Trump orders inquiry into Biden's actions as president over ‘cognitive decline' reports
Donald Trump has ordered an investigation into his predecessor Joe Biden's actions as president, alleging that his top aides masked the Democratic president's 'cognitive decline'.
Biden beat Trump during the 2020 election and dropped out of his re-election bid after a disastrous debate performance sparked concerns about his age and mental acuity.
Biden's cognitive abilities during his presidency had been a Republican talking point for several years, but reporting in numerous US media outlets and a recent book co-authored by Jake Tapper, a CNN host, have revealed that top Democrats and people in Biden's inner circle also had serious misgivings about his ability to do the duties of president.
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Daily Mail
5 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Putin's nuclear revenge: Why Kyiv's devastating drone attack could be trigger for Russia to use tactical nukes in Ukraine
Ukraine's breathtaking drone operation that heralded the destruction of Russian bomber aircraft thousands of miles from the border has raised fears Kyiv 's forces may have crossed a threshold set out in Moscow's nuclear weapon use policy. Operation Spiderweb, conducted Sunday by Ukraine's security services (SBU), saw more than a hundred drones destroy and damage at least a dozen strategic bombers capable of carrying nuclear weapons after being smuggled across Russia on trucks. The drones were reportedly piloted by Ukrainian operatives housed in a building close to an office of Russia's FSB security service and successfully evaded detection in a scathing indictment of Russia's intelligence apparatus. While the attack may not have significantly impacted Moscow 's immediate warfighting capabilities, it showed a willingness and a capability on the part of Ukraine to threaten some of Russia's most prized military assets - up to and including parts of its nuclear triad. Several civilians have already been killed in retributive barrages of drone and missile attacks unleashed by Putin's forces on towns and cities across Ukraine, including Kyiv, since the attacks unfolded on Sunday. But these brutal bombardments are likely just one part of Russia's revenge. US President Donald Trump claimed Putin said that he had to retaliate during a call between the two leaders, before the Kremlin yesterday issued an official statement saying it would choose 'how and when' to respond. Then this morning, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov elevated the rhetoric, telling reporters in Moscow that the war in Ukraine is an 'existential issue for Russia's national interest, safety, on our future and the future of our children'. Now, analysts and officials have warned the daring drone strikes could be considered in Moscow to have crossed a red line set out in Russia's nuclear doctrine, opening up the prospect of a tactical nuclear weapon being deployed on Ukrainian soil. Putin in November signed off on an updated version of the Kremlin's nuclear doctrine that broadened the scope for Moscow to turn to its fearsome atomic arsenal on the same day that US-made missiles rained down on Russian soil. The new document, which replaced the previous iteration outlined in 2020, allows Putin's strategic forces to deploy their devastating weapons if Russia or ally Belarus is threatened by a non-nuclear nation supported by a nuclear power. It also greenlit the use of nuclear weapons in the event of attacks by an adversary on important state or military infrastructure that could potentially disrupt the actions of Russia's nuclear forces. Threats that could warrant a nuclear response from Russia's leadership include an attack with conventional missiles, aircraft or drones, according to the updated document. It is unclear whether any of Ukraine's nuclear-powered backers in the West - namely the US, UK and France - were in any way responsible for supporting the planning or execution of Operation Spiderweb. But George Beebe, Director of Grand Strategy at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft and former director of Russia analysis at the CIA, said there is a real possibility that Putin's inner circle may believe that to be the case. 'They might well look at this situation and decide that this was a joint attack - that the Ukrainians could not have pulled this off without the knowledge and support of the United States or our NATO allies in Europe,' he told Foreign Policy magazine. 'Now, whether that is true or not, the danger here is that Russians might perceive that to be the case. 'We're dealing with a situation here where the Russians may be concerned that Trump is doing just what people accuse Putin of doing - namely, talking about peace while conducting war.' In November, when Western-made missiles launched by Ukrainian forces struck targets in Russia, Moscow delivered a clear signal that it was serious about lowering the threshold for nuclear conflict. Days later, Putin's forces delivered a punishing strike on Ukraine's Dnipro region with an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) dubbed 'Oreshnik' - which is believed to have been derived from the RS-26 missile capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads. Earlier this week, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova hinted that Western nations aided Kyiv in carrying out Operation Spiderweb. 'The West is involved in the terrorist activities of the Kiev regime... The countries of the 'collective West' supply weapons specifically for the purpose of committing terrorist acts,' she said in a statement. Some analysts have pointed out that Ukraine's attack, while more shocking than any prior assault on Russian strategic assets, was still carefully calculated to show restraint. The operation sought to damage Russia's Tu-22 and Tu-95 bomber aircraft, which have been frequently deployed since the start of the war to deliver conventional air-launched missile attacks on Ukraine. Although both the Tu-22 and Tu-95 are capable of carrying strategic nuclear weapons, that role is largely the reserve of Russia's fleet of Tu-160 'BlackJack' planes. These advanced, heavy strategic bombers are seen as a cornerstone of Russia's airborne nuclear deterrent, able to fly some 12,500 kilometres while carrying up to 40 tonnes of ordnance - and have largely remained absent from the Ukraine conflict. Kyiv, despite clearly boasting the capability to strike Russia's airborne assets thousands of kilometres from the border, chose not to target Tu-160s en masse - a move that could signal Volodymyr Zelensky's understanding of Moscow's limits and one which offers the Kremlin some wiggle room when plotting its response. But Beebe warned that Ukraine's operation was likely to cause a rapid escalation in the conflict regardless, reasoning that those close to Putin will be saying 'we can't afford not to respond, because if we don't, this will just cement this impression that Ukraine and its allies in the West can just continue to push across all Russian red lines'. For now though, it seems Ukrainian citizens will simply have to contend with an ever increasing threat of conventional drone and missile strikes. Russia targeted at least six regions across the country with 407 drones and 44 missiles in one of its largest coordinated attacks of the three-year war overnight into today. Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said search and rescue operations are underway at several locations in the city. Multiple explosions were heard in Kyiv, where falling debris sparked fires across several districts as air defence systems attempted to intercept incoming targets, according to Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Administration. 'Our air defence crews are doing everything possible. But we must protect one another - stay safe,' Tkachenko wrote on Telegram. Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat said the barrage included ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as a mix of strike drones and decoys. Ukrainian forces said they shot down about 30 of the cruise missiles and up to 200 of the drones. Ukrainian cities have come under regular bombardment since Russia invaded its neighbour in February 2022. The attacks have killed more than 12,000 civilians, according to the United Nations. Meanwhile in the UK, Britain's Strategic Defence Review (SDR) has warned of what the UK could expect to face in the event of a conflict with Russia as concern grows over the potential consequences of Operation Spiderweb. In a comprehensive 144-page document unveiled by Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Defence Secretary John Healey earlier this week, defence chiefs outlined the five terrifying 'methods of attack' Britain should brace itself for. Military bases, ports and airfields in the UK would be the first to come under siege, blasted by waves of drones and long-range cruise, ballistic or hypersonic missiles. Oil rigs, subsea cables, satellite communications and merchant vessels would also find themselves in the crosshairs of any onslaught by Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin, with saboteurs seeking to damage or destroy them. And a shadowy digital army of hackers would also launch a devastating barrage of cyber attacks, targeting government bodies, stock exchanges, communications and other critical infrastructure in a bid to paralyse Britain. The SDR warned: 'Based on the current way of war, if the UK were to fight a state-on-state war as part of NATO in 2025, it could expect to be subject to some or all of the following methods of attack: Attacks on the armed forces in the UK and on overseas bases Air and missile strikes from long range drones, cruise and ballistic missiles targeting military infrastructure and critical national infrastructure Increased sabotage and cyber attacks Attempts to disrupt the UK economy - especially the industry that supports the armed forces - through cyber attacks, intercepting shipping trade and attacks on space-based infrastructure
Reuters
9 minutes ago
- Reuters
Morning Bid: Trump-Musk bust-up smolders
LONDON, June 5 (Reuters) - What matters in U.S. and global markets today Donald Trump's hotly anticipated meetings with the leaders of the world's two other biggest economies ended up being sideshows compared to his online bust-up with billionaire backer Elon Musk. It's Friday, so today I'll provide a quick overview of what's happening in global markets and then offer you some weekend reading suggestions away from the headlines. Today's Market Minute * White House aides scheduled a call between Donald Trump and Elon Musk for Friday, Politico reported, after a huge public spat that saw threats fly over government contracts and ended with the world's richest man suggesting the U.S. president should be impeached. * U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping confronted weeks of brewing trade tensions and a battle over critical minerals in a rare leader-to-leader call on Thursday that left key issues to further talks. * China has signalled for more than 15 years that it was looking to weaponise areas of the global supply chain, a strategy modelled on longstanding American export controls Beijing views as aimed at stalling its rise. The scramble in recent weeks to secure export licences for rare earths shows China has devised a better, more precisely targeted weapon for the trade war. * By any measure, the recent resilience of U.S. stocks is remarkable, with Wall Street powering through numerous headwinds to erase all its tariff-fueled losses and move into positive territory for the year. Reuters columnist Jamie McGeever explains why the rally may still have some juice left in it. * There are some tentative early signs that weak thermal coal prices are starting to boost import demand among Asia's heavyweight buyers China and India. Read Reuters Columnist Clyde Russell to find out more. Trump-Musk bust-up smolders For markets trying to navigate everything from creeping signs of labor market weakness to the latest European Central Bank easing, the spat between the U.S. president and the world's richest man proved more than a distraction. It remains to be seen if it overshadows the May payrolls report later on Friday. The extraordinary sparring match drew in other major political and business figures and included potentially seismic accusations and threats. In turn, the share price of Musk's Tesla .TSLA plummeted almost 20% at one point, dragging Wall Street stock indexes and crypto tokens deep into the red. The public feud appeared to cool off somewhat overnight and allowed stock futures to regain some lost ground. But the fact that the spat overshadowed the other major events of the day was another marker of this administration's unpredictability. The substance of the row was over Trump's "one big beautiful" fiscal bill that Musk thinks is a "disgusting abomination" due to the amount of spending. The bill, which has yet to be passed by the Senate, is expected to add $2.4 trillion to the U.S. debt over the next decade, based on CBO estimates. The vast bulk of this will likely be incurred over the next four years. In the background, the call between Trump and China's President Xi Jinping delivered no breakthroughs in the trade row apart from warmer words and an agreement to resume talks. The Oval Office meeting with Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz was relatively positive about trade and diplomatic issues. Earlier in the day, the ECB cut rates again as expected and suggested that there may be a pause at its next meeting and that it could be near the end of its easing cycle now that 'real' inflation-adjusted rates are back near zero. The euro hit a six-week high on Thursday regardless, although it gave back those daily gains today. Rising weekly U.S. jobless claims, meantime, cast a shadow over today's release of the May employment report. Consensus forecasts are for a slowdown in payroll growth to 130,000. Treasury yields , which ebbed and flowed all day on the conflicting signals from the trade meetings and stock gyrations, are back hovering at the week's lows ahead of the jobs report. Even though Federal Reserve officials continue to signal caution about the uncertain outlook ahead, markets are now priced for a resumption of Fed cuts by September. Into the already confusing mix, the Treasury released its annual report on potential currency manipulation overseas, adding Switzerland and Ireland to its watchlist, which already includes China, Japan, Germany, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Vietnam. The list likely carries more heft than usual amid multiple tense trade negotiations. Markets assume the U.S. may pressure other countries to let their currencies appreciate versus the dollar as part of deals to avert severe tariffs being re-imposed next month. The Swiss National Bank responded on Friday by saying it would intervene in currency markets where necessary to keep inflation on track. Intervention to cap a super-strong franc has been a critical monetary tool used over the past decade and may need to be tapped again now that Swiss inflation has returned negative just as the SNB's key interest rate is set to return to zero in June. Elsewhere, China's yuan slipped against the dollar while falling to a near two-year low versus its major trading partners on Friday as the Trump-Xi call fell short of many expectations. Stock markets overseas were mixed on Friday as Wall Street remained on edge and the U.S. jobs report loomed. In the euro zone, first-quarter GDP was revised higher to show twice the growth originally estimated: 0.6% quarter-on-quarter, leading to an annual rate of 1.5%. India's central bank cut key rates by a larger-than-expected 50 basis points to 5.5%, its steepest cut in five years. It also slashed its cash reserve ratio - funds that banks are required to hold - by 100 bps to 3% in a surprise move aimed at boosting lending and speeding up policy transmission. In single stocks, Tesla shares recovered around 5% in Frankfurt on Friday, having closed down 14% in New York yesterday amid the Trump-Musk spat. It lost about $150 billion in market value yesterday, which caused the erstwhile member of the 'Magnificent Seven' megacaps to drop to ninth in the list of most-valuable firms behind Broadcom and Berkshire Hathaway. Broadcom's shares (AVGO.O), opens new tab, however, fell 4% in extended trading overnight as its forecast-beating earnings seemed to underwhelm the Street. In Bank of America's weekly tally of fund flows, U.S. stocks saw outflows of $7.5 billion, the third week of exits, while European shares saw inflows of $2.6 billion, the eighth week of inflows. Weekend reading suggestions * 'BLUE BONDS': European countries should seize the moment to boost the size and liquidity of jointly-issued euro sovereign debt, and a solution could be to replace a proportion of the stock of national bonds with senior Eurobonds, or 'blue bonds'., opens new tab So says a 'working document' from Peterson Institute senior fellow and former IMF chief economist Olivier Blanchard in a paper jointly written with Citadel's Angel Ubide. * NUCLEAR BLIND SPOTS: United Nations nuclear watchdogs appear to have lost track of some critical elements of Iran's nuclear activities since U.S. President Donald Trump ditched a 2015 deal that imposed strict restrictions and close supervision by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Reuters Francois Murphy and John Irish report on key blind spots that include not knowing how many centrifuges Iran possesses or where the machines and their parts are produced and stored. * OCEAN ECONOMY: Trade in the global 'ocean economy', opens new tab hit as much as $2.2 trillion in 2023, about 7% of total world trade, but this trade is increasingly threatened by climate change and environmental problems, the United Nations trade and development arm UNCTAD showed in a report this week. The ocean economy grew faster than the world economy at large in the five years to 2020 and an estimated 100 million jobs depend on it. * 'TRUMP DOCTRINE': The emerging foreign policy under President Donald Trump resembles a 'look the other way' doctrine, opens new tab or a 'none of our business' doctrine, argues former George W. Bush State Department official Richard Haass on Project Syndicate. "The U.S. sought to change the world, annoying some and inspiring others. Those days are gone, in some ways for better, but mostly for worse. The US has changed. It is coming to resemble many of the countries and governments it once criticized." * MAGNETIC FEW: A small team in China's Ministry of Commerce decides the fate of the global auto industry, one rare earth magnet export permit at a time. China holds a near-monopoly on rare earth magnets, a key component in electric vehicle motors, and it added them to an export control list in April as part of its trade war with the United States. Reuters' Laurie Chen and Lewis Jackson show how it falls to the Bureau of Industrial Security and Import and Export Control, part of China's Ministry of Commerce, to review export permits for the rare earth magnets, vital for car motors, wind turbines and even U.S. F-35 fighter jets. * FINANCE AND AI: Artificial intelligence advances in the financial sector, opens new tab offer enhanced data analysis, risk management and capital allocation, but there are problems too, according to a paper on CEPR's VoxEU website. As AI systems become more widespread, they introduce challenges for regulators tasked with balancing the benefits of innovation with the need for financial stability, market integrity, consumer protection and fair competition. * DRONE ATTACK: Ukraine's 'Operation Spider's Web', opens new tab last weekend used smuggled drones to attack bomber aircraft deep inside Russia, and the 'remarkable event' could affect the future of conflict, argues Council on Foreign Relations fellow Michael Horowitz. The attack "clearly shows that even targets deep in a country's territory could now be at risk". * IMF EUROPE: The case for closer European economic integration, opens new tab has become more compelling as external challenges multiply, according to Alfred Kammer, director of the International Monetary Fund's European Department. Stressing the need for the completion of the single market, Kammer said capital markets integration has been too slow and that cross-border flows have been frustrated by persistent fragmentation. "If history is a guide, Europe can turn adversity to advantage." * ALPINE TRUSTS: Liechtenstein is examining tightening control of scores of Russian-linked trusts abandoned by their managers under pressure from Washington. Reuters' John O'Donnell and Oliver Hirt cite sources in reporting that the country, one of the world's smallest and richest, is home to thousands of low-tax trusts, hundreds with links to Russians. Chart of the day Supply chain stress ticked up in May, data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said on Thursday. The bank noted that its Global Supply Chain Pressure Index for May rose to 0.19 from -0.28 in April, only the second time it stood in positive territory this year and the highest reading since the 0.20 seen in August of last year. Although the index remains subdued compared to the post-pandemic surge, growing concerns about the impact of the tariff war - particularly the impact of China's restrictions on rare earth and minerals exports on the global auto industry - will ensure policymakers keep a close eye on these pressures for any signs of re-emerging inflation. Today's events to watch * U.S. May employment report (8:30 AM EDT), April consumer credit (3:00 PM EDT); Canada May employment report (8:30 AM EDT) Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, opens new tab, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.
Telegraph
11 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Trump's tax bill is undermining the foundations of global finance
For decades, investors have been able to rely on a simple truth: the US bond market is a safe place to put money. When wars broke out, economies crashed or other calamities struck, money flowed into US Treasuries, as Washington's bonds are known, to protect wealth. As a result, the US has been able to rely on a ready supply of investors willing to fund the country's ever-increasing appetite for tax cuts and public spending. Investors wanted US debt and the federal government was only too happy to provide it. Not even half a year into Donald Trump's presidential term, however, decades of orthodoxy are being turned on their head. 'The US has generally benefited from demand for Treasuries from overseas investors. It's viewed as the global risk-free asset,' says John Stopford, a fund manager at Ninety One. 'The concern is that a lot of those beliefs or tenets about the US are being called into question, in terms of how reliable, how safe an investment are US Treasuries?' Offshore investors, battered by volatility and bewildered by uncertainty since Trump took office, are becoming increasingly wary of the US bond market. Returns have suffered as Trump's trade policies have weakened the dollar and the president's planned debt splurge has raised questions about just how sustainable US borrowing really is. The latest flash point is Trump's 'big, beautiful' tax and spending bill, which the Congressional Budget Office said would add $2.4 trillion (£1.8 trillion) to the deficit over the next decade. Elon Musk might have hogged the headlines this week with his outbursts against the bill but investors and traders are airing the same concerns, especially as higher deficits mean the US treasury will be asking them to buy more and more of its bonds. 'We're seeing it in the asset management community, some insurance funds, some pension funds, and foreign investors overall as well. It's just more caution in the buying, rather than a full-blown 'sell everything',' says Gennadiy Goldberg, head of US rates strategy at TD Securities. A crisis in the US bond market, or even just a slow ebbing of investor confidence and faith, could be the most profound and revolutionary legacy of Trump's second term. The US market and its currency might no longer offer the safe haven against risk, nor the anchor for markets worldwide. An end of this financial exceptionalism would mean higher borrowing costs for the US and pose a challenge to the entire American economy model. Moody's became the last major credit rating agency to strip the US of its gold-plated borrower status last month and analysts have raised the prospect of Trump facing his own ' Liz Truss moment ' as investors baulk at his spending plans. For now, concern is centred around where all this fiscal ill-discipline will leave the US in the 2030s and beyond. So investors are shying away from longer-dated Treasuries with terms such as 10, 20 or 30 years, and parking their money in shorter-term bonds that mature in one or two years. 'I see investors who are even cautious about the five to 10-year space,' Goldberg says. If this caution turns to panic, then a meltdown – with worldwide consequences – isn't out of the question. 'If there was a big deleveraging that happened – and there was a big source of selling, whether it's from foreign investors or hedge funds or levered investors or basis investors – it could potentially overwhelm the system,' Goldberg says. Foreign investors are also having to contend with a big drop in the US dollar, which is reducing their returns. 'It's fine to see bond yields rise if the currency is stable or appreciating. That's not what we're seeing at the moment. We're seeing bond yields rise in the US, and actually the currency, on a broad basket, is about 10pc down from its highs last year,' says James Ringer, a Schroders fund manager. The lack of buyers and the potential glut of bonds raises the possibility, or 'tail risk', that the market could cease to function properly. 'That would mean sellers overwhelming buyers,' says Goldberg. This could drive a sharp surge in rates and force an emergency intervention from the Federal Reserve. 'That is the risk going forward – that the system is unable to function if something goes wrong,' he adds. At the moment, there's little prospect of a panicked sell-off – mainly because investors have so few genuine alternatives. America's star may be on the wane but it is still the brightest light in the sky. 'The US is absolutely a mass market in terms of marketable debt. The second and third closest markets are an order of magnitude smaller, so that makes it really difficult for a lot of these investors to really get away from dollars,' says Goldberg. 'There's just no place for them to go.' But equally, with Trump at the helm, nobody is ruling anything out. 'Even if it's a tail risk or something that's unlikely, because it's there at the back of people's minds, potentially they do begin to change their behaviour,' Stopford says. 'They do begin to think, 'OK, well, I should have less exposure to the US, I should have less exposure to the dollar, I should be looking for alternatives that are safer, more reliable.' 'That's not bond vigilantes speculating. That's just people making rational decisions based on concerns about risk.' Scott Bessent began the week by telling the world: 'The United States of America is never going to default. That is never going to happen.' were meant to reassure. But the sheer fact that the US treasury secretary had to spell out something that has been taken for granted for decades highlights the fact that the fundamentals of the US financial system have been shaken. Whether they go on to crumble depends on what Trump does next.
