White House

Trump Administration to Set New Media Access Rules at White House

The White House on Tuesday stripped journalists of the nearly century-old power to decide which of them cover US presidential events, with Donald Trump boasting that he was now "calling those shots" on media access. Trump's spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt made the surprise announcement at a daily briefing, saying that the independent ...

Washington Plans to Impose Reciprocal Tariffs on Trade Partners

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday a proposal for reciprocal tariffs targeting countries that impose duties on U.S. imports, according to Reuters. This measure, which could take effect in the coming weeks, is part of his administration's protectionist policy aimed at strengthening economic and national security. "Today is a great ...

Global Stocks Wobble, Gold Shines as Tariff Uncertainty Looms

United States stock markets wobbled, and gold reached fresh highs on Tuesday as traders kept a nervous eye on US President Donald Trump’s next tariff decisions, worried about inflation and interest rates. European markets rose, with both Frankfurt and London again setting records, while Asian equity markets struggled for direction. Trump has ...

Trump Claims Musk Will Uncover "Hundreds of Billions of Dollars in Fraud"

President Donald Trump said in remarks airing Sunday that Elon Musk, who is presiding over a purge of US government jobs, will help find "hundreds of billions of dollars of fraud" in federal agencies. Speaking in a Fox News interview set to air before the Super Bowl football championship, Trump said the American people "want me to find" waste ...

Judge Pauses Musk's Plan for Mass Cull of U.S. Government Workers

A judge on Thursday suspended a scheme masterminded by billionaire Elon Musk to slash the size of the U.S. government by encouraging federal workers to quit through a mass buyout. The federal judge in Massachusetts issued a temporary injunction on the plan's deadline — midnight Thursday — given by Musk for the country's more than two million ...

Trump says to reinstate 'maximum pressure' on Iran, Tehran promises “failure”

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he was planning to reinstate what he called the "maximum pressure" policy against Iran over allegations that it is trying to develop nuclear weapons. However, Trump also said he hoped the policy will "hardly have to be used." Trump made the comment as he signed a memorandum reimposing the tough policy of ...

Netanyahu to Meet Trump on February 4

US President Donald Trump has invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to a meeting at the White House on Tuesday on February 4, the Israeli premier's office said. "Prime Minister Netanyahu is the first foreign leader to be invited to the White House during US President Trump's second term," the statement said. The Trump-Netanyahu ...

Biden Preemptively Pardons Family Members and Trump Foes

US President Joe Biden issued preemptive pardons on Monday to former Covid pandemic advisor Anthony Fauci, retired general Mark Milley and close family members to shield them from "politically motivated prosecutions" under the Trump administration. In an extraordinary move in his last hours in the White House, Biden gave similar pardons ...

Trump Unveils his First Measures During his Inauguration Speech

During his inauguration, Donald Trump announced his intention to take several actions. 'America's decline is over' President Donald Trump declared Monday that America's "decline is over," framing his return to power as a rejection of the "radical and corrupt" establishment he claimed defined Joe Biden's presidency. "My recent election is a ...

President Aoun Congratulates Trump on Assuming Presidency

President Joseph Aoun extended his congratulations to US President Donald Trump following his official inauguration on Monday, wishing him success in leading the United States “toward greater progress and prosperity.” In a congratulatory cable, Aoun emphasized the mutual commitment to strengthening bilateral relations between Lebanon and the ...

Trump Sworn in For Second Term Vowing Sweeping Change

Donald Trump was sworn in for a historic second term as president on Monday, pledging a blitz of immediate orders on immigration and the US culture wars as he caps his extraordinary comeback. With one hand raised in the air and the other on a Bible given to him by his mother, the 47th US president solemnly took the oath of office beneath the huge ...

With Trump Inauguration Indoors, Supporters Say ‘Winging It’ but Still Thrilled

With glacial temperatures forcing US President-elect Donald Trump's swearing in indoors, the National Mall, normally jam-packed for inaugurations with hundreds of thousands of revelers, was eerily dead on Monday. We're "winging it," Trump supporters Lorri Williams and Ellie Hymes told AFP from the mall. The pair, who traveled to Washington from ...