Republican senator says she's 'struggling' with supporting Donald Trump as protests continue

Donald Trump was facing questions about whether military chiefs fully back his handling of the anti-racism protests on Thursday after an excoriating rebuke by his former defence secretary gained the public support of a Republican senator. The US president tried to wave away a searing critique by Jim Mattis, his Pentagon chief until December 2018, by claiming he fired Mr Mattis - who resigned over Syria policy disagreements - and calling him “the world’s most overrated general”.