Lutnick: US could announce trade deal Wednesday with Mexico and Canada after imposing tariffs
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US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that President Donald Trump could announce a trade deal with Mexico and Canada as soon as tomorrow, just one day after the US imposed punishing tariffs on the two nations and sparked retaliatory levies.
“I think he’s going to work something out with them,” Lutnick said on Fox Business. “It’s not going to be a pause, none of that pause stuff, but I think he’s going to figure out, you do more, and I’ll meet you in the middle some way, and we’re going to probably be announcing that tomorrow.”
Trump’s policies have added uncertainty for the world’s biggest economy. The whipsaw application of tariffs and signs that perhaps that policy could change, all within a 24-hour span, have complicated decisions for businesses and increased pressure on an economy already showing signs of strain.
The White House imposed 25% across-the-board tariffs on Mexican imports and on nearly all Canadian imports early Tuesday.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau swiftly announced plans to implement a 25% tariff on C$30 billion ($20.7 billion) of US goods immediately, followed by an additional C$125 billion ($86.2 billion) in 21 days’ time.
“This is a very dumb thing to do,” Trudeau said, in remarks that he said were directed at Trump. “There is absolutely no justification or need whatsoever for these tariffs today.”
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Tuesday that she would announce retaliatory tariffs on US imports on Sunday, noting at a news conference in Mexico City: “The unilateral decision made by the United States affects national and foreign companies operating in our country, as well as our people.”
Lutnick said he had spoken with both Canadian and Mexican representatives about trade among the three countries.
A Canadian government source confirmed to CNN that Canadian Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc spoke with the US commerce secretary on Tuesday.
The 25% tariffs come after Trump also imposed an additional 10% tariff on Chinese goods, raising that country’s rate to 20%.
US stocks erased its gains after Trump acted on his threats Tuesday. After dropping by around 800 points in the morning, the Dow recouped its losses before plunging at the end of trading to close lower by around 670 points, or 1.55%, at 42,521. The broader S&P 500 fell 1.22% and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.35%, paring some of its losses after dipping into correction territory earlier.
The American Farm Bureau Federation’s president also warned Tuesday that Trump’s tariffs will “take a toll on rural America.”
“Farmers and ranchers are concerned with the decision to impose increased tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico and China – our top trading partners,” said Zippy Duvall, who leads the organization.
Last year, the United States exported more than $83 billion in agricultural products to China, Canada and Mexico, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.
“For the third straight year, farmers are losing money on almost every major crop planted. Adding even more costs and reducing markets for American agricultural goods could create an economic burden some farmers may not be able to bear,” said Duvall.
In 2018, during the first Trump administration, the US Department of Agriculture had to set up a Market Facilitation Program for farmers to offset financial losses on their crops due to China’s retaliatory tariffs.
CNN’s John Towfighi contributed to this report.
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Trump could scale back Canada, Mexico tariffs Wednesday, Lutnick says
President Donald Trump will “probably” announce tariff compromise deals with Canada and Mexico soon, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Tuesday.
The potential agreements would likely involve scaling back at least part of Trump’s brand new 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, he added.
Lutnick’s comments came minutes after the U.S. stock market limped to a close for a second day of sharp declines, spurred at least in part by investors’ fears that Trump’s aggressive policies will ignite a crippling trade war.
After his remarks, U.S. stock futures tied to all three major averages rose.
The compromises with Canada and Mexico will likely be revealed as soon as Wednesday, Lutnick said on “Fox Business.”
While the Cabinet secretary did not specify what Trump would agree to, he suggested the U.S. president would be willing to meet Canada and Mexico “in the middle.” He also appeared to foreclose on the possibility that Trump would lift the tariffs entirely.
The Trump administration on Tuesday reimposed sweeping 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports after putting them on pause for a month.
Trump, who has held up tariffs as an all-powerful negotiating tool, based the policy on allegations that the neighboring countries were failing to stem the flow of drugs and crime into the U.S.
“Both the Mexicans and the Canadians are on the phone with me all day today, trying to show that they’ll do better,” Lutnick said Tuesday afternoon.
“And the President is listening because, you know, he’s very, very fair and very reasonable. So I think he’s going to work something out with them,” he said.
Lutnick described a deal in which Canada and Mexico agree to “do more,” at which point Trump would “meet you in the middle some way.”
“We’re going to probably be announcing that tomorrow,” he said.
Lutnick said the announcement would not be another pause.
The comments came hours before Trump was set to deliver a primetime address to a joint session of Congress.
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Live updates: Trump to address Congress after instigating trade war and halting Ukraine aid
President Donald Trump will address Congress and the American people Tuesday night as he lays out his plans for the months ahead. Trump’s dizzying first weeks in office have featured a dismantling of the federal government, tensions with America’s allies and a trade war compounding economic uncertainty.
Other news we’re following today:
By tradition, a State of the Union address is intended as a look back on the prior year. Trump just took office on Jan. 20, so he’s only been in office for just over a month.
Instead, newly inaugurated presidents typically use their first joint congressional address to look forward, setting a tone for their legislative agenda. According to the Congressional Research Service, the average number of policy requests in a first-year address is 42.
Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., speaks during the Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing for Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to be Defense secretary, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
The opposing party — in this case, the Democrats — will offer a message in response to the joint congressional address. That also happens after State of the Union addresses.
This year, Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin will give the Democrats’ response, which will also be televised. Democratic leaders have said that in her message, Slotkin will likely focus on economic issues.
The party has also tapped Rep. Adriano Espaillat of New York, chair of the Hispanic Caucus, to give a Spanish-language response. On Saturday, Trump signed an executive order designating English as the official language of the United States, allowing government agencies to choose whether to offer documents and services in languages other than English.
FILE – The J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building is seen June 9, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
The Trump administration on Tuesday published a list of more than 400 federal properties it says it could close or sell, including the FBI headquarters and the main Department of Justice building, after deeming them “not core to government operations.”
The headquarters of numerous agencies, including the Department of Labor and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, are listed as well.
The list published by the General Services Administration includes some of the country’s most recognizable buildings and spans nearly every state, with properties ranging from courthouses to office buildings and parking garages.
▶ Read more about the properties the GSA says could close
People wave signs to passing cars during a pro-transgender rights protest outside of Seattle Children’s Hospital after the institution postponed some gender-affirming surgeries for minors following an executive order by President Donald Trump, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)
A second federal judge has extended a block on Trump’s executive orders halting federal funding for providers of gender-affirming health care for transgender people under age 19.
The judge’s ruling came in a lawsuit filed earlier this month on behalf of families with transgender or nonbinary children who allege their health care has already been compromised by the president’s orders.
The preliminary injunction keeps enforcement of the orders on hold while the case plays out, though the administration is expected to appeal.
▶ Read more about the block on Trump’s executive orders
Trump will speak in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol, which is large enough to accommodate both House and Senate lawmakers, as well as members of the U.S. Supreme Court and Trump’s Cabinet.
There’s always one Cabinet member missing, though. Called the “designated survivor,” that person is intentionally left out to ensure that someone could assume the office of the president in case of a catastrophic or mass-casualty event.
The president also typically invites guests who sit in the balcony above the House floor with the first lady. Sometimes there are personal connections, and other times the guests have an association with an issue the president intends to highlight in his remarks.
Vice President JD Vance will travel to the U.S.-Mexico border for a firsthand look at the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
Vance will be in Eagle Pass, Texas, on Wednesday, according to state officials and local activists. Federal aviation officials have also cleared air space for Air Force Two to make the trip.
The vice president is making a series of stops, including to Shelby Park, a municipal park along the Rio Grande that Republican Gov. Greg Abbott seized from federal authorities last year in a feud with the Biden administration.
The U.S. Capitol is illuminated at dusk before President Donald Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress, in Washington, Tuesday, March 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)
Trump will deliver the first joint congressional address of his second presidency on Tuesday at 9 p.m. EST.
A number of networks have said they plan to air Trump’s address across their broadcast and streaming platforms, with special programming before and afterward. The Associated Press will livestream the address online at apnews.com and on its YouTube channel.
The Republican president will be speaking in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol, which is large enough accommodate both House and Senate lawmakers as well as other officials who are typically invited to such events.
Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, speaks in the Capitol rotunda on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
FILE – A sign outside the Internal Revenue Service building is seen, May 4, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
The IRS is drafting plans to try to cut its workforce of roughly 90,000 people in half through a mix of layoffs, attrition and incentivized buyouts, according to two people familiar with the situation and not authorized to speak on the record.
A reduction in force of tens of thousands of people would render the IRS “dysfunctional,” said John Koskinen, a former IRS Commissioner.
The federal tax collector employs roughly 90,000 employees total across the United States, according to the latest IRS data. People of color make up 56% of the IRS workforce, and women represent 65%.
The reductions are part of the Trump administration’s efforts to shrink the size of the federal workforce through the Department of Government Efficiency.
▶ Read more about the planned cuts
FILE – Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., speaks during a Senate Armed Services Committee full committee hearing on the conflict in Ukraine Feb. 28, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File
Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi had been notably quiet since the fallout from Zelenskyy’s Oval Office visit.
But on Tuesday, he released a statement saying he hopes lawmakers can “take a deep breath” and that “the excellent, hopeful signs that come from this statement by President Zelenskyy came to fruition and come to fruition quickly.”
Wicker was among the senators who met with Zelenskyy ahead of his disastrous meeting with Trump. Friends can argue and move on, he said. “And I think we’re seeing that process today. I hope to heaven that that is the case.”
Rep. Yvette Clarke, a New York Democrat, said more than two dozen of its members discussed in a wide-ranging meeting how to navigate against the Republican-led Congress and the Trump administration.
“We’re going to do everything we can in unity to push back and to stop the most egregious of things from happening that comes through the legislative process,” she said.
Rep. Troy Carter, a Louisiana Democrat, said “we’re going to embarrass those members who should be doing better by the people that elected them.”
The lawmakers say many of those efforts start online.
Protesters who gathered across the country to push back against Trump’s second-term agenda have so many things that they’re mad about that they’re having trouble settling on a single, unifying theme.
“There are so many things to fight, but I hope by being here we are starting some conversations,” said Sara Grummer-Strawn, a protester in Atlanta who held a sign declaring “So Much Wrong, So Little Space,” followed by a small-print litany of topics from Ukraine and tariffs to potential education cuts to the denial of climate and vaccine science.
Along with tariffs and Trump’s reset on the war in Ukraine, protesters decried the aggressive and sometimes legally dubious actions of the Department of Government Efficiency and its leader, billionaire Elon Musk.
Trump was called a fascist, a “Russian asset,” “Putin’s Puppet” and “Wannabe King,” among other, more profane monikers. One signed implored “Punch Nazis,” reflecting an increasingly common effort to compare Trump’s presidency to Nazi Germany.
▶Read more about the protests.
Trump’s pick as NATO ambassador reassured senators at his confirmation hearing on Tuesday that the administration’s commitment to the military alliance was “ironclad.”
The U.S. commitment has been called into question by Trump’s scathing criticism of European allies and his eagerness to build ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Matt Whitaker, an acting attorney general in Trump’s first term, told senators that a key part of his mission would be to push the 32 NATO allies to meet Trump’s demand to increase their own defense spending.
▶ Read more about Trump’s pick as NATO ambassador
U.S. District Judge Jamal Whitehead in Seattle says he’s concerned that the Trump administration canceled contracts with refugee resettlement agencies just a day after he ordered the government to reinstate the program.
Whitehead issued a preliminary injunction last week that halted Trump’s efforts to suspend the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program.
But a day later, major resettlement agencies, including Church World Service and the Jewish refugee resettlement organization HIAS, received notifications that their “cooperative agreements” with the State Department had been canceled. The groups said in a court filing on Thursday that it appeared the administration was trying to circumvent the ruling.
During a hearing Tuesday, Whitehead said he had those same concerns, but he agreed with the Justice Department that the termination notices were not technically in violation of the injunction.
After Trump’s tariffs rattled the economy, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick says the United Sates will likely meet Canada and Mexico “in the middle” with an announcement coming as soon as Wednesday.
Lutnick told Fox Business News that he has been on the phone with Canadian and Mexican officials after Trump on Tuesday imposed 25% tariffs on the countries, including 10% import taxes on Canada’s energy products such as oil and electricity.
Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick speaks in the Oval Office of the White House after President Donald Trump signed an executive order, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
Lutnick said the tariffs would not be paused but that Trump would reach a compromise.
“I think he’s going to figure out, you do more and I’ll meet you in the middle in some way,” Lutnick said. “We’re going to probably be announcing that tomorrow.”
Mary Comans was one of four employees fired Feb. 11 by Homeland Security.
These transactions have been standard for years through a program that refunds some communities the cost they incur caring for a surge in migration.
But they’ve come under intense attack by Republicans. The workers were accused of circumventing leadership to make the transactions.
The lawsuit says her removal was unlawful.
In a statement Comans said she’d faithfully “served my oath to the Constitution” and said her termination was politically motivated.
Trump wants to increase logging in national forests and on public lands, including by bypassing endangered species protections.
To do that, the federal government would have to activate a seldom-used committee nicknamed the “God Squad” because it can approve federal projects even if it leads to extinction of a species otherwise protected by the Endangered Species Act.
But experts say there are strict procedural requirements — and no provision under law to proactively use the committee to bypass protections.
▶ Read more about how Trump wants to use the “God Squad”
Oxnard, California-based Mission Produce packs avocados and mangos and distributes them to supermarkets and restaurants all over the world.
Mission Produce co-founder and CEO Steve Barnard said the company grows some of its own produce in Peru, Guatemala, California and South Africa. But this time of year, most avocados come from Mexico.
Barnard said Mission Produce still has pre-tariff inventory ripening up in its U.S. warehouses, so it won’t need to raise prices immediately.
“If this thing lasts 10 days or more, our costs will be substantially different. We’ll have to come to the table and figure something out,” Barnard said.
A federal judge has ruled that Trump did not have the authority to attempt to fire a member of the board responsible for protecting federal government employees from political reprisals or retaliation for whistleblowing.
U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras concluded that Trump doesn’t have the power to remove Merit Systems Protection Board member Cathy Harris from office “at will.”
Contreras ruled less than a week after a different judge in Washington, D.C., ruled that Trump unlawfully tried to remove Hampton Dellinger, who leads the Office of Special Counsel. Both cases ultimately could wind up in the U.S. Supreme Court.
Trump’s order pausing aid to Ukraine includes military assistance and weapons that had already been approved and were en route to the country, according to a defense official.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing deliberations, said that it’s not clear what weapons that includes or how much aid was stopped even as it was en route to Kyiv.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the U.S. had used two major ways to provide security assistance to Kyiv: presidential drawdown authority, which takes weapons and supplies from Pentagon stockpiles and sends them quickly to the warfront, and the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which uses longer-term contracts to send weapons.
The official said that some weapons approved by the Biden administration in recent months that were being provided through the drawdown authority were affected by Trump’s pause.
But no details are available. As an example, a $500 million aid package was approved in January, before Biden left office. It included missiles for air defense, ammunition bridging systems and other equipment. Officials did not know how much of that aid had already arrived in Ukraine.
The Egypt plan, approved by Arab leaders at a summit in Cairo on Tuesday, would allow Palestinians to remain in the territory during a post-war reconstruction unlike Trump’s plan that calls for depopulating the strip and redeveloping it as a beach destination.
National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes said Trump “stands by his bold vision for a post-war Gaza” but also “welcomes input from our Arab partners in the region.”
“It’s clear his proposals have driven the region to come to the table rather than allow this issue to devolve into further crisis,” Hughes added.
Arab leaders approved the Egyptian proposed $53 billion plan to rebuild Gaza by 2030 as the continuation of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire is uncertain.
Israel’s leaders have welcomed Trump’s proposal, which Human Rights Watch and others have said would amount to “ethnic cleansing,” the forcible displacement of the civilian population of a national group from a geographic area.
Idaho has a strict ban on the procedure, according to court documents filed Tuesday.
The Justice Department outlined its plans to move for dismissal of the lawsuit originally filed by the Biden administration, according to the court papers filed by St. Luke’s Health System, the state’s largest hospital network.
Dropping the case would represent a dramatic reversal from the previous administration, in a state with one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws.
St. Luke’s is seeking a court order allowing doctors to continue providing abortions in emergency situations as they deem necessary. The hospital has previously said Idaho’s abortion ban required pregnant women to be flown out of state for emergency care.
A Justice Department spokesperson and Idaho officials didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
▶ Read more about the emergency abortion lawsuit
NBC’s Lester Holt and ABC’s David Muir were among those seen on the White House campus ahead of the session. It’s a decades-long tradition by presidents as they seek to shape news coverage of their annual addresses to the country.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks to reporters after a Senate policy luncheon, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
Schumer, a New York Democrat, told reporters at the Capitol that Trump was “incapable of being straight with the American people about the mess he’s created in his short time in office.”
Democrats are spotlighting the people who’ve been affected by the way the Trump administration has tried to dismantle parts of the federal government in the weeks since Trump took office. They’re also slamming Trump for the economic effects of the president’s tariff plans.
In the aftermath of their election losses, Democrats had struggled to coalesce around a plan to counter Trump. But as the impact of his early actions becomes clear, congressional Democrats have become enlivened in their responses.
“I get that people wanted change,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn. “I get that they wanted someone to shake things up, to work on bringing health care costs down and doing something about housing, but they didn’t want this.”
Peter Marocco, the Trump administration official who’s been leading the dismantling of USAID, is expected to brief members of Congress on Wednesday about the president’s reorganization of U.S. foreign aid, according to a person familiar with the plan.
Marocco will come face-to-face with Republicans and Democrats on the House Foreign Affairs Committee for the first time since the administration issued wide-ranging cuts that would effectively eliminate the majority of U.S. development and humanitarian help abroad.
Democrats and even some Republican lawmakers have since called for saving a number of widely successful USAID programs credited with containing outbreaks of Ebola and saving more than 20 million lives in Africa through HIV and AIDS treatment.
The latest actions by the Trump administration have reflected a stark departure from decades of U.S. policy that foreign aid helps U.S. interests by stabilizing other countries and economies and building alliances.
John Thune says trade is important to his home state of South Dakota, but he’s ready to give Trump’s tariffs a chance.
“What I’m willing to do is give the president some latitude to try and accomplish the objective he seeks to get done here,” Thune said about the administration’s goal of reducing the flow of fentanyl at the borders.
The Republican leader acknowledged he’s in a “different place on tariffs” than some of his colleagues and even the White House. “But at the end of the day, it’s really about, trying to achieve the desired result.”
“I think it’s a part of a negotiation,” John Thune said at the Capitol.
“And I’m hopeful that in the end, we’ll get folks to the table and be able to negotiate a deal that will bring a peaceful resolution to this three-years-long conflict and, and one, hopefully they’ll respect the sovereignty of Ukrainian people and make the world more safe,” he said.
A vial of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is on display at the Lubbock Health Department Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025, in Lubbock, Texas. (AP Photo/Mary Conlon)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted a message on X, formerly known as Twitter, saying that the state had requested the agency’s assistance in investigating and controlling an outbreak that emerged in January.
Federal health officials have limited statutory authority to open disease investigations. As a policy, the CDC dispatches investigators only after state or local health authorities ask them in.
The outbreak has sickened more than 140 people, including a school-age child who died.
Democrats on the House Oversight Committee are introducing a pair of resolutions demanding the Trump administration turn over documents and information about Musk’s potential conflicts of interest and the firings of federal workers, the AP has learned.
It’s the most aggressive move yet by Democrats trying to confront Trump’s actions.
The resolutions of inquiry would launch investigations into the Trump administration and Musk through the Oversight panel. If the Republican-led committee fails to act, which is likely, the Democrats could push the resolutions to a House floor vote in a matter of weeks.
▶Read more about the DOGE firings.
Many products are flowing from China to the United States under a tariff exception called the de-minimis clause, which allows small packages valued under $800 to enter the U.S. duty-free.
Rep. Linda Sanchez, the top Democrat on the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee, introduced a bill Tuesday to end the exception for packages from China, a move she said would help “level the playing field for American workers, keep families safe from fentanyl, and prevent other dangerous products from entering our communities undetected.”
Trump last month ended the exception only to restore it a few days later, apparently to allow more time for the federal government to sort out how to collect tariffs on the millions of such shipments that come through the U.S. border every day.
FILE – Linda McMahon speaks during an America First Policy Institute gala at his Mar-a-Lago estate, Nov. 14, 2024, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
Education Secretary Linda McMahon is urging her agency’s employees to cut administrative bloat.
In a Monday memo after being confirmed by the Senate, McMahon said she plans to fulfill President Donald Trump’s promise to slash red tape at the Education Department and return its power to states.
She described her task as “accomplishing the elimination of bureaucratic bloat here at the Department of Education — a momentous final mission — quickly and responsibly.”
It will “profoundly impact” budgets and staff at the department, McMahon said, adding that all workers “should be enthusiastic about any change that will benefit students.”
Trump campaigned on a promise to close the department, and his administration has moved to cut dozens of contracts and fire or suspend more than 100 workers.
Emmanuel Macron’s office confirmed the successive phone calls on Tuesday.
Macron “welcomes” Zelenskyy’s “willingness to re-engage in dialogue with the U.S.” and “reiterates France’s determination to work with all the parties to achieve a solid and lasting peace in Ukraine,” his office said.
Zelenskyy said Tuesday the Oval Office blowup with Trump last week was “regrettable,” adding that he stands ready to work under Trump’s “strong leadership” to get a lasting peace.
No details were disclosed about the discussion with Trump.
Andrzej Duda said in a farewell address to the U.N. General Assembly that he has promoted closer relations with the United States during his nearly 10 years in office and recently in talks with President Donald Trump.
He says that if not for the initiatives bolstering the Polish-American alliance and European security against “resurging Russian imperialism,” the Kremlin could have conquered Ukraine’s capital long ago and set its sights on Warsaw and the Baltic states.
Duda says Poland was one of the first countries to support neighboring Ukraine after Russia’s invasion in February 2022 against Moscow’s “blatant and brutal violation of international law.”
Duda, who cannot run for a third term in elections in May, says Poland has continuously supported Ukraine “which is defending itself against Russia’s neo-colonial ambitions.”
On Tuesday, in response to questions from Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, and other Republicans on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Elbridge Colby said a nuclear-armed Iran “would pose an existential threat” to the U.S. and that “we should deny Iran to have a nuclear weapon.”
He downplayed his previous comments over the years on Iran, saying, “was my wording always appropriate? Was my precise framing always perfect? No.”
Vice President JD Vance made a quick stop at the committee hearing to urge Colby’s confirmation, saying the nominee has said things in the past that alienated Republicans and Democrats and also said things that both sides would agree on.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visits the Abrahamic Family House in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)
Marco Rubio told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that it’s a “top priority” for the Trump administration amid uncertainty over the future of a ceasefire in Gaza.
The State Department said Tuesday that Rubio had spoken with Netanyahu to thank him for cooperating with Trump administration’s proposal for an extension of the ceasefire with Hamas that expired on Saturday. It also said Rubio told Netanyahu that “he anticipates close coordination in addressing the threats posed by Iran and pursuing opportunities for a stable region.”
The call came after an announcement by Rubio on Saturday that he had signed off on emergency determinations to expedite military assistance, including 2,000-pound bunker buster bombs, to Israel without congressional review. The actual approvals were done on Friday.
Trump’s nominee for the top policy job at the Pentagon told senators after persistent questioning that Russia presents a significant military threat to Europe and the U.S. homeland and that Moscow’s forces did invade Ukraine.
On multiple occasions Tuesday, Elbridge Colby declined to answer directly whether Russia invaded Ukraine, saying it’s a sensitive topic and he didn’t want to say anything that might hurt the chances for peace.
In only one instance — when Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, pressed him, asking, “In February 2022, did Russian forces cross the border and invade Ukraine? Yes or no?” — he told the Senate Armed Services Committee that she was “describing a factual reality” that is “demonstrably true.”
When asked about Trump’s decision Monday to pause military aid to Kyiv, Colby said the president has a plan to end the war and ensure a secure and sovereign Ukraine.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said he would bring two such constituents.
Alissa Ellman, is a disabled Army veteran diagnosed with a rare cancer associated with burn pit exposure. She was fired from her job in Buffalo helping fellow veterans obtain benefits.
Tiffany Ramos was fired from her job in Syracuse helping farms and rural businesses get financial support.
They demonstrate “the real and devastating human impact of Trump’s cruel and shortsighted policies and the destructive cuts,” Schumer said.
A few former park rangers will be in the audience as well as former VA workers.
Rep. Eric Sorensen of Illinois invited James Diaz, a disabled veteran who worked as a fuel compliance officer at the IRS.
Elon Musk speaks during a Cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (Pool via AP)
Asked about a potential visit by Musk on Wednesday, Johnson said he was “coming to give everyone an update.”
“The closer we coordinate with what DOGE is doing and with the House, the better off the country is because we’ll be able again to make these big savings from fraud, waste and abuse permanent in the budgeting process,” Johnson said.
Among them, Rep. Kweisi Mfume, D-Md., said: “Donald Trump and Elon Musk are destroying the state of the union. I don’t need to be there to watch him claim otherwise.”
Two lawmakers representing districts in the Washington, D.C., suburbs of Northern Virginia also won’t be there. Rep. Gerry Connolly said he’s never missed the address before, but the chaos unleashed on his constituents demands more. Meanwhile, Rep. Don Beyer, said he’d be rallying this week with federal workers and contractors.
“I will choose our community over President Donald Trump every single day,” Beyer said.
Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M. tweeted “I’ll start attending when he starts following the law.”
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, also says she won’t be attending.
“Instead, I’m meeting with constituents who have been harmed by this administration’s reckless firings and its illegal and ongoing funding freeze across government,” Murry said.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., walks through the Capitol, Monday, March 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Mike Johnson is encouraging Republicans to skip town halls that have been filled with protesters decrying the Trump administration’s slashing of federal government.
The GOP speaker is echoing the president’s claims that the demonstrations are fueled by professional protesters.
“We’ve seen this movie before,” Johnson said at a press conference.
Republicans are finding themselves at a loss to explain the DOGE cuts that are leaving federal workers suddenly out of jobs from coast to coast.
It’s all reminiscent of Trump’s first term when Democrats badgered Republicans for trying to do away with the Affordable Care Act — and ended up winning back control of the House in the midterm elections.
Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a press conference at Canada House in London on Sunday, March 2, 2025. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)
The Canadian prime minister says the country’s tariffs will be rolled out over the course of 21 days.
“Today the United States launched a trade war against Canada, their closest partner and ally, their closest friend,” he said. “At the same, they are talking about working positively with Russia, appeasing Vladimir Putin, a lying murderous dictator. Make that make sense.”
▶ Read more about the tariffs
President Donald Trump, right, meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office at the White House, Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/ Mystyslav Chernov)
Zelenskyy said Tuesday the Oval Office blowup with Trump and Vance last week was “regrettable,” adding that he stands ready to work under Trump’s “strong leadership” to get a lasting peace.
Zelenskyy’s remarks in an apparent effort to placate Trump came in a social media post on X, hours after the White House announced a pause military aid to Ukraine that is critical to fighting Russia’s invasion,
He also said Ukraine is ready to sign a lucrative deal on rare-earth minerals and security with Washington.
In an apparent reference to Trump’s criticism following the contentious White House meeting on Friday that Zelensky does not want a peace deal, the Ukrainian leader said, “None of us want an endless war.”
The meeting “did not go the way it was supposed to be,” Zelenskyy said. “It is regrettable that it happened this way. It is time to make things right. We would like future cooperation and communication to be constructive.”
▶ Read more about Zelenskyy’s comments
These guests would be in addition to those announced as sitting with first lady Melania Trump for the address.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to reveal any details during an appearance on Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends.”
“I will let President Trump tell the country later, but there are going to be some very special guests that the president will reveal in his speech,” she said.
FILE – A woman and her children walk by flags from the NATO nations prior to a meeting of NATO foreign ministers on a main square of the Old Town in Vilnius, Wednesday April 20, 2005. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo, File)
Matt Whitaker, a former acting attorney general in Trump’s first term, was speaking Tuesday to lawmakers at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on his nomination.
Whitaker spoke more positively of NATO than have Trump and ally Elon Musk, who’ve questioned the value of the alliance to the U.S.
Whitaker told senators a big part of his job would be ensuring each NATO ally reaches Trump’s call to invest the equivalent of at least 5% of its gross domestic product in their militaries.
“I have no concern that our European allies and Canada can do more and want to do more,” Whitaker said. “I fully expect they will do what’s necessary to continue to make NATO the strongest alliance ever in the history of the planet.”
The move is meant as a show of support for Ukraine.
Rep. Steny Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat., urged colleagues during a closed-door meeting to join the effort. The move comes one day after President Donald Trump directed a pause in Ukraine assistance and after last week’s disastrous White House meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Rep. Lloyd Doggett, a Texas Democrat, who was wearing a blue and yellow tie, accused Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance of “bullying a statesman last week on behalf of a thug.”
“I think we need to make a full show of support for Ukraine tonight,” Doggett said.
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