Our live coverage of the Trump administration has ended for the day. Get the latest here.
Trump lands at Joint Base Andrews after UK state visit
Air Force One landed at Joint Base Andrews tonight, and President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump stepped off the plane shortly after 8 p.m.
The president’s daughter Tiffany and her husband were also seen getting off the plane.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt now receiving Secret Service protection
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt recently began receiving US Secret Service protection, two administration officials tell CNN.
The decision was made, the officials said, because of the current political climate in the aftermath of the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Leavitt is not the only member of President Donald Trump’s White House team to have added a detail in recent days, one source told CNN, but would not elaborate on who else is now under protection.
“We’re in a pretty charged climate. She’s very visible, very public-facing, has her fair share of critics,” one of the administration officials said.
That official indicated that other high-profile figures in the Trump administration are also expected to get additional protective details, from the Secret Service or other agencies, in the days and weeks ahead.
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles already has USSS protection as part of her role, as does Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller.
Leavitt’s USSS detail was first reported by CBS News.
It comes at a moment of significant strain for the Secret Service. While the reputation of the US Secret Service is one of precision, vigilance and security, the reality has been more complicated – a high-stress, high-intensity workplace that has at times been wracked by management and logistical issues.
Senate confirms 48 Trump nominees in single vote, after Republicans went ‘nuclear’ to speed up confirmations
The Senate confirmed 48 of President Donald Trump’s nominees in one sweeping vote today, marking the first bloc confirmed after Republicans voted to change Senate rules to speed up the consideration of nominees.
The nominees confirmed included Kimberly Guilfoyle to be the ambassador to Greece, Christine Toretti to be the ambassador to Sweden, and Callista Gingrich to be ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Former GOP Rep. Brandon Williams was also confirmed as under secretary for nuclear security.
The move by Senate Republicans comes after they pushed through a change to Senate rules using the so-called “nuclear option” over the objections of Democrats. The rules change allows nominees to be considered en bloc, or as a group, as tensions have grown over several months between the two parties over the backlog of Trump’s nominees awaiting Senate confirmation.
Trump's second state visit to the UK is all wrapped up. Here's how day 2 went
Standing on the steps of the brick Chequers estate, nestled in the hills of the English countryside, United Kingdom Prime Minister Kier Starmer and his wife waved as the president and first lady of the United States rolled away in a motorcade of SUVs.
It was the ending scene to President Donald Trump’s eventful two-day state visit to the UK.
Today was all business after the pageantry and pomp at Windsor Castle yesterday. Trump held a bilateral meeting and joint news conference with Starmer, where the two leaders talked about both domestic and foreign policy issues.
Here’s a recap of how everything played out today:
This morning: After staying the night at Windsor Castle, Trump said goodbye to King Charles III. The US president called the sovereign “a great gentleman and a great king” before setting off for Chequers.
Melania Trump: While Donald Trump departed the castle, First Lady Melania Trump initially stayed behind for some other engagements. With Queen Camilla, the first lady viewed Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House and had a private tour of Windsor Castle’s Royal Library.
Friendly bilateral meeting: A news conference following Trump and Starmer’s meeting kicked off with some friendly words. The prime minister praised the historic bonds between Britain and the US, and said both countries are “ready to define this century together.” Off the bat, Trump and Starmer announced a new “tech prosperity deal” between the two countries during a roundtable with business leaders.
The US and UK leaders said they talked about a wide range of topics during their meeting, including the Russia’s war in Ukraine. At the news conference, Trump and Starmer also answered several questions about the war in Gaza, with the two disagreeing about recognizing a Palestinian state. You can get caught up on the key lines from that joint event here.
CNN’s Lauren Said-Moorhouse, Donald Judd, Char Reck, Betsy Klein and Max Foster contributed reporting to this post.
Trump says it “doesn’t feel” like it’s time for Russia-Ukraine ceasefire
Asked whether it was time for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, “Doesn’t feel like it,” before adding, “but at the right time, if I have to do it, it’ll be harsh.”
When asked if UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer talked to him about Ukraine during their meeting earlier in the day, Trump claimed Starmer had been “a little bit embarrassed” about European countries buying Russian oil.
“A little bit embarrassed,” Trump said, “that I caught Europe, you know, NATO countries, EU countries, you could call it either way, because they’re very similar, that I caught them buying oil from Russia,” Trump said.
Starmer, according to Trump, said: “That’s not good.”
“I appreciate it that he said that,” Trump said, adding the Starmer is not “one of the culprits” whose country buys Russian oil.
Trump issued an ultimatum to NATO countries last weekend, saying the US will issue “major” sanctions on Russia only when they agree to do the same and stop buying oil from Russia.
Earlier Thursday, Trump had sounded more optimistic about a possible end to the fighting during the leaders’ joint news conference.
“The Russia situation, I hope we’re going to have some good news for you coming up,” Trump said while standing next to Starmer.
Trump says success is “the only thing” that can bring the country together
President Donald Trump said “success is the only thing” that can bring the country together when asked if it’s his responsibility as president to unite the nation.
“So, I get this question so much, and when you see the kind of hatred out there, it’s like unbelievable,” Trump said, declining to directly answer a question from Fox News’ Martha MacCallum during an interview that aired Thursday afternoon.
“I say it, and I say it loud and clear, I think the only thing that’s going to bring us together is tremendous success,” Trump said.
After the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the president has ramped up his attacks on “the radical left,” whom he often blames, without evidence, for political violence.
Speaking to NBC News on Saturday, the president said he wants the nation to “heal,” but added: “We’re dealing with a radical left group of lunatics, and they don’t play fair and they never did.”
Trump switches helicopters after landing due to hydraulic issue, White House says
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump safely boarded a support helicopter after the one they were traveling in experienced a hydraulic issue and was forced to land at a local airfield, White House press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced.
The incident caused a delay in the Trumps arriving at Stansted Airport in the United Kingdom, where they boarded Air Force One on their way back to the US.
“Due to a minor hydraulic issue, and out of an abundance of caution, the pilots landed at a local airfield before reaching Stansted airport. The president and first lady safely boarded the support helicopter,” Leavitt said in a statement to the press pool, which is traveling with the president.
Trump says he would intervene if Mamdani arrested Netanyahu
President Donald Trump said he would intervene if New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani had Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrested if he visited the city.
“It’s inappropriate,” Trump said of Mamdani’s vow, if elected this fall, to order the NYPD to arrest the Israeli leader. “Yeah, I would,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One when asked if he’d intervene.
Mamdani, the Democratic mayoral nominee, told The New York Times he would have Netanyahu arrested, saying he’s a war criminal and citing a warrant from the International Criminal Court.
The president has repeatedly warned New York City would become “a communist city” if Mamdani wins.
Trump suggests networks' licenses could be pulled if they air mostly negative coverage of him
President Donald Trump said he thinks networks’ broadcast licenses could be revoked if they air overwhelmingly negative perspectives on him.
“I read someplace that the networks were 97% against me. I get 97% negative, and yet I won it easily,” he said, referring to the 2024 election. “I won all seven swing states, popular vote, I won everything. And they’re 97% against, they give me wholly bad publicity… I mean, they’re getting a license, I would think maybe their license should be taken away.”
Trump, speaking aboard Air Force One while traveling back from the UK, said he would endorse moves by the Federal Communications Commission to pull licenses, and suggested networks should reapply for them periodically. He added later that not airing conservative views could be rationale for removing networks’ licenses.
“That’s something that should be talked about for licensing, too. When you have a network and you have evening shows and all they do is hit Trump, that’s all they do,” he said.
“If you go back, I guess they haven’t had a conservative on in years or something, somebody said, but when you go back and you take a look, all they do is hit Trump. They’re licensed. They’re not allowed to do that. They’re an arm of the Democrat Party.”
Trump said he would leave the decision to Brendan Carr, the FCC chairman at the center of this week’s Jimmy Kimmel controversy.
“It will be up to Brendan Carr,” Trump said. “I think Brendan Carr is outstanding. He’s a patriot. He loves our country, and he’s a tough guy.”
Trump lobbed criticism at Kimmel, calling him a talentless “whack job.”
Trump says he asked that London’s mayor "not be there" during state visit
President Donald Trump told reporters that he asked that London Mayor Sadiq Khan not be present at events during his two-day state visit to the United Kingdom.
Trump made the comments during a gaggle on Air Force One today, comparing him to the Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson.
“I think he’s done a terrible job,” Trump said, slamming Khan on crime and immigration.
“He wanted to be there, as I understand it. I didn’t want him,” Trump told reporters.
Trump says protesters who interrupted his DC dinner were "a threat"
President Donald Trump told reporters traveling with him on Air Force One Thursday that he thinks a group of protesters who interrupted his dinner in Washington, DC, last week “were a threat,” suggesting again they deserved to be jailed.
“I don’t know how they got in there,” Trump said in a response to a reporter’s question about whether the demonstrators should be jailed. “Certainly, I thought it was very inappropriate. And they said things that were very – and it was a question of, when you take a look at the way they acted, the way they behaved. Yeah, I think they were a threat.”
Trump was dining at Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab in downtown Washington, DC last week — his first trip to a DC restaurant during his second term — when protesters interrupted his dinner, chanting, “Free DC, free Palestine, Trump is the Hitler of our time,” according to video obtained by CNN.
In remarks from the Oval Office earlier this week, Trump told reporters the protesters “should be put in jail, what they’re doing to this country is really subversive.” He said he had asked the attorney general to explore bringing cases under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.
Trump’s comments come one day after he announced he was designating the far-left anti-fascism movement Antifa as a terrorist organization, drawing criticism that he was using the power of the government to stifle dissent.
Trump departs UK after wrapping up state visit
President Donald Trump has departed the United Kingdom after a whirlwind two-day state visit.
Trump and other senior US officials have left Chequers
President Donald Trump and other senior US officials have left Chequers following the bilateral meeting with UK Prime Minister Kier Starmer.
Members of Trump’s senior staff, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and Communications Director Steven Cheung departed the estate. They were heading to a military chopper that they will take to Stansted Air Base for their flight back to the US.
Moments later, the president — who remained on site after today’s press conference for two media interviews — was seen departing Chequers in an SUV. Trump waved at reporters from his vehicle before boarding Marine One.
The president and first lady then lifted from Chequers to Stansted at 4:55 p.m. local time, wrapping up this week’s state visit.
Watch Starmer bid farewell to Trump:
US reporters didn't press Trump and Starmer on Kimmel suspension and ousting of British ambassador
Reporters from the US did not press President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on key headlines during today’s news conference at Chequers, according to CNN’s Kaitlan Collins.
“What stood out to me was to hear not a single United States reporter ask President Trump about one of the biggest stories coming out of the United States right now,” the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s show, Collins told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.
She said that Trump “simply responded saying that Kimmel was ousted because of ‘poor ratings,’” but he failed to address the intense pressure that Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr has put on ABC regarding Kimmel’s programming.
Collins said it’s “remarkable” that Trump was not pressed further on the news aside from the single question from a British reporter.
Separately, Collins said that Starmer was not really questioned on the ousting of UK Ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson, who was fired due to his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. Starmer was asked one question on the matter and responded that Mandelson’s connection to Epstein is “deeper” than he first knew.
“Of course, he did initially know that they had some kind of relationship,” but that also wasn’t something that reporters pressed Starmer on, Collins said.
Catch up on top lines from Trump and Starmer's joint news conference
President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer discussed their two countries’ “unbreakable bond,” as well as the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, during their joint news conference today.
Here are some of the top lines:
- A cozy relationship: In his opening remarks, Starmer praised the historic bonds between the UK and US, adding that both countries are “ready to define this century together.” Earlier today, the leaders announced a new “tech prosperity deal” between the two countries.
- War in Ukraine: Starmer stressed that Russia’s ongoing attacks on Ukraine show that President Vladimir Putin is not interested in peace. The UK prime minister said he and Trump talked about how to “increase the pressure on Putin to get him to agree a peace deal that will last.” Trump said Putin “let me down,” adding that the war was harder to solve than he anticipated. He also claimed if oil prices fall, Putin will “drop out” of the war.
- War in Gaza: Starmer called the situation in Gaza “intolerable” and said he hopes the UK’s recognition of a Palestinian state helps to bring about peace. Trump disagreed with his British counterpart over acknowledging a Palestinian state and said he “wants the hostages released right now.” Trump, who fielded several questions about if he would pressure Israel to end the war, offered few specifics on how he envisioned the conflict concluding.
- Air base: Trump announced that the US is trying to regain control of Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. He also repeated his attacks on President Joe Biden’s administration for its chaotic withdrawal from the country in 2021.
- Free speech: Starmer hit back at the claim that Britain is stifling free speech — something senior Trump administration officials have lambasted him for. “Free speech is one of the founding values of the United Kingdom, and we protect it … fiercely,” Starmer said.
- Jimmy Kimmel: Questioned about whether Kimmel’s suspension amounted to an attack on free speech, Trump slammed the talk show host as “not a talented person” and said he was “fired for lack of talent” and “bad ratings.”
- Charlie Kirk: Trump mentioned conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated last week, saying he believed Kirk could have been an American president one day.
- UK ambassador to US: Both Starmer and Trump skirted a question about Peter Mandelson — who was fired as Britain’s ambassador to Washington last week once his ties to Jeffrey Epstein became impossible to deny. Trump claimed he didn’t know Mandelson, even though he appeared alongside him in the Oval Office in May.
Trump says he wants the Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. Here's what to know
US President Donald Trump said he wants the Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan during a joint news conference today with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
The air base, which sits north of the country’s capital Kabul, was the largest US military base in Afghanistan from October 2001 to July 2021, when the US turned it over to Afghan forces.
Trump has repeatedly insisted he would never have wanted the US to leave the base, where he made a surprise visit on Thanksgiving in 2019 during his first presidential term, primarily because of its proximity to China.
The site was secured at the time of the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. Earlier this month, Trump branded the Biden administration “so stupid” for withdrawing US troops from the base.
After the 2021 withdrawal, a Pentagon report said $7 billion of military equipment was left behind by the US.
Trump says war in Ukraine doesn’t affect US, while Starmer emphasizes need to pressure Putin
President Donald Trump said he hopes there’ll be “good news” coming soon on efforts to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, but that the conflict doesn’t affect the United States.
“I hope we’re going to have some good news for you coming up,” Trump said. “But again, it doesn’t affect the United States.”
Turning to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Trump added: “And he, look, it doesn’t so much affect you. Of course, you are a lot closer to the scene than we are.”
Starmer interjected to add that “we have to put extra pressure on (Russian President Vladimir) Putin.”
“It’s only when the president has put pressure on Putin that he has actually shown any inclination to move,” the prime minister said.
Moments earlier, the US president acknowledged that Russian’s unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine had been harder to resolve than he’d initially thought and that Putin had “let me down.”
Trump claims Putin will "drop out" of Ukraine war if oil prices fall
President Donald Trump reiterated his call for European countries to stop buying Russian oil, claiming that Moscow’s war in Ukraine would end if the price of oil falls.
“Very simply, if the price of oil comes down, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is going to drop out. He’s going to have no choice. He’s going to drop out of that war,” Trump said during a joint press conference with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Trump noted that athough he is “very close” with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he levied steep tariffs on India because it purchases Russian oil.
On Saturday, Trump issued an ultimatum to NATO countries to stop buying Russian oil, adding that the US would issue “major sanctions” on Russia only when NATO countries agree to do the same.
CNN has previously reported that the European Union imposed a ban on maritime Russian oil imports and refined oil products like diesel, but many countries continue to import Russian fossil fuels and liquefied natural gas.
Trump on Thursday made a distinction that his host, the United Kingdom, does not import Russian oil, saying, “It wasn’t him, it was other countries.”
Trump was also asked if he regretted inviting Putin to Alaska last month.
“No,” the president said, declining to elaborate further.
That bilateral meeting did not significantly change the trajectory of the war, but bought the Kremlin additional time to shore up gains on the battlefield.
Starmer and Trump skirt question on former ambassador Peter Mandelson's links to Jeffrey Epstein
Peter Mandelson — who was fired as Britain’s ambassador to Washington last week once his ties to Jeffrey Epstein became impossible to deny — didn’t come up until the very end of Thursday’s news conference.
US President Donald Trump, who has also faced questions about his ties to the convicted sex offender, said he did not know Mandelson, even though he appeared alongside him in the Oval Office in May when the US and UK announced a trade deal. At the time, the president even praised his “beautiful” accent.
Starmer quickly replied: “Some information came to light last week that wasn’t available when he was appointed, and I made a decision about it, and that’s very clear.”
That information, revealed by Bloomberg, was that Mandelson continued to support Epstein despite his 2008 conviction in Florida for soliciting sex from underage girls. Starmer fired Mandelson a day after Bloomberg published a trove of emails between Mandelson and Epstein.
Starmer on Thursday swiftly pivoted back to more comfortable ground, discussing efforts to support Ukraine.
