Trump delivers first rally-style speech since election win as he threatens to retake Panama Canal: Live

President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to retake the Panama Canal in a lengthy post on Truth Social.

Trump accused Panama of “ripping off” American vessels by charging “exorbitant prices” to use the vital waterway that acts as a shortcut linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

Without it, ships would be forced to sail a much farther distance around South America’s rocky Cape Horn.

Trump was referring to the 1977 treaty over the canal’s status, which transferred control of the canal from the U.S. to Panama at the end of the 20th century.

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President-elect Donald Trump’s team has snapped back at claims that Elon Musk is running the show after the billionaire played a significant role in tanking a spending bill that would have averted a government shutdown.

Musk helped topple House Speaker Mike Johnson’s proposed bipartisan congressional spending bill by slamming it early Wednesday, which was followed later by a joint statement from Trump and JD Vance warning Republicans not to support it.

“Stop the steal of your tax dollars!” Musk wrote on his social media platform X that he threatened funded primary challenges against anyone who voted for the budget deal, a threat Trump later echoed in a post of his own.

The optics that Musk is pulling the strings have prompted Trump’s incoming White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, to hit back about who is really in charge.

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Billionaire Elon Musk saw a sharp 10 percent increase in his odds of being Speaker of the House on Polymarket, the crypto-based betting platform, after several lawmakers suggested him for the job.

Musk, who has quickly ascended as a close ally of Donald Trump, proved just how powerful political influence is this week when he managed to convince Republicans in Congress to oppose the bipartisan spending bill that finally passed on Friday.

Wielding his influence on the social media platform he owns, X, Musk sent out more than 150 posts urging Republicans to break from the bill backed by the current Speaker of the House Mike Johnson.

Ariana Baio reports.

After the debacle in Congress this week, all eyes are now on Mike Johnson ahead of a vote in two weeks as to whether he should stay on as Speaker.

Earlier this week we reported he could be challenged for the speaker’s chair in the new year as Republican critics draw up a list of potential replacements.

Some rebels in his party are angry at his handling of the stop-gap bill to fund the federal government through March 14, dubbed a “dumpster fire” by some Republicans.

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Lara Trump dropped out of the running for the Senate on Saturday evening, teasing a “big announcement” to come in January.

Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law was floated as a possible replacement for Marco Rubio, the president-elect’s choice for secretary of state.

Two weeks ago Trump announced she was also stepping down from her role as co-chair of the Republican National Committee.

“After an incredible amount of thought, contemplation, and encouragement from so many, I have decided to remove my name from consideration for the United States Senate,” Trump shared in a post on X.

“I do have a big announcement that I’m excited to share in January, so, stay tuned,” she added.

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Democratic Rep. Dan Goldman of New York suggested Thursday night that Elon Musk would provide President-elect Donald Trump with a “windfall” if the incoming commander-in-chief does the bidding of the X owner.

The Tesla CEO was successful in his efforts to take down a continuing resolution that was set to allow the government to remain funded through Christmas, forcing Speaker Mike Johnson back to the drawing board.

Musk tweeted against the bill Wednesday before Trump did the same, pushing for it to be voted down. Speaker Mike Johnson then withdrew the bill before introducing a shorter version Thursday which was rejected even as it was backed by both Musk and Trump.

Gustaf Kilander reports.

President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to retake the Panama Canal in a lengthy post on Truth Social.

Trump accused Panama of “ripping off” American vessels by charging “exorbitant prices” to use the vital waterway that acts as a shortcut linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

Without it, ships would be forced to sail a much farther distance around South America’s rocky Cape Horn.

Trump was referring to the 1977 treaty over the canal’s status, which transferred control of the canal from the U.S. to Panama at the end of the 20th century.

It was hailed as one of President Jimmy Carter’s greatest accomplishments, but Trump slammed the 39th president for “foolishly giving it away for one dollar.”

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Donald Trump has named the producer behind The Apprentice as his special envoy to the UK.

The president-elect said Mark Burnett would bring “a unique blend of diplomatic acumen and international recognition” to the role.

British producer Burnett helped build Trump’s profile, but distanced himself from the tycoon during the 2016 presidential contest.

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Justice Clarence Thomas failed to disclose two trips — which hadn’t been publicly reported — paid for by a billionaire Republican donor, a new Congressional report reveals.

In the wake of ProPublica’s explosive 2023 report into Thomas’ failures to disclose his ties to wealthy donor Harlan Crow, Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee conducted a 20-month investigation into the ethics challenges at the Supreme Court.

The report — spanning 97 pages plus 824 pages of supporting documents — was released Saturday, detailing two additional trips paid for by Crow that Thomas hadn’t previously disclosed.

More broadly, the report also captured an array of conflicts of interest and undisclosed gifts by justices, prompting the panel to recommend the nation’s highest court establish an enforceable code of conduct.

Kelly Rissman reports.