Trump cabinet nominees receive bomb threats

Several members of Donald Trump's incoming US administration have received threats including bomb alerts, the FBI said Wednesday, with one nominee reporting a pipe-bomb scare sent with a pro-Palestinian message.

The President-elect's picks for UN ambassador and head of the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as his former choice to be US attorney general, said they were among those who had received the threats.

"The FBI is aware of numerous bomb threats and swatting incidents targeting incoming administration nominees and appointees, and we are working with our law enforcement partners," the agency said in a statement.

Swatting refers to a practice in which police are summoned urgently to someone's house under false pretenses. Such hoax calls are common in the United States and have seen numerous senior political figures targeted in recent years.

Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for Trump's transition team, said that several appointees and nominees "were targeted in violent, unAmerican threats to their lives and those who live with them."

Outgoing President Joe Biden "has been briefed" on the threats, the White House said.

"The White House is in touch with federal law enforcement and the President-elect’s team, and continues to monitor the situation closely," a spokesperson said in a statement.

"The president and the administration unequivocally condemn threats of political violence."

Biden has vowed a smooth and peaceful presidential transition -- in contrast to when Trump riled a mob that attacked the US Capitol in January 2021 with false claims of election fraud.

- 'Pro-Palestinian' -

Elise Stefanik, a Trump loyalist congresswoman tapped to be UN ambassador, said her residence in New York was targeted in a bomb threat.

She said in a statement that she, her husband, and small son were driving home from Washington for the Thanksgiving holiday when they learned of the threat.

Lee Zeldin, Trump's pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, said his home was targeted with a pipe bomb threat sent with a "pro-Palestinian themed message."

The former congressman from New York said he and his family were not home at the time.

Matt Gaetz, who dropped out as Trump's pick to be attorney general after facing opposition over sexual misconduct allegations, reposted Zeldin's message on X and said: "Same."

Scott Turner, the nomine for Housing Secretary and a retired NFL player, and Trump's pick for Labor Secretary, meanwhile also said they had also received bomb threats at their homes.

Fox News Digital quoted unidentified sources saying that John Ratcliffe, Trump's nominee to head the CIA, and Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary pick, were additionally targeted.

Ahead of his return to the White House in January, Trump has already swiftly assembled a cabinet of loyalists, including several criticized for a severe lack of experience.

The Republican, who appears set to avoid trial on criminal prosecutions related to attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss, was wounded in the ear in July in an assassination attempt during a campaign rally. The shooter was killed in counter-fire.

In September, authorities arrested another man accused of planning to shoot at Trump while he played golf at his course in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Leavitt appeared to reference the previous incidents, saying that "with President Trump as our example, dangerous acts of intimidation and violence will not deter us."

Trump taps ex-general for key Ukraine conflict role

US President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday named staunch loyalist and retired general Keith Kellogg as his Ukraine envoy, charged with ending the two-and-a-half-year Russian invasion.

Trump campaigned on a platform of ushering a swift end to the Ukraine war, boasting that he would quickly mediate a ceasefire deal between President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

But his critics have warned that the incoming Republican will likely leverage US military aid to pressure Kyiv into an agreement that left it ceding occupied territory permanently or agreeing not to join NATO.

"I am very pleased to nominate General Keith Kellogg to serve as Assistant to the President and Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia," Trump said in a statement on social media.

"Keith has led a distinguished Military and Business career, including serving in highly sensitive National Security roles in my first Administration."

A fixture on the cable news circuit, the 80-year-old national security veteran co-authored a paper earlier this year calling for Washington to leverage military aid as a means of pushing for peace talks.

Ukraine has received almost $60 billion from Washington for its armed forces since Russia launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022, but with the more isolationist Trump taking over the White House, supporters fear the spigot will run dry.

"The United States would continue to arm Ukraine and strengthen its defenses to ensure Russia will make no further advances and will not attack again after a cease-fire or peace agreement," Kellogg's research paper for the Trumpist America First Policy Institute think tank said.

"Future American military aid, however, will require Ukraine to participate in peace talks with Russia."

Kellogg served in several positions during Trump's first term, including as chief of staff on the White House national security council and national security advisor to then-vice president Mike Pence.

- Troop shortages -

Kellogg told Voice of America at the Republican convention in July that Ukraine's options were "quite clear."

"If Ukraine doesn't want to negotiate, fine, but then accept the fact that you can have enormous losses in your cities and accept the fact that you will have your children killed, accept the fact that you don't have 130,000 dead, you will have 230,000–250,000," he said.

Trump's announcement came as the outgoing administration of Democrat Joe Biden was hosting a news conference to urge Ukraine to enlist more recruits by reducing the minimum age of conscription to 18 -- in line with the US benchmark.

Facing a much larger enemy with more advanced weapons and with stocks of volunteers dwindling, Ukraine is facing an "existential" recruitment crunch, a senior administration official told reporters.

"The simple truth is that Ukraine is not currently mobilizing or training enough soldiers to replace their battlefield losses while keeping pace with Russia's growing military," said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

He added that an additional 160,000 troops would be "on the low end" to fill out Ukraine's ranks -- but "a good start."

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby later clarified that the White House would not make the huge flow of US military aid to Kyiv dependent on a conscription age change.

"We're absolutely going to keep sending Ukraine weapons and equipment. We know that's vital. But so, too, is manpower at this point," he told reporters.

The former Soviet republic's population has fallen by more than a quarter since its mid-1990s peak of 52 million, and authorities are desperate to shield the younger generation -- but a US congressional report in June estimated the average Ukrainian soldier is 40.

Zelensky signed a decree in April lowering the draft age from 27 to 25 but the move did not alleviate the chronic troop shortages, according to US officials.