Inauguration eve: Trump pardons dozens, including ex-adviser Steve Bannon
In his final sign off as US President, Donald Trump has granted pardons to 73 people and commuted the sentences of 70 others.
In his final sign off as US President, Donald Trump has granted pardons to 73 people, including ex-adviser Steve Bannon, and commuted the sentences of 70 others. Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell publicly accused him of provoking the Capitol riots. The outgoing president defended his presidency, warned his movement ‘is just beginning’ in a farewell address, recorded on Tuesday and released this afternoon. Joe Biden has also given an emotional speech, vowing to heal the country.
How Trump’s last day unfolded
AFP 5.16pm: Ex-Trump adviser Bannon among 73 pardons
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday pardoned 73 people, including his former aide Steve Bannon, the White House said, just before he was due to leave office.
“President Donald J. Trump granted pardons to 73 individuals and commuted the sentences of an additional 70 individuals,” his administration said in a statement.
Former Trump fund-raiser Elliott Broidy was similarly pardoned, after pleading guilty last year to conspiring to violate foreign lobbying laws.
Rapper Lil Wayne, who last month pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon and faced 10 years in jail, also made the list.
Read the full list of presidential pardons here.
AFP 4.11pm: Trump ‘to issue pardon to Steve Bannon’
President Donald Trump has decided to pardon his influential former adviser Steve Bannon, US media reported Tuesday, though no official announcement had been made as Trump counted down his final hours in the White House.
Bannon was granted clemency after being charged with defrauding people over funds raised to build the Mexico border wall that was a flagship Trump policy, the New York Times said citing White House officials.
The paper said the president made his last-minute decision after speaking to Bannon by phone.
The pardon would effectively wipe away charges against Bannon, if he was convicted, it said. CNN also reported the pardon for Bannon, but said Trump had not yet signed the final paperwork.
Before Trump flies to Florida on Wednesday morning -- skipping Joe Biden’s inauguration -- he is expected to issue scores of other pardons, with speculation rife over who might make the list.
The latest indications are that Trump will not take the legally dubious step of issuing himself and his children preemptive pardons.
According to CNN and other US outlets, Trump has a list of about 100 people to whom he may grant clemency.
Anne Barrowclough 1.00pm: Pence ‘won’t attend Trump’s farewell ceremony’
Mike Pence is not expected to attend Donald Trump's farewell ceremony at Joint Base Andrews on Thursday morning (AEDT), US media reports.
Thank you for the privilege of serving as your Vice President these past four years, it has been the greatest honor of my life. On behalf of our Wonderful Second Lady, Karen Pence, and our entire Family, Thank You and God Bless America. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/chbcBfvmB9
— Vice President Mike Pence (@VP) January 19, 2021
It comes as the vice president officially announced he and outgoing second lady Karen Pence would attend the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, which is scheduled for Noon ET. (4am AEDT), at the west front of the US Capitol.
Mr Pence’s aides have told media outlets it would be logistically challenging for him to attend both events, which occur four hours apart, but it comes as former White House also said they would shun Mr Trump’s ceremony.
Agencies 11.40am: Biden administration will keep US embassy in Jerusalem
Joe Biden will not reverse Donald Trump’s landmark recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital but will seek a state for the Palestinians, Antony Blinken, his nominee for secretary of state, has said.
Asked at his confirmation hearing by Senator Ted Cruz if the US will continue its stance on Jerusalem and maintain its embassy, Mr Blinken said without hesitation, “Yes and yes.”
Mr Trump in 2017 bucked international consensus and recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, despite Palestinians’ claims to the holy city.
Mr Blinken indicated that Mr Biden would try harder to pursue a separate Palestinian state but acknowledged the difficulties.
“The only way to ensure Israel’s future as a Jewish, democratic state and to give the Palestinians a state to which they are entitled is through the so-called two-state solution,” he said.
But he added: “I think realistically it’s hard to see near-term prospects for moving forward on that.
“What would be important is to make sure that neither party takes steps that make the already difficult process even more challenging.”
AFP
Anne Barrowclough 11.00am: Boris ‘looks forward’ to Biden presidency
Boris Johnson has congratulated Joe Biden ahead of his inauguration as 46th president, and said he looks forward to working with the new US administration.
“I warmly congratulate Joe Biden on his historic inauguration as 46th President of the United States and look forward to working closely with his new administration as we defeat Covid and build back better from the pandemic,” the UK Prime Minister said in a statement.
“In our fight against Covid and across climate change, defence, security and in promoting and defending democracy, our goals are the same and our nations will work hand-in-hand to achieve them,” he added.
“I look forward to welcoming him to Carbis Bay for the G7 and Glasgow for COP as we join forces to protect our planet. Only through international co-operation can we truly overcome the shared challenges which we face.”
Agencies 9.55am: Trump approves Alaska drilling leases
The Trump administration has approve drilling leases on more than 400,000 acres of Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), on Donald Trump’s last full day in office.
The US Bureau of Land Management issued the leases on the eve of the inauguration of Joe Biden, who has pledged to protect the 7.9-million-hectare habitat for polar bears and caribou and to ban new oil and gas leasing on federal lands.
However lease holders would still need to seek permits from the new administration before any wells could be drilled, among other challenges.
Anne Barrowclough 9.45am: Harris: We grieve and begin to heal together
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have marked the 400,000 US lives lost to the coronavirus at the Lincoln memorial in Washington.
As US cases passed 24 million, cities and towns also lit up hundreds of buildings across the country.
Vice-president elect Kamala Harris said she hoped the country would emerge from the pandemic with “a new wisdom to cherish simple moments.”
“For many months we grieved by ourselves. Tonight we grieve and begin healing together,” she said.
“Though we may be physically separated, we, the American people, are united in spirit. And my abiding hope, my abiding prayer, is that we emerge from this ordeal with a new wisdom to cherish simple moments, to imagine new possibilities, and to open our hearts just a little bit more to one another.” Ms Harris said.
Mr Biden spoke, as he often does, of shining light in the darkness.
“To heal, we must remember. It’s hard sometimes to remember, but that’s how we heal. It’s important to do that as nation. That’s why we’re here today. Between sundown and dusk let us shine the lights in the darkness along the sacred pool of reflection and remember all those who we lost,” the president-elect said.
Aruna Viswanatha 9.30am: Conspiracy charges filed over Capitol riots
Prosecutors filed conspiracy charges related to the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6, saying in a new complaint that three rioters had acted in an “organised and practiced fashion” and at one point appeared to suggest the possibility of gassing politicians in the tunnels below the building.
A search of the home of one of the three people also turned up directions for making explosives from bleach, according to the affidavit filed in support of the complaint.
The three were allegedly part of a group that approached the east side of the Capitol and tried to push their way through a set of centre doors in between the House and the Senate wings as a separate mob of pro-Trump supporters battled a thin line of police officers on the west entrance during the riot. The complaint is among the first to charge multiple alleged members of the mob with conspiracy in connection with the events of Jan. 6.
Around eight to 10 people wearing helmets, reinforced vests and clothing with paraphernalia identifying themselves of the right-wing militia group Oath Keepers moved in a tactical fashion and forced their way to the front of the crowd, a video cited in the complaint shows.
During the breach, one of the members allegedly communicated: “We have a good group. We have about 30-40 of us. We are sticking together and sticking to the plan,” the new complaint said.
Investigators have pursued charges against more than 100 participants of the riot to date. They are examining nearly 400 subjects as the investigation has shifted from targeting those who broadcast their intentions on social media to those who may have engaged in advanced preparation to breach the Capitol as Congress met to confirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.
The Wall St Journal
Adeshola Ore 8.40am: Wong hopeful on US-China relationship under Biden
Opposition foreign affairs affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong says she is confident the incoming Biden administration will be able to ease trade tensions between the US and China in a way that benefits Australia’s relationship with its largest trading partner.
In a speech to USAsia Centre in Perth today, Anthony Albanese will say Australia will have to pave the way for a more multilaterally-minded US Democrat administration to re-engage with Asia following Donald Trump’s “America First” stance.
Ms Wong said Labor wants the terms of the US-China trade competition to be defined so that Australian farmers do not lose out to American producers.
“We want a region where sovereignty is respected, where trade enables prosperity for all,” she told the ABC.
“I have been heartened by some of the comments of the incoming administration about the current trade issues we have with China and we hope that we can have a much more constructive framework for coexistence in which the rules of the road are respected.”
Anne Barrowclough 8.20am: Trump: I didn’t choose the easy path
Donald Trump has defended his record and declared that his populist movement is only just beginning, in his farewell address as US President.
In an address recorded on Monday at the White House and released today, Mr Trump also condemned the violence at the Capitol, which he is being impeached for inciting, and called on Americans to rally around their “shared values”
He said serving as president had been “an honour beyond description,” and said he would pray for the success of Joe Biden’s administration.
While he has still not admitted to losing the election and has refused to invite Mr Biden and his wife Jill to the White House before the inauguration, Mr Trump said he wished them well.
“We extend our best wishes and we also want them to have luck, a very important word,” he said.
"Four years ago, we launched a great national effort to rebuild our country, to renew its spirit, and to restore the allegiance of this government to its citizens.
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 19, 2021
We did what we came here to do—and so much more."
President Trump's Farewell Address: https://t.co/bW2jFTngy5
“As I prepare to hand power over to a new administration at noon on Wednesday, I want you to know that the movement we started is only just beginning.
“Four years ago, we launched a great national effort to rebuild our country, to renew its spirit, and to restore the allegiance of this government to its citizens.
“We did what we came here to do — and so much more.”
In a message of unity, he said: “We must never forget that while Americans will always have out disagreements we are a nation of peace-loving citizens. We are a truly great nation.”
Turning to the events of January 6, Mr Trump said: “All Americans were horrified by the assault on our Capitol. Political violence is an attack on everything we cherish as Americans. It can never be tolerated.”
Mr Trump listed his achievements, including border security.
“We proudly leave the next administration with the strongest and most robust border security measures ever put into place,” he said.
He doubled down on his populist message, telling Americans: “I did not seek the easiest course, by far it was actually the most difficult.
“I took on the tough battles, the hardest fights, the most difficult choices, because that’s what you elected me to do.”
Cameron Stewart 7.40am: McConnell turns on Trump with stinging attack
Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell has launched a stinging attack on Donald Trump on his last day as president, blaming him for lying to his supporters and provoking them ahead of the Capitol riots.
“The mob was fed lies,” Senator McConnell told the Senate. “They were provoked by the president and other powerful people, and they tried to use fear and violence to stop a specific proceeding of the first branch of the federal government which they did not like. But we pressed on, we stood together and said an angry mob would not get veto power over the rule of law in our nation.”
Senator McConnell’s comments are his strongest criticism yet of the president with whom he was once a close ally. They have fuelled speculation that he may vote to convict Mr Trump at his forthcoming Senate impeachment trial.
Democrats believe that if Senator McConnell abandons the president, it may lead other Republican also vote to convict Mr Trump. Democrats need 17 Republican Senators to side with them in order to make Mr Trump the first president to be convicted by a Senate trial.
Cameron Stewart 7.30am: Bidens leave Wilmington for White House
Joe Biden has travelled from his home in Wilmington to the White House ahead of his inauguration on Thursday at 4am (AEDT).
In a tearful farewell speech, he thanked his supporters in Delaware who he said had stuck by himself and his family in good times and in bad.
“I am honoured to be your next President and Commander in Chief. I will always be a proud son of the state of Delaware,” he said.
The 78 year old choked up as he spoke of his late son Beau who died of brain cancer in 2015, saying “I have only one regret, that he is not here because we should be introducing him as president.”
Mr Trump made no public announcements on the morning of his last day as president but was expected to announce a list of around 100 presidential pardons later in the day.
He has reportedly decided against the controversial notion of issuing pardons for himself and family members.
The outgoing president will leave the White House early on the day of the inauguration, catching the Marine One helicopter to Andrews Airforce Base. He will then have a military-style farewell ceremony before boarding Air Force One for the last time to fly to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach Florida to begin his post-presidential life.
Mr Trump is the first president of the modern era not to welcome his successor to the White House for coffee on the morning of the inauguration and he will be the first since 1869 to choose not to attend the inauguration.
The president leaves office with his popularity at its lowest ebb following his false claims about a rigged election and his role in inciting his supporters before the deadly Capitol Hill invasion on January 6.
His final Gallup job approval rating is 34 per cent, the lowest of his term.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who will become the Majority Leader this week urged Republicans to support Mr Biden’s agenda including plans for a $US1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, saying he looked forward to a “peaceful passing of the torch.’
“Tomorrow the country will turn the page on the most chaotic and divisive presidency that can ever be remembered,” Senator Schumer said.
Senator McConnell said he hoped Mr Biden would live up to his word in seeking compromise with Republicans.
He said he was entering the White House without “a mandate for sweeping ideological change,” calling him “a presidential candidate who said he’d represent everyone.”
Washington remains under virtual armed lockdown ahead of the inauguration however the capital has not seen the arrival of large numbers of pro-Trump protesters as had been feared.
Around 25,000 National Guard troops have all but closed off the city, prohibiting any members of the public from attending the inauguration.
Two Nations Guard troops have been relieved of duty after background checks showed they had links to right wing organisations, however no evidence of any plot was found.
Mr Biden will tonight preside over a memorial service with lights ringing the reflecting pool outside the Lincoln Memorial for the more than 400,000 Americans who have died from the Coronavirus.
Anne Barrowclough 7.20am: 12 National Guard soldiers removed
The US National Guard has withdrawn 12 soldiers from security duty for Joe Biden’s presidential inauguration ceremony, as troops were vetted for links to extremist groups.
CNN reports that two soldiers were removed because of inappropriate comments or texts while another 10 were removed for questionable behaviour found in the vetting process.
“If you look at 25,000, we’ve had 12 identified and some of those they are just looking into, it may be unrelated to this, but we want to make sure out of an abundance of caution that we do the right thing until that gets cleared up,” General Daniel Hokanson, Chief, National Guard Bureau told the broadcaster.
The FBI had announced it would be conducting background checks on the visiting National Guard troops to further identify potential security risks.
We “want to make sure that we have the right people in the security bubble,” General William Walker, head of the National Guard in Washington, told Fox News on Monday.
There will be up to 25,000 National Guard troops deployed in Washington for the inauguration.
With AFP
Anne Barrowclough 6.10am: Biden’s farewell: ‘There is always light’
Joe Biden has given an emotional farewell to his home city of Delaware and its people, thanking them for supporting him “through the good times and the bad” as he prepares to head for the White House.
Mr Biden at times gave way to tears as he reassured Americans that in a time of darkness they should look toward the light.
Speaking at the Delaware National Guard headquarters, which has been named for his late son Beau Biden, Mr Biden spoke of his years in a “broken place” after he lost his first wife and daughter in a car crash and, years later, Beau, who succumbed to brain cancer at the age of 46.
Through it all Delaware had been there for him, he said. And he used his own darkness to assure Americans suffering through the coronavirus pandemic: “I know things are dark right now but there is always light.”.
Speaking to the people of Delaware, he said: “Look, this is kind of emotional. Through the good times and the bad, I want to thank you for everything, to my fellow Delawareans on behalf of the entire Biden family that’s here today, we want to express how much you mean to each and every one of us.”
Praising the state for the opportunities it has given him and his family, he said: “The state that gave my mother and father a home and livelihood when they needed it most. The state that made my brother and sister and I, both of whom are here, understand we can do whatever we dreamed of, whatever that was.”
He became tearful again when he referenced James Joyce, who said as he died: “Dublin will be written on my heart.”
“When I die, Delaware will be written on my heart,” he said. “On the hearts of all the Bidens.”
"Well... excuse the emotion but when I die, Delaware will be written on my heart," President-elect Biden says as he emotionally bids farewell to his home state of Delaware. https://t.co/AovqVVKbDb pic.twitter.com/by1ea2O8ch
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January 19, 2021
Agencies 5.50am: McConnell: Mob was provoked by the President
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said publicly for the first time that he holds Donald Trump responsible for the Capitol riots earlier this month.
Mr McConnell, who is said to privately support impeachment, said on the Senate floor that the President provoked the mob that stormed the Capitol.
“The mob was fed lies. They were provoked by the president and other powerful people and they tried to use fear and violence to stop a specific proceeding of the first branch of the federal government which they did not like,” Mr. McConnell said.
Mr McConnell has said he is considering whether he would vote to convict Mr Trump during his second impeachment trial, which will take place after Mr. Trump leaves office. The House passed an article of impeachment against Mr. Trump last week, focused on his statements encouraging his supporters to march on the Capitol.
Dow Jones
Cameron Stewart 5.45am: Trump era to end with flurry of pardons
The Trump era is drawing to a close as the outgoing President finalises plans to issue a blizzard of up to 100 pardons in his last official act and the US prepares for the inauguration of Joe Biden.
First Lady Melania Trump also made her final address to the country, as movers were seen carrying furniture into the Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida where the Trumps will live after leaving the White House for the last time on Thursday (AEDT).
But there was one final clash between Mr Biden and the outgoing President when the president-elect’s team said he would overturn one of Mr Trump’s last orders to lift a COVID-19 travel ban into the US from Brazil and much of Europe. Mr Trump’s order, issued on Tuesday (AEDT), would have lifted the ban on travel restrictions into the US from Europe, the UK, Ireland and Brazil on the grounds that travellers from these countries now require passengers to have a negative COVID-19 test before they travel.
West’s history is being rewritten and weaponised against us — by our own citizens
But Biden press secretary Jen Psaki said they would halt the Trump order before it went into effect. “On the advice of our medical team, the administration does not intend to lift these restrictions on (January 26). In fact, we plan to strengthen public health measures around international travel in order to further mitigate the spread of COVID-19,” she tweeted.
The clash showed the very different approach that Mr Trump and Mr Biden have on combating the pandemic.
With just over a day to go until the change of president there were no signs of large numbers of Trump supporters arriving to protest the inauguration in Washington, which is now protected by 25,000 National Guard troops.
READ the full story
Cameron Stewart 5.30am: No place for smiles in Washington
I was driving near the Capitol Building in Washington when the fire truck appeared from nowhere, hurtling towards my car, siren roaring and lights flashing.
Thinking it was about to smash into me, I veered off the road, screeching to a halt next to an armoured vehicle and a group of national guard troops holding their semiautomatics and staring at me.
I smiled and waved at them, mostly to let them know that I wasn’t trying to ram them in a terrorist attack. They didn’t smile back. Washington is not a place of levity and sunshine at this moment in its history.
The city is barely recognisable as 25,000 national guard troops stand across every major road artery and outside every famous building ahead of Joe Biden’s inauguration on Thursday (AEDT).
It turns out that the fire truck was responding to reports of a small explosion several blocks away under a bridge.
Unknown to me at the time, police and troops had locked down the Capitol and surrounding areas in response, describing it initially as “an external security threat”.
In the end, it turned out to be a small fire in a homeless community under a bridge a few blocks from the Capitol building.
But anything that happens right now near the Capitol, site of the recent riots and of Biden’s swearing in, invites a military-scale response.
READ the full story
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