Election 2024 live updates: Biden vows to ensure a peaceful transition to Trump in address to nation
President-elect Donald Trump considering appointments to second administration after Kamala Harris delivers gracious consession speech, urging supporters not to lose heart
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Your support makes all the difference.President Joe Biden assured Americans that there will be a “peaceful and orderly” transition to the next Trump administration in a speech in the Rose Garden at the White House on Thursday.
“Yesterday, I spoke with President-elect Trump to congratulate him on his victory, and I assured him, I will direct my entire administration work with his team to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition,” Biden said in a short speech in front of staff and press.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump is celebrating his election win by beginning the process of choosing who will join his second administration, as his conservative allies and surrogates jostle for position in the hope of securing a top role.
Trump’s defeated adversary Kamala Harris called to congratulate him on his victory on Wednesday afternoon and subsequently delivered a concession speech at Howard University, in which she said that, while she concedes the election, she will not give up the fight that fueled her campaign.
“The fight for freedom, opportunity, fairness, and dignity of all people, and ideals at the heart of this nation… that is a fight I will never give up,” the vice president said.
What happens next? The key dates until Trump’s second inauguration
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Celebrities react as Donald Trump wins 2024 US election to become president
Melania speaks out for first time since Trump’s election win - but is absent from family photo
Elon Musk claims ‘being a normal person’ won Trump the election
The social media kingmaker spoke to Tucker Carlson yesterday and suggested that the Republican nominee won the vote this week because he went on Joe Rogan’s podcast and came across as “a normal person.”
The Harris campaign failed to agree a time slot with Rogan and the influential broadcaster duly delivered a late endorsement for Trump, which in turn saw him thanked by UFC boss Dana White at the candidate’s victory party in Florida in the early hours of yesterday morning.
Here’s more from Rhian Lubin.
Elon Musk says ‘being a normal person’ won Donald Trump the election
The billionaire told right-wing commentator Tucker Carlson that if Harris went on Joe Rogan’s show, it ‘would have been game over’
Obamas and Clintons ‘wish Trump and Vance well’ after election win
Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton all posted on social media yesterday wishing Trump and running JD Vance well after their election win (presumably through gritted teeth), leading by example in frankly accepting the result.
Both couples had been on the campaign trail for Harris but their efforts ultimately fell short.
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, had a more pragmatic message for disillusioned and disappointed party activists yesterday:
Here’s more from Kelly Rissman.
The Obamas and Clintons wish Trump well after his election victory
The former presidents and first ladies had campaigned for Kamala Harris
Tim Walz says campaigning with Kamala Harris was ‘the honor and privilege of my life’
The Minnesota Governor was great fun on the campaign trail and attacked his task with zest.
Here he is paying tribute to the defeated nominee:
The Indy video team meanwhile has this look at where it all went wrong for the Democrats.
Where did Kamala Harris go wrong?
Vice President Kamala Harris faced numerous obstacles in her presidential campaign. Launching only in July, her run struggled to address voters’ core concerns on issues like the economy and immigration. She also faced a loss of support among some minority groups, including Hispanic men and Arab Americans. Ultimately, her close association with President Biden’s unpopular administration proved challenging to overcome, and she lost the election early on Wednesday morning as Donald Trump swept to a decisive victory. Harris assured the public there would be a “peaceful transfer of power”.
Justice Department reportedly looking to ‘wind down’ criminal cases against Trump
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is reportedly trying to “wind down” the federal criminal cases against President-Elect Donald Trump before he returns to the White House.
DOJ officials are considering ways to fizzle out the two federal criminal cases that Trump faces – one involving his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results and the other related to improperly storing a trove of classified documents – in order to comply with its long-standing policy not to prosecute sitting presidents.
The policy in question states: “The indictment or criminal prosecution of a sitting President would unconstitutionally undermine the capacity of the executive branch to perform its constitutionally assigned functions.”
New York attorney general Letitia James, however, is striking a more defiant note.
Here’s more from Kelly Rissman.
DOJ reportedly looking to ‘wind down’ the criminal cases against Trump
The Justice Department has a long-standing policy not to prosecute a sitting president
Democrat anger as blame game begins
“It should come as no great surprise that a Democratic Party which has abandoned working class people would find that the working class has abandoned them,” Bernie Sanders said in a statement yesterday, setting the tone for the Democratic inquest already ongoing.
“While the Democratic leadership defends the status quo, the American people are angry and want change. And they’re right.”
Green Party candidate Jill Stein likewise told Newsweek: “The Democrats have really lost credibility. They are seen as bought and paid for… Their primaries are rigged, power is top down.
“The Democrats betrayed their base. I don’t see them coming back. The economic disparities are real. People are tired of the Democrats. They need to move over and allow a proper opposition.”
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy said: “It’s time to look in the mirror and make sure [we] either change our substance, if it needs to be changed, or change the way we communicate what we stand for.”
Most damning of all was Philadelphia Democratic Chair and former congressman Bob Brady, who told NBC10: “I would’ve liked to see the Harris campaign – especially the national campaign – coordinate with us a little bit. Talk to us a little bit. Give us a little bit more resources. Show us some respect. Didn’t happen.
“They were just elitist and went out there, did their own thing and didn’t include Democratic city committee or (ward leaders) or committee people. They just didn’t do it.”
Here’s more from Graig Graziosi.
Democrat anger as blame game begins over Kamala Harris’s devastating loss
Democrats are blaming everyone from Joe Biden to Tim Walz for Kamala Harris’s loss
Who could be in Trump’s cabinet?
Now Donald Trump has won the 2024 presidential election, all eyes are on who he might appoint to his top team.
The individuals selected for cabinet positions are meant to be the president’s close allies, ideally with some interest or experience in the department they head.
But the former president has made it clear his priority will be appointing loyalists rather than those best suited for a position – a takeaway from his first administration where he faced record turnover.
One person who has already ruled himself out is JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, who has said he has no current plans to leave the banking sector.
Ariana Baio reports on some of the names being thrown out there.
Who could be in Trump’s Cabinet? Contenders for new top team from RFK Jr to Musk
Former president indicated he values loyalty above all else when choosing administration positions
Trump will meet with Biden at the White House ‘shortly’
The president-elect spoke to Joe Biden late on Wednesday by phone and the two men will soon meet in person in the West Wing to discuss the peaceful transfer of power.
That was not a gesture Trump extended to the Democrat when he left the White House.
“President Joe Biden called President Donald J Trump to congratulate him on his victory and extended an invitation to the White House to ensure a smooth transition between the current Administration and the incoming Administration,” Trump campaign communications director Steven Cheung said in a statement.
“President Trump looks forward to the meeting, which will take place shortly, and very much appreciated the call.”
In their own statement, the White House said the president “expressed his commitment to ensuring a smooth transition and emphasized the importance of working to bring the country together”.
Biden is due to make a televised address this afternoon to reflect on the election.
What happens next? The key dates until Trump’s second inauguration
Good morning!
Donald Trump has won the presidency for a second time, overcoming impeachments, indictments, two assassination attempts and unforced errors on the campaign trail that would have taken down most other political candidates.
But he won’t take office for another couple of months.
During that time, states will certify the results, electoral votes will be counted and a new Congress will convene.
Here are the dates that matter leading up to Inauguration Day on January 20 2025.
What happens next? The key dates until Trump’s second inauguration
Trump will be sworn into office a second time on January 20, 2025
Bethenny Frankel slams Kamala Harris for ‘hobnobbing with celebrities’
Bethenny Frankel has criticized Vice President Kamala Harris for spending too much time “hobnobbing with celebrities” during her failed presidential campaign against Donald Trump.
The former Real Housewives of New York City star, 54, said she felt the tactic was not successful with the American public.
Kevin E G Perry reports.
Bethenny Frankel slams Kamala Harris for ‘hobnobbing with celebrities’
The former ‘Real Housewives of New York City’ star said she doesn’t think celebrity endorsements are a ‘working model’
Russian state TV gloats over Trump victory
Russian leaders and media figures responded with a mix of jubilation and caution after Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election.
“There is only one place in the world where the mood is worse than it is at Kamala Harris’s campaign headquarters: Bankova Street, the office of the president of Ukraine in Kyiv,” the host of the Russian TV show The Big Game, Dmitry Suslov, said after the election, according to a translation from Russia analyst Julia Davis.
Josh Marcus has the story.
Russian state TV gloats over Trump victory and hails Putin for fake Harris support
Trump has claimed he would end Ukraine war before he even takes office
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