Trump news at a glance: John Bolton vows to defend his conduct after indictment

Former Trump adviser John Bolton indicted by justice department

The charges come at a fraught moment for the justice department, which has been rocked by extraordinary pressure from Trump to expand a vendetta campaign to pursue criminal cases against his political enemies.

In recent weeks, Lindsey Halligan, Trump’s handpicked US attorney in Virginia, obtained indictments against James Comey, the former FBI director, and the New York state attorney general, Letitia James, over the objections of career prosecutors.

Bolton has been a thorn in Trump’s side since he departed the president’s first administration, criticizing him on cable news and assailing him for his own mishandling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago club.

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Zelenskyy to make missiles case in US as Trump plans to meet Putin in Budapest

Volodymyr Zelenskyy will head to the White House on Friday for a crucial meeting with Donald Trump, hours after the US president said he had agreed to another summit with Vladimir Putin in Budapest after a “very productive” call.

The possible supply of US Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine is expected to top the agenda during the Ukrainian president’s visit. However, Trump’s conciliatory tone after the call with Putin left in question the likelihood of immediate assistance to Ukraine and reignited European fears of US capitulation to Moscow.

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US Senate vote to end government shutdown fails for 10th time

The US Senate failed on Thursday to reopen the government and to vote to fund the military during the federal government shutdown, ensuring that the standoff will stretch into next week.

The Senate vote on a short-term Republican funding bill failed for the 10th time with just 51 votes. A second vote on Pentagon funding in the afternoon similarly failed in a floor vote, meaning the process to begin fully funding military operations also becomes a non-starter. After the votes, senators are expected to leave Washington for the weekend, almost guaranteeing the shutdown lasts until at least Monday.

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Trump adds ‘Arc de Trump’ to presidential renovations

More than two centuries have passed since France celebrated the emperor Napoleon’s birthday by laying the foundation stone of the Arc de Triomphe. Now Donald Trump has imperial ambitions of his own.

On Wednesday, the US president unveiled plans for a grand arch in Washington that has already been dubbed the “Arc de Trump”.

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US admiral to retire amid military strikes in Caribbean and tensions with Venezuela

Amid escalating tensions with Venezuela and US military strikes on suspected drug smugglers in the Caribbean, the US admiral who commands military forces in Latin America will step down at the end of this year, defense secretary Pete Hegseth announced on social media.

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