Trump to deploy military to border, end Biden parole policies in flurry of Day One executive orders
EXCLUSIVE: President-elect Trump on Monday will order the deployment of U.S. troops to the southern border, stamp out Biden-era parole policies and designate international cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations — in a slew of nearly a dozen executive orders designed to drastically overhaul U.S. border and immigration policy. Fox News obtained exclusive details of three of the expected 11 executive orders Trump will sign related to border security and immigration after he is inaugurated. In one order, Trump will immediately direct the federal government to resume construction of the border wall, which was largely ended under the Biden administration. That order will also end Biden-era parole policies, including the use of the CBP One app to parole migrants into the U.S., and the parole processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans (CHNV) — under which 30,000 nationals a month were allowed to fly in and be admitted under parole. Nearly 1.5 million migrants have been allowed in under CHNV and CBP One. TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PLANNING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT ARRESTS THROUGHOUT US ON ‘DAY ONE’ The order will also order government agencies to reinstate the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), known as the Remain-in-Mexico policy. That Trump-era policy, ended by the Biden administration, required migrants to stay in Mexico for the duration of their asylum hearings. A second order will order U.S. troops to be deployed to the border under U.S. Northern Command and will “instruct the military to prioritize our own borders and territorial integrity in strategic planning for its operations.” It will direct the military to prioritize U.S. border and territorial integrity in strategic planning. The Secretary of Defense will be required to provide a Unified Command Plan and military resources will be integrated with federal law enforcement and intelligence “to ensure seamless operations and maximum effectiveness,” according to a fact sheet on the order. TRUMP DHS PICK NOEM PLEDGES TO END CONTROVERSIAL APP USED BY MIGRANTS ON ‘DAY ONE’ “This Executive Order sends a clear message that the United States intends to exercise its sovereignty over its land and borders and that the Armed Forces have a role to play in protecting our borders,” Fox News is told. A third order will designate international cartels and organizations, including MS-13 and the bloodthirsty Tren de Aragua, as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGT). An FTO designation allows for targeted action against members, including financial penalties. Declaring that the organizations function as quasi-governments in some regions, and flood the U.S. with criminals and drugs, the order will declare the groups a national security threat and invokes the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to stop their operations. The orders will be three of the expected 11 border-related executive orders that Trump is expected to sign on Monday. He is expected to announce some during his inauguration address, and others during signings at the White House. It is the clearest sign yet from the incoming administration that it fully intends to deliver on its cornerstone campaign promise of securing the southern border and launching an historic mass deportation campaign. CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF THE BORDER SECURITY CRISIS It comes after a years-long crisis at the southern border which began in 2021 and continued through into 2024, slowing down after increased action from Mexico and a June Biden executive order that prevented migrants from claiming asylum. Trump has appointed former Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director Tom Homan as “border czar” to oversee border security and the deportation operation. He has also nominated South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem to serve as the next DHS secretary. “Border security must remain a top priority,” Noem told lawmakers on Friday.
Trump vows a ‘new chapter’ for America, promises the ‘best days are yet to come’ in pre-Inauguration video
FIRST ON FOX: President-elect Trump says his second term represents a “new chapter” for America and promises the American people that the country’s “best days are yet to come.” Trump makes that pledge in a video released by his team Monday morning, just hours before he will take the presidential oath of office and be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. The video, titled “It all comes down to this: Inauguration Day 2025,” features the president’s journey from leaving office in 2021, to the FBI’s unprecedented raid on his Mar-a-Lago home, to days in court, to the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where he was nearly assassinated, to highlights from the campaign trail. DONALD TRUMP WINS 2024 ELECTION “If I give you one message to hold in your hearts today, it’s this: never ever give up,” Trump says in the video. Then, reporter voices reflecting on the “FBI raid at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence… Deadly force being authorized.” “Nothing worth doing ever, ever, ever came easy,” Trump says, followed by clips of the news of his indictment from Special Counsel Jack Smith and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Smith’s cases against Trump were both dismissed. Trump sat through a six-week-long unprecedented trial in Manhattan for Bragg’s charges, and was found guilty by a jury, but was given a sentence of an unconditional discharge by the judge – meaning no punishment whatsoever. “Over the course of your life, you will find that things are not always fair,” Trump says. “You will find that things happen to you that you do not deserve.” TRUMP SWEARING-IN TO MOVE INDOORS DUE TO COLD WEATHER, SOURCE TELLS FOX NEWS The video shifts to Trump during his Butler rally, just moments before he was shot. Trump, just days before accepting the Republican nomination, survived an assassination attempt at a rally on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania. During the event, Trump was showing off a chart highlighting how illegal immigration skyrocketed under the Biden-Harris administration. As he turned toward the chart, he was hit by a bullet that pierced the upper part of his right ear by the now-deceased would-be-assassin, Thomas Matthew Crooks. Trump credits the chart for saving his life. “But you have to put your head down, and fight, fight, fight,” Trump narrates. “Never ever, ever give up. The more people tell you it’s not possible, that it can’t be done, the more you should be absolutely determined to prove them wrong.” Trump says to “treat the word ‘impossible’ as nothing more than motivation.” “Relish the opportunity to be an outsider because it’s the outsiders who change the world,” Trump says, “and who make a real and lasting difference.” CARRIE UNDERWOOD TO PERFORM ‘AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL’ AT TRUMP INAUGURATION He also says, “The more that a broken system tells you that you’re wrong, the more certain you should be that you must keep pushing ahead, you must keep pushing forward.” Trump continues his narration, saying, “Never stop fighting for what you believe in and for the people who care about you.” “America is beginning a new chapter,” Trump says. “Our best days are yet to come – I can promise you that.”
Steve Bannon warns of world conflict that could be ‘Trump’s Vietnam’
President-elect Donald Trump‘s former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, reportedly is warning of an impending world conflict that could equate to “Trump’s Vietnam.” The “War Room” host has been using his daily radio show and podcast to advocate that Trump make an announcement on “Day One” that he will end the war in Ukraine quickly. In an interview with Politico, Bannon said he is aggressively urging that Trump do so in his Inauguration Day speech, warning that the soon-to-be 47th president could be entrapped by the U.S. defense industry, the Europeans and even some of Bannon’s own friends, who he says have teamed up to push the United States to continue sending military aid to Ukraine. That includes Keith Kellogg, a retired U.S. general who Trump tapped to become special envoy to Ukraine and Russia. Though friends, Bannon says Kellogg is misguided in pushing that the U.S. continue sending aid to Ukraine while an agreement is sorted that includes security guarantees that make certain Russia will not launch another invasion. A further delay in ending the three-year conflict, Bannon countered, risks the United States being pulled deeper into a war that cannot be won and runs counter to American national interests. RUSSIA, IRAN TO SEAL PARTNERSHIP TREATY DAYS BEFORE TRUMP TAKES OFFICE “If we aren’t careful, it will turn into Trump’s Vietnam,” Bannon said. “That’s what happened to Richard Nixon. He ended up owning the war, and it went down as his war, not Lyndon Johnson’s.” “I’m going nuts right now to make sure there’s something on Monday, an announcement,” he added. “Because you have Kellogg saying it will take 100 days, the old foreign policy establishment are saying six months.” Bannon reportedly said Trump must communicate to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that “there’s a new sheriff in town, and we’re going to get a deal done, and we’re going to get it done quickly.” He added that Zelenskyy ought to pay attention to how Trump pressured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into accepting the terms of a cease-fire and hostage release deal with Hamas before the president-elect takes office. Bannon lamented to Politico how he views NATO as having morphed into more of an American protectorate than an alliance. BIDEN THANKS TROOPS FOR ‘STRENGTH’ AND ‘INTEGRITY’ IN UNPRECEDENTED TIMES AT FAREWELL ADDRESS TO MILITARY “If you look at NATO, I don’t think it can put together two combat divisions of Europeans that are ready to fight,” Bannon said. “Europe has gotten away with early retirement and full health care because they don’t pay for their own defense.” As for Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Bannon continued, “Putin’s a bad guy. He’s a very bad guy. The KGB are bad guys. But I don’t stay up at night worrying about Russian influence on Europe.” “Number 1, their military hasn’t even got to Kyiv. In three years, they couldn’t get there,” Bannon said. “They haven’t taken Kharkiv even. You know why I don’t stay awake at night? Because the Europeans don’t stay awake at night. They don’t consider Russia a real threat. If they did, they would throw a lot more money and troops into the game.” Bannon, who said he supports Trump’s proposals for the U.S. to gain control of Greenland and the Panama Canal, both in his eyes crucial to U.S. national security, then turned back to Europe. He called former British Conservative leader Boris Johnson a “war criminal,” adding that he believes too many European leaders consider themselves the Winston Churchill of their day. “The Ukraine war is the central screw-up of Europe over the last couple of years,” Bannon told Politico. “You have a million dead or wounded Ukrainians. And we’re going to end up, best case, we’re going to end up exactly where this thing started, as I said three years ago. And it’s because you have Boris Johnson and [French President Emmanuel] Macron, all these fantasists that won’t pay for their own defense. They want to be big shots. They all want to be Winston Churchill with other people’s money and other people’s lives.”
Biden pardons Mark Milley, Anthony Fauci, J6 committee members
President Biden pardoned Dr. Anthony Fauci, Gen. Mark Milley, and others who some speculated may have faced investigations under the incoming Trump administration on Monday. Biden’s pardons come just hours before he is set to depart the White House and President-elect Trump takes the oath of office once again. The pardon also applies to a litany of people involved in the January 6 select committee investigation. In addition to the named individuals, the pardon applies to, “Members of Congress and staff who served on the Select Committee, and the U.S. Capitol and D.C. Metropolitan police officers who testified before the Select Committee.” Notably, Special Counsel Jack Smith, former FBI Director Christopher Wray and Attorney General Merrick Garland are not included in the pardon, despite speculation that they may face backlash from the incoming administration. HUNTER BIDEN PARDON: MEDIA TAKES LATEST BLOW TO CREDIBILITY WITH BOTCHED COVERAGE OF BROKEN PROMISE Milley thanked Biden in a statement on Monday. “My family and I are deeply grateful for the President’s action today,” he wrote. “After forty-three years of faithful service in uniform to our Nation, protecting and defending the Constitution, I do not wish to spend whatever remaining time the Lord grants me fighting those who unjustly might seek retribution for perceived slights. “I do not want to put my family, my friends, and those with whom I served through the resulting distraction, expense, and anxiety,” he added. Condemnation of the move began to pour in almost immediately on Monday. Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., blasted Biden’s legacy minutes after the order dropped. “The guy who claimed he would ‘protect norms’ continues to bulldoze them and the Constitution until the bitter end. Biden truly is one of the worst Presidents in American history and will only be remembered as the guy between Trump’s two terms,” Schmitt wrote on X. HUNTER BIDEN SAYS HIS MISTAKES WERE ‘EXPLOITED’ FOR POLITICAL SPORT, SAYS HE WON’T TAKE PARDON FOR GRANTED Biden had teased the possibility of issuing pre-emptive pardons weeks ago in an interview with USA Today. Biden’s pardons at the end of his term have proven to be some of his most controversial actions as president, particularly the pardon for his son, Hunter Biden. Biden had repeatedly vowed that he would not intervene on his son’s behalf, but he issued a blanket pardon regardless. The president later claimed that he had broken the promise after finding out Hunter had paid his back taxes. Biden’s pardon of Hunter was defended in some corners as a natural move from someone protecting his own family, but many prominent figures derided it as a craven flip-flop that would damage the White House and the president’s legacy. “Everyone looks stupid,” Pod Save America co-host and ex-Obama aide Tommy Vietor said at the time. “Everyone looks like they are full of s—. And Republicans are going to use this to argue it was politics as usual when Democrats warned of Trump’s corruption or threat to the rule or the threat to democracy.” Fox News’ David Rutz contributed to this report
John Fetterman and Lindsey Graham advocate for the destruction of Iran’s nuclear program
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., are both calling for the destruction of Iran’s nuclear program. “I don’t think diplomacy works,” Graham declared during an interview on “Face the Nation,” calling Iran a “religious Nazi regime,” that wants “to destroy the Jewish State.” “I am hoping there will be an effort by Israel to decimate the Iran nuclear program, supported by the United States. And if we don’t do that it will be a historical mistake,” Graham said. LINDSEY GRAHAM DEFENDS KASH PATEL IN HEATED EXCHANGE WITH CBS HOST Fetterman agreed with Graham’s call for the decimation of Iran’s nuclear program. “One Hundred Percent,” the Democratic lawmaker declared in a post on X. Graham responded, “Spot on, @SenFettermanPA. You get it.” IRAN’S PRESIDENT DENIES CLAIM THAT IRAN TRIED TO ASSASSINATE TRUMP Fetterman, an unwavering and outspoken supporter of Israel, has previously advocated for the destruction of Iran’s nuclear program. “Whatever remains of Iran’s nuclear program needs to be destroyed and I fully support efforts to do so,” he declared in a tweet earlier this month. SEN. DAVE MCCORMICK ‘OPTIMISTIC’ ABOUT WORKING WITH SEN. FETTERMAN TO FIND ’COMMON GROUND’: ‘EMBRACING’ CHANGE Fetterman recently met with President-elect Donald Trump, later describing the meeting as a “positive experience.”
China executes two men for committing deadly ‘revenge on society crimes’
Fan Weiqu had rammed his car into a crowd, killing 35 people, while 21-year-old Xu Jiajin killed eight people and injured 17 in a stabbing attack. China has executed two men who committed deadly attacks that killed dozens in November, raising concerns about a surge in what are called “revenge on society crimes”, state media reported. Fan Weiqu, 62, who rammed his car into a crowd outside a sports stadium in the southern city of Zhuhai, killing at least 35 people, was executed on Monday. The attack was the country’s deadliest in more than a decade, according to authorities. Police said Fan was upset over his divorce settlement. Also in November, 21-year-old Xu Jiajin killed eight people and injured 17 in a stabbing attack at his vocational school in the eastern city of Wuxi. Police said Wu had failed his examinations and could not graduate, and was dissatisfied about his pay at an internship. He was also executed on Monday, according to state broadcaster CCTV. Chinese President Xi Jinping urged local governments to take measures to prevent such attacks, known as “revenge on society crimes”. The two men’s death sentences were issued by the intermediate people’s courts in the cities of Zhuhai and Wuxi, respectively, in December, and approved by the Supreme People’s Court, according to state media. Advertisement Violent crimes are rarer in China than in many Western countries, but the country has seen a rise in recent years. Stabbings and car attacks have challenged the governing Communist Party’s reputation for strict public security and crime prevention. They also carried a shock factor that led some to question perceived social ills such as frustration with a slowing economy, high unemployment and diminishing social mobility. China classifies death penalty statistics as a state secret, but some rights groups believe the country executes thousands every year. Executions are traditionally carried out by gunshot, though lethal injections have also been introduced in recent years. Adblock test (Why?)
How does Trump’s age at inauguration compare to other presidents?
EXPLAINER At 78 years and 7 months, Donald Trump will become the oldest president in US history on inauguration day. Donald Trump is set to be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States on Monday. The 78-year-old will commence his second term as president, becoming the oldest individual to ever assume the office. He will be five months older than Joe Biden, who previously held the record for the oldest president on Inauguration Day in 2021. In the following explainer, Al Jazeera visualises the ages of all US presidents on Inauguration Day, along with their lifespans and years in office. The oldest and youngest US presidents Donald J Trump was born in Queens, New York on June 14, 1946, less than a year after the end of World War II. In 2017, at the age of 70, Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States, making him the oldest president to be inaugurated, surpassing Ronald Reagan, who was just about to turn 70 on Inauguration Day in 1981. The average age of US presidents at their inauguration is 57, a figure that spans from George Washington, the first president, who was 57 in 1789, to the present day. Advertisement The youngest US president at the time of his inauguration was Theodore Roosevelt, who became president at the age of 42 after the assassination of William McKinley in 1901. The US presidents who lived the longest The longest-living US president was Jimmy Carter, who died on December 29, 2024 at the age of 100. He lived 43 years after serving one term as president from 1977 to 1981 – longer than any other president. Out of the 41 presidents who have died, six lived to be over 90, five lived between 80 and 90, and the average age of death was 72. John F Kennedy, the 35th president, lived the shortest of all US presidents. He was assassinated in 1963 at the age of 46. Longest-serving US presidents Prior to 1951, there was no formal limit to how many terms a US president could serve. The two-term limit was officially established by the 22nd Amendment, ratified on February 27, 1951, largely in response to Franklin D Roosevelt four terms in office. Roosevelt, the longest-serving US president, served from 1933 to 1945, completing more than 12 years in office before his death at the age of 63 during his fourth term. Most US presidents have served one term rather than two. Of the 46 presidencies, only 15 presidents have served two or more terms. The shortest-serving president was William Henry Harrison who died on April 4, 1841, just one month into his term. Adblock test (Why?)
Aerial photos show scale of Israeli destruction in Gaza
Much of the Gaza Strip is destroyed after more than 15 months of relentless Israeli bombings, leaving hundreds of thousands of Palestinians with nowhere to live. About 90 percent of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents were forcibly displaced during the genocide – many of them multiple times. With a ceasefire now in effect, many are returning to their homes, but more than a year of Israeli bombardment has left most houses in ruins and completely uninhabitable. “The halting of the bloodshed is an indescribable feeling. I thank God that I survived this war safely. However, when we returned to our homes, we found nothing but ruin and destruction. I cannot describe the scene in words. I don’t know what to say,” Jomaa Shadi, a displaced Palestinian, told Al Jazeera. “I built this house piece by piece, and when I returned to it, I didn’t find it as I knew it. I don’t see my home, I only see destruction.” Adblock test (Why?)
Trump heads back to the White House and he’s taking these Texans with him
Texans have been tapped to run the CIA, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Agriculture.
RG Kar doctor rape-murder: Sanjoy Roy sentenced to life term by Kolkata court
Sanjoy Roy sentenced to life term till death by Kolkata court in rape and murder of on-duty doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.