‘We’re going to be asking for extensions,’ Trump says of 30-day limit on DC police takeover
The president confirms that he is looking to extend the initial 30-day limit for the federal takeover of the DC Metropolitan Police.
“I don’t want to call national emergency. If I have to I will. But I think the Republicans in Congress will approve this pretty much unanimously,” Trump says, referring to the joint resolution in Congress needed to authorize an extension (beyond the 30-days guaranteed by Section 740 of the DC Home Rule Act).
Trump also says that any idea about DC statehood is “ridiculous” and simply states that it’s “not going to happen”, when answering a reporter’s question.
Key events
Trump is now continuing his tirade against Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.
“He’s truly incompetent,” Trump says. He then goes on to confirm that he’ll be naming his nomination for Powell’s replacement “sometime in the next week”. A reminder that Powell’s term ends in May.
I‘m down to three or four names. All good, all great. The problem is you name them and then they turn out to be not good. That’s happened to me a couple of times. You name somebody, they tell you everything you want to hear, and then they go in and they turn out to be not good.
Trump also describes why he has threatened to sue Powell over his renovation of the Federal Reserve headquarters.
They built a basement under the building. It didn’t have a basement. This is simple to understand. The building is right next to a thing called the Potomac River… And you don’t build a built basement under a building that is two feet above the river, that’s right next door.
Trump promises ‘very severe consequences’ if Putin doesn’t agree to ceasefire in Friday meeting
The president kept it short and blunt when asked about the consequences Russia could face if Putin does not agree to stop the war at their meeting with Trump on Friday in Alaska.
“There will be very severe consequences,” he said. Trump didn’t elaborate on what those penalties will be.
Trump says upcoming meeting with Putin as ‘setting the table’ for three-leader summit
Taking questions on his meeting on Friday with Vladimir Putin in Alaska, the president says that if this week’s meeting goes well he would like a second meeting “almost immediately” with both Putin and Zelenskyy. Although Trump adds that is only if the leaders would “like to have me there”.
But when it comes to that possible trilateral summit, Trump doesn’t say it’s a guarantee. “If I feel that it’s not appropriate to have it because I didn’t get the answers that we have to have, then we’re not going to have a second meeting,” Trump he adds.
‘We’re going to be asking for extensions,’ Trump says of 30-day limit on DC police takeover
The president confirms that he is looking to extend the initial 30-day limit for the federal takeover of the DC Metropolitan Police.
“I don’t want to call national emergency. If I have to I will. But I think the Republicans in Congress will approve this pretty much unanimously,” Trump says, referring to the joint resolution in Congress needed to authorize an extension (beyond the 30-days guaranteed by Section 740 of the DC Home Rule Act).
Trump also says that any idea about DC statehood is “ridiculous” and simply states that it’s “not going to happen”, when answering a reporter’s question.
The president is taking questions from the press now, and confirms he’s heard about recent reports that Russia is “at least in part” responsible for a recent hack of the computer system of the federal court system.
“Are you surprised?” Trump tells the reporter. “They hack in. That’s what they do. They’re good at it. We’re good at it. We’re actually better at it”.
Overall the president is using the Kennedy Center as part of his ongoing “beautification” ambitions for DC.
“I’m determined to make Washington, DC safe, clean and beautiful,” Trump says. “A big part of that’s going to include the Kennedy Center”.
Trump is switching between about talking about his plans for a Kennedy Center renovation and the “public safety emergency” he’s declared in the nation’s capital.
“People tell me they can’t run anymore. They’re just afraid, and they’ll be running again,” he says. “We’re going to be essentially crime free. This is going to be a beacon, and it’s going to also serve as an example of what can be done”.
Trump now praises attorney general Pam Bondi – as she now oversees the DC police department as part of the federal takeover.
You’re going to see a big change in Washington crime stats very soon. They’re not the stats that they gave because they turned out to be a total fraud. The real stats.
Trump will host Kennedy Center Honors
The president has said he will host the Kennedy Center Honors, at the insistence of his chief of staff Susie Wiles. It will take place in December.
The president also announces Sylvester Stallone, the “Rocky” and “Rambo” star who is the president’s newly minted “Ambassador to Hollywood,” is one of this year’s honorees.
“Sly is a pillar of the really American pop culture and a Hollywood superstar like few others,” the president said. “One of the biggest names on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In fact, the only one that’s a bigger name of the Hollywood Walk of Fame, they say, is a guy named Donald Trump”.
Stallone has routinely praised Trump, even calling him a “second George Washington”.
Joining the president today is Republican senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
Attorney general Pam Bondi, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and senator Lindsey Graham look on before President Donald Trump begins to speak at the Kennedy Center. Photograph: Alex Brandon/AP
