In the wake of reports yesterday that Trump was planning to sign an executive action directing Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate ActBlue, a Democratic fundraising platform, donations on the platform spiked.
Trump signed a presidential memorandum accusing ActBlue of the “unlawful use of online fundraising platforms to make ‘straw’ or ‘dummy’ contributions or foreign contributions to political candidates and committees” yesterday evening, but donations started shooting up well before that, as Politico reported yesterday morning that Trump’s action against the platform was forthcoming.
The Democratic National Committee, former Vice President Kamala Harris and numerous other Democrats sent fundraising emails about the situation throughout the day.
The beginning of the fundraising jump began in the late morning yesterday and peaked during the 7 p.m. hour, with almost $500,000 donated on the platform that hour, according to an NBC News analysis.
The previous peak for the week was Tuesday at 3 p.m., with more than $330,000 donated in that hour.
The FBI arrested a county judge in Milwaukee today, alleging that she obstructed the detention of an undocumented immigrant who was wanted by federal authorities, a senior law enforcement official told NBC News.
The arrest of Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan marks a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration, in line with its rhetoric about going after local and state authorities on immigration-related matters.
Dugan was arrested by the FBI and is now in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service, the senior law enforcement official said. The official told NBC News that Dugan was arrested at about 8:30 a.m. local time in the parking lot of the Milwaukee County Courthouse, before she entered the building. She was then transferred to the custody of the U.S. Marshals.
Trump, while departing the White House on his way to Rome for Pope Francis’ funeral, told reporters, “I think we’re pretty close” to a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.
The president said that U.S. representatives, including Steve Witkoff, were “meeting with Putin right now as we speak and we have a lot of things going on, and I think in the end, we’re going to end up with a lot of good deals, including tariff deals and trade deals.”
Asked whether he has a deadline in mind to reach a deal, the president said, “No deadline, I just want to do it as fast as possible.”
The president also answered questions about whether he’s spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“I’ve spoken to him numerous times,” Trump said, but declined to comment on whether he’s spoken to Xi since the tariff war began.
Former President Joe Biden and former first lady Jill Biden will attend Pope Francis’ funeral this weekend.
Trump and first lady Melania Trump are among the heads of state also attending the funeral.
The United States and Iran are preparing for a new round of high-stakes nuclear talks, with Iran showing more flexibility and openness about a deal than it has in years. “If Americans are concerned about us having nuclear weapons, we are ready to accept reasonable verification in return for lifting all sanctions,” a member of Iran’s national security committee said. NBC’s Richard Engel reports for “TODAY.”
The U.S. may move to reduce tariffs on China to stimulate talks, according to the U.S. envoy to China during Trump’s first administration, Terry Branstad.
“There’ll be some movement that’ll reduce the burden and an indication that we want to deal,” Branstad said during a forum hosted by the New York-based asset management firm KraneShares on Wednesday.
But Beijing will need to reciprocate in a way “that shows that they have an interest in it,” he added. Branstad pointed to “tremendous resurgence in comeback” of the markets, which had tanked following Trump’s announcement.
“That’s because of the signal that Trump has made that these initial tariffs on China are not the end of the day, and they’re to get their attention and eventually to try to get a better deal,” he added. “I don’t know that there will be a deal, but I know that Trump like to see one at the end of the day.”
Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff is meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow, a day after Trump told Putin in a Truth Social post to “STOP” launching strikes on Ukraine.
Witkoff is a key player in the negotiations among Ukraine and Western allies to end the war.
State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said yesterday that Witkoff is set to participate in the next round of talks in Oman tomorrow.
Trump and first lady Melania Trump will take off for Rome this morning and will attend Pope Francis’ funeral tomorrow. The body of the pope is lying in state for a third and final day today.
Retailers are warning that U.S. consumers could once again be faced with empty store shelves and the kind of supply chain snarls that marked the Covid era if President Donald Trump’s tariffs on China remain at their current levels.
Companies have been canceling their shipments of goods from China and halting new orders after Trump put a 145% tariff on nearly all Chinese imports this month. As a result, the number of freight vessels scheduled to arrive at the Port of Los Angeles is on track to be down 33% year-over-year for the week ending May 10, according to ship tracking data from Port Optimizer.
Typically, U.S. retailers would be ramping up their orders for two critical periods later this year: the fall back-to-school shopping season and the winter holidays. And the pullback is creating uncertainty about whether U.S. shoppers will have the selection of goods they’ve grown accustomed to in the coming months.
Gov. JB Pritzker is expected to endorse his lieutenant governor, Juliana Stratton, for U.S. Senate, just two days after longtime Sen. Dick Durbin said he would not seek a sixth term in office.
Pritzker plans to make the announcement — news of which was shared in advance with NBC News — at an event in the city’s Southside neighborhood of Bronzeville where Stratton grew up.
The backing — which is sure to include financial resources from the billionaire politician — instantly lifts Stratton’s profile in a race that’s expected to draw a crowded field given that Durbin has held the seat for nearly 30 years. That group could potentially include at least two Democratic members of Congress in the state.
