BRICS nations resist 'anti-American' label after Trump tariff threat

BRICS nations resist 'anti-American' label after Trump tariff threat

By Manuela Andreoni and Lisandra Paraguassu RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) -Developing nations participating in the BRICS summit on Monday brushed away an accusation from U.S. President Donald Trump that the bloc is "anti-American," as he threatened them with additional 10% tariffs. Trump's threat on Sunday night came as the U.S. government prepared to finalize dozens of trade deals with a range of countries before his July 9 deadline for the imposition of significant "retaliatory tariffs." "Tariffs should not be used as a tool for coercion and pressuring," Mao Ning, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said in Beijing. The BRICS advocates for "win-win cooperation," she added, and "does not target any country." South Africa, which was slapped with 30% tariffs that were later suspended pending trade talks, reaffirmed that it is "not anti-American," trade ministry spokesman Kaamil Alli said, adding that talks with the U.S. government "remain constructive and fruitful." A Kremlin spokesman said Russia's cooperation with the BRICS was based on a "common world view" and "will never be directed against third countries." India and Brazil, which is hosting the BRICS gathering, did not immediately provide an official response to Trump. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told reporters that he would only comment after wrapping up the summit. His opening remarks to BRICS leaders gathered in Rio de Janeiro on Monday focused on the environmental and public health issues on the summit's official agenda. A Brazilian diplomat who was not authorized to comment officially said Trump's threat underscored the importance of the BRICS group to give developing nations a way to argue for fair and effective global ground rules on topics such as trade. Many BRICS members and many of the group's partner nations are highly dependent on trade with the United States. New member Indonesia's senior economic minister, Airlangga Hartarto, who is in Brazil for the BRICS summit, is scheduled to go to the U.S. on Monday to oversee tariff talks, an official told Reuters. Malaysia, which was attending as a partner country and was slapped with 24% tariffs that were later suspended, said that it maintains independent economic policies and is not focused on ideological alignment. MULTILATERAL DIPLOMACY With forums such as the G7 and G20 groups of major economies hamstrung by divisions and Trump's disruptive "America First" approach, the BRICS group has presented itself as a haven for multilateral diplomacy amid violent conflicts and trade wars. In a joint statement released on Sunday afternoon, leaders at the summit condemned the recent bombing of member nation Iran and warned that the rise in tariffs threatened global trade, continuing its veiled criticism of Trump's tariff policies. Hours later, Trump warned he would punish countries seeking to join the group. The original BRICS group gathered leaders from Brazil, Russia, India and China at its first summit in 2009. The bloc later added South Africa and last year included Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates as members. Saudi Arabia has held off formally accepting an invitation to full membership, but is participating as a partner country. More than 30 nations have expressed interest in participating in the BRICS, either as full members or partners. (Reporting by Manuela Andreoni and Lisandra ParaguassuEditing by Brad Haynes and Hugh Lawson)

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July 07, 2025

BRICS nations resist 'anti-American' label after Trump tariff threat

BRICS nations resist 'anti-American' label after Trump tariff threat By Manuela Andreoni and Lisandra Paraguassu RIO DE JANEIRO (Reu...

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Beshear: Democrats will ‘have strong candidates’ in rural states

Beshear: Democrats will 'have strong candidates' in rural states

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) said Sunday that Democrats "will have strong candidates" in governor's races in rural states led by Republicans. "Your name frequently comes up as a contender for the 2028 Democratic primary for president. You said, 'I'll think about it after next year.' What will make you decide that that's going to be a yes, you'll run for president?" CNN's Dana Bash asked Beshear on "State of the Union." "So, my primary obligation and what I'm putting all my energy towards is to be the best governor of Kentucky that I can be," the Bluegrass State governor responded. "Next year, I'll also be the head of the Democratic Governors Association. And I think, especially in these rural states where Republican governors have not spoken up whatsoever to stop this devastating bill, we're going to have strong candidates," he added, talking about President Trump's "big, beautiful bill." "We're going to win a lot of elections. And, hopefully, that paragraph about who's speculated in '28 gets bigger because we've brought in more leaders," he continued. Beshear is notable among Democratic governors for holding his state's top job in deep-red Kentucky. He was also considered a possible running mate for Vice President Harris after former President Bidendropped out of the2024 presidential race. The Kentucky governor also slammed the Trump megabill in a post on the social platform X on Thursday, the day it passed the House. "The passage of the 'big, ugly bill' marks a sad day for our country and commonwealth. This bill risks 200,000 Kentuckians' lives, the jobs of 20,000 health-care workers, 35 rural hospitals and our economy," Beshearsaid in his post. "Kentucky deserves better. I'm going to keep fighting for our people." Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.

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July 07, 2025

Beshear: Democrats will ‘have strong candidates’ in rural states

Beshear: Democrats will 'have strong candidates' in rural states Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) said Sunday that Democrats "wil...

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ActBlue brings in nearly $400 million more for Democrats amid Trump’s pressure on the fundraising platform

ActBlue brings in nearly $400 million more for Democrats amid Trump's pressure on the fundraising platform

President Donald Trump'sdemand for an investigationinto ActBlue worried some Democrats who argue his order was not about allegations of campaign finance violations, but an attempt to stifle liberal campaigns. So far, ActBlue remains a Democratic juggernaut. The platform brought in more than $393 million during the second quarter of this year, nearly on par with the $400 million it processed in the first quarter, according to figures shared first with CNN. The April-to-June haul marks a roughly 36% jump from its second-quarter receipts of $289 million in 2021, at the start of Democrat Joe Biden's term. ActBlue said 400,000 more unique donors are giving through the platform today than four years ago. The new figures offer the first snapshot of ActBlue's fundraising since Trump's order and come amid escalating attacks on the platform from Republicans who control the White House and Congress. The platform remains integral to Democratic campaigns trying to capitalize on progressive anger at Trump's second-term agenda, even as some Democrats adopt ActBlue alternatives. Trumpissued a directivein late April that the Justice Department investigate the platform — one of a series of actions that the president has taken since returning to the White House that target his political rivals or others he views as acting counter to his agenda. "Even amid the coordinated and rigged effort from the GOP to attack ActBlue and Democratic infrastructure, small-dollar donors aren't backing down and it's adding up," ActBlue CEO Regina Wallace-Jones said in a statement to CNN. She said the second-quarter results make clear that "grassroots supporters are leaning in, giving in record numbers, and our platform is powering that momentum." "ActBlue continues to be the trusted home for Democratic donors who are ready to meet this moment — and win," she added. ActBlue has collected more than $17 billion since its founding in 2004, and millions of users have saved their contact and payment information with the group, allowing contributors to easily make one-click donations. In the 2024 cycle alone, ActBlue raised more than $3.8 billion — more than double the roughly $1.7 billion collected by WinRed, the platform Republicans created in 2019 to compete with Democrats for small-dollar donations. Eric Wilson, a Republican digital strategist who runs the Center for Campaign Innovation, said his party has struggled to match Democrats' online fundraising prowess. He argues the problem has grown starker as Democrats do better with college-educated and higher-income voters while Republicans make inroads with the working class. "As the Democratic base becomes wealthier, that's where you are going to see people with the extra money to spend" on donations, he said, "whereas the Republican coalition is more working class under President Trump." Part of ActBlue's staying power, he added, stems from its long track record with contributors. "Donors have their payment information saved. It's convenient," he said. But the flurry of activity targeting ActBlue has underscored the need for alternatives, some party strategists say. Betsy Hoover, an alum of former President Barack Obama's campaigns and co-founder of the Democratic tech accelerator Higher Ground Labs, said ActBlue has been a monopoly "in a good way" for the party. "There is a lot of efficiency achieved by all of us going through one platform." But, she added, "as much as we don't like what the Trump administration is doing, it's foolish to be dependent on a singular platform with no alternative." Higher Ground Labs investments in the Democratic fundraising landscape include Oath, which focuses on connecting donors to campaigns where they can have the most impact on electoral outcomes, and GoodChange, launched in 2023 by two veteran political fundraisers. GoodChange has signed up about 300 clients, ranging from campaigns to civic nonprofits, since its inception, according to its co-founder Becky Pittman. In recent months, GoodChange has signed deals with seven state parties. Cheryl Biller, the North Dakota Democratic Party's executive director, said she decided to add GoodChange as a way to process contributions late last year because she was drawn to some of its innovations. GoodChange offers a feature that allows donors to direct extra change from their everyday purchases to the party's coffers. But having another tool to process contributions grew all the more important once Trump signedthe memorandumin April ordering the ActBlue investigation, she said. "I am pleased that we were ahead of the curve," Biller said. If ActBlue were to become endangered, "for us to shift completely to GoodChange wouldn't be hard," she added. Oath, meanwhile, focuses on helping donors maximize the impact of the spending by guiding them to competitive contests and to candidates aligned with the contributors' top policy concerns. But CEO and co-founder Brian Derrick said his team also has notified donors that "if ActBlue, for any amount of time, is unable to process donations, we will step into the breach." "To be clear, we do not want that to happen. It's a deeply partisan and political attack," he said of the Republican-led investigations. "But we also recognize the potential ramifications of it happening nonetheless." The investigation on Capitol Hill has escalated in recent weeks with the chairmen of three House committees at the center of the probeissuing subpoenasthat order a current ActBlue employee and a former executive with the platform to appear for depositions later this month. The lawmakers are examining allegations that ActBlue has allowed illegal donations made in the name of another person, known as straw donations, as well as contributions from foreign sources. ActBlue leaders, who initially cooperated with the congressional probe, have pushed back recently,arguing that lawmakers may be improperly using their powersto support the Justice Department probe ordered by Trump. Additionally, they argue that the probe amounts to a partisan attack, given that the GOP-aligned WinRed platform appears to have escaped similar scrutiny, A CNN investigation last year found that WinRed had nearly seven times more complaints filed with the Federal Trade Commission than ActBlue. To date, the Justice Department has not announced any actions against ActBlue. Trump'sdirective gaveAttorney General Pam Bondi 180 days — or until late October — to report the results of the investigation to the White House. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account atCNN.com

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July 07, 2025

ActBlue brings in nearly $400 million more for Democrats amid Trump’s pressure on the fundraising platform

ActBlue brings in nearly $400 million more for Democrats amid Trump's pressure on the fundraising platform President Donald Trump'sd...

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'Attack on rural America': Kentucky governor hits Medicaid cuts in Trump's megabill

'Attack on rural America': Kentucky governor hits Medicaid cuts in Trump's megabill

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshearargued the Medicaid cuts in President Donald Trump's sweeping tax policy bill will have a "devastating" impact on rural communities. "It's the single worst piece of legislation I've seen in my lifetime, and it is a congressional Republican and presidential attack on rural America," the Democrat told CNN's Dana Bash in a July 6 interview on "State of the Union." He said around 200,000 people in Kentucky arecould lose their healthcareunder the bill, which implements new work requirements for Medicaid and a raft of other restrictions that healthcare experts argue willtrigger hospital closuresin rural areas. Lawmakers included a $50 billion fund in the legislation to prop up these hospitals, but experts say itwon't be enoughto make up for the $155 billion expected decline in federal Medicaid spending in rural areas. Beshear, who is considered a potential presidential candidate for the party in 2028, said up to 35 rural hospitals in Kentucky could be at risk of closing as a result of the bill. "What that means is our economy takes a huge hit," he said. "You lose 200 jobs from doctors and nurses and orderlies and all of a sudden the coffee shop does worse, the bank doesn't have as many folks coming in. This is going to hit rural America right in the face." Still, Republicans have argued that the biggest expected cut to Medicaid – the implementation of work requirements for able-bodied adults – is popular among voters, and other changes such as more frequent eligibility checks are common sense options. Democrats "unfortunately seem to think that poor people are stupid. I don't think poor people are stupid. I think they have agency, and I think to have them register twice a year for these benefits is not a burden," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also said on CNN on July 6. "People who want to infantilize the poor and people who need these Medicaid benefits are alarmist." Republicans in Congress passed themassive tax-cut and spending packageon July 3. Trumpsigned it into lawon July 4. It was thekey goalfor Trump and Republican leadership in Congress, whichcaptured a trifecta during the 2024 electionsand has used that political muscle to force what they've dubbed their"One Big, Beautiful Bill"through both chambers at a rapid-fire pace. The passage came despite deep reservations within their own party and unanimous opposition from Democrats who see it as a ticket towinning back congressional majoritiesin 2026. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Beshear calls Trump's Medicaid cuts an 'attack on rural America'

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July 07, 2025

'Attack on rural America': Kentucky governor hits Medicaid cuts in Trump's megabill

'Attack on rural America': Kentucky governor hits Medicaid cuts in Trump's megabill Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshearargued the Medicai...

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Scott on accusations that Trump is ‘too easy’ on Putin: ‘Hogwash’

Scott on accusations that Trump is 'too easy' on Putin: 'Hogwash'

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) rejected concerns that President Trump is going "too easy" on Russian President Vladimir Putin, as the White House works to broker a ceasefire between the Kremlin and Ukraine. In an interview on "Fox News Sunday," anchor Shannon Bream asked the senator, who sits on the Foreign Relations Committee, about criticism from a French news outlet over the Pentagon'spause on some deliveriesof air defense missiles and munitions to Ukraine. Bream quoted the outlet, which reported, "The White House not only halted a planned shipment of arms to Kyiv, it deliberately bypassed existing sanctions to offer economic relief to Russia's nuclear giant Rosatom." Bream added: "What do you make of this accusation that President Trump has made things too easy on President Putin? Can he, should he, make things tougher?" "Well, Shannon, the only word I can think of is hogwash," Scott replied, noting that Trump's predecessors — former Presidents Obama and Biden — took actions that "set President Trump up in a poor posture." "President Trump has done what he has always done, which is to focus on solutions and looking for ways to end the conflict," Scott continued. "We just heard him say Putin is killing thousands of people unnecessary." "That's why he's been in constant communication, trying to de-escalate the situation. And at the same time, having Secretary Hegseth focus on our responsibility of keeping Americans safe here at home and abroad," he added. Asked whether this is the best time to be withholding weapons deliveries to Ukraine —noting it appears Putin has taken the pause as an opportunity to scale up attacks on Ukraine — Scott said he has complete confidence in Trump's ability to navigate the situation. "There's no doubt that President Trump can be trusted on solving some of the major conflicts around the world," Scott said, pointing to progress in Gaza peace talks and his strikes on Iran. Scott also said he expects weapons shipments to resume following the Pentagon's review. "I trust President Trump to get the job done. That means that we start here at home. The level of escalation around the world requires Secretary Hegseth to take a look at our weaponry and make sure we're prepared for defense," he said. "I believe that after that time has elapsed, that we go back to providing the resources necessary," Scott added. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.

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July 07, 2025

Scott on accusations that Trump is ‘too easy’ on Putin: ‘Hogwash’

Scott on accusations that Trump is 'too easy' on Putin: 'Hogwash' Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) rejected concerns that President T...

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