Trump Jumps at the Chance for a Standoff in California Over Immigration
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Diverging Reports Breakdown
Who Gets to Be Italian? Voters Face a Choice.
Voters will be called to vote in a referendum to reduce the legally required residency in the country to five years. A change in the law would allow hundreds of thousands of foreigners to apply for citizenship. But for the referendum to pass, a majority of Italian voters must turn out, with most of them voting “yes.” Many observers are skeptical that will happen in a country where turnout is low. migration has set off debate in the U.S. and Europe about who can be an Italian citizen and how it wants to build its future.. The change proposed by the referendum would allow nearly 1.5 million foreigners to obtain citizenship, according to an estimate by Idos, an Italian research center. That would include nearly 300,000 children, who would obtain citizenship if their parents do. It would be a blow to conservative Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who opposes loosening the citizenship law. It won’t be clear whether enough voters cast ballots until polls close Monday afternoon.
Yet many here say the law has not kept up with this dramatic demographic and social change, still making it too hard for immigrants to become Italian.
On Sunday and Monday, Italians will be called to vote in a referendum to decide whether to reduce the legally required residency in the country to five years, from 10 years now, in order to be able to apply for citizenship.
A change in the law would allow hundreds of thousands of foreigners to apply for citizenship, and would be a blow to conservative Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who opposes loosening the citizenship law.
But for the referendum to pass, a majority of Italian voters must turn out, with most of them voting “yes.” Many observers are skeptical that will happen in a country where turnout is low.
Whether it passes or not, the referendum has already succeeded in raising important questions about who can be a citizen at a time when migration has set off debate in the United States and Europe.
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Activists and analysts alike say the vote is an important turning point for a country that is facing steep demographic decline, and it will reveal whether Italians are willing to redefine the boundaries of their national belonging to include more immigrants and their children.
“It’s a pivotal moment for how Italy sees itself and how it wants to build its future,” said Fioralba Duma, an Albanian activist who has spent most of her life in Italy but does not have citizenship.
Who can be Italian?
When Italy was a country that sent émigrés abroad, generous bloodline citizenship rules allowed people of Italian descent, even if remote, to obtain citizenship, helping maintain a link with the diaspora. (The government recently narrowed that eligibility.)
On the other hand, Italy has made it hard for immigrants to obtain citizenship. Immigrants from countries outside the European Union with sufficient income and no criminal record can apply for citizenship only after 10 years of uninterrupted residency in Italy. That is longer than other European countries such as France or Germany, where under some conditions immigrants can apply for citizenship after five years.
In Italy, the children of lawful immigrants can apply only once they have turned 18 and if they have continuously lived in the country since birth.
Supporters of the tight rules say Italy already grants large numbers of new citizenships, but opponents say hundreds of thousands of people reside in Italian territory without being citizens.
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“They pay taxes, they abide by the laws, but they are not politically included,” said Maarten Vink, a director of the Global Citizenship Observatory. “In a democracy,” he added, “that’s not a good principle.”
What would change?
The change proposed by the referendum — to reduce the required residency time to five years in order to apply — would allow nearly 1.5 million foreigners to obtain citizenship, according to an estimate by Idos, an Italian research center. That would include nearly 300,000 children, who would obtain citizenship if their parents do.
Among those affected is Meriem Khaldoun, a Moroccan architect in the northern Italian city of Genoa. Khaldoun has lived in Italy her whole adult life. But because she formally registered her residency only five years ago, she must wait five more years to apply for Italian citizenship. In the meantime, she is working with the city’s authorities on an urban regeneration project.
Progressive parties have largely supported the referendum, but the right has opposed it.
The referendum is “dangerous” and would extend access to citizenship “indiscriminately,” Matteo Salvini, the leader of Italy’s far-right League Party and Italy’s deputy prime minister, said last month.
Will it pass?
It won’t be clear whether enough voters cast ballots until polls close Monday afternoon.
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In the 1970s and 1980s, voters flocked to the polls for referendums to uphold the legalization of divorce and abortion. But in Italy’s last referendum, held in 2022, which focused on judicial questions, only 20% of eligible voters turned out.
“The citizens have stopped voting,” said Michele Ainis, a constitutional expert at Roma Tre university, making it much harder for referendums to pass.
This referendum also includes four additional questions on Italian labor law.
Supporters of the referendum accused Italy’s state broadcaster, Rai, of largely avoiding debates or reports about the referendum, though Rai said that it covered the referendum much more than the one in 2022.
Politicians opposed to changing the citizenship rules have said they won’t vote. Meloni said she would go to the polls but abstain from voting.
Many of the referendum’s proponents, who are immigrants or have an immigrant background, also will not cast ballots — because as noncitizens, they do not have the right to vote.
Protests intensify in Los Angeles after Trump deploys hundreds of National Guard troops
Police use tear gas, rubber bullets to control protesters. Police declare an unlawful assembly in downtown Los Angeles. It was the third day of protests against the deployment of the National Guard. The National Guard was activated without a request from California’s governor. It’s the first time in decades that a state’s national guard has been activated without the governor’s permission, a federal official says. The U.S. attorney general calls the move a “serious breach of state sovereignty,” the official says, adding, “This isn’t about public safety. It’s about national security.’’ It was also the first use of tear gas in Los Angeles since the 9/11 attacks, which left more than 1,000 dead and more than 3,000 injured. The White House says the use of force is necessary to protect the nation from “unlawful’ acts of terrorism, terrorism-related violence, and acts of domestic terrorism’ ‘that threaten the safety of the nation’
Some police patrolled the streets on horseback while others with riot gear lined up behind Guard troops deployed to protect federal facilities including a detention center where some immigrants were taken in recent days. Police declared an unlawful assembly, and by early evening many people had left. Some protesters who remained grabbed chairs from a nearby public park to form a makeshift barrier between themselves and police and throw objects at them.
It was the third day of demonstrations against Trump’s immigration crackdown in the region, as the arrival of around 300 federal troops spurred anger and fear among some residents. Sunday’s protests in Los Angeles, a city of 4 million people, were centered in several blocks of downtown.
Outside the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles, crowds chanted “shame” and “go home” at members of the National Guard, who stood shoulder to shoulder, carrying long guns and riot shields. After some protesters closely approached the guard members, another set of uniformed officers advanced on the group, shooting smoke-filled canisters into the street.
Minutes later, the Los Angeles Police Department fired rounds of crowd-control munitions to disperse the protesters, who they said were assembled unlawfully. Much of the group then moved to block traffic on the 101 freeway until state patrol officers cleared them from the roadway by late afternoon, while southbound lanes remained shut down.
Flash bangs echoed out every few seconds into the evening as some protesters threw objects down at the roadway and state patrol officers fired back.
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Nearby, at least four self-driving Waymo cars were set on fire, sending large plumes of black smoke into the sky and exploding intermittently as the electric vehicles burned. By evening, police had issued an unlawful assembly order shutting down several blocks of downtown Los Angeles.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom requested Trump remove the guard members in a letter Sunday afternoon, calling their deployment a “serious breach of state sovereignty.” He was in Los Angeles meeting with local law enforcement and officials. It wasn’t clear if he’d spoken to Trump since Friday.
Their deployment appeared to be the first time in decades that a state’s national guard was activated without a request from its governor, a significant escalation against those who have sought to hinder the administration’s mass deportation efforts.
Mayor Karen Bass echoed Newsom’s comments.
“What we’re seeing in Los Angeles is chaos that is provoked by the administration,” she said in an afternoon press conference. “This is about another agenda, this isn’t about public safety.”
Their admonishments did not deter the administration.
“It’s a bald-faced lie for Newsom to claim there was no problem in Los Angeles before President Trump got involved,” White House Abigail Jackson said in a statement in response.
Deployment follows days of protest
The arrival of the National Guard followed two days of protests that began Friday in downtown Los Angeles before spreading on Saturday to Paramount, a heavily Latino city south of the city, and neighboring Compton.
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Federal agents arrested immigrants in LA’s fashion district, in a Home Depot parking lot and at several other locations on Friday. The next day, they were staging at a Department of Homeland Security office near another Home Depot in Paramount, which drew out protesters who suspected another raid. Federal authorities later said there was no enforcement activity at that Home Depot.
Demonstrators attempted to block Border Patrol vehicles hurling rocks and chunks of cement. In response, agents in riot gear unleashed tear gas, flash-bang explosives and pepper balls.
The weeklong tally of immigrant arrests in the LA area climbed above 100, federal authorities said. Many more were arrested while protesting, including a prominent union leader who was accused of impeding law enforcement.
The protests did not reach the size of past demonstrations that brought the National Guard to Los Angeles, including the Watts and Rodney King riots, and the 2020 protests against police violence, in which Newsom requested the assistance of federal troops.
The last time the National Guard was activated without a governor’s permission was in 1965, when President Lyndon B. Johnson sent troops to protect a civil rights march in Alabama, according to the Brennan Center for Justice.
Trump says there will be ‘very strong law and order’
In a directive Saturday, Trump invoked a legal provision allowing him to deploy federal service members when there is ”a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.”
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He said he had authorized the deployment of 2,000 members of the National Guard.
Trump told reporters as he prepared to board Air Force One in Morristown, New Jersey, Sunday that there were “violent people” in Los Angeles “and they’re not gonna get away with it.”
Asked if he planned to send U.S. troops to Los Angeles, Trump replied: “We’re gonna have troops everywhere. We’re not going to let this happen to our country. We’re not going to let our country be torn apart like it was under Biden.” He didn’t elaborate.
About 500 Marines stationed at Twentynine Palms, about 125 miles (200 kilometers) east of Los Angeles were in a “prepared to deploy status” Sunday afternoon, according to the U.S. Northern Command.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris, who lives in Los Angeles, said the immigration arrests and Guard deployment were designed as part of a “cruel, calculated agenda to spread panic and division.”
She said she supports those “standing up to protect our most fundamental rights and freedoms.”
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Offenhartz reported from New York. Associated Press writer Michelle Price contributed to this report from Bridgewater, New Jersey.
Pope Leo criticizes political nationalism and prays for reconciliation and dialogue
The pope celebrated Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square in front of tens of thousands faithful. He asked the Holy Spirit to “break down barriers and tear down the walls of indifference and hatred.” “Where there is love, there is no room for prejudice, for ‘security’ zones separating us from our neighbors,” he said.
The pope celebrated Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square in front of tens of thousands faithful, and asked the Holy Spirit to “break down barriers and tear down the walls of indifference and hatred.”
“Where there is love, there is no room for prejudice, for ‘security’ zones separating us from our neighbors, for the exclusionary mindset that, tragically, we now see emerging also in political nationalisms,” the first American pontiff said.
He did not name any specific country or politician.
Leo also recalled the words of late Pope Francis, who — on the feast of Pentecost in May 2023 — observed that in our world “we are all connected, yet find ourselves disconnected from one another, anaesthetized by indifference and overwhelmed by solitude.”
The pope also condemned wars, which “are plaguing our world,” and asked the Holy Spirit for “the gift of peace.”
“First of all, peace in our hearts, for only a peaceful heart can spread peace in the family, society and international relations,” Leo said, then prayed for reconciliation and dialogue wherever there is war in the world.
Soon after becoming pope, Leo pledged to work for unity and peace. His first message, “Peace be with you all,” set the importance of peace as a pillar of his papacy.
He has also appealed for a genuine and just peace in Ukraine and a ceasefire in Gaza.
Conservative Colombian senator in serious condition after shooting at political rally
NEW: Colombian Sen. Miguel Uribe Turbay is in “serious’ condition after surgery, hospital says. NEW: A 15-year-old boy was arrested at the scene with a firearm, authorities say. The attack took place in a park in the Fontibon neighborhood in Bogota. Colombia will hold a presidential election on May 31, 2026, marking the end of President Gustavo Petro’s term.“Miguel continues to fight hard for his life, and I ask each of you to keep praying fervently,’’ his wife said in a statement. the attack was a throwback to a time in Colombia “when violence converted into a political tool at the highest levels,” a security analyst said, adding that it highlights a recurring cycle of violence “even inside families that have been suffering its consequences for decades.’ The president canceled a planned trip to France “due to the seriousness of the events,�” according to a presidential statement.
Mayor Carlos Galán visited the Fundación Santa Fe clinic to express solidarity with the family of the 39-year-old senator.
“He survived the procedure; these are critical moments and hours for his survival,” said Galán early Sunday after receiving information from the medical staff at the clinic.
The hospital said Sunday that Uribe Turbay was recovering in intensive care after undergoing neurosurgery and a procedure on his left thigh. His condition was described as “extremely serious,” and his prognosis was reserved.
“Miguel continues to fight hard for his life, and I ask each of you to keep praying fervently,” Uribe Turbay’s wife, María Claudia Tarazona, said in a statement.
Former presidents Álvaro Uribe and César Gaviria visited the clinic, along with senators, city council members and other politicians, including former senator Ingrid Betancourt.
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The attack took place in a park in the Fontibon neighborhood in Bogota when armed assailants shot him from behind, said the right-wing Democratic Center, which was the party of former president Uribe. The men are not related.
Images circulating on social media showed a person firing several shots at the senator from behind, apparently hitting his head before he collapsed.
The Attorney General’s Office, which is investigating the shooting, said the senator received two gunshot wounds in the attack, which also wounded two others. Their identities and conditions have not been disclosed.
The office said a 15-year-old boy was arrested at the scene with a firearm. He was injured in the leg and was recovering at another clinic, authorities said. Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez added that over 100 officers are investigating who was behind the attack.
Elizabeth Dickinson, a security analyst at Crisis Group, told The Associated Press that the assault on the senator was a throwback to a time in Colombia “when violence converted into a political tool at the highest levels.” The incident has frightened Colombians, she added, because it highlights a recurring cycle of violence “even inside families that have been suffering its consequences for decades.”
The intellectual author of the shooting, she said, “clearly had the intention to stir up the country.”
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The Colombian Senate called for national unity Sunday in a statement, emphasizing that political leaders and lawmakers face risks in a polarized nation.
Uribe Turbay is the political heir of his grandfather, former President Julio César Turbay who was in office from 1978-82. His mother, Diana Turbay, was a journalist who was kidnapped and killed in 1991 during a failed rescue attempt. Her death came during one of the most violent periods in the history of the South American country, then-plagued by drug cartel violence.
The senator announced his presidential bid in early March. Colombia will hold a presidential election on May 31, 2026, marking the end of President Gustavo Petro’s term. Petro, the country’s first leftist leader, is not eligible for reelection.
Outside the Fundación Santa Fe clinic, dozens of people gathered in prayer for Uribe Turbay’s recovery.
Late on Saturday, after leading an extraordinary Security Council session, Petro, Colombia’s first leftist president, promised “complete transparency” in the investigation and to find out who was behind the attack. He also promised an investigation into any failures by the senator’s bodyguards.
The president canceled a planned trip to France “due to the seriousness of the events,” according to a presidential statement.
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World leaders and senior officials, including from the United States, Chile, Ecuador, and the European Union, condemned the violence and expressed support for the Colombian people and Uribe Turbay’s family.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on X that the “United State condemns in the strongest possible terms the attempted assassination of Senator Miguel Uribe.” He urged Petro “to dial back the inflammatory rhetoric and protect Colombian officials.”
“This is a direct threat to democracy and the result of the violent leftist rhetoric coming from the highest levels of the Colombian government,” Rubio said.
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Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
Mike Johnson downplays Musk’s influence and says Republicans will pass Trump’s tax and budget bill
House Speaker Mike Johnson says he has exchanged text messages with Elon Musk. Johnson insists that Musk has bad information, and the speaker disputed the forecasts of the Congressional Budget Office. White House budget chief says CBO analysts base their models of “artificial baselines” The bill would extend the 2017 Trump tax cuts, cut spending and reduce some other levies but also leave some 10.9 million more people without health insurance and spike deficits by $2.4 trillion over the decade, according to the CBO’s analysis.“As a former professional fighter, I learned a long time ago, don’t get between two fighters,” said Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin on CNN. “My wife and I dearly love each other and every now and then, quite often, she disagrees with me,’” Mullin said of his relationship with President Donald Trump, who said he has no desire to repair the relationship with Musk..
The Republican House leader and staunch Trump ally said Musk’s criticism of the GOP’s massive tax and budget policy bill will not derail the measure, and he downplayed Musk’s influence over the GOP-controlled Congress.
“I didn’t go out to craft a piece of legislation to please the richest man in the world,” Johnson said on ABC’s “This Week.” “What we’re trying to do is help hardworking Americans who are trying to provide for their families and make ends meet,” Johnson insisted.
Johnson said he has exchanged text messages with Musk since the former chief of Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency came out against the GOP bill.
Musk called it an “abomination” that would add to U.S. debts and threaten economic stability. He urged voters to flood Capitol Hill with calls to vote against the measure, which is pending in the Senate after clearing the House. His criticism sparked an angry social media back-and-forth with Trump, who told reporters over the weekend that he has no desire to repair his relationship with Musk.
The speaker was dismissive of Musk’s threats to finance opponents — even Democrats — of Republican members who back Trump’s bill.
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“We’ve got almost no calls to the offices, any Republican member of Congress,” Johnson said. “And I think that indicates that people are taking a wait and see attitude. Some who may be convinced by some of his arguments, but the rest understand: this is a very exciting piece of legislation.”
Johnson argued that Musk still believes “that our policies are better for human flourishing. They’re better for the US economy. They’re better for everything that he’s involved in with his innovation and job creation and entrepreneurship.”
The speaker and other Republicans, including Trump’s White House budget chief, continued their push back Sunday against forecasts that their tax and budget plans will add to annual deficits and thus balloon a national debt already climbing toward $40 trillion.
Johnson insisted that Musk has bad information, and the speaker disputed the forecasts of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office that scores budget legislation. The bill would extend the 2017 Trump tax cuts, cut spending and reduce some other levies but also leave some 10.9 million more people without health insurance and spike deficits by $2.4 trillion over the decade, according to the CBO’s analysis.
The speaker countered with arguments Republicans have made for decades: That lower taxes and spending cuts would spur economic growth that ensure deficits fall. Annual deficits and the overall debt actually climbed during the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, and during Trump’s first presidency, even after sweeping tax cuts.
Russell Vought, who leads the White House Office of Budget and Management, said on Fox News Sunday that CBO analysts base their models of “artificial baselines.” Because the 2017 tax law set the lower rates to expire, CBO’s cost estimates, Vought argued, presuming a return to the higher rates before that law went into effect.
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Vought acknowledged CBO’s charge from Congress is to analyze legislation and current law as it is written. But he said the office could issue additional analyses, implying it would be friendlier to GOP goals. Asked whether the White House would ask for alternative estimates, Vought again put the burden on CBO, repeating that congressional rules allow the office to publish more analysis.
Other Republicans, meanwhile, approached the Trump-Musk battle cautiously.
“As a former professional fighter, I learned a long time ago, don’t get between two fighters,” said Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
He even compared the two billionaire businessmen to a married couple.
“President Trump is a friend of mine but I don’t need to get, I can have friends that have disagreements,” Mullin said. “My wife and I dearly love each other and every now and then, well actually quite often, sometimes she disagrees with me, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t stay focused on what’s best for our family. Right now, there may be a disagreement but we’re laser focused on what is best for the American people.”
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Associated Press journalist Gary Fields contributed from Washington.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/08/us/politics/trump-california-immigration.html