Trump Media & Technology Group on Friday said it may spin off its Truth Social app into a separate, publicly traded business as it moves forward with a $6 billion merger with fusion energy company TAE Technologies.
In a statement, Trump Media said that the spinoff, if approved, would occur after the merger with TAE is completed, and shareholders would be given stock in the newly separated business. Truth Social would then merge with another company, Texas Ventures III, a special purpose acquisition company formed in 2024 to acquire or merge with other businesses.
According to Trump Media’s most recent proxy, President Trump owns 52% of the company’s outstanding shares. Mr. Trump, who has 11.8 million subscribers on Truth Social, is seen as the platform’s greatest asset.
Spinning off Truth Social would represent another strategic shift for Trump Media & Technology Group, which launched in 2021 as a business focused on the conservative-leaning social media space. Since its debut, Truth Social hasn’t gained much traction with advertisers, with the platform’s revenue dipping 4% in the quarter ended Sept. 30, according to its most recent quarterly report.
Over the past year, Trump Media has branched into financial services, debuting several investment funds and buying $2 billion in bitcoin to create a cryptocurrency reserve. The company pivoted again in December when it said it would merge with TAE Technologies, seeking to fund a fledgling industry that is aiming to power energy-hungry artificial intelligence data centers.
Trump Media cautioned that it is only exploring a possible spinoff of Truth Social, noting that it is “engaged in ongoing discussions” about the plan. The company didn’t disclose a date or timeframe for deciding on whether to proceed with such a transaction.
Trump Media shares — which trade under the ticker symbol “DJT,” Mr. Trump’s initials — have dropped roughly 18% this year. The stock rose less than 1% to $11.02 in early trading on Friday.
MILAN — U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday said that it is hard to cheer for American Olympians who are speaking out against administration policies, calling one such critic “a real Loser” who perhaps should have stayed home.
It was the latest and most prominent example of U.S. Olympians at the Milan Cortina Games inviting online backlash with their words.
Reporters on Friday asked U.S. athletes at a news conference how they feel representing the country during the Trump administration’s heighted immigration enforcement actions. Freestyle skier Hunter Hess replied that he had mixed emotions since he doesn’t agree with the situation, and that he is in Milan competing on behalf of everyone who helped get him to The Games.
“If it aligns with my moral values, I feel like I’m representing it,” Hess said. “Just because I’m wearing the flag doesn’t mean I represent everything that’s going on in the U.S.”
Among those who piled on Hess were YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul.
“From all true Americans If you don’t want to represent this country go live somewhere else,” he wrote on X, where he has 4.4 million followers. Minutes later, he was photographed sitting beside U.S. Vice President JD Vance at the U.S women’s hockey game in Olympic host city Milan.
Trump said the next day that Hess’ comments make it hard to root for him.
“Hess, a real Loser, says he doesn’t represent his Country in the current Winter Olympics. If that’s the case, he shouldn’t have tried out for the Team, and it’s too bad he’s on it,” he wrote on his Truth Social account.
Hess wasn’t the only athlete voicing discontent – or facing blowback
At Friday’s news conference with the athletes, freestyle skier Chris Lillis referenced Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying he’s “heartbroken” about what is happening in the U.S.
“I think that, as a country, we need to focus on respecting everybody’s rights and making sure that we’re treating our citizens as well as anybody, with love and respect,” Lillis said. “I hope that when people look at athletes compete in the Olympics, they realize that that’s the America that we’re trying to represent.”
And U.S. figure skater Amber Glenn said the LGBTQ+ community has had a hard time during the Trump administration.
In addition to Paul, conservative figures criticizing the athletes on social media include former NFL quarterback Brett Favre, actor Rob Schneider and U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds – who Trump has endorsed for the Florida gubernatorial race in November. And there was a flood of vitriol directed at them from ordinary Americans.
Glenn posted on Instagram that she had received “a scary amount of hate / threats for simply using my voice WHEN ASKED about how I feel.” She added that she will start limiting her social media use for her well-being.
In response to questions from The Associated Press, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee said in a statement Sunday that it is aware of an increasing amount of abusive and harmful messages directed toward the athletes and was doing its best to remove content and report credible threats to law enforcement.
“The USOPC stands firmly behind Team USA athletes and remains committed to their well-being and safety, both on and off the field of play,” it said.
Anti-ICE protests in Italy
Support for the U.S. abroad has eroded as the Trump administration has pursued an aggressive posture on foreign policy, including punishing tariffs, military action in Venezuela and threats to invade Greenland.
During the opening ceremony, Team USA athletes were cheered on, but jeers and whistles could be heard as Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, were shown on the stadium screens, waving American flags from the tribune.
In Milan, several demonstrations have broken out against the against the local deployment of ICE agents – even after clarification that they are from an investigations unit that is completely separate from the enforcement unit at the forefront of the immigration crackdown in the U.S.
Homeland Security Investigations, an ICE unit that focuses on cross-border crimes, frequently sends its officers to overseas events like the Olympics to assist with security. The ICE arm seen in the streets of the U.S. is known as Enforcement and Removal Operations, and there is no indication its officers were sent to Italy.
A demonstration on Saturday featured thousands of protesters. Toward its end, a small number of them clashed with police, who fired tear gas and a water cannon. That followed another one last week, when hundreds protested the deployment of ICE agents.
___
Associated Press writer Graham Dunbar contributed to this report.
After federal immigration agents shot and killed Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, social media users shared a screenshot of what appeared to be a Truth Social post, leaving some people confused about an apparent shift in President Donald Trump’s gun control views.
But Trump never shared such a post. It was fabricated.
X,FacebookandThreads users shared on Jan. 24 and 25 images of the supposed Truth Social post and tagged the National Rifle Association’s social media accounts.
“He had a gun, only criminals carry guns on our streets, we need law and order. Thank you for your attention to this matter. President Donald J. Trump,” reads what looks like a screenshot of the Truth Social post.
(Screenshot of a Threads post showing a fabricated Truth Social post.)
A Facebook user shared the screenshot in a Facebook group writing, “Yo, Second Amendment bros. I’m so confused.”
After Pretti was killed, Trump posted a picture and long message on Truth Social, writing, “This is the gunman’s gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go – What is that all about?”
The NRA issued a “fake news alert” on X advising users not to believe the screenshot of the Truth Social post circulating online.
“As bad actors among us attempt to further divide our country, it is now more important than ever to be vigilant against AI-generated content meant to mislead Americans,” the NRA wrote Jan. 25.
We rate the claim that Trump posted on Truth Social that “only criminals carry guns on our streets” Pants on Fire!
President Trump’s pledge to ban large investment firms from buying single-family homes dinged the stock prices of some of the biggest institutional landlords, but the impact it would have on the housing affordability crisis is debatable.
Observers noted that major investors like Blackstone, Invitations Homes and American Homes 4 Rent own only about 1% of the single-family homes in the United States, and their holdings are concentrated in the South and Sunbelt, so the impact on overall U.S. home prices would vary widely by geography. Additionally, in the markets with relatively high concentrations of institutional ownership, home prices are already declining.
“The administration’s proposed ban on large institutional investors buying single-family homes aims to curb Wall Street’s role in housing, but evidence shows little connection between institutional ownership and affordability,” Jonathan Miller, president and CEO of property appraisal firm Miller Samuel, wrote in his HousingNotes blog.
“Their holdings are concentrated mostly in the South and Sunbelt, where inventory is relatively high and home prices have actually fallen, undermining claims that these investors drive housing costs higher. With most investor-owned homes held by small, local landlords, the proposed restriction is unlikely to meaningfully improve affordability or housing supply.”
Nevertheless, others expressed optimism that a ban would indeed have an impact in markets with high levels of institutional ownership.
“Because the Dallas–Fort Worth market has long been a hotspot for institutional ownership, any new restrictions from the Trump administration would likely be felt here sooner and more acutely than in markets with lower investor activity,” said Todd Luong of REMAX DFW Associates. “In many price ranges, especially entry-level and mid-priced homes, buyers have been competing against all-cash offers from large investment groups. Reducing that competition could give local buyers a better chance to secure a home with less pressure and more favorable pricing.”
Details about the ban have been scarce, and many questions remain. In a post on his Truth Social site announcing the proposed ban, Trump said, “I am immediately taking steps to ban large institutional investors from buying more single-family homes, and I will be calling on Congress to codify it. People live in homes, not corporations.”
He added that he would provide more information on the proposal when he speaks at the upcoming World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in two weeks.
In a subsequent post, Trump said he would instruct Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to use a purported $200 million in cash holdings to purchase mortgage bonds to bring mortgage rates down.
Timing of that proposal is everything, according to Victor Kuznetsov, managing director and co-founder of Imperial Fund Asset Management.
“In the short term, expect mortgage rates to level tighter than 2025 averages, but investment bank researchers tend to agree that most of these [mortgage-backed security] purchases have already been priced into rates, so the timing of the [government-sponsored enterprises’] MBS purchases will be important,” Kuznetsov said. “Will the GSEs purchase $200 [billion] over 2026’s calendar year, spreading out the tightening effects over a full year? Details on deployment timing have been sparse so far.”
According to the housing blog ResiClub, the most significant questions about the ban include:
What constitutes an “institutional investor”?
Would the investors be required to sell existing properties, or would they just be prohibited from purchasing additional ones?
Would the ban apply to existing properties scattered throughout a market, or also to build-to-rent development?
What would happen to existing tenants if the owners were forced to sell their homes?
In the end, industry observers agree that the ban would have a limited effect on overall housing affordability, and the key to bringing down costs is by increasing inventory.
“The first thing to do is build more housing starting now,” Miller said.
The United States captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and flew him out of the country in an extraordinary nighttime operation that was accompanied by a flurry of strikes following months of escalating Trump administration pressure on the oil-rich South American nation.The U.S. is now deciding next steps for Venezuela, President Donald Trump said Saturday on Fox News, adding, “We’ll be involved in it very much.”The legal authority for the attack was not immediately clear. The stunning American military action, which plucked a nation’s sitting leader from office, echoed the U.S. invasion of Panama that led to the surrender and seizure of its leader, Manuel Antonio Noriega, in 1990 — exactly 36 years ago Saturday.U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, would face charges after an indictment in New York. Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple would “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts.”Maduro and other Venezuelan officials were indicted in 2020 on “narco-terrorism” conspiracy charges, but it was not previously known his wife had been and it wasn’t clear if Bondi was referring to a new indictment.Video below: CNN chief international security correspondent on the context of this strikeVenezuelan ruling party leader Nahum Fernández told The Associated Press that Maduro and Flores were at their home within the Ft. Tiuna military installation when they were captured.“That’s where they bombed,” he said. “And, there, they carried out what we could call a kidnapping of the president and the first lady of the country.”Early Saturday, multiple explosions rang out and low-flying aircraft swept through the Venezuelan capital. Maduro’s government accused the United States of attacking civilian and military installations, calling it an “imperialist attack” and urging citizens to take to the streets.With the Venezuelan leader’s whereabouts not known, the vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, would take power under Venezuelan law. There was no confirmation that had happened, though she did issue a statement after the strike, demanding proof of life for Maduro and his wife.Maduro, Trump said, “has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the Country. This operation was done in conjunction with U.S. Law Enforcement.” He set a news conference for Saturday morning.The attack itself lasted less than 30 minutes, and the explosions — at least seven blasts — sent people rushing into the streets, while others took to social media to report what they’d seen and heard. Some Venezuelan civilians and members of the military were killed, said Rodríguez, the vice president, without giving a number.It was not known if more actions lie ahead, though Trump said in his post that the strikes were carried out “successfully.” The Pentagon referred questions about the safety of American personnel involved in the operation to the White House.The White House did not immediately respond to queries on where Maduro and his wife were being flown to.Maduro last appeared on state television Friday while meeting with a delegation of Chinese officials in Caracas.The strike followed a months-long Trump administration pressure campaign on the Venezuelan leader, including a major buildup of American forces in the waters off South America and attacks on boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean accused of carrying drugs. Last week, the CIA was behind a drone strike at a docking area believed to have been used by Venezuelan drug cartels — the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since the U.S. began strikes in September.As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes was 35 and the number of people killed at least 115, according to the Trump administration. Trump said that the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels and has justified the boat strikes as a necessary to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S.Maduro has decried the U.S. military operations as a thinly veiled effort to oust him from power. Some streets in Caracas fill upArmed individuals and uniformed members of a civilian militia took to the streets of a Caracas neighborhood long considered a stronghold of the ruling party. But in other areas of the city, the streets remained empty hours after the attack. Parts of the city remained without power, but vehicles moved freely.“How do I feel? Scared, like everyone,” said Caracas resident Noris Prada, who sat on an empty avenue looking down at his phone. “Venezuelans woke up scared, many families couldn’t sleep.”Video obtained from Caracas and an unidentified coastal city showed tracers and smoke clouding the landscape sky as repeated muted explosions illuminated the night sky. Other footage showed an urban landscape with cars passing on a highway as blasts illuminated the hills behind them. Unintelligible conversation could be heard in the background. The videos were verified by The Associated Press.Smoke could be seen rising from the hangar of a military base in Caracas, while another military installation in the capital was without power.“The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes,” said Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker, her voice trembling. She was walking briskly with two relatives, returning from a birthday party. “We felt like the air was hitting us.”Video below: Caracas wakes up to a Venezuela without MaduroVenezuela’s government responded to the attack with a call to action. “People to the streets!” it said in a statement. “The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.”The statement added that Maduro had “ordered all national defense plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance.” That state of emergency gives him the power to suspend people’s rights and expand the role of the armed forces.The website of the U.S. Embassy in Venezuela, a post that has been closed since 2019, issued a warning to American citizens in the country, saying it was “aware of reports of explosions in and around Caracas.”“U.S. citizens in Venezuela should shelter in place,” the warning said.Reaction emerges slowlyThe FAA warned all commercial and private U.S. pilots that the airspace over Venezuela and the small island nation of Curacao, just off the coast of the country, was off limits “due to safety-of-flight risks associated with ongoing military activity.”The Armed Services committees in both houses of Congress, which have jurisdiction over military matters, have not been notified by the administration of any actions, according to a person familiar with the matter and granted anonymity to discuss it.Lawmakers from both political parties in Congress have raised deep reservations and flat-out objections to the U.S. attacks on boats suspected of drug smuggling near the Venezuelan coast and Congress has not specifically approved an authorization for the use of military force for such operations in the region.Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he had seen no evidence that would justify Trump striking Venezuela without approval from Congress and demanded an immediate briefing by the administration on “its plan to ensure stability in the region and its legal justification for this decision.”Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said the military action and seizure of Maduro marks “a new dawn for Venezuela,” saying that “the tyrant is gone.” He posted on X hours after the strike. His boss, Rubio, reposted a post from July that said Maduro “is NOT the President of Venezuela and his regime is NOT the legitimate government.”Cuba, a supporter of the Maduro government and a longtime adversary of the United States, called for the international community to respond to what President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez called “the criminal attack.”“Our zone of peace is being brutally assaulted,” he said on X. Iran’s Foreign Ministry also condemned the strikes.President Javier Milei of Argentina praised the claim by his close ally, Trump, that Maduro had been captured with a political slogan he often deploys to celebrate right-wing advances: “Long live freedom, dammit!” Toropin and AP journalist Lisa Mascaro reported from Washington.
CARACAS, Venezuela —
The United States captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and flew him out of the country in an extraordinary nighttime operation that was accompanied by a flurry of strikes following months of escalating Trump administration pressure on the oil-rich South American nation.
The U.S. is now deciding next steps for Venezuela, President Donald Trump said Saturday on Fox News, adding, “We’ll be involved in it very much.”
The legal authority for the attack was not immediately clear. The stunning American military action, which plucked a nation’s sitting leader from office, echoed the U.S. invasion of Panama that led to the surrender and seizure of its leader, Manuel Antonio Noriega, in 1990 — exactly 36 years ago Saturday.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, would face charges after an indictment in New York. Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple would “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts.”
Maduro and other Venezuelan officials were indicted in 2020 on “narco-terrorism” conspiracy charges, but it was not previously known his wife had been and it wasn’t clear if Bondi was referring to a new indictment.
Video below: CNN chief international security correspondent on the context of this strike
Venezuelan ruling party leader Nahum Fernández told The Associated Press that Maduro and Flores were at their home within the Ft. Tiuna military installation when they were captured.
“That’s where they bombed,” he said. “And, there, they carried out what we could call a kidnapping of the president and the first lady of the country.”
Early Saturday, multiple explosions rang out and low-flying aircraft swept through the Venezuelan capital. Maduro’s government accused the United States of attacking civilian and military installations, calling it an “imperialist attack” and urging citizens to take to the streets.
With the Venezuelan leader’s whereabouts not known, the vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, would take power under Venezuelan law. There was no confirmation that had happened, though she did issue a statement after the strike, demanding proof of life for Maduro and his wife.
Maduro, Trump said, “has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the Country. This operation was done in conjunction with U.S. Law Enforcement.” He set a news conference for Saturday morning.
The attack itself lasted less than 30 minutes, and the explosions — at least seven blasts — sent people rushing into the streets, while others took to social media to report what they’d seen and heard. Some Venezuelan civilians and members of the military were killed, said Rodríguez, the vice president, without giving a number.
It was not known if more actions lie ahead, though Trump said in his post that the strikes were carried out “successfully.” The Pentagon referred questions about the safety of American personnel involved in the operation to the White House.
The White House did not immediately respond to queries on where Maduro and his wife were being flown to.
Maduro last appeared on state television Friday while meeting with a delegation of Chinese officials in Caracas.
The strike followed a months-long Trump administration pressure campaign on the Venezuelan leader, including a major buildup of American forces in the waters off South America and attacks on boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean accused of carrying drugs. Last week, the CIA was behind a drone strike at a docking area believed to have been used by Venezuelan drug cartels — the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since the U.S. began strikes in September.
As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes was 35 and the number of people killed at least 115, according to the Trump administration. Trump said that the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels and has justified the boat strikes as a necessary to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S.
Maduro has decried the U.S. military operations as a thinly veiled effort to oust him from power.
Some streets in Caracas fill up
Armed individuals and uniformed members of a civilian militia took to the streets of a Caracas neighborhood long considered a stronghold of the ruling party. But in other areas of the city, the streets remained empty hours after the attack. Parts of the city remained without power, but vehicles moved freely.
“How do I feel? Scared, like everyone,” said Caracas resident Noris Prada, who sat on an empty avenue looking down at his phone. “Venezuelans woke up scared, many families couldn’t sleep.”
Video obtained from Caracas and an unidentified coastal city showed tracers and smoke clouding the landscape sky as repeated muted explosions illuminated the night sky. Other footage showed an urban landscape with cars passing on a highway as blasts illuminated the hills behind them. Unintelligible conversation could be heard in the background. The videos were verified by The Associated Press.
Smoke could be seen rising from the hangar of a military base in Caracas, while another military installation in the capital was without power.
“The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes,” said Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker, her voice trembling. She was walking briskly with two relatives, returning from a birthday party. “We felt like the air was hitting us.”
Video below: Caracas wakes up to a Venezuela without Maduro
Venezuela’s government responded to the attack with a call to action. “People to the streets!” it said in a statement. “The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.”
The statement added that Maduro had “ordered all national defense plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance.” That state of emergency gives him the power to suspend people’s rights and expand the role of the armed forces.
The website of the U.S. Embassy in Venezuela, a post that has been closed since 2019, issued a warning to American citizens in the country, saying it was “aware of reports of explosions in and around Caracas.”
“U.S. citizens in Venezuela should shelter in place,” the warning said.
Reaction emerges slowly
The FAA warned all commercial and private U.S. pilots that the airspace over Venezuela and the small island nation of Curacao, just off the coast of the country, was off limits “due to safety-of-flight risks associated with ongoing military activity.”
The Armed Services committees in both houses of Congress, which have jurisdiction over military matters, have not been notified by the administration of any actions, according to a person familiar with the matter and granted anonymity to discuss it.
Lawmakers from both political parties in Congress have raised deep reservations and flat-out objections to the U.S. attacks on boats suspected of drug smuggling near the Venezuelan coast and Congress has not specifically approved an authorization for the use of military force for such operations in the region.
Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he had seen no evidence that would justify Trump striking Venezuela without approval from Congress and demanded an immediate briefing by the administration on “its plan to ensure stability in the region and its legal justification for this decision.”
Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said the military action and seizure of Maduro marks “a new dawn for Venezuela,” saying that “the tyrant is gone.” He posted on X hours after the strike. His boss, Rubio, reposted a post from July that said Maduro “is NOT the President of Venezuela and his regime is NOT the legitimate government.”
Cuba, a supporter of the Maduro government and a longtime adversary of the United States, called for the international community to respond to what President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez called “the criminal attack.”
“Our zone of peace is being brutally assaulted,” he said on X. Iran’s Foreign Ministry also condemned the strikes.
President Javier Milei of Argentina praised the claim by his close ally, Trump, that Maduro had been captured with a political slogan he often deploys to celebrate right-wing advances: “Long live freedom, dammit!”
Toropin and AP journalist Lisa Mascaro reported from Washington.
The legal authority for the strike — and whether Trump consulted Congress beforehand — was not immediately clear. The stunning, lightning-fast American military action, which plucked a nation’s sitting leader from office, echoed the U.S. invasion of Panama that led to the surrender and seizure of its leader, Manuel Antonio Noriega, in 1990 — exactly 36 years ago Saturday.U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, would face charges after an indictment in New York. Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple would “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts.”Maduro and other Venezuelan officials were indicted in 2020 on “narco-terrorism” conspiracy charges, but it was not previously known that his wife had been, and it wasn’t clear if Bondi was referring to a new indictment. The details of the allegations against Flores were not immediately known.Multiple explosions rang out and low-flying aircraft swept through the Venezuelan capital, and Maduro’s government accused the United States of attacking civilian and military installations, calling it an “imperialist attack” and urging citizens to take to the streets.With Maduro’s whereabouts not known, the vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, would take power under Venezuelan law. There was no confirmation that had happened, though she did issue a statement after the strike.“We do not know the whereabouts of President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores,” Rodriguez said. “We demand proof of life.”Maduro, Trump said, “has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the Country. This operation was done in conjunction with U.S. Law Enforcement.” He set a news conference for later Saturday morning.The attack itself lasted less than 30 minutes and the explosions — at least seven blasts — sent people rushing into the streets, while others took to social media to report what they’d seen and heard. It was not known if there were any deaths or injuries on either side or if more actions lay ahead, though Trump said in his post that the strikes were carried out “successfully.”Video below: CNN chief international security correspondent on the context of this strikeSen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, posted on X that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had briefed him on the strike and said that Maduro “has been arrested by U.S. personnel to stand trial on criminal charges in the United States.”The White House did not immediately respond to queries on where Maduro and his wife were being flown to. Maduro was indicted in March 2020 on “narco-terrorism” conspiracy charges.Maduro last appeared on state television Friday while meeting with a delegation of Chinese officials in Caracas.The strike came after the Trump administration spent months increasing the pressure on Maduro, including a major buildup of American forces in the waters off South America and attacks on boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean accused of carrying drugs. Last week, the CIA was behind a drone strike at a docking area believed to have been used by Venezuelan drug cartels — the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since the U.S. began strikes in September.As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes was 35 and the number of people killed at least 115, according to the Trump administration. Trump said that the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels and has justified the boat strikes as a necessary to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S.Maduro has decried the U.S. military operations as a thinly veiled effort to oust him from power.Some streets in Caracas fill upArmed individuals and uniformed members of a civilian militia took to the streets of a Caracas neighborhood long considered a stronghold of the ruling party. But in other areas of the city, the streets remained empty hours after the attack. Parts of the city remained without power, but vehicles moved freely.Video obtained from Caracas and an unidentified coastal city showed tracers and smoke clouding the landscape sky as repeated muted explosions illuminated the night sky. Other footage showed an urban landscape with cars passing on a highway as blasts illuminated the hills behind them. Unintelligible conversation could be heard in the background. The videos were verified by The Associated Press.Smoke could be seen rising from the hangar of a military base in Caracas, while another military installation in the capital was without power.“The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes,” said Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker, her voice trembling. She was walking briskly with two relatives, returning from a birthday party. “We felt like the air was hitting us.”Video below: Caracas wakes up to a Venezuela without MaduroVenezuela’s government responded to the attack with a call to action. “People to the streets!” it said in a statement. “The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.”The statement added that Maduro had “ordered all national defense plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance.” That state of emergency gives him the power to suspend people’s rights and expand the role of the armed forces.The website of the U.S. Embassy in Venezuela, a post that has been closed since 2019, issued a warning to American citizens in the country, saying it was “aware of reports of explosions in and around Caracas.”“U.S. citizens in Venezuela should shelter in place,” the warning said.Reaction emerges slowlyInquiries to the Pentagon and U.S. Southern Command since Trump’s social media post went unanswered. The FAA warned all commercial and private U.S. pilots that the airspace over Venezuela and the small island nation of Curacao, just off the coast of the country to the north, was off limits “due to safety-of-flight risks associated with ongoing military activity.”U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, posted his potential concerns, reflecting a view from the right flank in the Congress. “I look forward to learning what, if anything, might constitutionally justify this action in the absence of a declaration of war or authorization for the use of military force,” Lee said on X.It was not clear if the U.S. Congress had been officially notified of the strikes.The Armed Services committees in both houses of Congress, which have jurisdiction over military matters, have not been notified by the administration of any actions, according to a person familiar with the matter and granted anonymity to discuss it.Lawmakers from both political parties in Congress have raised deep reservations and flat-out objections to the U.S. attacks on boats suspected of drug smuggling on boats near the Venezuelan coast, and Congress has not specifically approved an authorization for the use of military force for such operations in the region.Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said the military action and seizure of Maduro marks “a new dawn for Venezuela,” saying that “the tyrant is gone.” He posted on X hours after the strike. His boss, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, reposted a post from July that said Maduro “is NOT the President of Venezuela and his regime is NOT the legitimate government.”Cuba, a supporter of the Maduro government and a longtime adversary of the United States, called for the international community to respond to what President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez called “the criminal attack.” “Our zone of peace is being brutally assaulted,” he said on X. Iran’s Foreign Ministry also condemned the strikes.President Javier Milei of Argentina praised the claim by his close ally, Trump, that Maduro had been captured with a political slogan he often deploys to celebrate right-wing advances: “Long live freedom, dammit!”The U.S. military has been attacking boats in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean since early September. As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes is 35 and the number of people killed is at least 115, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration.They followed a major buildup of American forces in the waters off South America, including the arrival in November of the nation’s most advanced aircraft carrier, which added thousands more troops to what was already the largest military presence in the region in generations.Trump has justified the boat strikes as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S. and asserted that the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels.Toropin and AP journalist Lisa Mascaro reported from Washington.
CARACAS, Venezuela —
The legal authority for the strike — and whether Trump consulted Congress beforehand — was not immediately clear. The stunning, lightning-fast American military action, which plucked a nation’s sitting leader from office, echoed the U.S. invasion of Panama that led to the surrender and seizure of its leader, Manuel Antonio Noriega, in 1990 — exactly 36 years ago Saturday.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, would face charges after an indictment in New York. Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple would “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts.”
Maduro and other Venezuelan officials were indicted in 2020 on “narco-terrorism” conspiracy charges, but it was not previously known that his wife had been, and it wasn’t clear if Bondi was referring to a new indictment. The details of the allegations against Flores were not immediately known.
Multiple explosions rang out and low-flying aircraft swept through the Venezuelan capital, and Maduro’s government accused the United States of attacking civilian and military installations, calling it an “imperialist attack” and urging citizens to take to the streets.
With Maduro’s whereabouts not known, the vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, would take power under Venezuelan law. There was no confirmation that had happened, though she did issue a statement after the strike.
“We do not know the whereabouts of President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores,” Rodriguez said. “We demand proof of life.”
Maduro, Trump said, “has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the Country. This operation was done in conjunction with U.S. Law Enforcement.” He set a news conference for later Saturday morning.
The attack itself lasted less than 30 minutes and the explosions — at least seven blasts — sent people rushing into the streets, while others took to social media to report what they’d seen and heard. It was not known if there were any deaths or injuries on either side or if more actions lay ahead, though Trump said in his post that the strikes were carried out “successfully.”
Video below: CNN chief international security correspondent on the context of this strike
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, posted on X that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had briefed him on the strike and said that Maduro “has been arrested by U.S. personnel to stand trial on criminal charges in the United States.”
The White House did not immediately respond to queries on where Maduro and his wife were being flown to. Maduro was indicted in March 2020 on “narco-terrorism” conspiracy charges.
Maduro last appeared on state television Friday while meeting with a delegation of Chinese officials in Caracas.
The strike came after the Trump administration spent months increasing the pressure on Maduro, including a major buildup of American forces in the waters off South America and attacks on boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean accused of carrying drugs. Last week, the CIA was behind a drone strike at a docking area believed to have been used by Venezuelan drug cartels — the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since the U.S. began strikes in September.
As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes was 35 and the number of people killed at least 115, according to the Trump administration. Trump said that the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels and has justified the boat strikes as a necessary to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S.
Maduro has decried the U.S. military operations as a thinly veiled effort to oust him from power.
Some streets in Caracas fill up
Armed individuals and uniformed members of a civilian militia took to the streets of a Caracas neighborhood long considered a stronghold of the ruling party. But in other areas of the city, the streets remained empty hours after the attack. Parts of the city remained without power, but vehicles moved freely.
Video obtained from Caracas and an unidentified coastal city showed tracers and smoke clouding the landscape sky as repeated muted explosions illuminated the night sky. Other footage showed an urban landscape with cars passing on a highway as blasts illuminated the hills behind them. Unintelligible conversation could be heard in the background. The videos were verified by The Associated Press.
Smoke could be seen rising from the hangar of a military base in Caracas, while another military installation in the capital was without power.
“The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes,” said Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker, her voice trembling. She was walking briskly with two relatives, returning from a birthday party. “We felt like the air was hitting us.”
Video below: Caracas wakes up to a Venezuela without Maduro
Venezuela’s government responded to the attack with a call to action. “People to the streets!” it said in a statement. “The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.”
The statement added that Maduro had “ordered all national defense plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance.” That state of emergency gives him the power to suspend people’s rights and expand the role of the armed forces.
The website of the U.S. Embassy in Venezuela, a post that has been closed since 2019, issued a warning to American citizens in the country, saying it was “aware of reports of explosions in and around Caracas.”
“U.S. citizens in Venezuela should shelter in place,” the warning said.
Reaction emerges slowly
Inquiries to the Pentagon and U.S. Southern Command since Trump’s social media post went unanswered. The FAA warned all commercial and private U.S. pilots that the airspace over Venezuela and the small island nation of Curacao, just off the coast of the country to the north, was off limits “due to safety-of-flight risks associated with ongoing military activity.”
U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, posted his potential concerns, reflecting a view from the right flank in the Congress. “I look forward to learning what, if anything, might constitutionally justify this action in the absence of a declaration of war or authorization for the use of military force,” Lee said on X.
It was not clear if the U.S. Congress had been officially notified of the strikes.
The Armed Services committees in both houses of Congress, which have jurisdiction over military matters, have not been notified by the administration of any actions, according to a person familiar with the matter and granted anonymity to discuss it.
Lawmakers from both political parties in Congress have raised deep reservations and flat-out objections to the U.S. attacks on boats suspected of drug smuggling on boats near the Venezuelan coast, and Congress has not specifically approved an authorization for the use of military force for such operations in the region.
Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said the military action and seizure of Maduro marks “a new dawn for Venezuela,” saying that “the tyrant is gone.” He posted on X hours after the strike. His boss, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, reposted a post from July that said Maduro “is NOT the President of Venezuela and his regime is NOT the legitimate government.”
Cuba, a supporter of the Maduro government and a longtime adversary of the United States, called for the international community to respond to what President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez called “the criminal attack.” “Our zone of peace is being brutally assaulted,” he said on X. Iran’s Foreign Ministry also condemned the strikes.
President Javier Milei of Argentina praised the claim by his close ally, Trump, that Maduro had been captured with a political slogan he often deploys to celebrate right-wing advances: “Long live freedom, dammit!”
The U.S. military has been attacking boats in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean since early September. As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes is 35 and the number of people killed is at least 115, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration.
They followed a major buildup of American forces in the waters off South America, including the arrival in November of the nation’s most advanced aircraft carrier, which added thousands more troops to what was already the largest military presence in the region in generations.
Trump has justified the boat strikes as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S. and asserted that the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels.
Toropin and AP journalist Lisa Mascaro reported from Washington.
Social media in 2025 was absolutely swamped with fakes. AI tools have made it easy for anyone to make fake photos and videos that can fool many people into thinking they’re real. The tech has now advanced sufficiently that you shouldn’t necessarily feel bad if you fall for one that pops up in your feed. OpenAI’s Sora and Google’s Nano Banana Pro are both getting very good.
But you don’t need AI to trick unsuspecting masses of people on sites like Instagram, Threads, Facebook, and X. Sometimes, you can do the same with good, old-fashioned Photoshop techniques. And we saw plenty of that with fake tweets that went viral over the past year.
Did you see that tweet about the botched surgery on Elon Musk’s penis? There were several tweets, actually, but they were all fake. Same with the tweets about President Trump claiming the World Series was rigged and another about far-right influencer Andrew Tate calling any man with a girlfriend “gay.”
Below we’ve got some of the viral tweets (or Truths, as they’re called on Truth Social) that caught our attention over the past 12 months. And none of them are real.
1) Rob Reiner never tweeted ‘fuck all of you MAGA assholes’
Comedy legend Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, were murdered last weekend in their Los Angeles home, prompting an outpouring of grief and tributes to the director’s incredible body of work. But fans of President Donald Trump took the opportunity to spread a tweet that appeared to come from Reiner calling Trump supporters “assholes.” The tweet is fake.
“Until Trump goes to prison I will no longer be posting on Twitter. I’ve had it with the insults and put downs. Fuck all of you MAGA assholes,” the fake tweet reads.
Image: X
The image, purporting to show a screenshot from 2023, spread far and wide on social media and was often used by Trump fans to attack anyone who was mourning the beloved director. Reiner, a longtime supporter of the Democratic Party, deleted his X account sometime around the 2024 presidential election, but the AFP notes that he addressed the fake tweet in January 2023 after it had gone viral for the first time.
“This is not my account,” Reiner tweeted Jan. 23, 2023, in a post that was archived.
The fake post looks like it was probably modified from an authentic Reiner tweet that read: “Until Trump is Indicted for leading a Deadly Insurrection to Overthrow the United States Government, our Democracy will not be restored.”
President Trump attacked Reiner in an unhinged screed the day after the director was found dead, calling him “tortured and struggling, but once very talented.” The president even made the killing about himself, claiming with no evidence that Reiner was murdered “due to the anger he caused others” by being anti-Trump.
Trump fans clearly took that as a signal to besmirch Reiner’s memory, and the fake tweet spread widely as a justification to attack the director. Reiner’s 32-year-old son, Nick Reiner, has been arrested and charged with murder.
2) Joe Rogan fell for a fake tweet about the No Kings protests
Joe Rogan is America’s most popular podcaster, averaging about 20 million listeners per week. But Rogan consistently falls for fake images and videos online, even after they’ve been widely debunked. The latest example? Rogan fell for another fake tweet on Wednesday that was supposedly from President Donald Trump.
In an episode from October, Rogan had guests Francis Foster and Konstantin Kisin, both conservative British political commentators, and the three men talked about the No Kings protests that happened Oct. 18. The demonstrations saw millions of people take to the streets in opposition to Trump, and Rogan tried to belittle the efforts, insisting that people were being paid to be there and those who weren’t being paid were just “geriatrics.”
Rogan also claimed that if the protests were being allowed to happen at all, that must be evidence that Trump couldn’t possibly be a king. And that’s when he promoted the fake tweet he saw—a post made to look like it was from the president on Truth Social.
“No, he didn’t send the troops to stop the protests,” said Rogan. “In fact, he congratulated them on doing a great job, and he said I’m still your president. Tweet’s fucking hilarious. It’s very funny.” One of Rogan’s guests chimed in to say, “yeah, I saw that,” with a laugh.
Rogan told his producer to pull up the tweet, though it seemed clear he was having trouble tracking it down. “Try Truth Social,” Rogan told his producer, who was just off-screen. “You can probably find an image of it since it was posted everywhere.”
The fake tweet Rogan seemed to be talking about reads, “A HUGE THANK YOU to all the ‘No Kings’ protesters yesterday! I was very concerned a king was trying to take my place, but thanks to your tireless efforts, I am STILL YOUR PRESIDENT! Great job all!!!” But there’s nothing about it that’s real.
Fake tweet from President Donald Trump about the No Kings protests. Screenshot: Instagram
The producer never did seem to find the post, probably because he didn’t want to tell Rogan it was fake. It wasn’t even a recent fake tweet. It first started circulating around the first No Kings Day on June 14. The screenshot went viral back in June on platforms like X and Instagram. As the Daily Beast notes, the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., shared the fake tweet but acknowledged it was fake. Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo shared the fake post in June as well, though she didn’t know it wasn’t real.
Rogan droned on and on about the protests during his show and claimed they were identical to what happened with Kamala Harris’s 2024 presidential campaign. The podcast host insisted that the Harris campaign “filled up stadiums” with people who were paid to be there, a claim with no basis in fact. Rogan said that it “became a job” for the people at Harris rallies and that “should not be legal” because it’s “deception.”
Incredibly, Trump’s actual commentary on the No Kings protests is somehow more aggressive than the fake version Rogan highlighted on Wednesday. In reality, Trump shared an AI video on Truth Social showing himself flying a fighter jet and dumping literal shit on protesters.
Rogan is not a particularly bright man. But, again, he has an enormous audience in the millions. And he’s always falling for fake shit, whether it’s AI videos of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz or tweets about “Jewish tunnels,” sourced to fake accounts with characters like Dick Stroker.
3) Charlie Kirk never tweeted about scratching his anus
There was a tweet that went viral back in July, before Charlie Kirk’s killing in September, that appeared to show the MAGA influencer criticizing New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani for eating with his hands.
“I have so many thoughts on this that it literally keeps me up at night, Zohran Mamdani eating rice with his HANDS during an interview,” the tweet read. “I very sincerely doubt he has to scratch his anus any less than the rest of us which makes that whole display unbelievably disgusting.”
Fake tweet that went viral appearing to show Charlie Kirk criticizing Zohran Mamdani for eating with his hands. Image: X
The image appeared on sites like Reddit, X, and Bluesky, and it seemed plausible enough. Right-winger users on X hurled racist comments at Mamdani about it. Even elected Republicans got in on the act, with Rep. Brandon Gill, a Republican from Texas, writing, “Civilized people in America don’t eat like this. If you refuse to adopt Western customs, go back to the Third World.”
The tweet that looked like it was from Kirk was believable, though it seemed like it was accidentally admitting that Kirk really dug in to scratch his anus. But this one was fake.
Kirk’s real commentary on the issue mostly centered around the idea that Mamdani didn’t actually want to eat rice with his hands. The late commentator suggested it was actually all for show: “It’s a calculated stunt, just like him constantly changing his accent. Honestly, that’s a lot worse and more disturbing than if he just authentically ate that way. One is backwards. The other shows his contempt for our culture.”
Another tweet in the same style also spread, appearing to show Kirk doubling down on the idea that he frequently is digging into his asshole: “To all the people making fun of me for scratching my itchy asshole… keep coping! This is something that happens to everybody and that’s why it’s disgusting to eat with your hands like Zohran Mamdani.”
Fake tweet made to look like it came from Charlie Kirk. Image: X
The image was made to look like it had been deleted, even though X doesn’t show that notice for recently deleted tweet anymore. That tweet was also fake.
Mamdani has since won his election and will be sworn in as the mayor of New York next month.
4) Elon Musk didn’t tweet about his ‘botched penis’
Back in April, all anyone could talk about was President Donald Trump’s tariffs. The president had dubbed April 2 “Liberation Day,” and he announced a wide swath of tariffs on every country across the globe.
The next day, a tweet that appeared to have been sent by Elon Musk started spreading on social media. The tweet read, “I want a 90% tariff on Canada because Grimes told everyone about my botched penis.” Grimes is the mother of two of Musk’s many children, and she was born in Canada.
However, the tweet is fake.
Fake tweet purporting to show Elon Musk refer to a “botched penis.” Image: X
The tweet appears to have been created by an account on X called @marionumber4, which also has the name 679 Enthusiast. The pseudonymous account has a long history of creating fake “deleted” tweets of right-wing figures like Musk, Candace Owens, and Grimes. And this one is no different.
That same creator made several fake “botched penis” tweets about Elon Musk in 2025, including one made to look like it came from Ashley St. Clair but had been deleted. St. Clair has a child whom she says was fathered by Musk.
The fake tweet that appears to have been from St. Clair reads “the fucked up botched penis is real.”
Image: X
By putting the words “this post was deleted” at the bottom of the fake tweet, it signals to the reader that any attempt to find the tweet on the person’s timeline is going to be a futile effort. And that appears to be part of the appeal for hoaxsters who create these kinds of fake viral tweets, as we saw with the Charlie Kirk tweet. But accounts like @marionumber4 have been doing this for so long, it’s easy to check with the usual photoshopping suspects whenever one of these is circulating online. The person behind that account has previously confirmed to Gizmodo that they make these fake tweets.
As the fake tweet gets shared outside of the original creator’s circles, it circulates with people wondering if it’s real. And X users now have the ability to ask Grok about the veracity of various tweets like a real-time AI fact-checker. That’s what people did in the replies to various tweets about the supposed botched penis surgery. One user asked Grok, “Is this real,” and they got an interesting reply.
“Ashley St. Clair likely broke an NDA by posting about Elon Musk’s ‘botched penis,’ given their relationship and typical NDA use,” Grok responded. “She may face financial fallout, as seen in custody and support disputes, but the claim of a specific penalty for penis comparisons is likely exaggerated, not standard in NDAs.”
The reference to an NDA appears to have been a joke by the X account UAE Exotic Falconry and Finance. But Grok’s fixation on some kind of non-disclosure agreement looks like a product of the leading question rather than something that actually exists. Neither Musk nor St. Clair appears to have discussed an NDA about their relationship, and it’s not publicly known if one actually exists.
That ambiguity speaks to one of the major flaws in technology with generative AI. If you feed it enough garbage, you’re just going to get garbage back. And X is nothing if not a flaming garbage dump in 2025. Musk bought the platform in late 2022 and did everything he could to scare off normal people with his far-right ideology. Fringe figures who had previously been banned on Twitter, like white supremacist Nick Fuentes and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, were welcomed back with open arms. And that’s made X a mess of misinformation and extremist activity.
5) The fake Epstein tweet that went viral before the identical real ones
There were some rather unbelievable developments in the news about Jeffrey Epstein in 2025. We finally saw some surveillance camera footage from the jail where Epstein died, even if it all seemed extremely irregular. And a small group of elected politicians came together to force a vote on getting government files about Epstein released. Those are due out Dec. 16, though it remains to be seen how many redactions the Department of Justice might make.
President Donald Trump has been at the center of the controversy, considering the fact that he was president when Epstein died in a federal jail, and many people don’t believe Epstein actually killed himself. Trump was reportedly best friends with Epstein for at least 15 years, and the Wall Street Journal even obtained a letter that Trump wrote to Epstein for his birthday, which included a drawing of a naked female figure.
Trump has been incredibly defensive about the release of the Epstein files. But that defensiveness has made the topic a frequent subject for people joking on the internet. Like in the case of this tweet, which was widespread on Instagram, X, and Facebook over the summer. But it’s not real.
Fake Trump tweet about Jeffrey Epstein. Image: X
The funny thing about this fake tweet is that it’s extremely close to things Trump would actually write on social media about the case. This fake tweet went viral on July 12, and less than a week later, he wrote on Truth Social: “Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax, and my PAST supporters have bought into this ‘bullshit,’ hook, line, and sinker.’”
Trump has repeatedly called the Epstein story a hoax, and he was reportedly pressuring elected politicians not to vote for releasing the Epstein files, even calling them directly. Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of Trump’s most loyal supporters, even had a falling out with the president over the issue, and she’s retiring early because he turned his back on her.
Sometimes fake tweets go viral before they capture a sentiment that already exists. Trump never tweeted “STOP TALKING ABOUT EPSTEIN!!!!” but he may as well have.
6) Andrew Tate didn’t say a man with a girlfriend was “gay”
Andrew Tate, the far-right manosphere influencer, regularly tweets the most bizarre bullshit around. But if you saw a tweet that having a girlfriend in 2025 made you gay, that one was fake.
The fake tweet was picked up by outlets like Pink News and Australia’s Star Observer, but there’s no evidence it was real. Gizmodo checked Tate’s X feed shortly after the tweet started to go viral on social media, and it wasn’t there.
Oddly enough, the sentiment of this fake tweet is actually something Tate has posted many times. Back in July, Tate tweeted, “I don’t want a relationship, I don’t wanna talk girl shit, I don’t wanna put up with her moods, I’m not gay.”
Much like viral fakes featuring Trump, the real thing is often just as absurd.
7) Ian Miles Cheong didn’t tweet ‘get out of my country’ to Mamdani
Ian Miles Cheong is one of those Elon Musk fans that you’ll come across frequently if you spend time on X. Cheong, who’s originally from Malaysia but lives in Dubai, has built a name for himself whining about wokeness and pushing a right-wing worldview long before Twitter became X.
But Cheong’s prominence and generally annoying presence have made him the target of photoshoppers. And even though Cheong has previously interjected into U.S. political debate like he actually lives in the country, one tweet in particular got a lot of pick-up this year.
“I refuse to be governed by a Ugandan named Zohran Kwame Mamdani. Get out of my country,” the fake tweet reads.
Image: X
The post, as you’ll notice, features the “this post has been deleted” text at the bottom. But it’s another one created by pranksters, made to look like it was deleted.
Cheong often writes about U.S. politics. But he’s never claimed to actually be an American.
8) Trump didn’t tweet about the World Series being rigged
Back in October, a tweet that appeared to come from President Donald Trump said he’d refuse to invite whoever wins the World Series to the White House. The post said it was because he believed the game was rigged, either by the mafia or the Democrats. But the tweet isn’t real.
The post was made to look like it was coming from President Trump’s official Truth Social account, the platform he owns and the first place where he posts all his most unhinged messages.
“NO MATTER WHO WINS I WILL REFUSE TO INVITE EITHER BASEBALL TEAM TO MY BALL ROOM AS THEY ARE BOTH RUN BY HIGHLY INEPT OFFICIALS FROM CALIFORNIA AND ONTARIO CANADA,” the fake tweet reads.
“I DON’T HOST LOSERS. WE ARE ACTIVELY INVESTIGATING MLB. THIS WORLD SERIES IS RIGGED, PROBABLY BY THE DEMS & THE MAFIA,” the fake tweet continues.
The screenshot spread far and wide, showing up on Threads, X, Bluesky, Instagram, and Facebook. But Trump never wrote this one.
Fake tweet made to look like it’s from President Donald Trump about the World Series. Screenshot: Facebook
The reaction to the viral post was about what you’d expect, especially among fans of the Toronto Blue Jays. Many Canadians made fun of the fake Trump tweet, since they didn’t think a Canadian team would even be invited to the White House in the first place.
There were many red flags in the fake post from Trump, but the reference to the ballroom might be one of the most glaring. The president demolished the East Wing of the White House, and he’s building a ballroom with “donations” from private companies and individuals who have given him millions. But even on the most ambitious timeline, the ballroom won’t be completed by the time a White House visit by the 2025 World Series champions might take place.
Trump hasn’t announced a completion date for his ridiculous monstrosity, but the administration has said it will be done before his second term is up in Jan. 2029.
9) Trump didn’t call the Toronto Blue Jays un-American
Another fake post that was popping up here and there on social media specifically called out the Blue Jays.
“WE WILL BE INVESTIGATING THE UN AMERICAN BLUE JAYS WHO ARE ATTEMPTING TO STEAL OUR BELOVED WORLD SERIES,” the fake tweet reads. “THEY WILL DEFINITELY NOT BE INVITED TO THE WHITE HOUSE.”
Screenshot: X
At the end of the day, all of these fake tweets go viral because it’s impossible to tell which screeds from President Trump are authentic. Trump has always been off his rocker, but he’s gotten increasingly weird during his second term, posting some of the oddest things that a president has ever expressed in public.
As just one example, Trump posted an AI video of himself last month talking about “medbeds,” a bizarre conspiracy theory that claims there are real beds being hidden from the public that can heal all diseases. The video even includes a fake Trump touting these miracle cures and insisting they were going to be available soon to “restore every citizen to full health.”
In a world where the president is posting about medbeds—to say nothing of the Department of Homeland Security posting Nazi propaganda—it can be extremely difficult to tell what’s real. And that’s not going to change as long as the Trump regime remains in power. In fact, it’s likely to get much, much worse.
10) Trump didn’t announce 15-year car loans
An announcement from the White House went viral this year, claiming that President Donald Trump is working on making 15-year car loans available to all Americans. The announcement is fake. But it’s a joke based on something very real.
“As he continues to work hard to make the American Dream accessible to everyone, President Trump today has asked the Departments of Transportation and Commerce to make vehicle ownership for all a reality by introducing 15 year car loans! Secretaries Duffy and Lutnick are already working on it! Delivering for America!” the viral screenshot reads.
A fake announcement, made to look like it’s coming from the White House, about 15-year car loans. Screenshot: X
While the announcement has been circulating widely on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Bluesky, and TikTok, it’s not real.
Where did this announcement actually come from? It appears to have originated with a satire account on X called TheRealThelmaJohnson. The tweet included a joke, along with the photoshopped announcement, that reads: “If you want to pay 100 grand for a 2009 Chevy Equinox this is the way…”
And that joke gets close to what’s funny about a 15-year car loan. The longer the car loan, the more the borrower is ultimately paying for the car, thanks to interest payments. The original tweet from “Thelma Johnson” only has about 150,000 views, a very humble number for something that’s gone “viral.” That’s because it has been widely shared on other platforms (including X, though without attribution to the original creator) and people think it’s real.
The reason many people think it’s real is that President Trump actually proposed something just as ridiculous as a 15-year car loan recently. On Nov. 8, Trump posted a graphic to Truth Social comparing himself to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who helped popularize the 30-year mortgage during the 1930s. The graphic shows a photo of Trump with the words “50-year mortgage” underneath without further explanation.
Graphic posted to President Donald Trump’s Truth Social account on Nov. 8, 2025, promoting the idea of a 50-year mortgage. Image: Truth Social
Politico reports that the graphic actually came from a man named Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Pulte reportedly visited Trump at Mar-a-Lago with a 3×5 posterboard in hand. Roughly 10 minutes later, the graphic was posted to Trump’s Truth Social account, according to Politico. That apparently angered Trump’s aides, with Politico characterizing it as “bad politics and bad policy.”
The idea of the 30-year mortgage was that it allowed people to live in and “own” their homes, even if it took a significant portion of someone’s life to pay it off. At the end of the mortgage, the person would at least have ownership of a property, even if they paid much more than it was worth in the end. The idea of the 50-year mortgage takes this to the extreme, especially with the median age of first-time home buyers in the U.S. currently at 40. And the only people who would be taking out 50-year mortgages would be the people in the most precarious financial positions, which means they’d be most likely to default. Even if a borrower made good on their loan agreement, the prospect of them ever actually owning the property would be slim.
Trump was asked by Laura Ingraham on Fox News about the proposal, and he didn’t back down from the idea. “All it means is you pay less per month,” Trump said. “Pay it over a longer period of time. It’s not like a big factor. It might help a little bit.”
And all of this ridiculousness brings us to the idea of the 15-year car loan. It’s a joke, but plenty of high-profile X accounts seemed to think it was real, including Unusual Whales and Polymarket. When one account racked up 1 million views and faced skepticism from other users, she linked to a tweet from AF Post that she suggested was some proof the White House was considering it.
In reality, AF Post (America First Post) isn’t a real, credible news outlet. It’s affiliated with white supremacist Nick Fuentes, and it posts fake garbage all the time. But AF Post has a blue checkmark, which anyone can buy for $8 from Elon Musk, and some people are under the illusion that it still carries some weight of “verification.”
The “Thelma Johnson” account often shares fake White House announcements, so the next time you see something like that, which sounds too good to be true, maybe check that specific account to see if they were the first one to post it. That’s what we do here at Gizmodo whenever we see a ridiculous tweet that reads “this post has been deleted.” There’s one particular prankster who likes to do that one, and we always check their account when something similar goes viral.
President Donald Trump posted to Truth Social on Monday about Rob Reiner, who was found dead in his Los Angeles home Sunday along with his wife. Trump’s post about the beloved 78-year-old director was even more vile than most people were expecting. And even some Republicans are expressing their distaste for Trump’s reprehensible words.
“A very sad thing happened last night in Hollywood,” Trump started his post, sent shortly before 10 a.m. Monday.
“Rob Reiner, a tortured and struggling, but once very talented movie director and comedy star, has passed away, together with his wife, Michele, reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding, and incurable affliction with a mind crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME, sometimes referred to as TDS,” Trump’s post continued.
Reiner’s 32-year-old son was reportedly arrested and charged with murder and there’s no evidence the director and his wife were killed “due to anger he caused” related to Trump in any way.
“He was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump, with his obvious paranoia reaching new heights as the Trump Administration surpassed all goals and expectations of greatness, and with the Golden Age of America upon us, perhaps like never before. May Rob and Michele rest in peace!” Trump concluded.
When news broke of Reiner’s death, which is being investigated as a homicide, there was an immediate outpouring of grief on social media Sunday night. People shared clips of his work and said they were watching some of their favorite Reiner films, which include such classics as The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, Misery, and Stand By Me, among a host of others. But as Sunday night wore on, people started to wonder what the inevitable Trump tweet might look like. Reiner had long been active in Democratic Party politics, and was naturally disgusted with Trump’s fascist and racist policies, as so many Americans are.
“[H]e’s going to bring up that Reiner was not a fan of his,” actor Diedrich Bader predicted late Sunday on Bluesky.
Somehow, it was so much worse. And some of the president’s most ardent fans seem to be disgusted. Elected Republicans who’ve been previously criticized by Trump for their desire to have the Jeffrey Epstein files released, including Rep. Thomas Massie and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, were the first to come out against Trump’s deplorable comments.
“Regardless of how you felt about Rob Reiner, this is inappropriate and disrespectful discourse about a man who was just brutally murdered,” Massie wrote on X. “I guess my elected GOP colleagues, the VP, and White House staff will just ignore it because they’re afraid? I challenge anyone to defend it.”
Greene, who recently announced she’s retiring next month, echoed a similar sentiment, writing, “This is a family tragedy, not about politics or political enemies.” About an hour later, Rep. Mike Lawler, a Republican from New York, quote-tweeted Trump’s statement, describing Reiner’s death as a “horrible tragedy that should engender sympathy and compassion from everyone in our country, period.”
Rep. Stephanie Bice, a Republican from Oklahoma, wrote, “A father and mother were murdered at the hands of their troubled son. We should be lifting the family up in prayer, not making this about politics.”
Rob Reiner at the premiere of Spinal Tap II: The End Continues – Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty
Many Trump fans still expressed their support for Trump’s sentiment. A common defense was that Reiner called for Trump to be arrested after the president attempted a self-coup at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 in a bid to cling to power. Others pointed to a tweet from Reiner describing Trump as a “symbol of hate,” a statement of fact that was true in 2021 and has been shown to be more true with each passing day. As just one very recent example, Trump said he doesn’t want Somali-Americans in the country, referring to them as “garbage.”
Trump was asked about his comments regarding Reiner by a reporter at the White House on Monday. And he just reiterated his contemptible message of hate.
“Mr. President, a number of Republicans have denounced your statement on True Social after the murder of Rob Reiner. Do you stand by that post?” the reporter asked.
Trump doubles down on his Rob Reiner attack: “I wasn’t a fan of his at all. He was a deranged person… He became like a deranged person, Trump Derangement Syndrome. So I was not a fan of Rob Reiner at all in any way, shape or form. I thought he was very bad for our country.”
Democratic political figures, along with every normal American, expressed sadness in the wake of Reiner’s death. Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, wrote about Trump’s post: “This is one of the cruelest things I’ve ever heard a president say. He is well known for his cruelty, but this is a new depth amid this terrible murder.”
Former president Barack Obama wrote his condolences on Sunday night, before Trump’s post Monday, but it reads like a message from another political universe. Obama shared the kind of message that would’ve been sent about the passing of an American icon by any other president in the pre-Trump era.
Michelle and I are heartbroken by the tragic passing of Rob Reiner and his beloved wife, Michele. Rob’s achievements in film and television gave us some of our most cherished stories on screen. But beneath all of the stories he produced was a deep belief in the goodness of…
Sen. Tina Smith, a Democrat from Minnesota, wrote about Trump’s post: “TOXIC NARCISSISM: When you see the brutal murder of two people and make it about you, because you think everything is about you.”
Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat from Arizona who’s been a frequent target of Trump recently, perhaps put it best of any politician on social media Monday: “What kind of person, let alone a President, reacts to the murder of an American this way?”
Trump is often discussed as one of the worst presidents in modern American history, but it’s important to remember that such a categorization is far too narrow. Donald J. Trump is one of the worst people in modern American history.
Donald Trump has said a lot of awful things in the past, but his latest comments toward a group of democrats is a whole new horrifying level…
On Tuesday, Senator Mark Kelly, Senator Elissa Slotkin, Representative Chris Deluzio, Representative Maggie Goodlander, Representative Jason Crow, and Representative Chrissy Houlahan — all of whom have military or intelligence backgrounds — released a video urging soldiers to ignore any illegal orders and remember they swore an oath to the Constitution, not to Trump or anyone else in the chain of command.
They did not call for the opposition of any specific orders or policies, but sent an important reminder about their duties, saying:
“This administration is pitting our uniformed military and intelligence community professionals against American citizens. Like us, you all swore an oath to protect and defend this Constitution. Right now, the threats coming to our Constitution aren’t just coming from abroad but from right here at home. Our laws are clear. You can refuse illegal orders. You must refuse illegal orders. No one has to carry out orders that violate the law or our Constitution.”
Watch it for yourself (below):
We want to speak directly to members of the Military and the Intelligence Community.
The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution.
Trump, of course, responded days later. And he dropped a few extremely problematic posts. He took to Truth Social on Thursday morning to first call for the arrest of all six politicians:
“It’s called SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL. Each one of these traitors to our Country should be ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL. Their words cannot be allowed to stand – We won’t have a Country anymore!!! An example MUST BE SET. President DJT”
It’s bad enough the president wants lawmakers, who didn’t say anything illegal or engage in “seditious behavior,” arrested just because he disagrees with him. However, Trump took things to a whole new scary level when he re-posted a message calling for their EXECUTION! He shared a social media user’s comment that said:
“HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD!!”
WTF! He added in another post:
“This is really bad, and Dangerous to our Country. Their words cannot be allowed to stand. SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR FROM TRAITORS!!! LOCK THEM UP???”
Trump continued to threaten them, writing:
“SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”
We cannot stress enough how irresponsible and dangerous his threats are in this day and age, especially when politically motivated violence is more prevalent than ever. You know there are some twisted folks out there who will take his words to heart. Trump not only put those six democrats lives at risk but also possibly their own families, all because he didn’t like what they said. This is not OK.
Those politicians have since released a joint statement condemning Trump. They wrote:
“We are veterans and national security professionals who love this country and swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. That oath lasts a lifetime, and we intend to keep it. No threat, intimidation, or call for violence will deter us from that sacred obligation. What’s most telling is that the President considers it punishable by death for us to restate the law. Our servicemembers should know that we have their backs as they fulfill their oath to the Constitution and obligation to follow only lawful orders. It is not only the right thing to do, but also our duty.”
They then stressed that everyone should slam Trump’s incitement of political violence:
“But this isn’t about any one of us. This isn’t about politics. This is about who we are as Americans. Every American must unite and condemn the President’s calls for our murder and political violence. This is a time for moral clarity. In these moments, fear is contagious, but so is courage. We will continue to lead and will not be intimidated.”
“We are veterans and national security professionals who love this country and swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. That oath lasts a…
President Donald Trump on Thursday accused six Democratic members of Congress of “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”“It’s called SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL. Each one of these traitors to our Country should be ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.Trump’s post was referring to lawmakers who previously served in the military or intelligence community who were featured in a social media video posted this week telling service members they do not have to carry out “illegal orders.”“Their words cannot be allowed to stand – We won’t have a Country anymore!!! An example MUST BE SET,” Trump wrote, going on to add in a subsequent Truth Social post: “LOCK THEM UP???”The lawmakers seen in the video are Sens. Elissa Slotkin, of Michigan; Mark Kelly, of Arizona; U.S. Reps. Chris Deluzio, of Pennsylvania; Maggie Goodlander, of New Hampshire; Chrissy Houlahan, of Pennsylvania; and Jason Crow, of Colorado.In that video, they say, “No one has to carry out orders that violate the law or our Constitution. Know that we have your back, don’t give up the ship.”The lawmakers did not specify what orders they were talking about, but they all framed their message as a warning about the rule of law. “We have been in contact with the House Sergeant at Arms and the United States Capitol Police to ensure the safety of these Members and their families. Donald Trump must immediately delete these unhinged social media posts and recant his violent rhetoric before he gets someone killed,” House Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar said in a statement.
“It’s called SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL. Each one of these traitors to our Country should be ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Trump’s post was referring to lawmakers who previously served in the military or intelligence community who were featured in a social media video posted this week telling service members they do not have to carry out “illegal orders.”
“Their words cannot be allowed to stand – We won’t have a Country anymore!!! An example MUST BE SET,” Trump wrote, going on to add in a subsequent Truth Social post: “LOCK THEM UP???”
The lawmakers seen in the video are Sens. Elissa Slotkin, of Michigan; Mark Kelly, of Arizona; U.S. Reps. Chris Deluzio, of Pennsylvania; Maggie Goodlander, of New Hampshire; Chrissy Houlahan, of Pennsylvania; and Jason Crow, of Colorado.
In that video, they say, “No one has to carry out orders that violate the law or our Constitution. Know that we have your back, don’t give up the ship.”
The lawmakers did not specify what orders they were talking about, but they all framed their message as a warning about the rule of law.
“We have been in contact with the House Sergeant at Arms and the United States Capitol Police to ensure the safety of these Members and their families. Donald Trump must immediately delete these unhinged social media posts and recant his violent rhetoric before he gets someone killed,” House Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar said in a statement.
Acceding to President Donald Trump’s demands, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Friday that she has ordered a top federal prosecutor to investigate sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s ties to Trump political foes, including former President Bill Clinton.Bondi posted on X that she was assigning Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton to lead the probe, capping an eventful week in which congressional Republicans released nearly 23,000 pages of documents from Epstein’s estate and House Democrats seized on emails mentioning Trump.Trump, who was friends with Epstein for years, didn’t explain what supposed crimes he wanted the Justice Department to investigate. None of the men he mentioned in a social media post demanding the probe has been accused of sexual misconduct by any of Epstein’s victims.Hours before Bondi’s announcement, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that he would ask her, the Justice Department, and the FBI to investigate Epstein’s “involvement and relationship” with Clinton and others, including former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and LinkedIn founder and Democratic donor Reid Hoffman.Trump, calling the matter “the Epstein Hoax, involving Democrats, not Republicans,” said the investigation should also include financial giant JPMorgan Chase, which provided banking services to Epstein, and “many other people and institutions.”“This is another Russia, Russia, Russia Scam, with all arrows pointing to the Democrats,” the Republican president wrote, referring to special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of alleged Russian interference in Trump’s 2016 election victory over Bill Clinton’s wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.Asked later Friday whether he should be ordering up such investigations, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One: “I’m the chief law enforcement officer of the country. I’m allowed to do it.”In a July memo regarding the Epstein investigation, the FBI said, “We did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.”The president’s demand for an investigation — and Bondi’s quick acquiescence — is the latest example of the erosion of the Justice Department’s traditional independence from the White House since Trump took office.It is also an extraordinary attempt at deflection. For decades, Trump himself has been scrutinized for his closeness to Epstein — though like the people he now wants investigated, he has not been accused of sexual misconduct by Epstein’s victims.None of Trump’s proposed targets were accused of sex crimesA JPMorgan Chase spokesperson, Patricia Wexler, said the company regretted associating with Epstein “but did not help him commit his heinous acts.”“The government had damning information about his crimes and failed to share it with us or other banks,” she said. The company agreed previously to pay millions of dollars to Epstein’s victims, who had sued arguing that the bank ignored red flags about criminal activity.Clinton has acknowledged traveling on Epstein’s private jet but has said through a spokesperson that he had no knowledge of the late financier’s crimes. He also has never been accused of misconduct by Epstein’s known victims.Clinton’s deputy chief of staff Angel Ureña posted on X Friday: “These emails prove Bill Clinton did nothing and knew nothing. The rest is noise meant to distract from election losses, backfiring shutdowns, and who knows what else.”Epstein pleaded guilty in Florida in 2008 to soliciting prostitution from an underage girl, but was spared a long jail term when the U.S. attorney in Florida agreed not to prosecute him over allegations that he had paid many other children for sexual acts. After serving about a year in jail and a work release program, Epstein resumed his business and social life until federal prosecutors in New York revived the case in 2019. Epstein killed himself while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Summers and Hoffman had nothing to do with either case, but both were friendly with Epstein and exchanged emails with him. Those messages were among the documents released this week, along with other correspondence Epstein had with friends and business associates in the years before his death.Nothing in the messages suggested any wrongdoing on the men’s part, other than associating with someone who had been accused of sex crimes against children.Summers, who served in Clinton’s cabinet and is a former Harvard University president, previously said in a statement that he has “great regrets in my life” and that “my association with Jeffrey Epstein was a major error of judgement.”On social media Friday night, Hoffman called for Trump to release all the Epstein files, saying they will show that “the calls for baseless investigations of me are nothing more than political persecution and slander.” He added, “I was never a client of Epstein’s and never had any engagement with him other than fundraising for MIT.” Hoffman bankrolled writer E. Jean Carroll’s sexual abuse and defamation lawsuit against Trump.After Epstein’s sex trafficking arrest in 2019, Hoffman said he’d only had a few interactions with Epstein, all related to his fundraising for MIT’s Media Lab. He nevertheless apologized, saying that “by agreeing to participate in any fundraising activity where Epstein was present, I helped to repair his reputation and perpetuate injustice.”Bondi, in her post, praised Clayton as “one of the most capable and trusted prosecutors in the country” and said the Justice Department “will pursue this with urgency and integrity to deliver answers to the American people.”Trump called Clayton “a great man, a great attorney,” though he said Bondi chose him for the job.Clayton, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission during Trump’s first term, took over in April as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York — the same office that indicted Epstein and won a sex trafficking conviction against Epstein’s longtime confidante, Ghislaine Maxwell, in 2021.Trump changes course on Epstein filesTrump suggested while campaigning last year that he’d seek to open up the government’s case files on Epstein, but changed course in recent months, blaming Democrats and painting the matter as a “hoax” amid questions about what knowledge he may have had about Epstein’s yearslong exploitation of underage girls.On Wednesday, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released three Epstein email exchanges that referenced Trump, including one from 2019 in which Epstein said the president “knew about the girls” and asked Maxwell to stop.White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt accused Democrats of having “selectively leaked emails” to smear Trump.Soon after, Republicans on the committee disclosed a far bigger trove of Epstein’s email correspondence, including messages he sent to longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon and to Britain’s former Prince Andrew, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. Andrew settled a lawsuit out of court with one of Epstein’s victims, who said she had been paid to have sex with the prince.The House is speeding toward a vote next week to force the Justice Department to release all files and communications related to Epstein.“I don’t care about it, release or not,” Trump said Friday. “If you’re going to do it, then you have to go into Epstein’s friends,” he added, naming Clinton and Hoffman.Still, he said: “This is a Democrat hoax. And a couple, a few Republicans have gone along with it because they’re weak and ineffective.”__Bedayn reported from Denver. Associated Press writer Chris Megerian aboard Air Force One contributed to this report.
NEW YORK —
Acceding to President Donald Trump’s demands, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Friday that she has ordered a top federal prosecutor to investigate sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s ties to Trump political foes, including former President Bill Clinton.
Bondi posted on X that she was assigning Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton to lead the probe, capping an eventful week in which congressional Republicans released nearly 23,000 pages of documents from Epstein’s estate and House Democrats seized on emails mentioning Trump.
Trump, who was friends with Epstein for years, didn’t explain what supposed crimes he wanted the Justice Department to investigate. None of the men he mentioned in a social media post demanding the probe has been accused of sexual misconduct by any of Epstein’s victims.
Hours before Bondi’s announcement, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that he would ask her, the Justice Department, and the FBI to investigate Epstein’s “involvement and relationship” with Clinton and others, including former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and LinkedIn founder and Democratic donor Reid Hoffman.
Trump, calling the matter “the Epstein Hoax, involving Democrats, not Republicans,” said the investigation should also include financial giant JPMorgan Chase, which provided banking services to Epstein, and “many other people and institutions.”
“This is another Russia, Russia, Russia Scam, with all arrows pointing to the Democrats,” the Republican president wrote, referring to special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of alleged Russian interference in Trump’s 2016 election victory over Bill Clinton’s wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Asked later Friday whether he should be ordering up such investigations, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One: “I’m the chief law enforcement officer of the country. I’m allowed to do it.”
In a July memo regarding the Epstein investigation, the FBI said, “We did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.”
The president’s demand for an investigation — and Bondi’s quick acquiescence — is the latest example of the erosion of the Justice Department’s traditional independence from the White House since Trump took office.
It is also an extraordinary attempt at deflection. For decades, Trump himself has been scrutinized for his closeness to Epstein — though like the people he now wants investigated, he has not been accused of sexual misconduct by Epstein’s victims.
None of Trump’s proposed targets were accused of sex crimes
A JPMorgan Chase spokesperson, Patricia Wexler, said the company regretted associating with Epstein “but did not help him commit his heinous acts.”
“The government had damning information about his crimes and failed to share it with us or other banks,” she said. The company agreed previously to pay millions of dollars to Epstein’s victims, who had sued arguing that the bank ignored red flags about criminal activity.
Clinton has acknowledged traveling on Epstein’s private jet but has said through a spokesperson that he had no knowledge of the late financier’s crimes. He also has never been accused of misconduct by Epstein’s known victims.
Clinton’s deputy chief of staff Angel Ureña posted on X Friday: “These emails prove Bill Clinton did nothing and knew nothing. The rest is noise meant to distract from election losses, backfiring shutdowns, and who knows what else.”
Epstein pleaded guilty in Florida in 2008 to soliciting prostitution from an underage girl, but was spared a long jail term when the U.S. attorney in Florida agreed not to prosecute him over allegations that he had paid many other children for sexual acts. After serving about a year in jail and a work release program, Epstein resumed his business and social life until federal prosecutors in New York revived the case in 2019. Epstein killed himself while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Summers and Hoffman had nothing to do with either case, but both were friendly with Epstein and exchanged emails with him. Those messages were among the documents released this week, along with other correspondence Epstein had with friends and business associates in the years before his death.
Nothing in the messages suggested any wrongdoing on the men’s part, other than associating with someone who had been accused of sex crimes against children.
Summers, who served in Clinton’s cabinet and is a former Harvard University president, previously said in a statement that he has “great regrets in my life” and that “my association with Jeffrey Epstein was a major error of judgement.”
On social media Friday night, Hoffman called for Trump to release all the Epstein files, saying they will show that “the calls for baseless investigations of me are nothing more than political persecution and slander.” He added, “I was never a client of Epstein’s and never had any engagement with him other than fundraising for MIT.” Hoffman bankrolled writer E. Jean Carroll’s sexual abuse and defamation lawsuit against Trump.
After Epstein’s sex trafficking arrest in 2019, Hoffman said he’d only had a few interactions with Epstein, all related to his fundraising for MIT’s Media Lab. He nevertheless apologized, saying that “by agreeing to participate in any fundraising activity where Epstein was present, I helped to repair his reputation and perpetuate injustice.”
Bondi, in her post, praised Clayton as “one of the most capable and trusted prosecutors in the country” and said the Justice Department “will pursue this with urgency and integrity to deliver answers to the American people.”
Trump called Clayton “a great man, a great attorney,” though he said Bondi chose him for the job.
Clayton, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission during Trump’s first term, took over in April as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York — the same office that indicted Epstein and won a sex trafficking conviction against Epstein’s longtime confidante, Ghislaine Maxwell, in 2021.
Trump changes course on Epstein files
Trump suggested while campaigning last year that he’d seek to open up the government’s case files on Epstein, but changed course in recent months, blaming Democrats and painting the matter as a “hoax” amid questions about what knowledge he may have had about Epstein’s yearslong exploitation of underage girls.
On Wednesday, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released three Epstein email exchanges that referenced Trump, including one from 2019 in which Epstein said the president “knew about the girls” and asked Maxwell to stop.
White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt accused Democrats of having “selectively leaked emails” to smear Trump.
Soon after, Republicans on the committee disclosed a far bigger trove of Epstein’s email correspondence, including messages he sent to longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon and to Britain’s former Prince Andrew, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. Andrew settled a lawsuit out of court with one of Epstein’s victims, who said she had been paid to have sex with the prince.
The House is speeding toward a vote next week to force the Justice Department to release all files and communications related to Epstein.
“I don’t care about it, release or not,” Trump said Friday. “If you’re going to do it, then you have to go into Epstein’s friends,” he added, naming Clinton and Hoffman.
Still, he said: “This is a Democrat hoax. And a couple, a few Republicans have gone along with it because they’re weak and ineffective.”
__
Bedayn reported from Denver. Associated Press writer Chris Megerian aboard Air Force One contributed to this report.
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday he has decided to nominate Jared Isaacman to serve as his NASA administrator, months after withdrawing the tech billionaire’s nomination because of concerns about his political leanings.Trump announced in late May that he had decided to withdraw Isaacman after a “thorough review” of his “prior associations.” Weeks after the withdrawal, Trump went further in expressing his concerns about Isaacman’s Republican credentials.At the time, Trump acknowledged that he thought Isaacman “was very good,” but had become “surprised to learn” that Isaacman was a “ blue blooded Democrat, who had never contributed to a Republican before.”Isaacman had the endorsement of Trump’s former DOGE adviser and tech entrepreneur Elon Musk. The president and Musk had a very public falling out earlier this year but are now on better terms.Last week, Trump told reporters he and Musk have spoken “on and off” since sitting together at conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s funeral last month in Arizona and that their relationship is “good.”Trump made no mention of his previous decision to nominate and then withdraw Isaacman in his Tuesday evening announcement of the re-nomination on his Truth Social platform. And the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump’s decision to reverse course.“This evening, I am pleased to nominate Jared Isaacman, an accomplished business leader, philanthropist, pilot, and astronaut, as Administrator of NASA,” Trump posted. “Jared’s passion for Space, astronaut experience, and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration, unlocking the mysteries of the universe, and advancing the new Space economy, make him ideally suited to lead NASA into a bold new Era.”Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has been serving as interim NASA administrator. The president on Tuesday praised Duffy for doing an “incredible job.”Isaacman, CEO and founder of credit card-processing company Shift4, has been a close collaborator with Musk ever since buying his first chartered flight with SpaceX.He also bought a series of spaceflights from SpaceX and conducted the first private spacewalk. SpaceX has extensive contracts with NASA.The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee approved Isaacman’s nomination in late April and a vote by the full Senate had been expected when Trump announced he was yanking the nomination.In his own social media post Tuesday, Isaacman thanked Trump for the nomination and the “space-loving community.” He made no mention of the earlier turmoil.
WASHINGTON —
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday he has decided to nominate Jared Isaacman to serve as his NASA administrator, months after withdrawing the tech billionaire’s nomination because of concerns about his political leanings.
Trump announced in late May that he had decided to withdraw Isaacman after a “thorough review” of his “prior associations.” Weeks after the withdrawal, Trump went further in expressing his concerns about Isaacman’s Republican credentials.
At the time, Trump acknowledged that he thought Isaacman “was very good,” but had become “surprised to learn” that Isaacman was a “ blue blooded Democrat, who had never contributed to a Republican before.”
Isaacman had the endorsement of Trump’s former DOGE adviser and tech entrepreneur Elon Musk. The president and Musk had a very public falling out earlier this year but are now on better terms.
Last week, Trump told reporters he and Musk have spoken “on and off” since sitting together at conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s funeral last month in Arizona and that their relationship is “good.”
Trump made no mention of his previous decision to nominate and then withdraw Isaacman in his Tuesday evening announcement of the re-nomination on his Truth Social platform. And the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump’s decision to reverse course.
“This evening, I am pleased to nominate Jared Isaacman, an accomplished business leader, philanthropist, pilot, and astronaut, as Administrator of NASA,” Trump posted. “Jared’s passion for Space, astronaut experience, and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration, unlocking the mysteries of the universe, and advancing the new Space economy, make him ideally suited to lead NASA into a bold new Era.”
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has been serving as interim NASA administrator. The president on Tuesday praised Duffy for doing an “incredible job.”
Isaacman, CEO and founder of credit card-processing company Shift4, has been a close collaborator with Musk ever since buying his first chartered flight with SpaceX.
He also bought a series of spaceflights from SpaceX and conducted the first private spacewalk. SpaceX has extensive contracts with NASA.
The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee approved Isaacman’s nomination in late April and a vote by the full Senate had been expected when Trump announced he was yanking the nomination.
In his own social media post Tuesday, Isaacman thanked Trump for the nomination and the “space-loving community.” He made no mention of the earlier turmoil.
President Donald Trump on Thursday urged congressional Republicans to unilaterally end the government shutdown by eliminating the filibuster — an unprecedented step that GOP leaders have opposed taking until now.”It is now time for the Republicans to play their ‘TRUMP CARD,’ and go for what is called the Nuclear Option — Get rid of the Filibuster, and get rid of it, NOW!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.Senate Republicans have so far ruled out changing the Senate rules to eliminate the 60-vote threshold needed for passing legislation, arguing that it would ultimately benefit Democrats the next time they retake power.But Trump, in his post, brushed off that concern, contending that Republicans should take advantage of the opportunity first.”Now I want to do it in order to take advantage of the Democrats,” Trump wrote.
President Donald Trump on Thursday urged congressional Republicans to unilaterally end the government shutdown by eliminating the filibuster — an unprecedented step that GOP leaders have opposed taking until now.
“It is now time for the Republicans to play their ‘TRUMP CARD,’ and go for what is called the Nuclear Option — Get rid of the Filibuster, and get rid of it, NOW!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
Senate Republicans have so far ruled out changing the Senate rules to eliminate the 60-vote threshold needed for passing legislation, arguing that it would ultimately benefit Democrats the next time they retake power.
But Trump, in his post, brushed off that concern, contending that Republicans should take advantage of the opportunity first.
“Now I want to do it in order to take advantage of the Democrats,” Trump wrote.
Donald Trump appears to be getting back into the casino business, in a manner of speaking.
This time it won’t be Atlantic City slot machines and roulette tables: On Tuesday, the president’s media firm, Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., announced it was partnering with the digital asset exchange Crypto.com to make prediction markets available via Truth Social.
The new product, called “Truth Predict,” will enable Truth Social users to bet on a wide range of future events like election outcomes, sports, and commodity prices. These wagers will take the form of prediction contracts, which are typically priced in cents and reflect the percentage of confidence bettors have in a potential outcome. If you bet correctly, the contract settles for $1, but if you’re wrong, it goes to zero.
TMTG’s new offering will compete with existing prediction markets like the US-regulated Kalshi and Polymarket, which is headquartered in New York but hasn’t offered services to US customers since reaching a settlement with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in 2022.
Truth Predict plans to launch in the US first and then expand internationally “once all the requisite requirements are met.” The product will begin beta testing soon, according to Tuesday’s announcement.
President Trump was the largest shareholder in TMTG, but after winning the general election last year, he transferred 114,750,000 shares worth around $4 billion to a trust controlled by his son Donald Trump Jr. A Securities and Exchange Commission filing suggests President Trump maintains indirect control of the shares.
Digital prediction markets present a few thorny philosophical questions. Proponents say there is value to decentralized prognostication, arguing that the betting markets give people a window into what the masses actually think will happen, free from the influence of powerful corporations and political interests.
“The point of Polymarket is that from the perspective of traders, it’s a betting site, but from the perspective of viewers it’s a news site,” Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin said on X last year. “There are all kinds of people (including elites) on Twitter and the internet making harmful and inaccurate predictions about conflicts, and being able to go and see if people with actual skin in the game think that something has a 2% chance or a 50% chance is a valuable feature that can help keep people sane.”
The present level of liquidity betting on these events isn’t likely to influence their outcomes, but critics argue that if enough money flows into any one market in the future, it could incentivize powerful interests to tip the scales and make something – an assassination, a coup, a war – happen in real life.
“It’s an extreme example, but any prediction market about an influenceable event will start to either incentivize action or subsidize the inevitable if sufficiently liquid enough, even if that wasn’t the original intention,” said Zach Rynes, a community liaison for the decentralized oracle network Chainlink, on X last year. “If these markets traded with $100 million+ liquidity, would that change the outcome? Maybe not, but if insider traded, would they not be subsidizing war? I don’t think prediction markets are passive observers; their existence influences outcomes when operating at scale.”
CFTC regulations prohibit event contracts that reference terrorism, assassination, war or any other illegal activity, so US-approved firms don’t offer direct invasion markets like Polymarket’s. But that doesn’t mean those marketplaces are free from potentially controversial incentives: On Kalshi, gamblers can wager on the number of deportations in Trump’s first year of office, or whether leaders like Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro will remain in power through 2025 (though Kalshi, in an effort to disincentivize assassination, does note that in the case of Maduro’s death, the market would pay out the last traded price rather than settling to $1 or zero).
Those controversial incentives could appear even more tangled on a prediction markets platform so closely affiliated with the president of the United States.
Gizmodo reached out to Truth Social for comment and will update if we hear back.
Have you seen a tweet from President Donald Trump saying he’ll refuse to invite whoever wins the World Series to the White House? Trump appears to say that it’s because he believes the game is rigged, either by the mafia or the Democrats. But the tweet isn’t real. The post has gone viral across just about every major social media platform, but it’s completely fake.
The post is made to look like it’s coming from President Trump’s official Truth Social account, the platform he owns and the first place where he posts all his most unhinged messages.
“NO MATTER WHO WINS I WILL REFUSE TO INVITE EITHER BASEBALL TEAM TO MY BALL ROOM AS THEY ARE BOTH RUN BY HIGHLY INEPT OFFICIALS FROM CALIFORNIA AND ONTARIO CANADA,” the fake tweet reads.
“I DON’T HOST LOSERS. WE ARE ACTIVELY INVESTIGATING MLB. THIS WORLD SERIES IS RIGGED, PROBABLY BY THE DEMS & THE MAFIA,” the fake tweet continues.
The screenshot spread far and wide over the weekend, showing up on Threads, X, Bluesky, Instagram, and Facebook. But Trump never wrote this one.
Fake tweet made to look like it’s from President Donald Trump about the World Series. Screenshot: Facebook
The reaction to the viral post was about what you’d expect, especially among fans of the Toronto Blue Jays, the team that’s currently playing the Los Angeles Dodgers for the World Series championship. The series is tied 1-1 and Game 3 will be played tonight.
Many Canadians made fun of the fake Trump tweet, since they didn’t think a Canadian team would even be invited to the White House in the first place. Trump slapped an additional 10% tariff on Canada over the weekend because he got mad about an ad that highlighted Ronald Reagan’s opposition to tariffs. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called the ad a “psy-op” by the Canadian government on Sunday. Trump has claimed the ad is fake, even falsely insisting it’s AI. But it’s real.
Things are different for the American team, which could very well get an invitation to the White House if they win. The Dodgers won the World Series last year and did indeed show up in April to snap pictures. Trump also received a “47” jersey from the team, since he’s kind of the 47th president. We say “kind of” because he’s only 47th if you don’t count by the number of people to hold the office, but by the number of consecutive terms that make up a single era. And even then, it’s not quite right since Grover Cleveland served two non-consecutive terms as well.
There are many red flags in the fake post from Trump, but the reference to the ballroom might be one of the most glaring. The president has demolished the East Wing of the White House, and he’s building a ballroom with “donations” from private companies and individuals who have given him millions. But even on the most ambitious timeline, the ballroom won’t be completed by the time a White House visit by the 2025 World Series champions might take place. Trump hasn’t announced a completion date for his ridiculous monstrosity, but the administration has said it will be done before his second term is up in Jan. 2029.
Another fake post that’s gotten less traction, but is still popping up here and there on social media, specifically calls out the Blue Jays.
“WE WILL BE INVESTIGATING THE UN AMERICAN BLUE JAYS WHO ARE ATTEMPTING TO STEAL OUR BELOVED WORLD SERIES,” the fake tweet reads. “THEY WILL DEFINITELY NOT BE INVITED TO THE WHITE HOUSE.”
Interestingly, author Stephen King seemed to fall for the first tweet in this article, poking fun at him on X, but the Community Notes that have attempted to fact-check King are referring to the second tweet about the Blue Jays. That’s how many fake Trump tweets seem to be doing the rounds these days. Nobody can keep any of this stuff straight.
The reason these fake tweets go viral is that it’s simply impossible to tell which screeds from President Trump are authentic. Trump has always been off his rocker, but he’s gotten increasingly unhinged during his second term, posting some of the weirdest things that a president has ever expressed in public.
As just one recent example, Trump posted an AI video of himself last month talking about “medbeds,” a bizarre conspiracy theory that claims there are real beds being hidden from the public that can heal all diseases. The video even includes a fake Trump touting these miracle cures and insisting they were going to be available soon to “restore every citizen to full health.”
In a world where the president is posting about medbeds—to say nothing of the Department of Homeland Security posting Nazi propaganda—it can be extremely difficult to tell what’s real. And that’s not going to change as long as the Trump regime remains in power. In fact, it’s likely to get much, much worse.
Donald Trump has issued his latest challenge to test corporate America’s fealty to his administration. On Friday, the President decided to wade into the personnel decision of Microsoft and called for the company to fire its President of Global Affairs, Lisa Monaco, over her previous work under the Obama and Biden administrations—a warning shot fired apparently at the advice of far-right activist Laura Loomer.
Trump called Monaco, who previously served as the deputy attorney general during the Biden administration and Homeland Security Advisor to President Obama, “Corrupt and Totally Trump Deranged,” He also claimed that because of her ties to the previous administrations, she is “a menace to U.S. National Security, especially given the major contracts that Microsoft has with the United States Government”—a statement that likely doesn’t not read like a threat to review and potentially revoke lucrative federal procurements that Microsft has landed.
“It is my opinion that Microsoft should immediately terminate the employment of Lisa Monaco,” Trump wrote. Microsoft declined to comment when contacted by Gizmodo.
Why the President issuing opinions on an employee who doesn’t even appear on Microsoft’s leadership team page? It appears that it’s because Laura Loomer got in his ear again. Back in July, Loomer took aim at Monaco, tying her to Microsoft’s decision to use engineers in China to help provide tech support to the Defense Department. The connections take some red string and corkboard to make, but Loomer went ahead and connected the dots.
On Friday, she took credit for the President following suit and calling for Microsoft to dismiss Monaco. “After I alerted President Trump to the fact that Microsoft has hired Lisa Monaco to be their new President of Global Affairs, he has just called on Microsoft to terminate her employment,” she wrote on X. (For what it’s worth, Monaco was hired in May, and Loomer didn’t mention her until July, so apparently it takes a while for her alerts to get to Trump’s desk.)
In the post, she also tagged Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and asked, “Are you going to comply?” which certainly has some echoes of Federal Communications Commission head Brendan Carr telling ABC, “We can do this the easy way or the hard way” in regards to punishing Jimmy Kimmel over a monologue that conservatives didn’t like. It sure feels like an attempt to compel corporations to capitulate to the wishes of the administration—though, at least in Loomer’s case, she doesn’t have any formal power.
If anything, Trump may be better off with Monaco stuck in a corporate office somewhere rather than back in legal waters serving as cop on the beat. Under Biden, Monaco was involved in the creation of the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, which led crackdowns on crypto scams similar to the ones the President and his family have profited from. Prior to that, she served as a member of the Justice Department’s Enron Task Force and was involved in the prosecution of five former Enron executives.
President Trump said this task force will replicate what is happening on the streets of Washington DC. The president said the goal is to essentially put an end to crime in Memphis and mirror the actions taking place in the nation’s capital. The memorandum President Trump signed on Monday did not include details on when troops would be deployed or exactly what his promised surge in law enforcement efforts would actually look like. Tennessee’s governor embraced the deployment while the mayor of Memphis is not thrilled with the plan. Crime that’s going on not only in Memphis in many cities and we’re gonna take care of all of them step by step just like we did in DC. We’ll have folks without training interacting with our citizenry, and there’s *** chance that that will compromise our due process rights. The president also mentioned he’s still looking to send National Guard troops to more Democratic-led cities like Baltimore, New Orleans, and Saint Louis. In Washington, I’m Rachel Herzheimer.
Trump says he’ll send troops to Portland, Oregon, as he expands military deployments in US cities
President Donald Trump said Saturday he will send troops to Portland, Oregon, “authorizing Full Force, if necessary” to handle “domestic terrorists” as he expands his controversial deployments to more American cities.Related video above: President Trump announces National Guard deployment to MemphisHe made the announcement on social media, writing that he was directing the Department of Defense to “provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland.”Trump said the decision was necessary to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, which he described as “under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists.”The White House did not immediately respond to a request for details on Trump’s announcement, such as a timeline for the deployment or what troops would be involved. He previously threatened to send the National Guard into Chicago without following through. A deployment in Memphis, Tennessee, is expected to include only about 150 troops, far fewer than were sent to the District of Columbia for Trump’s crackdown or in Los Angeles in response to immigration protests.Pentagon officials did not immediately respond to requests for information.Since the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the Republican president has escalated his efforts to confront what he calls the “radical left,” which he blames for the country’s problems with political violence.He deployed the National Guard and active-duty Marines to Los Angeles over the summer and as part of his law enforcement takeover in the nation’s capital. The ICE facility in Portland has been the target of frequent demonstrations, sometimes leading to violent clashes. Some federal agents have been injured and several protesters have been charged with assault. When protesters erected a guillotine earlier this month, the Department of Homeland Security described it as “unhinged behavior.”Trump, in comments Thursday in the Oval Office, suggested some kind of operation was in the works.“We’re going to get out there and we’re going to do a pretty big number on those people in Portland,” he said, describing them as “professional agitators and anarchists.”Earlier in September, Trump had described living in Portland as “like living in hell” and said he was considering sending in federal troops, as he has recently threatened to do to combat crime in other cities, including Chicago and Baltimore. “Like other mayors across the country, I have not asked for — and do not need — federal intervention,” Portland’s mayor, Keith Wilson, said in a statement after Trump’s threat. Wilson said his city had protected freedom of expression while “addressing occasional violence and property destruction.”In Tennessee, Memphis has been bracing for an influx of National Guard troops, and on Friday, Republican Gov. Bill Lee, who helped coordinate the operation, said they will be part of a surge of resources to fight crime in the city.
WASHINGTON —
President Donald Trump said Saturday he will send troops to Portland, Oregon, “authorizing Full Force, if necessary” to handle “domestic terrorists” as he expands his controversial deployments to more American cities.
Related video above:President Trump announces National Guard deployment to Memphis
He made the announcement on social media, writing that he was directing the Department of Defense to “provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland.”
Trump said the decision was necessary to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, which he described as “under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for details on Trump’s announcement, such as a timeline for the deployment or what troops would be involved. He previously threatened to send the National Guard into Chicago without following through. A deployment in Memphis, Tennessee, is expected to include only about 150 troops, far fewer than were sent to the District of Columbia for Trump’s crackdown or in Los Angeles in response to immigration protests.
Pentagon officials did not immediately respond to requests for information.
Since the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the Republican president has escalated his efforts to confront what he calls the “radical left,” which he blames for the country’s problems with political violence.
He deployed the National Guard and active-duty Marines to Los Angeles over the summer and as part of his law enforcement takeover in the nation’s capital.
The ICE facility in Portland has been the target of frequent demonstrations, sometimes leading to violent clashes. Some federal agents have been injured and several protesters have been charged with assault. When protesters erected a guillotine earlier this month, the Department of Homeland Security described it as “unhinged behavior.”
Trump, in comments Thursday in the Oval Office, suggested some kind of operation was in the works.
“We’re going to get out there and we’re going to do a pretty big number on those people in Portland,” he said, describing them as “professional agitators and anarchists.”
Earlier in September, Trump had described living in Portland as “like living in hell” and said he was considering sending in federal troops, as he has recently threatened to do to combat crime in other cities, including Chicago and Baltimore.
“Like other mayors across the country, I have not asked for — and do not need — federal intervention,” Portland’s mayor, Keith Wilson, said in a statement after Trump’s threat. Wilson said his city had protected freedom of expression while “addressing occasional violence and property destruction.”
In Tennessee, Memphis has been bracing for an influx of National Guard troops, and on Friday, Republican Gov. Bill Lee, who helped coordinate the operation, said they will be part of a surge of resources to fight crime in the city.
President Trump said this task force will replicate what is happening on the streets of Washington DC. The president said the goal is to essentially put an end to crime in Memphis and mirror the actions taking place in the nation’s capital. The memorandum President Trump signed on Monday did not include details on when troops would be deployed or exactly what his promised surge in law enforcement efforts would actually look like. Tennessee’s governor embraced the deployment while the mayor of Memphis is not thrilled with the plan. Crime that’s going on not only in Memphis in many cities and we’re gonna take care of all of them step by step just like we did in DC. We’ll have folks without training interacting with our citizenry, and there’s *** chance that that will compromise our due process rights. The president also mentioned he’s still looking to send National Guard troops to more Democratic-led cities like Baltimore, New Orleans, and Saint Louis. In Washington, I’m Rachel Herzheimer.
Trump says he’ll send troops to Portland, Oregon, as he expands military deployments in US cities
President Donald Trump said Saturday he will send troops to Portland, Oregon, “authorizing Full Force, if necessary” to handle “domestic terrorists” as he expands his controversial deployments to more American cities.Related video above: President Trump announces National Guard deployment to MemphisHe made the announcement on social media, writing that he was directing the Department of Defense to “provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland.”Trump said the decision was necessary to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, which he described as “under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists.”Since the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the Republican president has escalated his efforts to confront what he calls the “radical left,” which he blames for the country’s problems with political violence.He deployed the National Guard and active-duty Marines to Los Angeles over the summer and as part of his law enforcement takeover in the District of Columbia.The ICE facility in Portland has been the target of frequent demonstrations, sometimes leading to violent clashes. Some federal agents have been injured and several protesters have been charged with assault. When protesters erected a guillotine earlier this month, the Department of Homeland Security described it as “unhinged behavior.”Trump, in comments Thursday in the Oval Office, suggested some kind of operation was in the works.“We’re going to get out there and we’re going to do a pretty big number on those people in Portland,” he said, describing them as “professional agitators and anarchists.”Earlier in September, Trump had described living in Portland as “like living in hell” and said he was considering sending in federal troops, as he has recently threatened to do to combat crime in other cities, including Chicago and Baltimore.“Like other mayors across the country, I have not asked for -– and do not need -– federal intervention,” Portland’s mayor, Keith Wilson, said in a statement after Trump’s threat. Wilson said his city had protected freedom of expression while “addressing occasional violence and property destruction.”In Tennessee, Memphis has been bracing for an influx of National Guard troops, and on Friday Republican Gov. Bill Lee said they will be part of a surge of resources to fight crime in the city.
WASHINGTON —
President Donald Trump said Saturday he will send troops to Portland, Oregon, to handle what he called “domestic terrorists” as he expands his controversial deployments to more American cities.
Related video above:President Trump announces National Guard deployment to Memphis
He made the announcement on social media, writing that he was directing the Department of Defense to “provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland.”
“I am also authorizing Full Force, if necessary,” Trump said.
Trump said the decision was necessary to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, which he described as “under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists.”
Since the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the Republican president has escalated his efforts to confront what he calls the “radical left,” which he blames for the country’s problems with political violence.
Earlier in September, Trump had described living in Portland as “like living in hell” and said he was considering sending in federal troops, as he has recently threatened to do to combat crime in other cities, including Chicago and Baltimore.
He deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles over the summer and as part of his law enforcement takeover in the District of Columbia.
In Tennessee, Memphis has been bracing for an influx of National Guard troops, and on Friday Republican Gov. Bill Lee said they will be part of a surge of resources to fight crime in the city.
Maryland’s Jamie Raskin is taking the Trump administration to task over a social media post that called on Attorney General Pam Bondi to go after his political enemies.
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Maryland congressman blasts Trump for using DOJ for personal vendettas
Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin is taking President Donald Trump’s administration to task over a social media post Trump sent over the weekend that called on his attorney general to go after those he considers his political enemies.
In the post, Trump seemingly directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to pursue legal action against New York Attorney General Letitia James, California U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff and former FBI Director James Comey.
“We can’t delay any longer, it’s killing our reputation and credibility,” he said. Noting that he was impeached and criminally charged, “JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!”
Shortly after the post was published, it was removed but then reposted some time later, which sparked speculation that Trump meant to send it as a direct message to Bondi but mistakenly posted it publicly.
Trump later wrote in a follow-up post that Bondi was “doing a GREAT job.”
Raskin, who represents the state’s 8th District, said it’s no surprise Trump would try to use the Justice Department to carry out personal vendettas.
“He is castigating U.S. attorneys and federal prosecutors all over the country, forcing them to do his will, to indict people even if there isn’t probable cause to believe that they’ve engaged in a crime,” Raskin told WTOP in an interview.
Raskin, the ranking member on the House Oversight Committee and part of the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection, said the administration is dismantling institutions and taking rights away from Americans.
“We have a president who is now trampling every constitutional principle and rule we’ve got,” Raskin said. “America knows that there is something profoundly wrong with what’s going on.”
And Raskin said judges across the country agree with him.
“Here’s the great news,” he said. “There have been more than 400 cases now brought against Trump for violating the Constitution and the rule of law. And in the district courts, we are winning more than 96% of the time with also overwhelming numbers in the appeals court.”
Raskin was issued a pardon in the final days of former President Joe Biden’s administration for his role on the House Select Committee and in impeachment proceedings against Trump.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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