Trump suggests U.S. ‘long-term possession’ of Gaza as he says it may very well be the ‘Riviera of the Middle East’: Live
President Donald Trump suggested Tuesday night that the U.S. “take over” the Gaza Strip and that the U.S. will “own” the territory.
“Instead of having to go back and do it again, the U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip,” said Trump during a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site.”
“I do see a long-term ownership position, and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East,” he added.
“I don’t want to be cute, I don’t want to be a wise guy,” the president said before suggesting that Gaza could be “the Riviera of the Middle East.”
This comes as Trump also said Tuesday that he is in “no rush” to speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping to resolve the new trade war between the world’s two largest economies, which was ignited by his sweeping 10 percent tariffs on all Chinese imports.
This follows Trump’s agreement to suspend his aggressive tariff hike against Mexico and Canada by one month after speaking with his counterparts in both nations. However, the threatened Chinese tariffs went ahead.
Trump’s tariff tactics carry higher economic risks this time around
When Donald Trump started the biggest trade war since the 1930s in his first term, his impulsive combination of threats and import taxes on U.S. trading partners created chaos, generated drama — and drew criticism from mainstream economists who favor free trade.
But it didn’t do much damage to the U.S. economy. Or much good. Inflation stayed under control. The economy kept growing as it had before. And America’s massive trade deficits, the main target of Trump’s ire, proved resistant to his rhetoric and his tariffs: Already big, they got bigger.
The trade war sequel that Trump has planned for his second term – if it unfolds the way he’s described it – would likely be a different matter altogether. Trump appears to have grander ambitions and is operating in a far more treacherous economic environment this time.
Continue reading…
Pam Bondi confirmed as Trump’s attorney general
The 59-year-old was a prosecutor in Florida before becoming the state’s top law enforcement official.
She’s now set to lead the president’s efforts to reshape the Department of Justice. Bondi has served as a top surrogate for Trump and his efforts to refute the results of the 2020 election. She has criticized other prosecutors for charging the president with a variety of offenses. Bondi also defended Trump during his first impeachment trial, which came following allegations that he had withheld military aid to Ukraine as he urged President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former President Joe Biden.
Read more:
EPA head Lee Zeldin called climate change a threat before the Senate — now he’s changed his tune
Last Month, Zeldin had told Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders during his Senate confirmation hearings that he believes in the threat of climate change, and that the U.S. “must, with urgency, be addressing these issues.” However, in a recent interview with Breitbart News, the former New York congressman blasted the previous administration and seemed to make a complete reversal from remarks on the Hill.
Julia Musto reports from New York.
Trump uses Netanyahu press conference to suggest the US will ‘own’ Gaza
President Donald Trump on Tuesday suggested that the United States could take control of the Gaza Strip and spearhead rebuilding efforts if the Palestinians who’ve been displaced from Gaza during the war that began after the October 7 terror attacks on Israel are relocated to a more habitable location in Egypt, Jordan or elsewhere.
Speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during an East Room press conference after the two leaders met in the Oval Office, Trump said Palestinians could be relocated to “numerous sites” or “one large site” that would be constructed and funded by “neighboring countries of great wealth” and located in “other countries of interest with humanitarian hearts.”
Read more:
U.S. is ‘so wealthy but so unhappy‘ according to new report card on American well-being
The United States boasts the second-largest economy in the world — but perhaps at the cost of Americans’ quality of life, a new report revealed.
A State of the Nation report released Monday analyzed how the country is faring compared to others based on data from 1990 to 2023 across 15 topics, including the economy, the environment, life satisfaction, mental health and inequality. The report underscored how the U.S. is thriving economically but failing in nearly every other aspect analyzed.
The report summarized its findings by classifying the U.S. as a “nation of extremes.”
Kelly Rissman looks at the data.
‘The Riviera of the Middle East’
Kaitlan Collins of CNN asked Trump where the Gazans should go and who would be living in the Gaza he envisions.
“I envision world people living there. The world’s people,” said Trump. “I think you’ll make that into an international, unbelievable place.”
“I think the potential of the Gaza Strip is unbelievable. And I think the entire world, representatives from all over the world, will be there, and they’ll live there,” he added. “Palestinians will live there. Many people will live there, but they’ve tried the other and they’ve tried it for decades and decades and decades. It’s not going to work. It didn’t work. It will never work.”
“And you have to learn from history. History is, you know, just can’t let it keep repeating itself,” said the president. “We have an opportunity to do something that could be phenomenal. And I don’t want to be cute, I don’t want to be a wise guy, but the Riviera of the Middle East.”
Trump calls Gaza a ‘hell-hole’
Trump called Gaza a “hell-hole” during his press conference with Netanyahu.
“You have to learn from history. You can’t keep doing the same mistake over and over again,” said Trump. “Gaza is a hell hole right now. It was before the bombing started, frankly, and we’re going to give people a chance to live in a beautiful community that’s safe and secure.”
‘I do see a long-term ownership position’
Kelly O’Donnell of NBC News asked Trump and Netanyahu: “Mr. President, Mr. Prime Minister, you are talking tonight about the United States taking over a sovereign territory. What authority would allow you to do that?”
“Are you talking about a permanent occupation?” she asked.
“I do see a long-term ownership position, and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East, and maybe the entire Middle East,” said Trump.
“Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs with something that will be magnificent in a really magnificent area,” he added.
Musk has autonomy ‘almost no one can control’
Now, even senior White House officials tell the Times they’re being left in the dark as Musk exercises his unchecked power. Several former and current federal officials even told the outlet they’re feeling a sense of helplessness.
Katie Hawkinson reports.
Source: independent.co.uk