Trump 2nd term updates: Trump says USAID is run by 'radical lunatics'

The comments came amid turmoil as DOGE took over USAID offices last week.

ByAlexandra Hutzler, Ivan Pereira, Emily Chang, Andrea Pineda-Salgado, Meredith Deliso, and Julia Reinstein
Last Updated: February 2, 2025, 11:11 PM EST

President Donald Trump made good on his threats to impose tariffs on some of the U.S.'s trading partners, announcing Saturday that he will levy 25% tariffs on some goods from Canada and Mexico and 10% on Chinese goods.

Experts have warned that tariffs of this magnitude will likely increase prices paid by U.S. and Trump appeared to acknowledge that “some pain” might be possible in the U.S.

Meanwhile, the Senate Finance Committee announced it will meet Tuesday, when it is expected to vote on the controversial nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of Health and Human Services.

Key Headlines

Here's how the news is developing:
Jan 22, 2025, 6:02 PM EST

Oath Keeper founder on Capitol Hill following release

Just one day after being released from prison, Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes showed up on Capitol Hill in a blue Trump hat.

Rhodes was serving an 18-year sentence for a seditious conspiracy conviction for his role in the Jan. 6 riots, but his sentence was commuted by Trump on Monday.

Stewart Rhodes speaks with press after being released last night after spending the past 3 years in Cumberland, Maryland at the Federal Correctional Institution on January 21, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

Rhodes told ABC News he was meeting with members of Congress, specifically Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla.

Speaker Mike Johnson told ABC News that he didn't meet with Rhodes.

“What about it? He’s a U.S. citizen, right?" he added.

-ABC News' Rachel Scott, Beatrice Peterson, Arthur Jones and Allison Pecorin

Jan 22, 2025, 5:30 PM EST

Kennedy's confirmation hearing set for next Wednesday

The Senate Finance Committee announced Wednesday afternoon that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s confirmation hearing for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Jr. will be Jan. 29.

-ABC News' Anne Falherty

Jan 22, 2025, 5:13 PM EST

White House asked about Elon Musk's criticism of AI Stargate deal

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt brushed off Elon Musk's comment suggesting investors don't have the money to fund the Stargate AI project during an interview on Fox News.

"President Trump is very excited about this infrastructure announcement in the field of AI, which is of his growing United States and it needs to capitalize on it because adversaries like China are very advanced in the field," Leavitt dodged when asked for the Trump's reaction specifically to Musk's comments.

PHOTO: White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt arrives at the White House in Washington, Jan. 22, 2025.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt arrives at the White House in Washington, Jan. 22, 2025.
Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Musk has repeatedly poured cold water on the $500 billion project, which Trump rolled out at the White House on Tuesday evening with fanfare.

Leavitt said that the American people should trust Trump at his word.

"So, the American people should take President Trump and the CEOs' words for it. These investments are coming to our great country and American jobs are coming with them," she said.

Jan 22, 2025, 5:04 PM EST

Proud Boys' Enrique Tarrio arrives in Miami after being freed from prison

Enrique Tarrio, the former head of the Proud Boys, arrived in Florida one day after being freed from prison following Trump's sweeping Jan. 6 pardons.

He was seen embracing supporters at Miami International Airport.

Henry "Enrique" Tarrio, former national chairman of the Proud Boys, who was sentenced to 22 years, gestures as he arrives at Miami Airport after his release from prison, Jan. 22, 2025.
Giorgio Viera/Reuters

Tarrio was sentenced to 22 years for his conviction on seditious conspiracy. He'd received the longest sentence of all the convicted Jan. 6 rioters, though he was not at the Capitol that day.

Henry "Enrique" Tarrio is greeted by his mother Zuny Duarte as he arrives at Miami Airport after his release from prison, in Miami, Jan. 22, 2025.
Giorgio Viera/Reuters

Enrique Tarrio hugged by a supporter after arriving at Miami International Airport, Jan. 22, 2025, in Miami.
Marta Lavandier/AP

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