By the time he finished speaking, he had gone on for an hour.
Trump made news on a dozen topics, a reminder of the freewheeling approach in which even among journalists who can’t stand him, the incoming president is a newsmaking machine who provides headlines around the clock, setting the terms of debate – in a sharp contrast with the reclusive Joe Biden.
Trump also deflected a few questions that he absolutely should not have answered, such as strategy on Ukraine and whether he’d retaliate against Iran.
I was a bit surprised, though, that he launched an attack on the press, though, since this contradicted his recent remarks about reaching out to even hostile news outlets, as long as they treat him fairly.
This took place two days after ABC and George Stephanopoulos apologized to Trump to settle a defamation, agreeing to donate $15 million to a presidential library or foundation, plus another million bucks to cover his legal fees. This averted what could have been an embarrassing and grueling deposition by its star anchor.
The network’s problem is that Stephanopoulos had repeatedly said Trump had been found liable for "rape," repeating the word about 10 times, in the E. Jean Carroll civil suit, when the jury held him liable for "sexual abuse."
While the judge said this would commonly be understood as rape, they are legally different in New York. You don’t agree to 15 million bucks unless you think you don’t have much of a case.
While left-leaning pundits are accusing ABC of "caving" to Trump, the network made a different judgment call.
Trump ripped the media as "very corrupt" and ticked off more lawsuits he has filed or plans to file.
The president-elect said he planned to sue the Des Moines Register for having a poll before the election that turned out to be wrong. He praised pollster Ann Selzer as always having gotten him right until the Iowa caucuses, when she said he’d lose by 4 points and he won the state by 13.
Trump said he was taking legal action against "60 Minutes" for substituting a different, tighter answer to a different question than had been asked—a practice that most journalists, including me, said was a huge blunder by the CBS show.
"We have to straighten out the press," he said. "The press is very corrupt. Almost as corrupt as our elections."
He added: "I’m doing this not because I want to. I’m doing this because I feel I have an obligation to," Trump said. "In my opinion, it was fraud and it was election interference."
Trump also said he would pursue a suit against Bob Woodward for making public the audiotapes from a book project. Woodward has said he never agreed not to do so.
And Trump plans to pursue his action against the Pulitzer Prize board for giving the Washington Post and New York Times awards for what he calls the Russia Russia Russia hoax. While it was certainly overplayed, the board says Trump could not point to any inaccuracies in the articles submitted.
And then there was Trump commenting on, well, just about everything else.
He said he would consider a pardon for indicted New York Mayor Eric Adams because he’d been treated "very unfairly."
He said he couldn’t understand how people could sympathize with the suspect in the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson: "It was cold-blooded. Just a cold-blooded, horrible killing, and how people can like this guy is — that’s a sickness, actually."
He heaped praise on Lara Trump but said the decision on whether to name her to a vacant Florida Senate seat was up to DeSantis. However, the Wall Street Journal reports that he has lobbied the governor to choose her.
He defended DOD nominee Pete Hegseth, saying all he wants to do is improve the military. He also provided visual backing by bringing Hegseth to the Army-Navy Game, along with JD Vance, Elon Musk (of course), Ron DeSantis, Tulsi Gabbard and Speaker Mike Johnson.
Trump said he would keep the polio vaccine but would have discussions with RFK Jr. about other vaccines, including his totally debunked theory that vaccines cause autism. Trump did argue there has been a rise in autism among boys. "I think he’s going to be much less radical than you would think," he told reporters.
Trump demanded that Biden officials explain what is happening with the mystery drones, since they obviously know.
That is a whole lot of news. Perhaps we’ve forgotten how Donald J. Trump loves to sound off on everything under the sun. We’re about to get a four-year refresher course.
President-elect Trump says he doesn't think Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will name his daughter-in-law Lara Trump to succeed Sen. Marco Rubio in the Senate.
"No, I don’t. I probably don't. But I don’t know," Trump said Monday as he took questions from reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida. "Ron’s doing a good job. That’s his choice – nothing to do with me."
Trump last month announced that he would nominate Rubio, the three-term senator from Florida and a senior Republican member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Intelligence committees, to serve as secretary of state in his incoming administration.
Since then, the president-elect and some top Trump allies have recommended that Lara Trump, who from March until a week ago served as Republican National Committee co-chair, fill the next two years of Rubio's term in the Senate.
DeSantis has said he'll make a decision on the Rubio Senate replacement by early next month.
Trump on Monday praised his daughter-in-law, saying, "Lara's unbelievable. She was incredible. The job she did at the RNC…. she is so highly respected."
And he added that Lara Trump is highly sought after.
"I also know that Lara got so many other things. I mean she's got so many other things. People want her to be on television. They want to give her contracts," Trump said. "She's got so many other things that she's talking about."
The president-elect also praised Rubio, but added, "He leaves a vacancy in Florida and Ron's going to have to make that decision. And he'll make the right decision."
Sources have confirmed to Fox News that Trump told DeSantis that he would like to see his daughter-in-law succeed Rubio. But Republican sources in Florida suggest that DeSantis is more likely to name someone who's held public office in the Sunshine State.
And Lara Trump, in interviews with Fox News and the AP, has said she would "seriously consider" serving Florida in the Senate.
DeSantis, a one-time Trump ally who clashed with the former president last year and early this year during a very contentious 2024 GOP presidential nomination race, mended relations a bit with the former president after the primary season, as he endorsed Trump and helped raise money for the Republican nominee's general election campaign.
"Florida deserves a senator who will help President Trump deliver on his election mandate, be strong on immigration and border security, take on the entrenched bureaucracy and administrative state, reverse the nation’s fiscal decline, be animated by conservative principles, and has a proven record of results," DeSantis said last month.
And he noted at the time that "we have already received strong interest from several possible candidates, and we continue to gather names of additional candidates and conduct preliminary vetting. More extensive vetting and candidate interviews will be conducted over the next few weeks, with a selection likely made by the beginning of January."
The formal confirmation process for Rubio by his fellow senators won’t kick off until after Trump is sworn into office on Jan. 20.
President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance attended the annual Army-Navy game in Landover, Maryland, on Saturday, and they brought along some high-profile guests.
In the 125th meeting of the Black Knights and Midshipmen, Trump brought Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, while Vance's guest was Marine veteran Daniel Penny. Also on hand were House Speaker Mike Johnson, incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Trump's director of national intelligence pick, Tulsi Gabbard, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Navy won the game, 31-13, behind quarterback Blake Horvath, who passed for two touchdowns and ran for two more. The Midshipmen raised their record to 9-3, while the loss dropped Army to 11-2. Both teams have had strong seasons. Navy will face Oklahoma in the Armed Forces Bowl, and Army is slated to play in the Independence Bowl, although no opponent has been announced since Marshall dropped out.
While the game was a highly anticipated matchup, the guests brought by Trump and Vance created a pregame buzz.
Penny was found not guilty in the subway chokehold death of Jordan Neely in New York City earlier this week, a decision which was criticized by some commentators on the left and underscored a divide between crime and mental health. Neely had been menacing riders when Penny acted to defend fellow straphangers. Penny faced up to 15 years in prison, but was acquitted of all charges.
Hegseth is still courting members of the Senate to secure his nomination for the top defense role, but Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, whoi has been floated as a possible alternative, was also in attendance.
Hegseth’s appearance will mark a very public declaration of support from Trump, as some senators are still holding out on committing to his confirmation. Hegseth, an Army National Guard and former longtime Fox News host, deployed to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and has been the focus of misconduct reports.
Trump's defense secretary nominee has denied allegations that he mistreated women but did reach a financial settlement with an accuser from a 2017 incident to avoid a lawsuit. He has vowed that he won't drink "a drop of alcohol" if confirmed as defense secretary.
House Speaker Mike Johnson and Elon Musk were also spotted in Trump's box at the game.
Meanwhile, Vance took a swipe at New York City prosecutors for taking on the case in a post on X confirming Penny’s attendance.
"Daniel’s a good guy, and New York’s mob district attorney tried to ruin his life for having a backbone," Vance wrote. "I’m grateful he accepted my invitation and hope he’s able to have fun and appreciate how much his fellow citizens admire his courage."
Penny, 26, was charged with manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide for the May 2023 subway chokehold death of Neely, a 30-year-old homeless man with schizophrenia who had barged onto the train shouting death threats while high on a type of synthetic marijuana known as K2.
Trump attended the game as president in 2018, 2019 and 2020, while he also appeared as president-elect in 2016.
President Biden has never attended the annual clash as president, although he did appear as vice president.
This season has been a banner year for both football programs, adding buzz to the annual rivalry match. The teams have a combined 19 wins this year and with victories over Air Force, the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy will be awarded to the winner of Saturday’s game.
Fox News’ Aishah Hasnie, Paulina Dedaj and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that state workers will get three extra days off this month.
"In addition to Christmas Day and New Years Day, our state workers will get three extra days off—December 23, 24 and 31—to spend more time with their families and loved ones this holiday season," the governor declared in a post on X.
State offices will be closed on all five of those days, according to a press release from the governor's office.
"Florida is in great shape, and we want to reward our state employees," DeSantis said, according to the press release. "After a full year—including three costly hurricanes—we hope these extra days off allow for state workers to spend more time with their families and loved ones during this holiday season."
Last month, "state workers were given off for November 27," the day before Thanksgiving, Dan Barrow of the Florida Department of Management Services confirmed to Fox News Digital via email on Wednesday.
The department's website lists nine dates "observed as paid holidays by state agencies" in 2024, including New Year's Day, Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, the Friday following Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
"Full-time employees are entitled to one personal holiday each year," the site also notes.
Last year, DeSantis announced that state offices would be closed Nov. 22, Dec. 26, December 29 and Jan. 2, on top of regular closures during the holidays, according to a November 2023 press release.
"Our state employees have worked tirelessly throughout the year to aid and assist Florida families," DeSantis said, according to the release. "Over the past few months, they have selflessly responded to Hurricane Idalia and the State of Florida’s Israel Rescue Operation. Closing state offices on these additional days will provide state employees with some much-deserved time with their families and loved ones while enjoying the holiday season."
President-elect Trump is pressing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to name his daughter-in-law Lara Trump to fill Sen. Marco Rubio's seat in the Sunshine State, Fox Digital has learned.
President-elect Trump named Rubio as his pick for secretary of state last month, leaving DeSantis the decision to name a successor to the position. DeSantis said last month that he will likely name his pick for the seat by early January.
Speculation has mounted in recent weeks that Lara Trump is a likely choice for the role, as Republican lawmakers such as Sens. Rick Scott, Lindsey Graham, Katie Britt and Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida voiced support for her filling Rubio's Senate shoes. Lara Trump is married to the 45th president's son, Eric Trump, and co-chaired the RNC amid the 2024 presidential campaign.
A source in President-elect Trump's political orbit said Tuesday that the former and upcoming president is pressing DeSantis to name Lara Trump. The comment comes as DeSantis and Trump are expected to attend the annual Army-Navy college football game this coming weekend, Fox Digital previously reported.
If Rubio is confirmed as the U.S.' next secretary of state, his successor would serve in the Senate for two years before the seat is up for election again in 2026.
Amid speculation over Rubio's potential replacement, Lara Trump announced this week that she will step down as co-chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) after serving in the position throughout the presidential campaign. She explained in a social media post that she fulfilled three goals she sought as GOP co-chair, and would "formally step down from the RNC at our next meeting."
Lara Trump has publicly spoken favorably of potentially filling the Florida Senate seat, saying she would "100% consider" taking the job if offered by DeSantis.
"It is something I would seriously consider," she told The Associated Press. "If I’m being completely transparent, I don’t know exactly what that would look like. And I certainly want to get all of the information possible if that is something that’s real for me. But yeah, I would 100% consider it."
She additionally told Fox News' Sean Hannity last month that she "would love to serve the people of Florida" and "would love to consider" filling the seat if asked.
This is not the first time Lara Trump has been in the midst of Senate speculation. Following the 2020 presidential election, rumors spread across Washington, D.C., that the Trump daughter-in-law was considering a Senate run in her home state of North Carolina. She ultimately decided against a run, endorsing now-Sen. Ted Budd.
Fox News Digital's Christina Shaw and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.
Florida state Rep. Susan Valdés, who was just re-elected as a Democrat last month, announced that she's switching her party affiliation to Republican.
"I will not waste my final two years in the Florida Legislature being ignored in a caucus whose leadership expects me to ignore the needs of my community," the newly-minted Republican said in a statement.
"Effective immediately, I will change my registration from a Democrat to Republican and will join the Republican Conference in the Florida House of Representatives," she noted. "I know that I won't agree with my fellow Republican House members on every issue, but I know that in their caucus, I will be welcomed and treated with respect."
Her switch comes on the heels of a bid for the role of Hillsborough County Democratic Executive Committee chair.
"While it remains disturbingly unclear whether she was entertaining the switch to become a Republican even as she was running to lead the local Party, ultimately it is her constituents in District 64 who have the most reason to be upset and betrayed," Hillsborough County Democratic Party chair Vanessa Lester said in a statement shared on the Hillsborough County Democratic Party's Facebook page. "They voted for a Democrat to fight for them and ended up with a political opportunist who abandoned them."
Sunshine State Gov. Ron DeSantis welcomed the congresswoman to the Republican Party, declaring in a post on X, "Welcome to the GOP, Rep. Valdes! Congrats to Speaker @Daniel_PerezFL on the biggest Republican majority in the history of the Florida House!" the governor added.
Valdés hailed former President Jimmy Carter as "My hero!" in a post on X earlier this year while wishing the 100-year-old Democrat a happy birthday.
"I’m only trying to make it to vote for Kamala Harris," the former president told his son Chip, according to grandson Jason Carter, The Atlanta-Journal Constitution reported earlier this year.
In an October post on Facebook, Valdés wrote, "I pray you can see her inauguration, President Jimmy Carter."
Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida will join President-elect Trump next weekend at the annual Army-Navy college football game, two sources familiar tell Fox News.
The teaming up of DeSantis and Trump — for the second time this month — comes as multiple sources have confirmed that the president-elect is considering nominating the governor as defense secretary as a possible replacement for Pete Hegseth, Trump's embattled current pick to steer the Pentagon.
But the move also comes as Trump on Friday took to social media to write that "Hegseth is doing very well. His support is strong and deep, much more so than the Fake News would have you believe."
DeSantis, a popular conservative governor and a Navy veteran who served in the Iraq War, waged a bitter battle last year and early this year with Trump during a very combative and divisive GOP presidential nomination race. But the two Republican heavyweights seemed to make peace after the primaries, and DeSantis helped raise funds for Trump during the general election.
DeSantis, who was re-elected in a landslide in 2022 but is term-limited and cannot run for re-election in 2026, is "very much" in contention to replace Hegseth, multiple sources told Fox News.
Another source told Fox News' chief political anchor and "Special Report" host Bret Baier that it was the president-elect himself who floated the governor's name, and that Trump and DeSantis discussed the idea as they met Tuesday while appearing together in Florida at a memorial service for fallen law enforcement officers in Palm Beach County.
The reporting from Fox News and other organizations this week came as Hegseth continued meeting with Republican senators as he made his case for confirmation as defense secretary.
Hegseth, an Army National Guard officer who deployed to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and who previously was a Fox News host, is facing a series of drinking and sexual misconduct allegations. He has denied allegations that he mistreated women and has vowed that he won't drink "a drop of alcohol" if confirmed as defense secretary.
A seemingly defiant Hegseth told reporters on Thursday afternoon that "this will not be a process tried in the media. I don’t answer to anyone in this group. None of you, not to that camera at all. I answer to President Trump, who received 76 million votes on behalf... and a mandate for change. I answer to the 100 senators who are part of this process and those in the committee. And I answer to my Lord and Savior and my wife and my family."
Trump, in his social media post, argued that Hegseth "will be a fantastic, high energy, Secretary of Defense . . . , one who leads with charisma and skill."
The Army-Navy game is scheduled for Dec. 14 in Landover, Maryland. It will be the 125th game in the storied football series between the two military service academies.
Trump attended the game as president-elect in 2016 and three additional times during his first administration.
President-elect Trump is considering nominating Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida as defense secretary to replace Pete Hegseth, Trump's embattled current pick to steer the Pentagon, multiple sources confirm to Fox News.
DeSantis, a bitter Trump rival last year and early this year during the GOP presidential nomination battle, made peace with Trump after the primaries and helped raise funds for Trump during the general election.
The popular conservative governor, a Navy veteran who served in the Iraq War, was re-elected in a landslide in 2022 but is term-limited and cannot run for re-election in 2026.
DeSantis is "very much" in contention to replace Hegseth, multiple sources told Fox News.
One source added that it was the president-elect himself who floated the governor's name, and that Trump and DeSantis discussed the idea as they met Tuesday while appearing together in Florida at a memorial service for fallen law enforcement officers in Palm Beach County.
The reporting from Fox News and other organizations comes as Hegseth on Wednesday returns to Capitol Hill to continue meeting with Republican senators as he makes his case for confirmation as defense secretary.
Hegseth, an Army National Guard officer who deployed to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and who previously was a Fox News host, is facing a series of drinking and sexual misconduct allegations.
Hegseth has denied allegations that he mistreated women.
"I spoke with the President-elect this morning. He said keep going, keep fighting," Hegseth told reporters as he arrived on Capitol Hill.
"Why would I back down? I have always been a fighter," he added.
Hegseth also made his case in a social media post on Wednesday morning, writing, "I'm doing this for the warfighters, not the warmongers."
But a top Trump ally in the Senate is concerned.
"He obviously has a chance to defend himself here. But some of this stuff is — it’s going to be difficult," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a longtime military veteran, told reporters on Tuesday.
Among the senators Hegseth was meeting with on Wednesday is Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, a military veteran and sexual-assault victim whose support would be crucial to his Senate confirmation.
Ernst told reporters on the eve of the meeting that she would likely have a "frank and thorough conversation" with Hegseth.
Hegseth's mother, Penelope Hegseth, appeared Wednesday on "FOX and Friends" to defend her son and "set the record straight."
"I am here to tell the truth. To tell the truth to the American people and tell the truth to senators on the Hill, especially female senators. I really hope that you will not listen to the media and you will listen to Pete," she added.
If Trump moves ahead and nominates DeSantis and the governor is confirmed by the GOP-controlled Senate next year, it would lead to the ascension of Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez. She would make history as Florida's first female governor — and the first of Cuban descent.
The Wall Street Journal was first to report the news that Trump is considering DeSantis for defense secretary.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk once voted for Obama. Now, he's one of the closest members of President-elect Donald Trump's circle.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Elon Musk's politics may seem to be all over the place, but he's demonstrated a consistent pattern.
He once split his political donations, but now he's one of the largest GOP megadonors.
Musk is set to have major influence in President-elect Donald Trump's second administration.
Elon Musk has completed his political evolution. Now, he's hoping to leverage his newfound power to disrupt the federal government.
Musk is now virtually inseparable from President-elect Donald Trump, though he hasn't always been the typical right-wing billionaire.
The Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI CEO's rightward lean is actually the culmination of an evolution that's been playing out over decades.
As the richest man in the world, Musk's stances carry great weight. His power has been on full display since he endorsed Trump shortly after the former president survived his first assassination attempt in July. Musk, unlike some of the uber-wealthy men before him, became one of the biggest megadonors of the 2024 cycle. The Tesla CEO shelled out roughly $119 million to boost Trump, mainly through America PAC, an allied super PAC. Musk even held a series of rallies in Pennsylvania, the biggest swing state of the 2024 race.
Before encouraging others to "take the red pill," Musk cut checks for Democrats ranging from Eric Garcetti (then just a Los Angeles City councilor) to John Kerry, the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee. Like others in business, Musk curried favor by balancing his support between both parties, as his donation history shows on Open Secrets, a nonprofit organization that tracks money in politics.
Musk would occasionally weigh into politics when it could affect his businesses. But ever since Trump left the White House, the billionaire has increasingly inserted himself into debates over hot-button topics, waged a largely one-way feud with President Joe Biden, and cozied up to Trump in time to help the former president complete his political comeback.
Here's how Musk got here.
The early years: From apartheid-era South Africa to Tesla takeover
Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, stands beside a rocket in Los Angeles in 2004.
Paul Harris/Getty Images
Musk, 53, has said very little publicly about apartheid, the system of racial segregation that became the defining issue of his childhood in the Republic of South Africa.
His father, Errol — who inherited wealth from half of an emerald mine he used to own — was elected to Pretoria City Council in 1972, running under the anti-apartheid Progressive Party. The apartheid system was a major motivation behind the younger Musk's decision to leave South Africa for Canada in 1989, according to Ashlee Vance's 2015 biography of the billionaire.
Growing up in the primarily white suburbs outside of Johannesburg, Musk was also surrounded by censorship and disinformation about the government's treatment of Black people, The New York Times previously reported. His mandatory government service was what first exposed him to the reality of the situation, according to the Times, which spoke to a high school classmate of Musk's about the insulated experience.
"People, at some point, realize that they've been fed a whole lot of crap," Andrew Panzera, who was in Musk's German class, told the Times. "At some point you go, 'Jeepers, we really were indoctrinated to a large extent.'"
Musk's political coming of age during the pre-social media era remains much of a mystery. But then his profile rose with the sale of his company X.com, a competitor to PayPal co-founded by Musk, and his subsequent takeover of Tesla as owner after joining founders Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning with a $6.5 million investment in 2004.
Musk's politics pre-Trump
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and former President Donald Trump, who have met multiple times over the years. Musk said in 2024 that Trump calls him "out of the blue."
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
Musk has long argued for small government and advocated for laissez-faire economic policy, calling the US government the "ultimate corporation" at a CEO summit in December 2020. In terms of donations, he's been in a relative holding pattern from his early years in Silicon Valley up to the present, donating moderate sums of money to politicians from both parties.
"I get involved in politics as little as possible," Musk said at a 2015 Vanity Fair event, adding that, "There's some amount I have to get involved in," due to his business interests.
He donated $2,000 each to former President George W. Bush and his 2004 Democratic challenger, former Secretary of State John Kerry. Musk also donated to California Democrats up and down the ballot, but still gave the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) $25,000 ahead of the 2006 midterms.
Another example of Musk hedging his donations came in the buildup to the 2008 presidential primaries, where he contributed to both Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in their contentious race.
Musk didn't donate to either Clinton or Trump during the 2016 cycle.
The billionaire also started out as a heavy Trump skeptic, saying in October 2015 that it would be "embarrassing" if Trump won the GOP nomination, much less the presidency.
"I don't really have strong feelings except that hopefully Trump doesn't get the nomination of the Republican party, because I think that's, yeah … that wouldn't be good," Musk said at the Vanity Fair event. "I think at most he would get the Republican nomination, but I think that would still be a bit embarrassing."
But more recently, Musk has taken a different approach to the Trump-dominated GOP. His latest donations have all been to Republican candidates and causes, with Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware being the last Democrat to receive any Musk donations back in 2020.
Musk's politics during Trump's term
The Twitter logo seen displayed on a smartphone with Elon Musk's account in the background.
Getty Images
Starting in 2017, Musk's donations began to skew Republican, with the billionaire spending nearly seven times more on GOP campaigns than Democratic ones. He also accepted positions on two of Trump's White House councils and tweeted his support of Rex Tillerson's ultimately successful nomination as Secretary of State.
While Musk previously said he supported Hillary Clinton's campaign promises on the environment and climate change, he defended his decision to attend Trump's business council meetings so he could raise the issue along with the January 2017 travel ban affecting Muslim-majority countries. He then stepped down from the councils in June 2017, citing Trump's decision to leave the Paris Climate Accord.
"Climate change is real," Musk tweeted. "Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world."
Musk largely stopped mentioning Trump from that point until much later in his presidency, when Trump attended a SpaceX launch for NASA in May 2020.
Musk during Biden's presidency
Elon Musk at the Cannes Lions International Festival Of Creativity on June 19, 2024.
Marc Piasecki/Getty Images
In the last few years, Musk's flirtations with the Trump-led GOP have been ramping up.
In mid-2022, Musk said he voted for a Republican candidate for the first time in a Texas special election, adding that he expected to see a "massive red wave" in the year's midterms. Musk's Texas voter registration did not show party affiliation, but he's argued on X that the Democratic Party has drifted further from the center than the GOP.
After taking control of Twitter, now X, at the end of 2022, Musk reinstated Trump's account on the platform. Musk called Trump's expulsion from the platform following the January 6 riots a "morally bad decision" and "foolish to the extreme."
"Indeed, great damage was done today to the public's faith in the American legal system," Musk wrote in a post on X.
"If a former President can be criminally convicted over such a trivial matter — motivated by politics, rather than justice — then anyone is at risk of a similar fate," Musk added, echoing Trump's own narrative that the conviction was an act of political persecution.
Even before Musk offered his formal endorsement, Trump had talked about including Musk in his administration.
While Musk has been more bullish lately about support for the GOP, his history of donations and past comments show that he has tended to position himself wherever he thinks power and influence are heading.
Musk endorsed Trump after the former president survived an assassination attempt
Musk endorsed Donald Trump after the former president survived an assassination attempt.
Omar Marques/Getty Images
Musk offered his "full endorsement" of Trump after the former president was shot during a July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. He and other big names in tech connected with the defiant image of a wounded Trump thrusting his fist in the air while Secret Service officers rushed him off stage.
Before the endorsement, Musk had been more cagey about his plans. He hadn't said much about the 2024 election after DeSantis' primary campaign flopped. In March, Musk had said he wasn't donating money to either major presidential candidate. At the time, it looked like Biden and Trump were headed to an all but certain rematch.
Musk's ambivalence didn't last long. According to The Wall Street Journal, in April, the billionaire began working with Texas real estate mogul Richard Weekley on setting up a pro-Trump super PAC. The Tesla CEO's support did not become public until July.
"It's not meant to be sort of a hyperpartisan PAC," Musk recently told the controversial Canadian professor Jordan Peterson. "The intent is to promote the principles that made America great in the first place."
Musk gave roughly $119 million to America PAC. In total, he donated more than $132 million to Republican causes ahead of the election, making him one of the biggest megadonors of the cycle.
Musk rallied for Trump across Pennsylvania
Elon Musk embraces former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show fairgrounds. This is the first time that Trump has returned to Butler since he was injured during an attempted assassination on July 13.
Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
On October 5, Trump returned to Butler for a rally at the scene where he was nearly assassinated in July. The guest list included family members of other victims of the shooting, along with Musk, who wore a black MAGA hat.
"As you can see, I'm not just MAGA," Musk said. "I'm dark MAGA."
He lauded Trump's strength after surviving the assassination attempt. He said President Joe Biden "couldn't climb a flight of stairs" while Trump "was fist pumping after getting shot." Trump sustained an injury to his ear in the July shooting.
"So who do you want representing America?" Musk asked an enthusiastic crowd.
Musk later held a series of town hall-style events across Pennsylvania, the biggest swing state in the race. His super PAC helped Trump's campaign in the state, which he ultimately won.
Trump has named Musk to a major new advisory organization
Vivek Ramaswamy and Musk were tapped to lead DOGE.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images, Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Trump wasted little time finding a new role for Musk. On November 12, the president-elect named Musk and conservative entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy to the "Department of Government Efficiency" or DOGE. Only Congress can create departments, and by design, DOGE will operate mostly outside the federal government.
Musk has ambitious targets for the panel, which is tasked with cutting federal spending by $2 trillion.
Republicans in Congress are lining up to help. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa are leading their respective chambers' coordination with DOGE.
Musk and Ramaswamy wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed that their outside panel would wrap up its work by July 4, 2026.
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida hinted on X on Saturday that he may be considering a run for Florida governor.
Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call
Matt Gaetz withdrew from his attorney general bid on Thursday.
But he's since hinted on X at a possible 2026 Florida governor run.
Gov. Ron DeSantis of Floria terms out in 2026.
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz's bid for attorney general may have been short-lived, but he appears to have his sights set on another big career move.
In a Saturday tweet, Florida State Rep. Anthony Sabatini posted on X his prediction that Gaetz would be the next governor of Florida. Gaetz responded to Sabatini with a gif of the Florida state flag.
Gaetz resigned from Congress in November after President-elect Donald Trump had tapped him for attorney general.
But that bid soon soured when Gaetz became embroiled in fresh scandal, including new developments in a long-running sex-trafficking investigation against him. The DOJ declined to pursue charges against Gaetz in 2023, but the House Ethics Committee continued probing the allegations.
CNN reported on Thursday that Gaetz withdrew from consideration shortly after they contacted him for comment regarding an accusation that he had a sexual encounter with a 17-year-old at a party in 2017.
Gaetz has denied wrongdoing in the sex-trafficking probe and the encounter. However, he withdrew himself from consideration for the attorney general post on Thursday afternoon.
"While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition," Gaetz wrote on X on Thursday.
After Gaetz withdrew, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he appreciated Gaetz's "efforts."
"He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has much respect," Trump wrote.
"Matt has a wonderful future, and I look forward to watching all of the great things he will do!" Trump added.
Florida has had a continuous slate of Republican governors since Jeb Bush won his gubernatorial race in 1998.
It's unclear what Gaetz's chances will look like in 2026 if he were to run for governor. But Gaetz is now in the market for a new gig — he said last week that he doesn't intend to rejoin the 119th Congress, to which he was elected in November to represent Florida's 1st congressional district.
"I'm still going to be in the fight, but it's going to be from a new perch," Gaetz told conservative podcaster Charlie Kirk last week.
"It seems like a pretty poetic time to allow that great new blood to come in, to allow my district to have high-quality representation," Gaetz said, adding that he's not going off on a "tropical excursion" for the rest of his life.
