Thursday morning news: November 14, 2024

Trump, Biden Oval office » President Biden hosted President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office Wednesday.

BIDEN: Well, Mr. President elect and former president, Donald, congratulations. And, uh, looking forward to having a, like they said, smooth transition.

In public remarks before a 2-hour closed-door meeting, the two leaders set aside the combative tone of the campaign season.

TRUMP: Thank you very much. And, uh, politics is tough. And it's, uh, in many cases not a very nice world. But it is a nice world today, and I appreciate it very much.

The White House said Trump came prepared with a series of questions, and the two leaders talked policy and discussed major challenges facing the country going forward.

Rubio named Secretary of State » That meeting came as Donald Trump continues to fill top roles in his administration, and he just made several more major announcements.

First, Trump has confirmed that he is nominating Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for Secretary of State.

RUBIO:  It's a tremendous honor, uh, to the President would place his confidence in me in a position of such importance. Um, it's also a tremendous responsibility.

Elected to the Senate in 2010, Rubio has established his bona fides on foreign policy, serving on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and as the top Republican on the Intelligence Committee.

The senator was Trump’s onetime political rival in the 2016 presidential primary but had more recently become a staunch supporter of the president-elect.

Gaetz for AG » Rubio’s widely expected to sail through the Senate confirmation process.

But the president-elect’s pick for attorney general could face stiffer resistance. He has tapped Congressman Matt Gaetz to lead the Justice Department.

Gaetz became an especially polarizing figure in Republican politics last year when he triggered a vote that led to the ouster of then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

GAETZ: Resolved that the speaker of the House of Representatives is hereby declared to be vacant.

McCarthy claimed Gaetz was motivated by anger over a House Ethics Committee probe of allegations against Gaetz of sexual misconduct. The Justice Department also investigated the matter but never filed charges. Gaetz has maintained his innocence.

Republican Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said of Gaetz’s nomination …

CAPITO:  The president has the prerogative to nominate who he wishes. We will consider this in the Senate and certainly will be in the Judiciary Committee.

Gaetz resigned from Congress immediately upon news of his nomination. Republicans could fill his seat as early as January 3rd.

In a statement, President-elect Trump called him a “champion for the rule of law.” And he said “Matt played a key role in defeating the Russia hoax, and exposing government corruption and weaponization.”

Gabbard for DNI » And Trump has tapped former congresswoman from Hawaii Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin has more.

KRISTEN FLAVIN: Tulsi Gabbard is a military veteran who deployed to Iraq and Kuwait and who later served four terms in Congress as a Democrat. She broke with her party in 2022 and later endorsed Trump’s bid to reclaim the White House.

She too could face some pushback in the Senate over her lack of intelligence experience. But the president-elect wants someone in that role whom he trusts to tackle what he sees as corruption problem within the nation’s intelligence agencies.

For WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

Thune elected GOP Senate leader » Senate Republicans have elected a new leader. South Dakota Sen. John Thune will replace longtime leader Mitch McConnell, who is stepping aside after 18 years in that role.

THUNE:  We have a mandate from the American people, a mandate not only to clean up the mess left by the Biden Harris Schumer agenda, but also to deliver on President Trump's priorities.

Thune has held the Republican whip position since 2019. He won a secret ballot election against GOP Senate colleagues John Cornyn and Rick Scott who was the choice of numerous people in Donald Trump’s inner circle.

In contrast to Scott, Thune hails from the Republican Party’s more traditional wing. But he told reporters that the party is united.

THUNE: We are on one team, and we are excited to get to work without colleagues in the House to enact President Trump’s agenda.

John Thune will become the Senate Majority Leader in January when Republicans will control 53 of the 100 seats in the chamber.

Ukraine » During their White House meeting Wednesday, President Biden made his case to incoming President Trump about the need to continue backing Ukraine’s fight against Russian invaders.

And Secretary of State Tony Blinken spoke Wednesday from NATO headquarters in Brussels.

He said in recent months, Washington has obligated and “pushed out the door” nearly $9 billion dollars in additional security assistance for Ukraine …

BLINKEN:  And President Biden is committed to making sure that every dollar we have at our disposal will be pushed out the door between now and January 20th.

He also warned that North Korea’s decision to send its troops into combat alongside Russian forces “demands and will get a firm response.” He didn't elaborate on what that would be.

Israel intel leaker charged » The man accused of leaking classified plans for an Israeli attack against Iran is scheduled to appear in court in Guam today.

Court documents show Asif William Rahman is charged with two counts of willful transmission of national defense information.

Fox News reports that he worked for the CIA.

Prosecutors say he was behind leaks of material showing the movement of Israeli military equipment in advance of a retaliatory strike on Iran.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: there’s a lot going on in Washington D.C. this week as U.S. Senators and House members look ahead…

This is The World and Everything in It.

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