Trump to attend Mar-a-Lago classified documents hearing as Fani Willis probe draws to close: Live

The full transcript of Hunter Biden’s evidence to House Republicans has been released, following his six-hour testimony held behind closed doors.

Read the full transcript here:

Eric Garcia reports from Capitol Hill:

After they got over the initial shock of McConnell’s announcement on Wednesday, the race to replace him – namely among the “Three Johns,” Senate Minority Whip John Thune, Senate Republican Conference Chairman John Barrasso and Senator John Cornyn of Texas – has begun at a quick pace. Friends of The Independent’s Inside Washington newsletter Stef Kight and Stephen Neukam at Axios reported that Trump wants National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Steve Daines of Montana to run for the job.

But Republicans expressed scepticism about Trump playing a role in replacing McConnell, his longtime nemesis.

On Wednesday, Cook County Circuit Judge Tracie Porter sided with voters who argued that the former president should be disqualified from the state’s 19 March primary ballot and the 5 November general election ballot for violating the anti-insurrection clause of the US Constitution’s 14th Amendment.

However, Judge Porter delayed her ruling from taking effect in light of an appeal by the former president.

Mike Bedigan has the story:

Both Mr Trump and President Joe Biden held duelling campaign trips to the southern border on Thursday in an attempt to seize the narrative around immigration.

The former president, speaking from Eagle Pass, Texas, wildly claimed that there were “millions of people from places unknown” coming into the US that “don’t speak languages”.

Eric Garcia reports from Capitol Hill:

Mr Raskin, the lead impeachment manager for Mr Trump’s impeachment trial in the Senate regarding Mr Trump’s incitement of the January 6 riot at the US Capitol, spoke to The Independent upon news Mr McConnell would step aside as Republican leader in November.

“I wish Senator McConnell had shown the courage of his convictions and his real sentiments,” Mr Raskin said.

The US Supreme Court will hear a case from Donald Trump after federal court judges rejected his “immunity” defense from criminal charges stemming from his attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

An order from the nation’s highest court on Wednesday comes after Mr Trump’s legal team argued in front of the justices for a separate case, one that challenges a Colorado court ruling that disqualifies him from 2024 ballots.

His attorneys will now be headed right back to court on 22 April for another major constitutional question over his “immunity” defence – smack in the middle of a primary election calendar and Mr Trump’s busy schedule of multiple criminal and civil cases.

Alex Woodward breaks down what’s happening:

On Wednesday, Circuit Judge Tracie Porter of Cook County issued a ruling in a challenge to Mr Trump’s eligibility which was brought by four Illinois voters and the organisation Free Speech For People.

Much like the near-identical lawsuits brought in other states, the group of voters claimed Mr Trump was ineligible to appear on the state’s primary ballot due to his actions leading up to and on January 6 2021 – a violation of Section Three of the 14th Amendment known as the “insurrection clause”.

The judge agreed and said the former president should not appear on the ballot.

Here’s what that means:

Alex Woodward has the details:

An appellate court judge in New York has partially rejected Donald Trump’s attempt to pause a $454m judgment against him as the former president navigates his appeal of a devastating ruling after a years-long fraud case.

State appellate judge Anil Singh on Wednesday denied Mr Trump’s request to halt enforcement of the monetary judgment against him, but the former president will still be allowed to direct his real estate empire and apply for loans.

Mr Trump must pay the full amount of the judgment or post bond to halt the ruling against him as he appeals the decision from New York Justice Arthur Engoron, but the former president and his co-defendants can now get financial help to do it.

Mark Meadows, Donald Trump’s former White House chief of staff, has seen his request that the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit consider his plea to have the Georgia election interference case against him moved to federal court turned down.

Mr Meadows put in a request in January for an en banc hearing on his bid to shift his case from state court to federal court, after his initial request was rejected by a three-judge panel led by Chief Judge William Pryor in December, but that too has now been denied.

A frustrated bench of defence attorneys for Donald Trump and his co-defendants in Georgia came up short in a hearing they hoped would extract bombshell evidence in their case to disqualify the district attorney’s office prosecuting them.

Instead, Terrence Bradley said he was only “speculating” about his knowledge of a relationship between Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and Nathan Wade, the prosecutor she hired to lead the sprawling election interference case against the former president and his allies.

Mr Wade’s former law partner – and former divorce attorney – was ordered to return to the witness stand on Tuesday after the judge overseeing the case determined that what he could say about their relationship was outside the bounds of attorney-client privilege.