Trump news: President rages over impeachment talk as Nancy Pelosi attacks immigration hypocrisy over Melania
President posts tweet claiming 'the case is closed' after Robert Mueller's surprise public statement
Your support helps us to tell the story
My recent work focusing on Latino voters in Arizona has shown me how crucial independent journalism is in giving voice to underrepresented communities.
Your support is what allows us to tell these stories, bringing attention to the issues that are often overlooked. Without your contributions, these voices might not be heard.
Every dollar you give helps us continue to shine a light on these critical issues in the run up to the election and beyond
Eric Garcia
Washington Bureau Chief
Donald Trump is facing rejuvenated calls for his impeachment by House Democrats following FBI special counsel Robert Mueller's surprise statement on Wednesday in which he suggested only Justice Department policy prevented his team from charging a sitting president with a crime.
Mr Trump was quick to declare “The case is closed!” on Twitter but 2020 challengers Kamala Harris and Cory Booker called on Congress to hold the president to account while House speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has so far attempted to resist “divisive” impeachment proceedings, said: “Nothing is off the table”.
Quickly moving on to a fresh controversy, Mr Trump has been forced to deny asking the US Navy to have its destroyer the USS John S McCain, named after the late senator and Trump antagonist, kept “out of sight” during his recent four-day trip to Japan.
The Pentagon’s acting chief, Patrick Shanahan, said he never authorised attempts to make sure Mr Trump would not see the USS John S. McCain at its homeport in Japan and would have his chief of staff investigate. Trump said he was not involved in the matter.
Mr Trump, who long feuded with Mr McCain, told reporters at the White House that he “was not a big fan” of the Arizona Republican and onetime presidential nominee “in any way, shape or form.” But, Mr Trump added, “I would never do a thing like that.”
“Now, somebody did it because they thought I didn’t like him, OK? And they were well-meaning, I will say,” he said, while insisting he was kept in the dark.
The order that a Navy destroyer be kept out of sight reflected what appeared to be an extraordinary White House effort to avoid offending an unpredictable president known for holding a grudge, including a particularly bitter one against Mr McCain.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that a US Indo-Pacific Command official wrote an email to Navy and Air Force officials about Mr Trump’s Memorial Day weekend visit, including instructions for preparations for the USS Wasp, where he was to speak.
Mr Trump tweeted late Wednesday that he “was not informed about anything having to do with the Navy Ship USS John S. McCain during my recent visit to Japan.”
Still, he added Thursday that he “was very, very angry with McCain because he killed health care. I was not a big fan of John McCain in any way, shape or form.”
Additional reporting by AP. Please allow a moment for our liveblog to load
Despite banning trans people from serving in the US military, the Trump campaign still has the audacity to hawk "LGBTQ for Trump" T-shirts alongside its "Collusion Delusion" collection in time for 2020.
They're clearly not selling so far - I mean how could they? - and have already been discounted from from $30 (£23) to $24 (£18.95).
Donald Trump is speaking with reporters outside of the Oval Office about a range of topics, attacking Special Counsel Robert Mueller, saying he was "not a fan" of John McCain and slamming China. We'll have video coming soon.
Broadcaster Joe Scarborough has a novel answer to the problem identified by Robert De Niro and others: that working Americans can't seriously be expected to drop everything and read the full 448-page, two volume Mueller report for themselves.
So why not have the man himself read the full thing aloud before Congress?
Donald Trump attempted to walk back his comments on Russia from earlier this morning. Here's video:
So…did Russia help Donald Trump get elected or not?
The president tweeted earlier this morning: “I had nothing to do with Russia helping me to get elected.”
Then he joined reporters outside of the White House and said: “No, Russia did not help me get elected. You know who got me elected? I got me elected. Russia didn’t help me at all.”
Here's video from Donald Trump's wild impromptu exchange with reporters before departing for the UK this morning:
Donald Trump also berated Special Counsel Robert Mueller on Thursday, calling him a “true Never-Trumper” -
In other news surrounding 2020, Jill Biden has spoken out about accusations surrounding her husband’s physical interactions with women, saying in a new interview “it took a lot of courage for women to step forward”.
The former second first lady joined The Daily Show on Wednesday to discuss her new book, Where the Light Enters: Building a Family, Discovering Myself, as well as her husband’s 2020 presidential bid.
Story to come…
Donald Trump also denied reports saying the White House ordered the USS John McCain to be moved out of his sight during his trip to Japan, telling reporters on Thursday: “I don’t know what happened. I wasn’t involved. I would not have done that.”
“I was very angry with John McCain because he killed healthcare,” he continued. “I was not a big fan of John McCain in any way shape or form. I think John McCain had a lot with getting President Bush – a lot to do with it to go into the Middle East, which was a catastrophe. To me, John McCain, I wasn’t a fan. But I would never do a thing like that.”
“Now, somebody did it because they thought I didn’t like him, ok? And they were well-meaning, I will say,” Mr Trump went on. “I didn’t know anything about it. I would never have done that.”
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments