Trump news: President says 'America must win' 5G technology race as migrant revenge plan emerges

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Compilation of Donald Trump mentioning Wikileaks during 2016 election campaign

Donald Trump said his administration is indeed “giving strong considerations” to placing detained migrants in sanctuary cities, citing unwillingness by Democrats to “change our very dangerous immigration laws,” sparking nationwide backlash.

The president’s response to claims the White House had proposed sending detainees to sanctuary cities twice in the last six months came hours after White House officials said the idea had been proposed but ultimately rejected.

Mr Trump doubled-down on the possibility while speaking at the White House, prompting mayors of “sanctuary cities” to dismiss the president’s claims.

During his White House appearance Friday, the president also discussed the nation’s plans for implementing 5G wireless network.

According to the president and the FCC, the US will have the largest number of 5G networks of any country by the end of the year, a race Mr Trump said America “must win”.

In addition to bringing faster data speeds, the wireless industry’s plans to invest millions into 5G networks would create 3m jobs and add “$500bn to our economy,” according to the president.

Also on Friday, reports emerged that the president told the head of Customs and Border Protection that he would pardon him if he were sent to jail for violating immigration law.

Citing two officials, CNN reported Mr Trump made the comments to CBP commissioner Kevin McAleenan during a visit to the border last week, claims the Department of Homeland Security has denied.

Ivanka Trump was also involved in controversy Friday after the president revealed in an interview with The Atlantic that he had considered nominating her for president of the World Bank because she is “very good with numbers”.

Follow events as they happened.

Key Points

• Trump blows up at US press over Obama lawyer indictment coverage
• President considered Ivanka for World Bank: 'She's very good with numbers'
• Trump attempts to distance himself from WikiLeaks despite repeated past praise
• Reports emerge administration wanted to dump detained migrants in 'sanctuary cities'
• President endorses attorney-general's suggestion he was spied upon

[12 April 2019 11:40 · Joe Sommerlad]

The ongoing war of words between 2020 Democratic hopeful Pete Buttigieg and vice-president Mike Pence over faith and hypocrisy continues to escalate, with the former addressing the matter on Ellen DeGeneres's chat show with his usual flare.

Here's Chris Riotta on the veep's insistence Buttigieg - a gay Christian - should "know better" than to criticise him.

[12 April 2019 11:55 · Joe Sommerlad]

Here's Ed Krassenstein for Indy Voices on why Trump is stuck between a rock and hard place when it comes to Julian Assange.

[12 April 2019 12:10 · Joe Sommerlad]

The ghost of Steve Bannon has once more risen from the grave to warn us a win in 2020 for Donald Trump will see him "off the chain" and "in payback mode" during his second term.

[12 April 2019 12:27 · Joe Sommerlad]

According to a new article on Ivanka Trump in The Atlantic, the president was considering nominating his daughter as an ambassador to the United Nations and for a position with the World Bank as "she's very good with numbers".

Here are the quotes in full:

"She’s a natural diplomat... She would’ve been great at the United Nations, as an example."

 On why he didn't nominate her: "If I did, they’d say nepotism, when it would’ve had nothing to do with nepotism. But she would’ve been incredible."

"I even thought of Ivanka for the World Bank… She would’ve been great at that because she’s very good with numbers."

[12 April 2019 12:42 · Joe Sommerlad]

Even in a presidency characterised by the childishness of the commander-in-chief, this is surely a new low.

Florida Republican Matt Gaetz - known for threatening Michael Cohen on Twitter the night before his marathon testimony before Congress in February - has introduced a bill calling for the removal of senior Democrat Adam Schiff as chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and he's called it, wait for it, the Preventing Extreme Negligence with Classified Information Licenses Act, or "the PENCIL Act" for short.

 

If this "joke" is lost on you - perhaps because you actually once met a real-life woman in the flesh - the reference is to the president's cruel nickname for his adversary, "Little Pencil-Neck Adam Schiff".

Even though the Mueller report has still not been made public, the Trump camp have been selling ugly $28 (£21) T-shirts mocking the representative since the week of William Barr's letter summarising it for Congress.

First lady Melania Trump's campaign against bullying looks ever more laughably futile.

[12 April 2019 13:00 · Joe Sommerlad]

California congressman Eric Swalwell announced he would be joining the ever-more crowded 2020 Democratic field on The Late Show earlier this week.

He's talking tough on Trump and Barr already.

[12 April 2019 13:20 · Joe Sommerlad]

Another 2020 challenger, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, is taking the president to task over his appallingly vindictive plan to unload detained immigrants in sanctuary cities.

[12 April 2019 13:40 · Joe Sommerlad]

Here's Rick Wilson for Indy Voices on the appeal of WikiLeaks to both the Trump camp and Bernie Sanders supporters, two groups otherwise diametrically opposed. 

[12 April 2019 14:00 · Joe Sommerlad]

Deputy attorney-general Rod Rosenstein has been defending William Barr over the agonisingly drawn-out release of the redacted Mueller report.

[12 April 2019 14:08 · Joe Sommerlad]

Here's your daily Fox update from the president.