Trump officially secures Electoral College victory as his candidates push for Senate support: live updates

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Donald Trump officially won the electoral college and the presidency after Texas voters gave him 40 electoral votes on Tuesday.

Following Trump's election victory on November 5, his victory was made official on Tuesday as presidential voters gathered across the United States.

It takes 270 electoral votes to win the electoral college. Trump won 312 last month, compared to 226 for Vice President Kamala Harris.

Thirteen of the voters are Republicans who participated in the fake voter plot in 2020, and some of them face criminal charges.

This comes as Trump's picks for his cabinet traveled to Capitol Hill to meet with senators ahead of their confirmation hearings. Nominee for HHS secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. and nominee for director of national intelligence, former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, took to the Hill Tuesday to drum up support for their respective nominations.

Meanwhile, Trump lost his latest attempt to overturn his hush money conviction in New York, with the judge overseeing the case rejecting his lawyer's assumption that he was protected by presidential immunity.

The president-elect appears likely to enter the White House as a convicted felon, although it remains unclear when, or if, the courts will continue to delay the sentencing date.

Trump-backed lawmaker roasted after apparently mistaking Star Wars prop for captured drone

Pennsylvania Republican Doug Mastriano is facing some heat after posting a photo of what appears to be a Star Wars prop instead of one of the mysterious drones flying over the East Coast this month.

The meme the politician shared on social media platform 1977 classic and first film Star Wars: A. New Hope.

Breaking News: A crashed drone in Orange Beach was recovered from the water and taken to an unknown location for further investigation, the meme caption states.

Mastriano reposted the image with a serious comment on Tuesday.

Julia MustoDecember 18, 2024 05:00

Judge refuses to drop corruption charge against New York mayor

A federal judge said Tuesday he will not dismiss a corruption charge against New York City Mayor Eric Adams because prosecutors described the allegations adequately in an indictment.

Judge Dale E. Ho wrote in an opinion that an indictment unsealed against the Democrat in September sufficiently detailed the alleged corruption crimes, preventing the charge from being dismissed before an April trial.

Adams has pleaded not guilty to corruption charges stemming largely from his dealings with several Turkish government officials and businessmen from 2015 to 2022. The indictment alleged he accepted tens of thousands of dollars in foreign travel perks and illegal campaign donations from people seeking to buy his influence.

Larry NeumeisterDecember 18, 2024 04:00

DC lawmakers frustrated as officials dismiss drone plots but provide no real answers

Joe Biden's administration, with just over a month in office, is entering the holiday season in lame duck mode. While rumors of an imminent ceasefire in Gaza raise hopes among some Democrats eager to see the president achieve a definitive, legacy-defining victory, others are speaking out about the inability of administration at large to tackle what is quickly becoming a source of serious problems. disinformation.

John BowdenDecember 18, 2024 03:00

GOP House subcommittee wants Liz Cheney investigated for witness tampering

A House GOP subcommittee is pushing for ex-Congresswoman Liz Cheney to be investigated by the Justice Department for witness tampering in retaliation for her efforts in connection with the investigation of January 6.

In a report from the House Administration Oversight Subcommittee, Republican lawmakers led by Barry Loudermilk of Georgia argued that Cheney's communications with Cassidy Hutchinson, a former Trump White House official, violated the law because Hutchinson's lawyer was allegedly unaware they were occurring.

Evidence uncovered by the subcommittee revealed that former Congresswoman Liz Cheney tampered with at least one witness, Cassidy Hutchinson, by secretly communicating with Hutchinson without the knowledge of Hutchinson's lawyers, it read. This secret communication with a witness is improper and likely violates 18 USC 1512.

John BowdenDecember 18, 2024 02:30

Trump supports the idea of ​​​​privating the postal service enshrined in the Constitution

Donald Trump says privatizing the United States Postal Service, an idea Republicans have been circling for years in a crusade to kill one of America's most popular public agencies, is not the worst idea that he had ever heard.

It's the clearest sign yet that his new administration is reviving plans to gut the agency, which is empowered by the Constitution and older than the nation itself.

His remarks Monday followed a Washington Post report that Trump and his billionaire nominee for Commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, were considering overhauling the agency, including whether to privatize it entirely.

Alex WoodwardDecember 18, 2024 02:00

Harris campaign chief admits talking to New York Times and Washington Post is pointless: Those readers are already with us

Reflecting on an election cycle dominated by podcasts and nontraditional media, deputy campaign manager HarrisWalz said there was no longer any point in talking to the mainstream press, including the New York Times or the Washington Post.

He maintained that stance in a recent interview with the online outlet, saying the Harris campaign had chosen to focus on podcast appearances and interviews with influencers on traditional media to compete with Donald Trump's campaign.

Ariana BaioDecember 18, 2024 01:00

LA Times Staffers Say Meddling From Pro-Trump Billionaire Owners Is Worse Than Previously Reported

Los Angeles Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong now bans editorials containing criticism of Donald Trump unless they are presented side-by-side with another opinion article representing the opposing view , according to a note written by the newspaper's editors.

As Oliver Darcy first reported in his Status newsletter, the staff memo reveals that Soon-Shiong's interference in the LA Times' media coverage, particularly regarding the president-elect, has become more ubiquitous than previously thought.

The memo, signed by several members of the LA Times opinion section, was sent to the newspaper's editor-in-chief, Terry Tang. This comes after Soon-Shiong published an op-ed last month criticizing Trump's recent Cabinet picks and the new president's suggestion that he could use recess appointments to circumvent the confirmation process.

Justin BaragonaDecember 18, 2024 00:15

MSNBC anchor admits Trump told her to fuck me when she called in for an interview

MSNBC anchor Stephanie Ruhle revealed that President-elect Donald Trump told her to go fuck me after she tried to set up an interview with him before the election to discuss his campaign rally at Madson Square Garden.

While noting that Trump profanely rejected his invitation to a meeting, Ruhle also used that anecdote as an example of how Trump is much more accessible to the press than President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris, who , according to her, are almost impossible to contact due to the buffers put in place by their staffs.

Justin BaragonaDecember 17, 2024 11:30 p.m.

Progressive wing of Senate proposes bill to end Electoral College and restore democracy

Brian Schatz of Hawaii, Dick Durbin of Illinois and Peter Welch of Vermont introduced their bill Monday, saying it was time to restore democracy by completely abolishing the university system and giving primacy to the popular vote, the total number of votes cast by the American electorate.

In an election, whoever gets the most votes should win. It's that simple, says Schatz.

Joe SommerladDecember 17, 2024 10:45 p.m.

Trump meets with TikTok CEO as platform fights US ban

In the days leading up to the meeting, Trump had expressed some sympathy for the company, saying he had a soft spot for the app and promising to look into the ban.

Graig GraciosiDecember 17, 2024 10:00 p.m.

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