☕ Trump's attempted assassination: one year on

Good morning!

Happy new-Justin-Bieber-album day to those that celebrate - the pop star surprised fans overnight with the release of SWAG, his first album in four years. According to a statement, the new record was inspired by Bieber’s journey as a father and a husband, and presents a “deeper perspective and more reflective sound, resulting in some of his most personal music yet.”

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Some headlines from this morning:

• The death toll from Texas flooding has risen to 120 people, with 160 still missing after storms caused the Guadalupe River to overflow last week. Search teams have not made a live rescue in eight days, according to state emergency officials. The victims include 27 campers and staff from Camp Mystic girls' summer camp who were trapped when waters rose rapidly. President Trump approved federal disaster assistance and deployed additional rescue teams to support ongoing recovery efforts.

• President Trump threatened Canada with 35% tariffs on Friday, saying the country had not done enough to stop fentanyl entering the U.S. The tariffs would take effect on August 1, joining other trade penalties that Trump announced this week, targeting multiple countries. The threat comes as the two nations were reportedly close to reaching a new trade agreement after months of negotiations. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada remains "committed to working with the U.S." and highlighted progress already made in stopping fentanyl trafficking.

• President Donald Trump has nominated Australian social media personality and author Nick Adams as his ambassador to Malaysia. Adams previously served as deputy mayor in the city of Sydney, but has since moved to the U.S, where he’s become an American citizen and Trump supporter. In a social media post, Trump described Adams as an “incredible Patriot and very successful entrepreneur”. Adams responded to news of his appointment in a social media video, confirming he was “accepting this call of duty”. He expressed gratitude to Trump and vowed to strengthen ties between the U.S. and Malaysia. The Senate will need to approve Adams’ nomination.

• Sweden’s immigration minister has refused to resign from office following news that his teenage son was engaging with white supremacist content online. Johann Forssell said he had learned of his son’s online activities two weeks ago when he was contacted by a magazine called Expo, which publishes investigations into racism in Sweden. Forssell said he was also alerted by Sweden’s intelligence service shortly after Expo contacted him. The group Forssell’s son was connected to is a neo-Nazi organisation primarily based in the U.S. and Europe, which Swedish media reports are recruiting young people via social media. Expo described the group as “violent” and “hyper-masculine”. Speaking to Swedish TV, Forssell said he had spoken to his son, who he described as “deeply remorseful,” and that the matter was resolved. Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson stated that he still has confidence in Forssell, while the opposition party has called for him to appear before a parliamentary committee.

I’ve got 1 minute

The women’s singles final at Wimbledon is set after the U.S’ Amanda Anisimova and Poland’s Iga Świątek won their respective semi-finals overnight.

Here’s what happened and what you need to know before the men’s semi-finals tonight and the women’s final at 11am ET on Saturday morning.

Women’s Semi-Final

Anisimova upset world number one Aryna Sabalenka in a thrilling three-set battle (6-4, 4-6, 6-4). The result prevented the Belarusian from advancing to her fourth straight grand slam final. Sabalenka said: “This experience shows that next year I'm only hungrier and angrier. These tough defeats help me to come back much stronger. I have huge hopes for the next year.”

Anisimova, who was ranked 189 in the world this time last year, said: “To be able to come on top, I knew that I wasn't just going to win off her mistakes. I really had to bring my game and do as much as I could, especially when it came to being aggressive."

Świątek was supreme against Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic, beating the 2021 Olympic champion in straight sets (6-2, 6-0). The 24-year-old has improved dramatically on grass this season, finishing runner-up in the Bad Homburg final and now making her first Wimbledon final. Before this year, she had never made it past the quarter-finals in the women’s singles draw at Wimbledon (although she did win a junior Wimbledon title in 2018).

Świątek said: “Honestly, I never even dreamt it was going to be possible for me to play in the final. I’m just super excited. I thought I experienced everything on the court but I didn’t experience playing well on grass.”

Women’s Final

The women’s final will be played on Saturday morning at 11:00am (ET). It will be the first time that Świątek and Anisimova have played each other at the professional level. They played once as juniors, and Świątek beat Anisimova.

Eighth seed Świątek is a five-time Grand Slam champion seeking her first Wimbledon title. Świątek has won every slam final she has played in her career so far. A Wimbledon title would make the 24-year-old the youngest since Serena Williams to win a title on all three surfaces.

13th seed Anisimova is playing in her first grand slam final and becomes the first American in a Wimbledon final since Serena Williams in 2019. A win on Saturday (local time) would see her become the first American woman to win the Wimbledon singles title since 2016 (also Williams).

For the eighth straight year, the Wimbledon women’s singles title will belong to a first-time winner.

Men’s semi-finals

In the first men’s semi-final, two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz will face fifth seed American Taylor Fritz. Alcaraz is seeking to become the first player to win the French Open and Wimbledon in consecutive years since Bjorn Borg. Fritz is playing his first Wimbledon semi-final and hoping to become the first American to make the men’s singles final since Andy Roddick in 2009. The two have played each other twice, and Alcaraz has won both matches.

Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic will meet in the other semi-final. It comes a little over a month after Sinner, the world number one, beat the 24-time slam champion in straight sets in the French Open semi-finals. Djokovic has reached the final of Wimbledon in its last six editions and will be extra hungry this year as he races father time to capture an elusive 25th Grand Slam.

I’ve got 2 minutes

The Secret Service has suspended six agents without pay following failures that led to the assassination attempt on President Trump last July. It's the first disciplinary action taken nearly a year after the shooting that injured Trump and killed a rally attendee. Here's what you need to know.

What happened in Butler

On July 13, 2024, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks fired multiple shots at Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Trump's ear was grazed by gunfire, two attendees were injured, and one person was killed. A Secret Service sniper shot and killed Crooks.

The incident marked the first time a current or former president had been injured since 1981, when Ronald Reagan was shot.

The disciplinary action

Six agents received suspensions ranging from 10 to 42 days, including one member of Trump's personal security detail. The suspensions were announced alongside a Secret Service report that found "breakdowns in communication, technological issues, and human failure" caused the security breach.

Deputy Secret Service Director Matt Quinn stated that the suspended agents will face restricted duties upon their return. "We're not going to fire our way out of this," Quinn said. "Butler was an operational failure, and we are focused today on ensuring that it never happens again."

Multiple investigations

A bipartisan House committee concluded in September that the assassination attempt was preventable. The Secret Service's report acknowledged Thursday that the incident represented "an operational failure that the Secret Service will carry as a reminder of the critical importance of its zero-fail mission."

The agency has implemented 21 of the 46 reform recommendations made by Congress, including improvements in communication and technology.

Trump responds

President Trump told Fox News there were "mistakes made that shouldn't have happened", but said he was "satisfied" with the investigation. "They had a bad day, and I think they'll admit that," Trump said. "I have great confidence in the Secret Service."

The disciplinary action comes as the Secret Service faces continued scrutiny over protection protocols, particularly after a second incident in September when agents fired on a suspect near Trump's Florida golf course.

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