Trump news latest updates: President rebrands Pentagon to ‘Department of War’ as Hegseth promises ‘maximum lethality’

Newly retitled Secretary of War Pete Hegseth says during the signing of the rebranding of the Pentagon: “After winning a war for Independence in 1789, George Washington established the war department. This country won every major war after that. To include World War I and World War II. Total victory! 50 years after that, we changed the name. We haven’t won a major war since.”

He adds: “Maximum lethality, not tepid legality. Violent effect, not politically correct. We’re gonna raise up warriors. Not just defenders.”

If Trump thought he could neuter the Jeffrey Epstein scandal this week, he received an even worse present on the doorstep of the White House on Friday: a weak jobs report.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a triple barrel of bad news in its jobs report: First, it showed that the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3 percent. Second, the number showed that the U.S. economy added only 22,000 jobs, far below market expectations. Third, downward revisions from the June jobs report showed that for the first time since 2020, the U.S. economy had lost jobs, in this case losing 13,000 jobs.

But nothing can stave off the havoc that Trump’s tariffs will wreak on the economy. A look under the hood of the numbers today shows the economy is headed to a full-fledged heart attack.

Japan has reportedly agreed to an extraordinary deal with the U.S., allowing President Donald Trump to dictate the investment of $550 billion of its capital within American borders, according to an unpublished memorandum.

The agreement, detailed by The Financial Times, stipulates that Japan must fund projects designated by the president within a mere 45 days, or face the reintroduction of steep tariffs.

This unusual arrangement, signed on Thursday when the trade deal was officially enacted, underscores the significant pressure Washington’s trading partners are under to secure tariff concessions.

Japan, a key U.S. ally and the world’s fourth-largest economy, had previously faced a 25 percent tariff on its exports to the U.S. The new accord reportedly reduces this to 15 percent, with the investment clause acting as a critical condition.

South Korea and the European Union have also pledged huge investments in the U.S. as part of their tariff deals.

President Donald Trump on Friday criticized the European Union’s decision to fine Google $3.46 billion over antitrust concerns and threatened a broader trade investigation against the EU in response to the move.

“We cannot let this happen to brilliant and unprecedented American Ingenuity and, if it does, I will be forced to start a Section 301 proceeding to nullify the unfair penalties being charged to these Taxpaying American Companies,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Europe today “hit” another great American company, Google, with a $3.5 Billion Dollar fine, effectively taking money that would otherwise go to American Investments and Jobs. This is on top of the many other Fines and Taxes that have been issued against Google and other American Tech Companies, in particular. Very unfair, and the American Taxpayer will not stand for it! As I have said before, my Administration will NOT allow these discriminatory actions to stand. Apple, as an example, was forced to pay $17 Billion Dollars in a Fine that, in my opinion, should not have been charged — They should get their money back! We cannot let this happen to brilliant and unprecedented American Ingenuity and, if it does, I will be forced to start a Section 301 proceeding to nullify the unfair penalties being charged to these Taxpaying American Companies. Thank you for your attention to this matter!

Today’s immigration raid in Georgia targeted a battery plant under construction, a facility where Hyundai has partnered with LG Energy Solution to produce electric vehicle batteries.

Steven Schrank, the lead Georgia agent for Homeland Security Investigations, told reporters on Friday that some detained individuals worked for the battery manufacturer, while contractors and subcontractors employed others at the construction site.

Operations at Hyundai’s EV manufacturing plant were not interrupted, confirmed plant spokesperson Bianca Johnson. Hyundai Motor Company said in a statement on Friday it was “working to understand the specific circumstances” of the raid and detentions.

The company added: “As of today, it is our understanding that none of those detained is directly employed by Hyundai Motor Company.”

President Donald Trump is set to attend the US Open men’s final on Sunday, marking a return to the tournament for the first time in 10 years.

The White House has confirmed the visit and Trump will be the first sitting president to attend a US Open final since Bill Clinton in 2000.

The Independent’s Jamie Braidwood reports from New York: