Trump news - live: President rages at 'unstable' niece as he visits Louisiana to inspect Hurricane Laura damage
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President Donald Trump is visiting Louisiana and Texas to inspect damage from Hurricane Laura.
Travelling on Air Force One, the president took to Twitter to rage about the numerous books published by former officials and his niece, Mary Trump, that cast him in an unflattering light.
He also railed against claims the Democratic National Convention got higher TV ratings then the Republican equivalent.
Mr Trump's outbursts came amid the continuing coronavirus crisis in the US, which has now seen more than six million confirmed cases - far more than any other country worldwide.
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Donald Trump, making a campaign appearance in Manchester, New Hampshire on Friday, suggested his daughter Ivanka Trump should become the first female US president.
"I want to see the first woman president also, but I don't want to see a woman president get into that position the way she'd do it, and she's not competent," Mr Trump said of Kamala Harris to applause from his audience.
"They're all saying, 'We want Ivanka'," Mr Trump continued, then added: "I don't blame them."
Michael McFaul, a political scientist and former US ambassador to Russia, has warned of the "familiar messages, symbols, and methods" of autocracy that were on display at the Republican National Convention this week.
He also cited the White House's "cult of personality", the "blatant disregard for the law", and Mr Trump's frequent denouncements of the opposition as the "enemy of the people" as signs democracy is at threat.
Below are some of the highlights, but for the full thread on Twitter click on the first tweet.
Trump heads for hurricane-devastated Louisiana
The clean-up has begun from Hurricane Laura in the US state of Louisiana, with officials along a shattered stretch of coast warning returning residents they could face weeks without power or water.
The US toll from the Category 4 hurricane stood at 14 deaths, with more than half of those killed by carbon monoxide poisoning from the unsafe operation of generators.
US president Donald Trump plans to tour the damage in Louisiana and neighbouring Texas.
He told reporters he considered delaying his Thursday night speech accepting the Republican Party's nomination for re-election because of the storm, but said that “it turned out, we got a little bit lucky. It (the storm) was very big, it was very powerful, but it passed quickly”.
Across southwestern Louisiana, people are cleaning up from the destructive hurricane that roared ashore early on Thursday, packing 150mph winds.
Many people are deciding whether they wanted to stay in miserable conditions or wait until basic services are finally restored.
Associated Press
Donald Trump's tweeting overnight focused on a number of themes. The first being about protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and the continued unrest in Portland, Oregon.
Demonstrations which sometimes descended into vandalism erupted in the city of Kenosha after Jacob Blake, a black man, was shot by police leaving him paralysed.
Mr Trump also on Friday evening raged over TV ratings for the Republican National Convention, which were lower than the figures for the Democratic equivalent.
‘It’s important to tell our kids, grandkids, that we were fighting for them’: The past echoed in a vision for the future at March on Washington
Walter Carter said he had perched himself on a tree halfway down the Washington Monument’s reflecting pool to hear Dr Martin Luther King Jr address on 28 August 1963.
Fifty-seven years later, holding a tall sign reading “get your knee off our necks” and wearing a black face covering with the words “I Will Vote” scrawled in white, he leaned against a barricade steps away from the Lincoln Monument, more than 800 yards closer, to listen to Dr King’s son.
“What’s so interesting, and I’d say sad, are the core issues being discussed today are the same issues discussed then,” he told The Independent. “The words are different, but the issues remain the same.”
Read more:
"Protesters, your ass," Donald Trump told cheering supporters on Friday, adding, "I don't talk about my ass."
The lewd comment by the US president came before he tore into "anarchists and agitators" who are taking to the streets following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha.
Joe Biden late on Friday tweeted a tribute to Chadwick Boseman following the Hollywood actor's tragic death from colon cancer at the age of just 43.
From Black Panther to Jackie Robinson, he inspired generations and showed them they can be anything they want," Mr Biden said.
Mr Trump has yet to say anything public about Mr Boseman's death.
ICYMI: Melania and Ivanka Trump caught in awkward moment as tell-all book reveals ‘tense relationship
Melania Trump and her daughter Ivanka were caught in an awkward moment on Thursday night at the Republican National Convention (RNC), just a day after a published book extract detailed an alleged tense relationship between the two women.
While introducing Donald Trump to deliver his nomination speech, the first lady’s facial expression could be seen dramatically changing after Ivanka, who had also taken to the stage to welcome her father, enters the stage.
It came just 24 hours after a former confidant of the first lady detailed what she claims is a tense relationship between the first lady and her daughter in a new book.
Read more:
Police declare riot in Portland and detain demonstrators
Fires set outside a law enforcement building that's a frequent site for protests in Portland, Oregon, prompted police to declare a riot early Saturday and detain several demonstrators.
Witnesses also said a car drove near the demonstration at the Portland Police Association building and fired several gunshots into the air. Video posted online showed shell casings in the street. No injuries were reported.
Officers had extinguished the fire at the police building and appeared to detain several protesters. It was unclear how many were arrested.
The commotion followed a sit-in in the lobby of the Portland mayor's condo building Friday night. Protesters have issued demands, including police budget reductions and Mayor Ted Wheeler's resignation, the Oregonian reported. A crowd of about 150 had gathered outside the building.
Portland has been gripped by nightly protests for three months since the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. The demonstrations, often violent, usually target police buildings and federal buildings. Some protesters have called for reductions in police budgets while the city's mayor and some in the Black community have decried the violence, saying it's counterproductive.
Associated Press
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