April 3, 2025: Donald Trump presidency news

Our live coverage of Donald Trump’s presidency has ended for the day. Follow the latest updates or read through the posts below.

Newly imported cars are parked at the Toyota vehicle processing facility located at the Port of Long Beach, California, on Thursday.

Japan’s Toyota Motor, the world’s top automaker, has decided not to raise prices on vehicles exported to the US for now, despite Washington’s announcement of 25% tariffs on auto imports, public broadcaster NHK reported late Thursday.

The automaker also plans to maintain its domestic production of more than three million units a year and keep its current operations and workforce, according to the report.

Toyota reportedly aims to cut costs to cope with the latest development. But NHK reported, citing an unnamed executive, that there are limits to their cost-cutting efforts.

Japan, a US treaty ally, was already a major victim of the previously announced 25% tariffs on all foreign-made automobiles and car parts. Home to major carmakers like Toyota, Honda and Nissan, the country exported about $40 billion in automobiles to the US in 2024.

On Thursday, the US administration separately announced it will impose another 24% tariff on all Japanese goods.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the Leading Women Defined Summit in Dana Point, California, on Thursday.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris delivered a message of courage on Thursday while addressing actions by the Trump administration.

“There were many things we knew would happen,” Harris said at the Leading Women Defined Summit. “I’m not here to say I told you so,” she added before erupting in laughter.

Harris said she recognizes that President Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office has created “a great sense of fear.”

MSNBC was first to report on Harris’ remarks at the summit.

These are Harris’ most direct comments since the start of Trump’s second term.

Harris, who lost to Trump in the November election, said that while fear is “contagious,” so is courage.

“Fear has a way of being contagious. When one person has fear, it has a way of spreading to those around them and spreading. And we are witnessing that, no doubt,” Harris said at the gathering of female leaders of color.

Pedestrians walk past an electronic board showing the numbers of the Nikkei Stock Average on the Tokyo Stock Exchange along a street in Tokyo on Friday.

Share markets across the Asia-Pacific region are trading lower on Friday, tracking major losses seen in New York.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225, which tracks more than 200 of the country’s biggest listed companies, was last trading 2.6% lower, after having closed nearly 3% lower on Thursday.

The broader Topix index fell even more, by 3.5%. Reuters reports that both indexes are headed for their worst weekly decline since March 2020, during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In South Korea, the Kospi was down about 1%, shortly after the country’s highest court removed embattled President Yoon Suk Yeol from office, ending months of uncertainty and legal wrangling after he briefly declared martial law in December and plunged the nation into political turmoil.

Correction: This post has been updated to remove reference to the Hong Kong stock market, which is closed today.

The National Endowment for the Humanities logo on its headquarters in Washington, DC, in 2020.

More than 10 state humanities councils have said their federal funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities has been terminated, putting hundreds of community programs and projects at risk.

The cuts, first reported by The New York Times, come as the Trump administration continues its push to reshape American cultural institutions. A letter notifying one state group of the funding termination says the “NEH is repurposing its funding allocations in a new direction in furtherance of the President’s agenda.”

“Your grant’s immediate termination is necessary to safeguard the interests of the federal government, including its fiscal priorities,” reads the letter obtained by CNN.

The cultural councils began receiving letters starting late last night, according to the Federation of State Humanities Councils.

The impact of the grants ending will vary and will be particularly difficult for those who are more reliant on federal funds.

Dena Wortzel, executive director of Wisconsin Humanities, told CNN that the group will be forced to shut down if it does not receive funding.

“We have had to cancel everything. We are not even sure that we are going to be able to honor the grants that we already have awarded,” Wortzel said.

CNN’s Kaanita Iyer contributed to this report.

Vice President JD Vance appears on Newsmax on Thursday.

Vice President JD Vance downplayed concerns about market volatility after President Donald Trump unveiled expansive new tariffs, suggesting the market reaction was better than expected.

“We’re feeling good. Look, I frankly thought in some ways it could be worse in the markets, because this is a big transition,” Vance said in an interview with Newsmax today.

CNN has reported that US stock markets plunged today, with the worst day for all three major market indexes since 2020 and the US dollar wiping out all gains since Trump’s reelection.

He continued: “The people on Wall Street have done well. We want them to do well. But we care the most about American workers and about American small businesses. And they’re the ones who are really going to benefit from these policies.”

Vance reiterated Trump’s comparison of the US economy to a “patient who was very sick” and has had an operation and “now it’s time to make the patient better.”

Vance also weighed in on the president’s relationship with Elon Musk, saying that Trump has “full faith in Elon” and that their relationship is “better than fine.” He sought to distance three firings at the National Security Council from the president’s meeting with Laura Loomer, saying those who were fired are “good people, but they weren’t helping his agenda.” And he said Trump had a “really good time” with Bill Maher, whom he had dinner with earlier this week.

The Senate voted along party lines to begin debate on the GOP’s budget blueprint, as the chamber slowly inches toward its goal of passing legislation containing much of President Donald Trump’s agenda later this year.

Republican Sen. Rand Paul voted no and has indicated that he does not approve of including an increase to the debt limit in the resolution. The vote was 52-48.

What comes next: Today’s procedural step tees up a marathon vote series, known as a “vote-a-rama,” to begin tomorrow night. Democrats are expected to force Republicans to take politically tough amendment votes throughout the series, which will likely go into the early hours of Saturday morning.

At the end of the vote-a-rama, the Senate is expected to adopt its budget blueprint. It then heads to the House, where some conservative Republicans have already criticized the resolution.

Both chambers must adopt the identical budget blueprint before advancing legislation to implement Trump’s agenda, which includes new money for immigration enforcement, a sweeping overhaul of the tax code, steep spending cuts and more energy drilling. The details of the legislation still need to be determined.

HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. visits an elementary school in Alexandria, Virginia, to discuss USDA nutrition programs on Thursday.

Some personnel and programs affected by sweeping reductions at federal health agencies on Tuesday will be reinstated, including a program at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that monitors lead in kids, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said today.

Kennedy said most of the cuts to federal health agencies involved administrative positions that were redundant and the cuts were meant to streamline the agencies.

Sources at the CDC — who spoke to CNN on the condition they not be named, for fear of reprisals — said members of the lead program had not received notices of reinstatement, however.

It’s not clear whether the office would be reinstated at the CDC, with the same people, or whether it would be moved to a different office such as the Administration for a Healthy America, a new agency that Kennedy is forming under the HHS umbrella.

Read more on the HHS reinstatements here.

People vote in the 2024 US presidential election on in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on November 5, 2024.

Nineteen Democratic state attorneys general challenged President Donald Trump’s attempt to overhaul election rules, including with a proof of citizenship requirement, with a lawsuit today. It’s the latest front in the legal battle over the president’s executive order released last week.

The attorneys general accuse Trump of impeding on states’ control over how elections are run, in an “unconstitutional, antidemocratic, and un-American” effort to use federal funding and other maneuvers to force changes to election practices that are, under the law and Constitution, dictated by the states.

The new lawsuit from the states was filed in the US District Court in Boston. They’re targeting Trump directives in the order that would boost requirements for individuals to show documents proving their citizenship when registering to vote. They’re also targeting the president’s commands that federal officials take actions that would pressure states to end policies allowing for mail ballots that are received by election officials after Election Day to be counted.

More legal challenges: Similar lawsuits were filed earlier this week in DC’s federal court by voting rights groups and other non-partisan organizations, as well as by the Democratic party and its congressional leaders.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte reiterated his belief that the US remains committed to the alliance.

“There are no plans to withdraw or whatever. We know that the US is completely committed to NATO,” Rutte told reporters today ahead of meetings with NATO foreign ministers.

Rutte noted he understands the United States’ wish to focus on other parts of the world, including the Indo-Pacific.

Rutte also held a joint news conference in Brussels with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, in which the NATO chief commended US efforts to reach a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

“We have to make sure that whenever the ceasefire or a peace deal is reached, that it is enduring, that it is lasting,” he said. “This is not a regional war, it is a global conflict because Russia is working together with North Korea, with China, with Iran,” Rutte added.

Remember: President Donald Trump has long criticized the outsized US role within the alliance and has recently cast doubt on whether he would defend NATO allies “if they don’t pay.”

Lynn Martin, president of the New York Stock Exchange Group, center left, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York, on Thursday.

US stocks slumped today as President Donald Trump’s tariffs roiled global markets.

The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite all posted their biggest single-day drop since 2020, when financial markets were reeling during the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, the US dollar index, which measures the dollar’s strength against six foreign currencies, wiped out all of its gains since Trump’s reelection in November.

The selloff began yesterday afternoon as stock futures tumbled during Trump’s unveiling of his tariff plan during a ceremony at the Rose Garden. The rout continued Thursday as investors reckoned with the extent of how tariffs could upend supply chains, disrupt companies’ business models and stoke inflation.

These graphs show where things stood at market close today:

White House senior counselor Peter Navarro appears on CNN on Thursday.

Peter Navarro, White House senior counselor, dismissed concerns that prices will go up because of President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, which affects about 60 countries that trade with the US.

“Remember, as President Trump has said often and correctly, you don’t have to pay any tariffs if you make it here,” he said.

Navarro’s comments contradict the nonpartisan Tax Foundation’s estimate that American households will pay, on average, $2,100 more per year for goods because of the tariffs. Consumer goods like laptops, clothing and toys will increase in price, experts predict.

Navarro also called trade deficits with other countries “the sum of all cheating,” disputing the claim that the Trump administration calculated “reciprocal” tariffs by taking each country’s trade deficit, dividing it by its exports to the US and halving that result.

“You’ve got to value currency manipulation. You’ve got to value the (value-added) tax distortions, dumping, export subsidies, technical barriers to trade, agricultural barriers to trade, quotas, bans, counterfeiting, intellectual property theft and all of that,” Navarro said.

Earlier today, Trump indicated openness to making deals on tariffs, including with China.

Senior Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev speaks to CNN's Phil Mattingly on Thursday.

Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev said the Trump administration “understands Russia’s concerns” after meetings with US officials in Washington today, according to Russian state media.

“We undoubtedly see that a lot of players, different countries are trying to disrupt this dialogue,” Dmitriev said.

Dmitriev highlighted Russia’s absence from a list of global reciprocal tariffs unveiled yesterday by US President Donald Trump.

Other points of discussion between the two countries included cooperation in the Arctic and on rare minerals, the latter being a sticking point in negotiations between the US, Russia and Ukraine, Dmitriev said. Also discussed were resuming direct flights between Russia and the US, and US companies reentering the Russian market.

“The difference between the Trump and Biden administration is that Trump’s administration hears Russia’s position, understands Russia’s concerns,” Dmitriev said.

President Donald Trump speaks with journalists onboard Air Force One en route to Miami, on Thursday.

President Donald Trump expressed openness to appointing Elon Musk to another position in his administration after his time as a special government employee expires, but acknowledged that at some point the Tesla CEO and SpaceX founder will have to leave.

Asked when he thinks Musk will go, Trump said, “I would think a few months.”

Musk has led the efforts at the Department of Government Efficiency aimed at shrinking the federal workforce and slashing spending. Given his status as a special government employee, Musk can work for the government for no more than 130 days or less in a 365-day period.

Trump said DOGE efforts will continue, even without Musk, through members of his cabinet across federal agencies.

“I want him to stay as long as possible. But there will be a point where he is gonna have to leave, and when he does the secretaries will take totally over, and DOGE will stay active,” Trump said.

Vice President JD Vance appears on Fox News on thursday.

Vice President JD Vance incorrectly claimed on Fox News today that a large share of the people who reach out to Social Security by phone are committing fraud.

Vance said “40% of the people who are calling in are actually committing fraud,” repeating part of a statement from a Department of Government Efficiency engineer who appeared on Fox last week with Elon Musk.

However, that statistic is not accurate.

According to the Social Security Administration, about 40% of direct deposit fraud stems from calls to the agency to change beneficiaries’ bank information.

The agency recently announced that it will no longer allow people to change their bank account over the telephone in an effort to minimize fraud. Instead, they will have to do so through their online “my Social Security” account or visit a local office.

President Donald Trump indicated some openness to making deals on tariffs, including working with China on a deal involving the sale of TikTok, in response to questions from reporters on Air Force One a short time ago.

“Every country has called us. That’s the beauty of what we do, we put ourselves in the driver’s seat,” Trump told reporters.

Trump said he was open to discussions with other countries, “as long as they are giving us something that’s good.” He then named TikTok as an example, suggesting China might help secure a sale in exchange for tariff relief.

Pressed on whether those TikTok talks were actively happening, Trump said no, he was just using it as an example.

He claimed they are “very close” to a deal on the app ahead of the April 5 deadline for its parent company ByteDance to sell its US operations.

Talks with automakers: The president also said he spoke with “a lot” of auto executives in the hours since 25% tariffs on cars and auto parts went into effect today. He declined to name the executives and ignored a follow-up question on whether they asked him for relief.

Reaction to the market: Reacting to the worst day for all three major US stock market indexes since 2020, Trump said it’s “to be expected” and that the economy is in a “transition period.”

He repeated his comparison of the economy he inherited to a “sick patient” which has undergone an “operation.”

Global markets also fell sharply today, and leading economists tell CNN they fear tariffs could lead to a global recession.

More tariffs: Trump also said additional tariffs on semiconductor chips and pharmaceuticals will begin soon, referencing a measure he’s previewed in the past.

President Donald Trump said he spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today and expects him to visit the US as soon as next week to discuss Gaza and other issues in the region.

Israel this week announced a major expansion of the military’s operation in Gaza involving the seizure of large areas of land that would be “incorporated into Israel’s security zones.”

The move further underscored the null status of the ceasefire Trump took credit for negotiating earlier this year.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump called Gaza a “big problem” he hopes to resolve. “That’s another thing we’d like to get solved,” he said.

“Gaza is a very important thing. It’s been under siege for many, many years,” Trump said.

Even as he works to resolve the crisis in Gaza, the president has sought to reopen talks with Iran over its nuclear program. He said he believed Tehran wants direct talks rather than working through intermediaries, though Iran last week rejected Trump’s offer of direct negotiations.

“I think they’re concerned. I think they feel vulnerable, and I don’t want them to feel that way,” Trump said.

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters while in flight on board Air Force One, en route to Miami, on Thursday.

President Donald Trump on Thursday defended the decision to fire multiple administration officials, including at least three National Security Council Staffers.

CNN reported earlier Thursday that the White House fired the staffers after Loomer, the far-right activist who once claimed 9/11 was an inside job, urged Trump during a meeting yesterday to get rid of several members of his National Security Council staff, claiming they were disloyal, according to three sources.

But today, Trump said Loomer was not involved in yesterday’s firings, calling the controversial activist “a very good patriot.”

“She is a very strong person, and I saw her yesterday for a little while and … she makes recommendations of things and people,” Trump said aboard Air Force One. “And sometimes I listen to those recommendations, like I do with everybody, I listen to everybody, and then I make a decision.”

While the president said Loomer has recommended firing people in the past, “yesterday, she recommended some people for jobs.”

One source told CNN Thursday that Loomer had compiled a list of roughly a dozen names, and that the subsequent firings were a direct result of Trump’s meeting with her. Loomer was an influential voice around Trump during his 2024 campaign last fall.

The president insisted he still trusts his national security team, who he said “have had big success with the Houthis,” a reference to the ramped up military action his administration has taken since last month.

The Senate voted to confirm Dr. Mehmet Oz as the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Oz’s nomination passed on a party-line vote of 53-45. Oz was in the Senate gallery for the vote.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services provides health care coverage to more than 160 million Americans through Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act health insurance exchanges.

A small USAID team is on the ground in Myanmar in the wake of the catastrophic earthquake, a State Department spokesperson confirmed today.

The ground team is “actively working with their counterparts,” the spokesperson said, and “will coordinate with US Embassy Rangoon to assess continued needs on the ground, share information with partner countries, and further inform the US response to the crisis.”

Some context: The United States would typically be among the first to respond to a natural disaster of this scale with both physical and monetary support.

Following the earthquake in Turkey in February 2023, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) sent their personnel within hours. Search and rescue teams from Fairfax County, Virginia, and Los Angeles County — who had contracts with the agency — were also quickly dispatched to assist with the response efforts and spent weeks on the ground. The Biden administration authorized an initial $85 million in humanitarian assistance.

In contrast, the US response to the Myanmar earthquake has been minimal and delayed in the wake of the Trump administration’s dismantling of USAID. The Trump administration has authorized an initial $2 million in humanitarian assistance.