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Trump accuses Biden, Newsom and Bass of ‘gross incompetence’ over LA wildfires: Live updates

President-elect lashes out at predecessor, California governor and city mayor over natural disaster engulfing Hollywood as his expansionist ambitions met with ridicule

Oliver O'Connell,Joe Sommerlad,Katie Hawkinson
Thursday 09 January 2025 13:02 GMT
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Donald Trump says he won’t ‘commit’ to ruling out using military force to reclaim the Panama Canal

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Donald Trump has lashed out at President Joe Biden, California Governor Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass over the wildfires currently rampaging through the city, which have already killed five people, destroyed more than 1,000 structures and forced 150,000 residents to evacuate.

The president-elect accused the Democratic trio of “gross incompetence” and declared the City of Angeles “a total wipeout” on his Truth Social platform.

“One of the best and most beautiful parts of the United States of America is burning down to the ground,” he fumed in another post.

“It’s ashes, and Gavin Newscum should resign. This is all his fault!!!”

Earlier, Trump raged: “The fires in Los Angeles may go down, in dollar amount, as the worst in the History of our Country.

“In many circles, they’re doubting whether insurance companies will even have enough money to pay for this catastrophe.”

Meanwhile, the incoming commander-in-chief’s dreams of using military force to annex Greenland and rename the Gulf of Mexico have been met with ridicule and denials.

Trump will be in Washington DC on Thursday for the state funeral of former president Jimmy Carter.

Don Jr. was told the ‘whole town’ would show up for his Greenland arrival. It appears they did not

Donald Trump Jr. was promised a large crowd of Greenlanders when he landed at the Nuuk airport Tuesday. Instead, he got, at best, a handful of fans for his unofficial visit.

Ariana Baio reports.

Don Jr. was told the ‘whole town’ would show up for his Greenland arrival

Trump Jr.’s visit occurred weeks after Trump re-ignited the calls for the U.S. to acquire Greenland

Oliver O'Connell8 January 2025 21:10

Watch: GOP lawmaker already calling Gulf of Mexico ‘Gulf of America’ after Trump speech

Republican already calling Gulf of Mexico ‘Gulf of America’ after Trump speech

A Republican representative has already started calling the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America" after President-elect Donald Trump declared he wants to change the name of the ocean basin. “As for the Gulf of Mexico, Gulf of America, again... I don’t think the name of it is as important as how we are going to handle law enforcement in that area,” Austin Scott, who sits on the House Armed Services Committee, said on Wednesday (8 January). Mr Trump said his administration will make the official announcement “at a future date pretty soon.”

Oliver O'Connell8 January 2025 20:55

Was Maria Bartiromo almost a heartbeat from the presidency?

The symbiotic relationship between Fox News and President-elect Donald Trump nearly reached new levels during the most recent presidential campaign, according to a new book by Politico political reporter Alex Isenstadt.

While the president-elect has already appointed or nominated at least a dozen Fox News personalities to his upcoming administration, Isenstadt reports in his forthcoming book Revenge: The Inside Story of Trump’s Return to Power that Trump seriously considered making one his favorite hosts his running mate.

Justin Barangoa reports.

Trump ‘seriously’ considered choosing Maria Bartiromo as his VP, new book claims

Trump was ‘dead serious’ about tapping the MAGA host as his running mate, according to a new book

Oliver O'Connell8 January 2025 20:40

MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski quickly issues legal note after guest calls Trump a ‘rapist’

MSNBC host Mika Brzezinski offered up a legal disclaimer on Wednesday following a Morning Joe interview with Scott Galloway that featured the entrepreneur referring to President-elect Donald Trump as a “rapist.”

Perhaps sensing that her network could face a similar situation as ABC News, which recently settled a defamation suit with the famously litigious incoming president, Brzezinski was quick to issue a clarification, as Justin Barangoa reports.

MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski quickly issues legal note after guest calls Trump a ‘rapist’

The immediate clarification comes weeks after ABC News settlened a defamation case with Trump over George Stephanopulos saying the president-elect was found ‘liable of rape. ‘

Oliver O'Connell8 January 2025 20:25

Trump claims insurers won’t be able to cover damage of LA fires

Donald Trump is claiming that insurance companies may not be able to cover the damage caused by the wildfires burning in the suburbs of Los Angeles.

In his latest Truth Social post, the president-elect said the catastrophe was “emblematic, of the gross incompetence and mismanagement of the Biden/Newscum Duo.”

He added: “January 20th cannot come fast enough!”

Trump has still not expressed any sympathy for those who have lost their homes or for the loved ones of the two people who died.

The fires in Los Angeles may go down, in dollar amount, as the worst in the History of our Country. In many circles, they’re doubting whether insurance companies will even have enough money to pay for this catastrophe. Let this serve, and be emblematic, of the gross incompetence and mismanagement of the Biden/Newscum Duo. January 20th cannot come fast enough!

Oliver O'Connell8 January 2025 20:15

Biden admits ‘who the hell knows’ if he could’ve actually served another four-year term

When his disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump forced him to withdraw from the 2024 election last July, President Joe Biden told Americans he’d decided that the “best way forward” for the country was for him to “pass the torch to a new generation” by standing down and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris.

Now, with fewer than two weeks remaining until he leaves the White House for the final time as president, Biden says he’s not sure if he’d have been able to make it through the second term he had sought for so long.

Andrew Feinberg reports from Washington, D.C.

Biden admits ‘who the hell knows’ if he could’ve served another four-year term

Biden still thinks he could’ve beaten Donald Trump and won a second term had he stayed in the 2024 race

Oliver O'Connell8 January 2025 20:10

Trump set to meet with GOP senators to talk legislative priorities

Donald Trump will meet with Republican senators later today, as the president-elect urges his party to combine his priorities into one massive bill.

Republicans have been weighing a complex legislative strategy that could allow them to bypass Democratic opposition to boost border spending and extend Trump's 2017 tax cuts, which are due to expire this year.

The president-elect will be in Washington for the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter. Senate Republican leaders extended an invite to meet him on Wednesday, Punchbowl News reported earlier.

Trump on Sunday urged his fellow Republicans in Congress to combine his priorities into one massive bill that would cut taxes, bolster border security, and increase domestic energy production. He said Republicans could cover the cost — which could amount to trillions of dollars — by raising tariffs on imported goods.

Republicans in Congress were at odds over how to proceed with Trump's agenda, with some warning of potential failure, even as Trump himself called for quick action to pass his priorities.

With reporting from Reuters

Oliver O'Connell8 January 2025 20:01

Hard to argue with this.

Oliver O'Connell8 January 2025 19:55

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