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| | | | | First Thing: Trump tariffs of 25% on steel and aluminum come into effect | | | Europe has said it will impose counter-tariffs on US goods. Plus, Ukraine agrees to 30-day ceasefire, placing onus on Russia to reciprocate | | | | A worker looks through steel pieces at a metal supply business in Burbank, California. Photograph: Allison Dinner/EPA | | Clea Skopeliti | | | Good morning. Donald Trump’s global tariffs on steel and aluminum imports came into force on Wednesday, placing a 25% tax on all imports of the metals into the US from any country “with no exceptions or exemptions.” The move threatens to push up prices for consumers as they bear the brunt of resulting product cost rises, in everything from houses and vehicles to home appliances and beverage cans. Before the deadline, Trump warned he would double tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum after Canadian threats to raise electricity prices for US customers. The Ontario premier, Doug Ford, subsequently agreed to suspend his province’s decision to do so, and Trump backed down. How are other global trading partner responding? The European Commission immediately said it would introduce counter-tariffs on $28bn-worth of US goods from April. Meanwhile, a movement to boycott US goods is picking up speed internationally. Ukraine agrees to 30-day ceasefire as US prepares to lift military aid restrictions | | | | | ‘Ball is in Russia’s court,’ says Rubio after Ukraine accepts 30-day ceasefire. Photograph: Saul Loeb/Reuters | | | | Ukraine said it was ready to accept an immediate 30-day ceasefire after negotiations in Saudi Arabia, issuing a joint statement with the US that placed the onus on Russia to reciprocate. Trump said he hoped Vladimir Putin would agree to the truce, which would mark the first in the three-year war. The US also said it would immediately end its suspension of military aid and intelligence-sharing with Kyiv. Within hours of the joint statement, Russia launched an air attack on Kyiv. The announcement also mentioned plans for a controversial minerals deal that would hand the US a 50% stake in revenues from the sale of Ukraine’s mineral wealth, which Trump claimed would give Ukraine security guarantees by tying Washington’s interests to Kyiv’s. When will the US speak to Russia? Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, is expected to travel to Moscow this week to propose the ceasefire to Putin, though it is unclear if the Russian president is ready to accept it. US education department to fire 1,300 people | | | | | A rally outside the Department of Education in Washington DC on 11 March 2025. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA | | | | The Department of Education plans to lay off nearly half of its workforce, with the department announcing that 1,300 staff members are to be fired. Trump campaigned on a promise to shut the department, and the move will take the department’s staff to roughly half of its previous 4,100, the agency said in a statement, adding that another 572 employees had already accepted “voluntary resignation opportunities and retirement” since mid-January. Officials also said the department was ending leases on buildings in cities including New York, Boston, Chicago and Cleveland. The layoff announcement was promptly condemned by Democratic and progressive officials. The Texas representative Greg Casar posted on X that those in charge were “stealing from our children to pay for tax cuts for billionaires”, while Rosa DeLauro, the ranking member of the House appropriations committee, asked how “kids from working-class families” can “build a future” without access to public schooling. Can Trump abolish the department entirely? No – only Congress can do that. In other news … | | | | | A health worker prepares the MMR vaccine at a clinic in Lubbock, Texas. Photograph: Annie Rice/Reuters | | | | The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) expects a measles outbreak in west Texas to “expand rapidly.” Two people, including a child, have already died, with at least 208 more infected. A man in Tennessee has been shot by his dog while lying in bed, leaving him with a non-critical gunshot wound. Greenland’s centre-right Democrat party, which favors gradual independence from Denmark, has tripled its seats against the backdrop of Trump’s threats to acquire the Arctic island. Lawyers for the former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte have demanded he be returned to Manila, after he was flown to The Hague to be charged with crimes against humanity. Stat of the day: ADHD prescriptions in England have risen by 18% each year since pandemic | | | | | Methylphenidate remains the most frequently prescribed ADHD drug, with 19 items per 1,000 people. Photograph: Bill Truran/Alamy | | | | The number of prescriptions for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication have risen by 18% each year since the pandemic in England, according to research. In 2019-20, the number of prescriptions stood at about 25 per 1,000 people; by 2023-24, it had risen to 41.55 per 1,000. Experts attribute the rise to increased awareness of the disorder via social media. Don’t miss this: The families of trans kids fighting for care | | | | | The executive order sent parents, children and medical providers into a tailspin as they deciphered its impacts. Illustration: Rita Liu/The Guardian | | | | When Donald Trump issued an executive order to ban access to gender-affirming care for under-19s, Katherine, a 17-year-old in South Carolina, “felt like the world was crumbling around her”, her mother says. A judge has since blocked the ban – but Katherine had already been discharged from the hospital where she received care. Families spoke to the Guardian about the psychological toll on young people, with some even considering moving abroad. Climate check: Climate ‘whiplash’ hitting world’s biggest cities | | | | | Jakarta, Indonesia, is one of the cities that has experienced the most ‘climate whiplash’. Composite: Guardian Design/AP/EPA | | | | Major cities are already experiencing climate “whiplash”, where the weather swings from extreme wet and dry conditions, research has shown, with populations suffering both drought and flooding. Dozens more have recorded a climate “flip” in the last 20 years, changing from dry to wet extremes, or vice-versa. The effects include intensified floods, droughts, community displacement, the spread of disease, and a lack of access sanitation, clean water, and food. Last Thing: What happened when a millennial and a zoomer swapped jeans | | | | | Before you criticise someone, walk a mile in their jeans … Morwenna Ferrier and Emma Loffhagen pose in their new jeans. Photograph: Linda Nylind/The Guardian | | | | One of the most stark examples of the generational divide is the humble pair of jeans (at least, according to TikTok). If you like them high-waisted and straight-legged, chances are you were born before 1996, while Gen Z are behind the return of low-rise pants. Here, Morwenna Ferrier and Emma Loffhagen swapped styles – but were their original looks all that different? As long as no one brings back jeggings, I think we can all agree to live and let live. Sign up | | | | | | First Thing is delivered to thousands of inboxes every weekday. If you’re not already signed up, subscribe now. Get in touch If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email [email protected] | |
| | | Betsy Reed | | Editor, Guardian US |
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| | I hope you appreciated this newsletter. Before you move on, I wanted to ask whether you could support the Guardian’s journalism as we face the unprecedented challenges of covering the second Trump administration.
As Trump himself observed: “The first term, everybody was fighting me. In this term, everybody wants to be my friend.”
He’s not entirely wrong. All around us, media organizations have begun to capitulate. First, two news outlets pulled election endorsements at the behest of their billionaire owners. Next, prominent reporters bent the knee at Mar-a-Lago. And then a major network – ABC News – rolled over in response to Trump’s legal challenges and agreed to a $16m million settlement in his favor.
The Guardian is clear: we have no interest in being Donald Trump’s – or any politician’s – friend. Our allegiance as independent journalists is not to those in power but to the public.
How are we able to stand firm in the face of intimidation and threats? As journalists say: follow the money. The Guardian has neither a self-interested billionaire owner nor profit-seeking corporate henchmen pressuring us to appease the rich and powerful. We are funded by our readers and owned by the Scott Trust – whose only financial obligation is to preserve our journalistic mission in perpetuity.
With the new administration boasting about its desire to punish journalists, and Trump and his allies already pursuing lawsuits against newspapers whose stories they don’t like, it has never been more urgent, or more perilous, to pursue fair, accurate reporting. Can you support the Guardian today?
We value whatever you can spare, but a recurring contribution makes the most impact, enabling greater investment in our most crucial, fearless journalism. As our thanks to you, we can offer you some great benefits. We’ve made it very quick to set up, so we hope you’ll consider it. | | However you choose to support us: thank you for helping protect the free press. Whatever happens in the coming months and years, you can rely on the Guardian never to bow down to power, nor back down from truth. | | Support us |
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