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.

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.

Jan 21, 2025, 7:37 PM EST

Trump says he pardoned Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht

Trump said he signed a "full and unconditional pardon" for Ross Ulbricht, who was sentenced to life in prison in 2015 for running the black market site Silk Road.

Ross Ulbricht, the creator of the website Silk Road, appears in an undated photograph made from his computer and presented as an exhibit during his 2015 criminal trial in New York federal court.
Southern District of New York/Handout via Reuters

"I just called the mother of Ross William Ulbright [sic] to let her know that in honor of her and the Libertarian Movement, which supported me so strongly, it was my pleasure to have just signed a full and unconditional pardon of her son, Ross," Trump said on Truth Social. "The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern day weaponization of government against me. He was given two life sentences, plus 40 years. Ridiculous!"

Ulbricht, who ran Silk Road between January 2011 and October 2013, was found guilty of allowing users to buy illegal drugs, guns and other unlawful goods anonymously. Prosecutors said the narcotics distributed through the site, which the FBI called the"Amazon of illegal drugs," were linked to the deaths of at least six people.

Jan 21, 2025, 7:06 PM EST

Trump looking at whether to 'turn off the tap' on weapons to Ukraine

When asked whether he will "turn off the tap" when it comes to sending weapons to Ukraine, Trump told reporters Tuesday that he is "looking at that."

"We're talking to Zelenskyy. We're going to be talking with President Putin very soon, and we'll see what, how it all happens," Trump said during a briefing in the Roosevelt Room.

Trump added that the European Union should be supporting Ukraine more, saying the war affects them more than the United States.

President Donald Trump stands after delivering remarks on AI infrastructure at the Roosevelt room at White House in Washington, D.C., Jan. 21, 2025.
Carlos Barria/Reuters

-ABC News' Hannah Demissie

Jan 21, 2025, 7:01 PM EST

Kash Patel hearing tentatively scheduled for Jan. 29

The Senate Judiciary Committee has tentatively scheduled a confirmation hearing for Kash Patel, Trump's nominee to be the FBI director, on Jan. 29, committee ranking member Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told reporters Tuesday.

Durbin stressed he will not be voting to advance Patel's nomination following an in-person meeting with the nominee and a reading of his book, "Government Gangsters."

"After meeting with him and doing this study, I've come to the conclusion that Kash Patel has neither the experience, the judgment or the temperament to serve as head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, to take on this awesome responsibility to keep America safe," Durbin said.

Kash Patel, President Donald Trump's pick to be the director of the FBI, speaks at the Capital One Arena in Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025.
Matt Rourke/AP

Durbin said he was also concerned with Patel's recounting of Jan. 6 during their meeting.

"His description of what happened in this Capitol building on Jan. 6 defies reality. I tried to pin him down on some of the things he said," Durbin said, noting that after Trump's pardons of the rioters on Monday, he didn’t know if the FBI would continue to track and monitor them -- particularly the ones who were recently released.

"He calls it a haphazard riot. What the hell is a haphazard riot? That's how he describes Jan. 6," Durbin said. "I said I was here. … Unfortunately for the law enforcement, there were a lot of injuries and some death."

-ABC News' Isabella Murray

Jan 21, 2025, 6:16 PM EST

Trump says he'll impose tariffs on the European Union

During his AI infrastructure announcement, Trump threatened to impose tariffs on the European Union, as he has done with Canada, China and Mexico.

"It's not just China. China is an abuser, but the European Union is very, very bad to us," Trump told reporters after the announcement. "They treat us very, very badly. They don't take our cars. They don't take our cars at all. They don't take our farm products. Essentially, they don't take very much. We have a $350 billion deficit with the European Union."

"They treat us very, very badly, so they're going to be in for tariffs."