Donald Trump has tapped a podcaster to be his artificial intelligence and crypto czar, marking the latest Elon Musk ally to be picked for the president-elect’s next administration.
David Sacks, host of the All-In podcast and former Paypal chief, has been nominated for the newly-created role as AI and crypto regulation are “critical” areas for the incoming commander-in-chief.
The new hire announcement comes as President Joe Biden, who granted clemency to his son Hunter last week, is said to be mulling preemptive pardons for US officials who are perceived to be at risk ahead of Trump’s return to the White House.
The move would hope to shield Trump dissenters from potential retribution after the president-elect has vowed to take revenge against critics, according to CBS.
No specific names have been formally recommended to Biden, despite reports that the president debated the possibility of issuing the pardons with senior White House aides.
It follows Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, former Fox News host Pete Hegseth, spending another day on Capitol Hill on Thursday trying to drum up support for his confirmation as he’s dogged by allegations concerning sexual harassment and alcohol.
Key Points
- Why the fate of Pete Hegseth’s nomination depends not just on his behavior
- Pete Hegseth says he wouldn’t drink if confirmed as Donald Trump’s defense secretary
- DOGE: Mike Johnson says he’s aiming to ax 75% of all federal agencies with Elon Musk’s help
- Video of Ramaswamy calling Elon Musk China’s ‘circus monkey’ resurfaces as DOGE duo set to appear on Capitol Hill
Watch: Trump accepts Fox’s Patriot of the Year’ award
11:16
James Liddell
A GREAT HONOR, THANK YOU! pic.twitter.com/ALfxh0BDX5
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 6, 2024
Project 2025 backers will spend $1m to pressure GOP senators to confirm Pete Hegseth
09:15
Oliver O'Connell
The think tank behind Project 2025, the conservative blueprint linked to President-elect Donald Trump, is launching an effort to back Trump’s imperiled selection for secretary of defense in its latest attempt to wield influence in the incoming Republican administration.
Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts said Thursday that his group will spend $1 million to pressure senators unwilling to back Pete Hegseth, whose nomination to lead the Pentagon has come into question due to his views on women serving in combat and reports about his personal behavior.
Continue reading...
Speaker Johnson says, with Elon Musk’s help, he’s aiming to ax 75 percent of all federal agencies
08:45
Oliver O'Connell
House Speaker Mike Johnson intends to cut 75 percent of all federal agencies with the help of Elon Musk’s outside commission known as the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
“We certainly hope” to slash the number of federal agencies from 428 to 99, as Musk has vowed, Johnson said in response to a question from Fox News host Martha McCallum in an interview Wednesday night. “We want to be willing partners in that,” he added.
Gustaf Kilander reports.
Fox News colleagues jump on bandwagon to back Pete Hegseth
08:15
Oliver O'Connell
Amid a slew of damning allegations about Pete Hegseth’s excessive drinking and sexual impropriety, Hegseth’s friends at Fox News are publicly pushing back on the claims while urging Republicans to push through the ex-Fox & Friends host’s nomination for defense secretary.
Justin Barangoa has the story.
Republican congressman explodes at Secret Service director at hearing on Trump assassination attempt
07:45
Oliver O'Connell
A final congressional hearing on law enforcement failures surrounding the attempted assassination of Donald Trump devolved into a shouting match between a Republican congressman and the acting director of the Secret Service.
Rep. Pat Fallon of Texas — who was displaying a blown-up image of Rowe behind Trump, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at Ground Zero in Manhattan during a 9/11 memorial this year — at first accused Rowe of putting the president’s detail out of position so he could stand behind him.
It was then that things got heated, as Alex Woodward reports.
ICYMI: Joe Scarborough loses his mind over David Frum’s criticism that ‘Morning Joe’ fears Trump
06:15
Oliver O'Connell
Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough was absolutely apoplectic on Thursday over a column written by The Atlantic’s David Frum, opening the show with a 22-minute tirade over Frum’s complaint about the program apologizing for a “flippant” joke about Fox News.
Besides directly addressing Frum’s column, which featured the conservative pundit alleging that Morning Joe was displaying “fear” in the face of a new Trump administration, Scarborough and co-host/wife Mika Brzezinski also took the opportunity to lash out at critics of their recent fence-mending visit to Mar-a-Lago.
Justin Barangoa has the story.
What a difference 24 hours can make...
05:15
Oliver O'Connell
Lindsey Graham has given two wildly different takes on Pete Hegseth within 24 hours as the president-elect’s pick for defense secretary continues to fight for his nomination.
Hegseth faces ongoing scrutiny over scandals from his past, centering around his treatment of women, which have the potential to derail his upcoming confirmation to lead the Pentagon.
Rhian Lubin has the story.
Biden administration mulling preemptive pardons for Trump enemies
04:15
Oliver O'Connell
The Biden administration is said to be considering issuing preemptive presidential pardons to the likes of former Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney and Dr Anthony Fauci in order to shield them from vindictive political prosecutions by Donald Trump’s incoming administration.
High-ranking aides to President Joe Biden are currently engaged in “a vigorous internal debate” over the prospect – according to Politico, citing senior Democrats – with the president-elect’s decision to nominate Kash Patel as his FBI director increasing the “sense of alarm” in recent days.
Patel has openly promised to pursue Trump’s critics, with Cheney and Fauci likely to be in the firing line.
Joe Sommerlad reports.
Hegseth tells senator he won’t drink as he accuses critics of being ‘jealous’
03:15
Oliver O'Connell
President-elect Donald Trump’s scandal-plagued nominee for defense secretary, former Fox & Friends host Pete Hegseth, vowed to a senator that he won’t drink if he gets confirmed, according to reports.
He also insisted his critics were “jealous” of him, as Gustaf Kilander reports.
ANALYSIS:Why a second Trump presidency is good for AOC and Jamie Raskin’s careers
02:15
Oliver O'Connell
Eric Garcia writes:
The 2024 presidential election results revealed that Democrats have a gerontocracy problem. Sure, the party subbed in Kamala Harris toward the end of the campaign — but only after it spent a year telling the press and voters that octagenarian Joe Biden was fully capable of beating Donald Trump.
Continue reading...
Elon Musk wants to abolish daylight savings time, and it might actually be a good idea
01:15
Oliver O'Connell
We’ve all been there: you wake up dazed and woozy like you’ve lost an hour’s sleep, but the clock says nothing is wrong. Then you miss a meeting because you forgot to manually adjust your watch.
Now Donald Trump’s new bureaucratic slasher-in-chief Elon Musk says he wants to put an end to all that by getting rid of daylight savings time (DST).
Io Dodds takes a look at what this could mean.
Coming up tonight... Trump to get Fox ‘Patriot of the Year’ award
00:15
Oliver O'Connell
President-elect Donald Trump will attend the Fox Nation Patriot Awards event in New York tonight to receive the Fox Patriot of the Year honor just a few years after he tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election and spent much of the 2024 campaign trash-talking America.
“I look greatly forward to attending the Fox News Patriot Awards, hosted by Sean Hannity in New York on Thursday evening. I will be receiving the Fox Patriot of the Year Award — so nice! See you there,” Trump preened on Truth Social on Tuesday night.
The awards will be hosted by Fox for the sixth time and will be streamed live on Fox Nation.
Read on...
Project 2025 backers will spend $1m to pressure GOP senators to confirm Pete Hegseth
Thursday 5 December 2024 23:45
Oliver O'Connell
The think tank behind Project 2025, the conservative blueprint linked to President-elect Donald Trump, is launching an effort to back Trump’s imperiled selection for secretary of defense in its latest attempt to wield influence in the incoming Republican administration.
Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts said Thursday that his group will spend $1 million to pressure senators unwilling to back Pete Hegseth, whose nomination to lead the Pentagon has come into question due to his views on women serving in combat and reports about his personal behavior.
Continue reading...
Will the Village People perform ‘YMCA’ at Trump’s inauguration?
Thursday 5 December 2024 23:25
Oliver O'Connell
A founding member of the Village People and long-time critic of Donald Trump’s use of the group’s song YMCA has announced he’s now changing his tune and would now consider performing the 70s anthem at the president-elect’s upcoming inauguration.
Victor Willis told Fox & Friends First that he would also allow the president-elect to continue using the song at events.
Gustaf Kilander has the story.
How much does a failed bid to be secretary of state run to these days?
Thursday 5 December 2024 23:05
Oliver O'Connell
Ric Grenell might know after reportedly approaching conservative social media influencers last month and offering them contracts worth thousands of dollars to post approvingly about him.
One source told Politico that Grenell informed Trump’s inner circle it was State “or bust” for him.
Justin Barangoa has the story.
Might Kash Patel’s litany of conspiracy theories sink his nomination to lead FBI?
Thursday 5 December 2024 22:45
Oliver O'Connell
Kash Patel, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to serve as FBI director, has pushed a litany of wild conspiracy theories, complicating his aspirations to run the agency.
During a number of appearances on the War Room podcast of former Trump White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, Patel has argued that China is funding the Democrats and that the country is sending “military-aged males” across the northern and southern borders in an attempt to prepare for a preemptive strike.
Patel and others have also claimed that Barack Obama runs a “shadow network” in charge of the intelligence community and Big Tech to go after Trump.
And that’s just the start as Gustaf Kilander reports.
Sen. Blackburn to introduce DOGE legislation
Thursday 5 December 2024 22:37
Oliver O'Connell
Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee says she will introduce legislation to further plans by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy’s Department of Government Efficiency to slash spending by the federal government.
Blackburn wrote on X: “I will be introducing legislation that coincides with @DOGE’s plan to make the federal government more efficient.
“My DOGE Act will freeze federal hiring, begin the process to relocate agencies out of the D.C. swamp, and establish a merit-based salary system for the federal workforce.”
An enthusiastic Musk thanked her.
Thank you!!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 5, 2024
Hunter Biden pardon: Furious Dems threaten to withhold donations to Biden’s presidential library
Thursday 5 December 2024 22:25
Oliver O'Connell
Some senior Democrats are reportedly so disappointed with President Joe Biden’s decision to pardon his son, Hunter Biden, that they are threatening to withhold funding for Biden’s presidential library.
The controversial decision, in tandem with Biden’s move to drop out of the 2024 presidential election less than four months before Election Day, has left a sour taste in donor’s mouths, according to a recent Axios report.
As a result, Biden could be facing a financial obstacle in trying to build his presidential library – a historical tradition for presidents once they leave office.
Ariana Baio reports.
Coming up: Two resolutions by Democrats to force release of Gaetz ethics report
Thursday 5 December 2024 22:12
Oliver O'Connell
House NOW holding a 8-vote series with the last two votes on resolutions by Democrats to require the Ethics Cmte to release its report on former Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz. Republicans are expected to offer motions to refer both measures back to cmte to delay floor action.
— Craig Caplan (@CraigCaplan) December 5, 2024
Tuberville insists it’s not GOP’s ‘job’ to vet Trump’s cabinet picks
Thursday 5 December 2024 22:10
Oliver O'Connell
Tommy Tuberville, a Donald Trump loyalist, said it wasn’t the “job” of Senate Republicans to vet the president-elect’s cabinet nominations as debate around Pete Hegseth’s position continues.
The GOP senator told CNN on Thursday that, in his opinion, it is up to Democrats to vet nominations, and that members of his own party should be inclined to automatically confirm them.
“Who’s to say we’re a better vetter and picker of people than Donald Trump?” Tuberville told CNN on Thursday.
Ariana Baio reports.
Watch: Shouting match erupts during Trump assassination attempt hearing
Thursday 5 December 2024 22:05
Oliver O'Connell
Yours for $2m... dinner with Melania
Thursday 5 December 2024 21:45
Oliver O'Connell
Fans of Melania Trump can have a private dinner with her and the president-elect — if they are willing to shell out up to $2 million for the honor.
The incoming first lady is likely to spend most of her time away from the White House during Donald Trump’s second term, according to a report last month, but she is making an appearance at a candlelit dinner donors can attend if their price is right.
Rhian Lubin has the details.
Trump plans to attend Army-Navy football game
Thursday 5 December 2024 21:30
Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump is expected to attend the Army-Navy football game, Politico reports, citing two people who were granted anonymity to discuss the president-elect’s plans.
The game is set for December 14 in Landover, Maryland, and will be the 125th in the series.
Trump attended the game as president-elect in 2016 and three times while he was president.
Mexico’s president to ask Trump to deport non-Mexicans to their home countries
Thursday 5 December 2024 21:25
AP
Mexico’s president said Thursday she will ask President-elect Donald Trump to deport non-Mexican migrants directly to their home countries, rather than dumping them at the Mexican border.
President Claudia Sheinbaum said she hopes to reach an agreement with Trump so that “they send people who come from other countries to their countries of origin.”
Read more...
Trump FBI pick Kash Patel targeted in Iranian cyberattack
Thursday 5 December 2024 21:05
Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump’s controversial FBI director pick Kash Patel has been targeted in an Iranian cyberattack, according to reports.
Patel, a Trump loyalist who served on the National Security Council and as chief of staff to former Defense Secretary Chris Miller during his first term, was tapped on Saturday to lead the FBI.
On Tuesday, Semafor journalist Shelby Talcott first reported that Patel’s communications had been breached in what marks the latest in a series of alleged attacks from hackers emanating from Iran. Two sources later confirmed the attack to CBS News.
James Liddell reports.
Watch: Hegseth remains defiant, says he only answers to Trump, not media
Thursday 5 December 2024 20:48
Oliver O'Connell
As he continues meetings on Capitol Hill to try and drum up support for his confirmation as Donald Trump’s secretary of defense, a defiant Pete Hegseth says: “I don’t answer to anyone in this group, none of you, not to that camera at all. I answer to President Trump.”
Defense Secretary Nominee Pete Hegseth speaks to media on Capitol Hill: "We're going to earn those votes...This will not be a process tried in media...as long as Donald Trump wants me in this fight I'm going to be standing right here in this fight." pic.twitter.com/4cIkhOhe23
— CSPAN (@cspan) December 5, 2024
Beverly Hills teacher claims she was fired over anti-Trump post on Facebook
Thursday 5 December 2024 20:45
Oliver O'Connell
A Beverly Hills teacher has been fired for posting anti-Trump content on social media, she claims.
Joanie Garratt spent more than three decades teaching for the Beverly Hills Unified School District (BHUSD), most recently as a long-term AP US History substitute.
But she says she was fired on November 13, less than a month before her planned retirement on December 5.
Michelle Del Rey has the story.
Republican DOGE meeting has ‘really good synergy’
Thursday 5 December 2024 20:29
Oliver O'Connell
Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL), leaving GOP DOGE meeting with Musk/Ramaswamy/Speaker Johnson in Congressional Visitor Center, tells me : “There’s some really good synergy in there!”
— Nathaniel Reed (@ReedReports) December 5, 2024
ICYMI: Trump demands Georgia courts toss out Fani Willis’s criminal case against him
Thursday 5 December 2024 20:25
Oliver O'Connell
Georgia courts should dismiss a sprawling criminal case against Donald Trump for his attempts to reverse his election loss in the state in 2020 because his incoming presidency grants him “complete” immunity from any criminal proceedings, the president-elect has argued.
In a filing on Wednesday, the former president called on a Georgia appeals court to dismiss the case against him for his efforts to overturn election results, arguing that the state no longer has jurisdiction.
“A sitting president is completely immune from indictment or any criminal process, state or federal,” according to attorney Steven Sadow.
Alex Woodward reports.
Watch: Elon Musk heads to bigger DOGE meeting and wants to see Democrats involved
Thursday 5 December 2024 20:21
Oliver O'Connell
Elon Musk now entering a larger meeting room with more lawmakers on DOGE.
— Sam Lisker (@slisker) December 5, 2024
Asked by @aishahhasnie if he wants to see Dems here…
“Yes!” pic.twitter.com/jOEksmOAND
Trump assassination hearing: Republican congressman explodes at Secret Service director
Thursday 5 December 2024 20:05
Oliver O'Connell
A final congressional hearing on law enforcement failures surrounding the attempted assassination of Donald Trump devolved into a shouting match between a Republican congressman and the acting director of the Secret Service.
Rep. Pat Fallon of Texas — who was displaying a blown-up image of Rowe behind Trump, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at Ground Zero in Manhattan during a 9/11 memorial this year — at first accused Rowe of putting the president’s detail out of position so he could stand behind him.
Things got heated very quickly after that, as Alex Woodward reports.
Giuliani hit with another threat of sanctions over New York property
Thursday 5 December 2024 19:55
Alex Woodward
Giuliani has been hit with another threat of sanctions, separate from the case playing out in Washington.
In the property turnover case in New York, lawyers for the defamed election workers say he has “not produced a single document” (emphasis theirs) stemming from discovery requests and court-ordered deadlines.
“The time has come” for the court to hold him in contempt for violating what are now weeks-old court orders, and to “enter a contempt sanction it finds appropriate,” according to attorneys for Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss.
Giuliani should also be sanctioned “for failing to obey multiple discovery orders” and “his history of refusing to participate in discovery even in the face of possible sanctions,” as well as “his conscious disregard of the inevitable consequence of his conduct,” attorneys wrote.
The court “should not permit Mr. Giuliani to delay accountability,” they added.
Allowing him more time to “obfuscate in response to unambiguous discovery orders — especially when he has not provided any indicia of an attempt to comply — risks jeopardizing” upcoming court dates, according to lawyers.
Giuliani must also respond to the Washington DC contempt motion no later than 2 p.m. on Friday, or he will be held in contempt. He is accused of repeatedly violating a court order that blocks him from making any statements that resemble his defamatory remarks. Yesterday, he said he can’t find an attorney to help him and requested a 30-day delay. The judge said no.
Giuliani might soon face huge fines or jail time from judges in two different cities, not including the criminal charges against him in Arizona and Georgia. A reminder that he is also being sued for sexual misconduct and defaming voting machines companies.
Trump wants ‘a say’ in the Federal Reserve. Many Republicans do not agree
Thursday 5 December 2024 19:45
Oliver O'Connell
Even fellow Republicans aren’t convinced by Donald Trump’s ideas about how the Federal Reserve should operate.
During his first term, and on the campaign trail, Trump has made it clear he wants some control over the Federal Reserve, the U.S.’s central banking system made entirely independent from the politics that control most of the government.
Economists have warned it’s a bad idea and even members of the GOP have raised concerns, albeit quietly.
Ariana Baio reports.
Sen. Collins ‘impressed’ by Elon Musk as two meet to talk DOGE ideas
Thursday 5 December 2024 19:43
Oliver O'Connell
Senator Susan Collins, the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, held a private meeting with Elon Musk today to talk about federal spending.
Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are on Capitol Hill conducting a series of meetings across the House and Senate about their plans for the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
“I was very impressed with his energy and dedication,” Collins told reporters, describing the hour-long meeting as “an informal one-on-one discussion.”
She said they spoke about “how we could improve the efficiency and effectiveness of government to better serve the American people and to save taxpayer dollars.”
Collins added: “We did not go through any kind of list of cuts or anything like that.”
Fox News colleagues jump on Hegseth bandwagon to back defense sec nomination
Thursday 5 December 2024 19:25
Oliver O'Connell
Justin Barangoa reports:
Amid a slew of damning allegations about Pete Hegseth’s excessive drinking and sexual impropriety, Hegseth’s friends at Fox News are publicly pushing back on the claims while urging Republicans to push through the ex-Fox & Friends host’s nomination for defense secretary.
The full-court press by Hegseth’s former Fox colleagues comes as the 44-year-old is pulling out all the stops in hopes of saving his bid, including having his mother show up at his old haunt to denounce her past claims of Hegseth’s abusive treatment of women while pleading with President-elect Donald Trump to stick by her son.
At the same time, Fox News staffers and insiders who spoke with The Independent wonder if Hegseth’s recent media blitz and the rallying of the Fox News troops is just as much about helping set the stage for a potential return to the conservative cable giant as it is in terms of getting him over the finish line at the Pentagon.
Read on...
Sen. Cornyn says Kash Patel ‘will be’ confirmed to lead the FBI
Thursday 5 December 2024 19:12
Oliver O'Connell
Senator John Cornyn said he is confident that Kash Patel “will be” confirmed to lead the FBI.
“People I know and who I trust speak well of him and I’m looking forward to meeting with him,” the Texas senator told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Thursday.
Cornyn claimed Patel has “vast experience” and had been highly recommended by “people I have great respect for.”
The Return of Peter Navarro
Thursday 5 December 2024 19:05
Oliver O'Connell
President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday said he is bringing a convic