Trump news: From slating Brexit to attacking Beto O'Rourke, president rails against the world as he loses Senate vote
Another day of controversies plaguing the White House as lawmakers set the stage for president's first veto
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Your support makes all the difference.The US Senate has rejected Donald Trump’s national emergency declaration in a major vote, setting the stage for the first veto of his presidency during another banner day of controversies plaguing the White House.
The Senate voted 59-41 to cancel Trump’s February proclamation of a border emergency, which he invoked to spend billions of dollars more on additional border barriers than Congress had approved.
Twelve Republicans joined Democrats in defying Mr Trump in a showdown many GOP senators had hoped to avoid because he commands die-hard loyalty from millions of conservative voters who could punish defecting lawmakers in next year’s elections.
The president has no reluctance to casting his first veto to advance his campaign exhortation, “Build the Wall,” which has prompted roars at countless rallies hosted by Mr Trump.
Approval votes in both the Senate and House fell short of the two-thirds majorities needed to override.
“I look forward to VETOING the just passed Democrat inspired Resolution which would OPEN BORDERS while increasing Crime, Drugs, and Trafficking in our Country,” Mr Trump wrote on Thursday afternoon.
He added, “I thank all of the Strong Republicans who voted to support Border Security and our desperately needed WALL!”
Though Mr Trump seems sure to prevail in that battle, it remains noteworthy that lawmakers of both parties resisted him in a fight directly tied to his cherished campaign theme of erecting a border wall.
The roll call came just a day after the Senate took a step towards a veto fight with the president on another issue, voting to end U.S. support for the Saudi Arabian-led coalition’s war in Yemen.
Additional reporting by AP. See The Independent’s live coverage from Thursday below.
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The president has tweeted again, promising to veto any vote today in the Senate against his emergency declaration to reallocate federal funds towards building a US-Mexico border wall.
In more damaging news for the president, it has been suggested the 35-day government shutdown in December and January prevented Boeing issuing a software update to its MAX fleet of 737s, the very model of aircraft that crashed in Ethiopia over the weekend, killing all 157 passengers and the crew.
Here's Chris Riotta.
Mr Trump has also been embarrassed after the White House denied he knew massage parlour boss Li Yang who promised access to his inner circle for Chinese clients via his Mar-a-Largo resort in Florida - despite his being pictured with her at least twice.
Before Donald Trump decided to ground all Boeing 737 MAX planes, the president reportedly fretted over the damage it could do to the US stock market.
America lagged behind almost every other major country in deciding to suspend the 737 MAX after a crash involving the jetliner killed more than 150 passengers in Ethiopia over the weekend.
Full story:
Donald Trump has tweeted - with impeccable timing - that he looks forward to negotiating an "unlimited" trade deal with the UK.
The tweet comes as Theresa May and her government grapple with Brexit. A series of votes on Wednesday evening left Britain facing leaving the EU without a deal or requesting an extension in order to be given more time for parliament to agree on a deal.
Mr Trump is a public supporter of Brexit and has pushed Ms May to take a harder stance with the bloc, so this tweet could be seen as encouraging the UK government to risk a no-deal Brexit.
Donald Trump has made a last-minute Brexit intervention - claiming his administration is looking forward to "negotiating a large scale Trade Deal with the UK" - after reportedly being lobbied to do so by Nigel Farage.
Donald Trump has tweeted again, claiming without evidence that Democrats do not recognise that crimes or drug trafficking occurs at or near the southern border of the US.
Most Democrats in fact argue that although the country needs border security, money would be far better spent on upgrading border technology than building a wall, which they say would have little impact on the issues that do exist.
Late-night TV hosts are very clearly getting under Trump's skin at the minute. After tweeting on Wednesday about the "one-sided hatred" that makes them "unwatchable", he has posted again.
Meanwhile the president's son, Donald Trump Jr, has tweeted a bizarre meme apparently targeting liberals who he believes are 'triggered' too easily.
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