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All posts tagged "white house"

Susie Wiles 'on her last leg' amid White House turmoil: political experts

Susie Wiles is running out of patience with Trump amid mounting White House turmoil, a couple of political experts said.

Dean Blundell, a Canadian political commentator, detailed what insiders had told him about the Trump White House Chief of Staff during an interview with ex-GOP operative Steve Schmidt. Wiles was rumored to be looking for the exit, but she and other White House officials shot down the claim, which came from a Daily Mail report based on insider insight.

"Susie Wiles is on her last leg," Blundell said, sharing what sources told him. "She just doesn't want to be associated with this stuff anymore."

The Daily Mail reported that Wiles was mostly upset about the appointment of Bill Pulte as the acting Director of National Intelligence. Blundell said that it's telling for her to be "this disgusted by his pick for DNI," and suggested that her frustrations went beyond that.

"You don't have to look too far for the damage that this family is doing, not just in the United States, but also in Albania," Blundell said, referring to the protests over Ivanka Trump's planned resort.

Schmidt gave his two cents, saying, "If you held a gun to my head and make me guess what happened here, I would say that Susie Wiles probably threatened to quit."

Dead Air: Happy birthday, loser with Steve Schmidt & Dean Blundell by Steve Schmidt

Read on Substack

Pilot landing at Reagan National gets cockpit full of Trump's UFC lights: report

A commercial airline pilot received a baffling response from the FAA after Trump's UFC lights blinded them while landing, MeidasTouch reported.

The pilot spoke anonymously about how powerful lights from the UFC octagon on the White House South Lawn filled the cockpit during a landing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. It was "10 times worse than any laser illumination event," the pilot told MeidasTouch.

Landing an aircraft relies heavily on visual references, according to MeidasTouch. The pilot filed reports with the Federal Aviation Administration and NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System.

FAA personnel told the pilot to contact the White House about the safety concerns. MeidasTouch noted that the pilot's reports "raise questions" about how well the fight's organizers coordinated with aviation authorities, considering the illuminated UFC setup's proximity to the "busiest flight corridors."

The FAA recently recommended blinking red lights for Trump's triumphal arch because of how close it is to busy D.C. flight corridors. MeidasTouch also brought up heightened concern ever since an American Airlines flight fatally collided with a U.S. Army helicopter last year.

'This feels so gross': Internet rips Trump's 'little birthday party'

People online on Friday were criticizing the UFC fight to mark Donald Trump's 80th birthday — an event that has been touted as the country's 250th birthday celebration.

The mixed martial arts event this weekend on the White House's South Lawn will be a historic first, and more than 100,000 people are expected to attend, CNN reported.

Trump has admitted that he will skip signing the Iran peace deal if it happens during his scheduled event — and that he plans to send Vice President JD Vance and Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff instead.

Social media users commented on the event as U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds and the Blue Angels practiced flying over the White House on Friday.

"Tens of millions of taxpayer dollars will be spent on Trump’s birthday party," Ron Filipkowski, MeidasTouch editor and attorney, wrote on X.

"The crowd at the White House UFC fight will be one of the most diverse ever. There will be convicted felons, rapists, pedophiles, sex traffickers, domestic abusers and insurrectionists," Covie, a political commentator with more than 177,000 followers, wrote on X.

"So...Donald Trump has summoned a flyover for his little birthday party, too. And, it's HIS birthday party. Not for the UFC. Not America. For Trump," writer and editor of Protect Democracy, Amanda Carpenter, wrote on X.

Carpenter also called out the Trump administration in a separate X post.

"Don't let anyone pretend the UFC cage match debacle on the WH lawn is about anything but a gaudy, lavish, taxpayer-funded birthday party for Trump. Let's talk about why this feels so gross, because it's about a lot more than Trump turning 80. What should be a celebration of America 250 is really a forced celebration for Trump," Carpenter said.

"Trump is calling his UFC cage match an 'event.' It’s actually a scheme: fed. property, fed. staff, & a policymaking process handed over to boost a private business," Norm Eisen, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and founder of Democracy Defenders Action, wrote on X.

"Trump corruption of the day: his UFC cage fight at the White House," Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) wrote in a post on X, sharing a video describing his thoughts about the event and calling out Trump for hosting a MAGA fundraiser the day before the fight and his ties to the parent company of UFC as an investor.

"So what is the corruption? It's when a person who holds a high office — no one higher than the president — uses that office to enrich himself, to enrich his family. And that's at your expense," Welch said in the video.

Trump notched a dubious presidential record with his latest medical checkup: report

President Donald Trump set a dubious presidential record during his latest medical checkup, according to reporting by the Washington Post.

Although the White House hasn't said why, Trump was assessed by 22 medical specialists during his latest checkup, according to the Post. That's a new record for presidents, outpacing President George W. Bush by 10 specialists.

"It is an extraordinary number," Jonathan Reiner, the longtime cardiologist for former Vice President Dick Cheney, told the Post. "What specialties do they represent? Why so many?"

The Post looked at Trump's medical records released by the White House. The 22 medical specialists that Trump saw nearly doubled the number who assessed him during his first term, according to the Post. Trump saw 11 specialists during a 2019 checkup.

Last year, he saw 14 specialists in a single checkup, the Post reported based on past medical reports from the White House.

According to the Post, the specialists that Trump saw included physicians affiliated with Harvard, Duke University, and other well-known institutions, including generalist physicians.

White House officials explained the record number of specialists at his latest checkup by saying it was commensurate with the need for a "complete and preventive evaluation," the Post reported, adding that the president's physician said Trump is in "excellent health."

"The involvement of multiple specialists reflects a comprehensive, multidisciplinary evaluation consistent with best practices for executive-level medical care," The White House told the Post in a statement. "We have nothing to hide."

Senator eviscerates Trump judge nominee in clash during hearing: 'You understand?'

A longtime Democratic senator slammed a judge nominated by President Donald Trump for an appeals court vacancy after he refused to answer a direct question about who won the 2020 presidential election.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) asked North Dakota U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Mack Traynor, who was testifying before the Senate during a confirmation hearing for the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals.

"Who won the 2020 election?" Blumenthal asked.

"This issue has become a question of political controversy. I'm a sitting federal district judge, I'm a nominee to be 8th Circuit court of appeals. Justice Jackson, who previously was confirmed by the Senate for a position...," Traynor said, as Blumenthal interjected.

"It's 'political controversy' only because the president refuses to accept the results of the 2020 election. I'm asking you as a matter of fact. Who won the 2020 election?" Blumenthal again asked.

But Traynor tried to dodge the question again.

"As Justice Jackson stated, in her responses to questions on the record, it is not appropriate to engage in discussion regarding that as a judge, or sitting judge," Traynor said.

But Blumenthal wasn't satisfied with the judge's response.

"So you're going to use the same script that other nominees have used before this panel to avoid the question?" Blumenthal asked.

"I think the precedent established by Justice Jackson and other nominees is something that I need to follow," Traynor responded.

"As a matter of fact, who got more votes in 2020? Which of the presidential candidates?" Blumenthal asked.

"As I stated before, this is an issue that Justice Jackson and other nominees have been asked, they've not provided a response," Traynor said.

Blumenthal cut off Traynor and called him out for avoiding the question — and repeating the same excuses that other Trump-allied nominees have used in previous congressional hearings.

"You understand why I'm asking you to state, as a simple matter of fact who got more votes? The reason is because the president seeks to perpetuate a lie. You are in effect, protecting the lie if you fail to take an independent position as a matter of simple fact. Everybody in this room knows the answer. You're unwilling to state it. Instead, adopting a script that has been dictated to you by the White House. You prepared this answer with the White House, did you not?" Blumenthal said.

Military vet files federal lawsuit to stop 'deeply corrupt' White House UFC plan

A Virginia political organizer and a military veteran filed a federal lawsuit Sunday seeking a court order to halt UFC Freedom 250, the upcoming mixed martial arts event planned for the White House South Lawn and Lincoln Memorial on June 14 — a date that is simultaneously the 250th anniversary of American independence and Donald Trump's 80th birthday.

The suit, reported by CBS News congressional correspondent Scott MacFarlane, calls the arrangement a corrupt transfer of public resources to a private business ally. "This plan is deeply corrupt," the complaint states. "The President is giving White and his company what none have enjoyed before: unfettered access to the White House and Lincoln Memorial to stage a private, for-profit sports event, with all the promotional and branding opportunities that accompany such access."

Dana White, the UFC's chief executive and a close Trump friend and ally, has publicly framed the event as a celebration of America's semiquincentennial. But the lawsuit notes that White has also admitted the event "was Trump's idea," and argues that UFC Freedom 250 is in reality "a celebration of the UFC's brand and the 80th anniversary of Donald Trump's birth" — and therefore does not qualify for the special permits that allow use of national monumental grounds.

Federal law tightly restricts private use of the South Lawn and Lincoln Memorial, both of which are national parklands administered by the National Park Service. Under the NPS's standard permitting regime, no special events of any kind, including sporting events, may be held on the South Lawn.

The physical footprint of the event is itself a subject of the lawsuit. The UFC has erected a 92-foot-tall, 600-ton steel structure on the South Lawn it calls "the Claw," which the suit says is "destroying much of the South Lawn in the process." Any structure on national monumental grounds, the complaint argues, must be expressly authorized by Congress and undergo a full National Environmental Policy Act review.

The commercial stakes are not being hidden. One UFC executive recently called the event "the greatest earned-marketing tool of all time." VIP packages are being sold for between $1 million and $1.5 million per head. Sponsors including Singaporean cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com are among those with a financial interest in the event.

Trump has not indicated any intention to scale it back. In a TikTok video, he suggested the Claw might "never" be taken down, comparing it to the Eiffel Tower. "It was supposed to be taken down immediately after the World's Fair," Trump said of the Paris landmark, "and then they said, you know, we sort of like it."

White House official heads for exit after Trump admits people don't know who he is: WaPo

A top White House advisor on AI is looking for the exit after insiders say that Trump admitted people don't recognize him, according to reporting by the Washington Post.

Tech investor Sriram Krishnan told Trump administration officials that he plans to quit his role as the White House senior policy advisor for AI by the end of the month, insiders told the Post.

He's considered the architect of the Trump administration's AI Action Plan, which suggested rolling back regulations and building more data centers, according to the Post.

Despite Krishnan's role, Trump said during a December 2025 holiday party that people "ask me who the hell he is," the Post reported based on videos shared on social media.

According to anonymous insiders who spoke with the Post, Krishnan told Trump officials he's leaving to start an institution that will influence technology policy.

White House quickly tries to stomp out story of Susie Wiles' reported departure plans

White House officials have responded to reports that Susie Wiles is planning to ditch her role as Trump's chief of staff.

"Total bull—," wrote the official White House Rapid Response account. "Another fake hatchet job from a wannabe reporter peddling anonymous sources who don't actually know anything."

The Daily Mail reported that Susie Wiles is plotting a post-midterms exit because she was insulted by Trump's appointment of Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence.

Similarly, White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair denied the story, writing that it's "both absurd and totally false" in a post on X.

"The self-serving are working overtime today," he blasted, as other MAGA accounts echoed his denial.

Susie Wiles expected to quit as Trump's chief of staff after stinging 'insult': report

Trump's Chief of Staff Susie Wiles will soon quit her high-level White House post, insiders told the Daily Mail.

Wiles is preparing to quit because she was "vehemently" opposed to the promotion of Bill Pulte from the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency to the role of acting Director of National Intelligence, three White House insiders told the Daily Mail.

She perceived it as an "insult" when Trump followed through on the Pulte promotion, and Trump had already been starting to "resent" her opposition, the Mail reported.

"She is loyal to Trump, but he is now basically saying, 'Look, Ma, you are not the boss of me,'" an insider told the Mail.

She's plotting an exit strategy as she's also dealing with health problems, according to the Mail.

"She is getting cancer treatment and is completely drained," a White House insider told the Mail. "Now Trump is taking more and more control of the White House."

According to the Mail, Wiles is expected to use the midterms as an off-ramp and could leave the White House soon after the November elections.

Wiles has been working with Trump since his first campaign in 2016 and has held the chief of staff role since his reelection, the Mail noted.

Trump envoy's secret meeting with top nuclear scientists a clear sign for experts: report

President Donald Trump's Iran envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner made an unannounced trip to visit the nation's top nuclear experts at the national lab in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, according to an Axios report on Friday.

A deal to end the Iran war has not yet been reached, and many of the conditions were still under consideration, but the ongoing negotiations and secret meeting at the energy department facilities on Thursday signaled the experts "could play a role in nuclear negotiations with Iran," Axios reported.

"This meeting in Oak Ridge doesn't mean that a deal is going to happen, but it is a sign that the negotiations are in a very serious phase and that there is a good chance to get it done and we want to be prepared," a U.S. official told the outlet.

"Some of the country's foremost experts in uranium processing and centrifuge technology are based at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex. In the past, nuclear materials and equipment — including from Kazakhstan and Libya — were routed through Tennessee," according to Axios.

The Trump administration and the National Nuclear Security Administration have not commented on the meeting.

The White House has indicated 'positive indications' of a potential finalized deal; however, internal divides among Iranian leaders have continued.

"If the negotiations advance to the second phase, the team of experts that met with Witkoff and Kushner would have to develop a plan for the disposal of Iran's nuclear material, how to limit the enrichment program further, and how to verify compliance," Axios reported.

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