Trump news – live: Mike Lindell says FBI seized his phone, as Trump shares bizarre QAnon image

Mike Lindell, the pro-Donald Trump conspiracy theorist and CEO of My Pillow, said Tuesday that the FBI has seized his cell phone at a fast food restaurant in Minnesota.

The chair of the powerful House Oversight Committee has asked the National Archives and Records Administration (Nara) to determine whether any more records that should have been given to the archives at the end of Mr Trump’s term remain missing.

In a letter to Acting Archivist of the United States Debra Wall, Representative Carolyn Maloney raised the possibility that Mr Trump is continuing to harbour stolen government records at properties other than the Florida beach club where he maintains his private residence.

Meanwhile, the Department of Justice has subpoenaed dozens of current and former Trump aides as part of its investigation into the storming of the Capitol, with some even having their phones seized.

The department has also said it is willing to accept one of the Trump team’s candidates to serve as a “special master” who will review the records seized by the FBI at Mar-a-Lago.

Key points

• Conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell’s phone seized in FBI raid, reports say

• House oversight committee ‘concerned’ Trump may have more stolen documents

• Trump embraces QAnon’s ‘Storm is coming’ meme

• Lindsey Graham unveils nationwide abortion ban after 15 weeks

Sununu projected to win New Hampshire primary

07:05 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Governor Chris Sununu is projected to win the Republican primary in New Hampshire, setting him up for a likely fourth term.

First elected in 2016, Mr Sununu will now face Democratic nominee Tom Sherman.

Giuliani’s ex wife says he’s embarrassing himself

06:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Rudy Giuliani’s ex-wife claims that the man she married more than 20 years ago possesses little resemblance to the election denying Trump-pundit she sees in today’s political arena.

“I can certainly tell you - the person you see now is not the man I married,” Judith Giuliani said in an interview with Inside Edition, set to air on Tuesday night. “We, for a long time, were a very good team. Then things changed.”

Johanna Chisholm has the story.

Rudy Giuliani’s ex wife says he’s embarrassing himself: ‘He’s not the man I married’

Fox News anchor says Republicans ‘going down the wrong road’ with abortion ban

06:02 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Fox News chief political anchor Bret Baier warned Republicans that they are “going down the wrong road” heading into the midterm elections after senator Lindsey Graham introduced a proposal for a national 15-week abortion ban.

In an appearance alongside John Roberts on the programme America Reports on Tuesday afternoon, Baier sounded the alarm that the party’s attempts to limit and criminalise access to abortion has the potential to upend their efforts to retake the US House and Senate in November.

“I do think the Dobbs case and the US Supreme Court overturning Roe v Wade had a big effect on independents and women in particular — and suburban voting areas especially,” Baier said.

“And now with Sen Graham’s effort, it is raising eyebrows about — are Republicans going down the wrong road with the nationwide abortion ban after 15 weeks, after saying it’s up to the states in the wake of Dobbs?”

Abe Asher has more.

Fox News anchor says Republicans ‘going down the wrong road’ with abortion ban

Justice Department warns against delay in Trump investigation

05:18 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

The Justice Department yesterday tore into former president Donald Trump’s lawyers for their delaying the investigation of classified documents seized at his Florida resort.

In a court filing, the department said: “Plaintiff [Trump] has characterised the government’s criminal investigation as a ‘document storage dispute’ or an ‘overdue library book scenario’.”

“In doing so, plaintiff has not addressed the potential harms that could result from mishandling classified information or the strict requirements imposed by law for handling such materials,” the filing read, according to NBC News.

It added that the documents had “markings signifying that their unauthorised disclosure ‘reasonably could be expected to result in damage to the national security,’ including ‘exceptionally grave damage’”.

A further delay would cause “irreparable harm” to the government and the public.

The department has also urged district judge Aileen Cannon to allow it to proceed for now with its criminal investigation into the over 100 classified documents that were recovered from the 45th president’s Mar-a-Lago resort.

Lindsey Graham unveils nationwide abortion ban after 15 weeks

04:49 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar

Republican senator Lindsey Graham introduced a nationwide abortion ban Tuesday, sending shockwaves through both parties ahead of the mid-term elections.

Mr Graham’s own Republican Party leaders did not immediately embrace his abortion ban bill, which would prohibit the procedure after 15 weeks of pregnancy with rare exceptions, and has almost no chance of becoming law in the Democratic-held Congress.

Democrats torched it as an alarming signal of where “MAGA” Republicans are headed if they win control of the House and Senate in November.

“America’s got to make some decisions,” Mr Graham said at a news conference at the Capitol.

Read more here.

GOP's Graham unveils nationwide abortion ban after 15 weeks

Who is Raymond Dearie, the Brooklyn judge Trump wants as ‘special master’?

04:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s legal team has suggested judge Raymond Dearie be appointed as the “special master” to review top-secret documents taken during the FBI raid of Mar-a-Lago.

The former president and the Justice Department had earlier reached the rare agreement that a special master, or court-appointed legal professional, should be appointed for the process.

Shweta Sharma looks at the former president’s suggestion for the position.

Who is Raymond Dearie, the Brooklyn judge Trump wants as ‘special master’?

ICYMI: DoJ accepts Trump nominee as ‘special master’ in top secret papers probe

03:45 , Oliver O'Connell

The Justice Department has said that it is prepared to accept a candidate put forward by Donald Trump’s legal team as “special master” to review top-secret documents taken during the FBI raid of Mar-a-Lago.

Federal prosecutors stated in a filing late on Monday that senior Judge Raymond Dearie is acceptable, along with its own two nominations, retired federal judges Barbara Jones and Thomas Griffith.

“Each have substantial judicial experience, during which they have presided over federal criminal and civil cases, including federal cases involving national security and privilege concerns,” the DoJ prosecutors wrote.

Graeme Massie reports.

Justice Department accepts Trump nominee as ‘special master’ in secret papers probe

Cheney says new revelations reveal true ‘danger’ of Donald Trump

02:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Congresswoman Liz Cheney said Donald Trump’s unwillingness to leave the White House after being defeated in the 2020 presidential election “affirms the reality of the danger” of his efforts to overturn the election.

Ms Cheney made the remarks in response to revelations made in a new book by New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, which claimed that the former president told his aides that he would remain in the White House even after Joe Biden‘s inauguration.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar reports.

Liz Cheney says new revelations reveal true ‘danger’ of Donald Trump

Mike Lindell brands seizure of his phone by FBI ‘disgusting'

01:57 , Graeme Massie

“They told me not to tell anybody,” said Mr Lindell waving a piece of paper at a camera and explaining his phone was taken at a Hardee’s fast food restaurant.

“Okay, I won’t. Well, I am, so there you go.”

Mike Lindell says the FBI stopped him at a Hardee's in Minnesota

01:50 , Graeme Massie

The MyPillow CEO discussed being served a warrant for his phone during his appearance on his Lindell TV streaming network.

Pro-Trump conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell’s phone seized in FBI raid, reports say

01:47 , Graeme Massie

Pro-Trump conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell’s phone seized in FBI raid, reports say.

Abe Asher has the story.

Pro-Trump conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell’s phone seized in FBI raid, reports say

Biden heads to Delaware to vote in primaries

01:45 , Oliver O'Connell

President Biden made a surprise visit to his home state on Tuesday to vote in Delaware‘s primary, which is part of the last round of contests ahead of the November elections.

Biden heads to Delaware to vote in person for primaries

Clinton impeachment adversary Ken Starr dies

Wednesday 14 September 2022 00:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Kenneth Starr, the former US appellate judge who led the charge to impeach then-president Bill Clinton in the late 1990s but defended Donald Trump against charges that he incited an insurrection during his second impeachment trial, has passed away at age 76.

According to Waco, Texas television station KWTX, Mr Starr died Tuesday following a “lengthy illness”.

Andrew Feinberg reports from Washington, DC.

Ken Starr, ex-judge who pushed for Clinton impeachment, dies at 76

Lindsey Graham gifts Democrats an anti-abortion bogeyman as midterms loom

Wednesday 14 September 2022 00:00 , Oliver O'Connell

If Democrats hold on to the Senate this year, they will have an unlikely ally to thank: Lindsey Graham.

A South Carolina Republican and Donald Trump loyalist who has continued to remain friendly with the former president even as he faces a bevy of criminal investigations, Mr Graham is hardly the person one would expect to hand Senate Democrats a gift roughly a month and a half before control of the Senate is decided for the next two years.

But that’s exactly what happened on Tuesday as Mr Graham, flanked by anti-abortion activists from the Susan B Anthony Pro-Life America group and other opponents of the practice, celebrated the end of Roe vs Wade and vowed to ban abortion after 15 weeks into a woman’s pregnancy should his party retake the Senate.

John Bowden reports.

Lindsey Graham gifts Democrats an anti-abortion bogeyman in final stretch of campaign

In wild Truth Social spree Trump embraces QAnon’s ‘Storm is coming’ meme

Tuesday 13 September 2022 23:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump embraced QAnon’s “The storm is coming” meme as he went on a “retruthing” spree on his social media website Truth Social.

The one-term president re-posted an image of himself wearing a Q pin on his suit jacket above the “storm” caption and “WWG1WGA.”

Mr Trump has in the past promoted QAnon accounts, though the recent flurry of posts was Mr Trump’s strongest embrace of the right-wing conspiracy theory movement yet.

Graeme Massie reports.

Trump embraces QAnon’s ‘Storm is coming’ meme in wild Truth Social spree

McConnell shoots down Lindsey Graham’s proposed abortion ban

Tuesday 13 September 2022 22:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell shot down Republican Senator Lindsey Graham’s bill that would ban abortion at 15 weeks, saying that he would prefer the issue be left to the states.

The Senate minority leader was asked about the ban that Mr Graham proposed on Tuesday during Senate Republicans’ weekly press conference after their policy luncheon.

Eric Garcia reports from Capitol Hill.

McConnell shoots down Lindsey Graham’s proposed abortion ban

Despite sobering monthly figures released this morning, Biden touts inflation reduction law

Tuesday 13 September 2022 22:00 , Oliver O'Connell

President Joe Biden gathered a crowd of thousands at the White House Tuesday to celebrate last month’s passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, even as a new government report showed how hard it could be to bring surging prices down near pre-pandemic levels.

Despite its name, the law’s impact on inflation is expected to be modest at best.

Biden touts inflation reduction law despite sobering report

Compilation of Rush Limbaugh commentary set to be published

Tuesday 13 September 2022 21:30 , Oliver O'Connell

A compilation of radio commentary by the late Rush Limbaugh, from his early years on the air to his decades as a bombastic and influential voice in conservative politics, is set to be published.

Book of Limbaugh radio commentary to be published Oct. 25

Pelosi rebukes ‘extreme MAGA Republicans’ for proposed nationwide abortion ban

Tuesday 13 September 2022 21:00 , Oliver O'Connell

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has condemned Senator Lindsey Graham’s proposed anti-abortion legislation as the “clearest signal” yet of “extreme Maga Republicans’ intent to criminalise” healthcare for millions of Americans after the US Supreme Court revoked a constitutional right to abortion care.

Legislation proposed by the South Carolina Republican on 13 September would outlaw abortions nationwide at 15 weeks of pregnancy, with exceptions only for pregnancies from rape or incest or to protect the life of the patient.

Alex Woodward reports.

Pelosi condemns ‘extreme MAGA Republicans’ for proposed nationwide abortion ban

Braddock, the town that made John Fetterman, speaks on his run for Senate

Tuesday 13 September 2022 20:31 , Oliver O'Connell

John Fetterman, who grew up in a reasonably wealthy family in York, Pennsylvania, moved to Braddock in 2001 to start a GED programme. He fell in love with the town’s “malignant beauty,” as he called it. Four years later, he ran for mayor and won. It was the work he did here in Braddock during his tenure as mayor that propelled him to the national spotlight. A tattooed, 6ft8 Harvard graduate trying to resurrect a town through innovation, art, blood, sweat and tears, drew journalists by the dozen. For many, he embodied hope in a place that was in short supply.

That national spotlight provided Fetterman a platform that led to a run for the United States Senate, and there is every chance he could win. But how does Braddock, the town that made John Fetterman, feel about his national ambitions? And as he sets his sights on Washington, what legacy will he leave behind?

Richard Hall reports.

Braddock, the town that made John Fetterman, speaks on his run for Senate

Twitter whistleblower tells Congress by testifying he is ‘risking career and my reputation’

Tuesday 13 September 2022 20:00 , Oliver O'Connell

A Twitter whistleblower testified before Congress on Tuesday, saying he did so at great personal risk to his own career and reputation because he feared Twitter lacked the proper security measures.

Peiter Zatko, who often goes by the nickname Mudge, spoke before the Senate Judiciary Committee and said that the social networking company was more than a decade behind industry security standards.

Eric Garcia reports from Washington, DC.

Twitter whistleblower tells Congress he is ‘risking my career and my reputation’

Trump posts QAnon imagery on Truth Social

Tuesday 13 September 2022 19:45 , Oliver O'Connell

White House slams Lindsey Graham’s ‘wildly out of step’ anti-abortion bill

Tuesday 13 September 2022 19:30 , Oliver O'Connell

The White House has condemned a proposal from South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham to outlaw abortions nationwide at 15 weeks of pregnancy, the first such bill proposed by a US senator in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s decision to revoke a constitutional right to abortion care.

Senator Graham’s bill marks the sixth time that the Republican senator has introduced a national ban on abortion, with previous drafts proposing that abortion be outlawed at 20 weeks.

“This bill is wildly out of step with what Americans believe,” according to a statement from White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

Alex Woodward reports.

White House slams ‘wildly out of step’ anti-abortion bill from Lindsey Graham

How the Pennsylvania governor’s race might determine if the 2024 presidential election could be stolen

Tuesday 13 September 2022 19:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Doug Mastriano led the effort to overturn the 2020 election while Josh Shapiro beat Trump in court. Now the two are running for governor in one of the most important swing states, Eric Garcia reports from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.

How Pennsylvania governor’s race could determine if Trump could steal a 2024 election

Woman charged for threatening voicemails to Trump Mar-a-Lago judge

Tuesday 13 September 2022 18:30 , Oliver O'Connell

A Texas woman was taken into custody after allegedly threatening the life of a judge connected to the seizure of classified government documents from Donald Trump‘s Mar-a-Lago golf resort.

Tiffani Gish, who lives near Houston, allegedly left voicemails on 1 September for US District Judge Aileen Cannon telling her she was “marked for assassination” and warning that she was “Donald Trump’s hitman.” Her alleged messages are outlines in court documentation collected by Law and Crime.

Graig Graziosi has the story.

Woman charged for bizarre and threatening voicemails sent to Trump Mar-a-Lago judge

House oversight committee ‘concerned’ Trump may have more stolen documents

Tuesday 13 September 2022 18:00 , Oliver O'Connell

The chair of the powerful House Oversight Committee wants the National Archives and Records Administration (Nara) to determine whether any more records that should have been given to the archives at the end of former president Donald Trump’s term remain missing.

In a letter to Acting Archivist of the United States Debra Wall, Representative Carolyn Maloney raised the possibility that Mr Trump is continuing to harbour stolen government records at properties other than the Florida beach club where he maintains his private residence.

Andrew Feinberg reports.

House oversight committee ‘concerned’ Trump may have more docs at other properties

Fox News anchor warns of “Arab Spring” in the US

Tuesday 13 September 2022 17:40 , Andrew Naughtie

The US’s grim inflation figures have met with a grim reception of Fox News, whose take on the economy is not just negative but apocalyptic.

Here’s a host earlier this morning warning of $8/gallon gasoline and a civil conflict sparked by “empty bellies”.

House Committee writes to National Archives over Trump documents

Tuesday 13 September 2022 17:10 , Andrew Naughtie

The Department of Justice is still working on its examination of the documents Donald Trump hoarded at Mar-a-Lago, pending the appointment of a special master to vet them – but in the interim, a key House of Representatives committee is taking the initiative.

Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney has written to the National Archives asking it to seek “a personal certification from Donald Trump that he has surrendered all presidential records that he illegally removed from the White House after leaving office.”

Read the letter here:

Kinzinger: Jan 6 panel likely to make criminal DoJ referral

Tuesday 13 September 2022 16:40 , Andrew Naughtie

Adam Kinzinger, one of two Republicans on the 6 January select committee, said in an interview this morning that a criminal referral from his committee to the Department of Justice is “likely”.

However, he also acknowledged that the department has “a pretty fulsome investigation” underway – one that he apparently knew little about until two months ago.

Watch his remarks below:

Oath Keepers founder wants special master in sedition trial

Tuesday 13 September 2022 16:10 , Andrew Naughtie

Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes is trying once again to delay his trial on seditious conspiracy charges relating to the 6 January insurrection – and his latest effort to do so has drawn inspiration from none other than Donald Trump.

In a new filing, Mr Rhodes’s lawyer asks the court to appoint a “special master” to “promote efficiency in discovery”. Mr Rhodes claims that the amount of material his team needs to review is onerously large, supposedly justifying his proposed delay.

He also apparently intends to call as a witness the militia group’s sometime lawyer, Kellye SoRelle, who has herself been separately indicted on 6 January-related charges.

Guiliani’s ex-wife says he’s “embarrassing himself"

Tuesday 13 September 2022 15:40 , Andrew Naughtie

Rudy Giuliani’s ex-wife claims that the man she married more than 20 years ago possesses little resemblance to the election denying Trump-pundit she sees in today’s political arena.

“I can certainly tell you - the person you see now is not the man I married,” Judith Giuliani said in an interview with Inside Edition, set to air on Tuesday night. “We, for a long time, were a very good team. Then things changed.”

The candid remarks from Ms Giuliani, who was married to the former Trump attorney from 2003 until filing for divorce in 2019, arrive as a series of tell-alls are set to be released on Tuesday. The tell-alls have been teased in recent weeks to paint an unflattering picture of the politician once toasted as America’s mayor.

Johanna Chisholm has more:

Rudy Giuliani’s ex wife says he’s embarrassing himself: ‘He’s not the man I married’