Musk joined Trump in victory phone call to Zelensky

Elon Musk joined Donald Trump on a call with Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday, in a further sign that the world's richest man will have wide-ranging powers within the new administration .

The SpaceX owner, who has expressed doubt that Ukraine can beat Russia, was reported to have told Mr Zelensky that he will continue to support Kyiv through the company's Starlink network, which its forces use for communications.

It was reported earlier last month that Mr Musk has also had several private phone calls with Vladimir Putin , who on Thursday said he was ready to reopen communication with the US under Trump over what peace in Ukraine could look like.

Mr Trump told Mr Zelensky he didn't intend to abandon Ukraine but wanted to "give diplomacy a chance", US media reported.

"I promise you will be happy with me," the incoming US president said.

Richard Grenell, the former US ambassador to Germany and a Fox News contributor tipped to be Mr Trump's secretary of state, was also reported to have been on the call.

Details of the phone call come a day after Mr Trump's staff briefed media that he wanted to freeze the war in Ukraine along its current frontlines and impose a buffer zone patrolled by British and European soldiers.

In his first comments on the US election, Mr Putin on Thursday called Mr Trump a "courageous person" for surviving an assassination attempt in July.

He congratulated him on winning the election and said that he was "ready" for a dialogue with Mr Trump.

Mr Zelensky has said that he wants to recapture all the territory lost to Russia, but three sources told news site Axios that the phone call with Mr Trump had not alarmed the Ukrainian leader.

"Nothing of what Zelensky and his aides heard from Trump and his team in private has been alarming or made us feel that Ukraine is going to be the one who pays the price," one of the sources said.

A British source who lives in Kyiv and has links with the Ukrainian government said that Mr Zelensky and his staff had been preparing for a second Trump presidency and wanted to maintain good relations with the incoming administration.

Even so, John Bolton, Mr Trump's former national security adviser, told the Telegraph that a deal with Putin was now likely.

In return for an end to the conflict, Ukraine will be forced to cede ground already occupied by Russia, said Mr Bolton, who is now a fierce critic of Mr Trump.

"I'm afraid that's the plan and it's going to be take it or leave it for Ukraine," he said.

"I think the feeling is that Putin has outlasted us and will prevail."

Elon Musk has been described by Mr Trump as a "super genius" and observers have said that he may be given a powerful unofficial advisory role overseeing a drive to cut government inefficiency.

Mr Musk was previously described as "Putin's best weapon" after saying that Ukraine cannot beat Russia and that Crimea, captured by the Kremlin in 2014, is a natural part of Russia.

The tech billionaire owns Starlink, a network of satellites that Ukrainian forces have relied upon throughout the war to maintain communications. Russian forces are also thought to be increasingly reliant on the Starlink satellite network as they capture and buy terminals and equipment.

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Trump tariffs 'will damage McDonald's'

Donald Trump risks damaging some of America's best-known brands if he pursues trade tariffs against China, the US has been warned, as Beijing unveiled a huge fiscal package to prop up the economy.

Xie Feng, China's ambassador to the US, warned the president-elect against introducing a 60pc tariff on imports from the country, saying there would be "no winner" in a trade war between the two.

The ambassador added that some of the US's best-known companies such as McDonald's and Starbucks would suffer as a result, given their extensive businesses in China.

Read the full story from Tim Wallace .

'Trump's return is Joe Biden's legacy'

Donald Trump's election win and return to the White House is Joe Biden's "legacy", a biographer of the US president has said.

Franklin Foer said that Mr Biden's accomplishments in office are now "an asterisk", writing in The Atlantic:

Biden to allow US defence contractors into Ukraine

Joe Biden will allow American defence contractors into Ukraine to repair US-supplied equipment, Reuters reports.

A US official said that the contractors will be located far from the front lines and will not engage in combat, but nevertheless marks a significant shift in Washington's support for Kyiv.

"Having small numbers of contractors in Ukraine conducting maintenance away from the front lines will help ensure US-provided equipment can be rapidly repaired when damaged and be provided maintenance as needed," the official said.

Mr Biden's policy shift in his final months in office comes shortly after Donald Trump, who has been sceptical about providing military assistance to Kyiv, won the presidential election on Tuesday night. The Republican will take office in January.

Reports: Doug Burgum could be appointed 'energy tsar'

Donald Trump is reportedly considering appointing Doug Burgum, the former North Dakota governor, as his "energy tsar" to slash prices for Americans.

Mr Burgum ran against the president-elect for the Republican presidential nomination, but dropped out early in the race and endorsed Mr Trump. He was considered a top contender for the vice presidential role but lost out to JD Vance.

Dan Brouillette, the former energy secretary, is also being considered for the role, the Financial Times reported.

Mr Trump pledged on the campaign trail to cut energy prices by half within a year of taking office by increasing oil extraction.

Who is special counsel Jack Smith?

When Alexi Schacht was asked to defend Manzoor Qadar, who was accused of murdering his niece's husband as part of an honour killing, he thought it would be a doddle.

The prosecution was relying on "thin" circumstantial evidence to prove his client had travelled from Blackburn, Lancashire, in 1996 to shoot Shaukat Parvez dead in Queens in exchange for a £46,000 bounty.

So confident was Mr Schacht that the case would fall apart, he branded it at the time as "one of the weakest prosecutions I've ever seen".

But the one thing the lawyer hadn't factored into the trial at Brooklyn federal court was his opponent: Jack Smith.

Read the full profile from Susie Coen, our US correspondent, .

Jack Smith 'ending Trump Jan 6 prosecution'

The special counsel leading the prosecution of Donald Trump is halting the proceedings after the Republican's election victory.

Jack Smith has moved to cancel a series of deadlines in his case against Mr Trump for allegedly seeking to subvert the results of the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to Joe Biden.

His team has been evaluating how to wind down the two federal cases before the president-elect takes office, in light of longstanding policy that sitting presidents cannot be prosecuted, a source told the Associated Press.

In a court filing on Friday, Mr Smith said his team needed"time to assess this unprecedented circumstance and determine the appropriate course going forward consistent with Department of Justice policy."

'I promise you will be happy with me,' Trump tells Zelensky

Donald Trump told told Volodymyr Zelensky: "I promise you will be happy with me," during a joint call with Elon Musk, a source claimed.

Mr Trump's assurances came during his first call with the Ukrainian president since winning the election, the source told Axios.

The meeting was also attended by former US ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell, who is expected to play a leading role in any peace deal between Russia and Ukraine under a Trump administration.

"Nothing of what Zelensky and his aides heard from Trump and his team in private has been alarming or made us feel that Ukraine is going to be the one who pays the price," a source said.

Kyiv insiders said they expect that if peace talks do take place, they will agree to participate but Vladimir Putin will either reject the talks or take steps that doom them to failure.

Trump blames defund the police for Democrats' defeat

Donald Trump has blamed Democrat moves to defund the police for the party's election defeat in his first interview since securing victory.

Mr Trump suggested progressive policies had alienated voters and helped "re-align" the US towards his Republican Party.

"I started to see realignment could happen because the Democrats are not in line with the thinking of the country," the President-elect told NBC. "You can't have defund the police, these kind of things. They don't want to give up and they don't work, and the people understand that."

Calls to defund the police gained traction in the wake of the Back Lives Matter protests that erupted in 2020 following the murder of George Floyd by a white police officer.

The President-elect also credited his tough stance on the border for helping secure such a decisive victory, adding: "They want to have borders, and they like people coming in, but they have to come in with love for the country. They have to come in legally."

He said there was "no price tag" on the mass deportations that his team say will begin on the first day in office.

Democrats should be 'proud' of Biden's accomplishments, says Hakeem Jeffries

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries has said his party should be "proud" of President Joe Biden's legislative accomplishments in office.

"It's a record that both progressives and centrist members of both the House and the Senate supported," Mr Jeffries said, listing legislation like the American Rescue Plan, a largescale infrastructure deal and legislation to address climate change.

"More needs to be done to meet the needs of the American people, to build an economy that works for everyday Americans because there are far too many people that are struggling to live paycheck to paycheck," Mr Jeffries added.

Mr Jeffries was part of a cabal of leading Democrats, including Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, who urged Mr Biden to drop out of the presidential race.

Trump 'very cordial' in talks with Mexico about border

Donald Trump was "very cordial" in talks with Mexico about the situation at the border, the country's president Claudia Sheinbaum said.

Ms Sheinbaum said the topic of the border came up during her first telephone call with the President-elect.

She said: "He raised the issue of the border, and he just said it, and I told him, 'Yes, there is the issue of the border, but there will be space to talk about it.'" She described the conversation as "very cordial".

Speaking at the same press conference, Mexico's foreign minister Juan Ramon de la Fuente stressed that the country's model to crack down on illegal border crossings was working, pointing to data that shows the number of migrants caught by US authorities has fallen 76 per cent since last December.

"It's working well and we're going to continue on this path," he said.

Mr Trump has threatened to slap 25 per cent tariffs on all US-bound Mexican exports unless Mexico stops migrants and drugs from crossing the shared border.

Donald Trump closes in on total control of Congress

Donald Trump's Republicans were on course for a clean sweep in the US elections by retaining control of the US House of Representatives on Friday morning.

The GOP has already won the White House and the Senate and are now only eight seats away from a majority in Congress's second chamber.

There are still 24 uncalled races for the House, with NBC currently projecting that the Republicans will win the eight seats they need to secure a razor-thin majority.

Gaining a trifecta of the executive branch of power in Washington is the ultimate win for both parties and allows them to push through a more ambitious legislative agenda.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump has won Nevada, capturing the western battleground state he lost in 2016 and 2020 with 50.8 per cent of the vote.

The vote is still being counted in the last swing state of Arizona. With three quarters of the ballots counted, the race is reportedly too close to call.

Federal Reserve Chair says he won't step down for Trump

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has said he won't step down for Donald Trump.

Asked if he would resign if asked to by the President-elect, Mr Powell gave a one-word response: "No."

When asked to elaborate on whether he would be legally required to leave, he repeated his previous answer: "No."

Mr Powell, whose term ends in 2026, later said it is "not permitted under the law" for the president to fire or demote him or any of the other Fed governors with leadership positions.

It comes after Mr Trump said in august that he should "have at least a say" in monetary policy, including interest rates, which is dictated by the politically independent agency.

Mr Trump appointed Powell during his first term but repeatedly criticised the Fed and its chair for not cutting rates fast enough throughout his time in office.

Democrats in frantic talks to push out most liberal Supreme Court justice

Democrats are in frantic talks to push out the most liberal Supreme Court justice.

The party is scrambling to get Sonia Sotomayor to step down so that they can replace her with a progressive nominee before Donald Trump takes control of the White House.

Following Mr Trump's sweeping election victory, he has the power to replace retiring Supreme Court justices with conservative nominees, potentially tilting the court even further in their favour for decades to come.

"Confirming conservative judges will certainly be a priority," a Republican source told NBC.

The Court is currently weighted six to three in the Republicans' favour, but Ms Sotomayor, who was appointed by Barack Obama, is 70-years-old and suffers from diabetes.

One senator told Politico that the topic of ousting Ms Sotomayor has come up repeatedly in talks this week, with Washington DC Circuit Judge Michelle Childs floated as her potential replacement.

Supreme Court Justices are appointed for life and decide on major decisions including the overturning of Roe vs Wade.

Trump connected with 'bros' on Twitch to sway youth vote

How much of an influence did Trump's youngest son, Barron, have on his victory.

The 18-year-old Barron advised his father to sit down with podcasters and gamers who have millions of followers, but whom most of us have never heard of.

Interviews with pranksters and provocateurs, who are watched by millions on sites like YouTube and Twitch, may have helped motivate 'hyper masculine' MAGA supporting young men to go and vote.

'Make Israel great again,' exhorts Jerusalem poster

A huge poster hung on the walls of the Friends of Zion Museum in Jerusalem has congratulated Trump on his election victory.

Two thirds of Americans think Trump will push up public debt

Most Americans believe Trump will push the US government deeper into the red in his new term, though most Republicans do not share Democrats' concerns over his fiscal stewardship, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll.

The two-day poll, which closed on Thursday, showed that 62 per cent of respondents - including 94 per cent of Democrats and 34 per cent of Republicans - said it was likely Trump's policies "will push the US national debt higher."

The US federal deficit ballooned to $1,833 trillion in 2024, as interest on the debt exceeded $1 trillion for the first time.

Trump's tax cut proposals could add $7.5 trillion to the nation's debt over the next decade, according to the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

Nearly half of young voters backed Trump

A swing to the Right among young voters, as well as Black and Hispanic men, was crucial for Trump's victory, according to AP VoteCast, a far-reaching survey of more than 120,000 voters nationwide.

Among voters aged between 18 to 29, Trump increased his share of the vote to 46%, up from 36% in the last election.

Trump increased his share of young black men — something that helped cut into a key Democratic voting group. About three in ten black men under the age of 45 went for Trump, roughly double the share he got in 2020.

Young Latinos — particularly young Latino men — were more open to Trump than they were in 2020. Roughly half of Latino men under 45 voted for Kamala Harris, down from about six in ten who went for Joe Biden.

Madonna 'stuffs her face' with 'f- Trump' cake

Pop star Madonna reported on Instagram that she had "stuffed her face with cake" after learning of Trump's victory in the election.

The singer posted a picture of a cake with icing that read "f- Trump."

In another post she wrote: "trying to get my head around why a convicted felon, rapist, bigot was chosen to lead our country."

Left-wing millionaires 'lining up in droves' to leave the US

A high-net worth investment consultancy has said that it saw a fivefold increase the number of enquiries about leaving the US in the 24 hours after the election.

The most popular destinations for millionaire expats are Canada, Australia, the UK and New Zealand, consultancy Arton Capital told The Telegraph.

Armand Arton, the company's chief executive, told The Telegraph that most of the potential clients were motivated by "ideological and emotional factors" after Mr Trump's win.

Trump victory hasn't changed war goals, says Kremlin

Vladimir Putin is ready to discuss Ukraine with Donald Trump but that does not mean he is willing to alter his demands, the Kremlin said on Friday.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia's goals in Ukraine remain unchanged.

Putin on Thursday congratulated Donald Trump on winning the US election, praised him for showing courage when a gunman tried to assassinate him, and said Moscow was ready for dialogue with the Republican president-elect.

Asked about a possible phone call between Trump and Putin, Peskov said there was nothing concrete on it to report yet, and said it would be premature to talk of any improvement in Russia-US ties.

Hungary's Orban says Trump will 'quit' Ukraine war

"The Americans will quit this war, first of all they will not encourage the war," Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister said on Friday ahead of the informal EU summit he is hosting in the Hungarian capital.

"Europe cannot finance this war alone... Some still want to continue sending enormous amounts of money into this lost war but the number of those who remain silent... and those who cautiously argue that we should adjust to the new situation, is growing," he claimed.

Mr Obran has long been a relatively isolated voice inside the EU opposing sanctions on Russia.

Erdogan calls on Trump to impose arms embargo on Israel

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that he hoped Trump will tell Israel to "stop" its war efforts, suggesting a good start would be halting US arms support to Israel.

"Trump has made promises to end conflicts... We want that promise to be fulfilled and for Israel to be told to 'stop'," Erdogan told reporters on a return flight from Budapest, according to an official readout.

"Mr. Trump cutting off the arms support provided to Israel could be a good start in order to stop the Israeli aggression in Palestinian and Lebanese lands," he was cited as saying.

Hispanics on border voted Trump due to 'what they see first hand'

Hispanic voters who live close to the border with Mexico voted for Trump because of their discontent at the level of illegal border crossings, National Border Patrol Council president Paul Perez has told Fox News.

"They were going to do the right thing based on the facts, not on the rhetoric," said Mr Perez, adding "no one has seen what they have seen."

"It's been ground zero for the influx of criminals, illegal immigrants, coming across, and the people here saw it first hand," he explained.

Trump gained from a significant shift in the Hispanic vote, with exit polls suggesting a 14-point swing in his favour compared to 2020.

Erdogan invites Trump to Ankara in phone call

President Tayyip Erdogan said he invited US President-elect Donald Trump to visit Turkey after a phone call on Wednesday in which he said Trump spoke very positively about Turkey, broadcaster TRT and other media reported on Friday.

Ankara's cooperation with Washington under a Trump presidency could also help solve regional crises, Erdogan was quoted as telling reporters on his flight back from Budapest.

Some Harvard classes cancelled to allow students to come to terms with result

Professors at Harvard University cancelled classes or told students that attendance was optional on Wednesday out of concern for their wellbeing after Trump's landslide victory, Fox News reports.

"I had some professors that have been like, 'If you need to not come to class, that's understandable'," one student told the student newspaper. "This definitely takes a toll on people's mental wellbeing."

Economics lecturer Maxim Boycko told students: "Feel free to take time off if needed."

Another student reported being stunned by the result, saying that she was surrounded by Harris fans at university and had therefore expected her to win.

'Get ready for golden age,' states Trump on social media

Donald Trump is back on social media after taking a break in the wake of the election.

His first posts to his Truth Social platform were a series of images of newspaper front pages plus a picture of himself with the banner 'get ready for the golden age.'

Interest in emigration from US surges

Google searches for "move to Canada" surged 1,270 per cent in the 24 hours after US East Coast polls closed on Tuesday, company data shows.

Similar searches about moving to New Zealand climbed nearly 2,000 per cent while those for Australia jumped per cent.

Late Wednesday evening on the US East Coast, Google searches about emigrating were hitting all-time highs for all three countries, according to a Google official.

The search giant does not provide absolute figures but data from the Immigration New Zealand website showed the site logged some 25,000 new US users on November 7th compared to 1,500 for the same day last year.

Immigration lawyers also reported an untick in queries.

"Every half hour there is a new email enquiry," said Evan Green, managing partner at Canada's oldest immigration law firm, Green and Spiegel.

Even before the election, fears about a Trump victory were increasingly cited by Americans looking to emigrate to Canada, according to Heather Bell, an immigration consultant at Vancouver law firm Bell Alliance.

Few, however, manage to follow through, said Bell.

Biden citizenship scheme blocked by judge

A scheme announced by the Biden administration to grant citizenship to the spouses of US citizens is set to be blocked for the remainder of his presidency.

A judge in Texas stopped the initiative, which could give citizenship to half a million illegal immigrants, back in August and has now found that it is against the law.

Trump won't want to 'embolden' Putin, says Lammy

Donald Trump won't want to 'embolden' Vladimir Putin to start more wars in Europe, foreign secretary David Lammy has said.

The new US president's view on conducting foreign policy is about "pace through strength," Mr Lammy told the BBC.

"That is the starting point. He will not, Donald Trump will not want a situation where the US troops that he's got in Europe rise substantially because of further war or threats in Europe. He will not want Putin to leave emboldened from this war."

The foreign secretary also said that he had met Mr Trump recently and felt that his affection for the UK, the royal family and Scotland, in particular, was "genuine."

Asked whether a state visit would come in the next twelve month, he said "that would be a bit of a tall order."