President-elect Donald Trump has decided to bring his barefisted advisor Steven Cheung to the White House as his communications director. Cheung, who made his bones in communications at the Ultimate Fighting Championship, previously served in the White House during Trump’s first term as director of strategic response. He was responsible for delivering tart responses to the press as comms director for the Trump campaign, which modelled the candidate in taking a sledgehammer to political rivals.

Vice President-elect J.D. Vance is preparing for government. But meetings to plan policy rollouts and announce appointments at MAGA HQ sometimes have to wait until after family time and a chance to frolic with the children on the grounds of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. These pictures show Trump’s top lieutenant dressed casually in polo shirt and shorts playing with Ewan, seven, Vivek, four, and Mirabel, two, on the sweeping lawn that leads down to the water.

Democratic lawmakers are enraged at Donald Trump’s recent picks for Cabinet and West Wing, saying his selections are downright ‘dangerous.’ The president-elect has stirred controversy after nominating a rash of hardline conservatives and MAGA loyalists, some with questionable qualifications, to top positions in the executive branch. Two of the most polarizing nominations have been Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Health and Human Services Secretary and ex-Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz for attorney general.

Boris Johnson has attacked the growing scourge of ‘thought police’ in Sir Keir Starmer’s Britain, comparing it to ‘the Soviet Union at its worst’. Writing in today’s Daily Mail, the former prime minister says investigations by police into comments on social media come ‘straight out of 1980s Romania, and the horrible curtain-twitching culture by which people reported on their friends – even their family members’. It comes amid an increasing backlash over ‘non-crime hate incidents’, where already overstretched officers probe comments and actions not considered serious enough to constitute an offence.

NASA staff are calling on Elon Musk to ‘clean house’ as it is revealed the agency blew millions of taxpayer money on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs. Spending reports from 2020 to 2024 showed NASA awarded grants to universities and consulting firms to support ‘environmental justice’ and initiatives that ’embrace greater diversity and inclusive practices.’ LMI consulting received over $2 million in 2023 for NASA to ’embark on a venture to incorporate and deeply engrain diversity, inclusion, equity and accessibility in the culture and business.’

A FEMA employee claimed she just was taking orders from her superiors when she directed workers providing aid to Hurricane Milton survivors in Florida to skip houses with signs supporting Donald Trump. Marn’i Washington, who was fired over the controversy, revealed that the directive came from her bosses and that she is taking the fall for the agency’s policy to ‘avoid homes advertising Trump.’ ‘Why is this coming down on me?’ she said during an interview on Fox News @ Night Wednesday.

A bereaved mother claims to have seen angels at the site of a horrific car crash where her daughter lost her life. Melinda Martinez, 43, believes a ‘blurry figure’ in haunting photos taken by the police shows her child’s spirit. Her daughter Isabelle Gonzalez, 16, died in a car crassh after she went out with three friends, drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana.

Cynthia Erivo showcased her bold fashion sense while promoting Wicked in New York City on Thursday. The 37-year-old British actress, who stars as Elphaba opposite Ariana Grande’s Glinda in the highly anticipated musical film, turned heads in a vested top paired with neon green pants as she headed to an ABC studio. The Oscar nominee added a touch of glam with dangling diamond earrings and flashed her extravagant, designer-styled nails as she waved to photographers.

Nursing student Laken Riley’s mother sobbed as the chilling 911 call made moments before her death was revealed during the trial of an illegal migrant accused of killing her. Allyson Phillips covered her face with a tissue and broke down as the Athens-Clark County court was told that 22-year-old Riley somehow managed to activate the SOS alert on her phone at 9.11am the day of her death. Prosecutors allege in that moment on February 22, 26-year-old undocumented migrant Jose Antonio Ibarra stopped her in her tracks as she went for a run near the University of Georgia campus.