President Trump

A couple of John McCain's biggest rivals -- the ones who respected him, anyway -- honored the late Senator at his National Memorial Service ... and so did his daughter, Meghan.

Former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush delivered eulogies for McCain at the service inside the Washington National Cathedral ... which was packed with dignitaries paying their final respects.

President Obama clearly was addressing Donald Trump without mentioning his name, talking about politics today being small, mean, petty and grounded in insult. He talked about "phony controversy" and "manufacturing outrage." And, as Ivanka Trump looked on, he talked about certain people appearing "brave and tough" when they are actually steeped in fear.

Check out Meghan McCain's eulogy to her dad ... she moves the audience to applause as she explains how the current President can't hold a candle to her dad. She doesn't use Trump's name, but the message is clear.

McCain handpicked 43 and 44 earlier this year as speakers at his funeral, and Obama was reportedly surprised by the invitation. Remember, Obama defeated McCain in their run for the White House in 2008 -- and W bested him in the 2000 Republican primaries.

Although they butted heads with McCain on the campaign trail, there was always respect between the men. McCain famously shut down a voter who called Obama "an Arab" during their 2008 campaign battle.

15 people carried McCain's coffin at the memorial service ... including former VP Joe Biden, actor Warren Beatty, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Secretary of Defense William Cohen.

Obviously President Trump was absent from the service -- as was his respect for an American war hero. McCain reportedly made Trump persona non grata when he was making his funeral plans. McCain's former running mate in 2008, Sarah Palin, was reportedly also excluded.

Veep Mike Pence and WH Chief of Staff Gen. John Kelly also attended.

Pence was one of the speakers at McCain's memorial service Friday, where Congress paid tribute as he lied in state at the U.S. Capitol.

McCain's private burial will be held Sunday at the Naval Academy in Annapolis.

Originally Published -- 9/01/2018 6:33 AM PDT

President Trump is defending the way he handled the death of Senator John McCain, saying he did "everything that they requested" and didn't bungle a damn thing.

The Prez sat down with Bloomberg News Thursday for an exclusive interview in the Oval Office, and reporters asked if he missed an opportunity to unite the country and made a mistake by initially not keeping the White House's American flag at half staff until McCain was buried -- an honor that's been bestowed on other senators who've died while in office.

You'll recall ... Trump ordered the flag be flown at half staff the day McCain died, but it was flying at full staff just a day later -- which pissed off A LOT of people, and reportedly caused a veterans group to personally demand that he lower it again out of respect.

Trump caved to the pressure, and eventually issued a statement praising McCain's service to the country after acting clammy at first with reporters who asked about the late statesman.

There's also this ... Bloomberg asked if he thought McCain would've made a better president than Barack Obama ... and DT refused to answer, saying "I don’t want to comment on it ... I have a very strong opinion, all right." Bloomberg notes that Sarah Huckabee Sanders was staring daggers at her boss while he said this, to which he reportedly joked that she was "having a nervous breakdown" over his response -- adding he might elaborate someday.

John McCain is finally getting his due respect from President Trump -- his body is being flown to Washington D.C. on an aircraft that had to be approved by POTUS.

The late Arizona senator's casket was loaded onto one of the jets known as Air Force 2 -- which is often designated for the VP or First Lady's travel. As you know, 45 will not be attending McCain's service in D.C. ... reportedly because McCain wanted it that way.

Still, Trump announced earlier this week he had greenlit military transport for McCain, saying, "At the request of the McCain family, I have also authorized military transportation of Senator McCain’s remains from Arizona to Washington, D.C., military pallbearers and band support, and a horse and caisson transport during the service at the United States Naval Academy."

Prior to the statement, Trump was being incredibly stubborn on publicly speaking about McCain's passing ... refusing to answer questions about the Senator, and even briefly returning the White House flag to full-staff. It was eventually lowered back to half-staff.

There was no love lost between Trump and McCain. Then-candidate Trump mocked McCain's military service, saying he was not a war hero because he'd been captured in Vietnam.

A memorial service was held for McCain Thursday in Arizona, where a lot of people spoke in remembrance of the political maverick ... including a teary-eyed Joe Biden. McCain will lie in state at the Capitol Rotunda Friday before another memorial service Saturday.

You scratch Donald Trump's back, he'll scratch yours ... just ask Jim Brown -- who was just praised publicly by the President days after the NFL player went to bat for Donald during a radio interview.

Brown told "JT The Brick" he's still "really pulling for the President" after meeting with POTUS at Trump Tower right after Trump won the election back in December 2016.

Brown also said he knows supporting Trump will make him unpopular in the black community but said he believes Trump is doing "good things."

Fast forward to Monday morning ... when Trump tweeted about his old friend.

"Thank you to the great [Jim Brown] perhaps the greatest running back of all time, for your wonderful words and support."

"Since our meeting in New York, African-American UNEMPLOYMENT has reached the LOWEST LEVEL IN HISTORY. You get it!"

Trump made no mention of the NFL kneelers in the tweet, but they also share the same point of view on that issue -- firmly against it.

Over the weekend, Brown met with another outspoken Trump supporter -- Kanye West.

In fact, Trump also praised Kanye and his wife, Kim Kardashian West, while speaking at a fundraising dinner in Ohio on Friday.

"Now we're doing great and Kanye West liked me and that really lifted my -- Kanye West has some real power!" Trump said.

"He's got a good wife too, in Kim, I'll tell ya. She really is."

Trump continued to hand out compliments to his athlete friends on Monday ... praising Tiger Woods' response to questions about his relationship with POTUS.

"The Fake News Media worked hard to get Tiger Woods to say something that he didn’t want to say. Tiger wouldn’t play the game - he is very smart," Trump tweeted.

Steven Tyler is done giving Donald Trump chances ... the Prez better stop using Aerosmith's songs at campaign rallies ... and that means now!

We got Steven and his GF Aimee Friday in Bev Hills, going into Optometrix, when our photog asked about his repeated demands that Trump stop using songs like "Livin' on the Edge" and "Dream On" at various campaign rallies.

Trump has ignored the demands, and clearly Steven has had it up to here. His lawyers fired off 2 cease and desist letters during the 2016 Presidential campaign as well.

Tyler's lawyers fired off a letter to Trump Wednesday, telling the Prez to cut the crap .. this after "Livin' on the Edge" was played Tuesday at a West Virginia rally.

Tyler tweeted ...

Kimberly Guilfoyle was once married to a major Democratic politician and now she's hooked up with a Trump ... so which party is more entertaining at a party?

We got the former FOX News anchor -- and Donald Trump Jr.'s gf -- in NYC Friday ... and it was all table talk. You may remember, she was once married to then-San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who's now the Democratic nominee for California Governor.

She used to spend Thanksgiving with some major Dems, including San Francisco Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, and that's why we wanted to dish on which family is the funnest when it comes to breaking bread.

Kimberly's answer -- well ... no surprise, it's political.

As for Kimberly and Trump Jr. ... the two have been tight lately, posing for Metropolitan Magazine. Kimberly got this month's cover.

We're told Guilfoyle was draped in close to $1 million in jewelry for the shoot, provided by jeweler David Birnbaum of Rare 1.

Anthony Scaramucci says Omarosa trying to burn President Trump with his own words is likely to backfire ... 'cause we've already been there and done that, and nothing happened.

We talked to the Mooch about Omarosa's supposed 200 secret White House tapes that she's been slowly leaking over the past couple weeks, and he just doesn't think there's anything she has that'll do serious damage to 45. Like he points out ... if the Access Hollywood tape couldn't bring Trump down, nothing probably will at this point.

Oh, and don't forget everything else Trump openly said or reportedly said over his near two-year presidency -- from calling African countries s**tholes and referring to NFL players as SOBs, to implying neo-Nazis are "very fine people," and, of course, calling LeBron James dumb ... there's a lot of controversial statements out there.

Tyron Woodley was so pissed off that he was forced to sit near Darren Till at UFC 227 -- he stormed out of his seat and ordered staff to open a room at the arena so he could release some of his aggression in an impromptu training session.

Woodley and Till are scheduled to fight at UFC 228 in Dallas on Sept. 8 -- but, Tyron says someone at UFC 227 in L.A. thought it would be "real cute to put two f**king dogs next to each other right before they're about to fight."

It didn't sit well with the champ -- and things erupted right inside Staples Center.

Tyron tells the whole story on this week's 'Hollywood Beatdown' -- where he also rips Donald Trump over his "blatantly racist" comments about Omarosa.

Ex-NFL lineman Willie Colon has a strategy for dealing with President Trump's personal attacks on his enemies -- "When they go low, we go high."

The former Steelers and Jets player was out in NYC (wearing a sweet NY Knicks shirt) when we asked for his thoughts on a possible tape of Trump saying the n-word.

"Nobody should use the n-word," Colon said ... "Let alone Trump!"

President Trump either didn't know his Chief of Staff fired Omarosa or he played dumb ... this according to newly released audio in which Trump tells her he had no idea she got the ax.

You hear Trump faintly express regret as Omarosa explains General John Kelly gave her walking papers the day before. Monday on "Today," she said the President is nothing more than Gen. Kelly's puppet.

Omarosa also secretly recorded her conversation with Kelly, who would not say if Trump knew he was firing her.

She told TMZ on Saturday ... she believed Trump was a racist who was trying to start a race war. Omarosa says she heard an audio of an outtake of 'The Apprentice' in which Trump allegedly used the n-word.

The White House has lashed out at Omarosa, saying she's a liar and a disgruntled former employee. Trump himself just lit into her, apparently in response to the new audio, saying she was "wacky" and "begged" him for the administration role.

Omarosa apparently knew what was coming when she got the ax from White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, because she recorded it all on her cellphone.

The Trump ally turned enemy was on "Meet the Press" Sunday, and played the tape. She says it proves stories that she had to be dragged out of The White House during that XMAS party in December, 2017 were false.

You hear Kelly tell Omarosa the firing can be done one of 2 ways ... the easy way or the hard way. He says if she chooses the later it will create difficulty with respect to her reputation.

Kelly also says he's firing her because of "serious integrity violations." He actually says more ... that the violation involves "money issues" and "legal issues" that could make it ugly for her. He says she'd be subject to legal action, but that wouldn't be necessary if she quietly exits.

BTW ... the audio does reveal how she exited.

Donald Trump's amateurish designs for potential Space Force logos are out-of-this-world bad ... so says the artist who created an older NASA logo.

Richard Danne -- the designer of a NASA logo from 1975 -- went off on Trump's Space Force artwork.

Danne ripped into the designs released by the Trump Administration ... telling TMZ, "This logo effort is typical of the present administration: impulsive, ill-advised, superficial, and second-rate."

Tell us how you really feel, Richard!!!

"A random student from the Los Angeles Art Center could put these logos to shame ... They are, in a word: sophomoric!"

Richard is peeved some of the Space Force designs were lifts from past NASA logos.

"The images are totally derivative from NASA graphics but are -- All flash and no substance, and comical really."

Donald Trump is not only a racist ... he's trying to start a race war -- so says his former White House counselor Omarosa ... and she also says lots of people were getting it on in the West Wing.

We got the newly-minted author Saturday at Reagan National Airport in D.C., and she wasn't mincing words. She thinks Trump's attack on LeBron James is part of a campaign to inflame the country and pit blacks against whites.

She hawks her book during the conversation, but drops some pretty salacious tidbits. She says there's someone in The White House with the nickname, White House Barbie.

Trump hated it ... but, Colin Kaepernick had nothing but love for Kenny Stills and other NFL players who demonstrated during the national anthem on Thursday night.

Stills -- along with his Miami Dolphins teammate, Albert Wilson -- took a knee before their preseason game against the Bucs on Thursday night. Kaep was watching and approved.

"My brother [Kenny Stills] continued his protest of systemic oppression tonight by taking a knee," Kaep wrote.

"Albert Wilson joined him in protest. Stay strong brothers!"

Kaep added this note about Stills -- "[He] was awarded the Miami Dolphins’ community service awards the last two years. He participates in a number of youth organizations and was a team captain last year."

President Trump's plan for an upcoming U.S. Space Force isn't just major news for the military ... it could be a huge windfall for beer and computer game producers too.

TMZ has learned the term "Space Force" has been quite popular, long before the Prez uttered the words for his proposed 6th branch of the military ... by makers of an arcade game, among others, that trademarked it in the '80s.

That game fizzled out and the trademark expired but, years later in 2014 ... a company filed paperwork for the rights to "SPACEFORCE" (one word) for online computer games and interactive educational games in the field of physics. According to the docs ... they've had the trademark on lockdown since 2015.

Then, after Trump first announced his Space Force idea in March, a shrewd business person jumped on the chance to own the rights to the name ... for beer.

According to legal docs, trademark paperwork for "Space Force" has also been filed as recently as June to make action figures and accessories.

Obviously, if these trademarks go through, the owners are set to benefit from the name recognition of the government's new military service ... which Mike Pence says will be created by 2020.

L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti had bigger things on his mind than removing Donald Trump's star from the Hollywood Walk of Fame ... but 2 things became clear -- he's not a fan of the star and he's running for President!

We got hizzoner Tuesday in the Silverlake area of L.A., and he tried deflecting our question about removing the star, talking instead about the need to blunt Trump's agenda by turning the House of Reps Democrat.

Garcetti finally weighed in and said the star should stay -- with an asterisk.