Young men converting to Russian Orthodoxy in the US
Guest: Lucy Ash - journalist and author of The Baton and the Cross: Russia's Church from Pagans to Putin.
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ABC News
4 hours ago
- ABC News
Jerome Powell fact-checking Trump has gone viral. What's the backstory of their feud?
It's been likened to a scene in comedy series The Office — US President Donald Trump being fact-checked by a disgruntled man in a suit and a hard hat. But there's more to awkward exchange than a new meme format. Here's the backstory of the video and why the pair's disagreement speaks to a serious issue in the US. That's Jerome Powell, the chair of the US Federal Reserve. The US Federal Reserve — which is often called "the Fed" for short — is the American equivalent to the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). It's America's central bank, an institution tasked with regulating the finance sector, keeping the US economy in check and tackling inflation. And part of that role is setting the target range for what's called the federal funds rate — a figure that influences the interest rates US banks charge customers. The key thing about the Fed is that it's a separate entity from the US government, so it's not subject to the whims of whatever party is in power. Mr Trump and Mr Powell are touring the Federal Reserve Board building, which is currently undergoing renovations, in Washington DC. This tour came after Mr Trump's administration criticised the renovation project as "ostentatious". The long-running renovation project was originally costed at $US1.9 billion ($2.9 billion), but the Fed says that went to $US2.5 billion. During the tour, Mr Trump said the project's cost "went up a little or a lot" and was costing "about $US3.1 billion". But Mr Powell shook his head, saying he had not heard those figures from the Fed. Mr Trump then handed Mr Powell a piece of paper. "Are you including the Martin renovation?" Mr Powell said. "You just added in a third building, is what that is. That's a third building." "It's a building that's being built," Mr Trump said. "No, it was built five years ago," Mr Powell said. The awkward moment happened before a pack of reporters, so footage of the exchange quickly spread. Reposts of the video clocked up hundreds of thousands of views on X. Meanwhile, a frame of Mr Powell examining the figures became a meme format: And the virality of the moment was not helped by this interaction between the two: Mr Trump wants Mr Powell to lower the federal funds rate so that interest rates will go down in the US. In an Australian context, that would be equivalent to the prime minister asking the governor of the RBA to lower interest rates. Since April, Mr Powell has warned that Trump's policies, particularly on tariffs, could undermine the economy. He said the tariff levels were "significantly larger than anticipated" and that they could result in both lower growth and higher inflation. This would make it difficult for the Fed to react and prohibit a rate cut. In response, Mr Trump launched a tirade and called the chair a "major loser". During the heated exchange this week, Mr Trump pressed him again on lowering interest rates, telling him to "do the right thing" and slash them by 3 percentage points or more. Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested that he would "fire" Mr Powell. The Federal Reserve Act of 1913, which created the central bank, says that members of the Board of Governors, including the Fed chief, can be "removed for cause by the president". But the law does not define "cause" or lay out any standard or procedures for removal. No president has ever removed a Fed board member, and the law has never been tested in court. Several federal laws shielding members of other agencies from being removed by the president without cause say that "cause" can include neglect of duty, malfeasance, and inefficiency. If Mr Powell is fired and sues, those laws could be a guide for courts to determine if Mr Trump had cause to remove him. Last week, Mr Trump said Mr Powell had kept rates too high and would be out in eight months. "I think he's done a bad job, but he's going to be out pretty soon," he said. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday said the entire Federal Reserve needed to be examined as an institution and whether it had been successful. Mr Bessent, speaking with US media, declined to comment on a report that he had advised President Donald Trump not to fire Fed chair Jerome Powell. He said it would be the president's decision. But he said the institution should be reviewed, citing what he called the Fed's "fear-mongering over tariffs". He said that there had been little, if any, inflationary effect so far. Following his visit, the president walked back his comments and said that he would like the chair to resign but it would disrupt the markets if he were to remove him.
Daily Telegraph
12 hours ago
- Daily Telegraph
Maxwell meets Trump official amid pardon speculation in Epstein case
Don't miss out on the headlines from World. Followed categories will be added to My News. Ghislaine Maxwell will 'finally be able to say what really happened,' her lawyer has said as the convicted sex trafficker meets with a top White House official for a second day. There are questions about the aim of the meetings with a Democrat saying it 'really stinks'. Donald Trump had earlier said if she had incriminating information 'the Justice Department will hear what she has to say'. As the US President left for a visit to the UK on Friday, he was asked if he was considering pardoning Maxwell, the accomplice of the late Jeffrey Epstein. He replied he 'hadn't thought about' it but also said the he was 'allowed to do it'. The comments comes as the Wall Street Journal, which last week claimed that Mr Trump had written a happy birthday note to Epstein in 2003, has now reported that former president Bill Clinton did the same. The tumult over the Epstein files has consumed the Trump administration for three weeks after the Justice Department said it would not release any more files on the matter and there was no Epstein 'client list'. President Donald Trump speaks with reporters before departing on Marine One from the South Lawn of the White House, Friday, July 25, 2025, in Washington. The President is travelling to Scotland. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) It's split the MAGA base, many of who have consumed years of rumours and theories about who and what is contained within the files and whether it's the tip of a wider scandal. Yet no evidence has emerged to suggest that was the case. Last week, more images emerged of Donald Trump with the pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein. A newspaper also reported the US president was told his name was in the files. The White House has pushed back on the reports. Due to how many people Epstein knew, it's likely many people's names are contained in the files and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing simply by being mentioned, that includes Mr Trump. Despite the Justice Department saying there was no 'client list,' as he boarded Air Force One for Scotland on Friday, Mr Trump said there was a 'list' of Epstein associates. 'You should focus on (Bill) Clinton. You should focus on the (former) president of Harvard, you should focus on some of the hedge fund guys. I'll give you a list,' he said. Again there is no evidence of any wrongdoing by those Mr Trump mentioned. Ghislaine Maxwell was Jeffrey Epstein's right hand woman. (Photo by Handout / US District Court for the Southern District of New York / AFP). On Friday, US deputy Attorney-General Todd Blanche said he would meet Ghislaine Maxwell for a second day of questioning at a federal courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida, close to where she is imprisoned for sex trafficking including that of a minor among other crimes. After Thursday's meeting, Mr Blanche, who was previously Mr Trump's personal lawyer, said on X that 'The Department of Justice will share additional information about what we learned at the appropriate time'. Ghislaine Maxwell pictured in prison. There are suggestions Ghislaine Maxwell may seek a pardon for her crimes. (Photo by Rob Kim / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP) Maxwell 'finally able to say what really happened' Maxwell's lawyer, David Oscar Markus, told reporters after the meeting with Mr Blanche that 'she answered all of the questions truthfully, honestly and to the best of her ability.' He said that 'if you looked up scapegoat in the dictionary,' Maxwell's face would be there. 'We're grateful for this opportunity to finally be able to say what really happened, and that's what we're going to do, yesterday and today. 'We just ask that folks look at what she has to say with an open mind, and that's what Deputy Attorney-General Todd Blanche has promised us, and everything she says can be corroborated, and she's telling the truth. 'She's got no reason to lie at this point, and she's going to keep telling the truth,' Mr Marcus claimed. David Oscar Markus, an lawyer for Ghislaine Maxwell, walks into the federal courthouse, Friday, July 25, 2025, in Tallahassee. (AP Photo/Colin Hackley) Maxwell meeting 'really stinks' On Capitol Hill, Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal said it was a 'secret meeting' that 'really stinks' and looked like 'some kind of cover up'. There have been calls for the meeting to be recorded. The Trump defence lawyer and now deputy Attorney-General Todd Blanche has met Ghislaine Maxwell in Florida. (Photo by JEENAH MOON / POOL / AFP) Democrat Congressman Robert Garcia, who is on the House Oversight Committee, said the meeting was 'incredibly suspicious' and 'dangerous' and he was concerned no members of the committee were present. 'She probably wants a pardon from Donald Trump, and so her meeting with Trump's Department of Justice cannot be trusted, and anything she says must be corroborated with documents and records from the actual Epstein files,' he said. Ghislaine Maxwell watches as Jeffrey Epstein and US President Bill Clinton shake hands. Picture: WILLIAM J. CLINTON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY Claim Clinton also sent Epstein birthday message On Thursday, US time, the Wall Street Journal reported that Bill Clinton, who was US president during much of the 1990s, also sent Jeffrey Epstein a message for his now infamous 50th birthday album. His reported message read: 'It's reassuring isn't it, to have lasted as long, across all the years of learning and knowing, adventures and (not legible word) and also to have your childlike curiosity, the drive to make a difference and the solace of friends'. Mr Clinton has not commented but a spokesman said he stopped associating with Epstein years before his arrest and was not aware of his claims. Mr Trump, who has denied he also sent a message for the book, has also said he cut ties prior to Epstein's; legal issues and in fact barred him from Mar-a-Lago. It's been reported that many other notable people wrote notes for the birthday book including fashion designer Vera Wang. Originally published as Ghislaine Maxwell lawyer claim: 'finally able to 'reveal what really happened'
News.com.au
12 hours ago
- News.com.au
‘This is very big': Delighted Trump hails Australian beef deal for a second day
Donald Trump has again riffed about Australia's decision to allow more US beef to come in to the country claiming on Friday it would be the 'first time' American beef would be sold in Australia. Seemingly out of the blue on Friday, and a full day after he declared victory due to Australia dropping its restrictions, Mr Trump was back on his TruthSocial platform talking about it again. 'Australia to take US BEEF for first time,' he wrote on Friday morning, US time. 'A very BIG market. I hope our GREAT FARMERS ARE HAPPY. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!' Australia had not banned US beef. But on Thursday, agriculture minister Julie Collins confirmed Australia will remove the ban on American beef that came from cattle originating in Canada and Mexico after a decade-long review. It was originally put in place to stop bovine spongiform encephalopathy, known as mad cow disease, from coming into Australia. Since 2019, Australia has allowed imports of beef raised and slaughtered in the US. But it did not allow for the import into Australia via the US of beef raised in neighbouring countries. Additional measures put in place by the US to track the origin of Canadian and Mexican beef are being cited as the reason Australia is now satisfied. 'For a long time, and even though we are great friends, they actually banned our Beef,' said Mr Trump on Thursday, US time. Now, we are going to sell so much to Australia because this is undeniable and irrefutable Proof that US Beef is the Safest and Best in the entire World.' The US imports billions of dollars of Australian beef each years which is leaner than American beef. Decision based on 'science' The Albanese government has been quick to deny the timing has anything to do with drawn-out tariff talks with the US, reported NewsWire. But removing restrictions was one of Washington's key demands in tariff negotiations, with Mr Trump specifically accusing Australia of banning American beef during remarks on 'liberation day' – the day the US imposed blanket tariffs on all foreign imports, including Australian products. But both Ms Collins and Trade Minister Don Farrell have claimed it is simply a coincidence the beef review ended just weeks after the US President threatened a 200 per cent tariff on foreign-made pharmaceuticals. 'We haven't made any compromise, and we certainly haven't compromised Australia's strict biosecurity laws,' Senator Farrell told reporters huddled in a Parliament House corridor on Thursday. 'This has been a process that's been underway for the last 10 years. 'It's now come to a completion, and it's appropriate that we announce the results of that inquiry, but at no stage do we risk our terrific biosecurity standards for any trade arrangement.'
