ERIC TUCKER

National security reporter

Tucker covers national security in Washington for The Associated Press, with a focus on the FBI and Justice Department and the special counsel cases against former President Donald Trump.
FILE - President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a rally in Washington, on Jan. 6, 2021. The Supreme Court will hear arguments over whether Trump is immune from prosecution in a case charging him with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
What to listen for during Supreme Court arguments on Donald Trump and presidential immunity
The Supreme Court will hear arguments over whether Donald Trump is immune from prosecution in a case charging him with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
 
Former president Donald Trump waits for the start of proceedings in Manhattan criminal court, Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in New York. Before testimony resumes Tuesday, the judge will hold a hearing on prosecutors' request to sanction and fine Trump over social media posts they say violate a gag order prohibiting him from attacking key witnesses. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, Pool)
Tabloid publisher says he pledged to be Trump campaign’s ‘eyes and ears’ during 2016 race
A veteran tabloid publisher has testified that he pledged to be Donald Trump’s “eyes and ears” during his 2016 presidential campaign, recounting for a jury how he promised the then-candidate that he would help suppress harmful stories and had even arranged to purchase a doorman’s silence.
 
FILE - President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. The Supreme Court is hearing arguments this week with profound legal and political consequences: whether former President Donald Trump is immune from prosecution in a federal case charging him with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
Supreme Court will decide whether Trump is immune from federal prosecution. Here’s what’s next
The Supreme Court is hearing arguments this week with profound legal and political consequences. The high court will consider whether former President Donald Trump is immune from prosecution in a federal case charging him with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
 
Former President Donald Trump, followed by his attorney Todd Blanche, left, exits the courtroom following proceedings in his trial, Friday, April 19, 2024, at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York. (Mark Peterson/Pool Photo via AP)
Trump tried to ‘corrupt’ the 2016 election, prosecutor alleges as hush money trial gets underway
A prosecutor told jurors that Donald Trump tried to illegally influence the 2016 presidential election by preventing damaging stories about his personal life from becoming public.
 
Former President Donald Trump holds up news clippings as he speaks following his trial at Manhattan criminal court in New York on Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Timothy A. Clary/Pool Photo via AP)
12 jurors have been picked for Donald Trump’s hush money trial. Selection of alternates is ongoing
A jury of 12 people has been seated in former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial in New York. Alternates are now being selected.
 
People are seen aboard the container ship Dali, Monday, April 15, 2024, in Baltimore. The FBI confirmed that agents were aboard the Dali conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Ship that caused bridge collapse had apparent electrical issues while still docked, AP source says
Someone with knowledge of the situation tells The Associated Press that the massive container ship that caused the deadly collapse of a Baltimore bridge experienced apparent electrical issues hours before it left the port.
 
Former U.S. President Donald Trump sits inside a Manhattan criminal court in New York, on Monday, April 15, 2024. The hush money trial of former President Trump begins Monday with jury selection. It's a singular moment for American history as the first criminal trial of a former U.S. commander in chief. (Jeenah Moon/Pool Photo via AP)
Trump’s historic hush money trial gets underway; 1st day ends without any jurors being picked
The historic hush money trial of Donald Trump got underway Monday with the arduous process of selecting a jury to hear the case charging the former president with falsifying business records in order to stifle stories about his sex life.
 
FILE - Adult film actress Stormy Daniels arrives at the adult entertainment fair "Venus" in Berlin, on Oct. 11, 2018. Days after a New York judge expanded a gag order on Donald Trump to curtail "inflammatory” speech, the former president tested its limits, Wednesday, April 10, 2024, by disparaging Daniels and Michael Cohen, two key witnesses in his upcoming criminal hush money trial as liars.(AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)
How a hush money scandal tied to a porn star led to Trump’s first criminal trial
On the eve of the 2016 presidential election, a story came out that Donald Trump feared would cost him votes.
 
FILE - Walt Nauta, center, valet to former president Donald Trump, his attorney Stanley Woodward, rear, and Carlos De Oliveira, foreground, the property manager of Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, leave the Alto Lee Adams Sr. U.S. Courthouse, Aug. 10, 2023, in Fort Pierce, Fla. Lawyers for Nauta and De Oliveira are set to ask U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon during a Friday, April 12, 2024, hearing to throw out charges of conspiring with Trump to obstruct an FBI investigation into the hoarding of classified documents at the former president's Palm Beach estate. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)
Trump’s co-defendants in classified documents case ask judge to dismiss charges against them
Lawyers for two co-defendants of former President Donald Trump in the Florida classified documents case have asked a judge to dismiss charges against them.
 
FILE - An FBI seal is seen on a wall on Aug. 10, 2022, in Omaha, Neb. The House was holding a key test vote Wednesday, April 10, 2024, on whether to consider a bill that would reauthorize a crucial national security surveillance program, but the prospects were uncertain amid intense Republican opposition as well as an edict earlier in the day from former President Donald Trump to “kill" the measure. Johnson has called the program “critically important” but has struggled to find a path forward on the issue, which has been plagued by partisan bickering for years. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)
House passes reauthorization of key US surveillance program after days of upheaval over changes
The U.S. House has passed a bill to reauthorize and reform a key U.S. government surveillance tool without including broad restrictions on how the FBI uses this crucial program to search for Americans’ data.
 
FILE - An FBI seal is seen on a wall on Aug. 10, 2022, in Omaha, Neb. The House was holding a key test vote Wednesday, April 10, 2024, on whether to consider a bill that would reauthorize a crucial national security surveillance program, but the prospects were uncertain amid intense Republican opposition as well as an edict earlier in the day from former President Donald Trump to “kill" the measure. Johnson has called the program “critically important” but has struggled to find a path forward on the issue, which has been plagued by partisan bickering for years. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)
Conservative revolt in the House blocks effort to reauthorize a key US spy tool
A bill that would reauthorize a crucial national security surveillance program has been blocked by a conservative revolt, pushing the prospects of final passage into uncertainty amid a looming deadline.
 
This image, contained in the indictment against former President Donald Trump, shows boxes of records stored in a bathroom and shower in the Lake Room at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. The classified documents investigation of Donald Trump appeared to have clear momentum in 2022 when FBI agents who searched the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate recovered dozens of boxes containing sensitive documents. But each passing day brings mounting doubts that the case can reach trial this year. The judge has yet to set a firm trial date despite holding two hours-long hearings with lawyers this month. (Justice Department via AP)
Judge in Trump’s classified files case agrees to redact witness names, granting prosecution request
The federal judge presiding over the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump has granted a request by prosecutors aimed at protecting the identities of potential government witnesses.
 
Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump speaks on the phone as he watches play in the final round of LIV Golf Miami, at Trump National Doral Golf Club, Sunday, April 7, 2024, in Doral, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Prosecutors urge Supreme Court to reject Trump’s immunity claims in election subversion case
Special counsel Jack Smith’s team is urging the Supreme Court to reject former President Donald Trump’s claim that he is immune from prosecution in a case charging him with scheming to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
 
FILE - An FBI seal is seen on a wall on Aug. 10, 2022, in Omaha, Neb. The House is set to consider a bill Tuesday, April 9, 2024, that would reauthorize a surveillance program that U.S. officials consider vital to national security but that critics have raised privacy concerns about. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)
House to take up bill to reauthorize crucial US spy program as expiration date looms
The House is set to consider a bill next week that would reauthorize a surveillance program that U.S. officials consider vital to national security but that critics say raises privacy concerns.
 
This image, contained in the indictment against former President Donald Trump, shows boxes of records stored in a bathroom and shower in the Lake Room at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. The classified documents investigation of Donald Trump appeared to have clear momentum in 2022 when FBI agents who searched the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate recovered dozens of boxes containing sensitive documents. But each passing day brings mounting doubts that the case can reach trial this year. The judge has yet to set a firm trial date despite holding two hours-long hearings with lawyers this month. (Justice Department via AP)
Judge rejects Trump request to dismiss classified documents prosecution
A federal judge has refused to throw out the classified documents prosecution against Donald Trump. U.S.
 
Prosecutors in Trump’s classified documents case sharply rebuke judge’s unusual and ‘flawed’ order
Federal prosecutors are scolding the judge presiding over ex-President Donald Trump’s classified documents case in Florida.
 
FILE - Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, right, is escorted from court in Moscow, Russia, on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. Arrests of Americans in Russia have become increasingly common as relations between Moscow and Washington sink to Cold War lows. Some have been exchanged for Russians held in the U.S., while for others, the prospects of being released in a swap are less clear. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)
A growing number of Americans end up in Russian jails. The prospects for their release are unclear
U.S. citizens jailed in Russia include a Wall Street Journal reporter, a vacationing corporate security executive and a dual national visiting her family in Tatarstan.
 
This image, contained in the indictment against former President Donald Trump, shows boxes of records stored in a bathroom and shower in the Lake Room at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. The classified documents investigation of Donald Trump appeared to have clear momentum in 2022 when FBI agents who searched the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate recovered dozens of boxes containing sensitive documents. But each passing day brings mounting doubts that the case can reach trial this year. The judge has yet to set a firm trial date despite holding two hours-long hearings with lawyers this month. (Justice Department via AP)
Hurry up and wait: Trump’s classified documents case is mired in delays that may run past election
The classified documents investigation of Donald Trump appeared to have clear momentum in 2022 when FBI agents who searched the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate recovered dozens of boxes containing sensitive documents.
 
Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak attends a visit to an engineering firm in Barrow-in-Furness, England, Monday, March 25, 2024. (Danny Lawson/PA via AP)
US and UK go after Chinese hackers accused of state-backed operation against politicians, dissidents
Hackers linked to the Chinese government launched a sweeping, state-backed operation that targeted U.S. officials, journalists, corporations, pro-democracy activists and the U.K.’s election watchdog.
 
Former President Donald Trump awaits the start of a pre-trial hearing with his defense team at Manhattan criminal, Monday, March 25, 2024, in New York. A judge will weigh on Monday when the former president will go on trial. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, Pool)
Trump’s New York hush money case is set for trial April 15
A New York judge has scheduled former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial to begin April 15. Judge Juan M. Merchan made the ruling Monday.
 
FILE - Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani attends a ceremony in Baghdad, Iraq, Jan. 9, 2024. The White House announced Friday, March 22, that President Joe Biden plans to host al-Sudani on April 15 as the countries hold formal talks about winding down the mission of a U.S.-led military coalition formed to fight the Islamic State group in Iraq. (Murtadha Al-Sudani/Pool Photo via AP, File)
Biden to host Iraqi leader with talks underway on winding down coalition against the Islamic State
The White House says President Joe Biden plans to host Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani next month.
 
FILE - Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich stands in a glass cage in a courtroom at the Moscow City Court, in Moscow, Russia, on Dec. 14, 2023. A lawyer for The Wall Street Journal said Thursday, March 21, 2024, that Russia must face consequences for its detention of Gershkovich, one of the newspaper's reporters. Gershkovich was arrested on March 29, 2023, on espionage charges, which he and the newspaper deny. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov, File)
Russia must face consequences for imprisonment of Wall Street Journal reporter, lawyer says
A lawyer for The Wall Street Journal says Russia must face consequences for its detention of Evan Gershkovich, one of the newspaper’s reporters.
 
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump and former first lady Melania Trump arrive to vote in the Florida primary election in Palm Beach, Fla., Tuesday, March 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Trump asks Supreme Court to dismiss case charging him with plotting to overturn 2020 election
Lawyers for Donald Trump have urged the U.S. Supreme Court to dismiss an indictment charging the former president with conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
 
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump gestures at a campaign rally Saturday, March 9, 2024, in Rome Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Donald Trump wanted trial delays, and he’s getting them. Hush-money case is latest to be put off
Delays in Donald Trump’s criminal cases are increasing the possibility Americans will be deep into the presidential election season before they know whether or not he has been convicted of any wrongdoing.
 
FILE - Former President Donald Trump leaves Manhattan criminal court, Feb. 15, 2024, in New York. Prosecutors said Thursday, March 14, that they’re open to delaying the start of Trump’s New York hush-money criminal trial to give the former president’s lawyers time to review evidence that was only recently turned over. Jury selection in the trial is scheduled to begin March 25. The judge has yet to rule on the request. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)
Judge rejects bid by Donald Trump to throw out classified documents case on constitutional grounds
A federal judge has rejected a bid by Donald Trump to throw out out his classified documents criminal case, and appeared skeptical during hours of arguments of a separate effort to scuttle the prosecution ahead of trial.
 
Special Counsel Robert Hur speaks during a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, March 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)
Standout moments from the hearing on the Biden classified documents probe by special counsel Hur
It’s a now-familiar ritual in Washington: a federal prosecutor being summoned to Capitol Hill to discuss the findings of a politically explosive investigation.
 
FILE - The Pentagon is seen from Air Force One as it flies over Washington, March 2, 2022. A new Pentagon study that examined reported sightings of UFOs over nearly the last century has found no evidence of aliens or extraterrestrial intelligence. That conclusion is consistent with past U.S. government efforts to assess the accuracy of claims that have captivated public attention for decades. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
Pentagon study finds no sign of alien life in reported UFO sightings going back decades
A new Pentagon study that examined reported sightings of UFOs over nearly the last century has found no evidence of aliens or extraterrestrial intelligence.
 
This image, contained in the indictment against former President Donald Trump, and partially redacted by source, shows boxes of records being stored on the stage in the White and Gold Ballroom at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. (Justice Department via AP)
Prosecutors in Trump classified documents case draw sharp distinctions with Biden investigation
Federal prosecutors are drawing sharp distinctions in the classified documents investigations involving Donald Trump and President Joe Biden as they urged a federal judge to reject the former president’s claims that he was the victim of a vindictive prosecution.
 
FILE - The Justice Department in Washington, Nov. 18, 2022. The Justice Department is stepping up its focus on artificial intelligence. Officials are set to warn that companies and people who deliberately misuse AI technology to advance a white-collar crime like price fixing and market manipulation will be at risk for a harsher sentence. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)
Justice Department beefs up focus on artificial intelligence enforcement, warns of harsher sentences
The Justice Department is stepping up its focus on artificial intelligence. Officials warn that companies and people who deliberately misuse AI technology to advance a white-collar crime like price fixing, fraud or market manipulation will be at risk for a harsher sentence.
 
FILE - Items are displayed in the Google Store at the Google Visitor Experience in Mountain View, Calif., Oct. 11, 2023. The Justice Department says a former software engineer at Google has been charged with stealing artificial intelligence technology from the company while secretly working with two companies based in China. Linwei Ding was arrested in Newark, California., on four counts of federal trade secret theft.(AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File)
Ex-Google engineer charged with stealing AI trade secrets while working with Chinese companies
The Justice Department says a former software engineer at Google has been charged with stealing artificial intelligence technology from the company while secretly working with two companies based in China.
 
Load More