Politics

President Trump got into the Christmas spirit the only way he knows how these days -- going on a tirade about Jeffrey Epstein.

The commander-in-chief jumped on Truth Social on Christmas Day and went on one of his famous rants, kicking things off by wishing everyone Merry Christmas. Directly after, he unleashed pure bile ... calling many of Epstein's close friends "Sleazebags," who dropped the late pedophile "like a dog" after things got too hot.

Trump pointed out the "Sleazebags" originally loved Epstein and gave him bundles of money and in return, traveled to his infamous island and kicked back at his parties ... believing he was the greatest guy. But when things became too twisted, Trump said the "Sleazebags" falsely claimed they had nothing to do with Epstein -- and even tried to pretend they didn't know him.

Good news, bad news for President Trump ... the bad news is the Kennedy Center Honors award show he hosted saw its TV ratings tank with him at the helm ... but the good news is this means he won't be quitting the presidency to become a full-time M.C.

The ratings are in for this weeks Kennedy Center Honors on CBS ... and it's bad.

Preliminary data from Nielsen shows CBS had "its smallest ever audience" for the Kennedy Center Honors with an estimated 2.65 million viewers ... a sharp, 35% decline from 2024 when the show had 4.1 million viewers.

Obviously, the big difference here is Trump ... he was the first first president to host the awards show.

Even though the people who run the world might seem all high and mighty, they're really just like us ... can you guess who this former politician is?

We ran into this ex-prime minister back in 2017 when he was spending a bit of time in Washington, D.C. ... and we asked him if he was hyped about the trailer for "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" -- and he seemed pretty stoked about it!

President Donald Trump's controversial name change of the renowned Kennedy Center has really ruffled some feathers ... a Christmas Eve jazz concert was cancelled in protest at the performing arts center.

Chuck Redd, the host of the Christmas Eve concert, told the Associated Press that he pulled the plug on the event because he was pissed Trump switched the venue's name from the John F. Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center.

Redd said, “When I saw the name change on the Kennedy Center website and then hours later on the building, I chose to cancel our concert.”

Mookie Betts spent some quality time with a former Commander in Chief last week ... 'cause TMZ has learned the Dodgers superstar teed it up with Barack Obama for a full round of golf in Southern California.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Mookie and Barack played 18 holes together last Tuesday at Lakeside Golf Club, the ultra exclusive, members only course in Burbank.

We're told multiple Secret Service agents were stationed around the course, with cops on motorcycles nearby to keep things secure while the two enjoyed their day on the green.

There's even more Epstein documents coming -- more than a million in fact ... that's according to a post Wednesday from the U.S. Department of Justice.

The DOJ reports the FBI and Attorney for the Southern District of New York have given them the new trove of documents to "review for release."

They wrote, "We have lawyers working around the clock to review and make the legally required redactions to protect victims, and we will release the documents as soon as possible. Due to the mass volume of material, this process may take a few more weeks. The Department will continue to fully comply with federal law and President Trump’s direction to release the files."

This new stockpile of files could contain names and images of celebrities never-before linked to Jeffrey Epstein.

A former Rhode Island mayoral candidate wasn't very diplomatic toward a cop during a recent traffic stop — calling the officer a "d--k" while dropping the ol', "Do you know who I am?" line.

It all started on December 18 ... Maria Bucci, the current chair of the Cranston Democratic City Committee, was pulled over by a police officer in East Greenwich, RI, and the situation quickly turned ugly.

Making matters worse, the officer switched on his bodycam, capturing every moment of Bucci's terrible attitude. As you can see, Bucci was difficult right from the start, making faces at the officer as he tells her she smells like booze and was driving erratically.

Bucci then told the cop to stop embarrassing her and her friend, who was with her. After the cop says he's just doing his job, Bucci did her, "Do you know who I am" routine.

The cop says he doesn't know her, and then warns her not to name drop because it's not going to work with him.

Kamala Harris may be testing a post-politics pivot ... swapping policy for pillow talk by dishing out advice to single women -- and getting a little cheeky on the campaign trail of love!

The former VP dropped her relationship wisdom on the "Rich Little Brokegirls" podcast Tuesday ... saying dating’s all about knowing your season, whether you’re voting for a wild Friday night situation or endorsing a wholesome Sunday-morning-coffee type deal.

The FBI purchased several armored BMW X5s at director Kash Patel's request this year, sources told MS Now ... an expensive break from the traditional fleet of armored vehicles used by U.S. officials.

A spokesperson for the FBI confirmed the news about the lawman's new vehicles and stated the bureau had been planning to acquire newer cars. The spokesperson also said the purchase would save taxpayers millions of dollars without providing documents regarding the cost of the cars.

Patel is the first FBI director to utilize armored BMWs, law enforcement personnel told MS Now. The government reportedly had a contract with General Motors to provide Chevrolet Suburbans for officials' use.

Patel reportedly requested the cars to make his travel less noticeable to the public. FBI directors have historically been transported in Suburbans -- and have been protected by security details.

An individual said to be close to Patel said buying a new armored Suburban would have cost the government $480,000 ... which is more than twice the cost of the BMW.

Patel also reportedly requested the FBI purchase a new jet for his use earlier this year, although the proposal ended up being dropped.

President Trump's name just came up in the Epstein Files in a huge way ... there's an FBI document where someone apparently told authorities Trump and Jeffrey Epstein raped a female.

The claim is part of an unclassified FBI intake form from October 2020 ... and the document says someone called the FBI National Threat Operations Center Unit to report potential information related to Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell.

In the intake report -- essentially a detailed summary of a tip received by FBI personnel from a civilian -- there's a redacted name that states "he raped me" in reference to Trump. A redacted name is also quoted as saying, "Donald J. Trump had raped her along with Jeffrey Epstein." The age of the alleged victim is unclear.

12:40 PM PT -- The DOJ has just released a statement on X that the FBI confirmed the letter from Jeffrey Epstein to Larry Nassar is "FAKE."

Jeffrey Epstein may have had a pedo pen pal in Larry Nassar ... and President Donald Trump is also in the mix as a lover of "nubile girls," according to new documents released by the Department of Justice.

The DOJ just dumped a new batch of Epstein Files, in which there's an August 2019 letter allegedly written by Epstein to Larry Nassar while both men were incarcerated in separate federal prisons.

Nassar had been convicted of sexually assaulting hundreds of young female gymnasts and sentenced to life behind bars. Epstein was awaiting trial at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in NYC for allegedly sex trafficking minors ... but he died by suicide the same month -- August 2019 -- he allegedly penned the missive to Nassar.

The letter opens, "We shared one thing ... our love & caring for young ladies and the hope they'd reach their full potential. Our president also shares our love of young, nubile girls."

Former Republican senator Ben Sasse publicly revealed he was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer last week in a lengthy message posted on X Tuesday morning.

Sasse didn't mince words while talking about the diagnosis ... describing it as a "death sentence," and adding he is "gonna die." The cancer has metastasized, already spreading to other parts of his body.

Sasse acknowledged he has "less time than I’d prefer" and admitted he is concerned about the future well-being of his family.

He added he wouldn't be "going down without a fight" and pointed to the advances in research into cancer treatment over the past few years as a sign of hope in his situation.

Sasse said his family has embraced "gallows humor" about the whole situation and wrote he'd have more to say about his health in the future.

Sasse's note was met with support from many of his former colleagues, as well as Vice President J.D. Vance, who replied he's "very sorry" to hear about the former senator's diagnosis.

President Trump is joking about leaving the White House to pursue a career as a "Master of Ceremony" ... and it's all got to do with tonight's Kennedy Center Honors broadcast.

Trump hosted the event a couple weeks ago, but it's going to air tonight ... and he hopped on social media hours before the broadcast with a funny question ... "If really good, would you like me to leave the Presidency in order to make 'hosting' a full time job?"

Half the country would take that trade in a heartbeat.

10:27 AM PT -- A rep for Kevin Spacey tells TMZ ... “The 2002 trip to Africa with President Clinton to support AIDS causes and meet Nelson Mandela remains a genuine highlight in Kevin’s life. The fact that the plane was owned by Jeffrey Epstein is immaterial considering it was three years before Epstein was ever investigated. Whatever wrongdoing may have been taking place in the background has nothing to do with Kevin, any more than a hotel guest is responsible for actions occurring in a neighboring room. Kevin never saw or spoke to Jeffrey Epstein or Ghislaine Maxwell ever again.”

Kevin Spacey -- who vehemently called for the release of the Epstein Files this summer -- has been included in the trove of pics just released today.

In the image released by the U.S. Department of Justice ... the "American Beauty" star leans on the back of a chair alongside Bill Clinton, appearing to be in mid-conversation. They're standing in a room before a conference table littered with pads and writing utensils, suggesting they're preparing for a meeting of some sort.

According to CNN, the pic was taken inside the Cabinet Room of the Churchill War Rooms -- which is an underground bunker in London.

Clinton reportedly took Epstein's private jet on a humanitarian trip to Africa with Spacey in 2002.

Amber Rose is riding hard for her girl Nicki Minaj -- backing her up on the political front and saying she flat-out doesn’t get why Nicki’s catching heat for supporting Donald Trump.

We caught up with Amber -- who’s been Team Trump for years -- and she tells us Nicki’s entitled to her own political views in a free country ... and as far as she’s concerned, Nicki did absolutely nothing wrong.

As for claims Nicki’s Trump support could alienate her LGBTQ+ fanbase, Amber shuts that down too -- saying she doesn’t get why people label the Trump administration as homophobic in the first place.

Donald Trump flew on Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet at least eight times ... according to an internal DOJ email written by an assistant U.S. attorney in January 2020.

The email -- which dropped in a new batch of Epstein docs Monday night -- says Trump was listed as a passenger on flights between 1993 and 1996, including at least four trips where Ghislaine Maxwell was also onboard.

One 1993 flight listed Trump and Epstein as the only passengers ... and another flight included just Epstein, Trump, and an unidentified person who was 20 years old at the time, according to the email. Marla Maples, Tiffany Trump and Eric Trump are also listed as passengers.