Trump news – live: President threatens to 'obliterate' Turkey economy after damning Syria condemnation, amid reports of White House impeachment panic
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump has been accused of endangering America’s Kurdish allies in Syria by his own former envoy, an ex-ambassador and a key DC attack dog after announcing a plan to withdraw US troops from the country’s northern border, therein abandoning the Syrian Democratic Forces to an onslaught from the Turkish military.
The president has meanwhile been ordered to turn over eight years of tax returns to New York prosecutors after a US district judge ruled his financial affairs are not immune from investigation in spite of his high office.
As the Ukraine scandal rumbles on, Mr Trump has conceded impeachment is a “bad thing to have on your resume” during a phone call with House Republicans, a rare confession that he fears for his legacy as a second whistleblower emerges to support the first’s account of the damning 25 July call with Volodymyr Zelensky during which the president appeared to push for the Eastern European leader to investigate allegations against his 2020 rival Joe Biden.
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That moves comes at an interesting time for Graham.
Democratic National Committee associate chairman Jamie Harrison is running to unseat the South Carolina senator and has raised more than $2.1m (£1.7m), a record for a Democratic senate candidate in a single quarter in that state.
Here he is explaining the secret behind his appeal.
Another ex-Trump apointee, former ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley, has come out strongly against his decision to turn his back on the SDF.
Here's the latest from El Presidente, sounding madder than ever referring to himself in the third person - this time on the subject of average family incomes.
That's his failed Federal Reserve board nominee Stephen Moore he's quoting there, the top economist whose nomination was not pursued after it emerged in April he had written in a conservative magazine that only attractive women should be allowed to referee men's basketball games.
There was also this earlier in which he claimed to be "driving the Deep State, and the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats, CRAZY)!"
I suppose even a stopped clock is right twice a day.
Interesting times in DC as Republicans are increasingly questioning their consciences over whether to go on granting Trump their unquestioning loyalty in light of ever-growing concerns about his conduct in office and the consequences of their endorsement for the future of the party.
Zamira Rahim has more.
It feels like a little while since we heard from Rudy Giuliani but, never fear, he's been on Fox News again making a fool of himself.
The man once hailed as "America's mayor" is these days up to his shoulders in the rising flood waters of the Ukraine scandal and has been desperately appearing on every and any TV channel that will book him to make the case for the defence. Or matters much worse, depending on your point of view.
Clearly losing it, Rudy attacked the "idiot press" on Fox for failing to uncover the "truth" about the Bidens, said he deserved praise for pursuing the allegations because "that's what a good lawyer does" and, growing exasperated, told host Howard Kurtz: "You should be ashamed of yourself, your profession."
Peter Stubley has this report.
House minority leader Kevin McCarthy has been on Fox and Friends this morning. As New York congressman Bill Pascrell observes, his performance was positively Orwellian.
Those wondering whether Trump's decision to abandon the SDF amounts to a favour to Erdogan are seeing significance in the fact that the property tycoon owns two conjoined Trump Towers in Sisli, Istanbul.
Trump is currently bashing out retweets in favour of his actions in Syria.
Here was his last (relatively) coherent original statement.
Trump now threatening to "totally destroy and obliterate the economy of Turkey" if they step out of line.
But, perhaps more importantly...
"I, in my great and unmatched wisdom"!
Hahahahahaha! (dies)
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