Trump news – live: Series of explosive allegations made against president including accusations he asked China to help him win 2020 election

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UK-US deal 'almost impossible' before 2020 election, says Trump's trade representative

A pre-publication release of John Bolton's upcoming book unleashed a flood of shocking revelations about Donald Trump's presidency, including asking Xi Jinping to help his re-election campaign and voicing his approval of Chinese internment camps for Muslims.

Trump meanwhile said he would support Colin Kaepernick's return to the NFL, and said if there was one thing he could change about his handling of race relations was his "tone".

Police reform hangs in the balance as Democrats and Republicans move forward with separate bills following the president's executive order to increasing policing standards.

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Key Points

• Trump had no idea UK was a nuclear power, Bolton says
• Trump would support a Colin Kaepernick return to NFL
• Trump obsessed with sending CD of Elton John's 'Rocket Man' to Kim Jong-un, Bolton says
• Trump backed Xi over concentration camps for Uighur Muslims, ex-aide Bolton claims
• Trump asked China president to help him win 2020 election, new Bolton book claims

[17 June 2020 19:30 · Danielle Zoellner]

If Governor Cuomo really wants to get through to New Yorkers, he needs to use these tricks from cognitive psychology

Christopher Seneca​ with his analysis:

[17 June 2020 20:00 · Danielle Zoellner]

Kellyanne Conway says 'peacefully protesting' outside shows people can attend a MAGA rally indoors ​John T Bennett has the report: 

[17 June 2020 20:18 · Danielle Zoellner]

   Trump asked China president to help him win 2020 election, new Bolton book claimsDonald Trump "pleaded" with Chinese President Xi Jinping to help him win reelection in 2020 by purchasing more US farming products, Mr Trump's former national security advisor John Bolton has claimed in his new book set to be released next week.

The breaking news here: 

[17 June 2020 20:40 · Danielle Zoellner]

Biden accuses self-styled 'wartime president' Trump of raising white flag over coronavirus

 In remarks at a campaign event in Darby, Pennsylvania, Joe Biden delivered a scathing attack on President Donald Trump's response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The former vice president said that while Mr Trump styles himself as a wartime president against an invisible enemy, unlike other wartime leaders he takes no responsibility, exercises no leadership and has now surrendered.

"Instead of leading the charge to defeat the virus he just basically waved a white flag and has retreated," Mr Biden said.

Oliver O'Connell has more on this story: 

[17 June 2020 20:56 · Danielle Zoellner]

Covid-19 cases increase in Tulsa ahead of rally

Tulsa, Oklahoma, has reported an increase in coronavirus cases in recent days leading up to President Donald Trump's rally on Saturday. 

The city reported 96 new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday, according to the Tulsa Health Department. This was a new daily record for the area. 

Attendees of the president's rally were asked to sign a waiver prior to attending that prevented them from suing the campaign if they were to contract the novel virus from the rally.  

[17 June 2020 21:20 · Danielle Zoellner]

Trump cared little about North Korea's nuclear weapons and treated Kim Jong-un summit as publicity exercise, Bolton says

Donald Trump cared little about North Korea's nuclear arsenal when he met with Kim Jong Un and was more interested in making friends with the dictator as he treated the historic meeting as "an exercise in publicity," a former senior aide says.

"Trump told ... me he was prepared to sign a substance-free communique, have his press conference to declare victory and then get out of town," former Trump national security adviser John Bolton writes in a coming book, according to the Washington Post.

Mr Bolton writes that ahead of the big North Korea summit, Mr Trump insisted on giving Kim gifts that violated US sanctions on the country. US officials were forced to waive those sanctions, he contends.

John T Bennett reports: 

[17 June 2020 21:37 · Danielle Zoellner]

Trump backed Xi over concentration camps for Uighur Muslims, ex-aide Bolton claims

More explosive accounts from former national security adviser John Bolton has been released ahead of his book launch later this week. 

The book, according to The Washington Post, also includes Donald Trump agreeing with Chinese President Xi Jinping that concentration camps to "re-educate" Ulghur Muslims was the right thing to do. 

Our report: 

[17 June 2020 21:52 · Danielle Zoellner]

Top Democrat involved in Trump impeachment inquiry lashes out at Bolton's new book

Representative Adam Schiff, a Democrat for California, reacted to some of the bombshells released in John Bolton's new book. 

Mr Bolton worked as the national security adviser for Donald Trump. 

In his book, he criticised the House impeachment inquiry into the president and said that they should've looked at all dealings Mr Trump was doing, not just Ukraine. Mr Schiff, who led the inquiry, was quick to point out that the former adviser was asked to speak in front of Congress during the impeachment inquiry but declined. 

[17 June 2020 22:10 · Danielle Zoellner]

US federal government left with 63 million doses of hydroxychloroquine

The federal government was left with 63 million doses of hydroxychloroquine after the US Food and Drug Administration revoked its emergency permission for using the drug to treat the coronavirus. 

A national stockpile of the drug formed after limited studies suggested the anti-malaria drug could help against the novel virus. Donald Trump even took the drug and promoted it to Americans despite a lack of clear results on its effects. 

More and more studies, though, have determined the drug does not treat or diminish effects of Covid-19. 

The FDA has since removed its emergency declaration that allowed hospitals and doctors prescribe the drug to patients who had the virus. 

"HHS is working with the companies that donated the product to determine the available options for the product that remains in the Strategic National Stockpile," a spokesperson with the US Department of Health and Human Service told CNN. 

The drug is normal used for lupus patients or those with malaria.

[17 June 2020 22:45 · Justin Vallejo]

Putin 'had to be laughing uproariously' at Trump after Helsinki summit, Bolton says

From The Independent's John T Bennett.

A former top aide to Donald Trump concluded Russian President Vladimir Putin likely was "laughing" at the US president following a 2018 summit in Helsinki.

John Bolton, Mr Trump's former national security adviser, makes the claim in a book due out next week -- unless a federal judge blocks it after the Trump administration filed a lawsuit claiming it is full of classified information.

Among Mr Bolton's claims in the book is that Mr Trump was reluctant to enact policies designed to clamp down on Russian aggression towards the United States and its interests. He does little in the tome to explain his conclusions about the American leader's feelings towards Russia and Mr Putin.

But Mr Bolton does provide a peek into White House aides' feelings about the 2018 Trump-Putin summit in Helsinki, where Mr Trump sided with the Russian leader over his own intelligence agencies about whether Moscow meddled in the 2016 US election.

Read the full story.