Trump 'seriously' considering ending birthright citizenship, as he doubles down on antisemitic comments and Denmark row
The president called himself "the chosen one" today
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Donald Trump had a remarkable day of outbursts. Speaking to reporters on the White House lawn, he doubled down on his antisemitic remarks to claim that Jewish Americans who vote for Democrats are betraying Israel, during an impromptu press conference on the White House lawn in which he also claimed that the victims of mass shootings "love" him. He also referred to himself as "the chosen one," while talking about a trade deal.
The comments came after he lashed out on Twitter that morning against the “LameStream Media”, the Federal Reserve and its chairman Jerome Powell as fears the US is sliding into recession continue and his disapproval rating hits 54 per cent in a new CNN poll.
The president also tweeted lavish praise of himself from an evangelical Fox and Friends pundit insisting Israeli Jews “love him like he is the second coming of God”.
In news away from the president's Internet presence, his administration today moved forward with a new regulation that would allow the government to detain migrant families indefinitely. The rule is expected to be challenged immediately.
He also told reporters that he's "seriously considering" ending birthright citizenship.
Mr Trump has also raised eyebrows by backing out of a trip to Denmark, supposedly because they would not sell him Greenland. Mr Trump called the prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, of that country "nasty" for outright rejecting the notion that the US could buy the country.
He also assured the National Rifle Association that universal background checks are off the table in gun control talks during a phone call with the NRA's president. Students from Parkland, meanwhile, have released a comprehensive plan for gun control in America.
Later, in Kentucky, the president joked that he should award himself the Medal of Honour, while continuing his consistent claims that America was weak before him in a speech honouring US veterans. He also referenced a Johnson & Johnson nasal spray that can prevent suicide. He told the veterans that he believes this new drug should be given to them for free.
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The president is considering ending birthright citizenship. In remarks to reporters on the White House lawn Wednesday, he said: "We're looking at that very seriously, birthright citizenship, where you have a baby on our land, you walk over the border, have a baby - congratulations, the baby is now a U.S. citizen. ... It's frankly ridiculous."
Here's a little bit more on what that means.
#25thAmendmentNow has been trending on Twitter for a few hours, roughly since Donald Trump said "I am the chosen one" when asked about a trade deal with China, but a lot of the conversation around it also involves his child-like rage over not being allowed to buy Greenland. Here's Jon Sharman with an explanation of why the trending topic is probably wishful thinking.
Here's some more reaction to the Trump administration's latest immigration policy change. Leading Democrat 2020 candidate Bernie Sanders has labelled it "cruel, racist and a stain on this nation".
He likely won't be the last 2020 presidential contender to take Mr Trump to task over the new rules.
Acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan has been on Fox News talking up the new conditions for detainees. Let's see if that actually materialises. He said the families would receive mental health treatment and other services in facilities that are held to high standards of care.
"They're campus-like settings with educational, medical, dining and separate, private living facilities," he said.
Donald Trump has challenged France, Germany and other countries to take back citizens captured fighting for Isis in Syria and Iraq. Otherwise, he warned, the US "will have no choice but to release them into the countries from which they came."
The president told reporters at the White House that European countries need to take back their citizens who joined the extremist group and are now being held prisoner. He said the US will not hold them at its base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, "for the next 50 years and pay for it."
Mr Trump signed an executive order shortly after taking office to keep open the detention center at Guantanamo, reversing an eight-year effort by President Barack Obama to shut it down. But no new detainees have been sent to the base in Cuba, where the US still holds 40 men.
Here is an opinion piece on the the diplomatic consequences that may arise from Mr Trump hitting out at Denmark over his "thought" on the status of Greenland.
That's all for our live coverage of Donald Trump and the White House today. Thanks for following along.
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