President Donald Trump arrives in Scotland
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
21 minutes ago
- The Independent
Trump is nearly halfway through Project 2025 agenda in just the first six months of his presidency
Nearly half of the initiatives laid out in Project 2025 — which is considered by many to be a blueprint for the second Trump administration — have already been implemented by the president, a rolling analysis has found. Just over six months into Donald Trump's second term, approximately 115 of the 317 objectives set forth in the far-right playbook, authored in 2023 by the Heritage Foundation, have become a reality. That's about 46 percent, according to the Project 2025 Tracker, an online spreadsheet created by two Reddit users and updated as Trump announces policies. It appears to be one of the only publicly available resources regularly updated with data on Project 2025 objectives and administration action. Some of those objectives have been implemented through executive orders, such as shutting down the Department of Education, eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) language from the federal government, and restoring implementation of the death penalty for certain crimes. Other objectives have been pushed forward through Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which was passed by Congress in July. Some of those objectives include eliminating electric vehicle incentives and adding work requirements for Medicaid. It's unsurprising that many of Project 2025's 'Mandate for Leadership' objectives have become part of Trump's agenda. Several of his senior staff are authors of or contributors to Project 2025, including Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr, senior trade adviser Peter Navarro, border czar Tom Homan, Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Chief of Protocol Monica Crowley, and others. Other staffers have ties to the Heritage Foundation, which produced the more than 900-page mandate. Despite the administration's close ties to the Heritage Foundation and enacting some nearly identical policies to those named in Project 2025, Trump had insisted on the campaign trail that he knew 'nothing' about the mandate and acted as though he was very unfamiliar with it. The Project 2025 Tracker says that around 63 policies in Project 2025 are currently 'in progress. One example is the language in Project 2025 that encourages the president to revoke guidance that prohibits adoption or foster agencies from discriminating based on sexual orientation or gender identity. While Trump has not signed an executive order directly doing so, his executive order establishing the White House Faith Office includes language that encourages the team to make recommendations 'promoting foster care and adoption programs in partnership with faith-based entities' while promoting religious freedom. In January, Paul Dans, a conservative lawyer who oversaw Project 2025, told CNN t hat Trump's first few actions were 'exactly' what the Heritage Foundation set out to do. 'This is exactly the work we set out to do,' Dans said at the time. 'It's still in the early first stages of bearing fruit, but we wanted to make sure the president was ready to hit the ground running on day one. The rapidity and the depth of what they've rolled out this quickly is a testament to the work done in Project 2025 and other presidential transition projects.'
Daily Record
21 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Donald Trump's bizarre arm gesture after 'nukes on White House roof' claim
Reporters were shouting questions to the American leader at the time. Donald Trump is said to have claimed he wants to install nuclear missiles on the roof of the White House. And seconds after the alleged claim, The President performed an unusual gesture. Reporters had gathered in the White House grounds and shouted questions up at the President, who had been on a tour of the roof of the building during a walkabout. He's planning extensive renovations to the iconic residence and office building. His first change was to pave over the famous Rose Garden - something that has sparked anger among critics. The Mirror reports the next project he has announced is to tack a huge ballroom on the side of the East Wing - designs of which closely resemble the ballroom in his Mar A Lago club in Florida. Today, he responded to questions about what he wanted to build next by apparently shouting " missiles. Nuclear missiles." He pointed to the roof of the White House beneath his feet, then made a stiff-armed gesture, twice. It seems likely that the President was merely miming the launch of a missile. But after the furore around a similar gesture Elon Musk made at a party to celebrate his inauguration, it's likely his critics will note the gesture's similarity to a Nazi salute. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Trump appeared to be taking stock of several areas including the roof of the press briefing room and the Rose Garden. Wearing a suit with a red tie, Trump walked the area with several other people, as someone with them took photographs. Trump may have been surveying ongoing renovation and construction work at the White House. He returned to the presidency with grand ideas for remaking the building, like paving over the Rose Garden and building a massive ballroom. After making observations from the White House roof, Trump walked over to an area above the briefing room, briefly interacting with reporters gathered below. Asked why he was on the roof, Trump said he was 'taking a little walk' and mentioned the 'ballroom on the other side.' Last month, the White House announced construction on a massive, new $200 million ballroom. It is the first structural change to the Executive Mansion itself since the addition of the Truman balcony in 1948 — and work will begin in September. One of the five men with him appeared to be James McCrery, architect for the project. "Just another way to spend my money for this country,' Trump said. 'Anything I do is financed by me."
STV News
21 minutes ago
- STV News
US House committee issues subpoenas for Epstein files and Clinton depositions
The US House Oversight Committee subpoenaed the Justice Department on Tuesday for files in the sex trafficking investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, part of a congressional probe that politicians believe may show links to President Donald Trump and other former top officials. The Republican-controlled committee also issued subpoenas for depositions with former president Bill Clinton, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and eight former top law enforcement officials. The committee's actions showed how even with members away from Washington on a monthlong break, interest in the Epstein files is still running high. Trump has denied prior knowledge of Epstein's crimes and claimed he cut off their relationship long ago. He has repeatedly tried to move past the Justice Department's decision not to release a full accounting of the investigation, but politicians from both major political parties, as well as many in the Republican president's political base, have refused to let it go. Since Epstein's 2019 death in a New York jail cell as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges, conservative conspiracists have stoked theories about what information investigators gathered on Epstein – and who else could have been involved. Republicans on the House Oversight Committee nodded to that line of questioning last month by initiating the subpoenas for the Clintons, both Democrats, as well as demanding all communications between former president Joe Biden's Democratic administration and the Justice Department regarding Epstein. The committee is also demanding interviews under oath from former attorneys general spanning the last three presidential administrations: Merrick Garland, William Barr, Jeff Sessions, Loretta Lynch, Eric Holder and Alberto Gonzales. Also subpoenaed were former FBI directors James Comey and Robert Mueller. However, it was Democrats who sparked the move to subpoena the Justice Department for its files on Epstein. They were joined by some Republicans to initiate successfully the subpoena through a subcommittee of the House Oversight Committee. 'Democrats are focused on transparency and are pushing back against the corruption of Donald Trump,' Robert Garcia, who is the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, told reporters last month. 'What is Donald Trump hiding that he won't release the Epstein files?' The committee had previously issued a subpoena for an interview with Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend, who had been serving a prison sentence in Florida for luring teenage girls to be sexually abused by the wealthy financier but was recently transferred to a Texas facility. PA Media US President Donald Trump speaking to reporters before boarding Air Force One at Lehigh Valley International Airport in Pennsylvania on Sunday. However, the committee's Republican chairman, James Comer, has indicated he is willing to delay that deposition until after the Supreme Court decides whether to hear an appeal to her conviction. She argues she was wrongfully prosecuted. Comer noted in letters to Attorney General Pam Bondi and the former officials that the cases of Epstein and his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell 'have received immense public interest and scrutiny.' 'While the department undertakes efforts to uncover and publicly disclose additional information related to Mr Epstein and Ms Maxwell's cases, it is imperative that Congress conduct oversight of the federal government's enforcement of sex trafficking laws generally and specifically its handling of the investigation and prosecution of Mr Epstein and Ms Maxwell,' Comer said. The subpoenas give the Justice Department until August 19 to hand over the requested records, though such records requests are typically open to negotiation. The committee is also asking the former officials to appear for the depositions throughout August, September and October, concluding with Hillary Clinton on October 9 and Bill Clinton on October 14. While several former presidents, including Trump, have faced congressional subpoenas, none has ever appeared before members under compulsion. Bill Clinton was among a number of luminaries acquainted with Epstein before the criminal investigation against him in Florida became public two decades ago. Clinton has never been accused of wrongdoing by any of the women who say Epstein abused them. One of Epstein's victims, Virginia Giuffre, once gave a newspaper interview in which she described riding in a helicopter with Clinton and flirting with Trump, but she later said in a deposition that those things had not actually happened and were mistakes by the reporter. Clinton has previously said through a spokesperson that while he travelled on Epstein's jet he never visited his homes and had no knowledge of his crimes. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
