Russia has a stock of powerful new missiles “ready to be used”, President Vladimir Putin has said, a day after his country fired a new ballistic missile at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro. In an unscheduled TV address, the Russian leader said the Oreshnik missile could not be intercepted and promised to carry out more tests, including in “combat conditions”. Russia’s use of the Oreshnik capped a week of escalation in the war that also saw Ukraine fire US and British missiles into Russia for the first time. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for world leaders to give a “serious response” so that Putin “feels the real consequences of his actions”. His country was asking Western partners for updated air defence systems, he added. According to news agency Interfax-Ukraine, Kyiv is seeking to obtain the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), or to upgrade its Patriot anti-ballistic missile defence systems. In Friday’s address Putin said the Oreshnik hypersonic missiles flew at 10 times the speed of sound and ordered them to be put into production. He had earlier said that use of the missile was a response to Ukraine’s use of Storm Shadow and Atacms missiles. Thursday’s strike on Dnipro was described as unusual by eyewitnesses and triggered explosions which went on for three hours. The attack included a strike by a missile so powerful that in the aftermath Ukrainian officials said it resembled an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Justin Crump, CEO and founder of the risk advisory company Sibylline, told the BBC that Moscow likely used the strike as a warning, noting that the missile – which is faster and more advanced that others in its arsenal – has the capacity to seriously challenge Ukraine’s air defences. This week’s escalation has also prompted several warnings from other world leaders about the direction of the war between Russia and Ukraine. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the war was entering a decisive stage – with a real risk of global conflict. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban meanwhile said the West should take Vladimir Putin’s warnings “at face value” because Russia “bases its policies primarily on military power”. – BBCDaily Post Nigeria Syrian Prime Minister Ghazi Al-Jalali escorted by rebels to hand over power Home News Politics Metro Entertainment Sport News Syrian Prime Minister Ghazi Al-Jalali escorted by rebels to hand over power Published on December 8, 2024 By Chris Johnson A dramatic video has surfaced showing Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi Al-Jalali being escorted by armed rebel forces in Damascus on Sunday. He was reportedly taken to the Four Seasons Hotel to formally transfer government authority. In the footage, Al-Jalali is seen surrounded by armed men as he walks down steps and enters a black SUV accompanied by another individual. “The former Prime Minister is with the 5th Corps from the people of Hauran heading to the Four Seasons Hotel for a meeting and to hand over the country’s institutions to the heroes of the Free Army,” the voice in the video said. Al-Jalali, who had earlier called for free elections and vowed to preserve public institutions and the safety of citizens, is reportedly working with rebel commanders to manage a transitional period following the collapse of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. The events in Damascus unfolded as thousands of Syrians gathered in the city’s main square, chanting “Freedom” to celebrate the end of President Bashar al-Assad’s 13-year reign. Assad has reportedly fled to an undisclosed location with his family. The downfall of the Assad regime came after significant shifts in regional dynamics, including the deaths of key Hezbollah leaders and Russia diverting its focus to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Syria’s military command has acknowledged Assad’s fall but indicated that military operations against “terrorist groups” continue in Hama, Homs, and the Deraa countryside. The Islamist rebel coalition’s capture of Damascus has marked the conclusion of decades of Assad family rule. Prime Minister Al-Jalali is reportedly in discussions with rebel commander Abu Mohammed al-Golani to establish a framework for managing the transitional government. Meanwhile, Turkey-backed Syrian forces are continuing their campaign against Kurdish factions in northern Syria, further complicating the post-Assad political landscape. Related Topics: Ghazi Al-Jalali Don't Miss ‘Avoid night travels’ — NYSC DG warns corps members You may like Advertise About Us Contact Us Privacy-Policy Terms Copyright © Daily Post Media Ltd
BREAKING NEWS Donald Trump explodes over drone 'invasion' and sends Biden an ominous warning By STEPHEN M. LEPORE FOR DAILYMAIL.COM Published: 23:12 GMT, 13 December 2024 | Updated: 23:35 GMT, 13 December 2024 e-mail 79 View comments Donald Trump has demanded the drones flying over multiple US states be shot down by the Biden White House after days of mysterious sightings across the sky. Numerous 'SUV-sized' craft first appeared in New Jersey in mid-November, and have since spread to New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut . The first sightings were over the US Army's Picatinny Arsenal and President-elect Donald Trump 's golf course in Bedminster, which raised concerns the drones are part of a spy campaign. Trump didn't directly address the sightings over his club but demanded action from Joe Biden and the government in a Truth Social post Friday. He wrote: 'Mystery Drone sightings all over the Country. Can this really be happening without our government’s knowledge. I don’t think so! Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shoot them down!!! DJT.' Trump joined bipartisan calls to figure out the source of the flying objects as Phil Murphy, the Democrat governor of New Jersey, wrote directly to Biden Friday. 'I wrote to @POTUS to express my concerns about reports of unmanned aircraft systems in and around NJ airspace,' Murphy said. 'Since existing laws limit the ability of state and local law enforcement to counter UAS, more federal resources are needed to understand what is behind this activity.' Donald Trump has demanded the drones flying over multiple US states be shot down by the Biden White House after days of mysterious sightings across the sky Numerous 'SUV-sized' craft first appeared in New Jersey in mid-November, and have since spread to New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut Drone sightings have also been reported in states such as Texas, Oklahoma and California as well as foreign countries such as Germany . But it's unclear whether these reports are related to the activity plaguing the Northeast. In New Jersey, the drones sometimes appear in groups and often remain in the same place for hours at a time, according to eyewitnesses. Rescue workers responded to a 911 call saying a craft went down in a nearby field outside of a Lowe's in Hillsborough, but an overnight search found no evidence of the crash landing. The claims of a spy campaign appeared to be corroborated this week by NJ congressman Jeff Van Drew who claimed the drones were coming from an 'Iranian mothership' off the east coast. However, reports of varying levels of credibility have now spread to at least 12 counties throughout Garden State and the Pentagon has said there is 'no evidence' to back up Van Drew's claims. Two intelligence experts told DailyMail.com that the descriptions of the craft by eyewitnesses 'sound exactly like Russian Orlan-10 drones' — secretive craft that fly in packs of three to five. To add further confusion, the White House has told the public that there is no evidence the sightings are drones at all, saying they appear to be simply 'manned aircraft' being operated lawfully. US Army general Darryl Williams told DailyMail.com that it's a situation that mirrors what has unfolded at American/ NATO bases across Europe that are known to supply arms to Ukraine. New Jersey residents and local officials are demanding answers as reports of mysterious drones flying over the state have climbed into the thousands Trump joined bipartisan calls to figure out the source of the flying objects as Phil Murphy, the Democrat governor of New Jersey, wrote directly to Biden Friday And retired police lieutenant and intelligence analyst Tim McMillan told DailyMail.com that the descriptions of the UFOs in Jersey 'sound exactly like Russian Orlan-10 drones' — secretive craft that fly in packs of three to five. Lt McMillan and other experts have noted that the New Jersey sightings circled around Picatinny Arsenal, home of the US Army's CCDC Armaments Center, which is responsible for manufacturing and supplying Ukraine with artillery ammunition. These experts suggest that Russia could be carrying out an intelligence-gathering mission known as 'ferreting', meant to intentionally trigger and test their foreign rival's airspace defense procedures and response time . Or Russia could simply be spying on allies of Ukraine who are aiding the fight against Russia's occupation of its southeastern regions, including Donetsk and Mariupol . On T uesday, Congress asked an FBI assistant director with the bureau's Critical Incident Response Group, Robert Wheeler, if these drones posed a threat to public safety. 'There is nothing that is known that would lead me to say that,' Wheeler told Congress, 'but we just don't know. And that's the concerning part.' The Biden administration has also pushed back on claims by Republican lawmakers that the drones are being operated by any one of America's foreign adversaries — including claims that the flights originate from an Iranian 'mothership' offshore. 'No indication at this time that it's a foreign adversary or a foreign actor,' The White House's national security communications advisor John Kirby told NewsNation's Kellie Meyer. 'The FBI is looking at this. DOJ is looking at this.' The flying objects (example above) are larger than drones used by hobbyists, witnesses have noted, raising questions about their proximity to critical infrastructure and sensitive sites 'I know the Department of Defense, when it affects or comes near a military base, they're looking at this,' Kirby added. 'In some cases, the investigation has led to a revelation that it's actually manned aircraft and not drones at all.' 'So, I can't tell you definitively exactly what we're talking about here,' he said. 'So each one is going to be a little bit different.' In New Jersey, the drones' talent for evading their federal and local law enforcement pursuers has frustrated Governor Murphy and government investigators alike. 'We're not getting good characteristics of the drone,' the head of the Ocean County, NJ Sheriffs Office drone unit, Sergeant Kevin Fennessy said. And, in fact, NJ officials and residents have also seen drones that do not resemble fixed-wing aircraft deepening the mystery of the craft's origins and intent. 'We had one the other night that, as we're watching it, it just shuts the lights off and it's gone,' Sgt Fennessy told The New York Times , 'pure darkness.' But the drone unit chief did tell the paper that he estimates that the mysterious drones are roughly double the size of the drones in his fleet: not too far from the Russian Orlan-10's max capacity of 33lbs as compared to most commercial drones used by law enforcement. Ocean County Sheriff Michael Mastronardy told Asbury Park Press on Monday that his team estimates the invading drones are three to four feet long, although another law enforcement agency has reported one drone that was as large as eight feet long. Despite federal and state officials' assurances, other local police, like the chief of police for the New Jersey borough of Florham Park, are convinced that the drones pose a serious threat. White House New Jersey Donald Trump Share or comment on this article: Donald Trump explodes over drone 'invasion' and sends Biden an ominous warning e-mail Add commentSan Francisco’s next mayor is staying mum about who should next lead its transportation agency. Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie will carry significant influence over whom the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s board appoints as its next transportation director following Jeffrey Tumlin’s announcement Thursday that he will be stepping down from the position when his contract expires at the end of the year. Lurie, who nominates new members to the agency’s seven-member board of directors, did not signal where The City should go from here following Tumlin’s departure. “I appreciate Mr. Tumlin’s service to San Francisco and look forward to working with the next MTA leader to advance a world class transportation system,” Lurie told The Examiner in a statement Friday. Tumlin, a sustainability advocate who helmed the agency through an unprecedented economic shortfall following the COVID-19 pandemic, announced Thursday he will leave his post atop the agency that oversees The City’s ground transportation. Those efforts include biking, traffic and parking infrastructure, as well as public-transit systems such as the cable-car and Muni lines. SFMTA Director of Transit Julie Kirschbaum will serve as the acting director of transportation beginning Jan. 1. The mayor is typically consulted when the board appoints a new transportation director. Lurie will need to nominate a new SFMTA board member when he takes office next month following the departure of board chair Amanda Eaken. Outgoing Mayor London Breed appointed Eaken, and she was key in appointing Tumlin in 2019. That new board member, then, will presumably have significant sway in determining the agency’s next transportation director. There is no timeline for when Tumlin’s longterm successor will be named, according to SFMTA officials. Tumlin called the serving in the position the greatest honor of my life.” “I’m extremely proud of what the SFMTA has accomplished during my tenure,” Tumlin said in a statement. “While we’ve faced many challenges over the past five years, we’ve also made historic progress.” Tumlin did not cite a specific reason for stepping aside. Formerly an executive at a sustainable transportation engineering and planning firm, Tumlin during his SFMTA tenure pushed policies that would incentivize San Franciscans to walk or bike and keep their cars at home. The City aims to be carbon-neutral — meaning it produces net-zero carbon emissions — by 2040. “Jeff has been a leader in building infrastructure, improving Muni operations, and making the hard decisions necessary for our city as we grow,” Breed said in a statement. “Change can be hard, but Jeff was not afraid to make those decisions necessary to allow people to move safely and efficiently across this city,” she said. Tumlin led the proliferation of The City’s Slow Streets program , a pandemic-era plan which limited car traffic on certain streets in order to promote recreational neighborhood activity, events and increase pedestrian safety. He also championed the fight to install a controversial center bike lane on a portion of Valencia Street and permanently shut down a busy section of Market Street and the JFK promenade to car traffic . Tumlin helped launch the biking and rolling plan , the agency’s blueprint to revamp The City’s biking infrastructure for the first time in nearly 30 years. But those projects also made Tumlin an enemy for many San Franciscans. The policies drew the ire of many local business owners, who argued the measures would drive down business amid an already-slow post-pandemic recovery. Tumlin’s SFMTA stint up being largely focused on pulling the SFMTA from the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic — which briefly shut Muni down and caused ridership to plummet — that sent the agency into a historic financial hole. Collectively, the Bay Area’s three primary transit operators — BART, Muni and Caltrain — face a $700 million deficit in 2026 , nearly half of which SFMTA will take on alone. Weekday Muni ridership in November was down to 68% of the average from the same month in 2019, according to agency data, although it was still higher than every November since 2020. Tumlin and other transit leaders have warned that unless they receive additional support in the coming months, they will be forced to make wide-ranging service cuts . Last month, the SFMTA announced its plans to reduce the frequency of Muni buses and stops on a handful of lines early next year. Further service cuts are expected in June. Tumlin also cautioned that some cable-car lines might eventually be on the chopping block, a possibility Lurie immediately shot down. He called the historic vehicles“untouchable” in a social-media post last month. “The SFMTA is a challenging department to run, and I want to thank Jeff for leading this Department and serving our city through the difficult years of the pandemic and after to get us where we are today,” Breed said. California State Sen. Scott Wiener Muni has been “better than ever” said under Tumlin’s leadership. “Service is faster and more reliable due to Jeff’s focus on making Muni work, and as a result Muni rider satisfaction surveys are at historic highs,” Weiner said. According to SFMTA data, major subway delays are down 76% and short delays have fallen 89% since Tumlin took office in 2019. Muni also recorded its highest satisfaction from riders since it started issuing an annual survey, with 72% of riders rating Muni as excellent or good in the 2023 iteration. Under Tumlin’s watch, The City has installed 75 miles of transit lanes and more than 100 miles of overall transit priority improvements, the agency said. “San Francisco is one of the safest larger cities in the U.S. for walking and biking,” Tumlin said. “And we have one of the strongest paratransit programs in the country. There is still far more to be done but I have full faith that our talented and highly motivated staff and leadership, working alongside city and state partners, will shepherd the agency into a successful new chapter.”Quinn runs for 154 yards, 2 TDs to lead Texas Southern over Arkansas-Pine Bluff 31-23
The season may not have gone as Michigan intended, but the Wolverines ended the regular season on a high note with back-to-back wins over Northwestern and Ohio State. And now, U-M will have an opportunity to make it two in a row over Alabama. The Wolverines and Crimson Tide have been paired up to play in this year’s ReliaQuest Bowl on Dec. 31 in Tampa, Fla. (12 p.m., ESPN), the official end to the 2024 season both teams. It will serve as a rematch of last year’s College Football Playoff semifinal at the Rose Bowl, a game Michigan won in overtime to play for (and win) a national title. This year, both programs suffered varying levels of disappointment. The Wolverines slogged their way to a 7-5 season with an underwhelming offense, while Alabama (9-3) was the last team left out of the expanded 12-team playoff field. Will motivation be there for either team? We have a few more weeks to figure that out. In the meantime, here’s an early look at No. 11 Alabama: Location: Tuscaloosa, Ala. Enrollment: 40,846 Colors: Crimson and white Head coach: Kalen DeBoer Record: 9-3, 5-3 SEC (4th) Last meeting vs. Michigan: 2024, a 27-20 overtime loss All-time record vs. U-M: 3-3 Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe (4) runs the ball for a touchdown against Auburn during the second half an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt) AP Alabama was the last team left out of the expanded, 12-team playoff field this year, despite finishing with a No. 11 ranking nationally. The Tide were impacted by a beat-up SEC and No. 16 Clemson, who earned an automatic bid for winning the ACC championship. A look at the Tide’s 2024 schedule: vs. Western Kentucky — W, 63-0 vs. South Florida — W, 42-16 at Wisconsin — W, 42-10 vs. No. 2 Georgia — W, 41-34 at Vanderbilt — L, 40-35 vs. South Carolina — W, 27-25 at No. 11 Tennessee — L, 24-17 vs. No. 21 Missouri — W, 34-0 at No. 15 LSU — W, 42-13 vs. Mercer — W, 52-7 at Oklahoma — L, 24-3 vs. Auburn — W, 28-14 Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer works with his players during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Missouri, Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt) AP Kalen DeBoer (9-3; 1st season) DeBoer is in his first season in Tuscaloosa after taking over for the retired Nick Saban. He led Washington to a Pac-12 title and win over Texas in the Sugar Bowl, before losing to Michigan in the national championship. DeBoer, 50, is only in his fifth season coaching at the Division I FBS level after two seasons at UW and two seasons at Fresno State. His all-time record, including five seasons at NAIA Sioux Falls, is 113-15. Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe (4) warms up before an NCAA college football game against Mercer, Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt) AP Michigan got a good look at Milroe in the Rose Bowl, but he failed to live up to the Heisman Trophy-level expectations this year. While his completion rate remained steady (66 percent) and he threw for 2,652 yards, Milroe had 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 12 games for the Tide this year. His two-INT game played a factor in the Tide’s seven-point loss to Tennessee, as did his three-INT game in a loss to Oklahoma. Meanwhile, he remains a serious threat on the ground, evident by his career-high 719 rushing yards and 20 rushing TDs this season. Milroe is averaging 4.7 yards per carry and broke a 72-yard run in a 4 TD game vs. LSU. Scoring offense — Alabama: 35.5 points per game (T-16th in FBS), Michigan: 22.3 points (T-111th) Total offense — Alabama: 422.8 yards per game (39th), Michigan: 294.3 yards (128th) Rushing offense — Alabama: 182.67 yards per game (41st), Michigan: 160.67 yards (69th) Passing offense — Alabama: 240.1 yards per game (T-50th), Michigan: 133.6 yards (130th) Scoring defense — Alabama: 17.3 points per game (10th), Michigan: 20.5 (T-24th) Total defense — Alabama: 330.9 yards per game (32nd), Michigan: 310.9 yards (14th) Rushing defense — Alabama: 139.75 yards per game (52nd), Michigan: 92.58 yards (3rd) Passing defense — Alabama: 191.2 yards per game (30th), Michigan: 218.3 yards (66th) Alabama linebacker Jihaad Campbell (11) celebrates after recovering a fumble during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Tennessee, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne) AP WR Ryan Williams The 6-foot, 175-pound freshman speedster leads the Tide in receiving yards (857) and receiving TDs (8), averaging nearly 20 yards per catch while showing up in some of his team’s biggest games this season. Williams, a Mobile, Ala. native, had a six-catch, 177-yard day against Georgia and turned in an eight-catch, 73-yard game against Tennessee. He’s had four catches of more than 40 yards this season. WR Germie Bernard Not far behind Williams is Bernard, a 6-foot-1, 209-pound big-bodied target with a team-high 46 receptions for 714 yards and two touchdowns. The Las Vegas native was reliable all season, topping 70 yards receiving in games against some of the SEC’s best: Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Tennessee and Missouri. Bernard, a junior, has four catches of 30 yards or longer. LB Jihaad Campbell The biggest ball disruptor on the Tide defense, Campbell leads in the team in tackles (108), sacks (5) and forced fumbles (2), creating headaches for whoever he plays. The 6-foot-3, 244-pound linebacker had four games with double-digit tackles this season, and even came down with his only interception of the season against Georgia. The junior has NFL written all over him, and could be a problem for the Wolverines DB Domani Jackson Remember this name? The one-time Michigan recruit is heaving a big season in the Alabama secondary, with two interceptions, a forced fumble and seven pass breakups alongside Michigan transfer Keon Sabb. DB Malachi Moore Another key part of the Alabama backfield, Moore has 70 tackles, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and eight pass breakups. The Tide may be susceptible to surrendering yards through the air, but they have some playmakers back there, too. And Moore’s one of them. Michigan beat Alabama, 27-20, in overtime of the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Rose Bowl. The two teams also met on Jan. 1, 2020, just before the Covid-19 pandemic swept the globe, in the Citrus Bowl — a game Alabama won, 35-16. The all-time series is tied, 3-3.Mariah Carey, still fighting off the flu , has announced the cancellation of her weekend Christmas concerts in New Jersey and New York. “Newark and Belmont — I wish I had better news but unfortunately I’m still sick and have to cancel the shows tonight and on Sunday ,” she wrote on social media Friday morning, referring to her concerts at Newark’s Prudential Center and Elmont’s UBS Arena . “I’m really devastated about it and appreciate your support.” It doesn’t appear that either show will be rescheduled, though Ticketmaster assured fans they’d receive a full refund . The cancellations come two days after the Grammy winner told fans in Pittsburgh she’d come down with the flu just hours before that concert was scheduled to begin. As of Friday, the 55-year-old is still scheduled to perform at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center on Tuesday, wrapping up a 20-city trek of the annual Mariah Carey’s Christmas Time Tour. Fans online have largely been supportive of the ailing diva, who’s became synonymous with the holiday season thanks to her chart-topping 1994 hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Carey last performed on Monday in North Carolina where her 13-year-old twins, Moroccan and Monroe, delivered flowers to her onstage as it was announced the Christmas classic had returned to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the 15th time in 30 years. Netflix subscribers can see Carey on Christmas Day when a taped performance of the hitmaker airs before a pair of NFL games streaming live on the platform. Those wanting to see Carey perform live will have to wait until late January when she kicks off her “ Celebration of Mimi ” residency, which runs through Feb. 15 at the Park MGM in Las Vegas.
DOGE Is a Promising Step Toward Federal Efficiency: Fareed ZakariaThe word "Merci" was projected on to the front of Paris' Notre-Dame cathedral as it reopened, in thanks for its salvation after a devastating fire that brought the 860-year-old building close to collapse five years ago. The first responders who helped preserve the Gothic masterpiece and some of those who subsequently restored it received a standing ovation after the Archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, struck the doors of Notre-Dame three times with his crozier before symbolically reopening the building. "I stand before you to express the gratitude of the French nation, our gratitude to all those who saved, helped and rebuilt the cathedral," French President Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday. "Tonight we can together share joy and pride. Long live Notre-Dame de Paris, long live the Republic and long live France." Minutes earlier, the cathedral's bells rang out and Macron welcomed guests including US President-elect Donald Trump. Pope Francis said it was a day of "joy, celebration and praise". In a message read aloud, the pope hoped "the rebirth of this admirable church would constitute a prophetic sign of the renewal of the Church in France". Notre-Dame has been meticulously restored, with a new spire and rib vaulting, its flying buttresses and carved stone gargoyles returned to their past glory and white stone and gold decorations shining brightly once again. Getting Trump to attend, and organising a meeting between him and Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy at the Elysee Palace ahead of the Notre-Dame ceremony, was a coup for Macron as he faces a political crisis at home, after parliament ousted his prime minister. Trump shook hands with Britain's Prince William and heads of state and government as he made his way to the front of the cathedral. He sat next to Macron in the front row. Earlier, guests stood and applauded as Zelenskiy walked into the cathedral. Tesla billionaire Elon Musk also attended, as did Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and former French presidents Francois Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy. Earlier, tourists snapped pictures with the restored building in the background as final preparations for the event went on inside. Some Parisians were particularly thrilled. "What does Notre-Dame mean to me? This. Look, it's here," said careworker Pascal Tordeux, displaying a tattoo on his arm representing the cathedral. "It means everything." On the evening of April 15, 2019, dismayed Parisians rushed to the scene and TV viewers worldwide watched horrified as the fire raged through the cathedral. "The planet was shaken on that day," Macron said ahead of Saturday's event. "The shock of the reopening will – I believe and I want to believe – be as strong as that of the fire, but it will be a shock of hope." Visitors can now book a free ticket online, on the Cathedral's website. But on Saturday, the first day bookings could be made for the coming days, all tickets were gone, a message on the site said. Group visits will be allowed next year and the Catholic Church expects the cathedral to welcome 15 million visitors each year. Thousands of experts - from carpenters and stonemasons to stained glass window artists - worked around the clock for the last five years, using age-old methods to restore, repair or replace everything that was destroyed or damaged. "Notre-Dame is more than a Parisian or French monument. It's also a universal monument," said historian Damien Berne. The cathedral's first stone was laid in 1163, and construction continued for much of the next century, with major restoration and additions made in the 17th and 18th centuries. Money poured in for the renovation from all over the world - more than 840 million euros ($A1.4 billion).
Costco ( COST 1.05% ) has been one of the most reliable winners in the stock market over its history as a publicly-traded company. Its membership-based warehouse model of selling bulk goods at bargain prices is consistently popular with consumers, and its stock price has reached a new milestone of $1,000 per share. Following the retailer's report on November sales, which revealed comparable sales growth of 4.9% (adjusted for fuel and foreign exchange) and revenue growth of 5.6% to $21.87 billion, several Wall Street analysts raised their price targets on the stock. Jefferies expects Costco to hit $1,145 next year Among the analysts raising their price targets, Corey Tarlowe of Jefferies lifted his target from $1,050 to $1,145 and kept a buy rating on the stock, according to multiple reports. Tarlowe noted that the November results were solid even as the Black Friday weekend shifted out of the comparable month, and he sees strong momentum in the business. Can Costco keep gaining? Costco has been one of the few retailers to deliver consistent growth in recent years, a reflection of the strength of its business model and the fact it derives most of its revenue from groceries. While discretionary retailers have struggled recently as consumers moderated their spending, grocery chains have largely been able to raise prices and pass the impacts of inflation down to customers. However, Costco stock has gotten expensive, especially considering it's a brick-and-mortar retailer that tends to deliver solid but not breakout growth. It trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 59 as of this writing. Much of that premium is owed to the company's competitive strength and its recession-proof model, as investors feel confident in the company's ability to grow and fend off any potential competition in its niche. That valuation, though, should limit Costco's share price growth from here. It's hard to make a case for further multiple expansion at this point. As such, while Costco still looks like a reasonable buy for long-term investors, they might get a better price if they're patient.
AP Trending SummaryBrief at 3:36 p.m. ESTTrump’s lawyers rebuff DA’s idea for upholding his hush money conviction, calling it ‘absurd’
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NEW YORK — President-elect Donald Trump's lawyers urged a judge again Friday to throw out his hush money conviction, balking at the prosecution's suggestion of preserving the verdict by treating the case the way some courts do when a defendant dies. They called the idea "absurd." The Manhattan district attorney's office asked Judge Juan M. Merchan to "pretend as if one of the assassination attempts against President Trump had been successful," Trump's lawyers wrote in a 23-page response. In court papers made public Tuesday, District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office proposed an array of options for keeping the historic conviction on the books after Trump's lawyers filed paperwork this month asking for the case to be dismissed. They include freezing the case until Trump leaves office in 2029, agreeing that any future sentence won't include jail time, or closing the case by noting he was convicted but that he wasn't sentenced and his appeal wasn't resolved because of presidential immunity. Former President Donald Trump appears May 30 at Manhattan criminal court during jury deliberations in his criminal hush money trial in New York. Trump lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove reiterated Friday their position that the only acceptable option is overturning his conviction and dismissing his indictment, writing that anything less will interfere with the transition process and his ability to lead the country. The Manhattan district attorney's office declined comment. It's unclear how soon Merchan will decide. He could grant Trump's request for dismissal, go with one of the prosecution's suggestions, wait until a federal appeals court rules on Trump's parallel effort to get the case moved out of state court, or choose some other option. In their response Friday, Blanche and Bove ripped each of the prosecution's suggestions. Halting the case until Trump leaves office would force the incoming president to govern while facing the "ongoing threat" that he'll be sentenced to imprisonment, fines or other punishment as soon as his term ends, Blanche and Bove wrote. Trump, a Republican, takes office Jan. 20. The prosecution's suggestion that Merchan could mitigate those concerns by promising not to sentence Trump to jail time on presidential immunity grounds is also a non-starter, Blanche and Bove wrote. The immunity statute requires dropping the case, not merely limiting sentencing options, they contend. Attorney Todd Blanche listens May 30 as his client Donald Trump speaks at Manhattan criminal court during jury deliberations in his criminal hush money trial in New York. Blanche and Bove, both of whom Trump tapped for high-ranking Justice Department positions, expressed outrage at the prosecution's novel suggestion that Merchan borrow from Alabama and other states and treat the case as if Trump died. Blanche and Bove accused prosecutors of ignoring New York precedent and attempting to "fabricate" a solution "based on an extremely troubling and irresponsible analogy between President Trump" who survived assassination attempts in Pennsylvania in July and Florida in September "and a hypothetical dead defendant." Such an option normally comes into play when a defendant dies after being convicted but before appeals are exhausted. It is unclear whether it is viable under New York law, but prosecutors suggested that Merchan could innovate in what's already a unique case. "This remedy would prevent defendant from being burdened during his presidency by an ongoing criminal proceeding," prosecutors wrote in their filing this week. But at the same time, it wouldn't "precipitously discard" the "meaningful fact that defendant was indicted and found guilty by a jury of his peers." Prosecutors acknowledged that "presidential immunity requires accommodation" during Trump's impending return to the White House but argued that his election to a second term should not upend the jury's verdict, which came when he was out of office. Longstanding Justice Department policy says sitting presidents cannot face criminal prosecution. Other world leaders don't enjoy the same protection. For example, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is on trial on corruption charges even as he leads that nation's wars in Lebanon and Gaza. President-elect Donald Trump attends a Dec. 7 meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace in Paris. Trump has fought for months to reverse his May 30 conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors said he fudged the documents to conceal a $130,000 payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels to suppress her claim that they had sex a decade earlier, which Trump denies. Trump's hush money conviction was in state court, meaning a presidential pardon — issued by Biden or himself when he takes office — would not apply to the case. Presidential pardons only apply to federal crimes. Since the election, special counsel Jack Smith ended his two federal cases, which pertained to Trump's efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss and allegations that he hoarded classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. A separate state election interference case in Fulton County, Georgia, is largely on hold. Trump denies wrongdoing in each case. Trump was scheduled for sentencing in the hush money case in late November, but following Trump's Nov. 5 election win, Merchan halted proceedings and indefinitely postponed the former and future president's sentencing so the defense and prosecution could weigh in on the future of the case. Trump is the first former president to be convicted of a crime and the first convicted criminal to be elected to the office. Among President-elect Donald Trump's picks are Susie Wiles for chief of staff, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state, former Democratic House member Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz for attorney general. Susie Wiles, 67, was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 presidential campaign and its de facto manager. Trump named Florida Sen. Marco Rubio to be secretary of state, making a former sharp critic his choice to be the new administration's top diplomat. Rubio, 53, is a noted hawk on China, Cuba and Iran, and was a finalist to be Trump's running mate on the Republican ticket last summer. Rubio is the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “He will be a strong Advocate for our Nation, a true friend to our Allies, and a fearless Warrior who will never back down to our adversaries,” Trump said of Rubio in a statement. The announcement punctuates the hard pivot Rubio has made with Trump, whom the senator called a “con man" during his unsuccessful campaign for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. Their relationship improved dramatically while Trump was in the White House. And as Trump campaigned for the presidency a third time, Rubio cheered his proposals. For instance, Rubio, who more than a decade ago helped craft immigration legislation that included a path to citizenship for people in the U.S. illegally, now supports Trump's plan to use the U.S. military for mass deportations. Pete Hegseth, 44, is a co-host of Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends Weekend” and has been a contributor with the network since 2014, where he developed a friendship with Trump, who made regular appearances on the show. Hegseth lacks senior military or national security experience. If confirmed by the Senate, he would inherit the top job during a series of global crises — ranging from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the ongoing attacks in the Middle East by Iranian proxies to the push for a cease-fire between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah and escalating worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea. Hegseth is also the author of “The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free,” published earlier this year. Trump tapped Pam Bondi, 59, to be attorney general after U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration. She was Florida's first female attorney general, serving between 2011 and 2019. She also was on Trump’s legal team during his first impeachment trial in 2020. Considered a loyalist, she served as part of a Trump-allied outside group that helped lay the groundwork for his future administration called the America First Policy Institute. Bondi was among a group of Republicans who showed up to support Trump at his hush money criminal trial in New York that ended in May with a conviction on 34 felony counts. A fierce defender of Trump, she also frequently appears on Fox News and has been a critic of the criminal cases against him. Trump picked South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a well-known conservative who faced sharp criticism for telling a story in her memoir about shooting a rambunctious dog, to lead an agency crucial to the president-elect’s hardline immigration agenda. Noem used her two terms leading a tiny state to vault to a prominent position in Republican politics. South Dakota is usually a political afterthought. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, Noem did not order restrictions that other states had issued and instead declared her state “open for business.” Trump held a fireworks rally at Mount Rushmore in July 2020 in one of the first large gatherings of the pandemic. She takes over a department with a sprawling mission. In addition to key immigration agencies, the Department of Homeland Security oversees natural disaster response, the U.S. Secret Service, and Transportation Security Administration agents who work at airports. The governor of North Dakota, who was once little-known outside his state, Burgum is a former Republican presidential primary contender who endorsed Trump, and spent months traveling to drum up support for him, after dropping out of the race. Burgum was a serious contender to be Trump’s vice presidential choice this summer. The two-term governor was seen as a possible pick because of his executive experience and business savvy. Burgum also has close ties to deep-pocketed energy industry CEOs. Trump made the announcement about Burgum joining his incoming administration while addressing a gala at his Mar-a-Lago club, and said a formal statement would be coming the following day. In comments to reporters before Trump took the stage, Burgum said that, in recent years, the power grid is deteriorating in many parts of the country, which he said could raise national security concerns but also drive up prices enough to increase inflation. “There's just a sense of urgency, and a sense of understanding in the Trump administration,” Burgum said. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ran for president as a Democrat, than as an independent, and then endorsed Trump . He's the son of Democratic icon Robert Kennedy, who was assassinated during his own presidential campaign. The nomination of Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services alarmed people who are concerned about his record of spreading unfounded fears about vaccines . For example, he has long advanced the debunked idea that vaccines cause autism. Scott Bessent, 62, is a former George Soros money manager and an advocate for deficit reduction. He's the founder of hedge fund Key Square Capital Management, after having worked on-and-off for Soros Fund Management since 1991. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the nation’s first openly gay treasury secretary. He told Bloomberg in August that he decided to join Trump’s campaign in part to attack the mounting U.S. national debt. That would include slashing government programs and other spending. “This election cycle is the last chance for the U.S. to grow our way out of this mountain of debt without becoming a sort of European-style socialist democracy,” he said then. Oregon Republican U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer narrowly lost her reelection bid this month, but received strong backing from union members in her district. As a potential labor secretary, she would oversee the Labor Department’s workforce, its budget and put forth priorities that impact workers’ wages, health and safety, ability to unionize, and employer’s rights to fire employers, among other responsibilities. Chavez-DeRemer is one of few House Republicans to endorse the “Protecting the Right to Organize” or PRO Act would allow more workers to conduct organizing campaigns and would add penalties for companies that violate workers’ rights. The act would also weaken “right-to-work” laws that allow employees in more than half the states to avoid participating in or paying dues to unions that represent workers at their places of employment. Scott Turner is a former NFL player and White House aide. He ran the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council during Trump’s first term in office. Trump, in a statement, credited Turner, the highest-ranking Black person he’s yet selected for his administration, with “helping to lead an Unprecedented Effort that Transformed our Country’s most distressed communities.” Sean Duffy is a former House member from Wisconsin who was one of Trump's most visible defenders on cable news. Duffy served in the House for nearly nine years, sitting on the Financial Services Committee and chairing the subcommittee on insurance and housing. He left Congress in 2019 for a TV career and has been the host of “The Bottom Line” on Fox Business. Before entering politics, Duffy was a reality TV star on MTV, where he met his wife, “Fox and Friends Weekend” co-host Rachel Campos-Duffy. They have nine children. A campaign donor and CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, Write is a vocal advocate of oil and gas development, including fracking — a key pillar of Trump’s quest to achieve U.S. “energy dominance” in the global market. Wright also has been one of the industry’s loudest voices against efforts to fight climate change. He said the climate movement around the world is “collapsing under its own weight.” The Energy Department is responsible for advancing energy, environmental and nuclear security of the United States. Wright also won support from influential conservatives, including oil and gas tycoon Harold Hamm. Hamm, executive chairman of Oklahoma-based Continental Resources, a major shale oil company, is a longtime Trump supporter and adviser who played a key role on energy issues in Trump’s first term. President-elect Donald Trump tapped billionaire professional wrestling mogul Linda McMahon to be secretary of the Education Department, tasked with overseeing an agency Trump promised to dismantle. McMahon led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s initial term from 2017 to 2019 and twice ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for the U.S. Senate in Connecticut. She’s seen as a relative unknown in education circles, though she expressed support for charter schools and school choice. She served on the Connecticut Board of Education for a year starting in 2009 and has spent years on the board of trustees for Sacred Heart University in Connecticut. Brooke Rollins, who graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in agricultural development, is a longtime Trump associate who served as White House domestic policy chief during his first presidency. The 52-year-old is president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a group helping to lay the groundwork for a second Trump administration. She previously served as an aide to former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and ran a think tank, the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Trump chose Howard Lutnick, head of brokerage and investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald and a cryptocurrency enthusiast, as his nominee for commerce secretary, a position in which he'd have a key role in carrying out Trump's plans to raise and enforce tariffs. Trump made the announcement Tuesday on his social media platform, Truth Social. Lutnick is a co-chair of Trump’s transition team, along with Linda McMahon, the former wrestling executive who previously led Trump’s Small Business Administration. Both are tasked with putting forward candidates for key roles in the next administration. The nomination would put Lutnick in charge of a sprawling Cabinet agency that is involved in funding new computer chip factories, imposing trade restrictions, releasing economic data and monitoring the weather. It is also a position in which connections to CEOs and the wider business community are crucial. FILE - Former Rep. Doug Collins speaks before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at a campaign event at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, Oct. 15, 2024, in Atlanta. Karoline Leavitt, 27, was Trump's campaign press secretary and currently a spokesperson for his transition. She would be the youngest White House press secretary in history. The White House press secretary typically serves as the public face of the administration and historically has held daily briefings for the press corps. Leavitt, a New Hampshire native, was a spokesperson for MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump, before joining his 2024 campaign. In 2022, she ran for Congress in New Hampshire, winning a 10-way Republican primary before losing to Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas. Leavitt worked in the White House press office during Trump's first term before she became communications director for New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik, Trump's choice for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has been tapped by Trump to be director of national intelligence, keeping with the trend to stock his Cabinet with loyal personalities rather than veteran professionals in their requisite fields. Gabbard, 43, was a Democratic House member who unsuccessfully sought the party's 2020 presidential nomination before leaving the party in 2022. She endorsed Trump in August and campaigned often with him this fall. “I know Tulsi will bring the fearless spirit that has defined her illustrious career to our Intelligence Community,” Trump said in a statement. Gabbard, who has served in the Army National Guard for more than two decades, deploying to Iraq and Kuwait, would come to the role as somewhat of an outsider compared to her predecessor. The current director, Avril Haines, was confirmed by the Senate in 2021 following several years in a number of top national security and intelligence positions. Trump has picked John Ratcliffe, a former Texas congressman who served as director of national intelligence during his first administration, to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency in his next. Ratcliffe was director of national intelligence during the final year and a half of Trump's first term, leading the U.S. government's spy agencies during the coronavirus pandemic. “I look forward to John being the first person ever to serve in both of our Nation's highest Intelligence positions,” Trump said in a statement, calling him a “fearless fighter for the Constitutional Rights of all Americans” who would ensure “the Highest Levels of National Security, and PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.” Kash Patel spent several years as a Justice Department prosecutor before catching the Trump administration’s attention as a staffer on Capitol Hill who helped investigate the Russia probe. Patel called for dramatically reducing the agency’s footprint, a perspective that sets him apart from earlier directors who sought additional resources for the bureau. Though the Justice Department in 2021 halted the practice of secretly seizing reporters’ phone records during leak investigations, Patel said he intends to aggressively hunt down government officials who leak information to reporters. Trump has chosen former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to serve as his pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency . Zeldin does not appear to have any experience in environmental issues, but is a longtime supporter of the former president. The 44-year-old former U.S. House member from New York wrote on X , “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,” he added. During his campaign, Trump often attacked the Biden administration's promotion of electric vehicles, and incorrectly referring to a tax credit for EV purchases as a government mandate. Trump also often told his audiences during the campaign his administration would “Drill, baby, drill,” referring to his support for expanded petroleum exploration. In a statement, Trump said Zeldin “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.” Trump has named Brendan Carr, the senior Republican on the Federal Communications Commission, as the new chairman of the agency tasked with regulating broadcasting, telecommunications and broadband. Carr is a longtime member of the commission and served previously as the FCC’s general counsel. He has been unanimously confirmed by the Senate three times and was nominated by both Trump and President Joe Biden to the commission. Carr made past appearances on “Fox News Channel," including when he decried Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris' pre-Election Day appearance on “Saturday Night Live.” He wrote an op-ed last month defending a satellite company owned by Trump supporter Elon Musk. Trump said Atkins, the CEO of Patomak Partners and a former SEC commissioner, was a “proven leader for common sense regulations.” In the years since leaving the SEC, Atkins has made the case against too much market regulation. “He believes in the promise of robust, innovative capital markets that are responsive to the needs of Investors, & that provide capital to make our Economy the best in the World. He also recognizes that digital assets & other innovations are crucial to Making America Greater than Ever Before,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. The commission oversees U.S. securities markets and investments and is currently led by Gary Gensler, who has been leading the U.S. government’s crackdown on the crypto industry. Gensler, who was nominated by President Joe Biden, announced last month that he would be stepping down from his post on the day that Trump is inaugurated — Jan. 20, 2025. Atkins began his career as a lawyer and has a long history working in the financial markets sector, both in government and private practice. In the 1990s, he worked on the staffs of two former SEC chairmen, Richard C. Breeden and Arthur Levitt. Jared Isaacman, 41, is a tech billionaire who bought a series of spaceflights from Elon Musk’s SpaceX and conducted the first private spacewalk . He is the founder and CEO of a card-processing company and has collaborated closely with Musk ever since buying his first chartered SpaceX flight. He took contest winners on that 2021 trip and followed it in September with a mission where he briefly popped out the hatch to test SpaceX’s new spacewalking suits. Rep. Elise Stefanik is a representative from New York and one of Trump's staunchest defenders going back to his first impeachment. Elected to the House in 2014, Stefanik was selected by her GOP House colleagues as House Republican Conference chair in 2021, when former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney was removed from the post after publicly criticizing Trump for falsely claiming he won the 2020 election. Stefanik, 40, has served in that role ever since as the third-ranking member of House leadership. Stefanik’s questioning of university presidents over antisemitism on their campuses helped lead to two of those presidents resigning, further raising her national profile. If confirmed, she would represent American interests at the U.N. as Trump vows to end the war waged by Russia against Ukraine begun in 2022. He has also called for peace as Israel continues its offensive against Hamas in Gaza and its invasion of Lebanon to target Hezbollah. President-elect Donald Trump says he's chosen former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO. Trump has expressed skepticism about the Western military alliance for years. Trump said in a statement Wednesday that Whitaker is “a strong warrior and loyal Patriot” who “will ensure the United States’ interests are advanced and defended” and “strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability.” The choice of Whitaker as the nation’s representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an unusual one, given his background is as a lawyer and not in foreign policy. President-elect Donald Trump tapped former Sen. David Perdue of Georgia to be ambassador to China, saying in a social media post that the former CEO “brings valuable expertise to help build our relationship with China.” Perdue lost his Senate seat to Democrat Jon Ossoff four years ago and ran unsuccessfully in a primary against Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. Perdue pushed Trump's debunked lies about electoral fraud during his failed bid for governor. Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel. Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel's interests as it wages wars against the Iran-backed Hamas and Hezbollah. “He loves Israel, and likewise the people of Israel love him,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike will work tirelessly to bring about peace in the Middle East.” Huckabee, who ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and 2016, has been a popular figure among evangelical Christian conservatives, many of whom support Israel due to Old Testament writings that Jews are God’s chosen people and that Israel is their rightful homeland. Trump has been praised by some in this important Republican voting bloc for moving the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Guilfoyle is a former California prosecutor and television news personality who led the fundraising for Trump's 2020 campaign and became engaged to Don Jr. in 2020. Trump called her “a close friend and ally” and praised her “sharp intellect make her supremely qualified.” Guilfoyle was on stage with the family on election night. “I am so proud of Kimberly. She loves America and she always has wanted to serve the country as an Ambassador. She will be an amazing leader for America First,” Don Jr. posted. The ambassador positions must be approved by the U.S. Senate. Guilfoyle said in a social media post that she was “honored to accept President Trump’s nomination to serve as the next Ambassador to Greece and I look forward to earning the support of the U.S. Senate.” Trump on Tuesday named real estate investor Steven Witkoff to be special envoy to the Middle East. The 67-year-old Witkoff is the president-elect's golf partner and was golfing with him at Trump's club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 15, when the former president was the target of a second attempted assassination. Witkoff “is a Highly Respected Leader in Business and Philanthropy,” Trump said of Witkoff in a statement. “Steve will be an unrelenting Voice for PEACE, and make us all proud." Trump also named Witkoff co-chair, with former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, of his inaugural committee. Trump said Wednesday that he will nominate Gen. Keith Kellogg to serve as assistant to the president and special envoy for Ukraine and Russia. Kellogg, a retired Army lieutenant general who has long been Trump’s top adviser on defense issues, served as National Security Advisor to Trump's former Vice President Mike Pence. For the America First Policy Institute, one of several groups formed after Trump left office to help lay the groundwork for the next Republican administration, Kellogg in April wrote that “bringing the Russia-Ukraine war to a close will require strong, America First leadership to deliver a peace deal and immediately end the hostilities between the two warring parties.” (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib) Trump asked Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., a retired Army National Guard officer and war veteran, to be his national security adviser, Trump announced in a statement Tuesday. The move puts Waltz in the middle of national security crises, ranging from efforts to provide weapons to Ukraine and worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea to the persistent attacks in the Middle East by Iran proxies and the push for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah. “Mike has been a strong champion of my America First Foreign Policy agenda,” Trump's statement said, "and will be a tremendous champion of our pursuit of Peace through Strength!” Waltz is a three-term GOP congressman from east-central Florida. He served multiple tours in Afghanistan and also worked in the Pentagon as a policy adviser when Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates were defense chiefs. He is considered hawkish on China, and called for a U.S. boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing due to its involvement in the origin of COVID-19 and its mistreatment of the minority Muslim Uighur population. Stephen Miller, an immigration hardliner , was a vocal spokesperson during the presidential campaign for Trump's priority of mass deportations. The 39-year-old was a senior adviser during Trump's first administration. Miller has been a central figure in some of Trump's policy decisions, notably his move to separate thousands of immigrant families. Trump argued throughout the campaign that the nation's economic, national security and social priorities could be met by deporting people who are in the United States illegally. Since Trump left office in 2021, Miller has served as the president of America First Legal, an organization made up of former Trump advisers aimed at challenging the Biden administration, media companies, universities and others over issues such as free speech and national security. Thomas Homan, 62, has been tasked with Trump’s top priority of carrying out the largest deportation operation in the nation’s history. Homan, who served under Trump in his first administration leading U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was widely expected to be offered a position related to the border, an issue Trump made central to his campaign. Though Homan has insisted such a massive undertaking would be humane, he has long been a loyal supporter of Trump's policy proposals, suggesting at a July conference in Washington that he would be willing to "run the biggest deportation operation this country’s ever seen.” Democrats have criticized Homan for his defending Trump's “zero tolerance” policy on border crossings during his first administration, which led to the separation of thousands of parents and children seeking asylum at the border. Customs and Border Protection, with its roughly 60,000 employees, falls under the Department of Homeland Security. It includes the Border Patrol, which Rodney Scott led during Trump's first term, and is essentially responsible for protecting the country's borders while facilitating trade and travel. Scott comes to the job firmly from the Border Patrol side of the house. He became an agent in 1992 and spent much of his career in San Diego. When he was appointed head of the border agency in January 2020, he enthusiastically embraced Trump's policies. After being forced out under the Biden administration, Scott has been a vocal supporter of Trump's hard-line immigration agenda. He appeared frequently on Fox News and testified in Congress. He's also a senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Former Rep. Billy Long represented Missouri in the U.S. House from 2011 to 2023. Since leaving Congress, Trump said, Long “has worked as a Business and Tax advisor, helping Small Businesses navigate the complexities of complying with the IRS Rules and Regulations.” Former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler was appointed in January 2020 by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and then lost a runoff election a year later. She started a conservative voter registration organization and dived into GOP fundraising, becoming one of the top individual donors and bundlers to Trump’s 2024 comeback campaign. Even before nominating her for agriculture secretary, the president-elect already had tapped Loeffler as co-chair of his inaugural committee. Dr. Mehmet Oz, 64, is a former heart surgeon who hosted “The Dr. Oz Show,” a long-running daytime television talk show. He ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate as the Republican nominee in 2022 and is an outspoken supporter of Trump, who endorsed Oz's bid for elected office. Elon Musk, left, and Vivek Ramaswamy speak before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at an Oct. 27 campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York. Trump on Tuesday said Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Ramaswamy will lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency" — which is not, despite the name, a government agency. The acronym “DOGE” is a nod to Musk's favorite cryptocurrency, dogecoin. Trump said Musk and Ramaswamy will work from outside the government to offer the White House “advice and guidance” and will partner with the Office of Management and Budget to “drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before.” He added the move would shock government systems. It's not clear how the organization will operate. Musk, owner of X and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has been a constant presence at Mar-a-Lago since Trump won the presidential election. Ramaswamy suspended his campaign in January and threw his support behind Trump. Trump said the two will “pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.” Russell Vought held the position during Trump’s first presidency. After Trump’s initial term ended, Vought founded the Center for Renewing America, a think tank that describes its mission as “renew a consensus of America as a nation under God.” Vought was closely involved with Project 2025, a conservative blueprint for Trump’s second term that he tried to distance himself from during the campaign. Vought has also previously worked as the executive and budget director for the Republican Study Committee, a caucus for conservative House Republicans. He also worked at Heritage Action, the political group tied to The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Trump says he’s picking Kari Lake as director of Voice of America, installing a staunch loyalist who ran unsuccessfully for Arizona governor and a Senate seat to head the congressionally funded broadcaster that provides independent news reporting around the world. Lake endeared herself to Trump through her dogmatic commitment to the falsehood that both she and Trump were the victims of election fraud. She has never acknowledged losing the gubernatorial race and called herself the “lawful governor” in her 2023 book, “Unafraid: Just Getting Started.” Dan Scavino, deputy chief of staff Scavino, whom Trump's transition referred to in a statement as one of “Trump's longest serving and most trusted aides,” was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 campaign, as well as his 2016 and 2020 campaigns. He will be deputy chief of staff and assistant to the president. Scavino had run Trump's social media profile in the White House during his first administration. He was also held in contempt of Congress in 2022 after a month-long refusal to comply with a subpoena from the House committee’s investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. James Blair, deputy chief of staff Blair was political director for Trump's 2024 campaign and for the Republican National Committee. He will be deputy chief of staff for legislative, political and public affairs and assistant to the president. Blair was key to Trump's economic messaging during his winning White House comeback campaign this year, a driving force behind the candidate's “Trump can fix it” slogan and his query to audiences this fall if they were better off than four years ago. Taylor Budowich, deputy chief of staff Budowich is a veteran Trump campaign aide who launched and directed Make America Great Again, Inc., a super PAC that supported Trump's 2024 campaign. He will be deputy chief of staff for communications and personnel and assistant to the president. Budowich also had served as a spokesman for Trump after his presidency. Jay Bhattacharya, National Institutes of Health Trump has chosen Dr. Jay Bhattacharya to lead the National Institutes of Health. Bhattacharya is a physician and professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, and is a critic of pandemic lockdowns and vaccine mandates. He promoted the idea of herd immunity during the pandemic, arguing that people at low risk should live normally while building up immunity to COVID-19 through infection. The National Institutes of Health funds medical research through competitive grants to researchers at institutions throughout the nation. NIH also conducts its own research with thousands of scientists working at its labs in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Marty Makary, Food and Drug Administration Makary is a Johns Hopkins surgeon and author who argued against pandemic lockdowns. He routinely appeared on Fox News during the COVID-19 pandemic and wrote opinion articles questioning masks for children. He cast doubt on vaccine mandates but supported vaccines generally. Makary also cast doubt on whether booster shots worked, which was against federal recommendations on the vaccine. Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, Surgeon General Nesheiwat is a general practitioner who serves as medical director for CityMD, a network of urgent care centers in New York and New Jersey. She has been a contributor to Fox News. Dr. Dave Weldon, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Weldon is a former Florida congressman who recently ran for a Florida state legislative seat and lost; Trump backed Weldon’s opponent. In Congress, Weldon weighed in on one of the nation’s most heated debates of the 1990s over quality of life and a right-to-die and whether Terri Schiavo, who was in a persistent vegetative state after cardiac arrest, should have been allowed to have her feeding tube removed. He sided with the parents who did not want it removed. Jamieson Greer, U.S. trade representative Kevin Hassett, Director of the White House National Economic Council Trump is turning to two officials with experience navigating not only Washington but the key issues of income taxes and tariffs as he fills out his economic team. He announced he has chosen international trade attorney Jamieson Greer to be his U.S. trade representative and Kevin Hassett as director of the White House National Economic Council. While Trump has in several cases nominated outsiders to key posts, these picks reflect a recognition that his reputation will likely hinge on restoring the public’s confidence in the economy. Trump said in a statement that Greer was instrumental in his first term in imposing tariffs on China and others and replacing the trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, “therefore making it much better for American Workers.” Hassett, 62, served in the first Trump term as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers. He has a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania and worked at the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute before joining the Trump White House in 2017. Ron Johnson, Ambassador to Mexico Johnson — not the Republican senator — served as ambassador to El Salvador during Trump's first administration. His nomination comes as the president-elect has been threatening tariffs on Mexican imports and the mass deportation of migrants who have arrived to the U.S.-Mexico border. Johnson is also a former U.S. Army veteran and was in the Central Intelligence Agency. Tom Barrack, Ambassador to Turkey Barrack, a wealthy financier, met Trump in the 1980s while helping negotiate Trump’s purchase of the renowned Plaza Hotel. He was charged with using his personal access to the former president to secretly promote the interests of the United Arab Emirates, but was acquitted of all counts at a federal trial in 2022. Trump called him a “well-respected and experienced voice of reason.” Andrew Ferguson, Federal Trade Commission Ferguson, who is already one of the FTC's five commissioners, will replace Lina Khan, who became a lightning rod for Wall Street and Silicon Valley by blocking billions of dollars worth of corporate acquisitions and suing Amazon and Meta while alleging anticompetitive behavior. “Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding, “Andrew will be the most America First, and pro-innovation FTC Chair in our Country’s History.” Jacob Helberg, undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment Dan Bishop, deputy director for budget at the Office of Budget and Management Leandro Rizzuto, Ambassador to the Washington-based Organization of American States Dan Newlin, Ambassador to Colombia Peter Lamelas, Ambassador to Argentina Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! 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