Ben Carson responds to rumors about rejoining the Trump administration
Ben Carson broke his silence around rumors of him joining the second Trump administration as the U.S. surgeon general on Sunday, but noted that he plans to speak with President-elect Donald Trump soon.
Carson, who served as the secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) from 2017 to 2021 during the first Trump administration, dispelled the false reports in an X post on Sunday.
“I am excited to speak with President Trump about how I will continue to advance the America First agenda, and I am meeting with him in the near future,” the retired neurosurgeon wrote.
“However, contrary to reports, I will not be serving as the Surgeon General.”
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Carson has been a vocal critic of the Biden administration and a staunch supporter of Trump. After the Republican leader won the Nov. 5 election in a landslide victory, Carson shared his congratulations.
“Congratulations to my good friend and the next President of the United States, @realdonaldtrump!!” Carson’s post reads. “As I said earlier today, God is not done with our country. Let’s get to work.”
The U.S. surgeon general is not a Cabinet-level position but is still a high-ranking role that serves as the head of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. The position is within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
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“The U.S. Surgeon General is the Nation’s Doctor, providing Americans with the best scientific information available on how to improve their health and reduce the risk of illness and injury,” the HHS’s website explains. “The Surgeon General oversees the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps, an elite group of over 6,000 uniformed officers who are public health professionals.”
Carson’s comments come as several positions in Trump’s incoming Cabinet are still up for grabs, including secretary of transportation, secretary of commerce and secretary of the treasury.
Trump also has yet to announce his picks for HUD secretary, secretary of agriculture and secretary of education.
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Trump most recently announced on Saturday that Liberty Energy CEO Chris Wright will join his Cabinet as secretary of energy. He called Wright “a leading technologist and entrepreneur in energy.”
MSNBC host paints a bleak picture for Dems after Trump’s sweeping victory
MSNBC host Jen Psaki said the Democratic Party is lost in the “wilderness” and without a leader after Kamala Harris’ stunning defeat to President-elect Donald Trump.
In an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday, Psaki was asked how Democrats regain their footing and begin to “chart their path forward” after losing the White House, Senate and House of Representatives.
“Look, I think Democrats are in the wilderness, as you just said before, there is no clear leader of the party. Joe Biden is going to be out of office shortly. Kamala Harris just lost the election. There are a lot of governors and other people who might emerge maybe that we don’t know about yet, but there is no clear leader of the party right now,” she said.
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The former White House press secretary said Harris’ loss offers an opportunity for emerging Democratic leaders to “seize the mantle” and take charge of a party still reeling from a series of devastating election defeats.
“That, to me is an opportunity because people have to decide. Nobody’s given it, right. You seize the mantle, or you don’t,” Psaki said. “Are you going to be the person who decides who’s the right person to stand up against Trump? Or are you going to be the person who brings the country together? Are you going to be the person who talks about the economy and in ways that people understand? There are lots of ways to do it. I don’t know who’s going to emerge, but that’s the moment we’re in right now.”
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Democrats continue to point fingers and play the blame game in their post-election analysis of why Harris lost. In a recent appearance on MSNBC, Psaki blamed the party for over-relying on “never-Trump” Republicans, arguing that they should’ve made more of an effort to reach disaffected Democratic voters.
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She also blamed Democrats for a “huge misread” on how important the abortion issue was to millions of Americans in the country who ended up voting for Trump and urged her party to be “sober about” the reality that many voters who traditionally supported Democrats didn’t turn out to support Harris on Election Day.
Fans puzzled as NFL star’s media session ended after responding to Trump question
Las Vegas Raiders’ Brock Bowers spoke Sunday night about the President-elect Donald Trump-inspired touchdown celebration he did against the Miami Dolphins.
Bowers caught a touchdown pass late in the third quarter from Gardner Minshew II. He was seen on the broadcast busting a move as the touchdown helped cut their deficit to five points.
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Miami scored 17 points in the fourth quarter and won the game, 34-19.
“I’ve seen everyone do it,” Bowers said, per USA Today. “I watched the UFC fight last night and Jon Jones did it. I like watching UFC, so I saw it and thought it was cool.”
After the question was asked, USA Today reported that the team ended his media availability.
The decision to end the availability raised eyebrows.
Athletes performing Trump’s dance were seen across the NFL on Sunday. Calvin Ridley and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine of the Tennessee Titans and Za’Darius Smith and Malcolm Rodriguez of the Detroit Lions also did the move.
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UFC star Jon Jones set social media on fire when he did it after knocking out Stipe Miocic at UFC 309. Trump was cage-side for the fight.
San Francisco 49eres defensive end Nick Bosa started doing the dance move last week after he sacked Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield. Bosa’s teammates joined him.
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“I think you know the answer to that question,” Bosa said, per the San Francisco Chronicle. “All the guys wanted me to do it. I wasn’t even going to do it, but the boys reminded me. And it was fun.”
China’s Xi sends message to incoming Trump admin during meeting with Biden
Chinese President Xi Jinping told President Biden on Saturday that he will work with the incoming administration of President-elect Trump, as the two current leaders spoke on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Lima, Peru.
The meeting between Biden and Xi marked the first time in seven months the two had spoken, Reuters reported, and may be the last time the two meet on conflicts from cybercrime to trade, Taiwan, the South China Sea and Russia before Trump returns to the Oval Office in January 2025.
Xi told Biden, “China’s goal of a stable, healthy and sustainable China-U.S. relationship remains unchanged,” acknowledging the “ups and downs” between the two countries.
“China is ready to work with the new U.S. administration to maintain communication, expand cooperation and manage differences,” Xi said.
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Biden told Xi that maintaining leader-to-leader talks will be vital after Biden leaves office, according to national security adviser Jake Sullivan, who was seen sitting next to Biden during the meeting.
He also acknowledged to the Chinese leader that while the two of them may not have always agreed, their discussions have been “frank” and “candid.”
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China and other members of the G-20 will likely brace for a reboot of Trump’s “America First” policy, placing a heavy emphasis on higher tariffs. Trump famously launched a trade war with China in his first term in 2018, raising tariffs up to 25% on steel, aluminum and other Chinese-made products. China responded with reciprocal tariffs against the U.S. Trump promised to raise tariffs up to 60% on Chinese imports while running for president, although it’s unclear if he would actually go that high.
Biden has aimed to lessen tensions with China, but during his meeting with Xi on Saturday, there appeared to be few signs of breakthroughs on the major issues.
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Still, the two agreed that humans, not artificial intelligence, should make the ultimate decisions when it comes to the use of nuclear weapons, the White House noted, marking the first time the two countries have raised the issue.
Biden and Xi also talked about China’s ally, North Korea, which is deepening ties with Russia and even deployed troops in Moscow’s war with Ukraine. The move has raised concerns not just with Washington, but also with European capitals and Beijing.
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“President Biden pointed out that the (People’s Republic of China’s) publicly stated position with respect to the war in Ukraine is there should be no escalation, no broadening the conflict, and the introduction of (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) troops runs foursquare against that,” Sullivan said. “He also pointed out that the PRC does have influence and capacity, and should use it to try to prevent a further escalation or further expansion of the conflict with the introduction of even more DPRK forces.”
Meet the mystery man sitting next to President-elect Trump at UFC fight
President-elect Trump returned to Madison Square Garden for the UFC fight on Saturday night in a massive way, with Elon Musk, Kid Rock, RFK Jr., Tulsi Gabbard, House Speaker Mike Johnson and the fighting organization’s president, Dana White, in tow, while also being spotted sitting next to a major player from Saudi Arabia.
In video circulating from the event, Trump was seen conversing with the head of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), Yasir Al-Rumayyan, as Musk and others were talking and watching the fights.
Trump’s transition team did not respond to Fox News Digital’s inquiry into the matter.
The PIF is the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, which is controlled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and governed by Al-Rumayyan. According to Reuters, the PIF was estimated to have about $925 billion in assets in July.
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Along with his involvement in the PIF, Al-Rumayyan chairs Saudi Aramco, the state-owned petroleum company, as well as the country’s largest mining company, Maaden. He is also the chairman of the English Premier’s Newcastle United Football Club.
Last year, the PGA, DP World Tour and the PIF, which backs LIV Golf, announced a deal to “unify the game of golf, on a global basis.” The announcement came nearly 15 months after LIV Golf unveiled its first series, and about a year after its first tournament.
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The deal also signaled that a dispute between the PGA Tour, the European tour and LIV Golf would be ending.
The PIF, which has been criticized in connection to human rights, will have investment exclusivity rights for the combined golf entity, something the three groups said included “a right of first refusal on any capital that may be invested in the new entity, including into the PGA TOUR, LIV Golf and DP World Tour.” The new group will also get capital from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund.
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Oversight of “commercial operations, businesses and investments” at the new golf giant will fall to the board of directors whose full slate will be revealed “at a later date,” the three entities said. The release indicated that a majority of its members will be picked by the PGA Tour, which will also get a majority voting interest.
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In the new entity, PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan will serve as the CEO while Al-Rumayyan will take on the chairman position. Those two will also sit on the board’s executive committee.
President-elect Trump announces his pick for chairman of the FCC
President-elect Trump announced on Sunday that he has picked Brendan Carr to serve as Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) starting in January.
Carr, who is currently the senior Republican member of the FCC, was first nominated to the commission by Trump in 2017. In a statement released on Sunday night, Trump commended Carr and noted that he had “been confirmed unanimously by the United States Senate three times.”
“His current term runs through 2029 and, because of his great work, I will now be designating him as permanent Chairman,” Trump wrote.
The Republican leader went on to call Carr “a warrior for Free Speech” who has “fought against the regulatory Lawfare that has stifled Americans’ Freedoms, and held back our Economy.”
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“He will end the regulatory onslaught that has been crippling America’s Job Creators and Innovators, and ensure that the FCC delivers for rural America,” Trump added.
“Congratulations to Chairman Brendan Carr on a job well done,” the president-elect’s statement concluded. “Lead us into a great future, Brendan!”
In an X post on Sunday, Carr thanked Trump and wrote that he is “humbled and honored to serve as Chairman of the FCC.”
Carr recently made national headlines after he ripped the “Saturday Night Live” cast for platforming Kamala Harris as a guest without inviting Trump, which violates FCC rules.
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“NBC has structured this in a way that’s plainly designed to evade the FCC’s rules,” the official said shortly after the episode aired. “We’re talking 50 hours before Election Day starts, without any notice to other candidates, as far as I can tell.”
Carr later told Fox News Digital that the Harris appearance “[made] clear that [“SNL”] wanted to weigh-in in favor of one candidate before the election.”
“That’s exactly why, for decades, we’ve had an equal time rule on the book, is to prevent that,” the Republican explained. “Because remember, broadcasters are placed in a special position of trust. They’re not just like any other person with a soapbox on the corner. They have a license from the federal government that obligates them to operate in the public interest.”
Earlier in November, the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) urged Trump to appoint Carr as the next FCC chairman, calling him a “great partner to the men and women in law enforcement.”
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“Commissioner Carr has more than 20 years of private and public sector expertise in communications and technology policy as well as a deep institutional knowledge of the FCC,” Patrick Yoes, national president of the FOP, wrote in a letter. “He would make an outstanding FCC Chairman who will ensure the United States continues to lead the world in telecommunications advancements and innovations.”
Lions players perform Trump dance amid blowout win over Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars had no answer for the Detroit Lions on Sunday as the NFC North team scored and danced all over their AFC South opponents in the 52-6 victory.
The Lions absolutely shut down Mac Jones and the Jaguars’ offense. Jack Campbell and Za’Darius Smith had a half-sack each and Kerby Joseph had an interception.
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After Smith got to Jones in the fourth quarter, he and Malcolm Rodriguez each took a golf swing and busted out President-elect Donald Trump’s dance move that had been seen across multiple sporting events over the weekend.
There was a lot to be happy about for Detroit. The Lions piled on 28 points by halftime and 24 points in the second half.
Lions quarterback Jared Goff had 412 passing yards and four touchdown passes in the win. Two of the touchdown passes went to Amon-Ra St. Brown. The wide receiver had 11 catches for 161 yards. Jameson Williams had four catches for 124 yards and a touchdown. Brock Wright caught the other touchdown pass.
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Detroit totaled 196 rushing yards as a team.
David Montgomery had 75 rushing yards – leading the team – and scored twice. Jahmyr Gibbs had 69 yards on 11 carries and scored a touchdown. Goff even had 21 rushing yards on four carries.
The Lions moved to 9-1. In a tightly packed division, every win is meaningful.
Jacksonville fell to 2-9 on the season. Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence sat out with a shoulder injury.
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It was the second time Detroit has scored at least 50 points in a game this season and the fourth time they’ve scored at least 31 points. They have one of the best offenses in the NFL and are on pace for a top seed in the NFC playoffs.