What happened
Donald Trump delivered his State of the Union address amid a partial government shutdown and declining approval ratings, presenting what he called a “turnaround for the ages” in his first year back in the White House. He highlighted economic gains, including January’s stronger-than-expected jobs growth, lower petrol prices, and a year-on-year rise in the Dow Jones industrial average.

The president also criticised the Supreme Court’s ruling that his previous global tariffs exceeded presidential authority, calling it “unfortunate”, while unveiling a new 15% global tariff under the Trade Act he described as “a little more complex” but “probably better”. 

On foreign policy, Trump said his “preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy” with Iran but warned the country against pursuing a nuclear weapons programme.

Who said what
“In one year President Trump has turned our country around from the brink of disaster,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said ahead of the address.

Trump’s achievements “continue to polarise the US”, said Anthony Zurcher on the BBC, “and there is evidence that Americans are souring on his second term agenda”. A recent CNN poll suggests that his approval rating is just 36%, while a survey in The Washington Post puts it at a slightly better 39%.

What next?
With midterm elections fast approaching, control of the House remains at stake.

What happened
Russell Brand has pleaded not guilty to two further sexual offences. The comedian was charged in December with one count of rape and one count of sexual assault in relation to two women, both allegedly taking place in 2009. He has previously denied two counts of rape, one of indecent assault and two counts of sexual assault in relation to four women, allegedly taking place between 1999 and 2005.

Who said what
Brand, 50, appeared at Southwark Crown Court yesterday for a plea and trial preparation hearing related to the fresh charges. He only spoke to confirm his name and his not guilty pleas.

The comedian and presenter was initially charged after an investigation by Channel 4 and The Sunday Times in which several women made allegations against him. Brand denied the claims in a video posted online, claiming that all of his relationships had been consensual, and accused the media of launching a “coordinated attack”.

The judge renewed his bail during yesterday’s proceedings and said there would be a further case management hearing next month.

What next?
Brand is due to stand trial later this year in relation to the five original charges.

A colourful, traditional Ghanaian smock, once dismissed as outdated, is becoming a symbol of national pride again. The fugu, a distinctive, “structured, poncho-style garment”, also known as batakari, is being worn proudly by Ghanaians, many of them incensed by the online ridiculing of their president for wearing one on a state visit to Zambia, said the BBC.

The fugu has been made for centuries on traditional looms and is a powerful symbol of Ghanaian cultural tradition. Its “vibrant, striped patterns” are woven and stitched together by skilled craftsmen “from the Dagomba and Mamprusi tribes”, said the Ghana News Agency. Yet despite its rich history, it had, in recent years, become seen as “too heavy to wear and unfashionable” for modern life, better left as a “relic of the past”.

What changed was not the design, but the narrative. When President John Dramani Mahama wore a flared, striped fugu on a state visit this month it “drew mockery from non-Ghanaians on social media”, said Agence France-Presse, with some saying his outfit was “inappropriate for a head of state”.

Since then many Ghanaians have chosen to rally around the fugu for its “patriotic symbolism” and weavers have reported a spike in demand. “People are coming specifically for it now,” Accra textile trader William Nene told AFP.

The resurgence of interest in the fugu could have “far-reaching social and economic benefits” for local weavers and traders, said Ghana’s Tourism Minister Abla Dzifa Gomashie. And the production pressures on the weavers are only likely to increase: the government has now declared that every Wednesday is “Fugu Day”.