Trump delivers Mar-a-Lago speech with Elon Musk and new HHS RFK Jr in attendance: Live updates

Actor Sylvester Stallone introduced Donald Trump for his first post-victory speech on Thursday night.

Trump thanked the Rambo actor as he took the stage: “He did a beautiful job.”

The president-elect also thanked actor John Voight, who was in attendance.

During months of ferocious campaigning, Donald Trump’s friends and enemies agreed on one thing. That his second term, if it happened, would be more professional than the bruising chaos of his first.

But the nomination of Matt Gaetz for attorney general has left even some Trumpian loyalists open-mouthed. One senior Republican said she was shocked; “reckless” was another word used, with yet another suggesting that the nomination could not be serious.

So why is this such a controversial appointment, and what constraints might there be on the power of a president who has won not only the White House, but control – it is now confirmed – of both Houses of Congress? Where are those famed US constitutional checks and balances when you have a president like Trump?

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Donald Trump is speaking for the first time since winning the White House last week at the America First Policy Institute gala at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida.

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who were recently named co-chairs of Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency, both are in attendance.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, is also in the crowd cheering on his ally.

Other GOP allies, including North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum and actor Sylvester Stallone, are also at tonight’s event.

Donald Trump is set to speak for the first time since winning the White House last week at the America First Policy Institute gala at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida.

Those in attendance include billionaire Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who were recently named co-chairs of Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency.

Mayor of Chicago Brandon Johnson called Donald Trump a “threat” to Black families in a direct message to the President-elect.

Mr Johnson made the claim in response to Trump’s plan to address illegal immigration.

Speaking at a press conference on 12 November, Mr Johnson said: “His threat is not just towards new arrivals and undocumented families. His threats are also against Black families.

“We’re going to protect undocumented individuals. We’re going to protect Black folks, Brown folks, Asian folks. The city of Chicago will be better, stronger and safer despite who’s in the White House.”

What do an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn, the Italian south shore of Staten Island, and the western tip of the Rockaways have in common?

They are all neighborhoods in New York City where Donald Trump won by astronomical margins in the presidential election.

Although the city (and Manhattan in particular) still overwhelmingly votes for the Democrats, Trump increased his share of the vote in the five boroughs more than almost anywhere else in the country.

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Donald Trump has tapped long-time ally Matt Gaetz for Attorney General, prompting concern and disdain among lawmakers and social media users on both sides of the aisle.

Gaetz served as a representative from Florida until he resigned from the House on Wednesday following Trump’s announcement. The president-elect’s nomination of Gaetz comes after the 42-year-old and his associates were at the center of a sex trafficking investigation carried out by current Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Gaetz was ultimately never charged with a crime but remained the subject of a House Ethics Committee investigation regarding, among other claims, allegations of sexual misconduct. However, the committee’s investigation is now over following Gaetz’s resignation, which Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said was effective immediately.

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Pete Hegseth has been nominated for Secretary of Defense under President-elect Donald Trump - but who is the relative unknown to the DC sphere?

Hegseth’s most recent role was as a host on Fox and Friends morning show. That is where most of America knows him from, but he is also an author, husband, and dad and even found viral fame - though it landed him in legal hot water.

Hegseth is also a military veteran, earning the rank of major in the Army while serving in the Minnesota National Guard. He served in both the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan. He earned numerous medals. After he left the military, he served as executive director of the political groups Vets for Freedom and Concerned Vets for America while he made appearances on TV as a political commentator.

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Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s nominee to be the next director of national intelligence, appeared on Fox News, saying that “of course, there’s going to be resistance to change from the swamp in Washington.”