ABC agrees to settle Trump ‘rape’ defamation case for $15m as more administration picks announced: Live

WorldPolitics
15 Dec 2024 • 10:20 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

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Donald Trump attended the Army-Navy football game on Saturday alongside a collection of allies, cabinet picks, and controversial figures.

The president-elect was joined by JD Vance, Elon Musk, House Speaker Mike Johnson, Trump’s defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, and Daniel Penny, who was recently acquitted of homicide after placing a homeless man in a chokehold on a New York City subway for nearly six minutes. Penny has become a cause célèbre on the right since.

Their appearance at the game came as ABC agreed to a $15 million settlement stemming from Trump’s defamation suit involving a broadcast about E. Jean Carroll, who herself had successfully sued the president-elect for defamatory statements.

Trump also named several more picks for his administration on Saturday, including Truth Social CEO Devin Nunes to run an intelligence board, and staunch loyalist foreign policy adviser Richard Grenell as a presidential envoy for special missions.

Meanwhile, officials across the East Coast are expressing frustration over continued mysterious drone spottings in the airspace above New Jersey and nearby states, which have fueled conspiracy theories and concerns among residents.

Key Points

  • Daniel Penny meets with Trump and Vance at Army-Navy game
  • ABC agrees to pay $15 million to Trump in defamation lawsuit settlement
  • Nancy Pelosi hospitalized in Luxembourg after falling
  • Trump names Truth Social CEO Devin Nunes to Intelligence Advisory Board
  • Trump wants to privatize U.S. Postal Service

Elon Musk shares photo of himself with Trump and Vance at Army-Navy game

04:38

Graig Graziosi

Tesla, SpaceX, and X CEO Elon Musk was at Saturday’s Army-Navy game alongside President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance. The image shows the three men on a stadium Jumbotron and is yet another example of Musk — the world’s richest man and presumably a very busy person leading three massive companies — spending a significant amount of time hanging around with Trump.

Vivek Ramaswamy poses with Daniel Penny, recalls donation to his legal defense

04:20

Graig Graziosi

Failed Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy posted a photo of himself posing with Daniel Penny, who was recently acquitted for the death of Jordan Neely, a Black street performer who struggled with homelessness and schizophrenia, and recalled that he donated to Penny’s legal defense fund. Neely died after Penny held him in a chokehold for more than six minuted on a New York City subway train.

Neely was allegedly yelling threatening things at the other passengers, but witnesses said he never touched anyone.

“Our family contributed to this man’s legal defense fund last year because he was wronged. We don’t regret it. Hope Daniel Penny has a bright future & good life ahead,” Ramaswamy wrote. According to reports at the time, Ramaswamy donated $10,000 to Penny’s defense.

CNN contributor Bakari Sellers calls Daniel Penny praise ‘identity politics of the right'

04:10

Graig Graziosi

CNN contributor and former South Carolina Representative Bakari Sellers lamented that Daniel Penny, who was recently acquitted for the death of Jordan Neely, a Black street performer who struggled with homelessness and schizophrenia, was invited to the Army-Navy football game to hobnob with President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance.

“The prism through which this country views race is fascinating. Look at conservative avatars….Daniel Penny kills a black man has no accountability, chills with the POTUS. Caitlin Clark acknowledges black women’s professional contributions and gets crucified,” he wrote on X. “Watching the identity politics of the right…”

ABC News staff allegedly furious at $15m Trump settlement

03:56

Graig Graziosi

ABC News staff are allegedly upset that the broadcaster agreed to pay $15 million to Donald Trump to settle a defamation suit he brought against veteran anchor George Stephanopoulos.Trump claimed the anchor defamed him when he said the president-elect had been found liable for rape by a jury in the E Jean Carroll defamation trial.According to reporter Yashar Ali, staff ABC News have expressed their frustration that the company found money to pay off Trump, but not for salary increases or staving off layoffs. “Their anger primarily stems from the fact that they have faced repeated budget and compensation cuts in recent years, experienced layoffs, and yet the network — even if insurance paid it — has paid this huge sum of money to settle this matter,” Ali wrote.

Democratic Party attorney says ABC News bent the knee to Trump in defamation settlement

03:41

Graig Graziosi

Democratic Party attorney and Democracy Docket founded Marc Elias said ABC News “kissed the ring” by agreeing to settle a defamation lawsuit brought by Donald Trump.

On Saturday ABC News agreed to pay Trump $15 million after he sued the broadcaster for defamation in respose to a comment George Stephanopoulos made claiming the president-elect had been found liable for rape by a jury in the E Jean Carroll defamation trial. Elias criticized the broadcaster for the move. “Knee bent. Ring kissed. Another legacy news outlet chooses obedience,” he wrote on Saturday.

ABC agrees to pay $15 million to Trump in defamation lawsuit settlement

03:33

Graig Graziosi

ABC has agreed to pay $15 million as part of a settlement with Donald Trump after the president-elect sued the network and host George Stephanopoulos for defamation.

In March, Stephanopoulos pressed congresswoman Nancy Mace about her support for the former president despite a judge finding him “liable for rape by a jury,” he said.

“Donald Trump has been found liable for defaming the victim of that rape by a jury,” Stephonopoulos said on ABC’s This Week at the time. “It’s been affirmed by a judge.”

READ MORE:

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Video surfaces of George Santos being hit with coffee in Times Square

03:20

Graig Graziosi

Former New York congressman George Santos was hit with a cup of coffee as he walked through Times Square, according to a video making the rounds on social media.

The clip begins with an unnamed man wearing sunglasses speaking into camera, saying, “This guy has got [the] audacity to show his face,” as he follows Santos.

After getting the former congressman’s attention, the man throws a drink on Santos, and asks, “How do you like that?”

READ MORE:

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Daniel Penny meets Donald Trump days after his acquittal in Jordan Neely’s subway death

03:01

Graig Graziosi

Daniel Penny, the former US Marine who was recently acquitted of the killing of New York City subway rider Jordan Neely, spent Saturday rubbing elbows with President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance at the annual Army-Navy football game in Maryland.

The death of the homeless Black street performer sparked outrage and demands for justice for homeless New Yorkers, while Penny — and some witnesses aboard the train — argued he was a danger to others onboard. The former Marine held Neely in a lethal chokehold for more than six minutes.

“He was just threatening to kill people,” Penny told Fox News host Jeanine Pirro. “He was threatening to go to jail forever, to go to jail for the rest of his life.”

READ MORE:

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Elon Musk wants to turn SpaceX site in Texas into his own city

02:36

Graig Graziosi

In the decade since SpaceX arrived on the Texas coast, billionaire Elon Musk‘s company has created thousands of jobs near the Mexico border, launched rockets and sprung up new homes — all around an area dubbed Starbase.

Now SpaceX wants to make Starbase a recognized city.

Nearby residents are asking for an election to incorporate the area, which sits on the southern tip of Texas at Boca Chica Beach. Musk posted on his social platform X on Thursday that “SpaceX HQ will now officially be in the city of Starbase, Texas!”

READ MORE:

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Devin Nunes and Ric Grenell — who are Trump’s latest administration picks?

01:50

Graig Graziosi

Donald Trump announced on Saturday that Truth Social CEO Devin Nunes and the president-elect’s Director of National Intelligence Ric Grenell have been selected to serve in his upcoming administration.

Nunes, as former California House Representative, was tapped for to serve as Chairman of Trump’s Intelligence Advisory Board, while Grenell was picked to serve as his Presiential Envoy for Special Missions.

While Nunes was in office he served on the House Intelligence Committee and consistently backed any move then-President Trump made. He also led the two-year investigation into US’s responde to the 2012 Benghazi attack, which ultimate found no evidence of wrongdoing on the part of the US State Department under Hillary Clinton.

Nunes also refused to back an investigation into Trump former national security adviser and Q-Anon conspiracy theorist Michael Flynn after it was revealed he had unreported discussions with Russian officials while serving under Trump.

“From everything that I can see, his conversations with the Russian ambassador—he was doing this country a favor, and he should be thanked for it,” Nunes said at the time.

Grenell formerly served as Trump’s ambassador to Germany and his Director of National Intelligence.

Prior to his involvement in Trump’s administration, Grenell was a consultant for an eastern European oligarch, Vladimir Plahotniuc. He faced criticism after he wrote articles defending the oligarch without making clear he was being paid to manage the man’s image.

Grenell is a former Fox News contributor and was named as a VP at the far-right media outlet Newsmax in 2021. He earned the ire of the media in 2020 when, during a Trump press conference, he refused to identify himself to reporters and publicly accused the state of covering up incidents of voter fraud in order to help the election prospects of then-Democratic challenger Joe Biden.

These claims were made without evidence, and Mr Grenell refused to answer questions from journalists who demanded he prove his assertions.

Daniel Penny meets Donald Trump days after his acquittal in Jordan Neely’s subway death

00:53

Graig Graziosi

Daniel Penny, the former US Marine who was recently acquitted of the killing of New York City subway rider Jordan Neely, spent Saturday rubbing elbows with President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance at the annual Army-Navy football game in Maryland.

The death of the homeless Black street performer sparked outrage and demands for justice for homeless New Yorkers, while Penny — and some witnesses aboard the train — argued he was a danger to others onboard. The former Marine held Neely in a lethal chokehold for more than six minutes.

“He was just threatening to kill people,” Penny told Fox News host Jeanine Pirro. “He was threatening to go to jail forever, to go to jail for the rest of his life.”READ MORE:

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Trump names Ric Grenell as Presidential Envoy for Special Missions

00:30

Graig Graziosi

Donald Trump has named Ric Grenell, his former acting Director for National Intelligence, to Presidential Envoy for Special Missions in his upcoming term. “In my First Term, Ric was the United States Ambassador to Germany, Acting Director of National Intelligence, and Presidential Envoy for Kosovo-Serbia Negotiations. Previously, he spent eight years inside the United Nations Security Council, working with North Korea, and developments in numerous other Countries,” Trump’s account wrote on Truth Social.

D.C. restaurant server fired for saying she would refuse to serve some Trump officials

00:15

Graig Graziosi

A server in Washington, D.C. has been fired after she said she would refuse to serve certain officials in Donald Trump‘s incoming administration who have been accused of sexual misconduct.

The server was working at Beuchert’s Saloon on Capitol Hill when she made the comments to Washingtonian magazine for a story about D.C. preparing for the influx of Trump officials to the city’s dining spots.

After the story ran, Fox News ran its own story following up on her comments and learned she had been fired for what her employer called her “base prejudice.”

READ MORE:

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Chicago mayor vows to protect residents after Trump’s border czar singles out Windy City for mass deportations

Saturday 14 December 2024 23:50

Graig Graziosi

Donald Trump’s incoming “border czar” has suggested the president-elect’s plans for mass deportations will begin in Chicago, part of a plan that would deploy law enforcement officers into communities across the country for broad sweeps targeting people living in the country without legal permission.

The Windy City’s mayor is vowing to protect his city’s residents from Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents who could push into schools and workplaces, butting against so-called “sanctuary” policies barring federal forces from using local police for deportation enforcement.

“What the Trump administration has called for is for local police departments around the country to behave as ICE agents. In sanctuary cities, that is not permissible,” Chicago’s Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson told CNN.

READ MORE:

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Defense Secretary conducts coin toss at Army-Navy game

Saturday 14 December 2024 23:20

Josh Marcus

Why the right loves Daniel Penny

Saturday 14 December 2024 23:00

Josh Marcus

Daniel Penny was a guest of Donald Trump and company on Saturday at the Army-Navy football game in Maryland.

The invite, on its face, would seem a strange one: Penny was facing a homicide charge in a New York court last week, for which he was ultimately acquitted.

Last year, we had this look at how Penny became a celebrity on the right for choking a homeless man on the subway, in what the 26-year-old said was an act to defend his fellow passengers.

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ICYMI: Trump set to scrap car-crash regulation Musk hates

Saturday 14 December 2024 22:40

Josh Marcus

Donald Trump’s transition team is reportedly considering scrapping a car-crash reporting requirement that Tesla and X CEO Elon Musk stongly opposes, according to a new report.

According to Reuters, which viewed a document reportedly proposing the change, the removal of the requirement could hamstring the government’s ability to effectively investigate crashes and regulate the safety of vehicles with self-driving systems, like Musk’s Teslas and Cybertrucks.

Musk, who is the world’s richest man, used his vast wealth to pour a quarter of a billion dollars into Trump’s 2024 campaign. If Trump’s team does remove the accident reporting requirements, it would likely directly benefit Musk’s Tesla, which has reported the majority of crashes — more than 1,500 — to federal safety regulators under the program.

Tesla’s crashes have sparked three major National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigations, according to federal data. According to the agency’s data, Teslas have accounted for 40 out of 45 fatal crashes reported to the agency through October 15.

Graig Graziosi has the details.

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Acquitted Daniel Penny meets with Trump and Vance at Army-Navy game

Saturday 14 December 2024 22:30

Graig Graziosi

Daniel Penny, who was recently acquitted for the killing of Jordan Neely on a New York City subway train, met with Donald Trump and JD Vance during the Army-Navy football game on Saturday.

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Big Tech goes Big Trump

Saturday 14 December 2024 22:20

Josh Marcus

This week, the leaders of the tech industry made a concerted push too woo Donald Trump, who has long been a critic, accusing platforms of unfairly silencing him and going after Amazon founder Jeff Bezos for his ownership of the Washington Post.

Here’s how it all went down.

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More Trump nominees announced

Saturday 14 December 2024 22:00

Josh Marcus

Donald Trump has announced two new additions to his administration, naming Bill White as ambassador to Belgium and nominating Troy Edgar to be deputy Homeland Security secretary.

Washington restaurant server fired for comments on refusing to serve Trump officials

Saturday 14 December 2024 21:40

Josh Marcus

A Washington, D.C.-area restaurant worker has reportedly been fired for saying she might refuse to serve Trump administration officials, according to Fox News.

The decision comes after the server spoke out about the influx of new Trump admininistration officials soon to be dining out around the Capitol.

“I personally would refuse to serve any person in office who I know of as being a sex trafficker or trying to deport millions of people,” Suzannah Van Rooy, a server at Beuchert’s Saloon on Capitol Hill, told the Washingtonian. “It’s not, ‘Oh, we hate Republicans.’ It’s that this person has moral convictions that are strongly opposed to mine, and I don’t feel comfortable serving them.”

BREAKING: ABC agrees to pay $15 million to Trump in defamation lawsuit settlement

Saturday 14 December 2024 21:09

Josh Marcus

ABC has agreed to pay $15 million as part of a settlement with Donald Trump after the president-electsued the network and host George Stephanopoulos for defamation.

In March, Stephanopoulos pressed congresswoman Nancy Mace about her support for the former president despite a judge finding him “liable for rape by a jury,” he said.

“Donald Trump has been found liable for defaming the victim of that rape by a jury,” Stephonopoulos. “It’s been affirmed by a judge.”

Juries in New York found Trump liable for defaming and sexually abusing E Jean Carroll after he repeatedly called her a liar for speaking publicly about allegations that he assaulted her in the 1990s. Trump has appealed the nearly $90 million in judgments against him.

Alex Woodward reports.

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WATCH: Trump salutes instead of putting his hand over heart during national anthem

Saturday 14 December 2024 21:03

Josh Marcus

Pharma ceo says there’s ‘more common ground’ after Mar-a-Lago meeting with RFK

Saturday 14 December 2024 21:00

Josh Marcus

Big Pharma executives reportedly had a series of surprisingly cordial meeting in recent days with Donald Trump and Health and Human Services secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr., at Mar-a-Lago, despite Kennedy being an outspoken critic of the industry.

During the December confab, which reportedly included the CEOs of Pfizer, Eli Lilly and the trade group PhRMA, Trump reportedly talked about lowering drug costs and increasing U.S. manufacturing of medicines.

The president-elect also steered things back on course when Kennedy began discussing his opinions on the potential link between vaccines and autism, a theory that’s been widely discreditted. Trump reportedly suggested more study would help reduce vaccine hesitancy, according to The Washington Post.

“Probably shouldn’t say too much about it, but it was all you can imagine, and a little bit more,” Eli Lilly CEO David Ricks told the Economic Club of Washington this week of the meeting. “There’s often more common ground than you’d think just reading the newspapers.”

Photos: Crowd cheers Trump and his allies at Army-Navy game

Saturday 14 December 2024 20:45

Josh Marcus

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‘How do you like that?’: Man hurls coffee at George Santos in Time Square

Saturday 14 December 2024 20:29

Josh Marcus

Former congressman George Santos reportedly had a cup of coffee thrown on him as he walked through Times Square in New York City recently, according to a viral video.

In the clip, the former congressman, who pleaded guilty in August to identity theft and wire fraud charges, reacts with a mix of shock and anger, saying, “What the f*** is wrong with you?”

It’s unclear who threw the coffee at Santos, though the video begins with an unnamed man speaking into camera saying, “This guy has got [the] audacity to show his face?”

Watch live: Trump attends Army-Navy game in Maryland

Saturday 14 December 2024 20:11

Josh Marcus

JD Vance, Daniel Penny spotted at Army-Navy game

Saturday 14 December 2024 20:10

Josh Marcus

Vice president-elect JD Vance and Daniel Penny were among the notable figures spotted on Saturday in Donald Trump’s box at the Army-Navy football game.

The president-elect is reportedly en route.

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Jets fly over Washington ahead of Army-Navy game

Saturday 14 December 2024 20:05

Josh Marcus

Trump names Devin Nunes to Intelligence Advisory Board

Saturday 14 December 2024 19:57

Josh Marcus

Donald Trump has named Devin Nunes, CEO of his Truth Social platform, to lead the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board, an independent body that advises the executive branch.

In a Truth Social post on Saturday, Trump said Nunes, a former California congressman, “will draw on his experience as former Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, and his key role in exposing the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, to provide me with independent assessments of the effectiveness and propriety of the U.S. Intelligence Community’s activities.”

Chicago mayor responds to Trump administration threats of arrest over immigration policies

Saturday 14 December 2024 19:45

Josh Marcus

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson defended his city’s immigration “sanctuary” policies on Saturday and responded to threats from the Trump administration to prosecute him.

“What the Trump administration has called for is for local police departments around the country to behave as ICE agents. In sanctuary cities, that is not permissible,” the mayor told CNN.

The city’s sanctuary policies bar local police from assisting in deportations and don’t ask people their citizenship status when they use city services.

Johnson added that these provisions still allow immigration authorities to go after migrants accused of criminal offenses.

“Once they are arrested and they are in custody, then the law, of course, is fully prepared to prosecute,” he said, adding, “Look, no one is going to harbor or protect criminals, whether you have come here as an immigrant or undocumented or otherwise.”

The comments came after Trump border czar Tom Homan threatened to prosecute Johnson if he gets in the way of the administration’s plans to carry out an unprecedented national deportation operation upon taking office.

“If your Chicago mayor doesn’t want to help, he can step aside,” Homan said this week during an event in Chicago. “But if he impedes us — if he knowingly harbors or conceals an illegal alien — I will prosecute him.”

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Trump mocks Chris Christie with bizarre drone-themed post

Saturday 14 December 2024 19:30

Josh Marcus

Donald Trump continued his long-running public animosity towards former New Jersey Governor and Republican presidential rival Chris Christie, posting a mocked up photo on Saturday showing Christie eating McDonalds being delivered by drones.

The crude post appeared to be a reference to the spate of drone sightings above New Jersey in recent weeks.

New York officials outraged over drone sightings call for new powers

Saturday 14 December 2024 19:14

Josh Marcus

New York Governor Kathy Hochul is calling on Washington to do more about the mysterious drones spotted in recent weeks above the Northeast.

The governor said in a statement on Saturday on X that drone activity prompted officials to shut down Stewart Airfield in New Windsor for about an hour last night.

“This has gone too far,” Hochul said in the statement, calling on Congress to pass the Counter-UAS Authority Security, Safety, and Reauthorization Act, a bill that would reform drone policy and hand more authority over to states.

More details in our full story.

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Don Jr. offers ‘endorsement’ to Democrats planning to skip Trump’s inauguration

Saturday 14 December 2024 18:56

Josh Marcus

Donald Trump Jr. doesn’t seem too concerned more than a dozen Democrats are reportedly planning to skip Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration in January.

“Apparently a large group of Democrat legislators plan to boycott my father’s inauguration, which is great as it will make room for a lot more actual patriots to attend,” the president-elect’s son wrote on X on Saturday. “They have my complete and total endorsement to stay at home.”

Nancy Pelosi hospitalized after ‘hard fall'

Saturday 14 December 2024 18:05

Josh Marcus

Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has undergone a hip replacement procedure after being hospitalized in Luxembourg on Friday following a fall.

Pelosi, 84, was traveling with the congressional delegation for the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge – the last major German offensive during the Second World War – when she fell.

Her spokesperson, Ian Krager, said in a statement:“Earlier this morning, Speaker Emerita Pelosi underwent a successful hip replacement and is well on the mend.

“Speaker Pelosi is grateful to U.S. military staff at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center at Landstuhl Army Base and medical staff at Hospital Kirchberg in Luxembourg for their excellent care and kindness.

Ariana Baio has the details.

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Trump wants to privatize U.S. Postal Service

Saturday 14 December 2024 18:01

Josh Marcus

Donald Trump is seeking to potentially privatize the U.S. Postal Service once he takes office, according to The Washington Post, with the president-elect reportedly dismayed over the carrier’s financial losses.

“The government is slow, slow, slow — decades slow on adopting new ways of doing things, and there’s a lot of [other] carrier services that became legal in the ’70s that are doing things so much better with increased volumes and reduced costs,” said Casey Mulligan, a former top economist in the first Trump administration, told the paper. “We didn’t finish the job in the first term, but we should finish it now.”

During his previous term, the president publicly feuded with the postal carrier over rates and labor questions and repeatedly raised questions over the sanctity of mail-in ballots.

U.S. in contact with Syrian rebels who overthrew Assad

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