Major controversy during Trump transition: Lawyer makes serious allegations against Gaetz The client’s alleged testimony before the House Ethics Committee has further fueled the controversy over Donald Trump’s choice for attorney general, as the president-elect tries to fill out his Cabinet.
A woman who said former Florida Representative Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald J. Trump’s pick for attorney general, paid her for sex, testified that she saw Mr. Gaetz have sex with an underage girl at a party in 2017, her lawyer told multiple media outlets on Monday.
The lawyer, Joel Leppard, told CBS News, ABC News and CNN about his client’s testimony before the House Ethics Committee, which is investigating allegations about Mr. Gaetz and young women. Mr. Trump has privately acknowledged that Mr. Gaetz, who has denied the allegations against him, could have difficulty being confirmed, but he is sticking with him as part of an unproven strategy to nominate so many extreme choices that they all cannot be stopped.
Mr. Trump’s domestic policy plans came into greater focus on Monday, when he endorsed using emergency powers to carry out mass deportations, as he continued to consider nominees for several high-level positions, including Treasury secretary, a position that would be crucial to his economic agenda.
Mr. Trump has considered several candidates to lead the Treasury, including Howard Lutnick, the chief executive of Cantor Fitzgerald, which is running Mr. Trump’s transition campaign. He is also considering former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh and Wall Street billionaire Marc Rowan, whom he hopes to meet as soon as Tuesday, while Senator Bill Hagerty of Tennessee is said to be a dark-horse candidate.
He has moved quickly to fill his Cabinet and staff with loyal allies, and on Monday, Mr. Trump named Sean Duffy, a former Republican congressman from Wisconsin who is a host of Fox Business — and whose wife, Rachel Campos-Duffy, is a host of Fox News — as his choice to lead the Department of Transportation. He has not yet announced his plans for nominees to lead Commerce and Labor.
The president-elect’s confirmation of his mass deportation plans came in response to a post made earlier this month by Tom Fitton, who runs the conservative group Judicial Watch. He wrote that Mr. Trump’s administration would “declare a national emergency and use military assets to address illegal immigration” through a mass deportation program. At about 4 a.m., Mr. Trump reposted Mr. Fitton’s post with the comment “True!!!”
Here’s what else to know:
SpaceX launch: Mr Trump plans to attend a SpaceX launch in Texas on Tuesday, according to two people familiar with the plans, another demonstration of billionaire Elon Musk’s growing closeness to the incoming president. Mr Trump has made no secret of his admiration for Mr Musk’s rocket launches.
Gabbard and Russia: Tulsi Gabbard, Mr Trump’s pick as national intelligence director, has worried officials across the political spectrum, who have accused her of spreading anti-US propaganda. But while she has become a darling of Russia’s state media, no evidence has emerged that she has ever collaborated with the country’s intelligence agencies – she simply appears to share the Kremlin’s worldview, according to analysts and former officials. In Russia, the reaction to her appointment has been ecstatic.
RFK Jr’s views called ‘dangerous’: US ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy criticised her cousin Robert F Kennedy Jr’s views on vaccination. Mr Kennedy has been repeatedly denounced by members of his family, but his comments were a notable rebuke from a representative of the US government during a presidential transition.
Endorsement of Hegseth: Mr Trump told his transition team he would stand by Pete Hegseth, the former Fox News personality he intends to nominate as defence secretary, even though Mr Hegseth has been accused of sexually assaulting a woman during what he described as consensual interactions. Mr Hegseth paid the woman as part of a settlement agreement with a confidentiality clause, his lawyer said.
Treasury pick: Two new names have emerged among the contenders to be Mr Trump’s nominee for Treasury secretary. He is looking at Kevin Warsh, the former Federal Reserve governor, as well as Marc Rowan, a Wall Street billionaire. Previously, Mr Trump was expected to choose Howard Lutnick, the chief executive of Wall Street firm Cantor Fitzgerald, or Scott Bessant, the founder of investment firm Key Square Capital Management. Mr Trump is expected to invite top candidates to interview with him this week.
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