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President-elect Donald Trump has so far avoided public appearances for the last week after his election victory as he begins to staff his administration from his base at Mar-a-Lago, his private Florida club.
Trump has held no press conferences and given no speeches after the election as he’s surrounded by advisers, aides, friends, and club members advising him on his next moves.
This comes as Judge Juan Merchan is postponing a decision on whether to undo Trump’s criminal conviction in the hush money case against him because of April’s Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity.
The judge had been set to rule on Tuesday but instead told Trump’s lawyers that he would delay until November 19.
The Republican has meanwhile chosen Florida Senator Marco Rubio to be his secretary of state and Florida congressman Mike Waltz to be his national security adviser as his White House team continues to take shape.
The president-elect is also reportedly preparing to appoint South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to lead the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Trump will meet with Joe Biden at the White House on Wednesday to discuss a transition schedule as the Senate elects a new majority leader.
Trump selects Mike Waltz to be national security advisor
Trump has officially announced that Florida congressman Mike Waltz is set to be his national security adviser.
I am honored to announce that Congressman Mike Waltz (R-FL) is hereby appointed to serve in my Cabinet as my National Security Advisor.
Mike is the first Green Beret to have been elected to Congress, and previously served in the White House and Pentagon.
Mike served in the Army Special Forces for 27 years where he was deployed multiple times in combat for which he was awarded four Bronze Stars, including two with Valor.
Mike retired as a Colonel, and is a nationally recognized leader in National Security, a bestselling author, and an expert on the threats posed by China, Russia, Iran, and global terrorism.
He serves as a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
Mike is a distinguished graduate with honors of the Virginia Military Institute.
Mike has been a strong champion of my America First Foreign Policy agenda, and will be a tremendous champion of our pursuit of Peace through Strength!
President-elect Donald Trump
Gustaf Kilander12 November 2024 19:40
Trump stays out of view following election victory
President-elect Donald Trump has been staying out of the public limelight since his election victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.
The former president has been conspicuously absent from the public stage, holding no press conferences, and giving no speeches as he begins to staff his next administration and reconnect with foreign leaders from his base in Mar-a-Lago, his private Florida club.
While Trump has not been seen in public, he has been surrounded by advisers, aides, friends, and club members advising him on his next moves as he prepares to move back into the White House.
Billionaire Elon Musk has been at his side throughout the last week – Musk leads companies with billions in federal contracts.
There are some who view Musk as the second most influential person at Trump’s side, following the woman he has chosen to be his chief of staff, Susie Wiles.
Gustaf Kilander12 November 2024 19:26
Wall Street makes wagers on the likely winners and losers in a second Trump term
Wall Street is already making big bets on what take two for a White House led by Donald Trump will mean for the economy.
Since Election Day, investors have sent prices zooming for stocks of banks, fossil-fuel producers and other companies expected to benefit from Trump’s preference for lower tax rates and lighter regulation. For retailers, meanwhile, the outlook is murkier because of uncertainty about whether they’ll be able to absorb any of the higher costs created by tariffs.
Professional investors are warning about the risk of getting carried away by the momentum. While strong rhetoric on the campaign trail can cause these big swings, not all of the promises turn into actual policy. Plus, the broad U.S. stock market tends to move more on long-term growth in profits than anything else.
Associated Press12 November 2024 19:20
Trump selects Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel
Trump has chosen former Arkansas Governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee to be the US ambassador to Israel.
“I am pleased to announce that the Highly Respected former Governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee, has been nominated to be The United States Ambassador to Israel,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike has been a great public servant, Governor, and Leader in Faith for many years. He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him. Mike will work tirelessly to bring about Peace in the Middle East!”
Gustaf Kilander12 November 2024 19:14
‘He doesn’t listen to anyone’: Author of Trump tell-all rejects idea groups can influence his decision making
Despite the fear surrounding Project 2025’s influence during the 2024 campaign cycle, the Fire and Fury author expects that prominent rightwing think-tanks will have little influence over the president-elect. Wolff, who has written numerous books about Trump during his presidency, predicted his second term will serve as the preamble for his first: “He doesn’t listen to anybody…he just does what he wants to do.”
When asked what Trump 2.0 would look like, the journalist told the Hollywood Reporter: “The obvious answer is: we know what it’s going to be like because we’ve already lived through it before.”
Kelly Rissman12 November 2024 19:00
Fetterman announces support for Rubio as secretary of state
Gustaf Kilander12 November 2024 18:40
Trump converts campaign to leadership PAC
Donald Trump has converted his presidential campaign to a leadership PAC entitled “Never Surrender, Inc,” according to a new filing.
Gustaf Kilander12 November 2024 18:20
‘I apologize to absolutely nobody’: Tony Hinchcliffe addresses ‘garbage’ remarks
The comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, known as Kill Tony, addressed his remarks during Trump’s October Madison Square Garden rally when he referred to Puerto Rico as an island of “garbage.”
On a podcast episode he released on Monday, he said: “It was a speech about free speech, believe it or not. I am currently under attack. I am the news. I referenced Puerto Rico, which currently has a landfill problem in which all of their landfills are filled to the brim. I am the only person who knew about this, unfortunately.”
“With that said, I just want to say that I love Puerto Ricans, they’re very smart people — they’re smart, they’re street smart, they’re smart enough to know when they’re being used as political fodder. Right now that is happening,” he added. “I apologize to absolutely nobody. Not to the Puerto Ricans, not to the whites, not to the Blacks, not to the Palestinians, not to the Jews, and not to my own mother, who I made fun of during the set.”
“Nobody clipped that. No headlines about me making fun of my own mother. Perhaps that venue at that time wasn’t the best f****** place to do this set at,” Hinchcliffe said. “But in any matter, to the mainstream media and to anybody trying to slander me online: That’s what I do, and that’s never going to change.”
Gustaf Kilander12 November 2024 18:00
Cornyn appeals to Trump supporters in Senate leadership race
Texas Senator John Cornyn made an appeal to Trump supporters in the upper chamber in a letter to colleagues amid the Republican senate leadership race to replace outgoing leader Mitch McConnell.
“In order to Make America Great Again, we must Make the Senate Work Again,” Cornyn wrote.
Gustaf Kilander12 November 2024 17:50
Chris Christie says Trump’s most effective campaign ad was one on Harris’s trans rights policy
The ex-New Jersey governor has claimed that the Trump campaign’s most effective ad during the 2024 race was one which focused on attacking Kamala Harris’s transgender rights policy.
The former Trump ally-turned-critic said that Democrats focused on trans issues and pronouns during the Harris campaign, which could have pushed moderate liberals to vote Republican.
He specifically pointed to one particular Trump campaign attack ad which ran with the argument: “Kamala is for they/them. President Trump is for you.”
“The most effective ad that the Trump campaign ran in this campaign was, you know, ‘Kamala Harris is for they/them, and Donald Trump is for us,’” Christie said in a panel discussion on ABC News’s This Week with Jonathan Karl.
“That’s because most people don’t see themselves as they/them. Yet, the Democrats have spent more time talking about a trans issue, which, quite frankly, is infinitesimal.”
Joe Sommerlad12 November 2024 17:35