Senate votes to advance Pete Hegseth as Trump’s protection secretary regardless of some Republican opposition – reside | Trump administration

In remarks to reporters on the White Home after signing a brand new batch of govt orders, Donald Trump claimed that Russia has misplaced a far larger variety of troopers preventing in Ukraine than consultants and researchers estimate.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine is “prepared to barter a deal; he’s able to cease” the conflict, Trump mentioned, as a result of he has “misplaced a variety of troopers”.

“Russia misplaced extra troopers”, Trump mentioned, “They misplaced 800,000”. Trump has cited that loss of life toll, with out giving any concept of his supply, at the least 3 times since taking workplace this week.

The impartial Russian information web site Mediazona, working with the BBC’s Russian information service and a crew of volunteers, reported in November that they’d had recognized the names of 80,973 Russian navy personnel killed within the Russia-Ukraine conflict since February 2022.

Earlier this week, Trump instructed reporters that “nearly 1,000,000 Russian troopers have been killed; about 700,000 Ukrainian troopers had been killed.”

As The New York Instances reviews, Russian researchers and journalists have estimated that Russia had suffered greater than 150,000 battlefield deaths, and the impartial Ukrainian conflict correspondent Yurii Butusov reported on YouTube final month that his sources inside Ukraine’s armed forces instructed him that 105,000 troopers have been “irreversibly misplaced,” with 70,000 killed and 35,000 lacking. That’s a far larger loss of life toll the 43,000 troopers that President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed had been killed as of Dec. 8, however far decrease than Trump’s estimate.

Right here’s a recap of the most recent developments:

• A federal decide in Seattle blocked Donald Trump’s govt order curbing the fitting to automated birthright citizenship within the US. US district decide John Coughenour issued a short lived restraining order stopping the administration from imposing the order, calling it “blatantly unconstitutional”.

• The Senate voted to advance the nomination of Pete Hegseth to change into the subsequent US secretary of protection, regardless of some Republican opposition. Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska introduced they’d oppose Hegseth’s nomination, making them the primary two Republican lawmakers to publicly reject one among Trump’s cupboard picks.

• The Senate voted to verify John Ratcliffe as CIA director, giving Trump the second member of his new cupboard. The Senate voted to verify Ratcliffe, a former Texas consultant and director of nationwide intelligence throughout Trump’s first time period, by 74-25, with 20 Democrats and one impartial becoming a member of Republicans in backing the nomination.

• Trump made a combative return to the world stage in an handle to the World Financial Discussion board in Davos, accusing oil producers of prolonging the Ukraine conflict by failing to chop costs and threatening tariffs on all US imports. He repeated his name for Nato international locations to dramatically enhance defence spending and complained about what he known as an “unfair” buying and selling relationship with China.

• The state division has frozen all purposes for passports with “X” intercourse markers and adjustments to gender id on present passports, following a brand new govt order signed by Trump on his first day of workplace. “The coverage of the US is that a person’s intercourse isn’t changeable,” in accordance with an inner e-mail from the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, that was shared with the Guardian.

• Trump has ended safety element for 3 of his former administration officers to this point since returning to the White Home: his former secretary of state Mike Pompeo, former prime aide Brian Hook and former nationwide safety adviser John Bolton.

• Trump held his first official name with a overseas chief since returning to the White Home, talking with the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, on Wednesday. In its readout of the decision, the Saudi state-run Saudi Press Company mentioned the crown prince instructed Trump that he wished to speculate $600bn within the US over the subsequent 4 years.

Lauren Gambino

Donald Trump “overreached by a mile” together with his try and dismantle the longstanding constitutional assure of birthright citizenship, the California lawyer normal, Rob Bonta, mentioned.

California together with a coalition of states and the town of San Francisco are suing the administration over an govt order issued simply hours after Trump was sworn into workplace on Monday that may deny automated citizenship to some kids born in the US – a transfer they argue is in “flagrant violation” of the US structure.

“Simply because he’s the president doesn’t imply he can change the US structure,” Bonta, a Democrat, mentioned in an interview this week. “The truth is, it’s completely clear – it’s civics 101 – that he can not.”

The lawsuit, led by California, New Jersey and Massachusetts and filed within the US district court docket for Massachusetts, argues the order would trigger “irreparable hurt” to the states and their residents by denying citizenship rights to the US-born kids whose mother and father should not lawful residents.

A second multi-state lawsuit difficult the order was filed within the western district of Washington, the place a federal decide on Thursday quickly blocked the order from taking impact. The American Civil Liberties Union and different teams representing pregnant ladies whose kids can be affected by the order have additionally sued.

The Senate has voted 51 to 49 to advance Pete Hegseth’s nomination to change into secretary of protection, regardless of grave objections from Democrats over his habits and {qualifications} to guide the US navy.

All however two Republicans, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, voted to advance his nomination, clearing his method for a vote on his affirmation later this week.

The previous fight veteran and Fox Information host faces allegations of sexual assault, extreme alcohol use and monetary mismanagement.

Though he has denied the allegation of sexual assault, Hegseth paid a settlement to a lady who accused him of rape in 2017. A brand new declare emerged this week in an affidavit from Hegseth’s former sister-in-law who claimed he was abusive to his second spouse to the pont that she feared for her security. Hegseth has denied the allegation.

The Senate is presently voting on a key procedural movement to finish debate on Pete Hegseth’s nomination for secretary of protection.

Susan Collins, the Republican senator of Maine, has voted towards Hegseth’s nomination, becoming a member of the Alaska senator Lisa Murkowski.

In an announcement, Collins mentioned she was “involved” that Hegseth “doesn’t have the expertise and perspective essential to achieve the job”.

She additionally expressed concern about “a number of statements” that Hegseth has made about ladies serving within the navy, including:

He and I had a candid dialog in December about his previous statements and apparently evolving views. I’m not satisfied that his place on ladies serving in fight roles has modified.

The Senate voted on Thursday to verify John Ratcliffe as CIA director, giving Donald Trump the second member of his new cupboard.

The Senate voted to verify Ratcliffe by 74-25, with 20 Democrats and one impartial becoming a member of Republicans in backing the nomination.

Ratcliffe, a former Texas consultant, beforehand served as director of nationwide intelligence throughout Trump’s first time period.