge fabrication facilities,” Trump said during a White House event, flanked by TSMC chief executive C.C. WeiHe added that much of the funding would be invested in the US state of Arizona, where TSMC — the world’s largest chipmaker — has already invested heavily, and would create “many thousands” of high-paying jobs.TSMC has long faced demands to move more of its production away from Taiwan, amid fears that supplies of the critical technology could be disrupted in any conflict with Beijing.The company, during former president Joe Biden’s administration, pledged to invest more than $65 billion in three factories in Arizona, one of which began production in late 2024.Trump recently ratcheted up the pressure on TSMC and other chip manufacturers by publicly mulling the introduction of 25 percent tariffs on all semiconductor chips made outside the United States.Taiwan said it will review the investment “in accordance with the law”.The review will take into account “the company’s development while ensuring the overall competitiveness of the semiconductor industry and the country,” cabinet spokeswoman Michelle Lee said.  Taiwan Premier Cho Jung-tai said the island looked forward to “continuing to cooperate with friendly countries for mutual benefits”.But he said it was important that Taiwan maintain its “key position” in the global chip supply chain and “ensure that we are leading in key technologies”.Taiwan’s Department of Investment Review spokesman Su Chi-yen told AFP the government could potentially veto the investment, but that “most past rejections were due to incomplete documentation.”Monday’s announcement brings the total amount committed by TSMC to around $165 billion, C.C. Wei said Monday.”We are going to produce many chips to support AI progress, and to support smartphones’ progress,” he added.The new investment will help expand the firm’s US footprint to include “three new fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities and a major R&D (research and development) team center,” while supporting 40,000 construction jobs over the next four years, TSMC said in a statement.The concentration of chip manufacturing in Taiwan has been described as a “silicon shield” against a possible invasion or blockade by China, which claims the island as part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control.There are concerns Taiwan could lose that protection if its companies build too many factories overseas.”Taking away Taiwan’s technology sector will reduce the power of Taiwan’s ‘silicon shield’,” James Yifan Chen, assistant professor in the Department of Diplomacy and International Relations at Tamkang University in Taiwan.”Taiwan without semiconductor and tech industries will be like Ukraine without nuclear weapons.”- Tariff threats -Since regaining the White House, Trump has called on companies to create more manufacturing jobs in the United States, while threatening to impose steep levies on those who do not comply.His administration has already imposed a 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods, and is scheduled to impose a 25 percent tariff Canada and Mexico from Tuesday, alongside an additional levy of 10 percent on goods from China.On Monday, Trump said there was “no room left for Mexico or for Canada” to avoid the tariffs, adding: “They’re all set, they go into effect tomorrow.”Trump has invited executives from some of the world’s largest companies — including OpenAI and Oracle — to the White House since his January 20 inauguration to tout investments worth hundreds of billions of dollars in US manufacturing.The amount announced since inauguration day now totals more than $1 trillion, including a commitment from Apple to invest $500 billion over the next four years.These gargantuan sums are sure to please Trump’s supporters. His critics point to some similarly ambitious targets pledged during his first term in office which failed to materialize.

The US Supreme Court is to hear arguments on Tuesday in a $10 billion lawsuit filed by Mexico accusing American gun manufacturers of fueling drug trafficking and violence.Smith & Wesson and US gun distributor Interstate Arms are seeking a dismissal of the Mexican government’s suit, which has been winding its way through US courts since 2021.A federal judge tossed out the case in 2022 saying Mexico’s claims failed to overcome the extensive protections offered to US firearms manufacturers by the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA).Passed by Congress in 2005, the PLCAA shields gunmakers from liability for criminals misusing their products.An appeals court revived the case, citing an exception to the law, and Smith & Wesson and Interstate Arms have sought relief from the Supreme Court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority and an expansive view of gun rights.In its suit, Mexico, which is under mounting pressure from US President Donald Trump to curb drug trafficking, accuses Smith & Wesson and other US gun makers of engaging in a “negligent and illicit” trade that fuels drug cartel violence.”Mexico simply seeks to halt the unlawful flow of guns into Mexico,” lawyers for the country’s government said in a brief in the suit, which seeks $10 billion in damages.The case is “not a platform for a debate about Americans’ right to bear arms,” they said in a reference to the Second Amendment to the US Constitution, which protects the rights of Americans to gun ownership.Lawyers for Smith & Wesson and Interstate Arms said the companies cannot be held accountable for the misuse of their products and a ruling in Mexico’s favor would “eviscerate” the PLCAA.”When a company engages in routine business practices to supply lawful products to market, it is not responsible for downstream crimes involving those products,” they said. “Responsibility for any criminal acts by those who misuse the product rests with those criminal actors themselves.”The Mexican government maintains that 70-90 percent of the weapons recovered at crime scenes in Mexico have been trafficked from the United States and between 200,000 and 750,000 US-made weapons are smuggled across the border every year.Mexico tightly controls firearms sales, making them practically impossible to obtain legally.Even so, drug-related violence has seen around 480,000 people killed in Mexico since the government deployed the army to combat trafficking in 2006, according to official figures.- ‘Slander’ -Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum warned US gunmakers last month they could face fresh legal action and be deemed accomplices if Washington followed through on a threat to designate Mexican cartels as terrorist groups.On February 20, the State Department went ahead and designated Mexico’s two main drug trafficking organizations, the Jalisco New Generation and Sinaloa cartels, and others as foreign terrorist organizations.Sheinbaum also angrily rejected an accusation by the United States that her government has an alliance with drug cartels.”We categorically reject the slander made by the White House against the Mexican government about alliances with criminal organizations,” the president wrote on X.”If there is such an alliance anywhere, it is in the US gun shops that sell high-powered weapons to these criminal groups,” she added.Tensions between the neighbors soared when Trump, shortly after taking office, announced duties of 25 percent on Mexican imports, citing illegal immigration and the flow of deadly fentanyl.Sheinbaum vowed retaliatory tariffs before Trump agreed to a one-month pause — which expires on Tuesday — in return for Mexico deploying 10,000 more troops to the border.Last week, Mexico extradited some of its most notorious imprisoned drug lords to the United States, including a cartel kingpin wanted for decades over the murder of a US undercover agent.

The parishioners of St Mary’s Ukrainian church in Allentown, Pennsylvania were still in shock at Sunday mass following US President Donald Trump’s stunning “slap” of Ukraine’s president.”I felt that Ukraine was slapped in the face. And I felt that slap. I felt that slap as a Ukrainian American,” said St. Mary’s priest, Father Richard Jendras.Jendras learned of the unprecedented Oval Office showdown between visiting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Trump as he was leaving his optician.”When I watched the video, I was absolutely horrified,” he said. “I felt the same way that I had felt three years ago when the invasion happened in Ukraine.”Jendras delivered mass to a congregation of around 40, switching between English and Ukrainian as he delivered a service emphasizing forgiveness ahead of Lent.Trump’s clash with Zelensky has shaken the tightly-knit Ukrainian community in and around Allentown, where many Ukrainians emigrated to work in the steel industry and in textiles.In the unprecedented public spat Friday, Trump raised his voice repeatedly as he said his Ukrainian counterpart should be more grateful for US aid in the war against the Russian invasion and pressed him to “make a deal” to end the war with Russia.US Vice President JD Vance also berated Zelensky, calling him “disrespectful.” Zelensky triggered Trump and Vance’s ire by questioning whether Russia could be trusted to uphold a truce. Trump has said he trusts his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to “keep his word.”The meltdown resulted in Zelensky leaving the White House without signing a pact on sharing Ukrainian mineral rights as  scheduled.”People have been turning up at my home, on my doorstep,” said Jendras wearing black vestments and a Ukraine pin.”The community is coming out and expressing (itself). I’ve gotten numerous emails, numerous phone calls here at the church — people that want to do something now to somehow or other make up for the actions of President Trump and Vice President JD Vance.”- Oval Office ‘circus’ -The church is ringed by posters counting the “years of Russia’s devastation in Ukraine” as well as commemorating the “fallen defenders” of the conflict.The father of one of the church’s servers joined up to fight. News that he had been killed in Bakhmut reached the US community a few months later, Jendras said.”Let that be the beginning of our prayer for fasting that hopefully will bring justice and peace, not just to Ukraine, but to each and every one of us in the world,” Jendras said in his sermon below the church’s dome, intricately painted with Orthodox saints.Worshipper Maria Norton, 74, said “I’m spiritually uplifted that so many people are appalled” by what happened at the White House.”(Zelensky) was bullied and set up… they were going to bully him into submission,” said Norton, who wore a Ukrainian anchor pendant.”He’s the ultimate diplomat, and they caused him to really raise his voice — but I’m proud of President Zelensky for standing up for our people and not being bullied by someone like President Trump.””They made this a circus in the Oval Office. Everybody I’ve talked to, even Republican Ukrainians, are embarrassed,” said Norton, who last visited Ukraine ahead of its independence, travelling to her ancestral village of Boberka near the Polish border.The community will soon meet with the region’s Congressman, Ryan Mackenzie, to discuss the situation, Jendras said. Mackenzie has a delicate reelection battle in 2026 in which every vote will matter.His fellow Pennsylvania Republican, former Representative Charlie Dent, has been vocal on social media calling the episode “a disgraceful display” “Total betrayal of Ukraine and contemptible shakedown of a man and country fighting for survival,” he wrote on X.The community was still in shock, Jendras said, and would continue the weekly prayer meetings for Ukraine that started two weeks before Russia’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor in February 2022, rotating between several Ukrainian churches in the region.”This can’t continue. The well-being of Ukraine has ramifications (for) Europe, and that has ramifications that will be felt here in America,” said Jendras. “It absolutely will be felt in America.”

US President Donald Trump has said his looming tariffs on Canadian goods are necessary to force action on the migrants and drugs entering the United States through its northern border. He has also described billions of dollars in daily cross-border trade as a US subsidy and claimed Canada would not be “viable as a country” without it. According to Trump, Canada’s economic dependence on the United States is one of the reasons it should become the 51st US state. AFP fact-checked some of the president’s claims about Canada, which include misrepresentations about bilateral economic relations and the situation at the border. – US supply of Canadian imports – Trump has claimed that Canada gets 95 percent of its “product” from the United States. For Canada’s imported goods, that figure is inaccurate, according to Statistics Canada.In 2024, 62.2 percent of Canada’s total imports came from the United States, the federal agency said. But, as University of Toronto economist Joseph Steinberg noted, “a lot of what Canadian consumers buy is produced domestically,” so Trump’s 95 percent claim can only be credibly scrutinized if it is assumed he was talking about imports. “If we… focus on imports, does the US account for 95 percent? Not quite, although it is a really high number,” Steinberg said. Statistics Canada also reported 75.9 percent of the country’s exports went to the United States last year. – US trade deficit – During the question-and-answer portion of his January World Economic Forum appearance, Trump claimed the United States had a $200 billion or $250 billion trade deficit with Canada.  “That’s an inflated number,” Steinberg said. The United States Trade Representative and the US Census Bureau put the trade deficit with Canada at $63.3 billion at the end of 2024, while Statistics Canada reported its surplus with the United States as Can$102.3 billion ($70.3 billion). But trade deficits are not subsidies and the data does not affirm that the United States is propping up Canada’s economy, Steinberg said.  “International trade is a mutually beneficial transaction,” he said. “The United States pays Canada for products, it wouldn’t pay Canada for those products if it didn’t feel that it was worth it in this case.”US oil purchases from Canada are a main driver of the trade deficit, he added. – American banks in Canada – “American banks are not allowed to do business in Canada,” Trump said in a social media post last month. That claim is also false.  Foreign banks, including American financial institutions, are regulated by Canada’s federal Bank Act. “There are 16 US-based bank subsidiaries and branches with around Can$113 billion in assets currently operating in Canada,” the Canadian Bankers Association said in a February 3 statement on X. These include JP Morgan Chase, CitiBank and Bank of America, which have offices in most major Canadian cities. – Border security – The Trump administration has said improving border security is a central issue in its relations with Canada. Trump has claimed that undocumented migrants and the drug fentanyl are flowing across the border in large numbers. Kelly Sundberg, a criminologist at Mount Royal University in Calgary, said there is no evidence to back up Trump’s claims on fentanyl, as data shows less than one percent of the killer opioid that enters the United States came from Canada.  According to the United States Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agency, out of over 21,800 pounds (9,900 kilograms) of fentanyl intercepted by agents during the 2024 fiscal year, 43 pounds was seized near the northern border with Canada. CBP data also reported US border patrol agents apprehended 23,721 people illegally crossing the Canadian border in fiscal year 2024.Nationally last year, CBP agents came into contact with more than 1.5 million undocumented migrants.  “Canada is under greater threat from the United States than the United States is from Canada for most things — guns, drugs (and) illegal immigrants,” Sundberg said. He said more relaxed drug laws in Canada could project an inflated sense of illicit substances entering the United States.  

Residents of the Canadian border city of Windsor had held out hope US President Donald Trump’s threats of tariffs on imports from Canada would prove hollow, but that faith was dashed Monday, sparking fear for their futures. Trump had unveiled — and then paused — blanket tariffs of up to 25 percent on imports from major trading partners Canada and Mexico in February, accusing the US neighbors of failing to stop illegal immigration and drug trafficking. Canadian leaders had been pushing for a deal ahead of the expiration of the halt this week, but Trump said there was “no room left” on Monday for both countries to avoid fresh levies.The pronouncement sent shockwaves through Windsor, Ontario, home to 250,000 people and the thriving heart of the Canadian auto industry — located just across the border from US industry powerhouse Detroit, Michigan. Residents said they felt betrayed by Canada’s neighbor and now fear the closures of factories and subcontractors.”The mood is overall like we’re pretty scared,” said Joel Soleski, 26, who works for carmaker Stellantis.”The impact would be a layoff until further notice,” he told AFP. “I just bought my first house… I might have to look for work elsewhere.”The manufacturer is one of the most exposed to the looming tariffs, according to ratings agency Moody’s: 40 percent of Stellantis cars sold in the United States — under the Ram, Fiat, Dodge, or Chrysler brands — are made in Canada and Mexico. Automotive parts can cross between the United States and Canada up to six times before a vehicle is assembled in Windsor, where the border can be almost forgotten and the economy is deeply integrated with Detroit’s.Anxiety and anger were palpable among Stellantis workers clocking off on Monday afternoon.  Trump’s decision is “not even logical, it makes absolutely no sense,” said John D’Agnolo, president of a union in Windsor representing 2,000 workers at Ford.”I can’t imagine how that would work,” he added, predicting layoffs could be seen in a few weeks after the tariffs go into effect, and that vehicles would become more expensive in the long term.More than two million jobs are at stake in Canada, with 500,000 alone in Ontario, the country’s most populous province.Ford employee Christina Grossi was in shock. “They’re our jobs. We’ve been doing this for 100 years,” she said.”It’s terrifying,” added the woman in her fifties, feeling betrayed by a country she has always considered a strong ally, and where her son is studying. On Monday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford pledged to fight back.  “They want to hit us hard. We will hit them back twice as hard,” he said.

Major League Soccer’s newest club, San Diego FC, say they will take action to stop homophobic chanting after a taunt used in Mexican football blighted their first ever home game.San Diego drew 0-0 at home to St Louis City FC at their Snapdragon Stadium on Saturday but the one-word chant was heard several times throughout the match.Mexico’s national team has been fined several times by FIFA over the same chant which has also been an issue in Mexican club games.The club posted messages during the game warning supporters that the chants were “offensive” and adding that “discrimination has no place in our sport and in our stadiums and will not be tolerated.”On Monday the club issued a statement saying they would be taking action to deal with the problem.”What took place during our first-ever home match does not reflect who we are as a club or the values we stand for. The sport of football brings people together and in San Diego that inclusive spirit thrives,” the club said.”The use of homophobic language in our stadium is completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated. San Diego FC is built on respect and the belief that soccer is for everyone. “We are committed to fostering an environment where all fans, players, and staff feel safe and welcome. We will take immediate steps to address this behaviour and will communicate a detailed plan prior to the next home match,” they concluded.Coach Mikey Varas said that the chants had not come from the organized supporters groups but fans elsewhere in the ground.”This came from more the general population in the seats, and it wasn’t everybody,” Varas told reporters after the game.”I understand that, but it was enough people, and I just want to make very clear that it has no place here. If they’re going to continue to come to the game and make that chant, it’s better that they don’t come here,” he said.