News Analysis India

Tag: Trump

  • Donald Trump’s Legal Team ‘not Finished’ After Supreme Court Defeat, Says Rudy Giuliani

    US President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani on December 11 indicated that Trump’s legal team will continue to challenge the outcome of the November 3 presidential elections. Giuliani’s comments come after the Supreme Court rejected to overturn the vote count in four swing states- Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The Supreme Court said that the lawsuit led by Texas lacked the legal right to litigate over how other states conduct their elections. However, Trump’s attorney indicated that the President could bring his complaints back to the lower courts. 

    Giuliani’s remarks follow the most significant legal setback the GOP legal campaign has suffered since the election. Trump and his allies in state government have repeatedly pushed lawsuits based on spurious claims that widespread voter fraud and irregularities cost the president the election. However, almost all of them have been dismissed for lack of evidence of standing. Giuliani has also been making high-profile appearances in front of lawmakers in battleground states, even though he has failed to sway any state to subvert the election result. 

    Trump, on the other hand, continues to repeatedly question the legitimacy of Joe Biden’s win and seeking recounts in several states, despite election officials have already certified the President-elect’s victory in the presidential polls. Following the order by the US Apex Court, evidently disappointed Donald Trump also took to Twitter and said that the Supreme Court “let us down”. While Trump accused the country’s highest judicial institution of having neither wisdom nor courage, Joe Biden’s campaign spokesperson Mike Gwin said that the decision was “no surprise”. As per reports, the Texas attorney general called the court’s order “unfortunate” and pledged to continue to ‘tirelessly defend the integrity and security’ of the US Elections. 

  • Trump Promises ‘free Vaccines’ After Pfizer’s COVID-19 Vaccine Earns FDA Nod

    The US on Friday has given a green light to the nation’s first COVID-19 vaccine. The development came after the US Food and Drug Administration authorized an emergency rollout of a vaccine from Pfizer Inc. and its German partner BioNTech. US President Donald Trump has reacted to the development and assured free vaccine for all Americans. 

    Taking to Twitter, Trump announced that the FDA’s decision to authorize emergency use of Pfizer’s Covid vaccine. Terming the decision as a ‘medical miracle’ Trump has thanked all the scientists, doctors and workers for the vaccine. In addition, Trump has also stated that his administration had disbursed over two hundred million dollars to Pfizer for the development of over a hundred million doses of the vaccine. Trump further assured that the vaccine will be free for all Americans.

     Following the nod from the FDA, the US government had also tied up with FedEx and UPS to ship the vaccine doses to every state in the country. Apart from this announcement, Trump has also remarked that the vaccine’s first dose will be administered within 24 hours. However, Trump has expressed that the senior citizens, healthcare workers and first responders will be the first ones to receive Pfizer’s Covid vaccine. 

  • US Supreme Court Rejects Trump’s Bid To Overturn Election Results, Reaffirms Biden’s Win

    In the latest blow for Donald Trump in resisting his defeat in US Election 2020, Supreme Court on December 11 rejected a bid by Texas’ attorney general to block the ballot of voters in battleground states that declared president-elect Joe Biden as the winner. As per the CNN report, it is one of the strongest indications yet that Trump will be the first US president in nearly 30 years to lose in his reelection bid to Democratic challenger, Biden and has no chance of overturning the election results. Moreover, even the justices that Trump had appointed have no interest in paying heed to the incumbent’s desperate legal bids to continue. 

    The lawsuit was reportedly filed by Texas attorney and a strong Trump supporter, Ken Paxton to invalidate the election results in states including Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia and Wisconsin. Even though Trump had his legal team on December 10 intensify their campaign and nearly 18 states had joined Texas in its election lawsuit, the Electoral College will finally convene on Monday to affirm Biden’s victory. The lawsuit filed by Paxton eventually drew support by several Republican attorneys general and other GOP lawmakers to mount pressure on US Supre Court. 

    The CNN Supreme Court analyst and University of Texas Law professor, Steve Vladeck reportedly said, “From a legal perspective, the fat lady has sung”. Several weeks after the results were called out for November 3 elections, Trump along with his staunch supporters have been promoting baseless claims about ‘fraud’ in voting and referring to the democratic process as ‘rigged’. This had paved the way for more conspiracy theories and protests about Trump’s second term being stolen. 

  • Trump’s Lawyer Rudy Giuliani Leaves Hospital After Getting ‘drug Cocktail’ For COVID-19

    On December 10, Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani, who tested positive for novel coronavirus, left the hospital after being administered “exactly the same” treatment for COVID-19  as the US President Donald Trump had received at the Walter Medical Facility. The 76-year-old was seen flashing a thumbs-up to the crowd and reporters as he drove out of Georgetown University Hospital at 5 pm, Wednesday.

    In an interview with WABC radio, the US President’s personal lawyer said that he had received preferential treatment at the hospital because of his celebrity status. He added that he felt 100 percent better the minute he took the cocktail, adding that he was also given the antiviral medication remdesivir,  approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and the corticosteroid, dexamethasone.

    Earlier, Trump’s secretary of Housing and Urban Development Chris Christie, an informal adviser to Trump during the campaign, confirmed that he and the US president had received the monoclonal antibody potion, which Trump later hailed as a potential cure. Giuliani, similarly touted the drug cocktail while calling COVID-19 a “treatable disease.”

  • US Lawmakers Support Defence Bill With Majority Needed To Override Trump’s Veto Power

    The United States House of Representatives on Tuesday voted for the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with an overwhelming majority making it impossible for incumbent Donald Trump to use his veto power against it. The members of the lower house voted in favour of the bill with 335 of 430 votes, way above the minimum number of votes needed to override the veto power of the US President. What surprised many was that 40 of the 196 Republicans in the House also voted in favour of the bill. 

    The $740.5 billion Pentagon budget bill will now go to the Senate for a vote, where it is also expected to pass. Earlier in the day, Donald Trump had expressed  dissatisfaction with the bill as he urged the House Republicans to vote against it. Trump has several complaints with the bill in its current form, which has been proposed after months of negotiations between the Republicans and Democrats. 

  • Trump Expected To Sign Bill Passed By US House Aimed At Targeting Chinese Firms

    The United States House of Representatives has passed a law that would delist Chinese companies off US stock exchanges if they do not comply with the auditing regulations. The Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, co-authored by Reps John Kennedy and Chris Van Hollen would also require the Chinese firms to reveal if they are owned or controlled by any foreign government. Even though the bill still requires the approval of US President Donald Trump, White House has reportedly said on December 2 that it would happen shortly.

    Amid soaring tensions between the US and China, the latest move by Washington coincides with the broader restrictions on Beijing during the final months of the outgoing Trump administration. Apart from the bill scrutinising the Chinese firms, the US government on Wednesday even moved to ban cotton imports from a company that it says uses forced labour of the detained Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang.

    The bill targetting Chinese companies is reportedly expected to have little effect over the short term because foreign firms are only banned if they fail to comply with audits for three years in a row. The newly passed bill by the US House was also welcomed by the American Securities Association but urged the American government to act in a more swift manner by delisting non-compliant companies by mid-2021. Even though its sponsors planned on targeting China, the legislation is applicable to all public-listed companies irrespective of any specific country.

    One of the bill’s authors, Republican Senator John Kennedy said, “US policy is letting China flout rules that American companies play by, and it’s dangerous. Today, the House joined the Senate in rejecting a toxic status quo.” Meanwhile, the passing of the bill was hailed as “good news” by the other co-author, Maryland Senator. Kennedy had also said that China is ‘exploiting’ US workers. As of October 2020, Us exchanges has listed at least 217 Chinese companies including Alibaba and KFC China operator Yum China that have recently carried out secondary listings in Hong Kong.

  • Trump Reiterating Voter Fraud Claims, Says Electoral System Is ‘under Coordinated Assault’

    US President Donald Trump on December 2 reiterated his baseless claims of voter fraud in this year’s presidential election, which he lost to Joe Biden. While taking to social media, Trump posted the “most important speech” he has ever made and said that America’s electoral system is “under coordinated assault and siege”. Facebook and Twitter have also placed warnings on the 46-minute video statement released by the President, in which he kept up his futile pushback against the election even as state after state certified its results. 

    According to US media projections, President-elect Joe Biden won the presidential election with 306 electoral college votes, compared with Trump’s 232. However, the Republican incumbent has refused to concede and has instead launched flimsy legal battles in several states, which experts said appeared to be aimed at dragging out vote counting and creating a cloud of uncertainty over the electoral process. In his recent speech, Trump again went on to ramble baseless claims and also dug further into his contention of a “rigged election”. 

  • Trump Raised Over $170 Million Since Election Day By Pushing ‘fraud’ Claims: Report

    US President Donald Trump and his Republican Party have managed to raise at least $170 million since election day by pushing unfounded “election fraud” claims. According to The Washington Post, the Trump campaign has filled its treasure chest by sending hundreds of emails and messages to supporters asking for donations in order to defend the country from election fraud. 

    The report suggests that most of the money has gone towards clearing campaign debt or to fund Trump’s “Save America” PAC, which was launched by the president days after the election in order to exert his influence on the Republican party following his White House exit. 

    The money might also be used to fund Trump’s political activities as ex-president and to pay the salaries of his team. Trump has indicated that he will re-run in the 2024 presidential election, which would make it necessary for him to remain under the limelight by conducting regular rallies, etc.

  • US Prez-elect Biden suffers ‘hairline fracture’ in foot, Trump tweets video saying ‘get well soon’

    US President-elect Joe Biden has suffered “hairline fracture” in his right foot while playing with his dog. He will likely require a walking boot for next few weeks. The President-elect, on November 28, slipped and twisted his ankle while playing with his dog.

    “Initial X-rays did not show any obvious fracture, but his clinical exam warranted more detailed imaging,” Dr Kevin O’Connor said in a statement on Sunday.

    “Follow-up CT scan confirmed hairline (small) fractures of President-elect Biden’s lateral and intermediate cuneiform bones, which are in the midfoot. It is anticipated that he will likely require a walking boot for several weeks,” said O’Connor, Director (Executive Medicine) in GW Medical Faculty Associates, on Biden’s imaging results. President Donald Trump tweeted a video of Joe Biden on Sunday and wrote, “Get well soon!” Bidens adopted Major in 2018, and acquired their first dog, Champ, after the 2008 election.

    At 78, Joe Biden would be the oldest person to be sworn in as the US president. The 78-year-old Democrat was declared as winner of US presidential elections. Biden would be sworn in as the 46th president of the United States on January 20.

    Election officials in battleground states have already certified Biden’s victory, US President Donald Trump continues to question the legitimacy of his win, accusing fraud and impropriety in the elections.

    Moreover, Trump has sought recounts in several states. Besides, lawsuits have been filed in states and federal courts, saying only legal votes should be counted and illegal votes should be discarded.

  • Biden May Be Hard On China Too; Trump May Run Again In 2024: Chinese Economist

    Even as tensions between the United States and China continue to worsen under the current administration of outgoing President Donald Trump over a score of issues, a leading economist has said that the incoming Joe Biden administration might further impose sanctions on Beijing, that could adversely affect its economy next year.

    As per reports, David Li Daokui, a professor at Tsinghua University and a former adviser to China’s central bank, has warned that economic planners should consider the possibility of a Trump comeback in 2024 and added that President-elect Biden might continue his predecessor’s “hard-line approach” towards China.

    The economist claimed it would be much easier to communicate with Biden’s team than Trump’s administration, with whom it has locked horns ever since the outbreak of the pandemic. However, he also warned that China should be prepared for Trump’s possible return in 2024. “It is very likely [that Trump will run again], he is still very healthy,” Li said.

    A Chinese government advisor had also stated that China must ‘drop the illusion’ that its relations with the US will improve automatically under Biden’s administration and asked Beijing to be prepared for a ‘tough stance’ from Washington

    Zheng Yongnian, the Dean of the Advanced Institute of Global and Contemporary China Studies, advised that the Chinese government should utilise every opportunity to mend ties with the US.

    “The good old days are over… the cold war hawks in the US have been in a highly mobilised state for several years, and they will not disappear overnight,” Zheng said in a recent interview.

    During elections, Biden had pledged that he would force China “to play by the international rules” regarding trade, treatment of foreign companies, and its actions in the South China Sea.