Biden derides ‘feeble, confused and tired’ Trump for comparing himself to Jesus

Linda L. Bean, a granddaughter of famed outdoor retailer L.L. Bean who became an entrepreneur, philanthropist and conservative activist, has died at age 82.

Bean died Saturday, her business manager, Veronika Carlson, confirmed in a written statement Sunday. No cause was given.

“Linda was known for her amazing work ethic, entrepreneurial spirit as well as her pride and dedication to her home state of Maine and L.L.Bean, the company her grandfather founded,” the statement said. “Our hearts go out to her family and friends.”

Bean’s grandfather, Leon Leonwood Bean, founded the company in 1912. It grew through its popular catalogue, offering durable products such as rubber-bottomed boots that came with a lifetime guarantee.

Linda Bean served on the company’s board for nearly half a century. She also bought lobster dealerships, founded the Perfect Maine Lobster brand in 2007, and owned general stores, inns and vacation rentals on Maine’s central coast, where she lived in Port Clyde.

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Former Obama official and lawyer Neal Katyal branded Donald Trump “Don Poorleone, while discussing the former US president’s financial woes.

Mr Katyal appeared on the Inside with Jen Psaki political show on Sunday (24 March) and explained why people are referring to Trump as the iconic Marlon Brando character Vito Corleone from The Godfather.

Mr Katyal said: “There is a reason why I think some people are calling Donald Trump ‘Don Poorleone’ right now, and it’s because he’s kind of talking out of both sides of his mouth.”

Today (25 March), the former president must post a $464m bond payment to comply with a New York civil court ruling that found him guilty of fraud earlier this year.

Watch live as Karine Jean-Pierre holds Monday’s (25 March) White House briefing after Benjamin Netanyahu cancelled a high-level delegation’s planned visit to Washington.

The Israeli prime minister’s decision came after the US abstained from a United Nations (UN) vote demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

“It’s disappointing. We’re very disappointed that they won’t be coming to Washington, DC to allow us to have a fulsome conversation with them about viable alternatives to them going in on the ground in Rafah,” White House spokesperson John Kirby told reporters.

The UN Security Council passed the resolution, which was backed by 14 nations of the council, demanding an immediate cease-fire during the month of Ramadan and the release of all hostages held by Hamas.

The US’s rare decision to withhold its veto on the matter represents a major shift in US policy, which has used its permanent member status on the Security Council to veto three previous resolutions demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, even as the death toll reached tens of thousands.

A New York appeals court has granted Donald Trump a 10-day extension to secure a portion of the $464m bond after the former president signalled he was struggling to come up with the money.

On Monday, the five-panel court said that the former president could have more than a week to secure just $175m while he awaits a ruling in his appeal of the judgement made by Justice Arthur Engoron in the civil fraud case.

The ruling is a win for Mr Trump who initially had until Monday to come up with the means to post the $464m bond to prevent New York Attorney General Letitia James from seizing his properties. Though the former president often boasts about his net worth, he seemed to be struggling to find a way to post the bond.

Justice Engoron imposed a $454m penalty on Mr Trump, his adult sons and former executives of the Trump Organization after finding them liable for conspiring to inflate his net worth to obtain favourable terms from insurers and banks on his properties.

But Justice Engoron also implemented several restrictions on the former president and his co-defendants including barring him from running a New York company and obtaining loans from New York banks among other penalties.

Mr Trump appealed the decision, a tactic he has used in nearly all of his criminal and civil trials, and asked the court to reduce the bond to $100m while the appeal is ongoing.

Monday’s order will satisfy Mr Trump’s request and allow the former president and his adult sons, to run businesses in New York and obtain loans from financial institutions.

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Donald Trump will go on trial next month for allegedly falsifying business records that covered up hush money payments to an adult film star, what New York prosecutors have called a criminal scheme to bury embarrassing stories of his affairs in the leadup to the 2016 presidential election.

The trial, which was initially set to begin with jury selection on Monday, will mark the first of four criminal trials against him, and the first-ever criminal trial against any current or former American president.

Mr Trump arrived for yet another pretrial hearing in the case inside a 15th floor courtroom in Manhattan on Monday as his attorneys prepared to argue allegations of misconduct from the Manhattan District Attorney’s office in front of New York Justice Juan Merchan.

The judge rejected the accusations and set a trial date for 15 April.

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Lawyers for Donald Trump notified an appeals court this week that their client has failed to secure a bond to satisfy the $464m civil fraud judgment levelled against him by a New York court, saying finding a company to back such a large amount of money was proving a “practical impossibility”.

Mr Trump has hotly objected to a “fire sale” of his property empire – selling off assets to generate cash to meet the bond – but failing to do so risks allowing such prized properties as Trump Tower in Manhattan, so integral to his brand, to fall into the hands of New York attorney general Letitia James, who has already said she is more than happy to repossess his holdings.

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Donald Trump claims he has nearly half a billion dollars in his bank account and that he intends to use it for his presidential election campaign, as he faces a Monday deadline to prevent his properties from being seized.

Justice Arthur Engoron in February ruled that the 45th president and his adult sons must pay in excess of $464m for grossly inflating his net worth and the value of his assets for more than a decade to obtain favourable conditions on loans.

Mr Trump must either find the cash or post a bond to prevent the state’s authorities from seizing his properties while he appeals the ruling.

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Lisa Murkowski’s future in the Republican Party is now publicly in question as the Alaska senator says she is grappling with the reality that her party is set to nominate the twice-impeached former president who faces 91 criminal charges for the presidency.

Donald Trump’s continued control of the GOP and the dominance of his Maga faction is not sitting well with the centrist Republican who has broken with her party’s base several times in recent years, including in the second impeachment trial of Donald Trump and the 2017 failed vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Ms Murkowski was interviewed by CNN’s Manu Raju on Capitol Hill and said that she wouldn’t be endorsing Mr Trump for president — as most other Republicans on Capitol Hill have already done — in 2024. She further added that she was “independently minded”, and was asked whether that meant she was considering dropping her party affiliation.

“I am navigating my way through some very interesting political times. Let’s just leave it at that,” she responded.

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