President Trump

Trae Young with the assist!!!

The Atlanta Hawks superstar did a VERY cool thing on Friday -- splurging for lunch for the people counting ballots at State Farm Arena ... and they couldn't be happier about it!

The 22-year-old NBA sensation's rep hit up Jason's Deli in midtown Atlanta -- and told the crew Young wanted to do something nice for everyone helping out with the election process.

Young ended up buying 50 boardroom box lunches -- complete with sandwiches, chips, a pickle and a cookie. He also sprung for extra fruit side items for all. Way to keep it healthy!

Total cost -- $670 plus a nice 20% tip.

Obviously, Young can afford it -- he's super-rich, but this is more about the gesture than the price.

The Fulton County election workers were stoked when the food arrived with a note from Young that read, "Thanks for all you do!"

Fulton County thanked Young and the ATL Hawks -- noting the NBA team has "supported us throughout this election process."

There's a ton of pressure on the election workers in ATL right now -- as the votes in that area are playing a pivotal role in the presidential election.

Vivica A. Fox says Joe Biden's running circles around Donald Trump when it comes to being a true leader ... and he's not even officially the president-elect yet.

We got Vivica at LAX Thursday and she told our photog she's liking what she's seeing and hearing from Biden and Sen. Kamala Harris.

Vivica says it's refreshing to see Biden acting like a true president by doing his part to help the country remain calm as folks wait on edge for ballots to be counted and a winner declared.

Biden and Harris received briefings on the coronavirus pandemic and economy Thursday while votes were still being tabulated in key states like Arizona, Nevada, Georgia and Pennsylvania, with Biden preaching patience and assuring the public our democracy is still working, albeit slow and steady.

Vivica says it's a welcome change of pace after 4 years of Trump, who by the way, kept claiming the pandemic would magically disappear after the election. The opposite's happening -- infections are skyrocketing.

The Presidential race is still undecided, but we DO have one clear Election Day winner ... and that's the pizza industry!

According to GrubHub ... 5 of its top 8 most popular items ordered Tuesday were pizzas, and another one was a pizza-adjacent appetizer -- garlic knots with marinara.

The popular food delivery app tells TMZ its most popular food item -- based on how much more it was ordered -- was the soppressata piccante pizza. That menu item saw a whopping 202% increase compared to other Tuesdays in October.

Right behind that was Nutella pizza -- which was 192% more popular -- followed by the first non-pizza food ... meatball sliders at 181%.

Rounding out the top 8 was burrata pizza, the aforementioned garlic knots, vegan cheese pizza, loaded curly fries and finally another pizza ... Sicilian.

Every good meal needs a stiff drink, and a margarita on the rocks actually ranked right behind the burrata pizza as one of GrubHub's most-ordered items ... with a 144% increase in popularity. Impressive, but Tres de Noviembre just doesn't roll off the tongue like Cinco de Mayo

Many folks opted for an even stiffer drink ... as the old-fashioned cocktail also saw a 121% rise on Election Day. We're guessing those were ordered late in the evening as the results started tightening up.

Those who had room after pizza and booze did order dessert -- tiramisu orders spiked 181% during dinner hours.

Donald Trump was on a tear Thursday, grousing that he's somehow being cheated in the election, but he offered no evidence to support his claim ... and he said he'll fight it in court ... specifically, the Supreme Court.

Trump spoke at The White House, saying if you count what he calls "the legal votes" then he wins. Translation -- he thinks the absentee votes are illegal. It obviously makes no sense, because mail-in ballots are every bit as legal as ballots cast at polling places.

He got all David Copperfield, musing how his early lead could "magically" evaporate.

And then, Trump set his sights on the polls, which he rightly said were ridiculously off. Trump suggested it was all rigged to keep his supporters away from the polls and potential donors away from their wallets. He says it's "polling suppression."

He attacked the states where he's losing, calling them corrupt ... especially Pennsylvania.

As for going to the Supreme Court ... as you know his latest justice could be a swing vote. Just 2 weeks ago, the Court ruled 4-4 on a voting issue. Amy Coney Barrett will be the 5th vote. The real issue ... Trump has no proof and therefore no case of illegal voting.

April Ryan views the divide between voters as a warning that more and more of us simply can't agree on what America's true nature is, or said another way -- who the hell are we???

The White House correspondent and CNN contributor joined us on "TMZ Live" Wednesday and we asked her what the nearly 50-50 split in votes for President Trump and Joe Biden says about who we are as a country.

April says she is concerned about intense rhetoric from Trump, and others, about liberating states, Black Lives Matter, and armed protesters at ballot counting centers. She says the fact storefronts were boarded up before Election Day shows where we are as a nation.

What's more, April says a lot of her friends voted for Trump ... and she's sad they don't seem to be moved by what another 4 years of Trump might mean for her as a Black woman.

Translation: Where's our compassion and empathy?

April says she can relate to Cedric The Entertainer, who told us he has some buddies who support Trump while turning a blind eye to Trump's inflammatory comments about race.

Americans had Canada on the mind with the fate of the presidential election hanging in the balance, thinking about moving there when it looked like Trump might get re-elected.

Folks in the States rushed to a Canadian government website on Election Night, boning up on immigration and pathways to citizenship, with the site seeing a 300% boost in traffic from the United States ... TMZ has learned.

People logged onto the web and found their way to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada's page, with the first wave arriving around 7 PM ET on Election Night, when the polls started closing.

With Trump and Biden duking it out for Electoral College votes deep into the night, Americans kept researching a move to Canada. The increase in visits to the IRCC site continued into Wednesday morning, with no clear White House winner in sight and Trump sowing doubt about election results.

Americans, whether they were window shopping or dead serious, were greeted with loads of information on how to apply for permanent resident status in Canada and ultimately become a Canadian citizen.

In short, a permanent resident is someone who immigrates to Canada but is not a citizen ... and folks who want to become Canadian citizens must first be permanent residents, live in Canada for 3 out of the last 5 years, file taxes, pass a citizenship test and prove language skills.

Yeah, that's a lot of hoops to jump through just because of an election.

In addition to your Average Joe, celebs have been threatening to move out of the country if Trump got 4 more years.

Remember ... George Lopez said "we'll all go back," Amy Schumer was ready to pack her bags for Spain, Cher said she'd move to Jupiter and Tommy Lee had his eyes on Greece.

People who voted for 4 more years of Donald Trump are racists, even if they don't realize it yet ... at least that's activist Marc Lamont Hill's take on the election results.

Marc joined us on "TMZ Live" Wednesday and made a statement many will find controversial about people who marked their ballots for Trump. He says some of those voters are just racist, but he adds ... others who don't see themselves as racist, should take a harder look.

The way Marc sees things ... it's one thing to look at the candidates and think they're all racist and make the best choice you can. But, for the BET host, it's an entirely different ballgame when you knowingly select the guy who defended white nationalists and wouldn't denounce folks like David Duke.

Marc says if you prioritized tax rates and a stimulus check over racism, then racism clearly just isn't a big deal to you. He suggests it's something with which Trump supporters just need to come to grips.

Votes are still being counted, but Trump's already approaching 67 million votes, and MLH says those numbers are alarming if you're Black.

Offset's got an appetite to help people exercising their Constitutional right ... by hooking them up with free grub.

The Migos rapper hit up 3 polling locations Tuesday in Gwinnett and Fulton counties with some major back-up -- food trucks from The Slutty Vegan and Big Dave's ... a couple of ATL staples famous for their cheesesteaks.

Offset partnered with The Lincoln Project and AXSD Media to feed folks in line waiting to cast their vote ... helping to ensure turnout is maximized for what could be the most consequential election ever.

Offset got on the back of a truck, grabbed a bullhorn and talked about his excitement in voting for the first time ever.

Offset dove headfirst into the election following an informative roundtable discussion last weekend with T.I. and activists Lee Merritt and Bakari Sellers. They discussed, among other things, the importance of Black male voters encouraging each other to turn out the vote.

If ya can feed people who show up to vote ... major bonus!

Lil Pump is blocking out haters who don't like his political views ... he's focusing on what 4 more years of President Trump means for him, and he's loving it!!!

We got the rapper pulling up to Trump's Washington D.C. hotel on Election Day in a red Ferrari, and he's feeling super confident about the Prez winning re-election.

Lil Pump's been catching tons of flak since endorsing Trump, seemingly because of not wanting to pay more in taxes under Joe Biden, but he told us he's ignoring the noise, and couldn't care less what critics have to say.

As you know ... Trump brought Lil Pump up on stage Monday night at his final campaign stop in Grand Rapids, MI, where 45 called the rapper "Little Pimp." Faux pas aside, Pump says he had an "amazing" time on the campaign trail, and even envisions a future in politics.

Attorney General Bill Barr doesn't seem to be on edge like most of the country -- he looks pretty chill after lunch ... and he believes Americans will be chill on election night too.

We got AG Barr leaving the Capital Grille in D.C. Tuesday afternoon, and he tells us he just chowed down on a steak. He looks pretty happy about his meal choice.

The head of the U.S. Department of Justice also tells us he's confident things will remain peaceful as votes are tallied in the 2020 presidential election ... despite the fact the federal government has spent millions on security in anticipation of violence.

As we've reported ... businesses in D.C. and other major cities from coast-to-coast have also been boarding up all week in fear of unrest, regardless of the election results.

Even apartment complexes and banks have sent letters to their residents and customers warning them of potential ugliness due to the contentious election, but as you can see ... Bill's not visibly sweating it.

A woman was accosted and harassed by a bevy of Trump supporters ... and her pleas to cops to do something -- after someone allegedly sprayed bear mace at her -- seem to have fallen on deaf ears.

Erika Harris recorded her run-in with the pro-President Trump group Sunday night in Bakersfield, CA ... where she says several of their vehicles blocked her from leaving a parking lot.

As you can see, the angry crowd approached her car and demanded she get out while calling her vulgar names. You even hear one man call her the n-word.

As Harris got outside of her vehicle, she was confronted by a woman who appeared to try to take her phone. Another man appeared to be armed, but took off his weapons and gear ... as he told her to "come get it."

At one point in the video, a man's seen spraying something into her car. She accuses him of spraying her and others with bear mace. When officers showed up, Harris told them about the mace, but none seemed eager to help. One said no crime was committed, and after a sardonic exchange ... simply walked away.

Harris claims the pro-Trump folks have been protesting in her town for the past month, and she decided to set up a Black Lives Matter counter-protest nearby.

Imagine opening up Hinge, Tinder or Grindr and the other person's opening line being ... who ya voting for? That's exactly what's happening ... especially in battleground states.

Tons of people are reportedly flooding to those datings apps to get users to the polls -- and that's not a euphemism. Specifically, Hinge users/poll pushers are changing their geolocations to battleground states like Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Michigan, Texas and Arizona.

Once there, users set up their profile and do what they can to attract a match ... going as far as posting tons of pictures with furry animals, for example. Once they match, they talk voting and ask if they've settled on a presidential candidate yet. According to CNN ... users reportedly try to persuade undecided voters to Joe Biden but they also respect those who have settled on President Trump.

Some people have called this operation #DateSaveAmerica ... and while some users told CNN they've lucked out and had meaningful conversations about the election, others have said they were turned off when the convo turned to politics.

It's not the first time dating apps have turned political. Back in 2018, the Washington Post reported Tinder users had a similar plan for the midterm elections.

Forget absentee ballots, some wealthy folks will hop on private jets this Election Day to make sure their voices are heard in the battleground states they call home.

Here's the deal ... honchos at evoJets, an aviation company specializing in private charters, tells us they've got several clients booking flights to their primary residences on Election Day, specifically to vote.

We're told these affluent voters have been living in their second homes during the pandemic -- oh, the horror -- and they're booking same-day round-trip flights ferrying them to key battleground states.

Among the itineraries -- private travel from California to Florida, Colorado to Pennsylvania and Wyoming to Ohio. The folks on those flights told evoJets they're going home just to cast ballots. Then they're getting the hell outta Dodge.

Company big wigs say they don't recall this happening during the 2016 election, and the common denominator here, at least to them, seems to be wealthy clients transplanted due to the pandemic.

Meanwhile, Paramount Business Jets CEO Richard Zaher tells us his company, a brokerage with access to over 15,000 private planes, says private air travel is up 100% for flights between Nov. 1-3, compared to last year.

It's interesting ... Zaher says a third of those flights are bound for international destinations. Leaving the U.S. might be smart, people here are getting ready for s*** to hit the fan come Election Night and an asteroid is hurtling towards the country.

The #FakeMelania conspiracy theory is having real-world effects on hard-working folks ... Melania Trump impersonators tell us their well's run dry.

Here's the deal ... lots of people book well-paying gigs dressing up like Melania, President Trump and other political figures at parties and events during elections, but First Lady impersonators tell us the conspiracy, political climate and COVID changed everything.

Michele Marzano, who charges $1,000 to show up looking like Melania, Madonna or Sarah Palin, tells TMZ ... she hasn't fielded a single request to be Melania during the 2020 election, a stark contrast from 2016, when she was hired to dress like Melania at least 10 times.

Michele says people seem to have lost their sense of humor ... which definitely checks out in 2020. She thinks COVID is part of it -- fewer events, in general --but also gets the feeling even Trump supporters don't think Melania's funny right now.

"Anonymously Famous" author and Melania look-alike Mira Tzur says lots of folks have been asking if she's Melania's alleged body double, her family included. She says she's not, and adds she's not getting asked to dress like the First Lady at all.

The way Mira sees it ... Melania didn't speak much during the 2016 election, which gave her more intrigue, but now there's not much curiosity because everyone's seen and heard her for 4 years. Or maybe just someone who looks like her.

Another Melania impersonator, Lauren LoGiudice, says she thought she would finally get hired after the #FakeMelania conspiracy ... but it hasn't happened.

Lauren says her Melania impersonation incorporates comedy, but notices no one thinks a Melania bit is funny anymore. She also thinks the secret recordings hurt her job prospects, because some people feel anger toward the First Lady.

Bottom line ... this is one industry where Trump is not creating jobs.

While President Trump's got his eye on Joe Biden, perhaps his 2nd biggest nemesis is giving him a beating -- destroying his Hollywood Walk of Fame Star ... for the umpteenth time.

James Otis, who'd already attacked Trump's WoF star multiple times since 2016, returned to the scene of his crimes AGAIN early Friday morning. Otis dressed to the nines for the occasion, took out a pickaxe and, as usual, went to town on Trump's plaque.

Check out the video ... the star apparently was covered with plywood and had fencing around it -- expecting the worst, clearly -- but none of that deterred Otis, who cleared the fence and the boarding before finally hitting pay dirt. We're told Otis turned himself in to cops and is being booked for felony vandalism.

The destruction comes 4 weeks after Otis dressed up as the Incredible Hulk to obliterate DT's commemorative sidewalk piece.

It didn't take long before crews started working to restore the star. At the time, we wondered how long it would last before another vandal struck. Well, it was the SAME vandal and it was 28 days later.

Otis was arrested and charged with felony vandalism last time around too. The first time he was arrested, back in February 2017, he pled no contest and was sentenced to 3 years probation, community service and ordered to cough up $4,400.

We'll see what he gets this time around.

Jerry Falwell Jr. says it's bad enough he was the victim of an extortion plot over a phony sex scandal, but then the university his own father founded gave him the boot over the matter ... according to a new lawsuit.

Falwell Jr. filed legal docs accusing Liberty University -- founded by his father in 1971 -- of forcing his resignation in the wake of a former acquaintance, Giancarlo Granda, alleging he had sex with Falwell's wife as Falwell watched.

In the suit, Falwell says he and his family became the targets of a malicious smear campaign incited by anti-evangelical forces ... after Liberty University used the allegations as an excuse to force him to step down.

Falwell even claims these were efforts by political operatives pissed about his support of President Trump.

Granda told Reuters back in August the affair with Falwell's wife started in 2012 and lasted until 2018. In docs, Falwell admits Granda had an affair with his wife that ended in 2014, but denies watching them for pleasure. He also claims Granda demanded enormous cash payments from the Falwells to stay silent. Falwell says he refused to pay, and that's when he claims Granda went to the media.

Falwell claims Liberty University accepted the salacious and baseless accusations against him and his wife at face value and then a day later forced his resignation as president after 13 years at the helm. He insists the school didn't conduct an investigation.