Trump in line for potential windfall with Truth Social merger: Live

Donald Trump claimed Friday to have almost a half-billion dollars in cash but said he’d rather spend the money on his presidential run than on the $454 million civil fraud judgment against him in New York.

The former president has been trying to get a court to excuse him from a requirement that he provide financial guarantees showing he’s good for the money while he appeals the staggering verdict. He didn’t provide any documentation for his cash claim, and Trump’s lawyers have suggested it’s not feasible to tie up so much cash on a bond while also keeping his businesses running and meeting other obligations.

A judge in February found that Trump repeatedly lied about his wealth on financial statements given to banks and others to secure loans and make deals. The judge ordered him to give up profits from certain real estate deals and money he saved by obtaining lower interest rates on loans. Trump denies that he tried to deceive anyone.

As recently as Thursday, Trump’s lawyers reiterated in court filings that they were having difficulty obtaining a bond covering the judgment because underwriters insisted on cash, stocks or other liquid assets instead of real estate as collateral. More than 30 bonding companies rejected their entreaties, they said.

Trump’s lawyers asked the state’s intermediate appeals court to reverse a prior ruling requiring that he post a bond covering the full amount in order to halt enforcement. New York Attorney General Letitia James has fought Trump’s request, urging the appeals court to require the full amount to ensure the state can easily access the money if the verdict is upheld.

To obtain a bond, Trump’s lawyers said he would likely have to put up 120% of the judgment, or more than $557 million. The appeals court has yet to rule.

In a post Friday on his Truth Social platform, Trump suggested he had enough cash to at least cover the judgment in full — but didn’t think he should have to spend it that way.

“Through hard work, talent, and luck, I currently have almost five hundred million dollars in cash,” he wrote in all caps, adding that he had planned to use “a substantial amount” on his presidential campaign.

“They could seize his golf course at Bedminster,” he continued, adding that his buildings, including Trump Tower, could also be seized. “If they seize Trump Tower where will Donald get his authentic Mexican taco bowls?” Mr Kimmel quipped.

But while the seizing of the former president’s golf course and Trump Tower would be significant, there is one more asset that Mr Kimmel would be even more pleased to see seized.

Marco Rubio, the Florida senator who once suggested the size of Donald Trump’s hands indicated smaller-than-average reproductive anatomy when he and the future president both ran for president eight years ago, has indicated a willingness to serve as Mr Trump’s vice president should the 45th president succeed in becoming the 47th after the November presidential election.

The Sunshine State’s junior senator said on Thursday that it would be “an honour” for Mr Trump to choose him as his 2024 running-mate after NBC News reported that he is under consideration, citing sources close to the ex-president.

“I think anybody who would be offered that should be honored, but I’ve never spoken to anybody in the Trump world about it,” he said.

Because the US Constitution doesn’t allow the president and vice president to be residents of the same state, selecting Mr Rubio as his running mate would require the former president to change his primary residence from Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach, Florida social club and the site where he allegedly stored hundreds of classified documents after he left the White House following his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden.

In such an instance, Mr Trump could re-establish residency in New York, where he lived from birth until he moved to Washington at the start of his term in 2017.

Selecting the Florida senator as his vice president would represent a significant rapprochement between the two men, who attacked each other in vulgar terms when they squared off for the GOP nomination during the 2016 election cycle.

Judge Cannon is allowing Jack Smith to substitute sensitive info and intelligence from evidence and materials shared with Trump in the Mar-a-Lago case.

But she’s not yet weighing in on a category of materials she describes as “two sensitive intelligence reports directly related to a document” that Trump is charged with hiding.

“The Special Counsel requests authorization to redact limited words and phrases from these reports,” she wrote in a filing on Friday. “After careful study of the subject material, associated declarations, and arguments from both sides, the Court determines that ruling on Category 1 would be premature at this juncture.”

On Friday, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene pulled off her most audacious stunt yet when she filed a motion to vacate to stage a no-confidence vote for Speaker Mike Johnson. The reason for filing that motion? Johnson did what he is supposed to do: pass spending bills to keep the government open.

The move went perfectly for Greene, who has shown little desire to legislate but an eagerness for attention. It turned out to be the perfect spectacle in Congress. Greene even brought her boyfriend, right-wing media provacateur Brian Glenn, along for the action. As soon as she exited the floor, reporters, including myself, swarmed her with questions — but she waited to speak until she descended the Capitol steps so she could have her moment in front of the cameras.

With the Republican National Committee (RNC) nomination all but formally secured for Donald Trump, all eyes are on who the former president will choose as his running mate in pursuit of the White House.

Already, rumours are swirling about Mr Trump’s short list of potential options – nearly all of which are people who have backed Mr Trump and denounced the 2020 election results, despite widespread evidence that it was not stolen.

It is unclear when Mr Trump will announce his decision, but he revealed Mike Pence as his running mate in July 2016, before the RNC held its annual convention.

An actor who has appeared in the likes of NCIS and The Rookie has been arrested for allegedly taking part in the January 6 riot at the US Capitol.

Nolan Freeman spent around 28 minutes inside the Capitol, after entering through a broken window alongside other Donald Trump supporters that day, according to a charging document revealed by Politico.

Mr Freeman was tracked down as part of an FBI investigation into all those supporters of the former president involved in the riot, seeking to overturn the 2020 election results.

Agents have scoured through video footage and images, from security cameras, phones and TV cameras, seeking out suspects.

In Mr Freeman’s case, video footage from the Capitol Police showed the actor entering the building wearing a red hoodie covered with a black jacket, along with a red hat with white lettering, at around 2.23pm.

Investigators say that he was then seen leaving at around 2.49pm.

FBI agents visited Mr Freeman at his home in Nevada on 27 June 2023, with the actor asking to speak to an attorney when they asked if he was at the Capitol on January 6.

A subsequent subpoena of information from American Airlines showed that Mr Freeman had travelled to Washington DC two days before the riot and then back home again two days later.

Mr Freeman has been charged with the obstruction of an official proceeding and knowingly entering or remaining on the grounds of a government building without lawful authority.

He is also accused of using “loud, threatening, or abusive language” to disrupt the orderly conduct of Congress.

Mr Freeman’s last known TV appearance was in NCIS in 2019, with one upcoming part listed as in production for a short film called Under a Black Veil.

The suspect appeared in court in Nevada on 19 March, with his next appearance due on 2 April.

According to the Department of Justice, more than 1,358 people have so far been charged in connection with the attack, many of them accused of assaulting law enforcement.

The FBI is continuing to ask for the public’s assistance in identifying those pictured at the Capitol that day.