Page 344 - Donald Trump

Donald Trump picks NFL veteran Scott Turner to lead Housing Department

Scott Turner is the first Black American picked for a Cabinet post in Donald Trump's second administration

Trump-backed Derek Merrin concedes to Democratic US Rep Kaptur in Ohio

Her Trump-endorsed Republican rival said on Friday that he had called Democratic US Rep. Marcy Kaptur to concede defeat in the 2024 election. In a video posted to X, formerly Twitter, fourth-term state Rep. Derek Merrin did not rule out running for Kaptur's seat again in two years, but he said his immediate plans were to rest and recharge with his family. The race for Ohio's 9th Congressional District was not settled until this Wednesday, when official results landed Kaptur ahead of Merrin by about 2,300 votes, or 0.7 per cent of the vote. That narrowly averted the automatic recount that would have been triggered at 0.5 per cent. Libertarian Tom Pruss, whose campaign was boosted by more than USD 400,000 from the pro-Democrat Voter Protection Project, won more than 4 per cent of the vote. Merrin pointed to the contest's huge price tag as evidence Republicans were competitive against the longest-serving woman in Congress. Guys, they spent over USD 10 million against us. Democrats ..

Vance takes on visible transition role as he works to boost Trump's picks

After several weeks working mostly behind closed doors, Vice President-elect JD Vance returned to Capitol Hill this week in a new, more visible role: Helping Donald Trump try to get his most contentious Cabinet picks through Senate confirmation in the Senate, where Vance has served for the last two years. Vance arrived at the Capitol on Wednesday with former Rep. Matt Gaetz and spent the morning sitting in on meetings between Trump's choice for attorney general and key Republicans, including members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The effort was for naught: Gaetz announced a day later that he was withdrawing his name amid scrutiny over sex trafficking allegations and the reality that he was unlikely to be confirmed. Thursday morning Vance was back, this time accompanying Pete Hegseth, the Fox and Friends Weekend host whom Trump has tapped to be the next secretary of defense. Hegseth also has faced allegations of sexual assault that he denies. Vance is expected to accompany other

Trump picks Scott Bessent as Treasury secy, Vought as top budget official

President-elect Donald Trump announced Friday that he'll nominate former George Soros money manager Scott Bessent, an advocate for deficit reduction, to serve as his next treasury secretary. Trump also said he would nominate Russel Vought to lead the Office of Management and Budget, a position Vought held during Trump's first presidency. Bessent, 62, is the founder of hedge fund Key Square Capital Management, after having worked on-and-off for Soros Fund Management since 1991. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the nation's first openly gay treasury secretary. He told Bloomberg in August that he decided to join Trump's campaign in part to attack the mounting US national debt. That would include slashing government programs and other spending. This election cycle is the last chance for the US to grow our way out of this mountain of debt without becoming a sort of European-style socialist democracy, he said then.

Will book profit in cryptocurrency Bitcoin at $150,000 levels: Chris Wood

Bitcoin, meanwhile, has gained 164 per cent in the last one year - from a level of around $37,000 to nearly $98,300 now. This is despite the cryptocurrency halving in April 2024.

Trump chooses Pam Bondi for attorney general pick after Gaetz withdraws

President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday named Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, to be US attorney general just hours after his other choice, Matt Gaetz, withdrew his name. Bondi is a longtime Trump ally and was one of his lawyers during his first impeachment trial when he was accused but not convicted of abusing his power as he tried to condition US military assistance to Ukraine on that country investigating then-former Vice President Joe Biden. She has been a chair at the America First Policy Institute, a think tank set up by former Trump administration staffers. Bondi is from Tampa and spent more than 18 years as a prosecutor. She was Florida's first female attorney general.

Merkel says she felt sorrow at Trump's win, recalls awkward non-handshake

Merkel worked with four American presidents while she was German chancellor. She was in power throughout Trump's first term - easily the most tense period for German-US relations of her 16-year tenure

Donald Trump granted permission to seek dismissal of hush money case

Bragg's office said they would argue against dismissal, but agreed Trump deserved time to make his case through written motions

Why did Trump choice Matt Gaetz withdraw from Attorney General race?

President-elect Donald Trump selected Matt Gaetz for the role of Attorney General in early November 2024, a move that surprised even his followers: Here's why

Trump considers Kevin Warsh for Treasury Secretary, later Fed chairman

Potential arrangement was discussed between Trump and Warsh, a former investment banker who served on the Federal Reserve Board, at Trump's Mar-a-Lago retreat

Trump made Republicans ignore his misconduct, can he do same for nominees?

In the two weeks since Donald Trump won the presidency, he's tried to demonstrate his dominance by naming loyalists for top administration positions, even though many lack expertise and some face sexual misconduct accusations. It often seems like he's daring Congress to oppose his decisions. But on Thursday, Trump's attempt to act with impunity showed a crack as Matt Gaetz, his choice for attorney general, withdrew from consideration. Trump had named Gaetz, a Florida congressman, to be the country's top law enforcement official even though he was widely disliked by his colleagues, has little legal experience and was accused of having sex with an underage girl, an allegation he denied. After being plagued by investigations during his first presidency, Trump wanted a devoted ally in charge of the Justice Department during his second. However, it was never obvious that Gaetz could win enough support from lawmakers to get confirmed as attorney general. Trump chose for a replacement Pam

Donald Trump's return may extend US stocks' dominance over global rivals

Though US stocks have outperformed their counterparts for more than a decade, the valuation gap has widened this year thanks to resilient economic growth and strong corporate earnings

North Korea's Kim Jong Un says past diplomacy only confirmed US hostility

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his past negotiations with the United States only confirmed Washington's unchangeable hostility toward Pyongyang and described his nuclear buildup as the only way to counter external threats, state media said Friday. Kim spoke Thursday at a defence exhibition where North Korea displayed some of its most powerful weapons systems, including intercontinental ballistic missiles designed to target the US mainland, the North's Korean Central News Agency said. While meeting with army officers last week, he had pledged a limitless expansion of his military nuclear programme. Kim has yet to comment directly on Donald Trump's reelection as US president. During his first term, Trump held three highly orchestrated summits with the North Korean leader in 2018 and 2019, before the diplomacy collapsed over disagreements in exchanging the release of US-led economic sanctions and the North's steps to wind down its nuclear programme. During the speech at the ...

Democrats secure deal to confirm more Biden judges before Congress adjourns

The Senate won't hold votes on four of President Joe Biden's appellate court nominees as part of a deal with Republicans to allow for speedier consideration of other judicial nominations and bring Biden within striking distance of the 234 total judicial confirmations that occurred during President-elect Donald Trump's first term. Currently, the number of judges confirmed under Biden totals 221. Republicans forced numerous procedural votes this week and late-night sessions as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., attempted to move ahead in getting more of Biden's nominees confirmed before Congress adjourns and Republicans take control of the chamber in January. A Senate Democratic leadership aide said Thursday a time agreement had been reached to allow for consideration of seven district court judges the week following Thanksgiving. Plus, another six district judges would be placed on the Senate executive calendar, making it possible for them to be considered on the Senate ...

Trump, several of his Cabinet picks face accusations of sexual misconduct

While Matt Gaetzhas withdrawn from the nomination process for attorney general, President-elect Donald Trump has picked several other people for his Cabinet and key staff positions who have been accused of some form of sexual misconduct. Trump himself has long been accused of abusing or mistreating women and once was caught bragging about grabbing women by the genitals. He was found liable by a New York City jury for sexual abuse and defamation and eventually ordered to pay the woman, E. Jean Carroll, USD 83 million in damages. Taken together, there are a striking number of incidents in which potential high-ranking government officials in Trump's second administration face allegations of sexual abuse. Trump and all of his picks for government have denied the claims against them, with some of the people accused arguing the cases are driven by politics. Here's a look at what's known about the cases: President-elect Donald Trump Jurors in New York last year found Trump liable for ...

Musk's budget crusade may cause constitutional clash in Trump's 2nd term

When Elon Musk first suggested a new effort to cut the size of government, Donald Trump didn't seem to take it seriously. His eventual name for the idea sounded like a joke too. It would be called the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, a reference to an online meme featuring a surprised-looking dog from Japan. But now that Trump has won the election, Musk's fantasy is becoming reality, with the potential to spark a constitutional clash over the balance of power in Washington. Trump put Musk, the world's richest man, and Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur and former Republican presidential candidate, in charge of the new department, which is really an outside advisory committee that will work with people inside the government to reduce spending and regulations. This week, Musk and Ramaswamy said they would encourage Trump to make cuts by refusing to spend money allocated by Congress, a process known as impounding. The proposal goes against a 1974 law intended to prevent futu

Matt Gaetz drops bid for Trump attorney general amid Senate opposition

The announcement came a day after the House Ethics Committee deadlocked on releasing a report into allegations of sexual misconduct and illegal drug use by Gaetz

US yields dip as market watches geopolitics, potential Trump policies

Russia's attack, if confirmed, came after Ukraine fired US and British missiles at targets inside Russia this week despite warnings by Moscow it would view such action as a major escalation

Bitcoin marches towards $100,000 on optimism over Trump crypto plans

Bitcoin prices topped $98,000 for the first time during European trading, and were last up around 4 per cent on the day

'Jeff Bezos advised selling Tesla stocks thinking Trump would lose': Musk

Donald Trump is set to assume office on January 20 and has been naming his picks for key administrative roles. The list also features Musk, who will co-lead DOGE to make the US govt more 'efficient'