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Trump address to Congress live: president to speak amid global turmoil over Ukraine and trade wars

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Trump address to Congress live: president to speak amid global turmoil over Ukraine and trade wars

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Elissa Slotkin, the newly-elected Michigan senator, will give the Democratic party’s rebuttal to Donald Trump’s address to Congress.

It’s a high-profile platform for the 48-year-old former CIA analyst, who won a competitive Senate seat in November.

Senator Elissa Slotkin at the US Capitol, in Washington, DC, 18 February 2025. Photograph: Will Oliver/EPA

Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said Slotkin will “offer a bold vision of hope, unity, and a brighter future for everyone, not just the wealthy few at the top”.

In a social media post, Slotkin said she was “looking forward to speaking directly to the American people next week”.

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The public expects leaders to level with them on what’s actually happening in our country. From our economic security to our national security, we’ve got to chart a way forward that actually improves people’s lives in the country we all love, and I’m looking forward to laying that out.

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Several Democratic lawmakers to boycott Trump’s speech

Several Democrats in both chambers of Congress are planning to boycott Donald Trump’s address tonight.

Senator Patty Murray from Washington, one of the most senior Democratic senators, will not attend Trump’s speech. Oregon senator Ron Wyden plans to instead host an online town hall.

Senator Martin Heinrich from New Mexico also said he would be boycotting Trump’s speech. “This White House, this president, is so radically out of bounds for what is normal that I felt it was important to make that point,” Heinrich said.

New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she will also not be attending, as has two lawmakers representing Virginia, congressmen Gerry Connolly and Don Beyer.

US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speaking at the Democratic National Convention, Chicago, USA on 19 August 2024. Photograph: Earl Gibson III/REX/Shutterstock

Kweisi Mfume, a Democratic congressman from Maryland, said Donald Trump and Elon Musk are “destroying the state of the union.”

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“I don’t need to be there to watch him claim otherwise,” Mfume said.

According to Axios, some Democratic lawmakers are considering walking out during specific moments of the speech, particularly during comments about transgender children, while others plan more subtle demonstrations – from wearing coordinated colors like pink or black to sitting stone-faced and refusing to applaud.

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Who is on Trump’s guest list?

Mike Johnson, the Republican House speaker, will preside over the joint session, alongside vice-president JD Vance, in his capacity as the president of the Senate.

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The carefully curated guest list, assembled by the White House and congressional leaders, appears like a roadmap for a competing cultural vision, touching on everything from transgender athletes, immigration and the federal worker purge – each with a story to tell.

The first lady, Melania Trump, will host Allyson and Lauren Phillips, mother and sister of Laken Riley, a college student allegedly murdered by a Venezuelan migrant.

Alongside them will sit Alexis Nungaray, whose 12-year-old daughter was killed by undocumented immigrants last June.

Supporters of Donald Trump hold images of Laken Riley at a rally in Rome, Georgia, on March 9, 2024. Photograph: Elijah Nouvelage/AFP/Getty Images

Two guests will underscore the administration’s hard line on transgender issues: Payton McNabb, a high school volleyball player who claims to have sustained a concussion from a transgender athlete, and January Littlejohn, a parent who sued a school board over gender identity transitions.

Johnson has invited rightwing commentators Ben Shapiro and Matt Walsh, alongside Riley Gaines, an activist who has campaigned against transgender participation in women’s sports.

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The House oversight committee chairman James Comer and the judiciary committee chairman Jim Jordan will host IRS whistleblowers Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler.

But the biggest name coming out of Trump’s camp is so-called “department of government efficiency” leader Elon Musk, who has become more and more unpopular by the week. He will be in the House chamber as a living emblem of the administration’s most aggressive governance strategy that has the potential to cut hundreds of thousands of federal jobs across the country.

Elon Musk with Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on February 11, 2025. Photograph: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
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The theme of Donald Trump’s address to Congress will be the “renewal of the American dream”, the White House said.

House speaker Mike Johnson formally invited Trump to speak to Congress in January.

In his letter, Johnson invited the president to share his “America First vision for our legislative future”.

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Stephen Miller, the White House’s deputy chief of staff, said:

It’s an opportunity for President Trump, as only he can, to lay out the last month of record-setting, record-breaking, unprecedented achievements and accomplishments.

Donald Trump with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and JD Vance on 20 January 20 2025, at the US Capitol in Washington, DC. Photograph: Melina Mara/Reuters
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How to watch Trump’s address to Congress

Donald Trump’s address to Congress will begin at 9pm ET on Tuesday 4 March in Washington DC.

He will deliver remarks from the chamber of the House of Representatives.

Major news networks are likely to broadcast the address live. PBS will carry a live stream on its YouTube page.

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Trump to lay out second-term vision in address to Congress

Good evening US politics readers. Donald Trump will deliver his first address to Congress since returning to the White House, where he is expected to lay out his second-term vision after a radical start that has dramatically reshaped both domestic and foreign policy.

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Trump’s address, which will begin at 9pm ET from the chamber of the House of Representatives, marks his first major speech six weeks into a presidency that has seen the president empowering Elon Musk to dramatically downsize the federal workforce, threatening American’s allies with tariffs and coddling longtime American foes.

His administration has initiated sweeping mass layoffs of federal employees, mobilized officers from nearly every federal law enforcement agency and the US military to carry out his campaign promise of mass deportations, and rattled Europe with his pursuit of a peace deal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine on terms preferential to Moscow.

Trump is also preparing to announce a minerals deal with Ukraine in his address this evening, according to a report, despite his advisers cautioning that a deal has yet to be signed and that the situation could be changed.

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Map: 2.3-Magnitude Earthquake Reported North of New York City

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Map: 2.3-Magnitude Earthquake Reported North of New York City

Note: Map shows the area with a shake intensity of 3 or greater, which U.S.G.S. defines as “weak,” though the earthquake may be felt outside the areas shown.  All times on the map are Eastern. The New York Times

A minor, 2.3-magnitude earthquake struck about 12 miles north of New York City on Tuesday, according to the United States Geological Survey.

The temblor happened at 10:17 a.m. Eastern in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., data from the agency shows.

The Westchester County emergency services department said in a statement that it had not received any reports of damage.

As seismologists review available data, they may revise the earthquake’s reported magnitude. Additional information collected about the earthquake may also prompt U.S.G.S. scientists to update the shake-severity map.

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Source: United States Geological Survey | Notes: Shaking categories are based on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale. When aftershock data is available, the corresponding maps and charts include earthquakes within 100 miles and seven days of the initial quake. All times above are Eastern. Shake data is as of Tuesday, March 10 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern. Aftershocks data is as of Tuesday, March 10 at 2:18 p.m. Eastern.

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Ed Martin, outspoken Justice Department lawyer, is formally accused of ethical violations | CNN Politics

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Ed Martin, outspoken Justice Department lawyer, is formally accused of ethical violations | CNN Politics

Ed Martin, an outspoken Trump administration official, is facing attorney discipline proceedings in Washington, DC, for a letter he sent to Georgetown Law about its diversity programs, the district’s professional conduct investigator announced on Tuesday.

Martin is formally accused of violating his ethical codes as an attorney for telling Georgetown Law’s dean last year that his Justice Department office wouldn’t hire students because of the school’s diversity, inclusion and equity initiatives programs, according to the filing from Hamilton Fox, the disciplinary counsel for DC who acts as a quasi-prosecutor on attorney discipline matters.

Unlike unsolicited complaints, Fox’s formal disciplinary complaint kicks off professional conduct proceedings for Martin in which he will need to respond and could be sanctioned or ultimately lose his law license.

Fox’s announcement on Tuesday marks the first major bar discipline proceeding against a high-profile administration official or attorney supporting President Donald Trump during Trump’s second term. Several Trump lawyers faced disciplinary proceedings after the efforts to overturn Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election, including Rudy Giuliani, who lost his law license.

“Acting in his official capacity and speaking on behalf of the government, he used coercion to punish or suppress a disfavored viewpoint, the teaching and promotion of ‘DEI,’” Fox wrote in the complaint. “He demanded that Georgetown Law relinquish its free speech and religious rights in order to continue to obtain a benefit, employment opportunities for its students.”

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Martin was removed from the top prosecutor job in DC after senators made clear he would not be confirmed to the role, but has remained at the Justice Department in several roles, including as pardon attorney.

“Mr. Martin knew or should have known that, as a government official, his conduct violated the First and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States,” Fox wrote.

Martin is being represented by a Justice Department attorney, a source told CNN.

A spokesperson for DOJ attacked Fox’s complaint. “The DC bar’s attempt to target and punish those serving President Trump while refusing to investigate or act against actual ethical violations that were committed by Biden and Obama administration attorneys is a clear indication of this partisan organization’s agenda,” DOJ said.

Martin had sent the letter to Georgetown Law while serving temporarily as US attorney for DC, a prominent Justice Department position, and told the school his federal prosecutors’ office wouldn’t hire Georgetown’s law school students. It came at a time when the Trump administration was beginning to crack down on universities for their DEI efforts.

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In his letter, Martin claimed a whistleblower told him that the school was teaching and promoting DEI.

Martin also violated attorney ethics rules by contacting judges of the DC court directly, Fox alleged, rather than going through official channels, once he was informed he was under investigation for his professional conduct. The DC Court of Appeals ultimately signs off on attorney discipline findings.

Early last year, Fox’s office had formally asked Martin to respond to a complaint it received by a retired judge regarding the Georgetown letter.

Martin instead wrote to the judges on the DC court complaining about Fox.

“In that letter, he stated that he would not be responding to Disciplinary Counsel’s inquiry, complained about Disciplinary Counsel’s ‘uneven behavior,’ and requested a ‘face-to-face meeting with all of you to discuss this matter and find a way forward,’” Fox wrote.

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“He copied the White House Counsel ‘for informational purposes because of the importance of getting this issue addressed,’” Fox said.

The top judge in the DC courts told Martin the court wouldn’t meet with him about the disciplinary matter and that he would need to follow procedure.

With Fox’s complaint, there will now be several steps ahead of bar discipline authorities looking at Martin’s action, and Fox didn’t specify how Martin should be reprimanded or punished if the discipline boards and the court ultimately determine he violated his ethical codes.

Spokespeople for the Justice Department didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment on Tuesday morning.

In recent days, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced her office would have a more powerful role in reviewing attorney discipline complaints against Justice Department attorneys, potentially setting up an approach that could keep the department at odds with the bar on behalf of DOJ attorneys facing their own individual disciplinary proceedings.

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CNN’s Paula Reid contributed to this report.

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Europe and Asia battle for LNG as Iran war chokes supply

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Europe and Asia battle for LNG as Iran war chokes supply

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Asian and European buyers are battling to source liquefied natural gas after the war in the Middle East choked off shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, blocking a fifth of global supplies.

In an indication of the intensifying contest for LNG since the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran, a handful of gas carriers have abruptly changed course while sailing to Europe and swung towards Asia instead, according to ship monitoring data analysed by the FT.

Countries across Asia are highly dependent on oil and gas sent through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway where shipping has slowed to a near standstill.

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Most of the LNG produced in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates is ordinarily shipped through the strait to Asia, and Asian LNG prices surged almost immediately after war broke out, creating an incentive to divert US gas to the region.

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Taiwan, South Korea and Japan are among the countries that need to source LNG to make up for supplies they will not receive from the Gulf, said Massimo Di Odoardo, head of gas and LNG analysis at consultancy Wood Mackenzie.

Taiwan relied on Qatar for more than 30 per cent of its gas consumption in 2025, according to Citigroup, while for South Korea and Japan the figures were 15 per cent and 5 per cent respectively. Asia typically uses more gas than Europe in the hotter summer months because of more air-conditioning use, creating urgency for Asian utilities to secure cargoes.

The vast majority of LNG is sold under long-term contracts rather than on the spot market, but some buyers are able to change the final destination of their purchases and some sellers are willing to break contracts if prices rise high enough.

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By Thursday, surging European gas prices and rocketing shipping rates had swung the balance back against diversion of US LNG to Asia, according to data company Spark Commodities.

The decision on where to send gas carriers can depend on the relative levels of the European gas price, Asia’s JKM benchmark for LNG and shipping rates.

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For European buyers, the battle with Asia for LNG supplies is eerily familiar to the situation four years ago after Russia slashed pipeline natural gas flows to the continent following Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Competition for spare cargoes then pushed prices to record levels.

On Monday, European gas prices reached as high as €69.50 per megawatt hour, more than double their level before the Iran conflict began. Even so, prices are still far from the €342 per megawatt hour reached in 2022.

JKM gas prices also more than doubled since the start of the war to $24.80 per 1mn British thermal units by Monday, equivalent to €73.10/MWh.

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European buyers have learnt from their experience in 2022. “Europe has more weapons at its disposal in this extreme price scenario to try and fight,” said Alex Kerr, a partner at law firm Baker Botts.

Buyers had started putting clauses in contracts to say that suppliers would face much higher penalties if they diverted cargoes for commercial gain, Kerr said.

There is also much more LNG on the market now that is not committed to set destinations, largely because of new projects starting in the US.

While producers such as Qatar impose strict rules on where its LNG can be sent, almost all US exports are allowed to sail wherever buyers want. Several analysts said there had also been an increase in the willingness of some producers to break contracts for financial advantage.

This makes diversions more likely, while the reluctance of some European buyers to sign long-term supply contracts before the outbreak of war this month could prove costly.

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Expectations of a global supply glut convinced some European buyers that it would be cheaper to wait until later in the year to sign supply deals.

Wood Mackenzie’s Di Odoardo said the buyers had also held off on LNG purchases because new EU legislation on methane emissions made it unclear whether they could incur penalties in the future.

The risk of prices rising as Europe and Asia fight for available cargoes is increasing every day the Strait of Hormuz stays almost closed.

Gas is more difficult to store and to carry in tankers than oil, making its markets more vulnerable to shortages and price shocks.

“The longer the Strait remains shut, the greater the risk that the shipping disruption turns into a genuine gas shortage, as tankers cannot load and facilities have limited storage,” said consultancy Oxford Economics in a research note.

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Additional reporting by Harry Dempsey in Tokyo. Data visualisation by Jana Tauschinski

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