Trump says he gave permission to Elon Musk to trash GOP-proposed spending bill on X
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — President-elect Donald Trump, after rejecting House Speaker Mike Johnson’s plan to avoid a government shutdown, worked the phones on Thursday, showing wavering confidence in Johnson and claiming he is aligned with billionaire Elon Musk, who first posted multiple calls to kill the GOP-brokered spending deal.
“If the speaker acts decisively, and tough, and gets rid of all of the traps being set by the Democrats, which will economically and, in other ways, destroy our country, he will easily remain speaker,” Trump told Fox News Digital.
In an separate interview, Trump suggested that Johnson’s proposed continuing resolution — which would keep spending going at current levels — was “unacceptable.”
“We’ll see. What they had yesterday was unacceptable,” Trump told NBC News. “In many ways it was unacceptable. It’s a Democrat trap.”
Trump also indicated that he had discussed his views on the bill with social media giant Musk and granted the billionaire permission to trash the government spending bill on his social media platform.
“I told him that if he agrees with me, that he could put out a statement,” Trump said.
Musk then conducted an all-out pressure campaign flooding his platform with dozens of posts threatening members of Congress to block Johnson’s government funding bill.
“Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!” Musk wrote.
Musk also called on his more than 200 million followers to call their representatives and urge them to block the bill. “Please call your elected representatives right away to tell them how you feel! They are trying to get this passed today while no one is paying attention.”
Trump’s own statement opposing the measure came hours after Musk put his thoughts on his social media platform.
Trump, too, argued against the bill and threatened to primary Republicans who vote to pass it.
“If Republicans try to pass a clean Continuing Resolution without all of the Democrat “bells and whistles” that will be so destructive to our Country, all it will do, after January 20th, is bring the mess of the Debt Limit into the Trump Administration,” Trump said in a post on Wednesday.
“Any Republican that would be so stupid as to do this should, and will, be Primaried. Everything should be done, and fully negotiated, prior to my taking Office on January 20th, 2025.”
The next morning, Trump shared a similar sentiment with Fox News Digital, saying, “Anybody that supports a bill that doesn’t take care of the Democrat quicksand known as the debt ceiling should be primaried and disposed of as quickly as possible.”
ABC News’ Soorin Kim and Will Steakin contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Monday marks the fourth anniversary of the violent events of Jan. 6, 2021 — a day President-elect Donald Trump has continually tried to recast as a “day of love.”
Trump is vowing to pardon Jan. 6 rioters on the first day of his administration, saying while it will done be on a case-by-case basis, he believes a majority of them should not be in jail and have “suffered greatly.”
At an event at Mar-a-Lago over the weekend, according to an audio recording obtained by ABC News, he continued to claim that the the electoral votes from the 2020 election “could have been sent back” and criticized then-Vice President Mike Pence for adhering to his constitutional duty to uphold the certification process and not unilaterally reject the election results.
President Joe Biden, on the other hand, penned an op-ed on Sunday in which he pushed back on attempts to “rewrite — even erase — the history of that day.”
“Violent insurrectionists attacked the Capitol, threatened the lives of elected officials and assaulted brave law enforcement officers,” he wrote in the Washington Post. “We should be proud that our democracy withstood this assault. And we should be glad we will not see such a shameful attack again this year.”
And in remarks to congressional Democrats, Biden said it was now their “duty to tell the truth.”
“You remember what happened, and don’t let Jan. 6 be rewritten or even erased,” he told them. “To honor the Constitution, not only the most extraordinary of days, but it’s one of the toughest days in American history: Jan. 6.”
On the campaign trail, Trump often aired grievances and false claims about the 2020 election and tried to downplay what transpired on Jan. 6, 2021.
One notable exchange came during a Univision town hall weeks before Election Day, when a Republican audience member pressed Trump on his actions that day as thousands of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol, temporarily disrupting the certification of Biden’s win.
Trump falsely claimed no one in the crowd was carrying firearms.
“That was a day of love,” Trump said. “From the standpoint of the millions, it’s like hundreds of thousands. It could have been the largest group I’ve ever spoken to before. They asked me to speak. I went and I spoke, and I used the term ‘peacefully and patriotically.'”
Nearly 1,600 individuals have faced charges associated with the Capitol attack, according to new figures released by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
That includes 608 individuals who have faced charges for assaulting, resisting or interfering with law enforcement trying to protect the complex that day, the office said. Approximately 140 law enforcement officers were injured during the riot, the DOJ has said.
In a brief video message on Monday, Harris reflected on the importance of the peaceful transfer of power, saying the country’s witnessed how “our democracy can be fragile” and “it is up to then each one of us to stand up for our most cherished principles.”
Trump on social media called the upcoming certification a “A BIG MOMENT IN HISTORY. MAGA!”
ABC News’ Soorin Kim, Lalee Ibssa, Kelsey Walsh and Alexander Mallin contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — President-elect Donald Trump has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to prevent Friday’s sentencing in his New York criminal hush money case.
In a filing Wednesday, defense lawyers argued that a New York judge lacks the authority to sentence the president-elect until Trump exhausts his appeal based on presidential immunity.
“This Court should enter an immediate stay of further proceedings in the New York trial court to prevent grave injustice and harm to the institution of the Presidency and the operations of the federal government,” Trump’s lawyers wrote.
The move came after a New York appeals court earlier Tuesday denied Trump’s request to delay the Jan. 10 sentencing.
Trump was found guilty in May on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in order to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election.
In asking the Supreme Court to intervene, Trump has presented the court with an unprecedented situation of a former president — whose appointment of three justices cemented the court’s conservative majority — asking the country’s highest court to effectively toss his criminal conviction less than two weeks ahead of his inauguration.
Trump asked the Supreme Court to consider whether he is entitled to a stay of the proceedings during his appeal; whether presidential immunity prevents the use of evidence related to official acts; and whether a president-elect is entitled to the same immunity as a sitting president.
If adopted by the justices, Trump’s argument about immunity for a president-elect could expand the breadth of presidential authority, temporarily providing a private citizen with the absolute immunity reserved for a sitting president.
In a 6-3 decision last year, the Supreme Court broadened the limits of presidential immunity, finding that a former president is presumptively immune from criminal liability for any official acts and absolutely immune related to his core duties. The decision not only expanded the limits of presidential power but also upended the criminal cases faced by Trump.
Despite that favorable opinion, Trump faces uncertainty in convincing the justices to halt his sentencing. The Supreme Court does not typically take on random interlocutory appeals, even by a president-elect.
Trump’s lawyers also argued that the former president’s conviction relied on evidence of official acts, including his social media posts as president and testimony from his close White House advisers. The New York judge in the case, Juan Merchan, ruled that Trump’s conviction related “entirely to unofficial conduct” and “poses no danger of intrusion on the authority and function of the Executive Branch.”
“This appeal will ultimately result in the dismissal of the District Attorney’s politically motivated prosecution that was flawed from the very beginning, centered around the wrongful actions and false claims of a disgraced, disbarred serial-liar former attorney, violated President Trump’s due process rights, and had no merit,” Trump’s filing to the Supreme Court said.
(WASHINGTON) — The House passed the Paris Hilton-championed Stop Institutionalized Child Abuse bill on Wednesday, a sweet victory for the celebrity hotel heiress after the nearly three years she’s spent lobbying politicians in Washington on the issue of reform in the “troubled teen” industry.
The measure that would require more federal oversight into these facilities for troubled minors passed by a vote of 373-33.
All those who voted against the legislation were Republican, most from the far-right faction of the party, including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar of Arizona, Byron Donalds of Florida, and Thomas Massie of Kentucky, among others.
The Senate passed the bill a week ago with unanimous support. It now heads to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature.
“I am so emotional right now. I have never felt prouder in my life,” Hilton told reporters after the vote. “Just to be here today and see our bill pass in Congress has been one of the most incredible moments of my life and I just know that the teenage me would be so proud of the woman that I am today — turning my pain into purpose and being a voice for so many people who don’t have a voice.”
Hilton said she traveled to Washington every six to 10 months starting in October 2021 to push for a child abuse bill. She traveled back to the Hill on Monday and has spent the past two days meeting with representatives in order to get the measure across the finish line. She held a press conference outside the Capitol on Monday evening, urging the House’s passage of the bill.
Hilton was personally in contact with House Majority Leader Steve Scalise regarding movement on the bill this week.
Hilton for years has been an advocate for reform in congregate care facilities and residential treatment programs for “troubled” minors. She’s brazenly described her own traumatizing experience at Provo Canyon School in Utah when she was a teenager.
The legislation — which would ordinarily pass through the House Energy and Commerce committee before it could get called by leaders to the floor — was fast-tracked by bypassing that step, according to a source familiar with committee business.
“When the U.S. Senate came together in a rare show of unity to pass the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act unanimously on Wednesday December 11th, it was one of the best moments of my life. It was proof that when we listen to survivors and put politics aside, we can create real, meaningful change. But this journey isn’t over. I can’t celebrate until this bill becomes law, and now it’s up to the U.S House of Representatives to finish what the Senate started,” Hilton wrote in an open letter shared to her Instagram page on Monday.
“To Leader Scalise, Speaker Johnson, and every member of the House: I urge you to think about the children who can’t speak for themselves. They’re relying on us—on you—to stand up for their safety and dignity. Passing this bill would be a testament to what we can achieve when we lead with empathy and courage.”
Hilton has traveled to Washington every six to 10 months starting in October 2021, according to her spokesperson, each time asking Congress to reform youth residential treatment facilities.
She’s met individually with members like Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who thanked Hilton after the bill’s passage last week for her work on the issue, and Republicans like Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Tim Scott of South Carolina.
Some of her biggest advocates have been the cosponsors of the bill: Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, along with Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., Hilton said.
“A lack of oversight and transparency in residential youth programs has allowed for the abuse of children in facilities across the country for far too long,” Cornyn said in a statement after the bill passed.
“I’m proud that the Senate unanimously passed this legislation to ensure the vulnerable children in these facilities are protected, and I want to thank the countless advocates who have bravely shared their stories to help end institutional child abuse.”
Hilton also testified before the House Ways and Means Committee in June, emotionally recounting her experience being at Provo Canyon School as a teen.
“These programs promised healing, growth, and support, but instead did not allow me to speak, move freely, or even look out a window for two years,” she testified in 2023. “I was force-fed medications and sexually abused by the staff. I was violently restrained and dragged down hallways, stripped naked, and thrown into solitary confinement.”
The Provo school in Utah, which is still operating today, released an updated statement in June 2024 saying they couldn’t comment on the operations or student experiences at the school prior to August 2000, when it had changed ownership shortly after Hilton’s stint there. Provo said it did not “condone or promote any form of abuse,” in their statement.
Hilton has gone to the White House to advocate for child welfare, meeting with policy staff in May 2022.
“We have had some prior conversations with the White House about the bill, and we don’t have a reason to believe that they wouldn’t sign it into law,” Hilton’s spokesperson said.
The socialite’s push for congregate-care reform started in 2021, when she came to Washington in support of a similar measure, the Federal Accountability for Congregate Care Act, which was a different bill that was introduced in October 2021 and led by Khanna, Merkley, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., and then-Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.
Before her visit in 2021, Hilton had opened up about her 11-month experience at Provo Canyon school in her 2020 documentary “This is Paris,” and in a Washington Post op-ed.
