Trump’s defense secretary pick Pete Hegseth faces ‘critical day’ as president-elect mulls other options: Live
President-elect’s pick for defense secretary dogged by allegations of sexual assault, drunkenness, Islamophobia and mismanagement of a non-profit
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, former Fox News weekend anchor Pete Hegseth, continues to be dogged by allegations about his past, potentially making his confirmation less likely and splitting right-wing media on his prospects as his candidacy faces an “absolutely critical day” on Wednesday.
Hegseth is due to take questions from the House Republican Study Committee today as well as appearing on Fox for an interview.
Hegseth’s mother Penelope is also due to appear on the channel, having previously criticized her son’s behavior towards women in a letter, as the Trump transition team reportedly considers alternatives to lead the Pentagon, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
On Tuesday, Trump’s pick to serve as administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Sheriff Chad Chronister, withdrew from consideration, posting on X that he would be declining the “honor of a lifetime” after “the gravity of this very important responsibility set in”.
The president-elect’s choice for FBI director, Kash Patel, was also revealed to have been targeted by Iranian hackers while Trump himself pushed for the dismissal of the hush money case against him citing Joe Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter Biden.
Nato chief warns Trump not to push Ukraine deal that would see Putin ‘high-fiving’ Iran
Trump’s DEA nominee backs out after Covid and immigration criticisms
Trump’s conquest: President-elect posts bizarre AI pic of himself with Canadian flag (on a Swiss mountain)
Judge weighs whether to order Fani Willis to comply with lawmakers' subpoenas over Trump case
Trump’s first 100 days will be ‘nonstop’ on energy and border policies
Jason Miller, one of Donald Trump’s top advisers, continues his media tour today after appearances on CNN and Fox News this morning.
On the right-wing Newsmax network, Miller spoke about plans for aggressive action in the first 100 days of the new Trump administration.
“President Trump is … moving really fast here. I mean, even by Thanksgiving, he had his entire cabinet picked,” Miller said, noting that work was already underway on executive orders and policies that can be implemented as soon as Trump takes office.
These include “day one priorities” such as energy and securing the border.
“This first 100 days is going to be nonstop. There’s so many things that he’s ready to do. Because, again, we’ve never had a second-term president step in that is ready to go,” said Miller.
“In fact, we’ve never had a first-term president, never had president in history who’s so ready to go on day one, who knows exactly what they want to do. So, if you voted for President Trump, [you] should be pretty enthused that we’re gonna have the country back on track.”
Jimmy Kimmel defends Biden’s 180 on Hunter pardon
Jimmy Kimmel has defended President Joe Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter Biden joking that there’s a “very good chance” the president “doesn’t remember” previously saying he wouldn’t.
Alarm bells sounded on both sides of the political aisle on Sunday when Biden granted his son clemency for federal crimes committed between January 1, 2014 through December 1, 2024 – claiming the 54-year-old was “selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted” by the Department of Justice.
James Liddell reports.
Jimmy Kimmel jokes that Biden ‘doesn’t remember’ his past promises on Hunter pardon
‘The Biden presidency has now entered the “grandpa doesn’t give a damn about you” stage,’ the Jimmy Kimmel Live host quipped
Judge rules in Judicial Watch v Fani Willis records request
Judicial Watch, owned by conservative activist Tom Fitton, filed an open records request in Georgia for “[a]ll documents and communications sent to, received from, or relating to Special Counsel Jack Smith” and “[a]ll documents and communication sent to or received from the United States House January 6th Committee” by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in relation to the sprawling racketeering case brought against Donald Trump and his co-defendants.
The records custodian said that just… doesn’t exist. So he filed a complaint alleging that Willis was violating open records laws. She appears to have never responded to any of it, and a judge just awarded default judgment in favor of Judicial Watch.
Here’s the judge’s order:
By finding Defendant in default, the Court has in effect declared that she has violated the ORA. The Court also hereby ORDERS Defendant to conduct a diligent search of her records for responsive materials within five business days of the entry of this Order. Within that same five-day period, Defendant is ORDERED to provide Plaintiff with copies of all responsive records that are not legally exempted or excepted from disclosure. If Defendant is required or decides to withhold all or part of a requested record, she should follow the procedures set forth in the ORA ... If the records are stored electronically, they may be produced electronically in a commonly used format such as PDF. The Court expects that such production will include the correspondence identified by Plaintiff in its complaint. If it does not, Defendant is further ORDERED to provide an explanation why such correspondence does not exist in Defendant’s records (or why it is being withheld). Beyond that, no other relief, injunctive or otherwise, is necessary at this time (to include striking Defendant’s answer, which is of no effect based on the Court’s finding of default).
This raises the question that if such communications do not exist, how can you show that?
Jill Biden’s White House decorations ripped by Republicans on social media
First Lady Jill Biden decorated the White House for Christmas one final time before leaving the White House — but her holiday touch has spawned some Grinch-inspired responses, as Kelly Rissman reports.
Jill Biden’s White House Christmas decorations ripped by Republicans on social media
The holiday decorations were unveiled Monday, marking the Bidens’ last Christmas in the White House
ANALYSIS: Will Pete Hegseth answer questions about his history with women — or will he take the other option?
John Bowden writes:
Pete Hegseth’s nomination for defense secretary is looking increasingly tenuous as new revelations about the ex-Fox host’s past history with women come to light.
Almost certain to face unified Democratic resistance, Hegseth can only afford three defections from his own party. The question now: Will the same senators who tanked Matt Gaetz’s nomination with their “implacable” resistance to his selection be the ones to take Hegseth down?
Continue reading...
Will Hegseth answer questions about his history with women — or take another option?
At the bare minimum, Hegseth is headed for one of the most uncomfortable and public grillings by a Senate panel in recent history, writes John Bowden
Fox News host slammed after creepy ‘eye candy’ comment aimed at women in Trump’s cabinet
Fox News host Jesse Watters provoked people on social media by joking he needs to see more “eye candy” from the women that Donald Trump has chosen for his cabinet after being impressed by a topless video of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. exercising.
Watters and the other co-hosts of The Five praised Trump’s cabinet nominations on Monday’s episode. Specifically admiring Kennedy, the secretary of Health and Human Services nominee, for maintaining a muscular physique at 70 years old.
Ariana Baio has the story.
Watters slammed after creepy ‘eye candy’ comment aimed at women in Trump’s cabinet
Watters’ comment was in response to a video of RFK Jr working out while shirtless
Watch: Sen Coons, close friend to the Bidens, weighs in on Hunter’s pardon
Jill Biden's final foreign trip as first lady will close with her and Trump at Notre Dame cathedral
Jill Biden was departing Tuesday on her final solo foreign trip as first lady, a six-day, four-country jaunt through Italy, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar that wraps with her joining President-elect Donald Trump and other dignitaries in Paris to celebrate the reopening of Notre Dame cathedral.
Read on...
Jill Biden's final foreign trip as first lady will close with her and Trump at Notre Dame cathedral
Jill Biden is departing Tuesday on her final solo foreign trip as first lady
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