Vivek Ramaswamy, the biotech entrepreneur positioned to help oversee President-elect Donald Trump’s effort to cut government spending, is in discussions about filling Vice President-elect JD Vance’s Senate seat in Ohio, two people briefed on the process told NBC News.

The development is a reversal for Ramaswamy, who in November said his work alongside billionaire Elon Musk at Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency would remove him from consideration for the Senate job.

But Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, who will appoint an interim successor to take over Vance’s seat, chatted with Ramaswamy about the Senate vacancy in a meeting last weekend at the Governor’s Mansion in Columbus, according to a source familiar with the talks. The source, who was granted anonymity to share details about private conversations, also said Trump has encouraged Ramaswamy to accept the appointment if DeWine offers it.

“Neither Governor DeWine nor our office has commented on any possible candidates for the pending appointment,” DeWine spokesperson Dan Tierney wrote in a text message.

The Washington Post first reported Trump’s encouragement of Ramaswamy. Politico first reported the meeting with DeWine.

Though Ramaswamy initially took himself out of the running for the Senate, he has been a constant factor in DeWine’s deliberations over who should replace Vance, who resigned last week in advance of his swearing-in as vice president.

Ramaswamy, a Cincinnati native who now lives in the Columbus area, is widely believed to be interested in running to succeed DeWine, who is term-limited, as governor next year. But so is DeWine’s preferred successor, Lt. Gov. Jon Husted.

A bruising GOP primary featuring Husted, Ramaswamy and others could dent DeWine’s legacy. Without any clear signal about Ramaswamy’s intentions in 2026, DeWine has considered appointing Husted, a close ally, to the Senate vacancy to better solidify his political future. Whoever DeWine picks would have to win a special election in 2026 to serve the remaining two years of Vance’s term.

But Husted, who for two weeks has been viewed as the leading candidate for the appointment, has resisted past overtures to run for the Senate, and he has been aggressively preparing his campaign for governor. Ohio Republicans wired into the process have said he has reservations about accepting the Senate appointment.

DeWine has said he plans to reveal his choice “probably” this week. Other possibilities include former state GOP chair Jane Timken and former state Rep. Jay Edwards.

It’s not clear why Ramaswamy would be willing to leave Trump’s government efficiency team, known as DOGE, before its work even starts, nor is it clear whether or why Trump would be eager for him to go. But some of Ramaswamy’s recent posts on X, Musk’s social media site, have created a rift within Trump’s MAGA movement.

Wading into a debate over H-1B temporary worker visas, a carve-out for high-skilled workers who some on the political right say are taking American jobs, Ramaswamy criticized an American culture that he said “venerated mediocrity over excellence.”

A source who speaks with Trump said the notion that Trump might be keen on Ramaswamy’s taking the Senate seat was not surprising.

“DJT is tired of him,” the source said, referring to Trump by his initials. “Wants him in a new role.”

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has informed Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, that he will no longer be chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, according to a GOP leadership source and a Republican lawmaker familiar with the matter.

The lawmaker said Turner told him Wednesday that he would not be staying on as head of the critical panel that conducts oversight of the U.S. intelligence community. The House Intelligence Committee chair is also a member of the so-called “Gang of Eight” congressional leaders who receive some of the most sensitive, classified briefings from the intelligence community.

Johnson confirmed the news later Wednesday but downplayed the change as he offered praise for Turner.

“It’s a new Congress. We just need fresh horses in some of these places. But I’m a Mike Turner fan,” Johnson told reporters in the Capitol. “He’s done a great job. He performed valiantly in a difficult time under difficult circumstances. So I have nothing but positive things to say about my friend and colleague.”

“This is not a President Trump decision; this is a House decision,” the speaker added, referring to speculation that politics may have led to the change. “And this is no slight whatsoever to our … outgoing chairman.”

The top post on the Intelligence Committee is one of the few positions directly chosen by the speaker of the House at the start of a new Congress. Johnson said he would make an announcement about Turner’s replacement on Thursday.

In a statement Wednesday night, Turner, a staunch NATO supporter who has aggressively pushed for U.S. aid for Ukraine, said he was “proud” of his time serving on and leading the committee. His office said Turner would only be serving on the Armed Services and Oversight and Government Reform committees in the new Congress, meaning he will no longer have a seat on the Intelligence panel.

“Under my leadership, we restored the integrity of the Committee and returned its mission to its core focus of national security. The threat from our adversaries is real and requires serious deliberations,” Turner said.

“As a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, I have been and will continue to be a strong advocate for the military and our national defense,” he continued. “My work to expand missions and capabilities at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base continues. Furthermore, I look forward to welcoming the NATO Parliamentary Assembly to Dayton in the coming months.”

House Republican sources said they did not know who Johnson would choose to replace Turner. Some senior Republicans on the panel are Reps. Rick Crawford of Arkansas, Trent Kelly of Mississippi, and Darin LaHood of Illinois.

Last year, Johnson raised eyebrows in the intelligence community and around Capitol Hill when he appointed two Donald Trump loyalists, Reps. Scott Perry, R-Pa., and Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, to the Intelligence Committee.

The decision to replace Turner stunned lawmakers in both parties given that Turner, a defense hawk, is well-respected on both sides of the aisle.

Then-House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., had tapped Turner to serve as the top Republican on the panel starting in January 2022. After Republicans took back the majority that fall, McCarthy kept him on as chairman of the Intelligence committee for the 118th Congress, a term that started January 2023.

When McCarthy was ousted and Johnson succeeded him as speaker in October 2023, Johnson decided to keep Turner in place as Intelligence chairman.

Now, after winning his first full term as speaker earlier this month, Johnson appears to be putting his own mark on this position and others. On Tuesday, Johnson appointed Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., the former Education and Workforce Committee chair, as the new Rules Committee chair.

Democrats on the Intelligence Committee said they did not get any warning that Turner was being removed.

“I’m enormously concerned because I think you’d be hard-pressed to find somebody as fair-minded,” said Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the Intelligence panel.

He added that Turner “and I had our disagreements, but, you know, I had confidence in him.”

With Trump days away from returning to the White House, Democrats have been sounding the alarm that top intelligence and national security posts are being influenced by presidential politics.

Earlier Wednesday, Senate Democrats pressed former Rep. John Ratcliffe, R-Texas, Trump’s pick to lead the Central Intelligence Agency, asking him if he would push back against efforts requiring CIA employees to demonstrate “loyalty to a political figure above loyalty to country.”

Ratcliffe, a former House Intelligence Committee member who served as Trump’s director of national intelligence, responded that he would not impose a political litmus test on his employees.

“If you look at my record and my record as DNI, that never took place. That is never something anyone alleged,” he said. “It’s something that I would never do.”

President Joe Biden warned of the dangers of “misplaced power” Wednesday in a grim farewell address that compared the nation’s tech CEOs to oligarchs.

“Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power, and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead,” Biden said in a prime-time speech to the nation in the White House‘s Oval Office.

Tech titans such as X CEO Elon Musk and, more recently, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg have been attempting to curry favor with President-elect Donald Trump as he prepares to be inaugurated for a second term.

Biden, seated behind the Resolute Desk, compared his warnings to the alarm President Dwight Eisenhower expressed decades earlier about the nation’s growing military-industrial complex.

“Americans are being buried under an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation, enabling the abuse of power,” Biden said, referring to social media websites. “The truth is smothered by lies told for power and for profit. We must hold the social platform accountable to protect our children, our families, and our very democracy from the abuse of power.”

Biden also called for tax reform, for the United States to assert its dominance in the artificial intelligence space, new ethics standards for Congress and the Supreme Court, and an amendment to the Constitution “to make clear that no president, no president, is immune from crimes that he or she commits while in office.”

“In a democracy, there’s another danger to the concentration of power and wealth,” Biden said. “It erodes a sense of unity and common purpose. It causes distrust and division. Participating in our democracy becomes exhausting and even disillusioning. … We have to stay engaged in the process.”

Flanked by pictures of his family, including first lady Jill Biden and son Hunter, Joe Biden not only reflected on the four years of his one and only term as president but also his eight years as Barack Obama‘s vice president and 36 years representing Delaware in the Senate.

He also had special praise for Vice President Kamala Harris, who replaced him as the 2024 Democratic nominee amid concerns about his age and mental acuity.

“My eternal thanks to you, the American people,” the president said. “After 50 years of public service, I give you my word: I still believe in the idea for which this nation stands, a nation where the strengths of our institutions, the character of our people, matter and must endure. Now, it’s your turn to stand guard. May you all be the keeper of the flame. May you keep the faith.”

In his address, Joe Biden leaned into the theme of protecting democracy at the center of his presidential campaign. On the trail, he and Trump accused one another of representing a threat to the Constitution, with the president citing Jan. 6 and Trump pointing to the federal investigations against him.

“After 50 years at the center of all of this, I know that believing in the idea of America means respecting the institutions that govern a free society, the presidency, the Congress, the courts, a free and independent press, institutions,” Joe Biden said Wednesday. “Our system of separation of powers, checks and balances, may not be perfect, but it’s maintained our democracy for nearly 250 years, longer than any other nation in history that’s ever tried such a bold experiment.”

Despite the president’s arguments, he will depart the White House on Monday will dismal approval ratings, among the lowest of his presidency. A CNN poll published this week found only 37% of respondents approved of his administration, compared to 63% who did not. His average approval rating is net negative 17 percentage points, according to RealClearPolitics.

His farewell address coincided with his announcement earlier Wednesday that Israel and Hamas had agreed to a ceasefire and hostage deal 15 months after the terrorist organization attacked its Jewish neighbor.

“This plan was developed and negotiated by my team, and will be largely implemented by the incoming administration,” Biden said. “That’s why I told my team to keep the incoming administration fully informed because that’s how it should be, working together as Americans.”

Biden previewed his remarks in an open letter released Wednesday morning that served to remind the public that he inherited a country emerging from a pandemic that became “stronger, more prosperous, and more secure” than before it.

“Today, we have the strongest economy in the world and have created a record 16.6 million new jobs. Wages are up. Inflation continues to come down,” the president wrote. “The racial wealth gap is the lowest it’s been in 20 years. We’re rebuilding our entire nation.”

Outgoing first lady Jill Biden has admitted that it was “disappointing” that Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was the one whose decisive intervention pushed President Biden out of the 2024 campaign.

“We were friends for 50 years,” Jill, 73, told the Washington Post in an interview published Wednesday that was billed as her final sit-down while in the White House.

“It was disappointing.”

The Bidens have largely bitten their tongues when discussing the internal revolt following the president’s disastrous showing in his one debate against Republican Donald Trump on June 27.

While Joe Biden, 82, had initially insisted that he would carry on in the race, pressure from top Democrats — led by Pelosi, the former House speaker — forced him to announce his withdrawal on July 21.

“Let’s just say I was disappointed with how it unfolded,” the first lady reiterated to the Washington Post.

“I don’t know. I learned a lot about human nature,” she said, adding, “I think that’s all I’m going to say.”

At the time, The Post reported that Pelosi had played the “bad cop” to Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer’s “good cop” in convincing the president to bow out.

Other outlets reported that Pelosi threatened to release internal polling showing that Biden had no chance against Trump if the president insisted on carrying on.

Pelosi then endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for the nomination rather than advocating for an open primary — only to later blame Biden for not exiting the race quicker.

“Had the president gotten out sooner, there may have been other candidates in the race,” she told the New York Times in an interview published Nov 8.

Weeks earlier, Pelosi had defended her actions in an interview with the Guardian, saying she thought Biden was “one of the great consequential presidents of our country.”

“I think his legacy had to be protected,” she added. “I didn’t see that happening in the course that it was on, the election was on.”

The Bidens and Pelosi are not believed to have made up since the drama.

Last week, Biden claimed in an interview with USA Today that he could have won re-election over Trump if he had not quit the campaign.

“It’s presumptuous to say that, but I think yes,” he said of his chances.

Meanwhile, Jill Biden was spotted enjoying a friendly chat with Trump when both attended the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris last month.

“Joe and I respect our institutions, our traditions,” the first lady told the Washington Post of that interaction, “and it’s very important to me that they continue and we — What would be the point of nastiness?”

When asked about her husband’s legacy, Jill said: “I hope that they remember Joe as a strong, empathetic president with integrity and character.”

“I mean, character really is everything, isn’t it?”

President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration portrait has been unveiled just days away from his official swearing-in ceremony.

Trump and vice president-elect JD Vance, whose portrait was also revealed on social media by chief photographer Daniel Torok, will become the next leaders of the United States on January 20.

First look at 47’s official inaugural portrait! @TeamTrump pic.twitter.com/7m6otmDQJw

— Daniel Torok (@dto_rok) January 15, 2025

A video of the inauguration invitation was circulated on X by conservative accounts with many supporters of the to-be 47th president marvelling at the portrait as an indication of what is in store for Trump’s second term.

“Trump looks very serious and ready to get things done,” one person said.

“He looks very presidential,” another wrote.

A third said: “He looks like he means business!”

It did not take long for people to compare Trump’s portrait to his mug shot from August 2023, when the Republican leader turned himself in at the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta, Georgia, after he was indicted by a grand jury on racketeering charges.

Trump went on to raise $US7.1 million in merchandise emblazoned with his ultra viral mug shot.

Mr Trump’s former adviser Stephen Miller told Fox News host Jesse Waters the mugshot is the “most powerful image” he’s seen.

“One man and his two eyes looked straight into the hearts of the American people and said, ‘I will not give up … I will not surrender’.”

Social media users said the inauguration portrait was “oddly similar” to the mugshot, and wondered if it was intentional.

Others simply wished Trump used the mugshot as the portrait.

“Should have used the mugshot,” one of many social media users said.

The atmosphere in Washington is sure to be electric as supporters and detractors alike prepare for the next phase of Trump’s presidency.

The swearing-in will take place early morning Australian time, followed by a historic inaugural address, which Trump has promised to be unifying.

Inauguration Day will begin with the swearing-in ceremony at noon (local time), where Trump will be administered the oath of office by US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts.

Following the ceremony, Trump will proceed in a motorcade from the US Capitol to the White House, accompanied by military regiments, bands and citizens’ groups.

A trove of nearly 200 artworks by Hunter Biden has been destroyed — one of the casualties of the wildfires ravaging Los Angeles, The Post has reported.

The controversial art had been in storage near the Pacific Palisades home of Hunter’s Hollywood attorney Kevin Morris and is valued at “millions of dollars,” a source close to the Biden family said.

Morris, who loaned the first son nearly $5 million to help pay a tax bill and has been financing a documentary on him, lives in a sprawling five-bedroom, six-bathroom home which is among the few houses still intact in the posh neighborhood, The Post can confirm.

Last week, as the fires began to rage, President Biden said his son’s home in nearby Malibu may still be intact. “Today, it appears that it’s still standing. They’re not sure.”

A Soho gallerist who represented the first son’s work and had organized solo shows of his paintings in Los Angeles and New York from 2021 said he broke ties with Hunter last year.

“I don’t know what’s happening with the art,” said gallery owner Georges Berges. “I have some of his work on canvas, some metal pieces at the gallery.”

Hunter’s art pieces have been priced as high as $500,000 each, although Berges told The Post the average price was closer to $85,000.

Morris bought $875,000 worth of Hunter’s artworks via Berges, many of them of flowers on Japanese paper, he said.

Berges told a congressional panel investigating the Biden family’s assets last year that Hunter knew the people who bought most of his art, despite assurances from the White House that buyers would be kept secret to avoid a conflict of interest with the president.

In addition to Morris, Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali was named as another buyer. She obtained works before and after scoring a prestigious presidential appointment, according to reports.

Hunter Biden was issued a controversial pardon by his father on gun and tax evasion crimes last month.

UnitedHealth Group is charging patients a markup for key life-saving drugs that could easily exceed their cost by a factor of ten or more, according to findings from the Federal Trade Commission.

The report, which levels the same allegations at CVS and Cigna, is the latest indictment of America’s broken healthcare system and comes on the heels of last month’s shocking murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

The U.S. is notorious for incurring the highest costs per capita of any wealthy nation, yet failing to achieve an even remotely equivalent improvement in patient outcomes versus Europe’s social market-based economies.

Critics argue that is due largely to the highly opaque manner in which needless markups are hidden to conceal inefficiencies that serve various vested interests. These include, but are not limited to, the big three drug middlemen known as pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs).

According to the FTC report, UnitedHealth’s OptumRx, along with Cigna’s Express Scripts and CVS Caremark Rx, were able to collectively pocket $7.3 billion in added revenue above cost during the five year period of the study through 2022.

“The Big 3 PBMs marked up numerous specialty generic drugs dispensed at their affiliated pharmacies by thousands of percent, and many others by hundreds of percent,” it concluded.

A thousand percent increase in the price of a drug that costs $10 wholesale would result in a retail price of $110.

This markup rate applied to 22% of the specialty therapies examined, including Imatinib, a generic used to treat leukemia, or non-oncological Tadalafil for pulmonary hypertension. Others such as Lamivudine needed by HIV-positive patients were nearly quadruple the price of their acquisition cost.

Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has been conducting Congressional hearings in an attempt to shed light on the problems posed by these drug middlemen as well as drugmakers themselves.

UnitedHealth Group in headlines for all the wrong reasons

The accused killer of Brian Thompson cited the industry’s failures as his motive for assassinating the UnitedHealth executive on the streets of New York. Luigi Mangione ended up receiving an outpouring of support on social media from Americans furious how the Minnesota-based company mistreated their loved ones.

The business that was managed by Thompson, the group’s insurance arm United Healthcare, had denied twice as many claims as the industry average, according to figures from comparison site ValuePenguin.

Just this month, surgeon Elisabeth Potter recounted how she was in the midst of operating on a breast cancer patient when an urgent call came in from United Healthcare demanding proof the procedure was in fact justified.

“It’s out of control,” she said in a video uploaded to TikTok, “insurance is out of control.”

The findings levelled at the three big PBMs stem from a report carried out under the leadership of outgoing FTC chair Lina Khan. She has been a frequent target of criticism due to her robust approach to investigating monopolies and waging battle with Big Tech, earning her the ire of major figures in Silicon Valley on both sides of the political divide.

Importantly, all five FTC commissioners signed off on the release of the report. This includes Andrew Ferguson, Khan’s designated replacement under Trump, as well as his fellow Republican, Melissa Holyoak.

Cherry picking data to push an ‘anti-PBM’ narrative

UnitedHealth’s OptumRx told Fortune it is still reviewing the specifics of the report, but the PBM said it helped eligible patients save $1.3 billion in costs, estimating the median out-of-pocket payment to be $5.

“Optum is lowering the cost of specialty medications, which comprises half of all drug expenditures, and providing clinical expertise, programs and support for patients with complex and rare conditions,” it said.

CVS Caremark, by comparison, argued the FTC was guilty of “cherry picking” its analysis by focusing on generics, which represent a tiny fraction of client spending over branded specialty drugs in an attempt to mislead. It, too, said it was saving clients money: out-of-pocket costs have dropped seven straight years for a total reduction of 29% since 2016.

“If we’re going to have an investigation like this, the American people deserve to see the complete story based on all the facts and not just those that support a predetermined narrative,” it countered in a statement to Fortune. “The ‘anti-PBM’ policies the FTC is currently pursuing would only increase U.S. drug costs for American patients, employers, unions, and taxpayers.”

Branded drugs, however, bear substantial risk as they are unproven and highly risky endeavors that can take years of experimental trials before they can achieve a return on investment—assuming they ever do at all. By comparison, generic versions of off-patent drugs only cost the materials needed to produce them and enjoy an already built-in market with regulatory approval.

Outgoing US President Joe Biden’s administration on Wednesday announced a ban on Red Dye No 3, a controversial food and drug coloring long known to cause cancer in animals.

Decades after scientific evidence first raised alarm, Red 3, as it is also called, is currently used in nearly 3,000 food products in the United States, according to the nonprofit Environmental Working Group.

“FDA is revoking the authorized uses in food and ingested drugs of FD&C Red No 3 in the color additive regulations,” said a document from the Department of Health and Human Services, published in the Federal Register on Wednesday.

The decision follows a petition filed in November 2022 by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and other advocacy groups, which cited the “Delaney Clause” — a provision mandating the prohibition of any color additive shown to cause cancer in humans or animals.

Notably, the FDA determined as early as 1990 that Red 3 should be banned in cosmetics because of its link to thyroid cancer in lab rats.

However, the additive continued to be used in foods, largely due to resistance from the food industry. Manufacturers of maraschino cherries, for example, relied on Red 3 to maintain the iconic red hue of their products.

It’s also present in thousands of candies, snacks and fruit products.

The United States is one of the last major economies to take action on the dye. The European Union prohibited its use in 1994, with similar bans implemented in Japan, China, the UK, Australia and New Zealand.

CSPI hailed the decision as overdue and expressed hope it would lead to further action against other potentially harmful chemicals in food.

“They don’t add any nutritional value, they don’t preserve the food — they’re just there to make food look pretty,” Thomas Galligan, a scientist with CSPI, told AFP.

“There’s growing discussion across the political spectrum about food additives and chemicals, which reflects ongoing failures by the FDA.”

President Joe Biden touted a ceasefire agreement Wednesday between Israel and Hamas, a goal his administration has been working toward for more than a year now with less than a week before he leaves the Oval Office.

This deal, which will not commence until Sunday and could still fall apart before then, is the culmination of negotiations facilitated by the United States, Qatar, and Egypt. It’s unclear exactly why the deal came together now, though President-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly warned Hamas that there would be “hell to pay” if the hostages were not released by his inauguration, which is set for next Monday.

Who gets credit? Biden or Trump?

“I’d also note, this deal was developed and negotiated under my administration but its terms will be implemented, for the most part, by the next administration,” Biden said during brief remarks laying out the deal. “For these past few days, we’ve been speaking as one team.”

Biden acknowledged in his remarks that the deal Israel and Hamas have agreed to is similar to the proposal he publicly described last May, but he didn’t specify why both sides have made the necessary concessions to get the deal done now.

When asked by a reporter whether he or Trump deserved credit following his remarks, Biden said, “Is that a joke?” before walking away.

Despite the comment, Trump’s incoming special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, became involved in the negotiations in recent weeks following the election. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Witkoff’s addition to the U.S. side has been important for getting the deal done because it ensured the incoming administration would support the agreement.

“I think Steve Witkoff has been a terrific partner in this, and also President-elect Trump in making clear that he wants to see this deal go forward, and go forward before Jan. 20. And of course, everyone wants to know — and it’s very useful as well to have Steve a part of this — they want to make sure that the deal that the President’s put on the table and that we’ve negotiated, the Trump administration will continue to back,” Blinken said.

The Trump team’s participation in the negotiations indicated to relevant parties that it would support the deal once the inauguration occurs next week.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller acknowledged Wednesday that the Trump team “has been absolutely critical in getting this deal over the line” in light of the impending conclusion of the Biden administration.

He also argued that Hamas finally agreed to a ceasefire after it realized there would be no larger regional war and none of Iran or its proxies would be coming to its defense.

What is the future of Hamas?

Israel has decimated Hamas’s senior leadership and its ranks, but the U.S.-designated terrorist organization has continued its attempts to reconstitute, particularly in northern Gaza. Israeli forces have killed Hamas’s top officials, including Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh.

Biden administration officials have said Hamas does not pose the same threat to Israel’s national security that it did prior to the war, but the group’s efforts and attacks on Israeli forces have continued.

Biden, in his public remarks Wednesday, raised eyebrows by declaring that with the ceasefire deal, Palestinians in Gaza could now look to a future free from Hamas, but the initial contours of the ceasefire deal do not actually address the status of Hamas.

Israel has maintained that it will not allow Hamas to retake governing control of Gaza, and the U.S. agrees with its position, but it’s unclear who will lead the next government of the enclave.

Blinken also said the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank, “should invite international partners to help establish and run an interim administration with responsibility for key civil sectors in Gaza like banking, water, energy, health, civil coordination with Israel.”

“The international community would provide funding, technical support, and oversight,” he added. “The interim administration would include Palestinians from Gaza and representatives from the PA — selected following meaningful consultation with communities in Gaza — and would hand over complete responsibility to a fully reformed PA administration as soon as it’s feasible.”

Hamas’s true strength is unknown, but in a Tuesday speech at the Atlantic Council, Blinken said Hamas has largely recuperated its losses from Israeli strikes with new recruits after Oct. 7.

Blinken’s assessment is a stark recognition of the situation facing both Israel and Gaza and whether this effort will finally secure a lasting peace between them.

Israel has sought to destroy Hamas, a terrorist organization that intentionally embeds itself within and underneath civilian infrastructure in order to shield itself, and in doing so, has risked the lives of many civilians, destroyed much of the enclave, and displaced nearly the entire population. The death toll is north of 45,000 people, which includes civilians and combatants, raising the question of whether an unintended consequence of the war was creating a new generation of Palestinians who have been radicalized against Israel due to the military’s operations.

What is the timeline of the ceasefire and the different stages?

The ceasefire will be implemented in three stages, the first of which will take six weeks and begin this weekend.

Hamas will release 33 hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinians being held in Israeli prisons, including those given life sentences and 1,000 taken prisoner after Oct. 7. No prisoners who took part in the Oct. 7 attacks will be part of the exchange. Many of the prisoners that could be released have ties with Hamas.

Israeli troops will withdraw from most of Gaza, with soldiers only allowed within a 700-meter-deep buffer zone within the strip, except for corridors along the Egyptian border and through the center of Gaza.

Israel will allow displaced Palestinians, nearly the entire population, to return to what is left of their homes. A flood of humanitarian aid will be let in, and those needing medical treatment will be allowed out of the Gaza Strip.

If the conditions of Phase 1 are met, Phase 2 will see all remaining living hostages released in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners. The current document holds that Israel will then initiate a “complete withdrawal,” though Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office disputed this.

Netanyahu has been adamant over the course of the war that Israel would not agree to a permanent deal that could allow Hamas to reconstitute. It’s unclear whether the two sides will be able to come together to get to the second phase or whether Israel will resume its operations in Gaza.

Though the details of Phase 3 are unclear, it would involve the transfer of the remains of the remaining hostages in exchange for a 3- to 5-year internationally-assisted reconstruction plan for Gaza.

According to a draft viewed by the Wall Street Journal, Hamas accepted verbal guarantees from the U.S., Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey that Israel would continue negotiations for a permanent ceasefire.

After 16 days, talks will focus on whether to extend the ceasefire into a permanent end to hostilities.

How many hostages are believed to be alive?

According to a Washington Post tracker, Israel believes around 60 hostages are still alive. However, the Wall Street Journal reported that privately, Israeli and U.S. officials believe the true number is much higher.

Of the seven remaining American hostages, only three are believed to be alive, with the remaining four dead, according to Miller.

Of the 251 hostages taken on Oct. 7, 117 have been freed or rescued, and 74 have been confirmed killed. The rest, dead or alive, are still in captivity, with 33 of them set to be released over the next six weeks. Seven Americans are among the roughly 100 hostages who are still being held.

At least two Americans, Keith Siegel and Sagui Dekel-Chen, are expected to be released during the first phase of the ceasefire, according to a senior administration official.

Six of President-elect Donald Trump’s big-office nominees faced Senate confirmation hearings Wednesday, previewing a parade of policy and political fights that will define his second term.

The picks — Pam Bondi for attorney general, Marco Rubio for secretary of state, Sean Duffy for transportation secretary, John Ratcliffe for CIA director, Chris Wright for energy secretary and Russell Vought for director of the White House Office of Management and Budget — largely avoided the kind of fireworks that can sink confirmation chances.

At the same time, they collectively laid out visions for the agencies they hope to lead that comport with Trump’s campaign promises and political grievances.

Here are the takeaways from the hearings.

Pam Bondi (Attorney General)

Independence and Political Allegiance: Pam Bondi, nominated for Attorney General, emphasized her commitment to not politicizing the Justice Department. She stated, “I will never have enemies within the Department of Justice,” but faced skepticism from Democrats regarding her ability to remain independent from Trump’s influence, especially concerning potential investigations into his critics.

Election Integrity Responses: Throughout the hearing, Bondi repeatedly avoided directly acknowledging that Trump lost the 2020 election. When pressed by senators, she only affirmed that “Joe Biden is the president of the United States” without confirming the election results, which raised concerns among Democrats about her commitment to upholding electoral integrity.

Handling of Investigations: Bondi suggested that she would evaluate any requests to investigate political adversaries on a case-by-case basis but did not rule out such actions entirely. This has led to fears that she might misuse her position to target individuals based on political affiliations.

Civil Rights Concerns: Critics expressed alarm over Bondi’s previous stances on civil rights issues and her failure to provide assurances that she would protect voting rights for all Americans. Her responses during the hearing did not alleviate concerns about her commitment to enforcing civil rights laws impartially.

Marco Rubio (Secretary of State)

Foreign Policy Focus: Marco Rubio, nominated for Secretary of State, highlighted the need for a shift in U.S. foreign policy to prioritize American interests and reduce reliance on China. He emphasized that Washington must change its approach to global challenges.

Commitment to Allies: Rubio assured senators of his dedication to strengthening alliances and partnerships, indicating that he would work towards rebuilding trust with allies that may have been strained during previous administrations.

Addressing Global Threats: He discussed various global threats, including those posed by authoritarian regimes, and stressed the importance of a strong U.S. presence in international affairs to counter these challenges effectively.

Bipartisan Support: Rubio’s nomination appears to have garnered bipartisan support, with many senators expressing confidence in his ability to navigate complex international relationships and uphold U.S. values abroad.

John Ratcliffe (CIA Director)

Commitment to Non-Politicization: John Ratcliffe, nominated for CIA Director, repeatedly assured senators that he would not impose political litmus tests on CIA employees and would maintain the agency’s independence from political influence. He emphasized the importance of speaking truth to power and protecting the integrity of intelligence assessments.

Support for Surveillance Powers: Ratcliffe expressed strong support for Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), describing it as an “indispensable national security tool.” He acknowledged concerns about civil liberties but argued that the program is critical for obtaining actionable intelligence.

Focus on Emerging Technologies: He highlighted the need for the CIA to enhance its capabilities in emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing, to stay ahead of adversaries. Ratcliffe also emphasized the importance of strengthening human intelligence efforts and addressing transnational criminal organizations.

Bipartisan Support: Despite his close ties to Trump, Ratcliffe received some bipartisan support during the hearing, with senators expressing confidence in his ability to navigate complex national security challenges while maintaining the agency’s integrity.

Russell Vought (OMB Director)

Fiscal Discipline: Russell Vought, nominated for Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), focused on the need for fiscal responsibility and reducing government spending. He indicated that he would prioritize budgetary discipline in his role.

Support for Trump’s Agenda: Vought reiterated his commitment to advancing President Trump’s policy priorities, including tax cuts and deregulation, which align with his previous work as OMB acting director during Trump’s administration.

Emphasis on Efficiency: He stressed the importance of making government operations more efficient and effective, aiming to streamline processes within federal agencies to better serve taxpayers.

Sean Duffy (Transportation Secretary)

Infrastructure Investment: Sean Duffy, nominated for Transportation Secretary, highlighted the need for significant investment in U.S. infrastructure, focusing on modernizing transportation systems to improve safety and efficiency.

Bipartisan Collaboration: Duffy emphasized his willingness to work across party lines to address transportation challenges, seeking input from both Democrats and Republicans to create comprehensive solutions.

Focus on Rural Communities: He expressed a commitment to addressing transportation needs in rural areas, ensuring that infrastructure development benefits all regions of the country.

Chris Wright (Energy Secretary)

Energy Independence: Chris Wright, nominated as Energy Secretary, underscored the importance of achieving energy independence for the United States through increased domestic production and innovation in energy technologies.

Support for Fossil Fuels and Renewables: Wright indicated a balanced approach that supports both fossil fuels and renewable energy sources, aiming to create a diverse energy portfolio while addressing climate change concerns.

Regulatory Reform: He called for regulatory reforms to facilitate energy development and reduce bureaucratic hurdles that hinder progress in energy projects.

President-elect Trump’s Inauguration Day is less than a week away, and he’s begun to plan who will attend various events in Washington to mark his return to the White House.

Trump has invited many other people, including Chinese President Xi Jinping and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, but it’s not known if they will come to the U.S. to welcome Trump back to office.

Here’s who is confirmed to attend Trump’s inauguration so far:

President Biden

President Biden announced last month he would attend Trump’s inauguration.

He said, “of course” he would attend, noting the only outgoing president not to attend the ceremony was Trump himself, when he lost to Biden in 2020. Former first lady Melania Trump also did not attend.

Former President Obama

Former President Obama will attend the Jan. 20 ceremony, but his wife, former first lady Michelle Obama, will not. In a statement, the Obama family said the former president would be attending Trump’s second inauguration.

The statement did not provide an explanation for Michelle Obama’s absence. Her decision not to attend Trump’s inauguration breaks the tradition among most former presidents and their wives, besides the Trumps in 2020.

Former President Obama recently sat next to Trump at former President Carter’s funeral last week. The two noticeably shared a laugh and conversation at the ceremony.

Former President Bush and former first lady Laura Bush

Former President Bush and former first lady Laura Bush will attend, according to a Bush spokesperson.

Former President Clinton and former first lady Hillary Clinton

Former President Clinton and former first lady Hillary Clinton will also attend the ceremony next week.

Hillary Clinton, Obama’s secretary of State, notably attended Trump’s first inauguration in 2017 after she lost the 2016 presidential election to him.

Elon Musk

Elon Musk, who has been tapped to co-lead Trump’s “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE), will be in Washington to attend the inauguration.

Musk donated millions to Trump’s campaign and has become a close ally of the president-elect’s. There’s concern about Musk’s influence over Trump as the tech billionaire continues to engage politically with him ahead of the inauguration.

Jeff Bezos

Amazon owner Jeff Bezos will also be in attendance, The Washington Post reported.

Bezos also owns the aerospace company Blue Origin and recently expressed optimism about the new Trump administration’s space policy.

Mark Zuckerberg

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg will attend the inauguration, seated next to Bezos and Musk.

The tech trio are expected to be seated near the other former presidents, Trump’s family, lawmakers, and his Cabinet picks, the Post reported, a prominent seat for the group.

A contractor embedded in one of the Pentagon’s highest offices has been terminated from his firm, Booz Allen Hamilton, after boasting to an undercover journalist that he worked with retired generals to try to stop Donald Trump, who he viewed as a “sociopathic narcissist,” from winning the presidency.

O’Keefe Media Group caught Jamie Mannina boasting to a young woman that he worked for Hillary Clinton in the Senate and the State Department before joining the FBI to hunt Russian spies because he believed Russia was to blame for Trump winning the 2016 election. From there, he joined government contractor Booz Allen, and the Pentagon embedded the contractor into its inner sanctum.

Mannina, who appeared to believe he was on a date with a younger woman, said if Kamala Harris had won the presidency, he would have been given a “pretty big job.”

Even though Trump won, he said he would “be fine” and continue serving as a “special advisor to the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon.”

“Over most of the year, since this spring, I was working with these retired generals, retired ambassadors, in this organization, this nonprofit called National Security Leaders for America. And what we were doing was we were trying to explain to the American people the national security consequences of another Trump presidency” and “defeat Donald Trump,” he said.

Watch:

BREAKING VIDEO: Top Pentagon Advisor Reveals On Hidden Camera Conversation “with a Couple of Retired Generals to Explore What We Can Do” to ‘Protect People from Trump’

Confirms Secret Meetings regarding AI: “That is sensitive information… We’re going to have to keep it between… pic.twitter.com/Ry2zAMW3rn

— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) January 15, 2025

He said he ghost-wrote more than 100 anti-Trump op-eds for the retired generals. ”I was literally working day and night, nonstop. So ultimately when he won I was really sad, really depressed, not only in terms of mission failure but of course i was hoping to advance my career. Had [Harris] won I would have gotten a pretty big job,” he said.

Mannina also disparaged Pete Hegseth, Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense, and said he was continuing to work with retired generals to restrict Trump’s actions as president. “I’m having a meeting in fact tomorrow about it,” he said.

On one date with the undercover journalist, Mannina said that the next day he would be personally presenting to the chiefs of the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force, in a meeting led by General CQ Brown, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He said the topic was artificial intelligence and the need to share information with other countries “because we need to fight together.”

Mannina also told the journalist “I predict Trump will probably entertain publicly the idea of staying in office, changing the laws, which he’s not allowed to do by the Constitution.” Ironically, it was Mannina who seemed determined to thwart the will of voters and continue on in government after his side’s time was up.

According to Mannina’s LinkedIn, he worked as a Special Assistant to Hillary Clinton in the Senate, then as a Special Assistant at the State Department, then a Desk Officer and Foreign Affairs advisor there. After that, he worked as a Mission Manager at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence during the Trump administration.

In 2019, he became an FBI agent, and in 2020, took the job at Booz Allen.

Hours after James O’Keefe published the video, Joint Staff spokesman Joseph R. Holstead told OMG that he had been sent back to Booz Allen.

“Jamie Mannina is not an advisor to the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Joint Chiefs, nor has he interacted with the Chairman or the Joint Chiefs. We can confirm Mannina was a Booz Allen Hamilton contracted employee with the Joint Staff J6 Command, Control, Communications and Computers/Cyber Directorate. The alleged comments by Mannina do not reflect the positions of the Chairman or the Joint Staff. Furthermore, the Chairman looks forward to working as President-elect Donald J. Trump’s principal military advisor in the next administration,” wrote Holstead.

Partisan embedded government contractors, who are not beholden to typical government hiring rules, could be an obstacle for Trump to navigate.

Someone with the title of “special advisor” and a history of working for a senator would typically be a political appointee and would be replaced by an incoming administration, but his status as a contractor meant that — had the video not come out — he could have continued on.

TikTok plans to shut its app for U.S. users from Sunday, when a federal ban on the social media app could come into effect, unless the Supreme Court moves to block it, people familiar with the matter said.

The outcome of the shutdown would be different from that mandated by the law.

The law would mandate a ban only on new TikTok downloads on Apple or Google app stores, while existing users could continue using it for some time.

Under TikTok’s plan, people attempting to open the app will see a pop-up message directing them to a website with information about the ban, the people said, requesting anonymity as the matter is not public.

The company also plans to give users an option to download all their data so that they can take a record of their personal information, they said.

Shutting down such services does not require longer planning, one of sources said, noting that most operations have been continuing as usual as of this week. If the ban gets reversed later, TikTok would be able to restore service for U.S. users in a relatively short time, the source said.

U.S. tech publication The Information first reported the news.

Privately held ByteDance is about 60% owned by institutional investors such as Blackrock and General Atlantic, while its founders and employees own 20% each. It has more than 7,000 employees in the United States.

President Joe Biden last April signed a law requiring ByteDance to sell its U.S. assets by Jan. 19, 2025, or face a nationwide ban.

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court seemed inclined to uphold the law, despite calls from President-elect Donald Trump and lawmakersto extend the deadline.

Trump, whose inauguration comes the day after the law goes into effect, has said he should have time after taking office to pursue a “political resolution” of the issue.

TikTok and ByteDance have sought, at the very least, a delay in the implementation of the law, which they say violates the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment protection against government abridgment of free speech.

TikTok said in a court filing last month it estimated one-third of the 170 million Americans using its app would stop accessing the platform if the ban lasted a month.

Ross Worthington is expected to be President-elect Donald Trump’s head speechwriter in the White House, according to three people familiar with the matter who were granted anonymity to discuss personnel matters.

It may be an indication that there will be a heavy focus on policy in the second Trump administration.

Worthington and Vince Haley, the incoming director of the domestic policy council, crafted policy-infused speeches for Trump on the campaign trail, as well as the first drafts of scripts Trump used to record the policy videos that appeared on his campaign website.

Trump praised his speechwriters but frequently went off script and had a habit of freelancing large portions of his speeches before returning to the teleprompter.

Both Worthington and Haley worked under Stephen Miller — the incoming deputy chief of staff for policy — in the first Trump White House, co-managing the White House speechwriting shop.

Worthington was deputy communications director for former House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s 2012 presidential campaign and later authored a book with Gingrich.

President Joe Biden notified Congress of his intent to lift the U.S. designation of Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism, the White House announced, as part of a deal facilitated by the Catholic Church to free political prisoners on the island.

Senior U.S. administration officials, who previewed the announcement on the condition of anonymity, said ”many dozens” of political prisoners and others considered by the U.S. to be unjustly detained would be released by the end of the Biden administration at noon on Jan. 20.

The U.S. would also ease some economic pressure on Cuba, as well as a 2017 memorandum issued by then-President Donald Trump toughening U.S. posture toward Cuba.

“In taking these steps to bolster the ongoing dialogue between the government of Cuba and the Catholic Church, President Biden is also honoring the wisdom and counsel that has been provided to him by many world leaders, especially in Latin America, who have encouraged him to take these actions, on how best to advance the human rights of the Cuban people,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.

The Cuban foreign ministry on Tuesday said that the government informed Pope Francis it will release 553 people who had been convicted of different crimes. It said that they will be gradually released, as the authorities analyze the legal and humanitarian ways to make it happen.

The foreign ministry didn’t link the release of the prisoners to the US decision of lifting the designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, but “in the spirit of the Ordinary Jubilee of the year 2025 declared by His Holiness.”

In a statement, the foreign minister condemned the ongoing U.S. sanctions on the country as “economic warfare” and acknowledged that the Biden decision could well be reversed by Trump.

The Cuban authorities didn’t say who is among the 553 people who will be released.

The determination by the outgoing one-term Democrat is likely to be reversed as early as next week after Trump, the Republican who is now president-elect, takes office and Secretary of State-designate Marco Rubio assumes the position of America’s top diplomat.

Rubio, whose family left Cuba in the 1950s before the communist revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power, has long been a proponent of sanctions on the communist island. Rubio will appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday for his confirmation hearing and is expected to address his Cuban roots in his testimony.

Trump has also appointed Mauricio Claver-Carone, a former White House National Security Council aide and strong supporter of sanctions against Cuba, to be his special envoy to Latin America.

The U.S. officials said the Trump transition team had been informed of the action before it was announced by the Biden White House.

Rep. Mike Waltz, Trump’s pick to serve as national security adviser, previewed a snap back to the previous U.S. policy, but signaled approval for the arrangement.

“Look. anything that they’re doing right now we can do back, and no one should be under any illusion in terms of a change in Cuba policy,” Waltz told Fox News on Tuesday. “We don’t like it, but again, if people are going free, then that’s what it is for now.”

In the final days of Trump’s first administration, on Jan. 11, 2021, the White House reinstated the designation, which had been reversed during the period of rapprochement between Cuba and the United States during President Barack Obama’s second term in office. In doing so, the Trump administration cited Cuba’s support for Venezuela’s leader, Nicolas Maduro, and its refusal to extradite Colombian rebels to Colombia, among other issues, including its continued harboring of wanted Americans.

The move to designate Cuba by Trump was one of several foreign policy moves he made in the final days of his first term.

About six months after Trump designated Cuba as a terror sponsor, the Biden administration levied new sanctions on island officials and the national revolutionary police after hundreds of Cubans were arrested during demonstrations in Havana and other cities to protest shortages, power outages and government policies. They were the first such protests since the 1990s.

Human rights groups and activists, including the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, have been pressing the Biden administration to lift the designation to ease the suffering of Cuban people who feel the impact of Cuba’s economic isolation.

Cuba’s government recognized the announcement and expressed its gratitude, although it deemed it as “limited.”

“Despite its limited scope, this is a decision that points to the right direction and is in line with the sustained and firm demand by the government and the people of Cuba,” the country’s foreign ministry said in a press release.

“The decision announced today by the United States, rectifies, in a very limited way, some aspects of a cruel and unjust policy,” it added.

Congress and the incoming Trump administration will have the opportunity to review and potentially reverse Biden’s actions, though the senior U.S. administration officials said the Biden administration had determined there was “no credible evidence” that Cuba was currently engaged in supporting international terrorism.

The Cuban foreign ministry said that the government is conscious that the incoming government in the U.S. could reverse the decision, but that it will remain “ready to develop a respectful relation with that country, based on dialogue and non-interference in the internal affairs of both countries, despite the differences.”

There was no immediate comment from Rubio or his office, but one of his Republican colleagues on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, quickly denounced the Biden administration move.

“Today’s decision is unacceptable on its merits,” Cruz said in a statement. “The terrorism advanced by the Cuban regime has not ceased. I will work with President Trump and my colleagues to immediately reverse and limit the damage from the decision.”

Rep. Carlos Gimenez, a Florida Republican, criticized the move and predicted that Trump would quickly reverse Biden’s decision.

“President Biden is a pathetic coward,” Gimenez posted on X. “Come January 20th, there will be a NEW SHERIFF in town & President Trump alongside Secretary of State @SenMarcoRubio will not only put #Cuba BACK on the list but PULVERIZE the regime once & for all!”

Biden in a national security memorandum issued Tuesday certified that Cuba hasn’t provided any support for international terrorism during the last six months and had provided the administration with assurances that it wouldn’t support acts of terrorism in the future.

The move comes after the administration in May removed Cuba from the State Department’s short list of countries that it deems less than fully cooperative against violent groups.

Sweden has unveiled tough new requirements for citizenship as part of tighter immigration rules aimed at integrating migrants and upholding the country’s values.

The government said on Tuesday it wanted to toughen the rules for obtaining Swedish nationality, with a probe recommending ‘honest living’ as a prerequisite.

It also recommended extending the required duration of time spent in the country prior to obtaining citizenship – increasing to eight years from the current five.

Those seeking citizenship would also have to pass a test on Swedish society and values, and do a language exam, according to the government-ordered probe.

‘Citizenship must be earned, not be handed out unconditionally,’ Migration Minister Johan Forssell said in a post on Instagram.

Forssell told a press conference that citizenship also helped tie people of disparate backgrounds together under ‘a common Swedish identity’.

He said it was ‘crucial’ to ‘always be very clear about the values that must apply in Sweden’.

‘Family is important but it does not stand above the law. There is equality between the sexes. You can marry whoever you want.

‘Girls and boys have the right to swim and play football. If you don’t accept that, Sweden is not the country for you,’ the minister said.

Following a large influx of asylum seekers to Sweden during the 2015 migrant wave, successive left- and right-wing governments have tightened immigration and asylum rules.

Sweden stunned the world by taking in nearly 163,000 asylum seekers during the 2015 migrant crisis – the highest number per capita of any EU country.

Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson’s centre-right minority government, which is backed in parliament by the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats, has introduced ever harsher curbs since coming to power in 2022.

Reifying the importance of a ‘common’ identity, Forssell explained: ‘This is particularly important at a time when Sweden has welcomed hundreds of thousands of people from many parts of the world in recent years.’

A probe ordered in 2023 also recommended tightening up the requirement for ‘honest living’.

In concrete terms, this would mean it would be harder for a person who has committed a misdemeanour or a crime, or who has unpaid debts, to obtain Swedish nationality, said Kirsi Laakso Utvik, who led the probe.

Human rights organisation Civil Rights Defenders was critical of the proposal.

‘Research shows that tougher requirements for citizenship do not increase the incentives for integration, but rather contribute to the exclusion of a growing group of people who find themselves in the country for a long time without the basic rights of citizenship,’ the organisation’s legal director John Stauffer told AFP.

The probe’s conclusions will now be referred to various authorities and concerned parties for review, before the government drafts a bill.

The probe recommended that the new law come into effect on June 1, 2026.

Sweden once considered itself a haven for the war-weary and persecuted but has over the years struggled to integrate many of its newcomers.

Recent measures introduced to reduce immigration included granting of only temporary residence permits to asylum seekers, tightening family reunification criteria and raising income requirements for non-EU citizens seeking work visas.

The number of migrants granted asylum in Sweden dropped to the lowest level in 40 years in 2024, according to the country’s government – the result of a decade-long crackdown on immigration.

Just 6,250 asylum-related residence permits were granted in the Scandinavian country last year, according to Forssell, who cited fresh statistics from the Migration Agency.

That figure does not include Ukrainians, who have been granted temporary protection throughout the European Union.

The number of people who applied for asylum in Sweden in 2024 was 9,645, the lowest since 1996 and down by 42 percent since 2022.

The huge influx of migrants in 2015 onwards made it impossible to effectively integrate all of the new arrivals, Mr Forssell has now said, with insufficient housing, schools and work opportunities.

The EU has made significant progress in managing the flow of irregular migrants with a sharp crackdown on traffickers, the block’s border agency reported yesterday.

The latest data from the Frontex agency were welcomed by Italy’s far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, and comes as anti-immigration parties have been performing strongly in elections around Europe.

The Warsaw-based agency said last year’s preliminary data revealed a 38-percent drop in land and sea crossings from the previous year.

It said in a statement the numbers were at ‘the lowest level since 2021, when migration was still affected by the COVID pandemic’.

Frontex said the decrease in undocumented asylum seekers was mainly driven by a plunge in arrivals through routes in the Central Mediterranean – largely via Libya – and Western Balkans regions.

‘Intensified EU and partner cooperation against smuggling networks has significantly reduced crossings at Europe’s external borders,’ Frontex said.

Meloni called it ‘a result of Italy’s action, just as the overall reduction in irregular entries into the European Union, by other routes as well (…) is the result of the hard work that our government has undertaken in recent years’.

She expressed her ‘pride’ in what she hailed as ‘good news of the day’.

Overall, in 2024 the agency saw over 239,000 irregular entries into the EU.

By comparison, the UK saw a total of 29,061 attempts to enter the UK irregularly between January and September 2024, according to government figures.

This includes small boat arrivals, inadequately documented air arrivals, recorded detections in the UK and recorded detections at UK ports.

This was down from 2023’s tally of 36,699, aggregating the same selected methods of entry.

This was also down from 2022’s figure of 54,672.

It was also significantly lower than 2021’s total of 36,813.

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk will likely claim office space at the White House as he prepares to lead the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), according to a new report.

Musk may occupy space in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building right next to the West Wing that houses the bulk of office space for White House staffers, the New York Times reports.

Musk and transition officials have talked about what Musk’s access to President-elect Trump will look like after the inauguration, but solidified plans are pending, according to the outlet, which noted that usually special passes are required for those to freely visit the West Wing.

Musk is heading up DOGE with tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy as they target ways to eliminate government spending, waste and streamline efficiency and operations.

However, the paper reported that it’s uncertain whether Ramaswamy is also expected to occupy White House office space.

DOGE is not part of the federal government but rather is a blue-ribbon committee that is expected to suggest executive orders for the Trump administration and work alongside the Office of Management and Budget to execute reforms.

DOGE’s objective is to cut $2 trillion from the federal government budget through efforts to slash spending, government programs and the federal workforce.

However, Musk recently cast doubt on the likelihood of eliminating $2 trillion from the federal budget and said there was a better chance at cutting $1 trillion.

“I think we’ll try for $2 trillion. I think that’s like the best-case outcome,” Musk said during tech trade show CES last week in Las Vegas.

“But I do think that you kind of have to have some overage. I think if we try for $2 trillion, we’ve got a good shot at getting $1 [trillion].”

The Washington Post reported this month that aides for Musk and Ramaswamy had started interviewing staffers from government agencies for DOGE, including the Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service, as well as the Departments of Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security and Health and Human Services.

Approximately 50 people are part of DOGE’s team, which is seeking to expand to roughly 100 staffers by the inauguration. These staffers are working from SpaceX’s offices in Washington, D.C., according to the Washington Post.

Those close to Musk, who donated millions of dollars to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, said he is still determining whether he will take on the role of leading DOGE as a special government employee and, therefore, be required to file financial disclosure forms, the New York Times reports.

But certain restrictions could apply if Musk chooses to forgo special government employee status, such as requiring public meetings and sharing DOGE documents with the public, according to the outlet.

Musk, along with other tech industry titans and venture capitalists, are slated to meet in Washington, D.C., this week for a dinner to discuss global innovation in artificial intelligence and entrepreneurship with incoming Trump administration officials.

Outside the Box Ventures, a firm founded last year by journalist-turned-investment banker Katherine Tarbox and French Ambassador to the U.S. Laurent Bili, is sponsoring the dinner.

“This gathering represents more than discussion. We hope it symbolizes a new chapter in public-private collaboration to harness technology’s transformative power for the nation’s future,” a source close to the planning told Fox News Digital.

The schedule for President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration was released on Jan. 13.

Jan. 18

– Reception and fireworks will be held at Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia.

–  Reception for Cabinet nominees and a dinner will be hosted by Vice President-elect JD Vance.

Jan. 19

– Trump will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery, where members of the military are buried.

– Victory rally will be held at Capital One Arena, home of the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals.

– Trump will host a candlelight dinner.

Jan. 20, Inauguration Day

– The day will begin with a service at St. John’s Church.

– After the church service, Trump will have tea at the White House with President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden.

– At noon, Trump will take the oath of office at the U.S. Capitol. The oath reads, “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

– After saying goodbye to Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the president will hold a signing ceremony near the Senate chamber, where he will likely sign nominations so that his Cabinet selections can be confirmed expeditiously.

– A lunch will be hosted by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, which organizes the inauguration events, including the swearing-in ceremony.

– Before the parade from the Capitol to the White House, the president will review the troops.

– Parade down Pennsylvania Avenue.

– At the White House, Trump will hold a signing ceremony, where he is expected to sign a flurry of executive orders.

– Trump will attend and address three inaugural balls: the Commander in Chief’s Ball, the Liberty Inaugural Ball, and the Starlight Ball.

Jan. 21

– Trump will attend the National Prayer Service, concluding inaugural activities.

President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday he will create an external revenue office upon his return to the White House that will collect all foreign-sourced revenue, such as tariffs.

“For far too long, we have relied on taxing our Great People using the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Through soft and pathetically weak Trade agreements, the American Economy has delivered growth and prosperity to the World, while taxing ourselves,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“I am today announcing that I will create the EXTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE [ERS] to collect our Tariffs, Duties, and all Revenue that come from Foreign sources.”

The incoming president added that the ERS would be established on Jan. 20 to “begin charging those that make money off of us with Trade, and they will start paying, FINALLY, their fair share.”

Trump, 78, has already threatened to raise tariffs on foreign countries that do not comply with his hard-line immigration policies.

The president-elect has singled out Mexico and Canada with a threat of a 25% tariff, and has also said he will stop “business” with countries who refuse to take back illegal migrants who have been deported.

The Republican has also said he will levy a 10% to 20% tariff on all foreign goods and up to a 60% tariff on Chinese imports.

Trump also vowed on the campaign trail to upend the current tax structure, promising no taxes on tips, overtime or Social Security — even floating the elimination of federal income tax due to the revenue that his tariff policy would theoretically generate.

Tariff collection currently falls under the authority of US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which is part of the Department of Homeland Security.

The creation of a separate ERS department will in theory need congressional support, though Trump could try to establish the department within a different existing agency.

Trump ally Steve Bannon told Politico earlier Tuesday that the ERS should be established under the Treasury Department to take the burden off the IRS.

But Bryan Riley from the National Taxpayers Union pointed out that the “federal government collects duties from US importers,” raising questions about how the proposed agency would even work.

“It does not collect duty revenue from foreign sources, so it is not clear what the point of a new External Revenue Service would be,” Riley told The Post.

“A better priority would be to improve the operation of the Internal Revenue Service to better serve US taxpayers.”

Alternatively, economist EJ Antoni of the Heritage Foundation told The Post that “I really, really love this idea.”

“Anything that gets us away from income taxes and towards tariffs is a great idea,” added Antoni, saying that the ERS will likely come about through the “transformation” of a current agency into one that “would better serve” the American people.

Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, who had been seen as a key Republican skeptic of Pete Hegseth’s nomination to lead the Defense Department, said she will support him after his performance at Tuesday’s confirmation hearing.

“Our next commander in chief selected Pete Hegseth to serve in this role, and after our conversations, hearing from Iowans, and doing my job as a United States Senator, I will support President Trump’s pick for Secretary of Defense,” Ernst said in a statement.

“As I serve on the Armed Services Committee, I will work with Pete to create the most lethal fighting force and hold him to his commitments of auditing the Pentagon, ensuring opportunity for women in combat while maintaining high standards, and selecting a senior official to address and prevent sexual assault in the ranks,” she added.

Ernst had indicated her plans to support Hegseth’s bid in an interview Tuesday on Simon Conway’s radio show.

“I figured you would ask this, so yes, I will be supporting President Trump’s pick for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth,” Ernst told Conway.

Ernst’s support is a huge boost to Hegseth’s odds, all but assuring his confirmation to lead the Pentagon barring twists in the Republican-led Senate.

She telegraphed her intentions during her friendly questioning of Hegseth at Tuesday’s hearing, which she began by entering into the record a letter from a Hegseth supporter arguing for his nomination.

As a sexual assault survivor and combat veteran who sounded initially skeptical of Hegseth, Ernst was seen as the linchpin of his path to confirmation.

Hegseth has been accused of sexual assault — an allegation he denies — and previously said women shouldn’t serve in combat.

Republicans control 53 seats in the Senate and need 50 votes to confirm Hegseth. That means at least four GOP senators must defect to sink him, even if all 47 Democrats vote against him.

There is no 60-vote threshold for nominations. So far, no Republicans have come out against Hegseth. Two others being watched closely are the two moderates — Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska, and Susan Collins, of Maine — but their defections wouldn’t be enough to defeat him even if they oppose him.

Ernst faces re-election in 2026, and some allies of President-elect Donald Trump have threatened in recent weeks to recruit a primary challenge in Iowa, a red state, if she were to oppose Hegseth.

Trump supporters have sought to rally GOP senators in favor of his nominees after they quietly scuttled his initial nominee for attorney general, the scandal-plagued former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida.