Trump treats RFK Jr to McDonald’s after health secretary nominee slams his diet: Live updates

There is yet more controversy surrounding Trump’s defense secretary pick.

Concerns have been raised over a tattoo belonging to Pete Hegseth, the Fox News host nominated by Trump to lead the Department of Defense – with opinion divided over whether it is a “Christian motto” or a white nationalist dog whistle.

Hegseth, an Army National Guard veteran, has the words “Deus Vult” tattooed on his bicep, which has been associated with white supremacist groups. “Deus Vult” is a Latin phrase meaning “God Wills It,” and was a rallying cry for Christian crusaders in the Middle Ages.

The Associated Press reported that the tattoo previously resulted in Hegseth being flagged as a possible “Insider Threat” by a fellow service member. However, the AP report has led to outrage on both sides, including from Vice President-elect JD Vance.

Mike Bedigan reports.

The President-elect has released a new advert on X today to those who voted for him.

A woman testified in front of the House Ethics Committee that she saw Matt Gaetz have sex with a minor, according to her lawyer.

Attorney Joel Leppard represents two women who gave closed-door testimony in the summer to the committee probing President-elect Donald Trump’s controversial pick for attorney general, ABC first reported.

“My client testified to the House Ethics Committee that she witnessed Matt Gaetz having sex with a minor,” Leppard told the outlet.

Gaetz denies any wrongdoing.

Read the full story below.

Trump border czar Tom Homan has pledged to institute a regime of “shock and awe” on the first day of the new administration.

The former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) took part in Donald Trump Jr’s program on the video streaming platform Rumble this week.

The pair discussed Homan’s plans to put together mass deportations of millions of illegal immigrants.

Gustaf Kilander reports.

Tom Watling reports:

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin seriously underestimate what the other is capable of and that carries far-ranging risks for Ukraine over Russia’s invasion, Britain’s former spy chief and ex-diplomats have told The Independent.

Trump’s US election victory last week has upended Europe’s plan to back Kyiv for “as long as it takes”. His focus is on ending the war quickly, even if that potentially means pushing Kyiv to cede territory currently occupied by Russia.

Sir Alex Younger, former chief of MI6 from 2014 to 2020, believes both the incoming president and his Russian counterpart overestimate their ability to influence the other.

“I think Trump overestimates his ability to force Putin into a land swap where Putin clearly wants a lot more, when he feels that he is winning and when he has to show [the Russian people] a lot more if he is to justify the appalling sacrifice he’s imposed,” he says. “Trump is underestimating the challenge and overestimating his influence.”

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Robert F Kennedy Jr has questioned the effectiveness of vaccines and slammed the FDA’s “aggressive suppression” of raw milk — but some Republicans are warning he may not be right to lead federal health agencies for an entirely different reason: his stance on abortion.

Kelly Rissman explains.

Alex Woodward writes:

Trump’s first wave of cabinet nominations and White House appointments, within the week after he won the 2024 presidential election, have stunned members of Congress, veterans and active-duty service members, public health advocates and democratic advocates, who have warned for years that he is building a government of loyalists to fulfill his campaign-trail promises to deliver “retribution” by destroying the “deep state.”

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New York Democratic Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has said that the nomination of former Hawaii Rep Tulsi Gabbard to be the director of national intelligence is the most worrisome nomination so far among president-elect Donald Trump’s administration picks.

“I actually think, almost more than Matt Gaetz, Tulsi Gabbard’s appointment is devastating,” Ocasio-Cortez said on MSNBC on Thursday of Gabbard and the former Florida Rep nominated to be attorney general.

Gustaf Kilander reports.

Andrew Feinberg writes:

Just over a week ago, Donald Trump became the first Republican presidential candidate to win both the Electoral College and the national popular vote since George W Bush in 2004.

And he appears to be repeating one of Bush’s most infamous mistakes.

Read on...

Will Scharf, Trump’s personal attorney and soon-to-be White House staff secretary, ran an unsuccessful campaign in the summer to be Missouri’s attorney general.

Clad in a fleece sweater vest, in one of his campaign ads Scharf fired a grenade launcher at a stack of evidence boxes and indictments.

“Joe Biden and his corrupt allies are wrecking our legal system, doing everything they can to stop President Trump and the MAGA agenda,” he said in the ad. “It’s time for a Missouri attorney general who will return fire.”

Watch the ad and read Alex Woodward’s report below.