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Former President Donald J. Trump told a group of America’s most powerful chief executives on Thursday that he intended to cut the corporate tax rate to 20 percent from 21 percent, according to three people who attended the meeting and who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the ground rules stipulated the meeting was off the record. Mr. Trump made the remarks from a comfortable gray armchair during a conversation with his former economic adviser Larry Kudlow in front of the audience of dozens of leading chief executives, including Tim Cook of Apple, Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase, Doug McMillon of Walmart and Charles W. Scharf of Wells Fargo. They had gathered on Thursday morning in Washington for a meeting of the Business Roundtable, an influential corporate group, and there was said to be palpable relief in the room when Mr. Trump, who has been trying to woo business leaders as potential donors, told the executives much of what they had hoped to hear. Many leaders in corporate America have been nervous that in a second term, Mr. Trump might not be as friendly toward them as he was in his first. Many ended up abandoning him and publicly criticizing him, especially after the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Larry Kudlow, Tim Cook, Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase, Doug McMillon, Charles W . Scharf, Wells Organizations: Apple, JPMorgan, Walmart, Business, Capitol Locations: Wells Fargo, Washington, America

☆ Trump Returns to Washington With Renewed Grip on the G.O.P.
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-13 | by ( Maggie Haberman | Jonathan Swan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Donald J. Trump flew into Washington last summer in a state of misery. He was there for his criminal arraignment, and he told associates afterward that the city was disgusting. He could feel Washington’s hostility, aides said. Today, he returns to the nation’s capital under much different circumstances — to flex his dominance over a political and business establishment that has been forced to come to terms with him. After years of hoping that someone else could step up to lead their party, that establishment is gradually submitting to the reality of the 2024 campaign.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Republicans ’, Biden, Trump’s, Mitch McConnell, — Organizations: Republicans, Republican, Trump Locations: Washington, Manhattan

is the chief Africa correspondent for The Times based in Nairobi, Kenya. He previously reported from Cairo, covering the Middle East, and Islamabad, Pakistan.

Organizations: The Times Locations: Africa, Nairobi, Kenya, Cairo, Islamabad, Pakistan

☆ Trump Super PAC Says It Took In Nearly $70 Million in May
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-05 | by ( Maggie Haberman | Jonathan Swan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The original super PAC supporting Donald J. Trump’s presidential campaign plans to report that it raised nearly $70 million in May, and that it will spend a further $100 million through Labor Day, according to a memo written for the group’s donors. The super PAC, Make America Great Again Inc., is preparing an advertising blitz focused on a handful of key states in the Rust Belt and the Sun Belt, where several polls show Mr. Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, leading President Biden. The burst of fund-raising it describes is on track with the surge that the Trump campaign has said it experienced after Mr. Trump was convicted last week in a Manhattan courtroom on 34 counts of falsifying business records intended to conceal a hush-money payment to a porn star in 2016. The Trump campaign has said that it raised $141 million in the days after the verdict on May 30. But by all accounts, Mr. Trump and his allied groups are moving to chip away at what has been an enormous cash advantage held by Democrats.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Biden, Taylor Budowich, MAGA Organizations: Labor, Make, Inc, Sun, The New York Times Locations: Manhattan

Republican allies of Donald J. Trump are calling for revenge prosecutions and other retaliatory measures against Democrats in response to his felony conviction in New York. Within hours of a jury finding Mr. Trump guilty last week, the anger congealed into demands for action. leaders in and out of government have demanded that elected Republicans use every available instrument of power against Democrats, including targeted investigations and prosecutions. What is different now is the range of Republicans who are saying retaliation is necessary and who are no longer cloaking their intent with euphemisms. Mr. Miller posed a series of questions to Republicans at every level, including local district attorneys.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Trump’s, Stephen Miller, Miller Organizations: Republicans, Democrats, Fox News Locations: New York

☆ Trump Had Good Fortune So Far With His Four Cases. Then Came a Verdict.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-30 | by ( Maggie Haberman | Jonathan Swan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Donald J. Trump’s run of luck in his criminal cases has expired. Before the conviction on Thursday in Manhattan, the former president had drawn what some of his closest advisers regarded as a defense lawyer’s equivalent of an inside straight: something close to perfection. Mr. Trump had lost civil cases with costly damages, but the four criminal cases that threatened his freedom were stumbling along so badly that his advisers were often incredulous at his good fortune. In the Georgia case, the prosecutor who had charged Mr. Trump as part of a conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election was caught in a romantic affair with the man she had hired to help her prosecute Mr. Trump. And with the federal charges over his efforts to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power, the Supreme Court has significantly narrowed the chances of a trial before the election, having taken up the presidential immunity arguments put forth by Mr. Trump’s lawyers.

Persons: Donald J, Trump’s, Trump, Mr Organizations: Trump Locations: Manhattan, Florida, Georgia

☆ Trump’s Post-Verdict Playbook: Anger and Retribution, Regardless of the Outcome
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-26 | by ( Jonathan Swan | Maggie Haberman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The verdict in former President Donald J. Trump’s criminal trial remains a mystery, at least for a few more days. Less of a mystery is what Mr. Trump will say and do after it is announced — whatever the outcome might be. If the past is any guide, even with a full acquittal, Mr. Trump will be angry and vengeful, and will direct attacks against everyone he perceives to be responsible for the Manhattan district attorney’s prosecution. He will continue to level the attacks publicly, at rallies and on Truth Social, and privately encourage his House Republican allies to subpoena his Democratic enemies. “Regardless of the outcome, the playbook is the same,” said Alyssa Farah Griffin, Mr. Trump’s former White House communications director, who began working for him shortly after his first impeachment trial but has since become a sharp critic of her former boss.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Robert S, Mueller, ”, Alyssa Farah Griffin, Trump’s Organizations: Truth, Republican, Democratic, White House Locations: Manhattan, Russia

☆ Former Trump Officials Meet in Israel With Netanyahu.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Jonathan Swan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

One of former President Donald J. Trump’s closest foreign policy advisers, Robert O’Brien, met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Monday as part of a delegation of former Trump officials that visited a number of Israeli leaders. Mr. O’Brien, who served as national security adviser to Mr. Trump and is expected to play a significant role in any second Trump administration, was joined in the meetings by two other former Trump officials — the former ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, John Rakolta, and the former ambassador to Switzerland, Ed McMullen. The members of the delegation were described by Marshall Wittmann, a spokesman for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the pro-Israel lobbying group whose affiliate, the American Israel Education Foundation, funded and organized the trip. In a brief phone interview, Mr. O’Brien said he had wanted to visit Israel ever since the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7 to express his “solidarity for Israel and the Jewish people.”Mr. O’Brien said Mr. Trump was aware of his trip to Israel, but he said the former president had not asked him to go or directed him to say anything to Mr. Netanyahu. He said he was there as a “private citizen,” adding that he did express his view to Mr. Netanyahu that the Hamas terrorist attack would never have happened if Mr. Trump were still president.

Persons: Donald J, Trump’s, Robert O’Brien, Benjamin Netanyahu, O’Brien, Trump, John Rakolta, Ed McMullen, Marshall Wittmann, Mr, Netanyahu Organizations: Israel, Trump, United Arab, American Israel Public Affairs Committee, American Israel Education Foundation Locations: United Arab Emirates, Switzerland, Israel

☆ Election Updates: Biden and Trump are aiming to have two debates, the first in June.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Jonathan Swan | Maggie Haberman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +13 min

Mr. Biden recently indicated he would debate Mr. Trump, but had until now declined to give any firm commitment or specific details. In a video announcing his offer, Mr. Biden taunted Mr. Trump. Mr. Trump leads Mr. Biden in most polls of battleground states, including the recent surveys by The New York Times, Siena College and The Philadelphia Inquirer. Significantly more voters trust Mr. Trump over Mr. Biden to handle the economy. Mr. Biden, exasperated, famously said to Mr. Trump, “Will you shut up, man?

Persons: Biden, Donald J, Trump, —, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Mr, Biden’s, Jennifer O’Malley Dillon, O’Malley Dillon, ”, Trump’s, “ Let’s, Donald, Ms, Mark Makela, “ Will, Susie Wiles, Chris LaCivita, Reagan, “, There’s, Kennedy, Wiles, LaCivita, George W, Bush’s, Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, Richard Perry, Romney, Hillary Clinton’s, Bill Clinton, Reid J, Epstein Organizations: The New York Times, Biden, Commission, Mr, Trump, “, ”, Republican National Convention, Republican National Committee, Siena College, The Philadelphia Inquirer, White House, CNN, Electoral College —, Republican, Democratic, ” Networks, CBS News, ABC News, Telemundo Locations: Washington, Trump’s Manhattan, York, Milwaukee, America

☆ Biden Offers to Debate Trump, With Terms, Shunning the Debate Commission
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Jonathan Swan | Maggie Haberman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

President Biden is willing to debate former President Donald J. Trump at least twice before the election, and as early as June — but his campaign is rejecting the nonpartisan organization that has managed presidential debates since 1988, according to a letter obtained by The New York Times. The letter by the Biden campaign lays out for the first time the president’s terms for giving Mr. Trump what he has openly clamored for: a televised confrontation with a successor Mr. Trump has portrayed, and hopes to reveal, as too feeble to hold the job. Mr. Biden and his top aides want the debates to start much sooner than the dates proposed by the Commission on Presidential Debates, so voters can see the two candidates side by side well before early voting begins in September. They want the debate to occur inside a TV studio, with microphones that automatically cut off when a speaker’s time limit elapses. And they want it to be just the two candidates and the moderator — without the raucous in-person audiences that Mr. Trump feeds on and without the participation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. or other independent or third-party candidates.

Persons: Biden, Donald J, Trump, —, Mr, Robert F, Kennedy Jr Organizations: The New York Times, Biden, Commission

Donald J. Trump has always surrounded himself with lawyers — all types of lawyers. And then there was the singular Michael D. Cohen, lawyer by trade and enforcer by nature. With the loyalty of a surrogate son, he kept Mr. Trump’s secrets and cleaned up his messes. This week, however, Mr. Cohen is poised to unfix Mr. Trump’s life. When he takes the stand as a vital witness at Mr. Trump’s criminal trial in Manhattan, Mr. Cohen will unearth some of the secrets he buried, revealing a mess that prosecutors say his former boss was desperate to hide.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, litigators, Michael D, Cohen Locations: Manhattan

At Donald J. Trump’s Manhattan criminal trial, his lawyers have insisted he had “nothing to do” with any of the felony charges against him. The Manhattan district attorney says Mr. Trump orchestrated the disguise of 11 checks, 11 invoices and 12 ledger entries to continue the cover-up of a damaging story, paying his former fixer $420,000 in the process. And the testimony about Mr. Trump’s management style could play a central role as prosecutors seek to convince the jury that there is no world in which Mr. Trump was not tracking the outflow of cash from his accounts. The prosecutors’ strategy illustrates the risk of a criminal trial for Mr. Trump, one of the most famous men in the world, whose character and habits are familiar even to those who have not tracked his every move. The Manhattan district attorney’s office has accused him of orchestrating the falsification of the 34 documents to cover up a hush-money payment to a porn star, Stormy Daniels.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Stormy Daniels Locations: Manhattan

Mr. Manafort, 75, was an adviser for Bob Dole’s presidential campaign in 1996 and managed the Republican convention that year. He was brought on to Mr. Trump’s 2016 campaign in the spring as the candidate was facing an effort to deprive him of the delegates necessary to become the nominee at the convention. Mr. Manafort’s involvement with Mr. Trump’s campaign was relatively short-lived. Later, Mr. Manafort was ensnared in the investigation by Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel, into ties between Mr. Trump’s campaign and Russian officials. Mr. Trump praised him for not cooperating with the government investigation and pardoned Mr. Manafort at the end of his presidential term.

Persons: Manafort, Bob Dole’s, Trump’s, Robert S, Mueller III, Trump, Mr Organizations: Republican, Trump, Washington Post, Republican Party Locations: Russian, Ukraine

On Today’s Episode:White House Aide Warns Israel Against ‘Smashing Into Rafah’, by Erica L. GreenFormer White House Aide Returns to Stand in Trump’s Criminal Trial, by Matthew HaagFor Columbia and a Powerful Donor, Months of Talks and Millions at Risk, by Alan Blinder10 Big Biden Environmental Rules, and What They Mean, by Coral Davenport

Persons: Erica L, Matthew Haag, Alan Blinder, Coral Davenport Organizations: Former White, Columbia, Big

☆ Trump Summons Entourage for Moral Support During Mortifying Testimony
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Jonathan Swan | Maggie Haberman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

As he walks into the courtroom at 9:30 a.m. each day of his trial, Donald J. Trump scans the benches for familiar faces. He has glared at George Conway, an antagonist who is reporting on the former president’s criminal case for The Atlantic magazine. He smiled at Greg Kelly, a reliably pro-Trump host on Newsmax, who was in court on Thursday. Several days ago, Mr. Trump was accompanied by Ken Paxton, the attorney general of Texas, and David McIntosh, the head of the anti-tax Club for Growth. During excruciating testimony about a story of extramarital sex, Mr. Trump’s son Eric was one of his sources of support, sitting behind him in court.

Persons: Donald J, George Conway, Greg Kelly, Rick Scott of, Trump, Ken Paxton, David McIntosh, Trump’s, Eric Organizations: Trump, The, Growth Locations: Rick Scott of Florida, Texas

When Donald J. Trump met Stormy Daniels, their flirtation seemed fleeting: He was a 60-year-old married mogul at the peak of reality television fame, and she was 27, not half his age, a Louisiana native raised in poverty and headed to porn-film stardom. But that chance encounter in Lake Tahoe, Nev., some two decades ago set off a chain of events that has brought the nation the first criminal trial of an American president. And on Tuesday, Ms. Daniels took the stand at that trial, bringing the former president face to face with the porn star at the case’s center.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Stormy Daniels, Daniels Locations: Louisiana, Lake Tahoe, Nev

“I’m really nervous,” Hope Hicks, the onetime Trump spokeswoman, messaging maestro and all-around adviser, acknowledged to the prosecutor questioning her, declaring what was already obvious to the riveted courtroom. Ms. Hicks’s unease came to a head hours later as Mr. Trump’s lawyer began to cross-examine her — and she began to cry. Mr. Trump locked his eyes on her. The question that initially unnerved Ms. Hicks was about her time at the Trump Organization, the family’s business, where she had fond memories of working. Ms. Hicks left the stand, and the trial paused so that she could compose herself.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, “, ” Hope Hicks, Trump’s, Ms, Hicks Organizations: Trump, Trump Organization

It might seem strange that prosecutors from the Manhattan district attorney’s office are eliciting such testimony about their central witness, especially given that the defense has already begun attacking Mr. Cohen’s credibility. Mr. Cohen, who pleaded guilty to federal crimes in 2018, was often belligerent as he did Mr. Trump’s bidding. It appears that the district attorney’s office will seek to turn that to their advantage: So far, they’ve drawn smiles and chuckles from jurors when asking witnesses to discuss Mr. Cohen. “I didn’t want to receive a million frustrating phone calls from Michael,” said the lawyer, Keith Davidson, who in 2016 represented a porn star, Stormy Daniels, who received the hush money. Prosecutors have accused the former president of falsifying business records to cover up the hush money deal and charged him with 34 felonies.

Persons: Cohen, they’ve, “, Michael, ”, Keith Davidson, Stormy Daniels, Daniels, Trump Organizations: Prosecutors Locations: Manhattan

☆ Trump, Venting About Lawyer in His Criminal Trial, Seeks More Aggression
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Maggie Haberman | Jonathan Swan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Donald J. Trump’s Manhattan criminal trial had barely begun when he started to turn his anger toward his lead lawyer, Todd Blanche. Although Mr. Blanche has been Mr. Trump’s favorite lawyer for some time, behind closed doors and in phone calls, the former president has complained repeatedly about him in recent weeks, according to four people familiar with the situation. He has griped that Mr. Blanche, a former federal prosecutor and veteran litigator, has not been following his instructions closely, and has been insufficiently aggressive. Mr. Trump wants him to attack witnesses, attack what the former president sees as a hostile jury pool, and attack the judge, Juan M. Merchan. Mr. Trump, who often complains about legal fees and sometimes refuses to pay them, has also wondered aloud why his lawyers cost so much, according to the people, who all spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive topic.

Persons: Donald J, Todd Blanche, Blanche, Trump’s, litigator, Trump, Juan M, Merchan

Listen and follow The DailyApple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon MusicIn a special series leading up to Election Day, “The Daily” will explore what a second Trump presidency would look like, and what it could mean for American democracy. In the first part, we will look at Tump’s plan for a second term. On the campaign trail, Trump has outlined a vision that is far more radical, vindictive and unchecked than his first one. Jonathan Swan and Maggie Haberman, political correspondents for The Times, and Charlie Savage, who covers national security, have found that behind Trump’s rhetoric is a highly coordinated plan to make his vision a reality.

Persons: Trump, Jonathan Swan, Maggie Haberman, Charlie Savage Organizations: Spotify, The Times

Mr. Cohen has said he acted at Mr. Trump’s direction, but the former president is not charged over the payment itself. If Mr. Trump testifies in his own defense, that could pit Mr. Cohen’s word against Mr. Trump’s — a he-said, he-said story, with two questionable narrators. Mr. Trump’s lawyers will seek to emphasize Mr. Cohen’s checkered past at every turn. And, on cross-examination, Mr. Trump’s lawyers are likely to portray Mr. Cohen as a serial liar with a grudge against his former boss. Mr. Pecker can support at least some of Mr. Cohen’s testimony about Mr. Trump’s involvement in the hush-money deals.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Alvin L, Bragg, Michael D, Cohen, Stormy Daniels, Daniel J . Horwitz, Michael Cohen, ” Mr, Horwitz, Mary Altaffer, Daniels, Trump’s, Joshua Steinglass, Donald Trump, Mr, Steinglass’s, David Pecker, Hope Hicks, Pecker, Bragg’s, Karen McDougal, Marion Curtis, reimbursements, Allen H, Weisselberg, Steinglass, McDougal, Dave Sanders, The New York Times Susan Necheles, Cohen’s, President Trump, Madeleine Westerhout, “, ”, ” William K, Rashbaum, Maggie Haberman, Jonathan Swan, Michael Rothfeld Organizations: Prosecutors, Mr, fixer, National Enquirer, Trump, Trump . Credit, The New York Times, American Media, Associated, ” Locations: New York, Manhattan, Trump ., America, Russia

Donald J. Trump plans to meet with the right-wing president of Poland this week, the latest in a series of his private interactions with leaders or emissaries from countries from the Persian Gulf to Eastern Europe, many of whom share an affinity with his brand of politics. Mr. Trump is expected to have dinner in New York with Poland’s president, Andrzej Duda, on Wednesday, his one day off from court this week, according to two people briefed on the arrangements who were not authorized to discuss them publicly. The meeting was mentioned as a possibility by Mr. Duda on X shortly after The New York Times approached his office for comment. It will be a reunion for Mr. Trump and Mr. Duda, who once proposed naming a military base after Mr. Trump and who now shares power in Poland with a rival whose politics are much more aligned with those of President Biden. Mr. Trump’s other recent interactions with foreign leaders and their representatives include a phone call he had last month with King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain, which was previously undisclosed.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Andrzej Duda, Duda, X, Biden, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, ” Organizations: New York Times, Mr, Bahraini Locations: Poland, Persian, Eastern Europe, New York, Bahrain

Follow our live coverage of Trump’s hush money trial. The start of Donald J. Trump’s criminal trial on Monday thrusts the 2024 presidential race into uncharted territory and Mr. Trump back into the public spotlight in ways he hasn’t been since he left the White House more than three years ago. The trial will begin with perhaps the most scrutinized jury selection since the trial of O.J. “This looks like no other presidential campaign in the history of the country,” said Neil Newhouse, a Republican pollster who has worked on past presidential races. “It kind of puts the regular presidential campaign on sabbatical.”

Persons: Donald J, Trump, hasn’t, O.J, Simpson, ”, Neil Newhouse, Republican pollster Organizations: White, Republican Locations: Manhattan, New York City

☆ Protests, Traffic, Crowds: Court Braces for a Trump Trial Like No Other
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-13 | by ( Jesse Mckinley | Jonathan Swan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Manhattan’s Criminal Courts Building, at 100 Centre Street, is short on charm: circled in scaffolding, lit like an aging cafeteria and, in recent months, neighbor to a colossal pile of rubble, the remains of the Manhattan Detention Complex, which is being demolished. Yet come Monday, it will be the pulsing center of a swirling mass of security measures, and likely headaches, as the first criminal trial of Donald J. Trump kicks off on its 15th floor. Court and law enforcement personnel have been tight-lipped about the exact steps they are taking, but a court lawyer said at a hearing this week that preparations had been underway for months. They will have plenty to contend with. Right-wing supporters of the former president have already announced plans to protest near the courthouse on Monday as jury selection begins, and cable news networks have promised wall-to-wall coverage of the case.

Persons: Donald J, Trump Locations: Manhattan

Allies of Donald J. Trump are discussing ways to elevate third-party candidates in battleground states to divert votes away from President Biden, along with other covert tactics to diminish Democratic votes. They plan to promote the independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as a “champion for choice” to give voters for whom abortion is a top issue — and who also don’t like Mr. Biden — another option on the ballot, according to one person who is involved in the effort and who, like several others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the plans. Trump allies also plan to amplify the progressive environmental records of Mr. Kennedy and the expected Green Party candidate, Jill Stein, in key states — contrasting their policies against the record-high oil production under Mr. Biden that has disappointed some climate activists. A third parallel effort in Michigan is meant to diminish Democratic turnout in November by amplifying Muslim voters’ concerns about Mr. Biden’s support for Israel’s war in Gaza. Trump allies are discussing running ads in Dearborn, Mich., and other parts of the state with large Muslim populations that would thank Mr. Biden for standing with Israel, according to three people familiar with the effort, which is expected to be led by an outside group unaffiliated with the Trump campaign.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Biden, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Mr, Kennedy, Jill Stein Organizations: Democratic, Green Party Locations: Michigan, Gaza, Dearborn, Mich, Israel

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