Trump news: President hails disputed Syria 'ceasefire' as White House appears to confirm quid pro quo with Ukraine
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump’s administration announced a ceasefire in northeastern Syria after paving the way for Turkey’s offence to occur in the first place, with the president celebrating the move as a “great day for civilisation”.
The announcement was followed up swiftly by comments from the Turkish government casting doubt on the news, and criticism from those who have suggested that the Trump administration is giving the Turkish government a win by forcing Kurds to leave the region or face an uncertain future.
The breaking news arrives as Mr Trump's ambassador to the EU, Gordon Sondland, a key figure of interest in the impeachment inquiry, is testifying on Capitol Hill behind closed doors, turning on the president in his opening statement by saying he was “disappointed” by the decision to involve Mr Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani in US dealings with Ukraine.
Meanwhile, the president swiftly faced ridicule following the release of a bizarre letter he had written to Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan imploring him not to attack the Kurdish fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces, which appears to have been thrown away and ignored by the recipient.
The mockery follows his dismissal of the crisis in Syria as “not our problem” on Wednesday and his falling out with senior Democrats when they urged him to halt the withdrawal of US troops from the region.
Meanwhile, the United States mourns congressman Elijah Cummings, a leading figure in the Trump impeachment probe, who died overnight after suffering through medical concerns.
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Mick Mulvaney attacks Joe Biden and says Donald Trump "made his money before politics," then claims the Biden family made money off of Washington.
"If you think it's gonna help his brand, that's great, but I don't think he needs the help," Mick Mulvaney says.
"There's plenty of other good places in this country to hold a large event," he says, but then adds that there are "limitations" not found at Donald Trump's private property.
Reporters ask about the appearance of impropriety and Mick Mulvaney says the presidents "gets that" but is "willing to take that".
"We absolutely believe this is the best place to have it," he adds, "we're gonna have it there."
Mick Mulvaney suggests Donald Trump asked "What about Doral?" when an advance team came back to the president with information from other sites to host the G7 Summit.
Mick Mulvaney is now saying "elections have consequences" while defending Donald Trump's moves surrounding Ukraine. He's calling the congressional investigations against the president a "witch hunt".
"The money held up had absolutely nothing to do with Biden," Mick Mulvaney says about Donald Trump's phone call with Ukraine, in which he urged President Volodymyr Zelensky to probe the Bidens.
"The president asked Rick Perry to work with Rudy Giuliani," Mick Mulvaney says.
"I was not asked" to work with Mr Giuliani, Mr Mulvaney adds.
He said they were discussing policy on energy.
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