Trump administration briefing: President downplays market volatility; US placed on civic decline watchlist
The US president predicted that his economic goals would take time and a period of transition to bear fruit. But when asked in an interview with the Fox News show Sunday Morning Futures 'are you expecting a recession this year?' he demurred.
'I hate to predict things like that. There is a period of transition, because what we're doing is very big. We're bringing wealth back to America. That's a big thing. And there are always periods of, it takes a little time. It takes a little time, but I think it should be great for us,' Trump said.
Trump downplayed recent stock market volatility that followed his ducking and weaving over tariff policy on exports from Canada, Mexico and China and similar threats to other countries, despite his usual fixation with market performance in relation to the politics of the day and an appetite to claim credit when stocks rise on his watch.
'You have to do what's right,' he said.
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The United States has been added to the Civicus Monitor Watchlist, which identifies countries that the global civil rights watchdog believes are currently experiencing a rapid decline in civic freedoms.
Civicus, an international non-profit organization dedicated to 'strengthening citizen action and civil society around the world', announced the inclusion of the US on the non-profit's first watchlist of 2025 on Monday, alongside the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Italy, Pakistan and Serbia.
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Homeland security secretary Kristi Noem on Sunday announced new leadership at the agency tasked with immigration enforcement as she also pledged to step up lie detector tests on employees to identify those who may be leaking information about operations to the media.
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A prominent Palestinian activist who helped lead Columbia University's student encampment movement was arrested on Saturday night by federal immigration authorities who claimed they were acting on a state department order to revoke his green card, according to his attorney. Mahmoud Khalil had become one of the most visible faces of the pro-Palestinian movement at Columbia.
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It has become a familiar routine for the Palm Beach county sheriff, Ric Bradshaw, and his deputies. Almost every Tuesday in recent weeks, the Federal Aviation Administration has posted to its website a formal 'notice to airmen' advising of upcoming flight restrictions over south Florida, signaling once again to those who must protect him that Donald Trump is on his way to Mar-a-Lago for another weekend of golf.
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Globally renowned brands would not, ordinarily, want to be associated with Germany's far-right opposition. But Tesla, one of the world's biggest corporate names, does not have a conventional chief executive.
After Elon Musk backed Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) – calling the party Germany's 'only hope' – voters are considering an alternative to Tesla. Data released on Thursday showed that registrations of the company's electric cars in Germany fell 76% to 1,429 last month. Overall, electric vehicle registrations rose by 31%.
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Cuomo's long history in New York politics and name recognition has helped him storm to a lead in a field featuring an incumbent – Eric Adams – whom many see as corrupt, and a large number of lesser-known candidates who are struggling to get much traction.
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The View, one of the US's most popular daytime television programmes, was a vital campaign stop last year for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. This week, it played host to a cable sports channel personality who might be nurturing political ambitions of his own.
Stephen A Smith was asked by co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin what he makes of hypothetical polls that show him among the leading contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028. 'I make of it that citizens, particularly on the left, are desperate,' Smith said in characteristically forthright style. 'And I mean it when I say it: I think I can beat them all.'
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Amy Coney Barrett, the Donald Trump-appointed conservative supreme court justice, has been branded a 'DEI judge' by furious rightwing figures, after she voted to reject Trump's attempt to freeze nearly $2bn in foreign aid.
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Crews continue to battle wind-driven brush fire on New York's Long Island. Officials have warned that high wind gusts threatened to ignite further blazes.
Gene Hackman's final days were marked by isolation, authorities have indicated, with the actor alone in the house for days, disoriented and too frail to seek help. His pacemaker last recorded his heartbeat on 18 February, about a week after the death of his wife.
Tree loss from hurricane Helene has left the city of Asheville and its surrounding areas vulnerable to floods, fires and extreme heat. Thousands of trees that provided shade and protection from storms were uprooted, with the extent of the tree damage described as 'extraordinary and humbling' by research ecologist Steve Norman.
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