(WASHINGTON) — President-elect Donald Trump has invited China‘s President Xi Jinping to his inauguration in January, his spokesperson said Thursday.
Incoming White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed reports about the invitation on Fox News on Thursday morning.
Asked if she could confirm if Trump has invited Xi to his inauguration, Leavitt said, “That is true, yes and this is an example of President Trump creating an open dialogue with leaders of countries that are not just our allies, but our adversaries and our competitors, too. We saw this in his first term — he got a lot of criticism for it; but it led to peace around this world; he is willing to talk to anyone, and he will always put America’s interests first.”
Leavitt said it is “to be determined” if the Chinese president has RSVP’d, and that other world leaders are being invited as well.
CBS News was first to report that Xi Jinping had been invited.
In October, in an interview with podcaster Joe Rogan, Trump called Xi a “brilliant guy.”
“He controls 1.4 billion people with an iron fist. I mean, he’s a brilliant guy, whether you like it or not,” he said.
Trump has threatened to impose a 10% tariff on imports from China. He and Xi last met at the G20 summit in Japan in 2019.
Asked about the inauguration invitation Thursday as he made an appearance at the New York Stock Exchange, Trump wouldn’t comment on whether Xi has committed to attend.
“Well, I’ve invited a lot of great people. And they’ve all accepted. Everybody I invited has accepted,” Trump said.
“President Xi, as well?” reporters asked. Trump dodged, saying, “Very good relationship.”
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden said Thursday that he was pardoning 39 people who were convicted of non-violent crimes and was commuting the sentences of 1,500 people on home confinement, who he said have “shown successful rehabilitation and have shown commitment to making their communities stronger and safer.”
The White House described the actions as the “largest single-day grant of clemency in modern history.”
“These commutation recipients, who were placed on home confinement during the COVID pandemic, have successfully reintegrated into their families and communities and have shown that they deserve a second chance,” Biden said in a statement.
According to the White House fact sheet, some of those getting clemency on Thursday include a military veteran who spends time helping church members in poor health, a nurse who has helped in emergency response and an addiction counselor who volunteers to help young people.
The White House hinted that this isn’t the last of Biden’s pardons during his final months in office, saying that “in the coming weeks, the President will take additional steps to provide meaningful second chances and continue to review additional pardons and commutations.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — Banking customers could save up to $5 billion per year on overdraft fees under a new rule finalized Thursday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Rohit Chopra, the director of the government watchdog in charge of protecting the public’s finances, told ABC News the final rule would cap overdraft fees at $5 for many customers.
That would mark a significant savings from the typical $35 fee that millions of customers pay when they withdraw more money from their checking accounts than they have available. The CFPB estimated the new rule could save the typical household $225 per year.
“Big banks love overdraft. It is easy profit for them, but it is punishing for so many Americans, especially those who live paycheck to paycheck,” Chopra told ABC News in an exclusive interview.
The CFPB announced the proposal in January as part of a broader effort by the administration of President Joe Biden to crack down on so-called junk fees. The new rule will take effect Oct. 1, 2025 — but legal challenges could delay that timeline. And Republicans in Congress could also pursue avenues to roll back the rules under a Trump administration.
GOP leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, have frequently criticized the Biden administration for overreach and “runaway regulation.”
The Consumer Bankers Association, an industry group representing the nation’s biggest banks, echoed that concern, calling the CFPB rule “just the latest in a myriad of unnecessary and costly regulations by this Administration that seems guided by political polling, rather than by sound policy created by what should be independent agencies,” in a statement to ABC News in January.
But some big banks, including Bank of America, Citi and Capital One, already voluntarily lowered or eliminated overdraft fees — giving heft to the rule, regardless of its final implementation.
“I think some big banks admit that this has gone way too far and gone on way too long. And many of them are even finding that offering low or free overdraft products and services actually helps them gain customers who are looking to be treated fairly,” Chopra said.
The CFPB said consumers still paid a total of nearly $6 billion in overdraft fees last year.
Under the final rule announced Thursday, banks and credit unions will have three different options. They can limit all overdraft fees at $5, which is the amount the CFPB estimated will allow institutions to break even when they offer courtesy overdraft programs.
Banks can also choose to set their fees at “an amount that covers their costs and losses.”
Or if banks choose to make money from overdraft fees, they will be forced to disclose terms of the loan to customers clearly — in the same way customers may agree to high interest rates associated with credit card loans.
“If your bank is charging you big overdraft fees or reordering your payments to enrich themselves, you need to break up with your bank. There are so many local banks, credit unions and others that are offering a better deal, and you should take your business elsewhere,” Chopra said.
The CFPB rule would apply to banks with more than $10 billion in deposits.
(WASHINGTON) — FBI Director Christopher Wray told employees at an internal town hall on Wednesday that he is resigning, according to sources familiar with the meeting.
He said he is stepping down at the end of the current Biden administration.
“After weeks of careful thought, I’ve decided the right thing for the Bureau is for me to serve until the end of the current Administration in January and then step down. My goal is to keep the focus on our mission — the indispensable work you’re doing on behalf of the American people every day. In my view, this is the best way to avoid dragging the Bureau deeper into the fray, while reinforcing the values and principles that are so important to how we do our work,” he said in his remarks.
“It should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway — this is not easy for me. I love this place, I love our mission, and I love our people — but my focus is, and always has been, on us and doing what’s right for the FBI,” he said.
“When you look at where the threats are headed, it’s clear that the importance of our work – keeping Americans safe and upholding the Constitution — will not change. And what absolutely cannot, must not change is our commitment to doing the right thing, the right way, every time. Our adherence to our core values, our dedication to independence and objectivity, and our defense of the rule of law — those fundamental aspects of who we are must never change,” he said. “That’s the real strength of the FBI — the importance of our mission, the quality of our people, and their dedication to service over self. It’s an unshakeable foundation that’s stood the test of time, and cannot be easily moved. And it — you, the men and women of the FBI — are why the Bureau will endure and remain successful long into the future.”
Wray, who was appointed by President-elect Donald Trump and confirmed in August 2017, oversaw the agency in a “heightened threat environment” and number of high-profile cases, including the investigation of the man who appointed him.
As FBI director, Wray oversaw the investigation into the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by a pro-Trump mob, hundreds of Chinese espionage cases, the probes into Trump’s and President Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents as well as thousands more criminal investigations.
Wray was nominated by Trump after he fired his predecessor, James Comey.
Republican critics have accused Wray’s FBI of political interference, a lack of transparency and a lack of responsiveness to Congress.
Iowa GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley, the incoming chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, sent a letter to Wray on Dec. 9, expressing a “vote of no confidence” in Wray and his deputy director.
“For the good of the country, it’s time for you and your deputy to move on to the next chapter of your life,” Grassley writes.
Trump has picked Kash Patel to replace Wray at the FBI.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — Former President Bill Clinton, during an appearance on ABC’s The View on Wednesday, indicated he hopes President Joe Biden will not preemptively pardon people who could be targeted by the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump, including Clinton’s wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
“If President Biden wanted to talk to me about that, I would talk to him about it. But I don’t think I should be giving public advice on the pardon power. I think it’s too — it’s a very personal thing, but it is — I hope he won’t do that,” Clinton said.
“Most of us get out of this world ahead of where we’d get if all we got was simple justice. And so it’s normally a fool’s errand. You spend a lot of time trying to get even,” he added.
President Biden and his senior aides have been discussing possible preemptive pardons for people who might be targeted by the new Trump administration, according to a source close to the president. Experts have told ABC News he has the power to do so under the Constitution.
Clinton emphasized that he does not believe any potential charges from the incoming Trump administration brought against Hillary Clinton would be valid, arguing that she did not do anything wrong with her handling of emails during her time at the State Department — a controversy which became a flashpoint late in the 2016 election cycle.
Asked separately about his recent comments that a Republican could be more likely to be the first female president, Clinton said, “The impulse to say a woman probably shouldn’t be president comes more from the right than from the left — in the brain — and it’s an impulsive thing.”
He also surmised that voters are not always looking toward how much experience a politician had, because of how they’re focused on day-to-day issues.
“If you’re an alienated voter and you’re genuinely worried about your family’s financial security or your personal security, then the last thing you want is somebody who’s well qualified … if you think the total sum of impact of government action is negative, then you may not want somebody who’s well qualified,” Clinton said.
“And that’s the danger we’re at now, because it actually does matter if you know things.”
Asked about what may happen after Trump’s victory, Clinton emphasized that Trump won fairly.
“So, I think what we have to do is to observe a peaceful transfer of power, stand up for what we believe, and work together when we can,” Clinton said.
“I do not think we should just be jamming them, even though they do that to us a lot. I think it’s a mistake,” he added.
During the 2024 campaign cycle, Bill Clinton campaigned for Vice President Kamala Harris, serving as a key surrogate sent to rural areas and to speak with working-class voters.
Asked how Democrats can win back working-class voters who have been shifting to support Republicans, Clinton said that he feels part of the challenge is “cultural,” as rural voters skewer more conservative and are dealing with things they are not used to.
“The world moves on, and things that once made sense to people don’t anymore,” he said. “The world moves on, and things that once made sense to people don’t anymore. Things that should make sense don’t anymore.”
“We need to quit screaming at each other and listen to each other. We need to have a serious conversation about these things. And I think one of the things that Democrats sometimes do is give up on too many people, because the demographics say they’re not going to be for it,” Clinton said.
“Well, that may be, but you know, if you don’t deal with something that’s controversial, just because you don’t want to hear it, that’s like an insult to voters.”
Clinton has devoted time to charitable and health causes since his presidency, and his memoir “Citizen: My Life After the White House” released in November.
“First, it was fun, and secondly, it was important,” Clinton said of his charitable work. “And thirdly, I could do it. And it didn’t matter if the president was Barack Obama or George Bush, we just did things that human beings needed.”
(WASHINGTON) — President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for defense secretary Pete Hegseth met on Wednesday with another moderate Republican whose vote will be closely watched in his confirmation battle.
Hegseth sat down with Maine Sen. Susan Collins as he continues to make the rounds to shore up support amid allegations of sexual impropriety and other misconduct, which he denies.
Afterward, he described it as a “great meeting.”
“Office after office, having the opportunity to spend time with these senators who have invested their careers in ensuring that our warfighters get what they need, has been amazing educational process,” Hegseth said. “And Senator Collins, like her colleagues before her reiterated that.
“It was a wonderful conversation focused on what needs to be done to make sure this Pentagon is focused on warfighting and lethality, and we look forward to stay in touch with her,” he added.
Hegseth added he was “certainly not going to assume anything about where the senator stands” as he was peppered with questions by reporters.
Collins called it a “good, substantive discussion” for more than an hour on everything from women’s role in the military and sexual assault in the military to Ukraine and NATO.
“I asked virtually every question under the sun,” Collins said. “I pressed him on both his position on military issues as well as the allegations against him.”
Collins did not voice support for Hegseth, instead saying she’d wait until further vetting of Hegseth before deciding how to vote.
“I, obviously, always wait until we have an FBI background check, and one is underway in the case of Mr. Hegseth, and I wait to see the committee hearing before reaching a final decision,” she said.
Their meeting came on the heels of his meeting on Tuesday with Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who is viewed as another possible GOP swing vote. Murkowski said they had a “good exchange” but did not indicate whether she’d been swayed to support him.
Hegseth is one of many Trump administration picks who’ve been on Capitol Hill this week.
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, tapped to lead the Department of Homeland Security, met with various Republican senators on Tuesday.
When departing a meeting with Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, Noem was asked if she’d support Trump’s plan for mass deportations of migrants living in the U.S. without legal permission. Deportations were a central promise of Trump’s 2024 campaign.
“I am going to enforce the president’s agenda,” Noem responded.
Noem also left the door open for a deal with Democrats to protect “Dreamers,” or migrants brought illegally to the U.S. as young children. Trump floated the idea during an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” despite his attempts to undermine the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program during his first administration.
“You know, I appreciate the president’s word on this issue, and I know he wants our laws to be followed, so I’ll work with him to get his vision accomplished,” Noem said.
Noem was back for meetings on Wednesday, including one with Democratic Sen. Gary Peters. Noem said she hoped for bipartisan support in her confirmation bid.
Kash Patel, Trump’s pick for FBI director, and Tulsi Gabbard, his choice for director of national intelligence, have also been spotted walking the halls of the Hart Senate Office Building.
For Patel to fill the role, current FBI Director Christopher Wray would need to resign or be fired.
Several Republican senators expressed this week they’d be fine with Wray being forced out or stepping aside.
“I like Director Wray but I think it’s time for a fresh start at the FBI,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham.
“Obviously, Director Wray would be fired. That is obvious,” said Sen. Markwayne Mullin.
(WASHINGTON) — President-elect Donald Trump posted a flurry of announcements to his Truth Social account on Tuesday night, including the appointment of Kimberly Guilfoyle as the ambassador to Greece and Tom Barrack as the ambassador to Turkey.
Guilfoyle, a former fundraiser for Trump and a former host on Fox News, is currently in an established relationship with Donald Trump Jr.
In announcing her position, Trump wrote, “For many years, Kimberly has been a close friend and ally. Her extensive experience and leadership in law, media, and politics along with her sharp intellect make her supremely qualified to represent the United States, and safeguard its interests abroad.”
The post also stated, “Kimberly is perfectly suited to foster strong bilateral relations with Greece, advancing our interests on issues ranging from defense cooperation to trade and economic innovation.”
Tom Barrack is Trump’s longtime friend who chaired his first inaugural committee — and he was notably acquitted of federal charges accusing him of illegal foreign lobbying on behalf of the United Arab Emirates.
Barrack was charged during the first Trump administration and campaign, in 2021. During his trial, he was accused by federal prosecutors of acting as a foreign agent but failing to register between 2016 and 2018 while allegedly trying to “leverage his access” to Trump with his contacts in the UAE.
A jury found him not guilty on all charges — which also included conspiracy, obstruction and lying to the FBI — in November 2022.
Trump praised Barrack’s acquittal at the time, saying in a statement: “Great news for our Country, Freedom, and Democracy in that businessman Tom Barrack, who should have never been charged or tried, was just acquitted of all charges.”
Barrack’s testimony during the trial was at times critical of Trump. He said on the witness stand that his support for Trump politically was “disastrous” for him professionally, at one point mocking Trump’s understanding of the Middle East.
“This amazingly good businessman became the president of the United States who could not spell the Middle East,” Barrack said.
Asked about his criticism of Trump at the time of the acquittal, Barrack told ABC News: “I’m just done with politics.”
In announcing his ambassadorship to Turkey on Tuesday, Trump said that Barrack is “a well respected and experienced voice of reason.”
The president-elect also announced roles at the Federal Trade Commission. He named Andrew Ferguson as chairman and Mark Meador as commissioner.
“Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country. Sworn in as a Commissioner on April 2, 2024, he will be able to fight on behalf of the American People on Day One of my Administration,” Trump wrote in his announcement.
The post continued, “Andrew will be the most America First, and pro-innovation FTC Chair in our Country’s History.”
For Meador, Trump listed a series of degrees and accomplishments in the announcement post.
At the Office of Management and Budget, Trump announced Congressman Dan Bishop as deputy director and Ed Martin as the chief of staff.
For Bishop, he posted, “Dan has been a tireless fighter for our MAGA Movement in the House of Representatives on the Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees. Dan will implement my cost-cutting and deregulatory agenda across all Agencies, and root out the Weaponized Deep State.”
“Ed is a winner who will help Make America Great Again!” he wrote for Martin.
Lastly, Trump announced that Jacob Helberg will serve as undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment at the State Department.
In his post on Truth Social, Trump said, “In this role Jacob will be a champion of our America First Foreign Policy. He will guide State Department policy on Economic statecraft, promoting America’s Economic security and growth, and American technological dominance abroad. Jacob is a successful technology executive, has the knowledge, expertise, and pragmatism to defend America’s Economic interests abroad, and always puts AMERICA FIRST!”
Helberg is a former Democrat who went from being a little-known tech adviser to a rising star in Trump’s circles, known largely as a China hawk and as a major proponent of the bill that may lead to banning TikTok in the U.S.
He’s a commissioner for the U.S.-China Economic Security Review Commission, and he helped shore support on Capitol Hill for the bill that would ban TikTok if it’s not sold from its Chinese parent company by Jan. 19, 2025.
After Biden signed the TikTok bill into law earlier this year, Helberg posted photos of himself with several powerful members of Congress, including Speaker Mike Johnson and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, thanking them for being “truly outstanding people who can come together when our security is at stake.”
Helberg called TikTok a “Chinese weapon of war” in August, and he previously published a book titled, “The Wires of War.” The 2021 book is about tech-fueled wars shaping the world’s balance of power in the coming century, arguing that “without a firm partnership with the government, Silicon Valley is unable to protect democracy from the autocrats looking to sabotage it from Beijing to Moscow and Tehran.”
Helberg’s harsh criticism of TikTok could clash with Trump’s vow to “save” TikTok, even though Trump tried to ban the app during his first administration.
Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance “have laid out an aggressive agenda to face the twin convulsions of technological and geopolitical change, and ensure America wins the economic contests that define this century,” Helberg wrote on X after Trump announced his appointment on Tuesday.
“The State Department will play a critical role in acting on this vision,” his post continued. “I look forward to earning the support of the U.S. Senate and working with @MarcoRubio to implement President Trump’s agenda.”
In previous years, Helberg and his husband were “significant supporters” of Ron DeSantis and then reportedly shifted fundraising support to Nikki Haley in 2023.
By midway through the following year, however, Helberg had personally contributed $844,600 to the Trump 47 Committee, Inc. and another $1 million to the Make America Great Again, Inc. super PACs, according to filing data made available by the FEC.
(WASHINGTON) — As Democratic governors prepare to navigate and resist parts of President-elect Donald Trump’s next administration, one told ABC News she is most alarmed by Trump’s tariff plan.
“Tariffs would be devastating to our economy, especially with the amount of trade we do with Canada,” Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey told ABC News.
Trump has threatened to impose a 25% across the board tariff on Mexico and Canada, in addition to a 10% tariff on goods imported from China. These are the U.S.’s top three trading partners. Economists warn this would raise prices on everyday goods and wreak havoc on the economy.
“I’m a governor who’s come in, cut taxes, worked to lower housing costs, grow the economy. If he were to impose tariffs — it would first of all — I think it’s not smart to do — and it would be devastating to consumers,” Healey said, “Think about all the housing we’re trying to build here right now — what will that do to housing costs?”
In an interview with NBC News that aired on Sunday, Trump said he couldn’t guarantee that his tariff plan would not raise prices for American consumers.
Other Democratic governors, who gathered last weekend for the first time since the election for a winter meeting in Beverly Hills, California, said Trump’s tariff proposals were a chief concern among a number of others: threats to entitlements, his immigration proposals, and repeals of climate and reproductive protections. Several high-profile governors told ABC News they’re deep into preparations to use legislative, executive or legal actions to combat Trump’s moves.
At the Beverly Hilton over the weekend, the tight-knit group of Democratic talent — many of whom will be some of the strongest detractors of Trump’s policies and also some of the best-positioned to be at the top of the party’s presidential ticket in 2028 — gathered for private, closed-door meetings with one another, donors and other stakeholders. The group of about 18 governors and governors-elect, hosted by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, focused on how to navigate through Trump’s leadership, according to several who spoke with ABC News, rather than any significant post-election analysis following the Democrats’ losses last month.
The group of governors in Beverly Hills included many of the likely 2028 contenders, including blue state leaders like Newsom and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, who have been actively on offense against Republican leadership since Nov. 6, and red state ones like Democratic Governors Association Vice Chair and Chair-elect Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.
Healey, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz were also on the guest list — many of whom have questions looming about their own political futures.
“I would expect that we’ll put up quite a fight to take the House back. And I think that we’ll have an incredible bench in the primary ’28,” New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham told ABC News about the plans of many of the governors.
Different tones in taking on Trump
The governors are striking different tones as they prepare for Trump’s presidency.
The strongest, most combative voices of course have been from leaders like Newsom, who initiated a recently convened a special legislative session in California to increase funding for its Department of Justice and other agencies so they’ll be able to quickly file litigation to challenge actions taken by a second Trump administration. Pritzker, too, has made not-so-veiled threats about how he’d approach the administration should it “come for” his people, and recently announced his position as co-chair, along with Jared Polis of Colorado, of a new nonpartisan coalition of governors committed to protecting the “state-level institutions of democracy” ahead of Trump’s presidency.
Other governors encouraged their peers to meet this moment offensively through their agendas.
“Democratic governors should approach this with strength and resolution and an activist agenda. Because this is the place where we can make progress too,” Washington Gov. Jay Inslee told ABC News.
“You can’t stop some 85% of the things I would like to do in that state, so I think the order of the day is defend where we can in fighting with an advance every day with our own ambitions and unaffected by him, so that shadow doesn’t fall in our state,” said Inslee, who is leaving his seat this winter to make way for incoming Gov. Bob Ferguson.
But a different group of governors are acting much more lukewarm in their approaches, emphasizing their desire to “work” with the Trump administration and some citing past collaborations with the president-elect’s team, like during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Beshear said last weekend that Democrats needed to lean into “reason” while Trump is in office and that he’s willing to work with the incoming administration.
“The middle ground, middle of the road, common ground, common sense, is open. It’s open,” Beshear told a group of reporters on Saturday.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, the DGA’s chair, said this weekend that she wasn’t yet anticipating Trump or his agencies’ actions, but “We will always look for ways to work together” with the caveat that she’ll “draw the line” on things “that they push us to do that we think are wrong, illegal, anything like that.”
The varying approaches from governors to Trump’s agenda could be a coordinated strategy as the group wrestles with how best to support each other within a party attempting to rebuild — a complicated task as they also eye each other as potential presidential primary competition.
“We know how to create space to protect people and protect the priorities,” Lujan Grisham told ABC, noting that she and many other governors aren’t officially part of Pritzker and Polis’ new coalition, for example. “We did it on climate. We still do it on climate. We did it on reproductive premiums, we’re gonna have to still do it on reproductive premiums, and we’ll do some test cases in states that allow us to frame and direct these coalitions.”
“We want to be strategic about what it is that we are announcing. And here’s why: We’ve got a president-elect and a team that, before this and every day, said ‘We’re going to punish anyone in our way, and we’re going to particularly punish states,'” she went on. “And the difference in California versus New Mexico — California is definitely on the radar. I don’t minimize what the Trump administration can negatively do to my state, but we’re also very effective at watching and understanding what’s occurring, and then we can deploy our joint efforts pretty damn fast.”
Plans to fight Trump’s tariff, immigration proposals
While governors can mount legal fights against parts of Trump’s plan, the president can use executive power to impose sweeping tariffs.
But for immigration, on the other hand, governors can resist Trump’s proposals in clearer ways.
Border state Gov. Lujan Grisham told ABC News she’d block Trump’s ability to use detention centers, deploy the National Guard or even request data in her state if he attempted mass deportations.
“I take him at his word. He says he’s going to do, try to do mass deportations,” she said, adding that she wouldn’t be a partner in those moves: “There’s a lot that he can’t do by himself.” .”I mean, I’ve made it very clear over a number of years on this issue is that I will not use our National Guard to perform that kind of service,” Kelly told reporters.
“I will not send them to the border. We have had Guard members go to the border, but they have been federalized when they’ve been down there. I don’t see that as the role of the National Guard — they are there to serve Kansas, Kansas issues, so I don’t see that changing… The State Police are mine, and it’s not their job, either. So we will take the same approach as we have with the Guard,” Kelly added.
On immigration, most Democratic governors agree that violent criminals need to be deported, noting that it’s always been the case that local and state law enforcement work with federal authorities on investigating crimes. But where many governors draw the line is on deporting undocumented immigrants who have been living and working in America for a long time, arguing it’s inhumane and damages the economy.
“We don’t know what President Trump’s immigration plan is going to look like at the end of the day. He is a master of saying something, creating a great deal of noise, and then the reality may be different. So I’m going to wait to see exactly what it is he ultimately proposes,” incoming North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein told reporters about his plans to respond to Trump’s immigration moves.
“The people of North Carolina have every right to be safe in their communities, and anybody who commits a violent crime must be held accountable, fully, and that’s whether they’re in this country as American citizens or they’re here as undocumented people, and if they’re here undocumented, they should be deported,” Stein said.
They also question how Trump will execute his plan. Trump could direct the National Guard to help with transport and logistics, but one Democratic governor told ABC News these are precious resources, and they need their National Guard for emergencies like storms, fires and severe flooding.
Trump’s team has discussed in the past how to strip federal resources from Democratic-run cities if they refuse to work with the administration on deporting undocumented immigrants, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Blue state governors say they’re concerned about the Trump administration weaponizing federal funding and “picking winners and losers.” One governor told ABC News their state is focused on locking down every federal dollar the state is entitled to, and securing all of the funding made available through the Biden administration’s infrastructure law and CHIPS and Science Act.
In California, Newsom has also started to “Trump-proof” his budget, which is one of the aims of his move to convene the legislature last week.
(WASHINGTON) — Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell fell during the Senate Republican lunch on Tuesday.
It was initially unclear if McConnell, 82, was injured or what the severity of the fall was. Two medical responders were seen briefly entering his office and then departed.
Shortly afterward, McConnell’s office put out a statement that he had sustained a “minor cut” to the face and a “sprained wrist” from the incident.
“Leader McConnell tripped following lunch. He sustained a minor cut to the face and sprained his wrist. He has been cleared to resume his schedule,” his spokesperson said.
Newly-elected Senate Republican Leader John Thune, who will take the mantle from McConnell in January, was asked about McConnell’s fall during the Republican press conference after the lunch.
“He’s fine, he’s in his office,” Thune said, deferring further questions to McConnell’s staff.
McConnell, who has walked with a limp after overcoming polio at a young age, has taken previous falls.
One fall in March 2023 at a hotel in Washington resulted in a prolonged absence from the Senate. McConnell suffered a concussion and fractured rib from the incident, requiring hospitalization and outpatient rehabilitation that forced him to miss six weeks on Capitol Hill.
McConnell also sparked concern after two episodes last year during which he appeared to freeze in front of television cameras, though he was later cleared to work by the Capitol physician.
The longtime Kentucky senator announced in February he was stepping down from the leadership role he’s held for two decades.
McConnell later Tuesday afternoon exited his office to cast a vote on the Senate floor.
McConnell wore a brace on his left hand and had a visible bandage under his left eye.
He said “good” when asked by ABC News how he was feeling.
