A party like no other? Asia's richest man celebrates son's prenuptials with a star-studded bash
Tycoons from around the world, heads of state, as well as Hollywood and Bollywood stars have descended on the small western Indian city of Jamnagar, where billionaire industrialist Mukesh Ambani is kickstarting a big fat wedding celebration for his youngest son.
Donald Trump Jr. lauds dadโs real estate exploits as ex-president's civil fraud trial begins defense
Donald Trump Jr. has spent more than an hour in court testifying almost as a character witness for his father's company, waxing exuberantly about the former presidentโs โincredible visionโ as a developer.
FBI search at Trump Mar-a-Lago estate one of several probes
The FBI search of Donald Trumpโs Mar-a-Lago estate marked a dramatic and unprecedented escalation of the law enforcement scrutiny of the former president, but the Florida operation was just one part of one investigation related to Trump and his time in office.
The tough words Trump never spoke: Jan. 6 panel's new video
An original script for Donald Trumpโs speech the day after the Capitol insurrection included lines ordering the Justice Department to โensure all lawbreakers are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the lawโ and stating the rioters โdo not represent me."
Jan. 6 hearings: What weโve learned, and whatโs next
Through seven hearings this summer, the House Jan. 6 panel has maintained consistent themes: Donald Trumpโs stubborn resistance to advisers who told him that Joe Biden won the election, and the former presidentโs role in inciting the Capitol insurrection.
Jan. 6 witnesses push Trump stalwarts back to rabbit hole
Instead of convincing Donald Trump's most loyal supporters of his misdeeds, the revelations from the hearings into the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol are prompting many of them to reassert their views that he was correct in falsely asserting a claim to victory.
What we know about Trump's actions as insurrection unfolded
Members of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection are holding their first prime-time hearing to share what they have uncovered about then-President Donald Trumpโs efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Jan. 6 panel's 1,000 witnesses: From Trump aides to rioters
The House Jan. 6 panel has interviewed more than 1,000 people who were directly or indirectly involved in the U.S. Capitol insurrection as it's probed the violent attack and former President Donald Trumpโs unprecedented efforts to overturn his election defeat.
Trump appeals ruling forcing him to testify in NY probe
Former President Donald Trump has appealed a judgeโs decision requiring he answer questions under oath in New York stateโs civil investigation into his business practices โ a widely expected move thatโs likely to prolong the fight over his testimony by months.
Ivanka Trump tells Rubio she won't run for his Senate seat
Ivanka Trump comes onto stage as President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in support of Senate candidates Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., and David Perdue in Dalton, Ga., Monday, Jan. 4, 2021. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)WASHINGTON โ Ivanka Trump will not be running for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's U.S. Senate seat in 2022 as she settles into life after Washington. Lara Trump, the former president's daughter-in-law, who served as a chief campaign surrogate, is still considering running for the Senate in North Carolina. And the former presidentโs eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., remains deeply popular with his father's base. AdIn a pair of friendly statements, Rubio and Ivanka Trump praised one another for their efforts together working on issues like paid family leave.
Tiffany Trump announces engagement on dad's final full day
Tiffany Trump and Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner listen as President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Kenosha Regional Airport, Monday, Nov. 2, 2020, in Kenosha, Wis. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. She shared a photograph of herself and fiance Michael Boulos posing on the West Wing colonnade at the White House. โIt has been an honor to celebrate many milestones, historic occasions and create memories with my family here at the White House, none more special than my engagement to my amazing fiance Michael!โ Tiffany Trump wrote. Tiffany Trump is the president's daughter with Marla Maples, his second ex-wife. She and Boutros have been dating for the past few years and have attended White House events together.
Trump wishes new administration luck in farewell video
โThis week we inaugurate a new administration and pray for its success in keeping America safe and prosperous,โ Trump said in the video โfarewell address,โ released by the White House less than 24 hours before President-elect Joe Bidenโs inauguration. Trump was also expected to spend his final hours granting clemency to as many as 100 people, according to two people briefed on the plans. Trump is set to leave Washington early Wednesday morning after a grand farewell event at nearby Joint Base Andrews. He is boycotting not just the ceremony at the Capitol, but also passed on inviting the Bidens to the White House for a get-to-know-you meeting. That threw an already paralyzed White House into even further chaos.
Ivanka Trump's global women's program halfway toward goal
Ivanka Trump comes onto stage as President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in support of Senate candidates Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., and David Perdue in Dalton, Ga., Monday, Jan. 4, 2021. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)WASHINGTON โ Ivanka Trump's global women's development program is about halfway toward its goal of helping 50 million women in developing countries advance economically by 2025. That's according to an annual report for the U.S. government's Women's Global Development and Prosperity Initiative released Wednesday as the program nears its two-year mark. President Trump established the program in February 2019, directing the U.S. government to make global women's development a cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy and national security. Ivanka Trump has promoted the program during visits to Africa and South America.
'He's on his own': Some Republicans begin to flee from Trump
Trump still has supporters, especially among the many rank-and-file Republican voters and conservative activists beyond Washington. That makes Trump the first outgoing president since Andrew Johnson 152 years ago to skip the swearing-in of his successor. Meanwhile, there is no clear path for the Republican Party without Trump. โWe need a Republican Party,โ Biden said, noting that he spoke with Republican Sen. Mitt Romney, a leading Trump critic. Doug Deason, a Texas-based donor who served on the Trump campaign's finance committee, said this week's events have done nothing to shake his confidence in the Republican president.
'He's on his own': Some Republicans begin to flee from Trump
Trump still has supporters, especially among the many rank-and-file Republican voters and conservative activists beyond Washington. That makes Trump the first outgoing president since Andrew Johnson 152 years ago to skip the swearing-in of his successor. Meanwhile, there is no clear path for the Republican Party without Trump. โWe need a Republican Party,โ Biden said, noting that he spoke with Republican Sen. Mitt Romney, a leading Trump critic. Doug Deason, a Texas-based donor who served on the Trump campaign's finance committee, said this week's events have done nothing to shake his confidence in the Republican president.
Turnout among young voters key to Georgia Senate runoffs
Young voters were key to Biden's narrow win in Georgia, with a margin of just under 12,000 votes. The push to connect with young voters has been especially apparent for the Democratic campaigns, which have more to gain from youth turnout โ and more to lose if there's a drop-off. Sigler did not answer a specific question asking how the campaigns are reaching out to young voters but sent a statement attacking Ossoff and Warnock and asserting that policies backed by Perdue and Loeffler are better for young voters. Among young white voters, Trump was favored by about two to one. Young Republican voters, weary of having Democrats control the White House and both chambers of Congress, have been mainstays at the large rallies held by Perdue and Loeffler.
Harris, Ivanka Trump stump in Georgia ahead of Senate runoff
Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris campaigns for Democratic U.S. Senate challengers the Rev. Ivanka Trump, meanwhile, warned that failing to reelect the two Republican incumbents in next month's crucial runoff could erode her father's legislative achievements. Telling a crowd in Columbus that โeverything is at stakeโ in the Jan. 5 contests, Harris said Democratic candidates Jon Ossoff and the Rev. Trump, President Donald Trump's daughter and a senior White House adviser, stumped with Republican U.S. Sens. Over the crowd's shouts of โWe love Trump!โ and โFight for Trump!โ she implored voters to send Republicans back to the Senate โto protect all that America stands for."
As end approaches, Trump gets doses of flattery, finality
Barr offered his resignation last Monday after weeks of tension with Trump brought about an early exit from his post. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)NEW YORK โ President Donald Trumpโs administration is ending how it began, with over-the-top declarations of praise for the chief executive. Attorney General William Barr offered his resignation last Monday after weeks of tension with Trump brought about an early exit from his post. In the six weeks since his defeat by Biden, Trump has been increasingly disengaged from his job. But with Trump largely in hiding, it fell to Pence to make a public show of meeting with those distributing the vaccine.
Biden's transition contends with probe into son's finances
But news of the probe, which was revealed on Wednesday and scrutinizes some of Hunter Biden's Chinese business dealings and other transactions, caught most of his father's staffers by surprise. Most notably, the probe casts a spotlight on one of Bidenโs most important choices: his attorney general. And Biden aides believe that because other Hunter Biden stories have blown over, this will, too. Those were based in part on New York Post reporting on a laptop that supposedly once belonged to Hunter Biden and was abandoned at a Delaware repair shop. Hunter Biden, and his baby son, were right in the middle.
The Latest: Biden: Trump inaugural presence important to US
WASHINGTON โ The Latest on President-elect Joe Biden (all times local):9:55 p.m.President-elect Joe Biden says it is important that President Donald Trump attend his inauguration only in the sense that it would demonstrate the nationโs commitment to a peaceful transfer of power between political rivals. ___8:45 p.m.Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus have made a fresh push for President-elect Joe Biden to nominate New Mexico Gov. But $207.5 million came in after Election Day as Trump repeatedly โ and falsely โ claimed President-elect Joe Biden won due to voter fraud. Gina Raimondo has knocked down talk that she is in the running for President-elect Joe Bidenโs secretary of health and human services. ___12:25 p.m.President-elect Joe Biden has tapped former Obama administration senior economic adviser Brian Deese to be director of the National Economic Council.
Ivanka Trump deposed as part of inauguration fund lawsuit
Ivanka Trump, who was deposed on Tuesday, tweeted that she gave attorneys from the D.C. attorney generalโs office an email she wrote on Dec. 14, 2016, where she instructed the Trump hotel to charge a โfair market rate," which she said the the hotel did. As part of the suit, the attorneys have subpoenaed records from Ivanka Trump, first lady Melania Trump, Thomas Barrack Jr., a close friend of the president who chaired the inaugural committee, and others. Racine has accused the committee of misusing nonprofit funds and coordinating with the hotelโs management and members of the Trump family to arrange the events. In a statement, Alan Garten with the Trump Organization said that โMs. Trumpโs only involvement was connecting the parties and instructing the hotel to charge a โfair market rate,โ which the hotel did.โ
Criminal probe, legal fights await Trump after White House
FILE - In this Nov. 5, 2020 file photo, President Donald Trump speaks at the White House in Washington. The president's legal entanglements are likely to intensify when leaves the White House in January 2021 and loses immunity from prosecution. The probe led by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. is one of several legal entanglements likely to intensify when Trump loses power โ and immunity from prosecution โ upon leaving the White House. Trump faces two New York state inquiries into whether he misled tax authorities, banks or business partners. Carroll says Trump raped her in the mid-1990s in a New York department store.
NY probes Trump consulting payments that reduced his taxes
FILE- In this June 13, 2017, file photo, Ivanka Trump joins her father, President Donald Trump, as they walk across the South Lawn of the White House in Washington. If true, that wouldnโt necessarily pose a problem for Ivanka Trump herself, as long as she paid income tax on the consulting payments, which she reported publicly. The Times wrote that there was no indication Ivanka Trump is a target of either the state's or the city's investigation. James and Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., both Democrats, are both conducting wide-ranging inquiries into Trump's business affairs. Vance has been involved in a long court battle seeking access to Trump's tax filings as part of the investigation.
Trump the dancer? His moves to 'YMCA' at rallies are a hit
President Donald Trump, a man who is famously particular about his appearance, is fully embracing doing a dad dance to the Village People's โYMCAโ as the finale to his rallies in the campaign's closing stretch. Trump's rally dance has become a rare moment of levity in an otherwise miserable campaign year marked by a deadly pandemic, an economic recession and racial turmoil. Then order 'Dancing with The Donโ and let President Trump teach you all the hottest moves!" Dancing.โโYMCA,โ widely considered a gay anthem, is a relatively new addition to Trump's rally playlist. Trump campaign adviser Jason Miller agreed to reveal the secret to an AP reporter โonly if we first get a clip of you singing YMCA.โAP's Jill Colvin declined.
Trump business deductions: sketchy, normal or in-between?
A key question is whether those deductions reported by The New York Times were excessive and possibly illegal; they enabled Trump to avoid millions of dollars in taxes. It would be up to the IRS, which is auditing some of Trumpโs returns, to decide whether the deductions are legitimate. The agency defines an ordinary expense as one thatโs common and accepted in a companyโs trade or type of business. According to the Times, Trump has treated some of his residences as businesses, in the process deducting millions of dollars. Moreover, under the tax legislation Trump signed into law in 2017, he would have been limited to $10,000 a year in property tax deductions for 2018.
Pence brings law-and-order tour to city where Floyd died
(AP Photo/Jim Mone, File)MINNEAPOLIS โ Vice President Mike Pence is bringing President Donald Trumpโs law-and-order campaign message to Minneapolis on Thursday, showing support for law enforcement in the city where George Floyd's death sparked angry and sometimes violent protests that spread around the world. For some in Minneapolis, the campaign's law-and-order message is calculated, divisive and damaging. After Floyd's death, a majority of City Council members pledged to abolish the Police Department and replace it with a new agency that would take a more socially minded approach. Their hopes of taking the idea to voters in November was blocked by a city commission and won't happen before 2021, if ever. Austin, who is Black, said Trump's law-and-order message is code for increased law enforcement aiming to โmake white people feel safe, but it is a direct threat to Black and brown communities,โ she said.
Biden aims to rebuild 'blue wall' in Michigan visit
Though the Biden campaign often emphasizes that it sees multiple ways to secure the 270 Electoral College votes it needs to win in November, the quickest path runs through Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. It has since recovered to 8.7%, but Michigan has nearly 414,500 fewer jobs than it did when Trump was inaugurated. Previewing the president's own Michigan trip, the Trump campaign looked to paint Biden as deferential on China. Michigan Democratic Rep. Brenda Lawrence was among those on-hand. The difference is starkest in Michigan, where the Biden campaign has spent $17.2 million to Trumps $6.7 million.
In 3 big states, Biden looks to rebuild Democrats' Blue Wall
LANSING, Mich. In 2016, Donald Trump tore down Democrats blue wall, winning the White House with surprise victories in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The Biden campaign sees an opening there to argue that, even before the pandemic, the president failed some of his most loyal blue-collar backers. The difference is starkest in Michigan, where the Biden campaign has spent $17.2 million to Trumps $6.7 million. Trump is slightly outspending Biden in upcoming ad reservations in Pennsylvania, while Biden is slightly outspending the president on air in Michigan. Were door-knocking all over the place, our local candidates are door-knocking and the Trump campaign volunteers are door-knocking, said Elizabeth Preate-Havey, GOP chairwoman in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania's third-most populous county.
Trump still faces skepticism in suburbs following convention
His convention underscored the campaign's conviction that Trump's path to reelection rests primarily on voters who backed him four years ago. Even without another surge in coronavirus deaths and infections, some Trump backers say he needs to do more to unite a fractured nation. Hes obtuse, and he doesnt get it, said Lee Davis, who watched parts of the convention from Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, a Republican-leaning exurb of Milwaukee. In the half-ring of suburban and ex-urban counties around Milwaukee, where Trump won but underperformed by historic GOP standards in 2016, Trump likely will need to improve his margins. I know his tweets can feel a bit unfiltered, said Ivanka Trump in introducing the president before his acceptance speech.
The Latest: GOP convention wraps up with opera, fireworks
WASHINGTON The Republican National Convention the first political convention ever held at the White House has ended with opera and fireworks. ___HERES WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THURSDAYS REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION: GOP convention takeaways: What virus? ___Rudy Giuliani is painting a grim portrait of violence in America as he endorses President Donald Trumps reelection bid at the Republican convention. Carson, the highest-ranking Black member of President Donald Trumps administration, is the first Republican National Convention speaker Thursday to discuss Blakes shooting. President Donald Trump is accepting the Republican presidential nomination during a scaled-back, coronavirus-influenced convention unfolding on the sprawling lawn.
WHAT TO WATCH: Trump's moment, Ivanka and Rudy Giuliani
What to watch on the fourth and final night of the Republican National Convention:TRUMPTrump is scheduled to accept his partys renomination in an address from the White House South Lawn. IVANKAThe president will be introduced by his daughter Ivanka Trump, the fourth of his five children to speak during the convention. RUDYDonald Trumps personal attorney Rudy Giuliani is scheduled to help close out the convention. BIDENThe Democrat has laid low this week but he's scheduled to appear at a virtual fundraiser Thursday. ET (a half-hour earlier than the Democratic convention last week) and runs through 11 p.m.
Who's in power? Convention lineup has clues to Trump's favor
Donald Trump Jr., speaks as he tapes his speech for the first day of the Republican National Convention from the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, Monday, Aug. 24, 2020. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)WASHINGTON If speaking time at the Republican convention is a measure of President Donald Trumps favor, his family wins by a mile. Instead, the 2020 Republican convention is an exhibit of a party Trump has remade as a largely family-led enterprise. First lady Melania Trump spoke for 16 minutes. The speech solidified his standing as the leading Republican presidential hopeful in 2024.
Ivanka Trump to introduce dad at RNC as 'people's president'
Ivanka Trump will also draw contrasts between Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden, according to the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to preview her remarks. The president plans to accept the GOP nomination in a speech from the White House lawn despite questions about the propriety of using government property for such an overt political purpose. Four years ago, I told you my father would focus on making child care affordable and accessible, Ivanka Trump is expected to say, according to excerpts of her speech provided to The Associated Press. Ivanka Trump introduced her father at the 2016 convention. Ivanka Trump will also introduce her businessman father as the people's president in keeping with a weeklong convention effort to humanize him.
Trump convention blurs official business and politics
But if the event were held in the West Wing or in another area of the White House that is regarded as a federal room, White House officials would be prohibited from attending even while off-duty. The officials said the events on the White House grounds were consistent with previous presidents using the White House residence for political videos. Any government employees who may participate will do so in compliance with the Hatch Act, White House spokesman Judd Deere said in a statement. "Political parties come and go, but it doesnt belong to one political party or the other.The Trump administration is hardly the first to mix business with politics. The Trump administration has repeatedly stepped over the line, ethics experts said.
Endangered GOP senators are driving force for virus deal
(AP Photo/Susan Walsh)WASHINGTON A small but singularly influential group is a driving force for an agreement on a stalled coronavirus relief bill: Endangered Senate GOP incumbents who need to win this fall if Republicans are going to retain control of the majority. Several of them are refusing to allow the Senate to adjourn until Washington delivers a deal to their desperate constituents. And Sen. Susan Collins is in overdrive, backing help for cash-starved states and local governments and Maine's shipbuilding industry. GOP Senate candidates need a deal, a good deal ... so they can get home and campaign on helping small businesses get up and moving again, said Scott Reed, the chief political strategist at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Cornyn helped start a bandwagon of senators who are demanding the Senate stay at work in Washington until a coronavirus bill is passed.
Ivanka Trump nets $4M at fundraiser for President Trump
WASHINGTON President Donald Trumps daughter Ivanka Trump raised $4 million for his reelection campaign Wednesday during a virtual event that marked her return to the high-dollar fundraising circuit. Approximately 100 people attended her first virtual fundraiser, held over Zoom, according to a person with direct knowledge of the event. President Trump briefly addressed the contributors after he telephoned his daughter during the event and she put the call on speakerphone. Ivanka Trump gets the most requests, after the president, to appear at fundraisers and other events, officials said. The $4 million raised Wednesday topped a recent online fundraiser for Joe Biden, Trumps likely Democratic opponent.
Trump giving $35 million to aid human trafficking survivors
WASHINGTON The Trump administration is awarding more than $35 million in Justice Department grants to organizations that provide safe housing for survivors of human trafficking. The grants are being announced Tuesday at a White House event attended by Attorney General William Barr, presidential adviser Ivanka Trump, other administration officials, survivors of human trafficking and organizations that serve them. The $35 million in Housing Assistance Grants for Victims of Human Trafficking is being provided by the Office for Victims of Crime within the Justice Departments Office of Justice Programs to provide housing and services to human trafficking survivors. President Trump has sought to elevate human trafficking since taking office. His daughter has also made human trafficking one of her issue areas.
Trump signs $3B-a-year plan to boost conservation, parks
Supporters say the Great American Outdoors Act is the most significant conservation legislation enacted in nearly half a century. Opponents counter that the money isn't enough to cover the estimated $20 billion maintenance backlog on federally owned lands. The law requires full, mandatory funding of the popular Land and Water Conservation Fund and addresses the maintenance backlog facing Americas national parks and public lands. Supporters say the legislation will create at least 100,000 jobs, while restoring national parks and repairing trails and forest systems. The legislation's opponents, mostly Republicans, complain it would not eliminate an estimated $20 billion maintenance backlog on 640 acres (259 hectares) of federally owned lands.
Endangered GOP senators are driving force for virus deal
(AP Photo/Susan Walsh)WASHINGTON A small but singularly influential group is a driving force for an agreement on a stalled coronavirus relief bill: Endangered Senate GOP incumbents who need to win this fall if Republicans are going to retain control of the majority. Confronted with a poisonous political environment, vulnerable Senate Republicans are rushing to endorse generous jobless benefits, child care grants, and more than $100 billion to help schools reopen. Several of them are refusing to allow the Senate to adjourn until Washington delivers a deal to their desperate constituents. And Sen. Susan Collins is in overdrive, backing help for cash-starved states and local governments and Maine's shipbuilding industry. GOP Senate candidates need a deal, a good deal ... so they can get home and campaign on helping small businesses get up and moving again, said Scott Reed, the chief political strategist at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.