What to know Wednesday
- President Donald Trump addressed a crowd at the Future Investment Initiative Institute's PRIORITY Summit in Miami Beach, Florida. He went through an itemized list of funds purportedly recovered by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency and suggested returning 20% of the savings to American citizens.
- Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Trump's labor secretary nominee, appeared before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee at her confirmation hearing.
- Chavez-DeRemer, a Republican former congresswoman from Oregon, has drawn some skepticism from the party because of her pro-union record. She was asked about her thoughts on unions and workers' rights, as well as her brief work at a Planned Parenthood facility in her early 20s.
- Trump escalated a public spat with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy today, calling him “a dictator without elections,” after Zelenskyy said Trump was getting “disinformation" from Russia amid discussions on ending the war in Ukraine. Vice President JD Vance piled on, saying Zelenskyy 's comments were "disgraceful." Later, during his Miami Beach remarks, Trump minimized the extent of Russian meddling in U.S. elections and repeated his criticism of Zelenskyy as a "dictator."
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Trump says he expects China's Xi to make White House visit
Trump said he expected Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit the U.S., without saying when that trip could happen.
"We’ll have, ultimately, President Xi, and we’ll have everybody coming, right?" Trump told reporters on Air Force One.
Xi last visited the U.S. in November 2023.
The president frequently touts his "great relationship" with Xi, which could be key to avoiding a trade war between the world's two biggest economies as Trump threatens steep tariff increases. Trump said a new U.S.-China trade deal was "possible."
He also said "we’ll be speaking to China" about TikTok, which faces a possible U.S. ban over its Chinese ownership.
"It would be great to keep TikTok alive, sell it to somebody that’s going to do a great job with it," Trump said.
Nikki Haley: Trump's comments about Zelenskyy are 'classic Russian talking points'
Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley said Trump’s recent comments describing Zelenskyy as “a dictator” are “classic Russian talking points.”
“Exactly what Putin wants,” she added in a post on X.
Trump called Zelenskyy “a dictator without elections” after Zelenskyy said Trump was getting “disinformation” from Russia amid discussion on ending the war in Ukraine.
Haley, Trump’s former GOP primary rival, talked about giving U.S. aid to Ukraine on the campaign trail, arguing a lack of support would empower Russia and China.
During her first public appearance since dropping out the presidential race last March, Haley reiterated her support for Ukraine.
“We should end the war in Ukraine. But that doesn’t mean appeasing Putin, it means sending Ukraine enough missiles, tanks and fighter jets to send Putin packing we don’t need a forever we need a prosperous and we need Ukraine to win this war. Now,” Haley said in May.
Ex-NFL punter Chris Kluwe arrested over city council protest
Former NFL punter Chris Kluwe spoke out at a city council meeting in Huntington Beach, California, over a plan to display a library plaque with a MAGA acronym and criticized the MAGA movement. He was arrested after engaging in what he called “peaceful civil disobedience” and approaching the front of the meeting.
Kennedy Center performance featuring Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington is canceled
An event at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts featuring the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, D.C., and the National Symphony Orchestra has been canceled, the choral group said.
It’s the latest performance that has been canceled since Trump purged the arts organization’s Board of Trustees and appointed himself its chairman this month.
Trump signs executive order targeting undocumented immigrants and federal benefits
Trump signed an executive order tonight aimed at imposing restrictions on undocumented immigrants accessing federal benefits.
The order directs the heads of executive departments and agencies to identify federally funded programs that provide any public benefits to undocumented immigrants and ensure they align with the 1996 welfare reform law that spells out eligibility and restrictions for such benefits.
The order also directs the Office of Management and Budget's director and the Department of Government Efficiency administrator to identify federal funding sources for undocumented immigrants and offer recommended actions to align federal funding with the order and improve eligibility verification systems within 30 days.
Although Trump has suggested that undocumented immigrants are responsible for wasted taxpayer dollars, they are prohibited from obtaining welfare, food stamps or Medicare.
Undocumented immigrant children can receive free public education and free breakfast and lunch provided through the Agriculture Department's free meal programs.
Pregnant and new mothers, as well as children up to age 5, can sign up for a Agriculture Department program aimed at providing nutrition to women, infants and children that includes prenatal care, formula and food coupons.
Few states provide health insurance to undocumented people. In 12 states, undocumented children can obtain health insurance through Medicaid, and in California, Colorado, Illinois, New York, Oregon and Washington, Medicaid funds are also used to insure some undocumented adults.
Roughly 1,400 federally funded Federal Qualified Healthcare Centers nationwide offer health care to low-income people, including undocumented immigrants.
Trump says federal government should 'take over' management of D.C.
Fielding questions from reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said the federal government should take over the governance of Washington, D.C.
"I think that we should govern District of Columbia. It's so important, the D.C. situation. I think that we should run it strong, run it with law and order, make it absolutely flawlessly beautiful," he said.
Trump said he gets along "great" with Washington's mayor, Muriel Bowser but feels her office is "not doing the job."
"Too much crime, too much graffiti, too many tents," Trump said. "Homeless people all over the place, and we gotta take care of the homeless, but you can't have that in Washington, D.C."
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., introduced legislation this month that would repeal the District of Columbia Home Rule Act and return management of the nation's capital to Congress.
Appeals court declines to reinstate Trump’s birthright citizenship order
A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals today declined the Justice Department’s request to immediately reinstate Trump’s executive order limiting birthright citizenship, setting up a potential emergency application to the Supreme Court.
Legal experts have said Trump’s order conflicted with the Fourteenth Amendment, which extends American citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil, by denying citizenship to future children born in the United States if their mothers were unlawfully present in the country and their fathers were not citizens or permanent residents.
John Curtis says he's a 'yes' on Kash Patel
Sen. John Curtis, a Republican from Utah who has indicated a willingness to break from Trump, announced tonight that he'll support Kash Patel's nomination to be FBI director when it comes to a vote on the full floor of the Senate tomorrow.
"Americans expect to see change within the FBI, and I believe Kash Patel can deliver that," Curtis said on X.
He said his initial hesitation about Patel stemmed from concerns about his ability to "approach the role without political bias—an essential quality for any FBI Director" — but that he'll back Patel "after careful consideration."
Patel needs a simple majority of senators to be confirmed. His candidacy advanced yesterday on a party-line vote.
Musk says he'll stick around Trump administration 'as long as I can be helpful'
Musk didn't respond directly when he was asked whether he anticipates he'll continue to work with Trump for the entirety of Trump's four-year term.
"I’ll be as helpful as long as I can be helpful," Musk said in a Fox News interview that aired tonight.
Trump also dodged the question while praising Musk.
"You can’t get somebody like this: He cares, and he’s brilliant, and he’s got energy," Trump said. "You know, I have a lot of guys. They're very smart, but they have no energy. They want to sleep all day long. You need a lot of energy. He's got a lot of energy."
The Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency is expected to conclude its work by July 4, 2026.
Trump declines to detail timing for when he will balance the budget
Trump declined to say when his administration will balance the federal budget in an interview that aired tonight on Fox News, even though he has repeatedly touted it as a top priority during his second term.
Asked in an interview with host Sean Hannity for a timeline on balancing the budget, Trump said, "Potentially very quickly."
"Well, potentially very quickly, between what he’s doing, and with income coming in from tariffs, and other things," Trump said, referring to Musk's DOGE initiatives and his own efforts to expand tariffs.
"I don’t want to give a date, because then these people are going to say, 'Oh, well, he didn’t make the date.' But I think we can do it very quickly," Trump added.
NBC News has reported that budget experts say Trump's policies, particularly as they relate to tax cuts, would increase the deficit if they are implemented.