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Joe KellyNational Affairs editor

Joe Kelly is the National Affairs Editor. He joined The Australian in 2008 and since 2010 has worked in the parliamentary press gallery, most recently as Canberra Bureau chief.

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Joe Kelly

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Protesters hold up signs as they gather to demonstrate against federal immigration operations at Pershing Square in downtown Los Angeles, on June 11, 2025. Protests against Donald Trump's harsh immigration policies spread on June 11 across the United States despite a military-backed crackdown in Los Angeles and threats by the hard-right Republican president to use

Political tensions erupt in ugly clash of fire and ICE

Heightened attention on a week of protests in LA has worked in Donald Trump’s favour – so far.

Joe Kelly

test for allianceDefence

Donald and Melania Trump in Washington on Thursday, left, and Richard Marles and Anthony Albanese in a Virginia-class submarine. Picture: AP

Albanese’s mission: save the AUKUS pact

Anthony Albanese is preparing a series of major defence funding announcements as his government scrambles to lock in support from Donald Trump on the AUKUS pact.

Geoff Chambers, Joe Kelly and Sarah Ison

LA RiotsWorld

Mounted Los Angeles police officers disperse protesters marching in response to a series of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids throughout the country in Los Angeles, Calif., on Wednesday, June 11th, 2025. (Gabrielle Lurie/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Protests spread across America, Hegseth warns of new crackdown

As the protests against Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown in LA spread across America, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth says Washington could send in the troops to other US cities.

Joe Kelly

commentaryCommentary

Caption: US nuclear-powered submarine USS Minnesota has pulled into Darwin Harbour, with a heavy civilian and military police presence keeping the high-value vessel under wraps from the public. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

If nothing else, PM must win Trump’s commitment to AUKUS

Anthony Albanese can’t afford for Donald Trump to waver on the security pact; it would be a humiliation for Australia and a major setback in relations.

Joe Kelly

Pentagon bombshellNation

(4x3) DONALD TRUMP x ANTHONY ALBANESE SPLIT

AUKUS under threat as Trump launches review

The move by the Pentagon is a major blow to Australia and comes days before Anthony Albanese is expected to have his first in-person meeting with Donald Trump on the G7 sidelines.

Joe Kelly

LA riotsWorld

Law enforcement officers, including members of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Special Response Team and Homeland Security agents, arrest a demonstrator outside the Federal Building as protests continue in response to federal immigration operations in Los Angeles on June 10, 2025. Hundreds of Marines are due to arrive in Los Angeles on June 10 after US President Donald Trump ordered their deployment in response to protests against immigration arrests and despite objections by state officials. The 700 troops will join National Guard soldiers, amping up the militarization of the tense situation in the sprawling city, which is home to millions of foreign-born and Latino residents. The unrest was sparked by a sudden intensification of Trump's signature campaign to deport illegal migrants, with raids conducted on workplaces. (Photo by RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP)

Newsom: Trump is pulling ‘military dragnet’ through LA

The California Governor has accused the US President of escalating the crisis for political gain as protests stretched to a fifth day.

Joe Kelly

‘QUANTUM LEAP’World

06/06/2025Jack Schron at Jergens in Cleveland, OHPhoto by Roger Mastroianni

Business booming off Trump tariffs

Jack Schron, president of Jergens, is a US manufacturer in the rust belt state of Ohio who has experienced a surge in orders and employed new workers amid Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff regime.

Joe Kelly

Bromance is overWorld

From left, American real estate developer Donald Trump and his girlfriend (and future wife), former model Melania Knauss, financier (and future convicted sex offender) Jeffrey Epstein, and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell pose together at the Mar-a-Lago club, Palm Beach, Florida, February 12, 2000. (Photo by Davidoff Studios/Getty Images)

It’s war: Musk claims Trump named in Jeffrey Epstein files

The former besties have traded barbs and insults with the tech titan suggesting the President should be impeached and replaced by JD Vance.

Joe Kelly

commentaryWorld

(FILES) US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Elon Musk after Trump gifted him with a

Musk vs Trump, money vs power: who will win this ugly fight?

The ending of a political partnership – like in any relationship – can be an ugly, messy affair. But this is more than that. It’s the start of a new political struggle over the economic future of the US.

Joe Kelly

Trump V MuskWorld

Elon Musk looks on during a news conference with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 30, 2025. Musk, who stormed into US politics as President Trump's chainsaw-brandishing sidekick, announced on May 28 that he is leaving his role in US government, intended to reduce federal spending, shortly after his first major break with the President over Trump's signature spending bill. (Photo by Allison ROBBERT / AFP)

‘Grotesque’: Republicans resist Big Beautiful Bill amid Musk onslaught

Donald Trump is trying to shore up support for his legislative centrepiece as Elon Musk continues to attack the bills.

Joe Kelly

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