Is Trump now bankrolling a MAGA paramilitary?

Donald Trump announced a $1.776bn new scheme this week labelled an 'anti-weaponisation fund' to compensate citizens who've been mistreated by the US justice system. Who could the President have in mind as in need of compensation? How about the January 6th rioters? Well they are stepping forward in their droves to state their intentions to claim millions from the IRS - and Trump seems to be cheering them on. Critics say he's using the money to keep his own private militia on retainer - are they right?And why did Trump secure 'forever' immunity for him and his family from tax audits?Later, in a rare act of rebellion, Republican Congressmen stripped out $1bn worth of funding for Trump's ballroom from a Bill going through the legislature that was supposed to be about immigration enforcement funding. Trump has doubled down on the ambitions for the ballroom - talking about a drone port on the roof and a military base. But will the GOP get increasingly jittery about the exorbitant costs and the gaudy nature of his White House redevelopment when there's an affordability crisis weighing on the minds of voters?The News Agents - USA is a Global Production.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Did Trump really mean to tell Americans he wasn't thinking of their financial situation "at all" when he went to war with Iran? He repeated it several times so we can assume it was no slip of the tongue. The democrats are delighted. His allies are dismayed. Expect that line to get played on a loop. But has Trump stopped worrying about the economy for everyone except his own family? And has he given up on the midterms?Later, Politico's Jonathan Martin joins Jon in the studio. What's Trump playing at? Is the base still with him? And is the American media doing enough to hold him to account?The News Agents USA is a Global production.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Overnight in Indiana ,Trump showed the grasp he still has over the Republican Party where the candidates he’d endorsed for the State Senate won their primaries against the moderate Republicans that had stood up to his attempts to gerrymander.It's remarkable in itself that Trump was at all invested in the races - these are local politicians earning $33,000 a year - and yet his influence proved key. What does this tell us about how the midterms will play out? Meanwhile, Marco Rubio has announced the end of the Iran war as if it were obvious to all of us. Are we about to see some actual progress in the conflict in the Middle East? A peace deal? An actual signed contract? Or is Trump just playing for time before his next big stunt?The News Agents is a Global Production.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Fiona Hill served in Donald Trump's first administration and is one of the most authoritative voices on geopolitics. She advised on his Russia strategy and matters of national intelligence - before becoming a witness in his impeachment in 2019.She has worked up close and personal with the President. And, as the war in Iran rages, and Putin continues to try and chisel Trump away from Europe's position on Ukraine, she came into the News Agents studio to try and make sense of the new age of international turmoil ushered in by Trump's second term.What does she understand about the Putin-Trump relationship? Is the President compromised? Is Trump a fundamentally different man now compared to his first term? And is he backsliding America into territory similar to Russia?The News Agents - USA is a Global Production.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Voters in Virginia have approved changes to their electoral map which essentially makes it easier for Democrats to win. Republicans argue they’ve been disenfranchised - and they’re right: It’s ugly. It’s unfair. But it’s not illegal.What’s more, they've already done the same thing in the red state of Texas. So are democrats finally learning how to play dirty? Is it enough to win? And are they prepared to go low as a response to Trump - even if it creates a moral vacuum and erodes democracy in the 250th anniversary year of the republic.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Has Trump’s erratic behaviour and threatening rhetoric over the last few weeks rendered him unfit for office? The question seems an obvious one to House Democrats - who are petitioning to remove him under 25th amendment. They won’t succeed. No one ever has. But it raises a bigger question of how many and for how long those around Trump are prepared to stand by and do nothing.Miles Taylor was in the DHS in Trump's first term. He became a whistleblower - now being investigated by Trump's DOJ for 'treason' for telling the world what went on. He is with us on today’s episode and takes us into the conversations he’s having behind the scenes with Republican legislators right now.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Besides Trump's threat to eliminate Iran, something else remarkable happened this week. A string of Republican Congressmen finally found the courage in themselves to come forward and criticise that threat.Trump's actions in the Middle East are a disaster for his colleagues. Gas prices are up, the affordability agenda is in tatters, and America looks on course for a humiliating military defeat to an old adversary. Is this the catalyst for widespread rebellion in the Republican party?Jon speaks to Marc Short, Trump's director of legislative affairs, about what happens now in Iran - and to the Republican's in the midterms later this year.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Beside Trump's threat to eliminate Iran, something else remarkable happened this week. A string of Republican Congressmen finally found the courage in themselves to come forward and criticise that threat.One of his old allies, Senator Ron Johnson, told a podcast that he was "hoping and praying that President Trump is, that this really is bluster." Another Republican Senator, Lisa Murkowski, condemned the post - saying it "cannot be excused away as an attempt to gain leverage in negotiations with Iran". Congressman Nathaniel Moran posted: "That is not who we are, and it is not consistent with the principles that have long guided America."Trump's actions in the Middle East are an electoral disaster for his colleagues. Gas prices are up, the affordability agenda is in tatters, and America looks on course for a humiliating military defeat to an old adversary. Is this the catalyst for widespread rebellion in the GOP as his colleagues start fighting for their own political survival? And is loyalty to Trump a luxury they can no longer afford?Jon speaks to Marc Short, Trump's director of legislative affairs and then Mike Pence's chief of staff, about what happens now in this conflict - and to the Republicans in the midterms.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Things just aren’t going well for Donald Trump right now. Forget the Iran war, his spectacular NATO fallout, rising gas prices, Trump’s just heard that the construction of his 90,000ft ballroom will have to be paused after a judge told him he was the White House steward and not its owner. The affordability crisis in America is spiking as his poll numbers are tanking. Is he looking for a speedy way out? A diversion?We speak to Congressman Jim Himes, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/

Vast sums of money was traded before President Trump's now famous attempt to announce an Iran peace deal on Monday. The speculation was that those with prior knowledge had capitalised by insider trading. Today we’re joined by Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman to explain why this sounds highly plausible, and why there’s no ethics investigation even if it’s true. Later - was Meta and Google deliberating trying to harm children by getting them addicted to the their sites? A jury finds the companies liable in a historic ruling.The News Agents USA is brought to you by HSBC UK - https://www.hsbc.co.uk/