Demolition work has begun on part of the White House’s East Wing to make way for the president’s ballroom. Truly, these are post-satirical times

Occasionally, life gives you scenarios that are so on the money it’s impossible to do anything with them. Boris Johnson getting stuck halfway down a zip wire while waving two union flags, for instance; or Liz Truss getting lost while attempting to leave a room – two images that are so embarrassingly on point it is almost difficult to enjoy them. An audience likes to feel it has done a bit of work before arriving at a punch line, which is why, on Monday, when demolition crews moved into the White House to knock down part of the East Wing at the behest of Donald Trump, it felt once again like we were living in post-satirical times.

As far as we can tell from the photos, Trump didn’t actually send in a wrecking ball – although his administration did sharply reprimand government employees working in a neighbouring Treasury building for posting visuals of the demolition online, so at this point who knows? There were, however, diggers, torn-down walls and an awful lot of dust. This was the first stage of a project Trump has advertised as the addition to the White House of a 90,000 sq ft (8,300 sq metres) ballroom, at an estimated cost of $250m (£187m) and a capacity, according to Trump, of “999 people”. And while, granted, it’s not a branch of McDonald’s – one thing about Trump’s range is that, however bad things are, they could always have been worse – architectural and heritage institutes have been expressing concern.

Emma Brockes is a Guardian columnist

Just days after the Louvre theft comes this drolly unconventional gallery robbery drama. Director Kelly Reichardt talks about solving crimes as a kid – and casting Josh O’Connor as a crook in autumnal knitwear

The term “cosy crime” describes the reassuring, cardigan-swaddled whodunnits that currently dominate both page and screen, but it carries different connotations for Kelly Reichardt, director of the new heist movie The Mastermind, as it surely must for anyone from a law enforcement family. Reichardt’s mother was an undercover narcotics agent, her father a crime scene detective. When the couple split up, she also gained an FBI agent as a stepfather. During weekends with her dad, who moved into a house with four other recently divorced colleagues, she would sometimes be given mysteries to solve, like some kind of junior Thursday Murder Club.

“It sounds really cute,” says the 5ft-tall, 61-year-old director, whose film could not feel more timely, given the Louvre heist. “But I was only young, and I’d often wait for him at his office where there were these big horrific images on the walls. That’s not good for the forming brain. My sister and I have a joke now whenever one of us is upset, ‘Aww, get into bed and watch some crime, then you’ll feel better.’”

Former deputy PM’s resignation statement offered a moment to reflect on what the party had lost – and might have again

The chamber had been almost empty at the start of the ministerial statement on Heathrow airport. But by the end, the Labour benches were almost full. Though this was nothing to do with the pull of the transport secretary, Heidi Alexander. It was Angela Rayner who was the main attraction.

The former housing secretary hasn’t been heard from since her resignation in early September. Not in the Commons, nor in Liverpool for the party conference. Better late than never, she was now back to make a personal statement. The leaving speech that would herald her return. She had been missed.

A year in Westminster: John Crace, Marina Hyde and Pippa Crerar. On Tuesday 2 December, join Crace, Hyde and Crerar as they look back with special guests at another extraordinary year, live at the Barbican in London and livestreamed globally. Book tickets here.

The Bonfire of the Insanities by John Crace (Guardian Faber Publishing, £16.99). To support the Guardian, order your copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply.

From last-a-lifetime socks to coffee beans, here are the everyday items our writers use and love when they’re relaxing, exercising, cooking and parenting

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Our expert Filter writers have spent the past year at your service: putting mattresses, coffee machines, secateurs, low-alcohol drinks, hair masks, sleep aids and more through their paces.

Yet we’re curious (read: nosy) types here and wanted to know what they get up to when they’re off duty, relaxing, exercising, cooking and parenting. So, we asked them for their recommendations for the best thing(s) they’ve bought this year. A kids’ toy that placates a two-year-old, tracksuit bottoms so good our writer owns three pairs, and the perfect hummus: these 49 products are all tried, loved and bought on repeat.

If Labour loses the Senedd seat, it will be a huge blow for party that has dominated politics in Wales for a century

When he steps out of the byelection campaign office opposite Caerphilly castle, the Plaid Cymru candidate, Lindsay Whittle, tends to hear a couple of different cries from passing motorists.

“Some of them shout: ‘Good luck Linds!’ I love that,” Whittle said. “It implies we’re old friends even though I may not know them personally.” Others are rather less positive. “They yell: ‘Stop the boats!’ You hear that all the time.

CBT-I is called the ‘gold standard’ for sleep disorder treatment. After 40 years of issues, could it help me sleep right?

I’ve had intense issues with insomnia and respiratory problems for 40 years – and yet, I only learned about cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) this year.

Fellow insomniacs told me about it when I was reporting a story on the link I discovered between orthodontics and sleep health during my exhaustive search for sleep solutions. Two rounds of nasal surgery in the past year revolutionized my air flow – but didn’t improve the anxious mind that still kept me awake.

Jim Gamble cites ‘vested interests’ and ‘political opportunism’, as Keir Starmer brings in Louise Casey as adviser

Keir Starmer’s grooming gangs inquiry has descended into fresh turmoil after the only remaining candidate to be its chair blamed “political opportunism” and “a lack of trust” for his withdrawal as an applicant.

As a key survivor called for a face-to-face meeting with the prime minister to save the inquiry, Jim Gamble, a former deputy chief constable, said the process to appoint a committee head was “toxic” and defined by “vested interests”.

Trump administration hardens stance against the Kremlin day after cancelling a planned summit with Russian leader

The US has sanctioned Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia’s two largest oil companies, as the Trump administration increased pressure on the Kremlin to negotiate an end to its war against Ukraine.

The sanctions were the first against Russia since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, and were targeted to cut key revenues from oil sales that finance the Russian war machine.

Home secretary vows overhaul after previously secret 2023 review lists series of perceived shortcomings

Shabana Mahmood has said the Home Office is “not yet fit for purpose” after the release of a damning report that was kept secret for years.

The review, written under the previous government, uncovered a series of perceived shortcomings including a “culture of defeatism” on immigration, a lack of trust from other departments, and “several confused and conflicting systems”.

Candidates come out swinging as they vie for New Yorkers’ votes in final debate

“It’s us versus them,” Curtis Sliwa, the Republican candidate, says in his brief opening statement, in which he claims that he is the true representative of New Yorkers.

Andrew Cuomo, the former New York governor, begins by urging the Knicks to win, and then pivots to attacking “my main opponent”, Zohran Mamdani.