Elon Musk vows to form new political party
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News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
Trump heads for 'Alligator Alcatraz' migrant detention center
US President Donald Trump joked about escaped migrants getting eaten by Florida wildlife as he headed Tuesday to the official opening of a detention center dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz." Critics of Trump's harsh immigration crackdown have called the site in a reptile-filled Everglades swap inhumane, while environmental protesters oppose its construction in a national park. But Trump, who has launched a tough crackdown on undocumented migrants since returning to power, doubled down on the idea as he left the White House. "I guess that's the concept," Trump told reporters when asked if the idea behind the detention center was that people who escaped from it would get eaten by alligators or snakes. "This is not a nice business. Snakes are fast, but alligators... we're going to teach them how to run away from an alligator, okay? "If they escape prison, how to run away. Don't run in a straight line. Run like this. And you know what? Your chances go up about one percent." Florida, the southeastern state governed by conservative Republican Ron DeSantis, announced last week that it was constructing the site at an estimated cost of $450 million. It sits on an abandoned airfield in the heart of a sprawling network of mangrove forests, imposing marshes and "rivers of grass" that form the Everglades conservation area. Both the White House and Florida officials have dubbed it "Alligator Alcatraz" -- a reference to the former island prison in San Francisco that Trump has said he wants to reopen. "There is only one road leading in, and the only way out is a one-way flight. It is isolated and surrounded by dangerous wildlife and unforgiving terrain," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday. Asked if the scaly-skinned predators were a "design feature," Leavitt replied: "When you have illegal murderers and rapists and heinous criminals in a detention facility surrounded by alligators, yes I do think that's a deterrent for them to try to escape." While Trump administration officials routinely highlight the targeting of violent criminals, many migrants without any charges against them have also been swept up in the crackdown. - 'Alligators and pythons' - The Everglades National Park is particularly known as a major habitat for alligators, with an estimated population of around 200,000. They can reach up to 15 feet in length when fully grown. Attacks by alligators on humans are relatively rare in Florida. Across the entire state there were 453 "unprovoked bite incidents" between 1948 and 2022, 26 of which resulted in human fatalities, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. But authorities have played up the risk. "If people get out, there's not much waiting for them, other than alligators and pythons," Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said recently as he described the detention camp. He also described the site as a "low-cost opportunity to build a temporary detention facility, because you don't need to invest that much in the perimeter." The White House's Leavitt said it would be a 5,000-bed facility, but Florida authorities have said it would house about 1,000 "criminal aliens." Trump's administration is playing up "Alligator Alcatraz" as it drums up support for a huge tax and spending bill that the president is trying to push through Congress this week. The "One Big Beautiful Bill" contains funding for Trump's immigration crackdown including an increase in places in detention centers. The deportation drive is part of a broader campaign of harsh optics on migration, including raids in Los Angeles that sparked protests against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.
Herald Sun
3 hours ago
- Herald Sun
Trump heads for 'Alligator Alcatraz' migrant detention center
US President Donald Trump joked about escaped migrants getting eaten by Florida wildlife as he headed Tuesday to the official opening of a detention center dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz." Critics of Trump's harsh immigration crackdown have called the site in a reptile-filled Everglades swap inhumane, while environmental protesters oppose its construction in a national park. But Trump, who has launched a tough crackdown on undocumented migrants since returning to power, doubled down on the idea as he left the White House. "I guess that's the concept," Trump told reporters when asked if the idea behind the detention center was that people who escaped from it would get eaten by alligators or snakes. "This is not a nice business. Snakes are fast, but alligators... we're going to teach them how to run away from an alligator, okay? "If they escape prison, how to run away. Don't run in a straight line. Run like this. And you know what? Your chances go up about one percent." Florida, the southeastern state governed by conservative Republican Ron DeSantis, announced last week that it was constructing the site at an estimated cost of $450 million. It sits on an abandoned airfield in the heart of a sprawling network of mangrove forests, imposing marshes and "rivers of grass" that form the Everglades conservation area. Both the White House and Florida officials have dubbed it "Alligator Alcatraz" -- a reference to the former island prison in San Francisco that Trump has said he wants to reopen. "There is only one road leading in, and the only way out is a one-way flight. It is isolated and surrounded by dangerous wildlife and unforgiving terrain," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday. Asked if the scaly-skinned predators were a "design feature," Leavitt replied: "When you have illegal murderers and rapists and heinous criminals in a detention facility surrounded by alligators, yes I do think that's a deterrent for them to try to escape." While Trump administration officials routinely highlight the targeting of violent criminals, many migrants without any charges against them have also been swept up in the crackdown. - 'Alligators and pythons' - The Everglades National Park is particularly known as a major habitat for alligators, with an estimated population of around 200,000. They can reach up to 15 feet in length when fully grown. Attacks by alligators on humans are relatively rare in Florida. Across the entire state there were 453 "unprovoked bite incidents" between 1948 and 2022, 26 of which resulted in human fatalities, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. But authorities have played up the risk. "If people get out, there's not much waiting for them, other than alligators and pythons," Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said recently as he described the detention camp. He also described the site as a "low-cost opportunity to build a temporary detention facility, because you don't need to invest that much in the perimeter." The White House's Leavitt said it would be a 5,000-bed facility, but Florida authorities have said it would house about 1,000 "criminal aliens." Trump's administration is playing up "Alligator Alcatraz" as it drums up support for a huge tax and spending bill that the president is trying to push through Congress this week. The "One Big Beautiful Bill" contains funding for Trump's immigration crackdown including an increase in places in detention centers. The deportation drive is part of a broader campaign of harsh optics on migration, including raids in Los Angeles that sparked protests against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency. dk/st Originally published as Trump heads for 'Alligator Alcatraz' migrant detention center
Sky News AU
6 hours ago
- Sky News AU
US President Donald Trump hits back at Elon Musk, threatens with him with DOGE after proposed ‘America Party' announcement
Donald Trump has lashed out at billionaire Elon Musk after the Tesla and Space X chief executive floated creating a political party to protest the United States President's so called 'big beautiful bill'. The controversial spending bill, which is currently making its way through US Congress, has sparked fierce criticism from Musk, who previously described it as a "disgusting abomination". Musk has since taken to social media to announce his plan to form the 'America Party' if the bill, which he has labelled 'insane', does pass. 'Our country needs an alternative to the Democrat-Republican uniparty so that the people actually have a VOICE,' Musk posted on X at about 8am on Tuesday AEST. The world's richest man also reposted a chart which appeared to show historic levels of US national debt. 'They just pretend to be two parties,' Musk posted, appearing to reference the Republican and Democratic parties. 'It's just one uniparty in reality.' President Trump has now hit back on his own social media platform, Truth Social, taking aim at Musk over the electric vehicle sales mandate introduced under former president Joe Biden. 'Elon Musk knew, long before he so strongly Endorsed me for President, that I was strongly against the EV mandate. It is ridiculous, and was always a major part of my campaign. Electric cars are fine, but not everyone should be forced to own one,' Trump posted on the platform at 2.44pm on Tuesday, AEST. The US commander-in-chief then claimed Musk possibly received more subsidies than 'any human being in history, by far' and that the Tesla boss would likely be forced to 'head back home to South Africa' without them. He also appeared to threaten Musk with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) - a federal cost-cutting body created and headed by Musk before the billionaire departed from the role in May. 'No more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE. Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!' President Trump's post said. The new comments come amid a continued public fallout between the President and Musk that broke out last month over the tax and spending bill, which is expected to add US$3.3 trillion to the country's national debt. The pair since have since traded jabs over social media, including Musk claiming President Trump was 'in the Epstein files' and the US leader threatening to end Musk's "Governmental Subsidies and Contracts".
