Trump news – live: Trump accused of skipping Miami restaurant check as GOP torn over indictment reaction

Oliver O'Connell
·28-min read

Donald Trump gloated on Thursday as he scored a rare legal win in the investigation into the taxes of his New York golf club.

The Westchester County, New York district attorney confirmed that a two-year investigation into the Trump Organization’s valuation of a golf club there has been closed and will not result in any criminal charges.

Mr Trump took to Truth Social to describe the dropping of the case as the “honorable thing to do” and asked “when do I get my reputation back?”

“WHEN WILL THE OTHER FAKE CASES AGAINST ME BE DROPPED? ELECTION INTERFERENCE!!!” he wrote in an all-caps rant.

The move comes just days after Mr Trump appeared in court in his second criminal case in as many months.

On Tuesday, the former president was arrested and arraigned on 37 charges over his handling of classified national security documents after leaving the White House to which he pleaded not guilty, claiming he was a victim of political persecution.

He marked his 77th birthday as the first current or former president arrested on federal criminal charges in American history.

Key Points

Did Trump skip out on the bill at Miami Cuban restaurant?

16:30 , Oliver O'Connell

When former President Donald Trump visited the iconic Versailles restaurant in Miami after being arraigned on 37 federal charges, he announced that there would be “food for all.” There was just one problem: according to a report in the Miami New Times, Mr Trump never picked up the tab.

Abe Asher reports.

Trump declared ‘food for all’ at Miami cafe – but skipped the bill

Trump lawyers file notice confirming compliance with judge’s order to contact DOJ

16:23 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump lawyers Todd Blanche and Chris Kise have filed the notice confirming they’ve complied with Judge Aileen Cannon’s order to contact the Department of Justice about expediting any necessary security clearances for the classified documents prosecution of former president Donald Trump to proceed.

Watch: Burgum sidestep Trump pardon question

16:10 , Oliver O'Connell

2024 GOP presidential candidate North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum sidesteps when asked if he would pardon Donald Trump: “I just tend to stay away from hypotheticals … If you wanna ask someone about pardoning President Trump, I mean, ask Biden. He could do it right now.”

Promise of payback for prosecution by Trump follows years of attacking democratic traditions

16:05 , Oliver O'Connell

As Donald Trump became the first former president to face federal charges, he and his supporters went through a familiar routine of mounting a victimhood defense in the face of unprecedented allegations of wrongdoing. But this time, the stakes are higher.

Trump upped the level of his claims and threats as he faces the potential of years in prison if convicted on 37 charges of obstruction, illegal retention of defense information and other violations. Hours after pleading not guilty, Trump claimed he is being targeted by the special prosecutor, who is nonpartisan, for political reasons and vowed to retaliate against President Joe Biden if he is elected president in 2024.

Read more...

Trump's promise of payback for prosecution follows years of attacking democratic traditions

Watch: Today in ‘whataboutism’

15:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Gov Ron DeSantis

Rep Elise Stefanik

Rep Mike Waltz

Trump responds to Kelly saying former president is ‘scare s***less'

15:10 , Oliver O'Connell

President Donald Trump’s former chief of staff, John Kelly, panned a short address given by his former boss on Tuesday as nothing more than panicked bluster in response to two criminal indictments filed by prosecutors in New York and the US Department of Justice, John Bowden reports.

Mr Kelly spoke to The Washington Post after the ex-president appeared at his resort in Bedminster, New Jersey, in front of a crowd of $1,000-a-pop attendees gathered hastily to hear his post-arraignment remarks.

And he chalked up the president’s threats to go after Joe Biden and his family with the full power of a weaponised Department of Justice as president to little more than a tantrum.

“He’s scared s***less,” said Mr Kelly. “This is the way he compensates for that. He gives people the appearance he doesn’t care by doing this.”

“For the first time in his life, it looks like he’s being held accountable. Up until this point in his life, it’s like, ‘I’m not going to pay you. Take me to court.’ He’s never been held accountable before,” added the former senior White House official and retired Marine Corps general.

Here’s what his former boss had to say on Truth Social this morning:

John Kelly pretended to be a “tough guy,” but was actually weak and ineffective, born with a VERY small “brain.” He had a hard time functioning in a political world, and was truly an exhausted and beaten man when I fired him. In the end he was a “mummy” who sat in his office and stared at the ceiling - he was “shot.” I’ll never forget how his very nice wife told me that “John loves you, and respects you more than anyone, he will always say the BEST things about you.” Oh well, so much for that!

Here is our full report on Mr Kelly’s remarks:

Trump is ‘scared s***less’, ex-White House chief of staff says

Trump hits out at the Lincoln Project’s latest ads

14:50 , Oliver O'Connell

This morning former president Donald Trump posted: “The Perverts and Misfits of the Lincoln Project have (barely!) gotten together again after their disgusting scandal, and pieced together some ads. They are running on fumes. Were they ever prosecuted for their crimes? Are their donors under investigation? Check it out!”

Here’s what’s got him so worked up:

They’ve used that creepy whispering format before in previous ads to wind up the former president.

Here’s the internal scandal Mr Trump was referring to at the organisation:

Lincoln Project co-founder calls for group to be ‘reformed or shut down’

Rove says Trump and America will pay high price for ex-president’s ‘reckless petulance’

12:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Karl Rove, deputy chief of staff to President George W Bush, eviscerated Donald Trump over the 37 charges he faces relating to the classified documents he hoarded at Mar-a-Lago in an opinion column, “Trump invited this indictment”, published by The Wall Street Journal on 14 June.

He echoed some other Republicans — including Bill Barr, Chris Christie, and Mike Pompeo — in his criticism of the former president, though certainly not all of his fellow Republicans.

“The blame for this calamity rests solely on Mr Trump and his childish impulse to keep mementos from his time in the Oval Office, no matter what the law says,” wrote Mr Rove.

Read more...

Karl Rove blames Trump’s ‘reckless petulance’ for classified documents indictment

Report: Trump declared ‘food for all’ in post-arrest stop at Miami cafe – but skipped the bill

12:15 , Oliver O'Connell

When former President Donald Trump visited the iconic Versailles restaurant in Miami after being arraigned on 37 federal charges, he announced that there would be “food for all.” There was just one problem: according to a report in the Miami New Times, Mr Trump never picked up the tab.

Abe Asher has the details.

Trump declared ‘food for all’ at Miami cafe – but skipped the bill, report says

DeSantis taunts Newsom: ‘Stop pussyfooting around’

11:15 , Oliver O'Connell

As Donald Trump does what he does best and sucks the political oxygen out of the room, over in what feels issue-wise like a proxy 2024 election race, the Republican governor of Florida Ron DeSantis had a feisty message for his California counterpart Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom.

Read more....

DeSantis taunts Newsom over 2024 run as California governor celebrates Disney Pride

Lindsey Graham says it would be a ‘major outrage’ if Trump indicted over Jan 6

10:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump loyalist Lindsey Graham was back in the running for the former president’s most vocal cheerleader in the Senate this week after he warned a CNN reporter that the GOP would revolt if Donald Trump were to face a third criminal indictment relating to January 6.

John Bowden reports.

Lindsey Graham says it would be a ‘major outrage’ if Trump is indicted over January 6

Fox News cuts off White House briefing just as ‘wannabe dictator’ Biden chyron mentioned

08:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Fox News appeared to mute and cut off a White House briefing on Wednesday when Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned the network for calling President Joe Biden a “wannabe dictator”.

Graig Graziosi has the story.

Fox News cuts off White House briefing as Biden ‘dictator’ chyron mentioned

Mike Pence spars with right-wing radio host

07:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Former vice president Mike Pence got into a heated exchange with a right-wing radio host about whether he would pardon former president Donald Trump were he to become president.

Mr Pence appeared on “The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show” on Wednesday where he was asked by Mr Travis if he would pardon Mr Trump if he were facing prison time by the time Mr Pence potentially became president.

Eric Garcia reports.

Mike Pence spars with right-wing radio host over question of Trump pardon

Eric Trump forgets Barron’s age as he goes on bizarre Newsmax rant

05:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Eric Trump proved the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree this week – when a rambling rant on Newsmax saw him widely mocked on social media.

The son of former president Donald Trump lashed out at the Democratic Party in a fiery monologue where he claimed the party would raid his teenage half-brother Barron’s underwear drawer.

Rachel Sharp has the story.

Eric Trump mocked over bizarre Newsmax rant about Barron’s underwear drawer

Indictment is all the fault of ‘mutants’, according to Trump

04:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s indictment is not only an extension of the “biggest witch hunt of all time”, but mutants are involved too – that is according to the former president’s latest bizarre rant on Truth Social.

In a characteristically rambling post on the social meda site on Wednesday, Mr Trump said that the indictment “hoax” was the fault of misfits, marxists and communists – as well as “mutants”.

Rachel Sharp reports.

Trump now blames ‘mutants’ for indictment in latest Truth Social rant

Recap: Is Donald Trump going to prison?

03:15 , Oliver O'Connell

It’s the question everyone wants to know the answer to...

Is Donald Trump going to prison?

Report: Trump was not interested in negotiating settlement over mishandling of secret papers

02:15 , Oliver O'Connell

A current member of former President Donald Trump’s legal team suggested as far back as 2022 that his client should seek a settlement with the federal government over allegations that he retained presidential records and classified materials including, reportedly, defence documents.

That lawyer was Christopher Kise, according to the Washington Post, who was seen with the twice-impeached ex-president as recently as Tuesday for the latter’s appearance before a Miami judge.

John Bowden reports.

Trump was not interested in negotiating settlement over mishandling of secret papers

Karl Rove says Trump and America will pay high price for ex-president’s ‘reckless petulance’

01:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Karl Rove, deputy chief of staff to President George W Bush, eviscerated Donald Trump over the 37 charges he faces relating to the classified documents he hoarded at Mar-a-Lago in an opinion column, “Trump invited this indictment”, published by The Wall Street Journal on 14 June.

He echoed some other Republicans — including Bill Barr, Chris Christie, and Mike Pompeo — in his criticism of the former president, though certainly not all of his fellow Republicans.

“The blame for this calamity rests solely on Mr Trump and his childish impulse to keep mementos from his time in the Oval Office, no matter what the law says,” wrote Mr Rove.

Read more...

Karl Rove blames Trump’s ‘reckless petulance’ for classified documents indictment

Voices: Trump’s indictment puts his Republican opponents in an impossible position

Friday 16 June 2023 00:15 , Oliver O'Connell

The wrath of GOP voters means Republican primary candidates cannot offer even the mildest critiques of him.

Eric Garcia explains:

Trump’s indictment puts his Republican opponents in an impossible position

Asked about allegations of bribery, Biden chuckles

Thursday 15 June 2023 23:45 , Oliver O'Connell

President Joe Biden chuckled and walked off when he was asked about allegations of bribery from his time as vice president pushed by congressional Republicans.

“Are there tapes that you accepted bribes, President Biden? Is that true?” Mr Biden was asked by the New York Post on Tuesday as he left an event attended by US diplomats at the White House.

Mr Biden stopped walking for a moment before smiling and chuckling, shaking his head as he carried on down the hall.

Gustaf Kilander reports from Washington, DC.

Biden chuckles when asked about bribery allegations from time as vice president

World leaders stay quiet on Trump indictment

Thursday 15 June 2023 23:15 , Oliver O'Connell

In the final days of the 2016 U.S. election campaign, European Union leader Donald Tusk could no longer contain himself: “One Donald is more than enough!” he wrote on Twitter. When Trump was elected less than a week later, it made for an awkward start to what proved to be four difficult years of trans-Atlantic relations.

As Trump becomes the first former president to face federal charges that could put him in jail, many Europeans are watching the case closely. But hardly a single world leader has said a thing recently about the man leading the race for the Republican party nomination.

Continue reading...

Everyone’s got something to say about Trump – except these world leaders

Meanwhile in another classified documents case...

Thursday 15 June 2023 22:45 , Oliver O'Connell

US Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston on Thursday for allegedly leaking highly classified materials on social media, according to the Justice Department.

The Massachusetts man, 21, could face a sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 if convicted.

Developing story...

Jack Teixeira indicted for sharing classified defence documents on Discord

Criminal probe into Trump Westchester golf course is closed, DA says

Thursday 15 June 2023 22:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Per CBS News:

A two-year criminal investigation into the Trump Organization's valuations of a golf club in Westchester County, New York, has been closed, the county's district attorney, Miriam Rocah, confirmed Thursday.

“Part of why I'm saying anything at all is that I think it's really important, more important than ever in our country, to make sure that people understand that we have independent prosecutors, we have a justice system that operates independent of politics,” Rocah, a Democrat, told CBS News after a press conference announcing arrests and other updates in several cold case homicides.

“I can stand here and proudly say that I'm one of those prosecutors, and I look at every subject of any investigation, every organization that's a subject of an investigation, the same way.”

Newsom responds to DeSantis taunt

Thursday 15 June 2023 22:35 , Oliver O'Connell

What happened to Trump’s ‘food for all’ promise?

Thursday 15 June 2023 22:30 , Oliver O'Connell

When former President Donald Trump visited the iconic Versailles restaurant in Miami after being arraigned on 37 federal charges, he announced that there would be “food for all.” There was just one problem: according to a report in the Miami New Times, Mr Trump never picked up the tab.

Abe Asher reports.

Trump declared ‘food for all’ at Miami cafe – but skipped the bill, report says

Trump asks when all charges will be dropped

Thursday 15 June 2023 22:25 , Oliver O'Connell

Former president Donald Trump has broken a lengthy Truth Social silence by asking when all the charges against him will be dropped and when everything will be returned to him.

No, really...

Here’s what he posted:

SO NOW THAT EVERYONE UNDERSTANDS THAT THE PRESIDENTIAL RECORDS ACT, PLUS THE CLINTON SOCKS CASE, TOTALLY EXONERATED ME FROM THE CONTINUING WITCH HUNT BROUGHT ON BY CORRUPT JOE BIDEN, THE DOJ, DERANGED JACK SMITH, AND THEIR RADICAL LEFT, MARXIST THUGS, WHEN ARE THEY GOING TO DROP ALL CHARGES AGAINST ME, APOLOGIZE, AND RETURN EVERYTHING THAT WAS ILLEGALLY TAKEN (FOURTH AMENDMENT) FROM MY HOME? THIS WAS NOTHING OTHER THAN ELECTION INTERFERENCE!!!

And then he added:

PROSECUTORIAL MISCONDUCT AT A LEVEL SELDOM SEEN IN OUR COUNTRY BEFORE

And then:

AFTER GOING THROUGH A CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION FOR TWO YEARS BY THE DISTRICT ATTORNEYS OFFICE IN WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NEW YORK, IT WAS JUST ANNOUNCED THAT THE CASE HAS BEEN DROPPED, AND NO CHARGES WILL BE FILED. THIS WAS THE HONORABLE THING TO DO IN THAT I DID NOTHING WRONG, BUT WHERE AND WHEN DO I GET MY REPUTATION BACK? WHEN WILL THE OTHER FAKE CASES AGAINST ME BE DROPPED? ELECTION INTERFERENCE!!!

Trump says he didn’t return classified boxes because they contained ‘shoes and shirts and everything’

Thursday 15 June 2023 22:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Former President Donald Trump has finally addressed the reason he allegedly failed to return boxes of classified documents to the federal government: he’d put his clothes in them.

No, really.

Abe Asher has the story.

Trump says he refused to give back boxes because they contained ‘shoes and shirts’

Dates for the calendar: Trump’s current legal schedule

Thursday 15 June 2023 22:02 , Oliver O'Connell

Explained: ‘Beautiful mind paper boxes’

Thursday 15 June 2023 21:52 , Oliver O'Connell

A photo published by the US Justice Department in their charging document against former President Donald Trump shows boxes of documents stored in a bathroom at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida in early 2021 (Justice Department via REUTERS)
A photo published by the US Justice Department in their charging document against former President Donald Trump shows boxes of documents stored in a bathroom at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida in early 2021 (Justice Department via REUTERS)

It came up in the indictment and had more than a few people scratching their heads — why were the boxes of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago referred to as “beautiful mind paper boxes” by some of his aides?

The phrase does refer to the Russell Crowe movie A Beautiful Mind as most expected. Maggie Haberman, Alan Feuer and Michael Schmidt of The New York Times explain:

During former President Donald J Trump’s years in the White House, his aides began to refer to the boxes full of papers and odds and ends he carted around with him almost everywhere as the “beautiful mind” material.

It was a reference to the title of a book and movie depicting the life of John F. Nash Jr., the mathematician with schizophrenia played in the film by Russell Crowe, who covered his office with newspaper clippings, believing they held a Russian code he needed to crack.

The phrase had a specific connotation. The aides employed it to capture a type of organized chaos that Mr Trump insisted on, the collection and transportation of a blizzard of newspapers and official documents that he kept close and that seemed to give him a sense of security.

One former White House official, who was granted anonymity to describe the situation, said that while the materials were disorganized, Mr Trump would notice if somebody had rifled through them or they were not arranged in a particular way. It was, the person said, how “his mind worked.”

Trump appears to wield infamous Sharpie to sign arraignment bond document

Thursday 15 June 2023 21:45 , Oliver O'Connell

It was a feature of his presidency and sometimes a source of amusement, but Donald Trump’s love of Sharpie marker pens has resurfaced as he signed the bond document at his arraignment on federal charges in Miami on Tuesday.

Read more...

Trump appears to wield infamous Sharpie to sign bond document at arraignment

DeSantis taunts Newsom over 2024 run as California Gov celebrates Disney Pride: ‘Stop pussyfooting around'

Thursday 15 June 2023 21:30 , Oliver O'Connell

As Donald Trump does what he does best and sucks the political oxygen out of the room, over in what feels issue-wise like a proxy 2024 election race, the Republican governor of Florida Ron DeSantis had a feisty message for his California counterpart Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom.

Read more...

DeSantis taunts Newsom over 2024 run as California governor celebrates Disney Pride

Fox host shouted down co-presenters for trying to explain charges against Trump

Thursday 15 June 2023 21:15 , Oliver O'Connell

The hosts of the Fox News programme The Five didn’t seem terribly interested in hearing about the federal charges against Donald Trump after he was arraigned in Miami on 37 counts in relation to his alleged mishandling of national defence information.

Jessica Tarlov, described by Fox News observer Katherine Abughazaleh as the network’s “token liberal,” attempted to explain the allegations against the former president on Tuesday afternoon.

Gustaf Kilander reports on what happened next.

Fox hosts shout down co-presenter as she tries to explain charges against Trump

Karl Rove blames Trump’s ‘reckless petulance’ for classified documents indictment

Thursday 15 June 2023 21:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Karl Rove, deputy chief of staff to President George W Bush, eviscerated Donald Trump over the 37 charges he faces relating to the classified documents he hoarded at Mar-a-Lago in an opinion column published by The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.

He echoed some (Bill Barr, Chris Christie, Mike Pompeo) in his criticism of the former president, though certainly not all of his fellow Republicans.

“The blame for this calamity rests solely on Mr Trump and his childish impulse to keep mementos from his time in the Oval Office, no matter what the law says,” wrote Mr Rove.

The Republican did voice concerns over the process that led to Mr Trump being indicted: “Even so, the case will further tear our country apart, as it has a heavy impact on the presidential campaign and — wrongly — undermines confidence in our justice system.”

However, he did praise the indictment as being “devastating in its rigour of evidence and the seriousness of the alleged crimes”.

After describing the alarming nature of the classified information that Mr Trump took, Mr Rove says the former president must have known he was breaking the law: “Those documents didn’t belong to Mr Trump, and he surely knew that. The president’s lawyers and staff must have warned him he couldn’t take the files.”

Mr Rove then explains the National Security Council system for tracking such documents and that it would have been explained to the former president that the National Archives and Records Administration would have been provided with that data and would know if anything was missing and knew when he returned some that he had more — hence why an FBI search was needed to retrieve the rest.

“Mr Trump says there’s no criminal penalty for violating the Presidential Records Act. That’s true, but it only highlights how damning his behavior was. Congress thought a law so simple and clear would be honoured by anyone entrusted with the presidency,” he writes.

In his conclusion, Mr Rove is damning, writing: “Instead of living up to his office, Mr Trump treated it and America’s national security flippantly, taking thousands of presidential records, among them hundreds of highly classified documents.

“Any staffer found guilty of doing that would go to prison for breaking the laws protecting the nation’s secrets, as Mr Trump is now charged.”

Mr Rove adds that the country “will pay a high price for the former president’s reckless petulance”, but “so will he.”

Dershowitz says evidence in indictment is like ‘a gun with Trump’s fingerprints on it’

Thursday 15 June 2023 20:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Retired Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz said that the indictment against former president Donald Trump that led to his arraignment on Wednesday is the most serious case against him, comparing it to “a gun with Trump’s fingerprints on it.”

Eric Garcia reports.

Ex-Trump lawyer: evidence in indictment is ‘a gun with Trump’s fingerprints on it’

Why is Trump’s case different to Biden and Pence?

Thursday 15 June 2023 20:21 , Oliver O'Connell

There’s a major difference between what happened when classified documents were discovered at the homes of the former vice president and current president and what happened when they were found to be at Mar-a-Lago.

Alex Woodward explains.

Why Trump’s indictment can’t compare to cases involving Biden, Pence and Clinton

Lindsey Graham says it would be a ‘major outrage’ if Trump indicted over Jan 6

Thursday 15 June 2023 19:50 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump loyalist Lindsey Graham was back in the running for the former president’s most vocal cheerleader in the Senate this week after he warned a CNN reporter that the GOP would revolt if Donald Trump were to face a third criminal indictment relating to January 6.

John Bowden has the latest from the South Carolina senator.

Lindsey Graham says it would be a ‘major outrage’ if Trump is indicted over January 6

GOP rivals grapple with their response to Trump legal woes

Thursday 15 June 2023 19:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Just last week, former Vice President Mike Pence said he hoped federal prosecutors would not bring charges against former President Donald Trump. On Wednesday, a day after Trump was arraigned on dozens of felony counts related to classified documents, Pence described the allegations as “a very serious matter.”

“I cannot defend what is alleged,” Pence, who is now challenging Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, said on CNBC.

Read more...

Trump’s GOP rivals grapple with their response a

Judge Aileen Cannon issues first order in USA v Trump

Thursday 15 June 2023 19:08 , Oliver O'Connell

Judge Aileen Cannon is directing lawyers in USA v Trump to consult with the Department of Justice and “expedite the necessary clearance process for all team members anticipated to participate in this matter, and thereafter file a Notice of Compliance no later than June 20, 2023”.

Garland defends Trump indictment and denies Biden involvement

Thursday 15 June 2023 19:05 , Oliver O'Connell

Merrick Garland defended special counsel Jack Smith’s integrity in his first public remarks over Donald Trump’s indictment even as the former president alleged the Justice Department has been “weaponised”.

The attorney general on Wednesday reiterated that he had named Mr Smith as the special counsel to lead the investigations and ensure “independence and accountability”.

Maroosha Muzaffar reports.

Merrick Garland defends Trump indictment and denies Biden administration involvement

Trump 2024 campaign rakes in over $7m from post-arraignment appearances

Thursday 15 June 2023 18:45 , Oliver O'Connell

A day after Donald Trump was arraigned on 37 federal charges related to his alleged retention of classified documents, he was back fundraising for his presidential run – raking in over $7m, according to his campaign.

“The American people will not stand for this corrupt attempt to interfere in the 2024 election against the leading candidate for President who will demolish the Deep State and finish the job of draining the Swamp,” Trump spokesperson Liz Harrington announced in a statement on Wednesday.

Read more from Ariana Baio and Josh Marcus.

Trump fundraises over $7m from post-arraignment appearances

Palin mocked for response to being asked if Trump supporters are a cult

Thursday 15 June 2023 18:25 , Oliver O'Connell

Sarah Palin is facing fresh derision after she denied that Donald Trump’s devoted Maga base was a cult — before accurately describing its cult-like characteristics.

Bevan Hurley has the story.

Sarah Palin mocked for response to being asked if Trump is a cult

Fox News cuts off White House briefing just as ‘wannabe dictator’ Biden chyron mentioned

Thursday 15 June 2023 18:03 , Oliver O'Connell

Fox News appeared to mute and cut off a White House briefing on Wednesday when Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned the network for calling President Joe Biden a “wannabe dictator”.

Graig Graziosi reports.

Fox News cuts off White House briefing as Biden ‘dictator’ chyron mentioned

Feisty words from DeSantis to Newsom about 2024 race

Thursday 15 June 2023 17:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis had a feisty message for his California counterpart Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom this morning: “Stop pussyfooting around. Are you going to throw your hat in the ring and challenge Joe (Biden)? … Or are you just going to sit on the sidelines?”

While Mr Newsom has no official plans to enter the race for the White House, he is seen as a possible contender for a future run and appears to be positioning himself as such by raising his national profile.

The two governors have been clashing over Mr DeSantis’s migrant flights to California and Martha’s Vineyard (more details below) and both have very different attitudes toward Disney — which has its major operations in both of their states.

The long, bitter rivalry between Ron DeSantis and Gavin Newsom

Mr DeSantis is in an all-out legal war with the entertainment corporation over its opposition to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill, while Mr Newsom attended the first-ever Pride Night at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, on Wednesday evening and met with executives about their planned expansion.

Trump not interested in negotiating settlement over mishandling of classified documents, report says

Thursday 15 June 2023 17:15 , Oliver O'Connell

A current member of former President Donald Trump’s legal team suggested as far back as 2022 that his client should seek a settlement with the federal government over allegations that he retained presidential records and classified materials including, reportedly, defence documents.

That lawyer was Christopher Kise, according to the Washington Post, who was seen with the twice-impeached ex-president as recently as Tuesday for the latter’s appearance before a Miami judge.

John Bowden has the details.

Trump was not interested in negotiating settlement over mishandling of secret papers

Pence spars with right-wing radio host over question of Trump pardon

Thursday 15 June 2023 16:50 , Oliver O'Connell

Former vice president Mike Pence got into a heated exchange with a right-wing radio host about whether he would pardon former president Donald Trump were he to become president.

Mr Pence appeared on “The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show” on Wednesday where he was asked by Mr Travis if he would pardon Mr Trump if he were facing prison time by the time Mr Pence potentially became president.

Eric Garcia has the story.

Mike Pence spars with right-wing radio host over question of Trump pardon

Eric Trump forgets Barron’s age as he goes on bizarre Newsmax rant

Thursday 15 June 2023 16:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Eric Trump proved the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree this week – when a rambling rant on Newsmax saw him widely mocked on social media.

The son of former president Donald Trump lashed out at the Democratic Party in a fiery monologue where he claimed the party would raid his teenage half-brother Barron’s underwear drawer.

Rachel Sharp reports.

Eric Trump mocked over bizarre Newsmax rant about Barron’s underwear drawer

There is a two-tiered justice system in the US, says Barr — Trump is not a victim of it

Thursday 15 June 2023 16:10 , Oliver O'Connell

Bill Barr made another appearance on Fox News to discuss the Trump indictment in an interview with Bret Baier.

Having laughed off the hyperbolic defences of the former president from some of his loyalists, Baier asked the former attorney general about complaints from Republicans abotu there being “two tiers of justice” in the US.

He cited John Durham’s assessment that the FBI lacked any factual basis to launch the Trump-Russia investigation against Donald Trump, and also the complaints about why Hillary Clinton wasn’t prosecuted for obstruction of justice over her documents probe while Mr Trump was arraigned this week.

Mr Barr agreed that “there is a two-tiered system of justice,” and said that he tried to address it while he was attorney general.

As to how to address this “unfairness,” Mr Barr answered with another question while also reiterating his rejection of the idea that Mr Trump is a political victim.

Here’s what he said:

Do you do it by letting someone who has — if you believe they flagrantly violated the law. Do you give them a pass? Is that how we fix the two-tiered system of justice? Because it’s not unjust to that person — to take them, hold him to account — if in fact, they committed a flagrant violation. I think the injustice in the situation is the failure to do things six years earlier on Hillary Clinton. And I think you address that by trying to uphold what is the right standard and apply it to people as they go. You don’t get to restore the rule of law by further derogating from the rule of law.

Watch the full interview on Fox News

What is the ‘Clinton socks case’ that Trump believes gets him off the hook?

Thursday 15 June 2023 15:55 , Oliver O'Connell

And is he right?

Andrew Feinberg reports for The Independent from Miami.

Trump says ‘Clinton socks case’ gets him off the hook – what was it and is he right?

Trump’s lawsuits and criminal charges: Where do they all stand now?

Thursday 15 June 2023 15:35 , Oliver O'Connell

Here’s what you need to know about all the major investigations and lawsuits against Donald Trump.

All the investigations Trump still faces following his second arrest

Watch: Florida Rep Gimenez really not a fan of Miami mayor’s entrance into GOP primary race

Thursday 15 June 2023 15:22 , Oliver O'Connell

Rep Carlos Giménez (R-FL), who has already endorsed Donald Trump, reacted to the news that Miami Mayor Francis Suarez is now also running for president in the GOP primary. He told Fox News: “I don’t think that he’s qualified to be president of the United States in any way, shape, or form ... He’s not qualified to be VP, he’s not qualified to be anything.”

Top takeaways from Trump’s post-arrest speech in Bedminster

Thursday 15 June 2023 15:10 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump was in typical form on Tuesday evening as he appeared before a throng of supporters in Bedminster, New Jersey, to denounce his latest criminal indictment.

The ex-president delivered a roughly 30-minute address to a crowd of fans who descended upon the golf club to hear him swipe at political rivals and anyone else whose own actions he thought could be used to paint his own as harmless.

It was a rambling speech broken up by an impromptu singing of “Happy Birthday” from Mr Trump’s harmonically-challenged fans, whose rendition of the tune dissolved into a slurred mess by the conclusion.

But it was also revealing in that it previewed the roughshod defence that Mr Trump and his legal team apparently hope to make before a judge, as the former president aimed a shotgun-like spray of similar accusations at nearly every other prominent occupant of the White House of the past decade and a half.

So what can we learn from the former president’s remarks?

What we learned from Trump’s post-arraignment speech

Watch: Trump reportedly rejected his lawyer's efforts to avoid classified documents indictment

Thursday 15 June 2023 14:55 , Oliver O'Connell

Merrick Garland defends Trump indictment and denies any Biden administration involvement

Thursday 15 June 2023 14:05 , Rachel Sharp

Merrick Garland defended special counsel Jack Smith’s integrity in his first public remarks over Donald Trump’s indictment even as the former president alleged the Justice Department has been “weaponised”.

The attorney general on Wednesday reiterated that he had named Mr Smith as the special counsel to lead the investigations and ensure “independence and accountability”.

“As I said when I appointed Mr Smith, I did so because it underscores the Justice Department’s commitment to both independence and accountability,” Mr Garland said on the former president’s indictment.

Read more here:

Merrick Garland defends Trump indictment and denies Biden administration involvement

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