Trump tells Miami winner Norris he is his 'lucky charm'

Miami Grand Prix winner Lando Norris said Donald Trump joked he was the British driver's 'lucky charm' after the former US President visited the McLaren team before Sunday's race.

Norris powered to a surprise win over world champion and current Formula One leader Max Verstappen for his first win in an F1 Grand Prix.

Trump, the Republican 2024 presidential candidate, had arrived at Hard Rock Stadium before the race and visited the McLaren garage where he met with the team's CEO Zak Brown and then sought out Norris after the race.

"I didn't see him in the garage to be honest, I was busy prepping for the race, but he saw me after, and he came up to congratulate me," said Norris.

"I guess it's an honour, because whenever you have someone like this, it has to be an honour for them to come up to you, to take time out of their life, to pay their respect for what you've done," added the British driver.

"He said he was my lucky charm, because it's my win, so I don't know if he's going to come to more races now," added the 24-year-old.

Norris said he appreciated Trump's words from their post-race exchange.

"There's a lot of special people, or cool people that have been here this weekend, Donald is someone that you've got to have a lot of respect for in many ways, and for anyone like that, who acknowledges what you can go out and do, and acknowledges the work ethic that goes into things, you've got to be thankful for that, and I was.

"So yeah, a cool moment," he said.

After Trump's visit to the McLaren's garage, which drew a large crowd of onlookers, the team issued a statement.

"McLaren is a non-political organisation however we recognise and respect the office of President of the United States so when the request was made to visit our garage on race day we accepted alongside the president of the FIA and the CEOs of Liberty Media and Formula 1," the team said.

"We were honoured that McLaren Racing was chosen as the representative of F1 which gave us the opportunity to showcase the world class engineering that we bring to motorsport," they added.

Biden administration uses 'Gestapo' tactics

Former president Donald Trump has sharpened his allegation that his Democratic successor has weaponized the US justice system against him, comparing Joe Biden's tactics to those of Hitler's Gestapo, American media reported Sunday.

The Republican 2024 presidential candidate made the remark during a private meeting Saturday with top party leaders and wealthy donors at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, according to a recording provided to US media by one donor.

In a 90-minute speech, Trump accused the Democrats of "running a Gestapo administration," referring to the secret police force in Nazi Germany. "It’s the only way they’re going to win," he said.

The "Gestapo" comment came as the campaign has begun heating up, and it follows several other Trump remarks that critics have said are dangerously inflammatory, including calling political rivals "vermin" and comparing immigrants to "animals."

His comments in Mar-a-Lago brought loud applause from the audience, which included a number of potential vice presidential picks, according to Politico.

He again lashed out at the prosecutors who have brought four separate court cases against him, including the hush-money trial now taking place in New York.

Trump denounced what he claimed was a "witch hunt" hatched by the Democratic administration to eliminate his key presidential rival.

The White House, which has denied any involvement in the legal cases, denounced Trump's comments on Sunday.

"Instead of echoing the appalling rhetoric of fascists, lunching with Neo Nazis, and fanning debunked conspiracy theories that have cost brave police officers their lives, President Biden is bringing the American people together around our shared democratic values and the rule of law," spokesman Andrew Bates said.

Biden's campaign also responded, saying the Republican's angry remarks confirmed "what we already knew: Trump's campaign is about him. His fury, his revenge, his lies, and his retribution."