Elon Musk criticizes Trump’s tax bill
Good morning and welcome to the US politics blog. I’m Tom Ambrose and I will be bringing you all the latest news lines over the next few hours.
We start with news that Elon Musk has been critical Donald Trump’s flagship tax reform, arguing that it undermines efforts by the government’s own efficiency team (Doge).
His comments risk deepening the divide between the billionaire entrepreneur and the president he financially supported during the last election cycle.
In a CBS Sunday Morning interview preview released on Tuesday evening, the Tesla CEO expressed frustration over what he called a “massive spending bill” that adds to the federal deficit and, in his view, negates the achievements of the Department of Government Efficiency, which he once headed up.
The legislation – hailed by Trump as his “big beautiful bill” – narrowly passed the House of Representatives last week by a single vote, marking a key legislative win in his second term. The bill is now awaiting a Senate vote.
President Trump, who had to pressure several hesitant Republican lawmakers to secure support, hailed the bill as “arguably the most significant piece of legislation that will ever be signed in the history of our country.”
To read our full story, see here:
In other news:
-
The Trump administration ordered US embassies worldwide to immediately stop scheduling visa interviews for foreign students as it prepares to implement comprehensive social media screening for all international applicants. The state department has also halted the scheduling of new visa interviews for foreign students hoping to study in the US. Here’s an explainer on the latest move against foreign students.
-
President Donald Trump is set to pardon reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley of fraud and tax evasion convictions. Margo Martin, special assistant to Trump, posted a video on X, of the president calling Savannah Chrisley to announce his pardon of her parents. In 2019, the Chrisleys were indicted by a federal grand jury on 12 counts of bank and wire fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy, all of which they have denied.
-
A judge in Washington struck down an executive order targeting law firm WilmerHale, marking the third ruling to overwhelmingly reject President Donald Trump‘s efforts to punish firms he perceives as enemies of his administration. WilmerHale is the former home of Robert Mueller, the Republican-appointed special counsel who led a probe into Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election and Trump campaign ties to Moscow. Trump has derided the investigation as a political “witch hunt.”
-
Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville announced he is running for Alabama governor in 2026. In 2016, he was still working as the University of Cincinnati’s head football coach, and he previously coached at Auburn University in Alabama. In 2020, he won a seat representing Alabama in the United States Senate, his first stint into elected office. Tuberville is looking to succeed term-limited Republican Governor Kay Ivey.
-
The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to halt an order allowing migrants to challenge their deportations to South Sudan, an appeal that came hours after the judge suggested the Trump administration was “manufacturing” chaos and said he hoped that “reason can get the better of rhetoric.” Judge Brian Murphy in Boston found the White House violated a court order with a deportation flight to the chaotic African nation carrying people from other countries who had been convicted of crimes in the US. He said those migrants must get a real chance to be heard if they fear being sent there could put them in danger, he said.
-
Top Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev, responding to Donald Trump’s warning that Vladimir Putin is “playing with fire”, said that the only truly bad thing to worry about was World War Three. “Regarding Trump’s words about Putin “playing with fire” and “really bad things” happening to Russia. I only know of one REALLY BAD thing — WWIII. I hope Trump understands this!” Medvedev wrote on X.
Key events
President Donald Trump’s envoy, Keith Kellogg, on Wednesday scolded a top Russian official for stoking fears of World War Three after Trump warned president Vladimir Putin was “playing with fire” over Ukraine.
As Russian forces advanced in Ukraine, Trump, in a post on Truth Social, said that Putin was playing with fire and cautioned that “REALLY BAD” things would have happened already to Russia if it was not for Trump himself.
“What Vladimir Putin doesn’t realize is that if it weren’t for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened in Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He’s playing with fire,” Trump said in a Truth Social post on Tuesday.
Top Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev, a former president, dismissed Trump’s criticism.
President Donald Trump’s administration is raising scrutiny over the social media posts of South Korean students in the United States or who plan to study there, the students and agencies that support them said.
That has triggered concerns for parents of students studying or planning to study in the United States. South Korean students are the third-largest among international students in the US, behind those from India and China.
The US administration ordered its missions abroad to stop scheduling new appointments for student and exchange visitor visa applicants as the state department prepared to expand social media vetting of foreign students, according to an internal cable seen by Reuters on Tuesday.
The Trump administration has sought to ramp up deportations and revoke student visas as part of wide-ranging efforts to meet its hardline immigration agenda.
“My clients, parents are calling me constantly today to figure out what is going on,” said Park Hyuntae, head of Worldnet US Overseas Edu Center, an agency in Seoul that assists South Korean students.
“Those who already scheduled those interviews and will apply for interviews both are worried, nervous, but cancellations of existing interviews haven’t happened yet as far as I know.”
Park said the visa interview pause could cause delays in starting the school year, and that he was advising clients to be cautious over what they post online.
Trump says it will cost $61bn for Canada to join Golden Dome scheme
President Donald Trump has apparently told Canada that to be part of his Golden Dome system, it will cost them $61bn – unless they become the 51st American state.
The president claimed they are “considering the offer”, which does not quite ring true given Canada’s repeated rebuffs of the US’s very public desire to annex it.
Trump posted:
I told Canada, which very much wants to be part of our fabulous Golden Dome System, that it will cost $61 Billion Dollars if they remain a separate, but unequal, Nation, but will cost ZERO DOLLARS if they become our cherished 51st State. They are considering the offer!
The so-called “Golden Dome” missile defense system will protect the United States from possible foreign strikes using ground and space-based weapons.
However, what exactly the Golden Dome will look like remains unclear. Trump has not yet decided which of three options proposed by the defense department he wants to pursue. Pentagon officials recently drafted three proposals – small, medium and large – for Trump to consider.
US stops scheduling visa interviews for foreign students
The US state department on Tuesday ordered the suspension of student visa processing, as President Donald Trump’s administration seeks unprecedented control of the nation’s universities by slashing funding and curbing international enrolment.
It is the latest escalation in the White House’s crackdown on foreign students, which has seen it revoke visas and deport some of those involved in protests against the war in Gaza, AFP reported.
A cable signed by secretary of state Marco Rubio and seen by AFP orders embassies and consulates not to allow “any additional student or exchange visa … appointment capacity until further guidance is issued.”
The government plans to ramp up vetting of the social media profiles of international applicants to US universities, the cable said. The New York Times reported that the suspension of interviews with visa applicants was temporary.
Rubio earlier rescinded hundreds of visas and the Trump administration has moved to bar Harvard University from admitting non-Americans. Japan and Hong Kong have both urged local universities to accept foreign students from US universities in light of the crackdown.
China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning on Wednesday said Beijing urged Washington to “safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of international students, including those from China.”
Hundreds of thousands of Chinese students attend US universities, long viewed by many in China as beacons of academic freedom and rigour.
Elon Musk criticizes Trump’s tax bill
Good morning and welcome to the US politics blog. I’m Tom Ambrose and I will be bringing you all the latest news lines over the next few hours.
We start with news that Elon Musk has been critical Donald Trump’s flagship tax reform, arguing that it undermines efforts by the government’s own efficiency team (Doge).
His comments risk deepening the divide between the billionaire entrepreneur and the president he financially supported during the last election cycle.
In a CBS Sunday Morning interview preview released on Tuesday evening, the Tesla CEO expressed frustration over what he called a “massive spending bill” that adds to the federal deficit and, in his view, negates the achievements of the Department of Government Efficiency, which he once headed up.
The legislation – hailed by Trump as his “big beautiful bill” – narrowly passed the House of Representatives last week by a single vote, marking a key legislative win in his second term. The bill is now awaiting a Senate vote.
President Trump, who had to pressure several hesitant Republican lawmakers to secure support, hailed the bill as “arguably the most significant piece of legislation that will ever be signed in the history of our country.”
To read our full story, see here:
In other news:
-
The Trump administration ordered US embassies worldwide to immediately stop scheduling visa interviews for foreign students as it prepares to implement comprehensive social media screening for all international applicants. The state department has also halted the scheduling of new visa interviews for foreign students hoping to study in the US. Here’s an explainer on the latest move against foreign students.
-
President Donald Trump is set to pardon reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley of fraud and tax evasion convictions. Margo Martin, special assistant to Trump, posted a video on X, of the president calling Savannah Chrisley to announce his pardon of her parents. In 2019, the Chrisleys were indicted by a federal grand jury on 12 counts of bank and wire fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy, all of which they have denied.
-
A judge in Washington struck down an executive order targeting law firm WilmerHale, marking the third ruling to overwhelmingly reject President Donald Trump‘s efforts to punish firms he perceives as enemies of his administration. WilmerHale is the former home of Robert Mueller, the Republican-appointed special counsel who led a probe into Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election and Trump campaign ties to Moscow. Trump has derided the investigation as a political “witch hunt.”
-
Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville announced he is running for Alabama governor in 2026. In 2016, he was still working as the University of Cincinnati’s head football coach, and he previously coached at Auburn University in Alabama. In 2020, he won a seat representing Alabama in the United States Senate, his first stint into elected office. Tuberville is looking to succeed term-limited Republican Governor Kay Ivey.
-
The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to halt an order allowing migrants to challenge their deportations to South Sudan, an appeal that came hours after the judge suggested the Trump administration was “manufacturing” chaos and said he hoped that “reason can get the better of rhetoric.” Judge Brian Murphy in Boston found the White House violated a court order with a deportation flight to the chaotic African nation carrying people from other countries who had been convicted of crimes in the US. He said those migrants must get a real chance to be heard if they fear being sent there could put them in danger, he said.
-
Top Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev, responding to Donald Trump’s warning that Vladimir Putin is “playing with fire”, said that the only truly bad thing to worry about was World War Three. “Regarding Trump’s words about Putin “playing with fire” and “really bad things” happening to Russia. I only know of one REALLY BAD thing — WWIII. I hope Trump understands this!” Medvedev wrote on X.
