Biden administration pledges new glide bombs to Ukraine ahead of Zelenskyy White House meeting
Caroline Purser/Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — The Biden administration on Thursday announced $375 million more in security assistance for Ukraine, which for the first time will include American Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) glide bombs, a U.S. defense official told ABC News.
The bombs, which can be deployed by Ukraine’s new F-16 fighters, have retractable wings that help them reach targets up to 70 miles away. There are several versions of JSOW, but the ones being sent to Ukraine are equipped with cluster munitions, according to the official.
The U.S. will also soon announce more than $2 billion in aid for Ukraine under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), the official told ABC News on Wednesday. Unlike the $350 million package, which will draw equipment from existing American stockpiles for Ukraine, USAI funds are used for contracts to procure assistance, which can take months or years to materialize. The coming USAI funds will largely go toward restocking Ukraine with munitions, according to the official.
The commitment to send JSOW glide bombs comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in the United States to make the case for global support, speaking before the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday in New York, with plans to present what he has called his “victory plan” to President Joe Biden at the White House on Thursday.
“The plan of victory is strengthening of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said during a sit-down interview with ABC News’ Good Morning America co-anchor Robin Roberts on Monday. “That’s why we’re asking our friends, our allies, to strengthen us. It’s very important.”
Zelenskyy hasn’t publicly shared the details of his victory plan ahead of his upcoming meeting with Biden, but said it includes specific military supply requests, as well as proposals for potential security guarantees for Ukraine after the war. Zelenskyy’s chief of staff this week confirmed that includes Ukraine being invited to join NATO.
A source close to the Ukrainian president told ABC News the plan consists of five key points, four of which are to be implemented now and one after the war is over. The plan also includes specific figures and amounts of military assistance.
Former President Donald Trump said last week that he would “probably” meet with Zelenskyy, but this is no longer expected, according to sources familiar with the matter.
(WASHINGTON) — Speaker Mike Johnson and top House Republicans took a victory lap as they returned to Washington on Tuesday on the heels of last week’s election, saying they are ready on Day 1 to work on President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda.
“It is a beautiful morning and it is a new day in America,” Johnson said from the Capitol steps surrounded by House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Whip Tom Emmer and National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Rep. Richard Hudson.
Lawmakers are back for a lame-duck session that will require them to pass another government funding measure before a shutdown deadline of Dec. 20 and passing the annual defense bill, among other legislative priorities.
All eyes are also on Trump’s transition and what lies ahead with a potential Republican “trifecta” in the nation’s capital. Republicans won the White House and the Senate and are three seats away from clinching the House, according to ABC News projections, though House control has not yet been called.
Johnson said they were continuing to watch outstanding races, but expressed confidence that the chamber would remain in GOP control.
Republican leadership said their top priorities come January will be to lower costs, secure the border and project strength on the world stage in coordination with Trump.
“Last week, the American people delivered a mandate down to Washington that they want to fix the problems that have been plaguing families all across this country for the last three and a half years,” Scalise said.
Johnson argued they are better equipped to act now than they were in 2016, when Republicans similarly controlled the White House and Congress after Trump’s victory.
“We are prepared this time as we wind down the 118th Congress,” Johnson said. “We’ll be ready to take the ball and run in the 119th Congress.”
Johnson said he doesn’t anticipate more members leaving to join Trump’s team and that “every vote will count” in the new Congress.
“President Trump and I have talked about this, multiple times a day for the last several days,” Johnson said. “We have an embarrassment of riches. We have a really talented Republican Congress … Many of them can serve in a important positions in the new administration. But President Trump fully understands, appreciates the math here and it’s just a numbers game.”
Johnson also confirmed reports that he is planning to spend the weekend at Mar-a-Lago with Trump to discuss Trump’s cabinet and the upcoming House agenda.
The speaker also said Trump expressed interest in coming to speak to Republicans on Capitol Hill on Wednesday when he is in Washington to meet with President Joe Biden.
“That would be a great meeting and moment for us all,” Johnson said. “There’s a lot of excitement, a lot of energy here. We’re really grateful for President Trump leaving it all on the field to get reelected.”
The speaker declined to back anyone in the Senate leadership race, saying all the candidates are his “favorite.” Senate Republicans are set to vote Wednesday, with three major contenders vying for the position: Sen. John Thune, Sen. John Cornyn and Sen. Rick Scott.
Trump has not endorsed a candidate, but made demands that whoever is chosen support recess appointments for federal vacancies.
(WASHINGTON) — Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday pledged to continue support to Ukraine as she met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss his so-called “victory plan” to bring an end to war with Russia.
Harris cast the conflict as a fight for fundamental principles of “freedom and independence.”
“We also know that other would-be aggressors around the world are watching to see what happens in Ukraine,” Harris said. “If Putin is allowed to win, they will become emboldened, and history reminds us, and history is so clear in reminding us, the United States cannot and should not isolate ourselves from the rest of the world. Isolation is not insulation.”
Harris also appeared to take a swipe at her political opponents — former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance — who’ve floated Ukraine ceding territory to Russia as part of negotiations to end the war.
“However, in candor, I share with you Mr. President, there are some in my country who would, instead, force Ukraine to give up large parts of its sovereign territory, who would demand that Ukraine accept neutrality and would require Ukraine to forego security relationships with other nations,” Harris said.
“These proposals are the same of those of Putin. And let us be clear, they are not proposals for peace. Instead, they are proposals for surrender, which is dangerous and unacceptable,” she added.
This is Zelenskyy’s fifth visit to Washington since Russia’s invasion began in Feb. 2022, and he now faces an increasingly partisan environment with an election just weeks away.
Trump ratcheted up his criticism of Zelenskyy and Ukraine on Wednesday, calling Zelenskyy the “greatest salesman on Earth” and painting a picture of an “obliterated Ukraine.”
The former president also suggested Ukraine should’ve made a “deal” before the war started. Trump said, “If they made a bad deal it would’ve been much better. They would’ve given up a little bit and everybody would be living.”
Trump also accused Zelenskyy of making “little, nasty aspersions” about him, likely referring to Zelenskyy’s comments to The New Yorker casting doubt on Trump’s claim he could quickly end the Russia-Ukraine war.
After sources saying Wednesday Trump was not expected to meet with Zelenskyy, Trump told reporters Thursday afternoon Zelenskyy had asked to meet and that they would do so Friday morning at Trump Tower.
“I believe I will be able to make a deal between President Putin and President Zelensky quite quickly,” Trump said, but when asked what that would look like, he responded, “I don’t want to tell you what that looks like.”
And when asked to respond to respond to what a reporter said was Harris’ suggestion that his strategy amounted to “surrender” to Russia, Trump said, “No, I don’t think so. I don’t think so. And, it’s not a surrender. What my strategy is to save lives. I want to save lives. Millions of people are dead. Millions more than they even think about. And it’s not my fight, but it is a fight to save humanity.”
Zelenskyy has also called Vance “too radical,” taking issue with his statements that a Trump-Vance administration’s approach to the war would likely include Ukraine ceding territory to Russia and the current line of demarcation becoming a demilitarized zone. Vance said on Wednesday that “everything would be on the table” when asked if Ukraine should cede land.
The top Republican on Capitol Hill, House Speaker Mike Johnson, did not meet Zelenskyy when he visited Capitol Hill earlier Thursday to meet with a bipartisan group of House lawmakers. Johnson told reporters he would not be in town, but if he had sat down with Zelenskyy would have aired grievances about his tour of an American munitions manufacturing plant in Pennsylvania.
Zelenskyy made the case to lawmakers for permission to strike deeper into Russia at military targets using U.S.-supplied weapons. Several senators on both sides of the aisle expressed a desire for Biden to give Zelenskyy authorization to do so.
But the White House continued to express opposition to such a move.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, peppered with questions on the issue during Thursday’s briefing, told reporters not to “expect any new announcements” coming out of Zelenskyy’s one-on-one meeting with Biden.
“Our policy has not changed,” Jean-Pierre said. “They’re going to talk on a range of issues today. What we can say and what we can commit to is that we will continue to support Ukraine as they continue their fight against Mr. Putin’s aggression, into Ukraine. And so that is our commitment, that’s what the president is focused on.”
In the Oval Office, Biden said he looked forward to discussing Zelenskyy’s “victory plan” and said he saw two key pieces in aiding Ukraine.
The first, Biden said, was to “strengthen Ukraine’s position on the battlefield.” He then highlighted the new $2.4 billion package of security systems announced earlier Thursday and his directive to the Pentagon to allocate all remaining security system funding by the end of his term.
The second, Biden said, was to “look ahead to help Ukraine succeed in the long term” by helping Ukraine join NATO and the European Union as well as reforms to counter corruption, strengthen democracy and enhance security in the nation.
“Let me be clear: Russia will not prevail in war. Russia will not prevail. Ukraine will prevail, and we’ll continue to stand by you every step of the way,” Biden said.
ABC News’ Allison Pecorin, Lauren Peller, Michelle Stoddart and Cheyenne Haslett contributed to this report.
Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead. Via Flickr
(WASHINGTON) — After a sweeping victory over Vice President Kamala Harris on Nov. 5, President-elect Donald Trump is now set to become just the second ever to serve nonconsecutive terms in office.
Trump has wasted no time in moving to assemble his team for a second term in the White House — naming Susie Wiles as his chief of staff and New York Rep. Elise Stefanik as U.N. ambassador, among other positions.
Inauguration Day is Jan. 20.
November 12, 2024, 11:50 AM EST – Will Trump’s administration picks impact House control?
While control of the House has not yet been projected by ABC News, Republicans are inching toward maintaining their slim majority.
But already, Trump has picked several lawmakers to serve in his administration: Rep. Elise Stefanik for United Nations ambassador and Rep. Mike Waltz for national security adviser.
Speaker Mike Johnson, asked about the issue on Tuesday, said he’s spoken to Trump about it several times.
“We have a really talented Republican Congress … Many of them can serve in important positions in the new administration. But President Trump fully understands, appreciates the math here and it’s just a numbers game,” Johnson said. “You know, we believe we’re going to have a larger majority than we had last time.”
The speaker added: “I don’t expect that we will have more members leaving, but I’ll leave that up to him.”
November 12, 2024, 11:39 AM EST – Billionaire John Paulson says he’s not a candidate for Treasury role
Billionaire John Paulson said Tuesday he does not plan to formally join the administration as the secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, though he said he intends to remain actively involved with Trump’s economic team.
“Although various media outlets have mentioned me as a candidate for Secretary of the Treasury, my complex financial obligations would prevent me from holding an official position in President Trump’s administration at this time,” Paulson said in a statement.
“However, I intend to remain actively involved with the President’s economic team and helping in the implementation of President Trump’s outstanding policy proposals,” he added.
-ABC News’ Beatrice Peterson
November 12, 2024, 11 AM EST – Johnson teases Trump visit to the Capitol
House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed that Trump is expected to visit the U.S. Capitol to celebrate a potential Republicans “trifecta” on Wednesday morning before he sits down in the Oval Office with President Joe Biden later in the day.
“Well, I’ll say I didn’t intend to break this as news this morning,” Johnson quipped as he held a press conference with House Republican leadership.
“He wanted to come and visit with House Republicans, so we’re working out the details of him gathering with us potentially tomorrow morning, before he goes to the White House,” Johnson said. “And that would be a great meeting and a moment for all of us, there’s a lot of excitement, a lot of energy here. We’re really grateful for President Trump leaving it all on the field to get reelected.”
ABC News’ John Parkinson, Isabella Murray and Lauren Peller
November 12, 2024, 11 AM EST – House Republican leadership say they’re ready for Day 1 under Trump
Returning to Washington on Tuesday, Speaker Mike Johnson and other top House Republicans took a victory lap on last week’s election results.
While ABC News has not yet projected House control, Republicans are three seats away from clinching the 218 needed for a majority.
Johnson said they are monitoring outstanding races closely but are confident they will have a “unified” government come January.
“This leadership will hit the ground running to deliver President Trump’s agenda in the 119th Congress, and we will work closely with him and his administration to turn this country around and unleash, as he says, a new golden age in America,” Johnson said at a press conference on the Capitol steps.
November 11, 2024, 11:22 PM EST – Trump’s new ‘border czar’ issues warning to sanctuary states and cities
President-elect Donald Trump’s newly picked “border czar” Tom Homan addressed his forthcoming deportation plan and state leaders who have objected to sweeping immigration policies.
During an appearance on Fox News on Monday, Homan issued a warning to so-called “sanctuary” states and cities to “get the hell out of the way” of the Trump administration’s mass deportation plans.
“I saw today numerous governors from sanctuary states saying they’re going to step in the way. They better get the hell out of the way. Either you help us or get the hell out of the way, because ICE is going to do their job,” he warned, referring to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, where he formerly served as director.
“I’ll double the workforce in that sanctuary city. We’re going to do our job despite the politics. We’re doing it. So get used to it, because we’re coming,” Homan said.
When asked if he plans to deport American citizens, Homan said, “President Trump has made it clear we will prioritize public safety threats and national security threats first, and that’s how the focus would be.”
-ABC News’ Soo Rin Kim
November 11, 2024, 8:48 PM EST – Trump expected to tap Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state: Sources
President-elect Donald Trump is expected to announce his intention to nominate Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) for secretary of state, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.
Rubio, 53, has served in the Senate since 2011. He is currently the vice chair of the Senate Select Committee on Foreign Intelligence, and he also sits on the chamber’s Foreign Relations Committee.
Several long-serving State Department officials tell ABC News they respect Rubio’s extensive foreign policy experience and view him as unlikely to overly politicize the secretary of state role.
The secretary of state is appointed by the president with the consent of the Senate.
-ABC News’ Katherine Faulders and Shannon Kingston
November 11, 2024, 7:00 PM EST – Trump asks Rep. Mike Waltz to be his national security adviser: Sources
Trump has asked Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., to be his national security adviser, multiple sources said.
Waltz was at Mar-a-Lago on Monday, sources said.
Waltz is a former Green Beret and China hawk who emerged as a key surrogate for Trump, criticizing the Biden-Harris foreign policy record during the campaign.
The Florida Republican sits on the Intelligence, Armed Services and Foreign Affairs committees.
He has supported aid to Ukraine in the past but has demanded “conditions,” including increased spending from European allies, additional oversight of funds and pairing the aid with border security measures.
Waltz, who has visited Ukraine, was a vocal critic of the Biden administration’s policy towards Ukraine, criticizing the White House and allies for not providing Ukraine with more lethal aid — such as MiG fighter planes — earlier in the conflict.
Before running for elected office, Waltz served in various national security policy roles in the Bush administration, Pentagon and White House.
-ABC News’ Rachel Scott, Benjamin Siegel, John Santucci and Katherine Faulders
November 11, 2024, 6:06 PM EST – Volunteer-run effort on RFK Jr.’s website crowd-sourcing ideas for Trump admin appointments
A volunteer-run effort on Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s website has begun crowd-sourcing ideas for appointments in Trump’s administration.
A website titled “Nominees for the People” gives anyone the chance to submit names of people they’d like to see join the administration.
“President Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. want your help nominating people of integrity and courage for over 4,000 appointments across the future Trump administration,” the website reads.
Stefanie Spear, a Kennedy spokeswoman, told ABC News that the crowd-sourcing effort is “a grassroots initiative run by volunteers,” and is not actually spearheaded by Kennedy, although the page uses the “mahanow.org” URL that Kennedy’s official campaign website adopted after he exited the race.
“We’ve always offered space on our website to our grassroots movement,” Spear said.
This post has been updated to reflect that the crowd-sourcing effort is a volunteer-run effort.
-ABC News’ Sasha Pezenik
November 11, 2024, 5:55 PM EST – Trump’s ‘border czar’ says mass deportation strategy will be a main priority
Former Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Tom Homan, Trump’s newly announced “border czar,” said his main priority will be overseeing and formulating Trump’s long-vowed mass deportation strategy while consolidating decisions related to border security.
“Everybody talks about this mass deportation operation. President Trump talks about. I’ll oversee that and come up with a strategy for that,” Homan said during a lengthy interview with his hometown television station WWNY on Monday.
Homan said Trump’s mass deportations is “going to be a targeted enforcement operation, concentrating on criminals and national security threats first.”
He acknowledged that the deportations would be costly but argued the policy would “save the taxpayers a lot of money.”
Homan said he does not plan to “separate women and children” but acknowledged that deporting alleged criminals would result in breaking up families.
“When we arrest parents here, guess what? We separate them. The illegal aliens should be no different,” Homan said.
Homan also said worksite enforcement — an aspect of immigration policy focused on unauthorized workers and employers who knowingly hire them — is “going to get fired back up.”
“Under President Trump, we’re going to work it and we’re going to work it hard,” he said.
-ABC News’ Peter Charalambous
November 11, 2024, 5:46 PM EST – Melania Trump skipping meeting with Jill Biden: Sources
Melania Trump is not expected to travel to Washington with President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday, two sources told ABC News.
First lady Jill Biden had extended an invite to Melania Trump for a meeting, according to the sources. In 2016, Michelle Obama had hosted Melania Trump at the White House.
The Trump campaign declined to comment. The first lady’s office confirmed to ABC News that a joint invitation was extended to the Trumps to meet at the White House though declined to comment beyond that.
-ABC News’ Rachel Scott, John Santucci and Molly Nagle
November 11, 2024, 4:26 PM EST – RFK Jr. advising Trump transition on health decisions: Sources
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has continued to broadly advise Trump and the transition team on health-related appointments and has been in discussions to possibly fill a major role in the next administration, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
While sources caution that a role has not been finalized, RFK Jr. has been discussed as a potential candidate for the next secretary of Health and Human Services. But other roles are also on the table, including a broad “czar”-like position that would advise on policy and personnel decisions in other health arenas, the sources said.
RFK Jr. has been in active discussions with the transition team since Trump’s election victory last week. He’s been spotted at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club multiple times and has been engaging in presentations which include candidates for specific Cabinet and health-related jobs, sources said.
He has spent hours with the co-heads of Trump’s transition team — billionaire Howard Lutnick and Linda McMahon — in addition to others at Mar-a-Lago such as Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr.; investor and donor Omeed Malik; Tucker Carlson; and Del Bigtree, RFK Jr.’s former campaign spokesperson who produced a documentary called “Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe.”
-ABC News’ Katherine Faulders, Olivia Rubin and Will McDuffie
November 11, 2024, 3:30 PM EST – Lee Zeldin named to be EPA administrator
President-elect Donald Trump has tapped former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to lead the Environmental Protection Agency.
“Lee, with a very strong legal background, has been a true fighter for America First policies,” Trump said in a statement. “He will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards, including the cleanest air and water on the planet. He will set new standards on environmental review and maintenance, that will allow the United States to grow in a healthy and well-structured way.
Zeldin, who also ran for New York governor against Andrew Cuomo in 2022, confirmed he had been offered the job via a post on X.
“It is an honor to join President Trump’s Cabinet as EPA Administrator,” he wrote. “We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US the global leader of AI. We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water.”
-ABC News’ John Santucci, Rachel Scott and Katherine Faulders
November 11, 2024, 3:06 PM EST -RFK Jr. suggests he’ll gut NIH, replace 600 employees
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. indicated over the weekend that he would fire 600 employees at the National Institutes of Health, replacing them with a new cohort of workers as he seeks to dramatically reshape America’s health agencies.
Speaking at the Genius Network Annual Event in Scottsdale, Arizona, Kennedy described his role vetting people for Donald Trump’s new administration.
“We need to act fast, and we want to have those people in place on Jan. 20, so that on Jan. 21, 600 people are going to walk into offices at NIH and 600 people are going to leave,” Kennedy said, according to a video of his remarks posted on YouTube.
November 11, 2024, 3:06 PM EST- Trump expected to announce Stephen Miller as deputy chief of staff
President-elect Donald Trump is expected to announce Stephen Miller, an immigration hard-liner and one of his senior advisers, will become his deputy chief of staff for policy, multiple sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
It’s not clear when Trump plans to formally announce the job, the sources said.
Miller worked in the first Trump administration and played a key role in crafting immigration policies — including those that resulted in thousands of families being separated at the border.
-ABC News’ Rachel Scott, John Santucci and Katherine Faulders
November 11, 2024, 3:00 PM EST – Trump picks Elise Stefanik as UN ambassador
President-elect Donald Trump selected Rep. Elise Stefanik to be his U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, multiple Trump officials told ABC News.
“I am honored to nominate Chairwoman Elise Stefanik to serve in my Cabinet as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Elise is an incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter,” Trump said in a statement to ABC News.
Stefanik, a Republican congresswoman from New York’s 21st District, was elected last week to her sixth term in the House. She will inherit a role Nikki Haley held for two years in the first Trump administration.
-ABC News’ Rachel Scott, Katherine Faulders and John Santucci
