December 22, 2024 - Presidential transition news

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

President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday resurrected his first-term infatuation with obtaining Greenland for the United States.

Trump slipped the idea into an evening news release announcing PayPal co-founder Ken Howery as his pick for ambassador to Denmark. Greenland is an autonomous Danish territory.

Buying Greenland from Denmark became a preoccupation for Trump during his first stint in the White House, an idea he first discussed privately and later publicly confirmed.

“Strategically it’s interesting, and we would be interested, but we will talk with them a little bit,” he said in 2019, though he added, “It’s not No. 1 on the burner, I can tell you that.”

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen responded at the time by calling the suggestion Greenland could be purchased “absurd.”

“Greenland is not for sale. Greenland is not Danish. Greenland belongs to Greenland,” said Frederiksen, who continues to lead the country. “I strongly hope that this is not meant seriously.”

Greenland is not the only territory Trump has eyed for US expansion since winning reelection. Trump has somewhat playfully (but also repeatedly) taunted Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau with the suggestion that the US could absorb Canada as its 51st state. More seriously, Trump on Saturday posted on social media that the US could once again seize control of the Panama Canal, and doubled down on the suggestion Sunday during a speech in Arizona.

Callista Gingrich speaks during the third day of this year's Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 17.

President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday announced more picks for his incoming administration, including Callista Gingrich as his choice for US ambassador to Switzerland.

Gingrich, the wife of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, served as the US ambassador to the Vatican during Trump’s first presidency. Callista Gingrich worked for 19 years in Congress as an aide in the House and as chief clerk of the House Agriculture Committee.

The president-elect also announced Trump transition spokesperson Katie Miller will be joining the Department of Government Efficiency, his nongovernmental entity aimed at slashing federal government waste. He did not say what role Miller will play in the new initiative, which is headed by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.

Miller served in Trump’s first administration as then-Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary. She is married to Trump’s top immigration adviser, Stephen Miller, who will take on the role of White House deputy chief of staff for policy.

Trump also announced he selected Mauricio Claver-Carone, the former president of the Inter-American Development Bank, as the special envoy for Latin America.

Claver-Carone was dismissed from his role with the bank in 2022 after an ethics investigation determined he likely had a romantic relationship with a subordinate, the Associated Press reported at the time. He denied the accusation.

Claver-Carone also served as the National Security Council’s Western Hemisphere director during Trump’s first administration.

This post has been updated with additional developments.

President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday announced a slate of picks for his incoming administration, less than a month until he retakes the White House.

Trump said businessman Scott Kupor will lead the Office of Personnel Management, the federal agency that oversees the government’s civil service. Kupor is a managing partner at tech investment firm Andreesen Horowitz and was a vice president at Hewlett Packard.

Trump named Bo Hines as the executive director of his new proposed crypto advisory council to work alongside tech investor David Sacks, whom Trump earlier picked to be his White House “czar” overseeing artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency policy.

Trump also announced several picks for roles within the Department of Defense, including former Uber executive Emil Michael as undersecretary of defense for research and engineering and businessman Stephen Feinberg for deputy secretary of defense.

Elbridge Colby, who is listed as an author of Project 2025, is Trump’s pick for the undersecretary of defense for policy. During the campaign, Trump tried to distance himself from Project 2025, the controversial and detailed blueprint for a newly reimagined federal government published by conservatives at the Heritage Foundation in anticipation of a second Trump term.

President-elect Donald Trump speaks during Turning Point USA's AmericaFest in Phoenix on December 22.

President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday, in his first rally-like speech since the November election, threatened to retake control of the Panama Canal, pushed back on criticism of Elon Musk’s influence, and suggested he could soon meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Trump’s speech in Phoenix, at a Turning Point USA gathering of conservative activists celebrating his victory last month, largely echoed the rhetoric he used on the campaign trail.

Here are six key lines from Trump’s speech:

Read more about Trump’s speech here.

The Panama Canal and its adjacent zone belong to Panama, President José Raúl Mulino said Sunday, a day after US President-elect Donald Trump threatened to reassume control of the critical waterway.

“The sovereignty and independence of our country are not negotiable,” Mulino said in a video statement posted on X.

Mulino said a 1977 treaty between both countries recognized Panama’s sovereignty over the canal.

In social media posts Saturday, Trump accused Panama of charging “exorbitant” rates to cross the Panama Canal and threatened to reassume control of the critical waterway.

He went on to hint at a growing Chinese influence in the region, writing, “When President Jimmy Carter foolishly gave it away, for One Dollar, during his term in Office, it was solely for Panama to manage, not China, or anyone else.”

Trump doubled down on the suggestion during remarks in Phoenix on Sunday, arguing the US has a “vested interest” in the canal being operated without Panama charging “exorbitant prices and rates of passage” to ships operated by US companies and military personnel.

President-elect Donald Trump's pick for FBI director, Kash Patel, arrives at Sen. Joni Ernst's office for a meeting in Washington, DC, on December 9.

Democratic Sen. John Fetterman on Sunday said Donald Trump’s pick for FBI director, Kash Patel, told him he doesn’t plan to go after the president-elect’s political enemies.

Fetterman, in an interview that aired Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” confirmed that he already met privately with Patel.

Asked whether Patel, a Trump loyalist, plans to use the FBI to go after the president-elect’s political enemies, the Pennsylvania senator said he was convinced “that’s never going to happen.”

Some context: In his 2023 book, “Government Gangsters: The Deep State, the Truth, and the Battle for Our Democracy,” Patel called for “a comprehensive housecleaning” of the Justice Department, arguing that it has unjustly targeted Republicans and their allies.

He also vowed to take on the “deep state,” a term he says includes elected leaders, journalists, Big Tech tycoons and “members of the unelected bureaucracy,” as CNN previously reported.

President-elect Donald Trump speaks at Turning Point USA's AmericaFest in Phoenix on December 22.

President-elect Donald Trump pushed back on attacks from Democrats who are arguing Elon Musk is acting as a de facto president after the tech entrepreneur led a successful effort to block a bipartisan government funding bill last week.

Musk, whom Trump has tapped to co-lead the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency, publicly decried a broad funding package negotiated by House Republican leadership along with House Democrats, initiating the collapse of the deal. (Congress eventually passed a stopgap funding measure, and President Joe Biden signed it into law Saturday.) Following Musk’s role in the negotiations, some Democrats have derisively labeled him “President Musk” and accused him of dictating policy on behalf of Trump.

Speaking to supporters at a Turning Point USA event in Phoenix on Sunday, Trump said Musk has “done an amazing job” and rebuffed the attacks from Democrats.

“No, he’s not taking the presidency. I like having smart people,” he said. “They’re on a new kick. ‘Russia, Russia, Russia,’ ‘Ukraine, Ukraine, Ukraine,’ all the different hoaxes. The new one is ‘President Trump has ceded the presidency to Elon Musk.’ No, no, that’s not happening.”

Trump went on to praise Musk’s company SpaceX for making advancements in space travel and for its Starlink satellite technology, but again reiterated the South Africa-born billionaire is “not going to be president.”

Donald Trump on Sunday suggested a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin could occur early in his administration as the US president-elect seeks to end Moscow’s war against Ukraine.

Speaking to supporters at a Turning Point USA event in Phoenix, Trump said bringing the Russia-Ukraine war to an end is “one of the things I want to do quickly,” while suggesting that a meeting with Putin could come early in his term.

“One of the things I want to do, and quickly — and President Putin said that he wants to meet with me as soon as possible, so we have to wait for this — but we have to end that war,” Trump said.

During Putin’s year-end media availability last week, the Russian leader said he’s “ready” for potential talks with Trump.

Trump has repeatedly expressed a desire for a quick end to the Russia-Ukraine war, while expressing openness to negotiating with Putin to resolve the conflict. Trump and Putin have held a close relationship dating to the president-elect’s first administration.

President-elect Donald Trump said he wants to change the name of Mount Denali to its former name, Mount McKinley, potentially reversing an Obama administration decision to honor Alaska’s Native population.

Trump told supporters at a Turning Point USA event in Phoenix on Sunday that former President William McKinley should have his name restored on the tallest mountain in the US because he was a “great president” who “deserves it.”

“McKinley was a very good, maybe a great president. They took his name off Mount McKinley. That’s what they do to people,” Trump said.

“President McKinley was the president that was responsible for creating a vast sum of money,” he continued. “That’s one of the reasons that we’re going to bring back the name of Mount McKinley, because I think he deserves it.”

Some background: Former President Barack Obama changed the name of the mountain to Mount Denali during a 2015 trip to Alaska. During his first term, Trump reportedly told Alaska’s two senators in a private meeting he wanted to reverse the decision. The senators asked Trump to keep Denali’s name intact.

Elon Musk attends the America First Policy Institute gala at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on November 14.

Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas on Sunday compared Elon Musk to a “prime minister” when arguing against Congress’ vote last week to pass a stopgap funding bill, which put an end to a saga heavily influenced by Musk and President-elect Donald Trump.

Musk, the billionaire tech executive, helped torpedo a spending bill put forth by GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson, whipping up opposition on X, his social media platform.

Trump — with a hefty assist from Musk’s social media frenzy — on Wednesday killed the plan Johnson had spent weeks developing. After a chaotic scramble, lawmakers ultimately voted Friday on a stopgap funding plan, and President Joe Biden signed it Saturday.

Gonzales was one of the dozens of Republicans who voted against the final version of the funding plan, known as a continuing resolution.

Gonzales argued continuing resolutions should not become the “new norm,” calling on his colleagues to bring Congress back to what he believes is normal operations.

A cargo ship and tugboat sail through the Cocoli Locks at the Panama Canal on August 12.

President-elect Donald Trump suggested the US should take control of the Panama Canal, labeling it a “vital national asset” and calling on Panama to return the canal if the “principles, both moral and legal” of the US allowing Panama to operate the canal are violated.

Trump doubled down on the proposal he first floated on social media on Saturday during remarks at a Turning Point USA event in Phoenix on Sunday, arguing the US has a “vested interest” in the canal being operated without Panama charging “exorbitant prices and rates of passage” to ships operated by US companies and military personnel.

“Our Navy and commerce have been treated in a very unfair and injudicious way. The fees being charged by Panama are ridiculous, highly unfair, especially knowing the extraordinary generosity that has been bestowed to Panama — I say, very foolishly, by the United States,” Trump said. “This complete rip-off of our country will immediately stop.”

“If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to the United States,” he continued. “So to the officials of Panama, please be guided accordingly.”

Some background: In 1903, the US was granted sovereign control by the Panamanian government to build the Panama Canal, which was completed in 1914. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed a treaty with Panama to allow it to regain control of the canal.

The US still maintains the right to defend against any threat to neutrality of the canal under the terms of the Neutrality Treaty, ratified by the US Senate in 1978.

However, analysts at the Center for Strategic and International Studies are skeptical about the US resuming its own presence in Panama and around the Canal over the issue of Chinese business interests.

President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday expressed openness to allowing TikTok to continue operating in the US, citing his popularity on the app, after the Supreme Court agreed to hear a case that will decide whether to uphold a ban on the app.

Trump touted his popularity on the app, which he joined during his presidential campaign, while speaking at a Turning Point USA event in Phoenix on Sunday. The president-elect argued that views on his campaign’s TikTok accounts helped deliver electoral gains with young voters.

“We won by 36 points with young people,” Trump said. “So I’m gonna have to start thinking about TikTok.” (Trump lost 18- to 29-year-old voters to Vice President Kamala Harris by 11 points, according to CNN exit polls.)

“We did go on TikTok, and we had a great response with billions of views. … They brought me a chart, and it was a record, and it was so beautiful to see. And as I looked at it, I said, ‘Maybe we got to keep this sucker around for little while,’” he continued.

Trump previously supported a TikTok ban but changed his position during the campaign.

Some background: The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to decide whether a controversial ban on TikTok passed by Congress and approved by President Joe Biden violates the First Amendment. During a news conference last week, Trump said he has “a warm spot” for the app when asked about the possibility of a ban.

Trump met with TikTok CEO Shou Chew at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida last week.

Tom Homan, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for border czar, laid out a plan for an aggressive immigration crackdown during remarks Sunday at Turning Point USA’s America Fest in Phoenix.

Homan said that while the priority will be undocumented migrants who have committed crimes, they’ll probably be with others who haven’t.

Homan said he plans to go into “sanctuary cities,” prosecute anyone who conceals undocumented migrants from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and send agents into communities to find undocumented migrants who have committed crimes. He said even if they are found with migrants who are not a “priority apprehension,” they will be arrested, as well.

President-elect Donald Trump speaks at AmericaFest on December 22 in Phoenix.

President-elect Donald Trump is now addressing attendees at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest.

The event is happening in Phoenix, Arizona, and many Republican lawmakers are also at the event.

Earlier, former GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz spoke to supporters gathered at the event and said his chances as the president-elect’s pick for attorney general were thwarted by “anti-Trump forces” in the Senate.

President-elect Donald Trump announced Sunday that Stephen Miran will chair his Council of Economic Advisers.

Miran, a senior strategist at Hudson Bay Capital and Manhattan Institute economics fellow, was a senior advisor for economic policy at the Treasury Department during Trump’s first term.

“I am beyond honored that President Trump has chosen me to lead his Council of Economic Advisers. I look forward to working to help implement the President’s policy agenda to create a booming, noninflationary economy that brings prosperity to all Americans!” the Harvard Ph.D grad posted Sunday on X.

Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma says it’s “hilarious” for Democrats to take credit for avoiding a government shutdown last week and claims President-elect Donald Trump’s negotiation skills are what prevented a shutdown.

“The success goes to President Trump and I appreciate him acting like the president since our current president is already missing in action,” Mullin said.

Mullin also responded to Elon Musk’s role in the passing of the budget, saying, “The only people that are saying they are being influenced by Elon Musk are the Democrats making accusations of that.”

“At the end of the day, we’re going to do our job,” Mullin said. “We are going to listen to someone that’s been very successful in life because that’s what you do. You surround yourself with good people, you will honestly make better choices — we see that all the time. But for them to start saying we’re going to make our decisions based on Elon — we’re going to make informed decisions based on what Elon gives us.”

Sen. Chris Coons, a top ally of President Joe Biden, said Sunday he has urged the president to look at commuting federal death penalties.

“I have encouraged the president to seriously consider commuting the sentences to life in prison without hope of parole for these truly heinous criminals,” Coons told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union.”

“These are people who should never be out of prison,” Coons added.

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that Biden is considering commuting the sentences of most, if not all, of the 40 men on the federal government’s death row, as his term comes to an end.

The list includes the Boston bomber as well as those convicted of murder and hate crimes in the Tree of Life synagogue and Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church attacks.

“There are some real questions about the fairness and the process of the death penalty in the United States,” Coons said. “And I don’t know what President Biden will ultimately do, but I think there are reasons … in terms of racial justice, due process, and what it says domestically and to the world about our values if we were to go ahead and execute all of these individuals rather than have them spend the rest of life in prison.”

Asked if there should be exceptions, Coons said he thinks Biden should operate on a “case-by-case basis.”

Republican Sen.-elect John Curtis of Utah, said while he agrees with many of Donald Trump’s policies, he will also from “time-to-time” disagree with the president-elect.

Curtis said that he agrees with Trump’s border and inflation policies and wants him to be “wildly successful,” in implementing them. But one policy Curtis says he does not agree with Trump on is the debt ceiling.

“I support President Trump when he’s dealing with some of these really tough issues … but I have my own mind,” Curtis said on ABC’s “This Week.” He added, “I’m not a rubber stamp, my stamp is the stamp of the state of Utah.”

Curtis faced backlash over social media from Trump’s supporters due to his pace of evaluating Trump’s picks for his Cabinet. One controversial pick Curtis met with is Trump’s Defense secretary selection Pete Hegseth.

Many serious issues associated with Hegseth are unresolved according to Curtis.

“There was no way that we’re going to resolve those in a 30-minute conversation,” Curtis said.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas speaks during a press briefing in Washington, DC on October 1.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said that he’s been having “positive” conversations with his expected replacement under president-elect Donald Trump’s administration, Governor Kristi Noem, and that he’s dedicated to a smooth transition.

“I have spoken with the governor. We had a very positive conversation. We are both perfectly aligned on our dedication to a smooth and effective transition. I care very deeply about the well-being of this department, dedicating so many years to public service, she expressed her dedication to the well-being of this department. She is a governor, so she knows how to lead, and I am optimistic and hopeful and dedicated to her success,” Mayorkas told Margaret Brennan on CBS “Fact the Nation.”

Asked more specifically how the transition appears to be going, Mayorkas said that they are working “well together.”

“The transition team has landed at the Department of Homeland Security. We have begun to produce documents and provide information to the transition team. I happened to run into the transition team leader yesterday here at DHS headquarters and- and we are working well together,” Mayorkas said.