Richard Luscombe

A banjo player and a Black Maga influencer, among others, now attend Trump administration press briefings

A disgraced ultra-conservative banjo player ousted from his Grammy-winning band; a far-right conspiracy theorist with alleged ties to Russia; a TikTok creator known as “Maga Malfoy” for his resemblance to the Harry Potter character; and an extremist social media “influencer” once banned from Twitter for posting a video depicting sexual abuse of a child.

These are just some of the “new media” personalities courted by the White House to take part in a series of alternative briefings championed by Donald Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt.

$800,000 in coins were scattered on Texas highway, forcing closure for nearly 14 hours as clean-up crews worked

An avalanche of 8m freshly minted dimes spilled from an overturned truck and closed a Texas highway for almost 14 hours.

Witnesses described a sea of silver on US Route 287 in Alvord, 50 miles north of Fort Worth. Clean-up crews attempted to suck up the coins, worth $800,000, using vacuums more commonly used to unclog sewers and drains.

$800,000 in coins were scattered on Texas highway, forcing closure for nearly 14 hours as clean-up crews worked

An avalanche of 8m freshly minted dimes spilled from an overturned truck and closed a Texas highway for almost 14 hours.

Witnesses described a sea of silver on US Route 287 in Alvord, 50 miles north of Fort Worth. Clean-up crews attempted to suck up the coins, worth $800,000, using vacuums more commonly used to unclog sewers and drains.

Red and navy hats were strategically placed as Trump’s cabinet gushed over 100 presidential days like no other

There were navy blue and red baseball caps up and down the table, strategically placed in front of every cabinet member, and each bearing the message “Gulf of America”.

Yet the unorthodox collection of headwear, embroidered with Donald Trump’s forced new name for the centuries-old Gulf of Mexico, was far from the most bizarre aspect of an extraordinary White House gathering hosted by the president on Wednesday.