Donald Trump: 10 things we learnt from US TV interview about his plans if he returns to White House

Published

2 years ago

September 17, 2023

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Donald Trump has faced questions on US television about his current legal woes and what he would do if he wins the presidency for a second time.

He is currently favourite to claim the Republican nomination and take on the Democrats in November 2024.

Here are 10 key takeaways from the wide-ranging Meet The Press interview on NBC.

1. Ukraine and how to end the war

Mr Trump did not spell out exactly how he would pursue the end of the war between Ukraine and Russia “because if I did… I lose all my bargaining chips”.

“But I would say certain things to [Vladimir] Putin. I would say certain things to [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy, both of whom I get along,” he added.

Asked if he would push for a deal that allowed the Russian president to keep Ukrainian territory, Trump said “no, no, no, no”.

“I’d make a fair deal for everybody,” he said.

2. Appreciation for Putin comment

Mr Trump expressed appreciation for a remark Putin recently made.

The Russian leader said: “We surely hear that Mr Trump says he will resolve all burning issues within several days, including the Ukrainian crisis. We cannot help but feel happy about it.”

In response, Mr Trump said: “Well, I like that he said that.

“Because that means what I’m saying is right. I would get him into a room. I’d get Zelenskyy into a room. Then I’d bring them together. And I’d have a deal worked out. I would get a deal worked out. It would’ve been a lot easier before it started.”

Mr Trump has long declined to overly-criticise Mr Putin, and in February 2022 he called the Ukraine invasion “genius” and “savvy”.

3. Trump won’t rule out sending troops to Taiwan if China invades

Mr Trump said the option of sending US forces to defend Taiwan against China remains open.

But he would not commit to this policy, unlike Democrat President Joe Biden.

“I won’t say. I won’t say,” Mr Trump said. “Because if I said, I’m giving away – you know, only stupid people are going to give that.”

“I don’t take anything off the table,” he added.

4. Trump is against full abortion bans

The former Republican president said members of his own party “speak very inarticulately” about abortion, and he criticised those who push for abortion bans without exceptions in cases of rape and incest, and to protect the health of the mother.

“I watch some of them without the exceptions,” he said.

“I said, ‘Other than certain parts of the country, you can’t – you’re not going to win on this issue. But you will win on this issue when you come up with the right number of weeks.”

He did not state what kind of legislation he would sign to ban abortion after a certain number of weeks – or if he prefers the issue be solved at the federal level rather than on a state-by-state basis – but he tried to portray himself as a dealmaker who could unite “both sides”.

5. Trump might pressure Fed to lower interest rates

He complained US interest rates were too high and indicated if he gets another term in office, he might pressure Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell to loosen monetary policy.

He said: “Interest rates are very high. They’re too high. People can’t buy homes. They can’t do anything. I mean, they can’t borrow money.”

Asked specifically whether he would try to strong-arm Mr Powell into lowering rates, Mr Trump said: “Depends where inflation is. But I would get inflation down.”

6. Trump likes democracy

Mr Trump claimed he still believes democracy is the most effective form of government – but added a key caveat.

“I do. I do. But it has to be a democracy that’s fair,” he said. “This democracy – I don’t consider us to have much of a democracy right now.”

He suggested US democracy was unfair because of the charges he faces for allegedly mishandling classified documents, trying to conceal hush money payments to women ahead of an election and attempting to overturn the 2020 election.

He added: “We need a media that’s free and fair. And frankly, if they don’t have that, it’s very, very hard to straighten out our country.”

7. Not afraid of going to jail

Despite facing four trials, Mr Trump said he’s not consumed with visions of prison.

“I don’t even think about it,” he said. “I’m built a little differently I guess, because I have had people come up to me and say, ‘How do you do it, sir? How do you do it?’ I don’t even think about it.”

He later said: “I truly feel that, in the end, we’re going to win.”

8. Doesn’t rule out pardoning himself

Trump declined to rule out pardoning himself if he becomes president again. But he called the scenario “very unlikely”.

“What, what did I do wrong? I didn’t do anything wrong,” Trump said. “You mean because I challenge an election, they want to put me in jail?”

9. What about pardoning January 6 rioters?

Mr Trump said he views the prison sentences given to some January 6 rioters following the attack on the US Congress in early 2021 as unfair.

“We have to treat people fairly,” he said.

“These people on January 6, they went – some of them never even went into the building, and they’re being given sentences of, you know, many years.”

Mr Trump was asked if he would pardon the imprisoned rioters.

“Well, I’m going to look at them, and I certainly might if I think it’s appropriate,” he said.

10. Trump says he won’t seek a third term should he win in 2024

Mr Trump was asked if there was any scenario in which he would seek a third term should he win the presidency next year.

“No,” he said, before criticising Republican rival Ron DeSantis, who has promoted his ability to serve two full terms rather than one.

The 22nd Amendment of the Constitution limits presidents to two four-year terms. That was enacted after former President Franklin Roosevelt was elected to four terms in office.

US

Obamas planned to see Reiners the night they were killed, says ex-US first lady

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2 hours ago

December 17, 2025

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Obamas planned to see Reiners the night they were killed, says ex-US first lady

Michelle Obama says she and husband Barack Obama were due to see director Rob Reiner and his photographer wife Michele Reiner the night they were killed.

The former US first lady has paid tribute to the couple, who were found stabbed to death in their Los Angeles home on Sunday night.

The Reiners’ son, Nick, 32, was arrested and will be charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the killing of his parents.

Speaking on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Ms Obama said of the Hollywood couple: “We’ve known them for many, many years, and we were supposed to be seeing them that night.”

Rob Reiner was active in politics, supporting liberal causes.

Ms Obama’s comments came after Donald Trump suggested the 78-year-old died because of his anti-Trump views.

He referred to the director as “tortured and struggling” and said he and his 68-year-old wife had died “reportedly due to the anger he caused” by opposing the Republican president.

Reiners were ‘not deranged’

Ms Obama said: “Let me just say this, unlike some people, Rob and Michele Reiner are some of the most decent, courageous people you ever want to know.

“They are not deranged or crazed. What they have always been are passionate people in a time when there’s not a lot of courage going on.”

The former first lady highlighted how caring the couple were; stating they cared about their family, country and fairness and equality.

In a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump suggested the Reiners died “reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding and incurable affliction with a mind crippling disease known as Trump derangement syndrome”.

“He was known to have driven people crazy by his raging obsession of President Donald J Trump, with his obvious paranoia reaching new heights as the Trump Administration surpassed all goals and expectations of greatness, and with the Golden Age of America upon us, perhaps like never before.”

Rob Reiner was known for directing some of the most-loved films of the 1980s and 1990s, including the rom-com When Harry Met Sally and the legal thriller A Few Good Men.

Tributes pour in

Former US presidents Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton as well as former US speaker Nancy Pelosi also paid tribute to the director.

Mr Obama added: “Beneath all of the stories he produced was a deep belief in the goodness of people – and a lifelong commitment to putting that belief into action.”

Among the other high-profile figures paying tribute was actress Jamie Lee Curtis, who played Reiner’s ex-wife in the hit comedy series New Girl. She said: “I will always remember them as they lived. Passionate. Political. Surrounded by family and friends.”

US actor Kevin Bacon, who starred in A Few Good Men, appeared emotional in a video he shared on Instagram, praising the director for giving him the role.

Bacon said: “The making of that movie was one of the best experiences that I’ve ever had on a set.

“It was a magical time. So, I’m just sending love to everybody that knew him, because I know that everyone’s hurting today.”

Reiner’s other films included The Princess Bride (1987), Ghosts Of Mississippi (1996) The Story Of Us (1999), The Magic Of Belle Isle (2012) and LBJ (2016).

Actress and activist Jane Fonda said she was “reeling with grief” in a post on Instagram, while Stephen King, whose books were adapted into Reiner’s 1986 Stand By Me and 1990’s Misery, said he was “horrified and saddened” by the death of the Reiners.

US

Doctor sentenced over Matthew Perry’s death

Published

2 hours ago

December 17, 2025

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Doctor sentenced over Matthew Perry's death

A doctor has been sentenced to eight months of home confinement over the fatal overdose of Friends star Matthew Perry after pleading guilty to a drugs charge.

Mark Chavez, whose sentence included three years of supervised release, addressed the judge on Tuesday, saying he had recently lost a loved one and understood the grief that Perry’s death caused.

“I just want to say my heart goes out to the Perry family,” he added.

Mr Chavez admitted to selling ketamine to another doctor, Salvador Plasencia, who supplied ketamine to Perry.

Plasencia contacted Chavez, 55, after learning that Perry, whose history of drug addiction was well documented, was interested in obtaining ketamine.

In text messages, Plasencia told Chavez – who previously ran a ketamine clinic – “I wonder how much this moron will pay” and “Lets [sic] find out”.

Chavez, who pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, admitted in his plea agreement to diverting ketamine from his former clinic to sell to Plasencia.

He also admitted to making false representations to a wholesale ketamine distributor in a bid to get more of the drug for Plasencia, submitting a bogus prescription in the name of a former patient without her knowledge or consent.

Plasencia was introduced to Perry in September 2023 by one of his patients, who described the actor as a “high profile person” willing to pay “cash and lots of thousands” for ketamine.

The same day they met, the doctor contacted Chavez, and drove to Costa Mesa to purchase $795 (£590) in ketamine vials and tablets, syringes, and gloves from him.

Plasencia then drove to Perry’s Los Angeles home, injected the star with ketamine, and left at least one more vial of ketamine with Perry’s assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, 60, who paid the doctor $4,500 (£3,350).

Plasencia is said to have distributed 20 vials and multiple tablets to Iwamasa and Perry, netting $57,000 (£42,500) from 30 September to 12 October, 2023, despite the going price of ketamine being roughly $15 (£11) per vial.

The 44-year-old was jailed for two-and-a-half years on 3 December after pleading guilty to four counts of distribution of ketamine, having already surrendered his California medical license.

However, he did not supply the dose that killed Perry, who was found drowned in his hot tub at home after taking ketamine in October 2023.

Iwamasa, 60, admitted to repeatedly injecting Perry with ketamine, despite having no medical training, including multiple times on the day he died.

He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death and will be sentenced in January.

Also charged is Erik Fleming, 54, who admitted in court documents that he supplied the ketamine that killed Perry, having distributed 50 vials to Iwamasa – half of them four days before Perry died.

He further stated he obtained the drug from 42-year-old Jasveen Sangha, a dual US-UK citizen, nicknamed the “Ketamine Queen”.

Fleming pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death.

Sangha pleaded guilty to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine, and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury.

They will be sentenced in January and February respectively.

Perry had been taking ketamine legally as a treatment for depression, but sought more of the drug and started taking it unsupervised in the weeks before his death, acquiring it illegally from different sources.

The actor starred in 10 seasons of Friends, from 1994 to 2004, alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer, as well as appearing in the 2021 reunion show.

US

Brown University shooting: New image and video released of ‘person of interest’

Published

2 hours ago

December 17, 2025

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Brown University shooting: New image and video released of 'person of interest'

Police investigating a deadly shooting at a US university have released a new image and video clips of a “person of interest”.

It comes as the manhunt for a gunman who killed two Brown University students and injured nine more in a classroom continued for a fourth day.

The shooting on Saturday afternoon unfolded on the first floor of the engineering and physics building while exams were taking place.

A law enforcement official said the attacker fired more than 40 rounds from a 9mm handgun in Providence, Rhode Island.

The new image showed a man dressed in dark clothing, wearing a black hat and face mask, walking down a street that day.

In all of the videos made public, the suspect’s face was either covered by a mask or turned away. He is described as stocky and about 5ft 8in (173cm) tall.

Authorities have released a video timeline showing the movements of the person of interest, including of him before the attack, in the hope that someone might recognise him.

The clips showed a man walking briskly, and at one point running, between 2pm and 3pm local time, along several different streets, about a block away from the building where the attack would later take place.

The shooting happened at 4.03pm, and another clip showed the same person from a distance walking from the building’s car park towards the street, even as police cars with flashing lights arrived at the scene.

The final clip showed the man walking along that street about three minutes after the shooting.

Authorities on Sunday released a man who had been detained in connection with the attack.

Police have said there was no clear video of the gunman from inside the building.

Attorney general Peter Neronha said there were cameras in the newer part but “fewer, if any, cameras” where the shooting happened “because it’s an older building”.

The attack and the gunman’s escape have sparked concerns about campus safety, including the absence of security cameras, and led to calls for improved door locks.

More details about victims emerge

The students who were killed were Ella Cook, a 19-year-old sophomore from Birmingham, Alabama, and MukhammadAziz Umurzokov, an 18-year-old freshman from Brandermill, Virginia.

Ms Cook was vice president of the College Republicans club at Brown University and Mr Umurzokov, whose family came to the US from Uzbekistan when he was a child, was an aspiring neurosurgeon.

The Reverend R Craig Smalley described Ms Cook as “an incredibly grounded, faithful, bright light” who encouraged and “lifted up those around her”.

In a GoFundMe post, Mr Umurzokov’s family described him as “incredibly kind, funny, and smart”.

“He always lent a helping hand to anyone in need without hesitation, and was the most kind-hearted person our family knew,” they said.