President Trump started his Thursday morning with a wide-ranging phone interview on Fox & Friends, in which he returned to old favorite talking points and revealed new tidbits of information. Here are the highlights. Summer Meza
On first lady Melania Trump: Trump began his meandering monologue by telling the show hosts that he was joining them in honor of Melania's birthday. So what did he buy his wife for her 48th birthday? "Maybe I didn't get her so much. I got her a beautiful card. You know, I'm very busy."
On attorney Michael Cohen: The president distanced himself from his longtime attorney by characterizing Cohen's legal practice as second to his business interests. "I don't know his business," said Trump. "This doesn't have to do with me." Even though Cohen apparently only handles "a tiny, tiny little fraction" of Trump's legal work, Trump admitted that "he represents me, like with this crazy Stormy Daniels deal."
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On former FBI Director James Comey: Trump denied telling Comey that he didn't stay overnight during a trip to Moscow in 2013. Comey has said Trump claimed he didn't stay the night in Russia as part of his explanation as to why an unverified intelligence dossier that alleges Trump spent the night with prostitutes is false. "He said I didn't stay there the night — of course I stayed there," said Trump. "I never said I left immediately."
On White House physician Ronny Jackson: Trump energetically defended Jackson, who on Thursday dropped out of consideration to run the Department of Veterans Affairs following days of allegations of workplace misconduct. Jackson has an "unblemished" record, Trump said, and was up against "obstructionist" Democrats who wanted to block his nomination for no reason.
On pop culture: Trump praised rapper Kanye West for supporting him on Twitter, saying that West likely appreciated that black unemployment is at its "lowest" in history. The president also complimented Canadian singer Shania Twain, who came under fire for saying she would have voted for Trump. Twain is "terrific," Trump said, but she shouldn't have apologized for her comments.
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Strava vs. Garmin: the row splitting the running communityUnder The Radar The legal dispute between the two titans of exercise tech is like ‘Mom and Dad fighting’
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Bad Bunny: Why MAGA is incensedFeature The NFL announced Latino artist Bad Bunny as the Super Bowl halftime headliner, sparking MAGA outrage
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Supreme Court: Judging 20 years of RobertsFeature Two decades after promising to “call balls and strikes,” Chief Justice John Roberts faces scrutiny for reshaping American democracy
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News organizations reject Pentagon restrictionsSpeed Read The proposed policy is Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s latest move to limit press access at the Pentagon
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Trump declares end to Gaza war, ‘dawn’ of new MideastSpeed Read Hamas freed the final 20 living Israeli hostages and Israel released thousands of Palestinian detainees
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Trump DOJ indicts New York AG Letitia JamesSpeed Read New York Attorney General Letitia James was indicted as Trump’s Justice Department pursues charges against his political opponents
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Judge blocks Trump’s Guard deployment in ChicagoSpeed Read The president is temporarily blocked from federalizing the Illinois National Guard or deploying any Guard units in the state
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Trump urges jail for Illinois, Chicago leadersSpeed Read The Texas National Guard begin operations in the Chicago area
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Bondi stonewalls on Epstein, Comey in Senate face-offSpeed Read Attorney General Pam Bondi denied charges of using the Justice Department in service of Trump’s personal vendettas
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Court allows Trump’s Texas troops to head to ChicagoSpeed Read Trump is ‘using our service members as pawns in his illegal effort to militarize our nation’s cities,’ said Gov. J.B. Pritzker
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Judge bars Trump’s National Guard moves in OregonSpeed Read In an emergency hearing, a federal judge blocked President Donald Trump from sending National Guard troops into Portland
