Trump avoids public appearances for week after election win as he picks White House staff: Live

President-elect Donald Trump has so far avoided public appearances for the last week after his election victory as he begins to staff his administration from his base at Mar-a-Lago, his private Florida club.

Trump has held no press conferences and given no speeches after the election as he’s surrounded by advisers, aides, friends, and club members advising him on his next moves.

This comes as Judge Juan Merchan is postponing a decision on whether to undo Trump’s criminal conviction in the hush money case against him because of April’s Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity.

The judge had been set to rule on Tuesday but instead told Trump’s lawyers that he would delay until November 19.

The Republican has meanwhile chosen Florida Senator Marco Rubio to be his secretary of state and Florida congressman Mike Waltz to be his national security adviser as his White House team continues to take shape.

The president-elect is also reportedly preparing to appoint South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to lead the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Trump will meet with Joe Biden at the White House on Wednesday to discuss a transition schedule as the Senate elects a new majority leader.

Key Points

• Judge delays ruling on whether to dismiss Trump’s criminal conviction

• Supreme Court rejects push to move Georgia case against ex-Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows

• Trump wants Marco Rubio for secretary of state

• President-elect taps South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem for Homeland Security secretary

• Will Trump eliminate the Department of Education?

Trump selects Mike Waltz to be national security advisor

19:40 , Gustaf Kilander

Trump has officially announced that Florida congressman Mike Waltz is set to be his national security adviser.

President-elect Donald Trump

Trump stays out of view following election victory

19:26 , Gustaf Kilander

President-elect Donald Trump has been staying out of the public limelight since his election victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.

The former president has been conspicuously absent from the public stage, holding no press conferences, and giving no speeches as he begins to staff his next administration and reconnect with foreign leaders from his base in Mar-a-Lago, his private Florida club.

While Trump has not been seen in public, he has been surrounded by advisers, aides, friends, and club members advising him on his next moves as he prepares to move back into the White House.

Billionaire Elon Musk has been at his side throughout the last week – Musk leads companies with billions in federal contracts.

There are some who view Musk as the second most influential person at Trump’s side, following the woman he has chosen to be his chief of staff, Susie Wiles.

Wall Street makes wagers on the likely winners and losers in a second Trump term

19:20 , Associated Press

Wall Street is already making big bets on what take two for a White House led by Donald Trump will mean for the economy.

Since Election Day, investors have sent prices zooming for stocks of banks, fossil-fuel producers and other companies expected to benefit from Trump’s preference for lower tax rates and lighter regulation. For retailers, meanwhile, the outlook is murkier because of uncertainty about whether they’ll be able to absorb any of the higher costs created by tariffs.

Professional investors are warning about the risk of getting carried away by the momentum. While strong rhetoric on the campaign trail can cause these big swings, not all of the promises turn into actual policy. Plus, the broad U.S. stock market tends to move more on long-term growth in profits than anything else.

Wall Street makes wagers on the likely winners and losers in a second Trump term

Trump selects Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel

19:14 , Gustaf Kilander

Trump has chosen former Arkansas Governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee to be the US ambassador to Israel.

“I am pleased to announce that the Highly Respected former Governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee, has been nominated to be The United States Ambassador to Israel,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike has been a great public servant, Governor, and Leader in Faith for many years. He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him. Mike will work tirelessly to bring about Peace in the Middle East!”

‘He doesn’t listen to anyone’: Author of Trump tell-all rejects idea groups can influence his decision making

19:00 , Kelly Rissman

As President-elect Donald Trump picks his Cabinet members for his second administration, veteran journalist Michael Wolff warns that Trump’s second term will be no different from his first.

Despite the fear surrounding Project 2025’s influence during the 2024 campaign cycle, the Fire and Fury author expects that prominent rightwing think-tanks will have little influence over the president-elect. Wolff, who has written numerous books about Trump during his presidency, predicted his second term will serve as the preamble for his first: “He doesn’t listen to anybody…he just does what he wants to do.”

When asked what Trump 2.0 would look like, the journalist told the Hollywood Reporter: “The obvious answer is: we know what it’s going to be like because we’ve already lived through it before.”

Author of Trump book rejects idea groups can influence his decision making

Fetterman announces support for Rubio as secretary of state

18:40 , Gustaf Kilander

Trump converts campaign to leadership PAC

18:20 , Gustaf Kilander

Donald Trump has converted his presidential campaign to a leadership PAC entitled “Never Surrender, Inc,” according to a new filing.

‘I apologize to absolutely nobody’: Tony Hinchcliffe addresses ‘garbage’ remarks

18:00 , Gustaf Kilander

The comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, known as Kill Tony, addressed his remarks during Trump’s October Madison Square Garden rally when he referred to Puerto Rico as an island of “garbage.”

On a podcast episode he released on Monday, he said: “It was a speech about free speech, believe it or not. I am currently under attack. I am the news. I referenced Puerto Rico, which currently has a landfill problem in which all of their landfills are filled to the brim. I am the only person who knew about this, unfortunately.”

“With that said, I just want to say that I love Puerto Ricans, they’re very smart people — they’re smart, they’re street smart, they’re smart enough to know when they’re being used as political fodder. Right now that is happening,” he added. “I apologize to absolutely nobody. Not to the Puerto Ricans, not to the whites, not to the Blacks, not to the Palestinians, not to the Jews, and not to my own mother, who I made fun of during the set.”

“Nobody clipped that. No headlines about me making fun of my own mother. Perhaps that venue at that time wasn’t the best f****** place to do this set at,” Hinchcliffe said. “But in any matter, to the mainstream media and to anybody trying to slander me online: That’s what I do, and that’s never going to change.”

Cornyn appeals to Trump supporters in Senate leadership race

17:50 , Gustaf Kilander

Texas Senator John Cornyn made an appeal to Trump supporters in the upper chamber in a letter to colleagues amid the Republican senate leadership race to replace outgoing leader Mitch McConnell.

“In order to Make America Great Again, we must Make the Senate Work Again,” Cornyn wrote.

Chris Christie says Trump’s most effective campaign ad was one on Harris’s trans rights policy

17:35 , Joe Sommerlad

The ex-New Jersey governor has claimed that the Trump campaign’s most effective ad during the 2024 race was one which focused on attacking Kamala Harris’s transgender rights policy.

The former Trump ally-turned-critic said that Democrats focused on trans issues and pronouns during the Harris campaign, which could have pushed moderate liberals to vote Republican.

He specifically pointed to one particular Trump campaign attack ad which ran with the argument: “Kamala is for they/them. President Trump is for you.”

“The most effective ad that the Trump campaign ran in this campaign was, you know, ‘Kamala Harris is for they/them, and Donald Trump is for us,’” Christie said in a panel discussion on ABC News’s This Week with Jonathan Karl.

“That’s because most people don’t see themselves as they/them. Yet, the Democrats have spent more time talking about a trans issue, which, quite frankly, is infinitesimal.”

Rhian Lubin has more.

Christie says Trump’s most effective campaign ad was on Harris’s trans rights policy

Trump to address House Republican Conference

17:25 , Gustaf Kilander

President-elect Donald Trump is set to address the full House Republican Conference when he visits Capitol Hill on Wednesday, according to Punchbowl News.

South Korean president takes up playing golf in anticipation of Trump’s White House return

17:20 , Joe Sommerlad

Yoon Suk Yeol has been practicing the sport so he can play with the president-elect after he takes office, officials in Seoul have told Korean media.

Yoon has been advised to improve his golf game so he can “strengthen his rapport” with Trump, The Korea Times reported.

Here’s more from Rhian Lubin.

South Korean president takes up playing golf in anticipation of Trump’s return

Analysts say there has been one other post-election stock rally similar to Trump’s – 1928

17:05 , Joe Sommerlad

The surge in stocks after Trump was elected to the White House last week may not be a positive omen, market analysts are warning, as it resembles the market after Herbert Hoover was elected shortly before the Wall Street Crash that led to the Great Depression.

Both the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones rose significantly after the Republican’s victory was confirmed last Wednesday morning, with both closing at “record highs” on Friday, according to CNN.

“Recent days prove markets’ unambiguous embrace of the Trump 2.0 economic vision,” the aforementioned Scott Bessent, a potential Trump treasury secretary pick, wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed.

“Markets are signaling expectations of higher growth, lower volatility and inflation, and a revitalized economy for all Americans.”

But Robert Burgess, a Bloomberg opinion editor, warned that the post-election stock market might not be a positive sign. He noted that this market is similar to the booming market after Hoover’s election, which came just one year before the 1929 stock market crash.

Kelly Rissman has more.

Analysts say there’s been one other post-election rally similar to Trump’s – in 1928

Watch: Sir Keir Starmer dodges questions over Trump climate fears at Cop29 summit

16:50 , Joe Sommerlad

Keir Starmer dodges questions over Donald Trump climate fears at Cop29 summit

Trump may move to halt TikTok ban, allies say

16:35 , Joe Sommerlad

The president-elect will reportedly try to stop the social video app from being banned in the United States, as he promised to do on the campaign trail, according to The Washington Post.

The hugely popular app currently has until January to find a non-Chinese owner or lose its foothold in America in compliance with a law passed in April with bipartisan support.

“He appreciates the breadth and reach of TikTok, which he used masterfully along with podcasts and new media entrants to win,” Kellyanne Conway told The Post.

“There are many ways to hold China to account outside alienating 180 million US users each month.

“Trump recognized early on that Democrats are the party of bans – gas-powered cars, menthol cigarettes, vapes, plastic straws and TikTok – and to let them own that draconian, anti-personal choice space.”

Details are currently scarce on how Trump might go about it (executive order or otherwise) but he told his followers in June in one of his very first video posts: “I’m gonna save TikTok.”

Senate leadership hopeful Rick Scott questions Department of Education

16:20 , Joe Sommerlad

We covered the question of the new Trump administration potentially abolishing the DOE a little earlier and here’s Florida Senator Rick Scott, who could be elected as Mitch McConnell’s replacement tomorrow, questioning its very existence.

Education should be left up to the states, Scott argues, just as Trump did about reproductive rights.

Trump reportedly eyeing Scott Bessent for treasury secretary

16:05 , Joe Sommerlad

Bloomberg is currently reporting that members of the president-elect’s inner circle are backing Scott Bessent, who runs macro hedge fund Key Square Group, to be his new treasury secretary, which would see him taking a role occupied by Steve Mnuchin last time around.

Trump-backing hedge fund chief John Paulson, meanwhile, has ruled himself out of the running, according to CNBC.

Here are a couple of Bessent’s post-election media appearances in which he outlines his fiscal philosophy, first with CNBC’s Squawk Box and then on Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast.

Here he is attacking Kamala Harris as an “economic illiterate” on Laura Ingraham’s Fox News show during the campaign for good measure.

Speaker Johnson says no election fraud this around

15:50 , Joe Sommerlad

House speaker Mike Johnson has just been giving a press conference on the steps of the Capitol at which he said he plans to spend his upcoming weekend at Mar-a-Lago hammering out strategy with Trump and that there was no election fraud this time around.

You can’t help but suspect he might have declared the exact opposite had Kamala Harris won in a landslide but here we are.

He also claimed to have no favorite in the Senate contest to replace Mitch McConnell, declining to back any of John Coryn, John Thune or Rick Scott.

Johnson further revealed that there are “preliminary plans” developing for Trump to visit Republicans on Capitol Hill tomorrow before he is received by Joe Biden at the White House at 11am ET.

Oprah Winfrey denies claims she was paid $1m by failed Harris campaign

15:35 , Joe Sommerlad

“Not true – I was paid nothing, ever,” said the TV star when buttonholed by a TMZ reporter on Monday and asked about the alleged fee.

Throughout the election, Kamala Harris wildly outraised and outspent her opponent, picking up numerous celebrity endorsements, including Winfrey’s – all in vain.

According to The Washington Examiner, her campaign spent more than $15m on production fees for events, as well as more than $654m on advertising between July 22 and November 5.

Io Dodds has more.

Oprah breaks silence on claims she was paid $1m for failed Kamala Harris campaign

Supreme Court rejects push to move Georgia case against ex-Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows

15:20 , Joe Sommerlad

The US Supreme Court has refused to let former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows move the election interference case against him in Georgia to federal court.

Meadows was one of 19 people indicted in Georgia and accused of participating in an illegal scheme to keep then-president Donald Trump in power after he lost the 2020 election.

Trump was also charged, though after he won re-election to a second term last week any trial appears unlikely, at least while he holds office. Both men have denied wrongdoing.

It’s unclear what affect the election results could have on others charged in the case, which is largely on hold after an appeals court agreed to review whether to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over her romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she had hired to lead the case.

Meadows had gone to the Supreme Court in an effort to move the charges out of Georgia courts. He argues the case belongs in federal court because it relates to his duties as a federal official and he pointed to the Supreme Court ruling giving Trump broad immunity from criminal prosecution to support his argument.

“A White House chief of staff facing criminal charges based on actions relating to his work for the president of the United States should not be a close call – especially now that this court has recognized that federal immunity impacts what evidence can be considered, not just what conduct can form the basis for liability,” his attorneys wrote.

But prosecutors said that Meadows failed to show he was carrying out official duties during the alleged scheme, including participating in a phone call where Trump suggested Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger could help “find” votes he needed to win the state.

Breaking: Judge delays ruling on whether to dismiss Trump’s criminal conviction

15:05 , Joe Sommerlad

Judge Juan Merchan is postponing a decision on whether to undo President-elect Donald Trump’s conviction in his hush money case because of a US Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity.

Judge Merchan had been set to rule Tuesday.

Instead, he told Trump’s lawyers this morning he’d delay the ruling until November 19.

According to emails filed in court, Trump’s lawyers asked for the delay over the weekend, arguing there are “strong reasons for the requested stay, and eventually dismissal of the case in the interests of justice.”

Here’s the very latest from Alex Woodward.

Judge delays decision on Trump’s attempt to throw out hush money conviction

Louisiana law that requires Ten Commandments to be displayed in public classrooms deemed unconstitutional

15:00 , Joe Sommerlad

A federal judge has struck down a Louisiana law that required every public school and university classroom to display the Ten Commandments, drawing legal challenges from civil rights groups anticipating a Supreme Court battle with the state’s Republican governor.

The law clearly violates the First Amendment’s provisions against the government from establishing or favoring one religion over another, and from interfering with a right to practice a religion without government interference, according to the ruling.

There is a “real and substantial likelihood of coercion” if Louisiana students are forced to be a “captive audience” for “a specific version of the Ten Commandments, one posted in every single classroom,” District Judge John Wheadon deGravelles wrote on Tuesday.

The law signed by Governor Jeff Landry earlier this year — the first of its kind in the US — appears to be designed to invite a federal court battle that will work its way to the Supreme Court.

Conservative Christian legal groups have been angling for another shot at reversing Supreme Court rulings protecting the separation of church and state for decades.

Alex Woodward reports.

Judge strikes down Louisiana law requiring Ten Commandments in classrooms

Democrats in Congress race to blunt Trump’s agenda

14:45 , Joe Sommerlad

House Democrats are hoping to blunt Trump’s sweeping legislative agenda by putting pressure on President Biden before the Republican president-elect returns to the White House.

Trump is expected to enter office with GOP control of the House and Senate and plans to gut Biden’s achievements by reversing executive orders, swiftly passing an extension of his 2017 tax law and implementing anti-immigration measures aimed at the US-Mexico border.

The president-elect’s “day one” agenda includes an executive order that would end the legal right to citizenship for children born in the US if their parents are “illegal aliens.” His administration is also expected to revive a “denaturalization” plan that could strip Americans of their citizenship – a project that was abandoned in his first term.

Trump also has announced plans to mobilize federal, state and local law enforcement for a massive “deportation operation” that could see millions of people forcibly removed from the country.

But Democratic members of Congress are reportedly planning to push the Biden White House on bolstering immigration policy, including fast-tracking citizenship and legal residency paperwork for immigrants living in the US.

Alex Woodward has more.

Dems want to fast track citizenship in last-ditch effort to blunt Trump’s agenda

Republicans creep closer to securing House by slim margin – again

14:25 , Joe Sommerlad

The Republican Party is likely to retain control of the House of Representatives in the coming days, but with the makeup of the chamber virtually unchanged despite decisive victories in the presidential race and Senate contests.

GOP members are projected at this point to win a single-digit majority. Seventeen seats around the country remained up for grabs as of Monday evening, with Democrats currently leading in nine and Republicans in eight – in two cases, by just a few hundred votes.

Of the races already called, Republicans have secured 214 – four short of a majority. Democrats currently sit at 204 in the chamber.

Notable incumbents on both sides lost seats, including Anthony D’Esposito in the New York GOP and Pennsylvania’s Susan Wild on the Democratic side.

Here’s the latest from John Bowden.

Republicans creep closer to securing House of Representatives by slim margin — again

Fox News host Jesse Watters says his mom hasn’t invited him to Thanksgiving after Trump’s election win

14:05 , Joe Sommerlad

The anchor and staunch Trump supporter, who regularly shares details about clashes with his Democrat-voting mom, revealed on his show on Monday night: “People are taking some space in the Watters household.

“I’ll have you know that I wasn’t invited to my mother’s house for Thanksgiving.

“Apparently, there wasn’t enough room.

“She said it was a scheduling situation and then at the last second invited me to come over on Black Friday.

“I told her, ‘No thanks, I’ll be at Best Buy.’”

Rhian Lubin has more on this heart-breaking rift.

Jesse Watters says his mom hasn’t invited him to Thanksgiving after election

Melania Trump snubs Jill Biden’s White House meeting as first lady feud rumbles on

13:45 , Joe Sommerlad

The former first lady is said to have shunned an invitation from her successor for a post-election meeting at the White House later this week as the feud between the incoming and outgoing presidential wives rumbles on.

In recent months, Melania has re-entered the political spotlight thanks to the release of her self-titled memoir.

Though she largely avoided joining her husband Donald Trump on the campaign trail, a smiling Melania appeared by the president-elect’s side in Florida as he swept to victory on Election Night.

James Liddell has more.

Melania Trump snubs Jill Biden’s White House meeting as first lady feud rumbles on

Doug Burgum tipped to be Trump’s new ‘energy czar’

13:25 , Joe Sommerlad

The North Dakota Governor, a former presidential candidate himself, was in serious contention to be the Republican’s running mate before he opted for JD Vance instead.

But Burgum remained a reliable media performer on the 45th president’s behalf and looks like being rewarded with a place in his new cabinet, according to multiple media reports.

According to The New York Times, he has served as a useful liaison between Trump and America’s oil billionaires in recent months and would be expected to champion the incoming administration’s “drill baby drill” approach to fossil fuels.

Rubio’s past criticism of Trump comes back to haunt him on social media

13:00 , Joe Sommerlad

A few timely reminders here from X that the president-elect’s relationship with his new secretary of state was not always so cordial.

The feeling was mutual, incidently.

Watch: Jon Stewart criticises pundits for saying Democrats went ‘too woke’

12:40 , Joe Sommerlad

Back to late-night, where The Daily Show host offered a timely dismantling of the pundit class’s excuses for last week’s election disaster.

Greg Evans has more.

Jon Stewart names the one big problem with claiming the Democrats were ‘too woke’

Donald Trump Jr joining venture capital firm

12:20 , Joe Sommerlad

One person who won’t be part of the next Trump administration is the president-elect’s eldest son and namesake.

Don Jr is joining 1789 Capital instead, a venture capital firm that invests in conservative-leaning companies, according to multiple reports.

He has been involved in vetting potential members of his father’s new cabinet and was reportedly an influential voice behind the decision to pick Ohio Senator JD Vance and his running mate.

He was also a regular on the campaign trail and remains a popular presence in conservative media.

Rhian Lubin reports.

Donald Trump Jr gets a new job – but it’s not in his dad’s White House

Jimmy Kimmel savages Trump’s new partner ‘Elonia Musk’: ‘Like letting Dracula drive the blood mobile’

12:00 , Joe Sommerlad

“Trump isn’t appointing comic book villains to run the government on his own. He’s been getting a lot of help from the richest man in the world,” the late-night host told his audience on Monday.

“Elon Musk has been in the room when world leaders have called Trump, and tonight we’ve learned he’s also weighing in on staffing decisions, making clear his preference for certain roles.

“He’s picking out outfits for Trump to wear, he’s been applying his bronzing cream to his face. Cute couple.

“Look out, Melania, Trump’s got a new squeeze named Elonia Musk.”

Rhian Lubin has more from Kimmel.

Jimmy Kimmel savages Trump’s new partner ‘Elonia Musk’

Rudy Giuliani says he can’t afford food after defamation payout

11:40 , Joe Sommerlad

Is there a more spectacular fall from grace than that suffered by “America’s mayor” since throwing in with Trump and backing his false 2020 election fraud narrative?

Giuliani is now claiming such hardship as a result of the court-ordered $150m compensation payout he was forced to make to Shaye Moss and Ruby Freeman – the two Georgia election workers he was found guilty of defaming – that he can no longer afford a meal, despite, er, turning up to court in a Mercedes.

Here’s Rhian Lubin with more.

Rudy Giuliani says he can’t afford to buy food week after being pictured in Mercedes

Tom Homan threatens governors: ‘They better get the hell out of the way’

11:20 , Joe Sommerlad

Trump’s new border czar was busy making appearances on Fox News yesterday and struck an uncompromisingly macho note, warning Democratic governors not to interfere with his planned operations and moving to reassure Sean Hannity that American citizens will not get caught up in it all.

Will Trump eliminate the Department of Education?

11:00 , Joe Sommerlad

As we’ve seen, the president-elect has been moving fast in picking cabinet members, although he has so far largely focused on posts with responsibility for national security.

He has talked about making Elon Musk a commissioner in charge of cutting government inefficiency and has identified the Department of Education (DOE) as a clear target for cutbacks – or even abolition altogether.

Trump considers the DOE, created by Jimmy Carter in 1979, a source of needless interference into American family lives (think all of those “woke” culture war battles being fought in Florida schools about what books are made available and how history is taught) and an example of a poor return on investment for taxpayers.

The Republican complained on the campaign trail that the US spends three times more money on education than any other nation “and yet we are absolutely at the bottom, we’re one of the worst”.

He also bizarrely claimed, without evidence of course, that the DOE is staffed by officials who “in many cases, hate our children” and declared: “We want states to run the education of our children because they’ll do a much better job of it. You can’t do worse.”

The idea for closing the DOE altogether is listed in the Trump campaign’s Agenda47 list of election policies and in Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s 900-page opus making recommendations for a future Republican administration that Trump had to work hard to distance himself from during the election cycle.

Less drastic steps are also raised in the Agenda47 proposals like cutting funding for schools that continue to teach critical race theory (a running conservative bugbear) and/or, as they put it, “transgender insanity” or awarding credentials to teachers who “embrace patriotic values and support the American Way of Life”.

We appear to be a long way from any of this happening but it’s certainly in the water.

Trump ally Steve Bannon in court today

10:40 , Joe Sommerlad

The president-elect is not the only member of the MAGA-sphere awaiting the scales of justice today.

Trump’s former White House strategist and staunch ally Steve Bannon returns to a New York courtroom, having only been released from federal prison two weeks ago, in advance of his December trial for allegedly defrauding supporters of the 45th president’s attempt to build a wall along the US-Mexico border.

Bannon, the former Breitbart editor who is now primarily a podcaster, pleaded not guilty in 2022 to charges that he defrauded donors to “We Build the Wall”, an online fundraising effort to raise money for Trump’s signature policy.

The right-wing pundit told donors every cent they gave would go toward building the wall but prospectuses allege some of the $15m raised was secretly funnelled to Brian Kolfage, the campaign’s president.

Bannon’s trial is scheduled to begin on December 9 but he is trying to push it into January to give his attorney extra time to prepare.

Judge set to rule on whether to scrap Trump’s conviction in hush money case

10:20 , Joe Sommerlad

New York Judge Juan Merchan is due to decide today on whether to undo the president-elect’s conviction in his hush money case because of a US Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity.

Judge Merchan, who presided over Trump’s historic trial this spring, is now tasked with deciding whether to toss out the jury verdict and order a new trial – or even dismiss the charges altogether.

The judge’s ruling also could speak to whether the former and now future commander-in-chief will be sentenced as scheduled on November 26.

The Republican won back the White House a week ago but the legal question concerns his status as a past president, not an impending one.

A jury convicted Trump in May of falsifying business records related to a $130,000 payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels in October 2016.

The payout was to buy her silence about claims that she had sex with Trump.

He says they didn’t, denies any wrongdoing and maintains the prosecution was a political tactic meant to harm his latest campaign.

Just over a month after the verdict, the Supreme Court ruled that ex-presidents can’t be prosecuted for actions they took in the course of running the country and prosecutors can’t cite those actions even to bolster a case centered on purely personal conduct.

Trump’s lawyers cited the ruling to argue that the hush money jury got some evidence it shouldn’t have, such as Trump’s presidential financial disclosure form and testimony from some White House aides.

Prosecutors disagreed and said the evidence in question was only “a sliver” of their case.

Trump’s criminal conviction was a first for any ex-president.

It left the 78-year-old facing the possibility of punishment ranging from a fine or probation to up to four years in prison.

Trump ally and election denier Kari Lake loses Arizona Senate race to Ruben Gallego

10:00 , Joe Sommerlad

MAGA Republican Kari Lake has lost her race for the Arizona Senate to Democrat Ruben Gallego, who becomes the Grand Canyon State’s first Latino senator.

Gallego’s win helps prevent the GOP further extending its majority in the upper chamber of Congress and continues his party’s successful run in Arizona over the last decade, where voters have repeatedly rejected candidates backed by Donald Trump.

Trump himself beat Kamala Harris there in last week’s presidential race, however, securing his clean sweep of the swing states.

“Gracias, Arizona!” Gallego, 44, wrote on X after his victory was confirmed, thanking the state’s voters for a win that nevertheless means Republicans still hold 53 of the 100 seats in the Senate.

Gallego is a five-term House member and a Marine Corps Reserve veteran of the Iraq War, who will replace Kyrsten Sinema, whose 2018 victory as a Democrat created a formula that the party has successfully replicated ever since.

Trump ally and election denier Kari Lake loses Arizona Senate race to Ruben Gallego

Trump picks New York Republican Lee Zeldin to lead EPA

09:40 , Joe Sommerlad

One last cabinet pick and then we’ll move on.

The president-elect is thought to be going for ex-New York congressman Lee Zeldin, a man who “voted against environmental bills 85 percent of the time”, to lead the Environmental Protection Agency.

Perfect.

Eric Garcia reports.

Lee Zeldin – ‘who voted against environmental bills’ – named Trump’s EPA head

Trump eyeing China hawk Mike Waltz as national security adviser

09:20 , Joe Sommerlad

Another man who looks set to join Trump in Washington DC is Florida Representative Mike Waltz, who will step into shoes previously worn by HR McMaster, John Bolton and Robert O’Brien if he is indeed chosen.

Josh Marcus reports.

Trump eyeing China hawk Mike Waltz as national security adviser

President-elect wants Marco Rubio for secretary of state

08:55 , Joe Sommerlad

In another key appointment, the president-elect has chosen the Florida Republican lawmaker, who was a regular on the 2024 campaign trail with him, to become the country’s top diplomat, sources told The New York Times on Monday evening.

The Cuban-American, 53, will become the first Latino to serve in the role when Trump takes office in January.

He’ll face a geopolitical landscape where multiple US allies are at war abroad, including Ukraine’s defense against the Russian invasion, and Israel’s conflict with Hamas in Gaza.

He’ll also be expected to deliver on key campaign promises that are closer to home, like dramatically cutting illegal immigration at the US-Mexico border.

Rubio was elected to the Senate in 2010 and was reportedly considered as a 2024 running mate by Trump.

He is viewed as a hawk on both China and Iran and a staunch supporter of Israel.

Here’s more from Graeme Massie and Josh Marcus.

Trump expected to choose Marco Rubio as Secretary of State, says report

Donald Trump taps South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem for Homeland Security secretary in new cabinet

08:29 , Joe Sommerlad

The president-elect has chosen South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to lead the Department of Homeland Security in his forthcoming administration as his White House team continues to take shape.

Noem might be best known to millions around the world after revealing in her memoir earlier this year that she had shot dead her disobedient pet dog Cricket, an anecdote that was seemingly intended to convey her leadership qualities but which instead may have cost her the chance to run as Trump’s vice presidential nominee, an honor that instead went to Ohio Senator JD Vance.

Here’s James Liddell on his latest appointment.

Trump taps Kristi Noem for Homeland Security secretary in new cabinet

Trump’s biggest critics are already bracing for retribution

08:00 , Alex Woodward

Donald Trump — who baselessly accuses President Joe Biden’s administration of “weaponizing” law enforcement and the court against him — will enter office on January 20, 2025, with an array of executive powers at his fingertips.

He could soon prepare to seek revenge against those he believes have wronged him.

Trump’s biggest critics are bracing for retribution

One unelected woman in the Senate could stand in the way of Trump and his immigration plans

07:00 , Rhian Lubin

There is one unelected, nonpartisan woman standing in the way of Donald Trump’s plans to crack down on immigration and the border.

Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, essentially a referee of the Senate, is responsible for ensuring that lawmakers follow the rules that govern how legislation moves forward. And it’s her role that could prove to be the last roadblock before Trump can implement sweeping immigration reforms.

Trump has made it clear he intends to stop the flow of migrants across the border and, with immigration hardliner Tom Homan in the post of “Border Czar,” they plan to strip back protections for migrant minors.

One woman in the Senate could stand in the way of Trump and his immigration plans

Panic at the DOJ: Lawyers ready to flee as Trump loyalists are set to commandeer the agency

06:30 , Rhian Lubin

Panic has set in at the Department of Justice as lawyers are considering fleeing the agency before Trump loyalists take over and execute his vision, according to reports.

Donald Trump’s scorn for the DOJ has only grown over the last four years as he became the subject of two criminal prosecutions, and he has previously talked of transforming the agency.

“Everyone I’ve talked to, mostly lawyers, are losing their minds,” one DOJ attorney told Politico, who could only speak anonymously to avoid retribution from the president-elect and his loyalists.

“The fear is that career leadership and career employees everywhere are either going to leave or they’re going to be driven out.”

DOJ lawyers talk about fleeing as Trump loyalists are set to commandeer the agency

Harris and Biden seen together at Arlington cemetery in first joint appearance since Election Day loss

06:00 , John Bowden

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris made their first joint public appearance since the vice president’s defeat to Donald Trump in the presidential election.

The two marked Veterans Day on Monday at Arlington National Cemetary, where the two laid a wreath as part of the annual ceremony. Biden then delivered remarks at the ceremony and hardly spoke of the election.

The event at Arlington is nonpartisan, and the two appeared together, walking in solemn procession. The vice president appeared stoic with no hint of a smile during the ceremony, while Biden appeared slightly stiff and was fighting a cough. His eyes appeared closed during parts of the event.

Harris and Biden together in first joint appearance since Election Day loss

Trump ready to name immigration hardliner Stephen Miller as policy leader in White House

05:30 , Eric Garcia

President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly gearing up to name Stephen Miller, his former senior adviser and a hardliner on immigration, to serve as his deputy chief of staff for policy, CNN reported.

Miller has long worked in Trumpworld, dating to the president-elect’s 2016 campaign as a speechwriter. He served as a senior adviser in the first Trump administration. In that capacity, he helped craft the “zero tolerance” policy that separated migrant children from their parents.

Miller also helped craft the Trump administration’s travel ban from majority-Muslim countries.

Trump ready to name immigration hardliner Stephen Miller as White House policy leader

AOC confronts Trump’s border czar over family separation policy

05:00 , Julia Saqui

President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for border czar previously clashed with democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over his support for a family separation policy along the US-Mexico border. The New York congresswoman sparred with Tom Homan during a House Oversight Committee hearing in 2019. At the time, Homan said he supported a “zero tolerance” border policy, and confirmed that he recommended family separation as top of a list of policies aimed at tackling illegal immigration.

He was acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement during Trump’s first term, and has since vowed to execute the “biggest deportation operation this country’s ever seen” once he joins Trump’s second administration.

Starmer and Macron vow to put Ukraine ‘in strongest possible position’ before Trump becomes president

04:30 , Millie Cooke

Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron have vowed to put Ukraine in the “strongest possible position” going into winter, in a boost in support before Donald Trump returns to the Oval Office.

In a show of European solidarity days after Trump’s election win, the two leaders held talks in Paris to mark Armistice Day and consider how best to continue supporting the war-torn country.

It comes amid suggestions that the UK and France could seek to persuade Joe Biden to permit Ukraine to use Storm Shadow missiles to strike into Russia before he leaves the White House.

There have been concerns over Mr Trump’s approach to the war, with the president-elect criticising Washington’s provision of tens of billions of dollars worth of aid to Ukraine since it was invaded by Russia, as well as expressing skepticism towards Nato and accusing European countries of free-riding on America’s promise of protection.

Ukraine will be ‘in strongest position’ before Trump takes office, say UK and France

Ex-Biden aide rips Pelosi for Biden’s ‘demise;

04:13 , Josh Marcus

A former Biden White House official has torn into Nancy Pelosi on Saturday, blaming her for for pushing the president off the 2024 campaign.

Symone Sanders Townsend, now a MSNBC commentator, criticised the veteran Democrat as the party continues to pour over the reasons behind Kamala Harris’ devastating loss to Donald Trump.“Nancy Pelosi, everybody talks about how the speaker emerita, you know, she’s so strategic, she can count, she did all of that when she was the speaker in Congress, but my question is: Where is your calculator now?” Sanders Townsend told panelists during an episode of “The Weekend.”

“She played in presidential politics this cycle, and she helped orchestrate the very public demise of the president,” she added.

More details in our full story.

Former Biden aide tears into Pelosi for orchestrating president’s ‘public demise’

‘Not surprising at all’: How Trump flipped America’s largest majority-Arab city

04:00 , Joey Cappellitti

Faced with two choices she didn’t like, Suehaila Amen chose neither.

Instead, the longtime Democrat from the Arab American stronghold of Dearborn, Michigan, backed a third-party candidate for president, adding her voice to a remarkable turnaround that helped Donald Trump reclaim Michigan and the presidency.

In Dearborn, where nearly half of the 110,000 residents are of Arab descent, Vice President Kamala Harris received over 2,500 fewer votes than Trump, who became the first Republican presidential candidate since former President George W. Bush in 2000 to win the city. Harris also lost neighboring Dearborn Heights to Trump, who in his previous term as president banned travel from several mostly-Muslim countries.

How Trump flipped America’s largest majority-Arab city

AOC supporters compare to her to Trump – and they mean it as a compliment

03:30 , Rhian Lubin

As Democrats search for answers after Tuesday’s crushing defeat, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez asked her supporters to share why they voted for Donald Trump.

The congresswoman, who was comfortably reelected as New York’s 14th Congressional representative last week, asked her 8 million Instagram followers why they backed Trump for the presidential election but voted Democrat in down-ballot races.

“If you voted for Donald Trump and me, or if you voted for Donald Trump and voted Democratic down-ballot, I would really love to hear from you,” she posted in an Instagram story on Sunday.

“This is not a place of judgment, I’m not gonna put your stuff on blast or anything like that or dunk on it. That is genuinely not the intent here,” she said. “I actually want to learn from you, I want to hear what you’re thinking.”

AOC supporters compare to her to Trump – and they mean it as a compliment

Trump wants Marco Rubio for Secretary of State

03:09 , Josh Marcus

Donald Trump is expected to select US Senator Marco Rubio as the Secretary of State in his second administration, according to a report.

The president-elect has chosen the Republican Florida lawmaker, who was a regular on the 2024 campaign trail with Trump, to become the country’s top diplomat, sources told The New York Times on Monday evening.

The Cuban-American will become the first Latino to serve in the role when Trump takes office in January. He’ll face a geopolitical landscape where multiple U.S. allies are at war abroad, including Ukraine’s defense against the Russian invasion, and Israel’s conflict with Hamas in Gaza. He’ll also be expected to deliver on key campaign promises that are closer to home, like dramatically cutting illegal immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Rubio, 53, was elected to the US Senate in 2010 and was reportedly considered as a 2024 running mate by Trump. He is viewed as a hawk on both China and Iran, and a staunch supporter of Israel.

Graeme Massie reports.

Keir Starmer misses out on Donald Trump meeting as Argentinian ally gets priority

03:00 , Kate Devlin

Keir Starmer has no plans to visit Donald Trump in Mar-a-Lago on his way to a meeting of the G20 group of world leaders next week, despite at least one ally making the trip.

Argentina’s libertarian President Javier Milei has been invited to see the US president-elect at his Florida club, amid speculation others will follow.

A supporter of Mr Trump, Mr Milei celebrated his election win with a fireworks display and posts on social media.

But while Sir Keir offered the Republican his “hearty” congratulations, there are fears Labour will struggle with the next occupant of the White House.

Keir Starmer misses out on Donald Trump meeting as Argentinian ally gets priority

Who is in Trump’s Cabinet so far? From ‘ice maiden’ Susie Wiles to border czar Tom Homan

02:53 , Josh Marcus

President-elect Donald Trump is starting to fill key posts in his second administration, putting an emphasis so far on aides and allies who were his strongest backers during the 2024 campaign.

Here’s a look at who he’s selected so far.

All the details in the full story.

WATCH: Trump praised at Warsaw’s far-right-led Independence Day march

02:30 , Gustaf Kilander

Elon Musk and RFK Jr push far-right Rick Scott for senate majority leader

02:00 , Eric Garcia

Allies of President-elect Donald Trump are pushing for Florida Senator Rick Scott to succeed Mitch McConnell as Senate Republican leader – in a move they hope will make it easier to push through the president-elect’s agenda.

Elon Musk, the X/Twitter executive who poured money to elect Trump, pushed for the Florida Republican, who overwhelmingly won re-election last week, to replace McConnell, who will step aside as Republican leader later this year. Scott is one of the far-right members of the Senate, but on Wednesday could win the vote to help dictate the direction of the Senate and which bills are discussed.

“Rick Scott for Senate Majority Leader!” Musk enthusiastically tweeted on Sunday.

Elon Musk and RFK Jr push far-right Rick Scott for senate majority leader

Trump’s tariff plan ‘doomsday scenario’ for UK economy, senior Labour figure warns

01:30 , Kate Devlin

Donald Trump’s plans to impose huge tariffs on imports are a “doomsday scenario” for the UK economy, a senior Labour figure has warned.

The move would hurt growth and lead to higher inflation and interest rates, Liam Byrne, the Labour chair of the Commons business committee predicted.

Experts have warned of a looming trade war after Mr Trump himself said: “Tariff is my favourite word”.

In the run-up to the election, the Republican promised to implement 10 to 20 per cent tariffs on all goods coming into the country, a figure that rises to 60 per cent for those from China.

Already there have been warnings the change could halve UK economic growth from the National Institute of Economic and Social Research think tank.

Trump’s tariff plan ‘doomsday scenario’ for UK economy, senior Labour figure warns

Elon Musk spotted in another Trump family photo as Kai plays golf with her new ‘uncle’

01:00 , Olivia Hebert

Elon Musk appeared in yet another Trump family photo, this time posing with the president-elect’s granddaughter, Kai.

On Sunday, the 17-year-old aspiring golfer took to X to share photos from a family golf outing featuring her grandfather Donald Trump, sister Chloe and X owner Elon Musk. She joked that the billionaire, 53, was now part of the family as he joined the group with his 4-year-old son, X Æ A-12.

“Elon achieving uncle status,” she wrote alongside a photo of the Tesla CEO and his son, X, who playfully held a golf ball over his eye in the shot. Musk shares his son with musician Grimes.

Elon Musk spotted in another Trump family photo as Kai plays golf with new ‘uncle’