Page 6 - Republican Party

Trump arrives at court for start of jury selection in hush money trial

Donald Trump arrived Monday at a New York court for the start of jury selection in his hush money trial, marking a singular moment in US history. It's the first criminal trial of any former US commander-in-chief and the first of Trump's four indictments to go to trial. Because he is also the presumptive nominee for this year's Republican ticket, the trial will produce the head-spinning split-screen of a presidential candidate spending his days in court and, he has said, campaigning during the night. There could be some legal arguments and housekeeping before jury selection begins. When it does, scores of people are due to be called into the courtroom to start the process of finding 12 jurors, plus six alternates.

Ahead of this year's US presidential polls, Biden wins Wyoming's caucuses

President Joe Biden nudged further ahead in the Democratic nomination for reelection by winning the party caucuses in Wyoming and was the only choice on the ballot later Saturday in Alaska. As two of the least populated states, Alaska and Wyoming play minuscule roles in both intraparty and general election voting in presidential election years. Biden effectively clinched the Democratic nomination on March 12 with the Georgia primary and is now all but certain to face former President Donald Trump as the Republican nominee in November. ALASKA Alaska Democrats are holding a voice vote for their party-run preference poll at in-person and virtual district meetings. Biden's is the lone candidate eligible to receive votes after the other Democrat to qualify, Dean Phillips, suspended his campaign last month. The vote is being held during meetings where other party business is conducted. The polling was delayed a week. Democrats had planned a ranked vote election by mail on April 6 but t

Trump to be first ex-prez on criminal trial: All about the hush money case

Donald Trump will make history as the first former president to stand trial on criminal charges when his hush money case opens on Monday with jury selection. The case will force the presumptive Republican presidential nominee to juggle campaigning with sitting in a Manhattan courtroom for weeks to defend himself against charges involving a scheme to bury allegations of marital infidelity that arose during his first White House campaign in 2016. It carries enormous political ramifications as potentially the only one of four criminal cases against Trump that could reach a verdict before voters decide in November whether to send him back to the White House. Here's what to know about the hush money case and the charges against Trump: WHAT'S THIS CASE ABOUT? The former president is accused of falsifying internal Trump Organisation records as part of a scheme to bury damaging stories that he feared could hurt his 2016 campaign, particularly as Trump's reputation was suffering at the tim

Trump's campaign raised About $66 mn in March, cutting into Biden's lead

Trump is set to get another large cash infusion later this week when hedge fund manager John Paulson will host a fundraiser for Trump in Florida, that is anticipated to raise more than $30 million

LS polls: Prakash Ambedkar's VBA not to ally with MVA, releases first list

Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) chief Prakash Ambedkar on Wednesday announced candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in Maharashtra, signalling that the outfit will not ally with the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). Addressing a press conference here, Ambedkar accused the MVA allies - Congress, NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar), Shiv Sena (UBT) - of trying to use his outfit to promote dynastic politics. Ambedkar, the grandson of Dr B R Ambedkar, announced the names of eight candidates for the phase of elections, including himself from the Akola constituency. "They (the MVA parties were trying to use VBA for promoting dynastic politics which we have tried to resist," Ambedkar said. The VBA fielded Sanjay Kevat from Bhandara Gondia, Hitesh Madavi from Gadchiroli, Rajesh Bele, Vasant Magar from Buldhana, Prakajkta Pillewar, Rajendra Salunkhe from Wardha, Khemsingh Pawar from Yavatmal-Washim. The Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) have announced candidates for most of these seats. He alleged

Republican donors sought to help fund Trump bond in civil fraud case

Prez Trump needs to pay a bond in a New York civil case in which he was found liable for fraudulently inflating his net worth by billions of dollars to secure better loans and insurance terms

Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and their religion, says Trump

Former President Donald Trump on Monday charged that Jews who vote for Democrats hate Israel" and hate their religion, igniting a firestorm of criticism from the White House and Jewish leaders. Trump, in an interview, had been asked about Democrats' growing criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over his handling of the war in Gaza as the civilian death toll continues to mount. I actually think they hate Israel, Trump responded to his former aide, Sebastian Gorka. I think they hate Israel. And the Democrat party hates Israel. Trump, who last week became the Republican Party's presumptive nominee, went on to charge: Any Jewish person that votes for Democrats hates their religion. They hate everything about Israel and they should be ashamed of themselves because Israel will be destroyed. The comments sparked immediate backlash from the White House, President Joe Biden's campaign and Jewish leaders. The vast majority of Jewish Americans identify as Democrats, but Trump

US polls: Trump threatens 100% tariffs on Mexican-made cars by China firms

Trump addressed Chinese President Xi Jinping directly during a rally speech in Dayton, Ohio on Saturday when threatening the tariffs

President Biden raises $10 mn in 1 day after his State of the Union speech

The fundraising haul is notable given the Biden campaign and his Democratic Party allies raised over $42 million in the entire month of January

Wake up, democracy under threat: US President Joe Biden to lawmakers

Biden's speech took aim squarely at Trump, criticising him and Republicans for blocking aid to Ukraine and sympathising with Russian President Vladimir Putin

Donald Trump slams Joe Biden, calls him 'angry, mentally disturbed'

Donald Trump on Friday blasted Joe Biden and his State of the Union address, saying that the US President was "angry and mentally disturbed" and suffers from a terminal case of "Trump derangement syndrome". Trump, 77, the Republican Party's presumptive nominee, was reacting to Biden's final State of the Union address, in which the 81-year-old Democrat slammed the former president on several issues, ranging from his recent comment on Russian President Vladimir Putin, immigration, January 6 insurrection, abortion, and gun control. Biden, who is seeking another term as the president, refrained from naming Trump but referred to him indirectly as his "predecessor" as many as 13 times during his speech on Thursday. In an interview with Fox News on Friday, Trump said that Biden "suffers from a terminal case of Trump derangement syndrome, which is only curable through impeachment." Reacting to Biden's address, Trump said, "He was angry, mentally disturbed, and misrepresenting a lot of the

Trump to finalise RNC takeover, to appoint daughter-in-law among leaders

Donald Trump is set to complete his takeover of the Republican National Committee on Friday when GOP officials vote to install the former president's hand-picked leadership team including his daughter-in-law Lara Trump. Michael Whatley, a North Carolina Republican who has echoed Trump's false theories of voter fraud, is set to be elected the party's new national chairman in a vote Friday morning in Houston. Lara Trump will become the co-chair. Trump's team is promising not to use the RNC to pay his mounting personal legal bills. But once the leadership changes are finalised, Trump and his lieutenants will have firm control of the party's political and fundraising machinery with limited, if any, internal pushback. Whatley will carry the top title, replacing longtime chair Ronna McDaniel after she fell out of favour with key figures in the former president's Make America Great Again movement. But he will be surrounded by people closer to Trump. Lara Trump is expected to focus largel

US House approves over $450 bn spending package to avert shutdown

The 1,050-page package calls for more than $450 billion in funding for the departments of Veterans Affairs, agriculture, interior, transportation, housing and urban development, etc

Kim Jong Un calls for greater fighting power against the US, South Korea

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for greater war fighting capabilities against the United States and South Korea, state media reported Thursday, after his defense ministry vowed to respond to ongoing military drills it views as an invasion rehearsal by its rivals. During a visit to a western operational training base on Wednesday, Kim said the military must steadily intensify the actual war drills aimed at rapidly improving its combat capabilities for perfect war preparedness, the official Korean Central News Agency said. Kim said the heightened readiness is required to contain the constant threat of the enemies with overwhelming force, KCNA said. It said Kim guided maneuvers of military units at the site but didn't elaborate. Kim has previously made similar calls for a stronger military numerous times. But his latest demand came two days after North Korea's Defense Ministry threatened to conduct unspecified responsible military activities because South Korean-U.S. militar

Tesla CEO Musk meets with Trump as former president seeks 2024 donors

Musk is the world's third richest man but has not been a major political donor, especially considering the size of his fortune, estimated at $192 billion

Prez Biden, Donald Trump poised to move closer to winning nominations

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are poised to move much closer to winning their party's nominations during the biggest day of the primary campaign on Tuesday, setting up a historic rematch that many voters would rather not endure. Super Tuesday elections are being held in 16 states and one territory from Alaska and California to Vermont and Virginia. Hundreds of delegates are at stake, the biggest haul for either party on any single day. While much of the focus is on the presidential race, there are also important down-ballot contests. California voters will choose candidates who will compete to fill the Senate seat long held by Dianne Feinstein. The governor's race will take shape in North Carolina, a state that both parties are fiercely contesting ahead of November. And in Los Angeles, a progressive prosecutor is attempting to fend off an intense reelection challenge in a race that could serve as a barometer of the politics of crime. But the premier races .

'Nikki who?': Trump campaign dismisses Haley after South Carolina win

Saturday's win in South Carolina makes Trump's march towards the Republican presidential nomination appear inevitable, and leaves Haley, despite her vow to battle on, no clear path to beating him

Kristi Noem, Vivek Ramaswamy top contenders for Trump's running mate

Trump had 94% support from the 1,478 CPAC attendees who participated, compared with 5% for Haley. The former president had a 96% approval of the job he did in office

Trump wants to fire thousands of govt workers, liberals prepare for his win

Former President Donald Trump has plans to radically reshape the federal government if he returns to the White House, from promising to deport millions of immigrants in the U.S. illegally to abolishing government agencies and firing tens of thousands of workers and replacing them with loyalists. Liberal organizations in Washington are backing President Joe Biden and say they expect Trump to lose. But they're quietly trying to install roadblocks just in case. A collection of activists, advocates and legal experts is promoting new federal rules to limit presidential power while urging Biden's White House to do more to protect his accomplishments and limit Trump in a possible second term. All of that is happening with far less fanfare than plans by Trump supporters to create a conservative government-in-waiting via an effort known as Project 2025. The Office of Personnel Management, the federal government's chief human resources agency, will finalize a rule by April against reclassifyi

US presidential election: Nikki Haley raises $16.5 mn in Jan for campaign

Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, the only challenger left against former president Donald Trump, has raised a massive USD 16.5 million in January, despite the Indian-American politician coming third and second in the two primaries so far. The USD 16.5 million in January includes USD 11.7 million from grassroots supporters, which added 69,274 new donors. This is Haley's best fundraising month and more than she raised in the first, second, and third quarters of 2023, a campaign release said. While Donald Trump blows USD 50 million of his donors' money on his legal cases, Nikki Haley has been focused on talking to voters and saving our country, said Haley national spokesperson Olivia Perez-Cubas. Hundreds of thousands of Americans are supporting Nikki's campaign because they don't want two grumpy old men and all their chaos, confusion, and grievances. They want a strong, conservative leader who will save this country, Perez-Cubas said. Haley, the 52-year-old former two-t