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Trump admin live updates: Trump pardons former entertainment exec indicted by own DOJ

Tim Leiweke was indicted for allegedly orchestrating a bid-rigging scheme.

Last Updated: December 4, 2025, 6:23 AM EST

President Donald Trump answered questions about a controversial Sept. 2 boat strike while in the Oval Office Wednesday afternoon. Trump, who said Tuesday that he "didn't know" about a second strike on an alleged drug boat in September that reports say killed two survivors of an initial strike, said Wednesday that he would be open to releasing more video of the boat strike.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that he didn't see the second strike and didn't see survivors from the initial strike. Hegseth has backed Adm. Mitch Bradley, who the White House said made the decision for the second strike. Bradley is set to brief the Senate and House Armed Services committees on the strikes on Thursday.

Dec 03, 2025, 10:06 AM EST

Fed chair interviews with finalists canceled after Trump says he's narrowed down to 1 person

The Trump administration canceled interviews scheduled to begin this week with a group of finalists for the next chair of the Federal Reserve, with President Donald Trump saying his team has narrowed the search and they now "have it down to one" candidate.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaks at the Economic Club of Chicago, April 16, 2025, in Chicago.
ABC News

The finalists were scheduled to sit down for an interview with Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday, a source familiar with the matter confirmed to ABC News. The source cited a scheduling conflict with Vance as the reason for the interviews being canceled, though it's unclear if and when the interviews will be rescheduled. The vice president's office declined to comment when asked about the canceled interviews.

In late October, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed there were five main contenders in running to replace current Fed Chair Jerome Powell -- whose term ends in May 2026 -- including White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, whom Trump has shown he favors for the job.

"I want to thank you all for being here. It's a great group and I guess a potential fed chair is here too," Trump said during a White House event on Tuesday afternoon. "I don't know, we allowed to say that, potential? He's a respected person that I can tell you. Thank you, Kevin."

ABC News has reached out to the White House for comment.

-ABC News' Hannah DemissieEditor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify the number of finalists who were going to be interviewed by Vance.

Dec 03, 2025, 6:14 AM EST

Trump to make announcement at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday

President Donald Trump was scheduled to make an announcement from the Oval Office at 2:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, the White House said.

President Donald Trump speaks as he leaves a Cabinet meeting, at the White House in Washington, D.C., Dec. 2, 2025.
Brian Snyder/Reuters

Further details about the announcement were not released.

-ABC News’ Isabella Murray

Dec 02, 2025, 7:33 PM EST

Oklahoma and Arkansas to send 260 Guardsmen to DC

The governors of Oklahoma and Arkansas will send a combined 260 National Guardsmen to Washington, D.C., after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last week vowed to bring 500 more to the District after the shooting of two Guard members.

A U.S. Army spokesperson said the number of Guardsmen in the city will begin to tick up over the next several weeks as they arrive, but there's no target date or deadline to reach 500 new troops.

National Guard patrol along the National Mall in front of the Capitol, Nov. 26, 2025, in Washington, D.C.
Rahmat Gul/AP

Oklahoma will send approximately 160 Guardsmen and Arkansas will send roughly 100, joining the 2,200 Guardsmen from eight other states and the District of Columbia.

Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said Tuesday that all 2,200 Guard members in D.C. are now armed and that the additional 500 will also be armed. She confirmed that the Guard in D.C. is now conducting joint patrols with D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department.

-ABC News’ Chris Boccia

Dec 02, 2025, 5:57 PM EST

Family of fisherman killed in US boat strike files human rights complaint

The family of the Colombian fisherman who was killed in the Sept. 15 U.S. military strike in the Caribbean Sea filed a formal complaint Tuesday with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights alleging the U.S. government illegally killed him.

"From numerous news reports, we know that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth was responsible for ordering the bombing of boats like those of Alejandro Carranza and the murder of all those on such boats," they wrote in their petition.

A screen grab from a video posted to social media by President Donald Trump, Sept. 15, 2025, of what he said was a U.S. military strike on a boat allegedly carrying drugs from Venezuela.
Donald J. Trump/Truth Social

"Secretary Hegseth has admitted that he gave such orders despite the fact that he did not know the identity of those being targeted for these bombings and extra-judicial killings," they added.

Carranza's lawyer Dan Kovalik said the fisherman's family "has no recourse to adequate and effective remedies in Colombia to obtain redress for the injuries they have suffered due to the actions of the United States."

Hegseth has maintained that the strikes are all legal and claims that the military has evidence that the boats were carrying drugs.

-ABC News' Laura Romero

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