Within hours of President Donald Trump’s inauguration, the new administration took down the Spanish-language version of the official White House website.

The site — currently https://www.whitehouse.gov/es/ — now gives users an “Error 404” message. It also included a “Go Home” button that directed viewers to a page featuring a video montage of Trump in his first term and on the campaign trail. The button was later updated to read “Go To Home Page”.

Hispanic advocacy groups and others expressed confusion at the abrupt change and frustration at what some called the administration’s lack of efforts to maintain communication with the Latino community, which helped propel him to the presidency.

The Spanish profile of the White House’ X, @LaCasaBlanca and the government page on reproductive freedom also were disbanded. Meanwhile, the Spanish versions of other government agencies such as the Department of Labor, Justice and Agriculture remained available for users on Tuesday.

Asked about the changes, White House principal deputy press secretary Harrison Fields responded Tuesday that the administration is “committed to bringing back online the Spanish translation section of the website.”

“It’s day two. We are in the process of developing, editing and tweaking the White House website. As part of this ongoing work, some of the archived content on the website went dormant. We are committed to reloading that content in a short timeline,” he said without elaborating.

Trump removed the Spanish version of the page in 2017. At that time, White House officials said they would reinstate it. President Joe Biden reinstated the page in 2021.

The page’s removal coincided with Trump’s first-day wave of executive orders highlighted by the launch of an illegal immigration crackdown that was one of his key campaign pledges. Trump on Monday declared a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border and announced plans to send U.S. troops to help support immigration agents and restrict refugees and asylum.

According to 2023 Census Bureau estimates, about 43.4 million Americans — 13.7% of the U.S. population age 5 and older — speak Spanish at home. The U.S. has no official language.

Monica Rivera, a brand and communications strategist in New York City of Puerto Rican and Cuban descent, said the shutdown sends a clear signal.

“There are 43 million Latinos who speak Spanish as their first language and removing access to information directly from the White House draws a distinct line as to who they are serving and more dangerously, signals to the administration’s MAGA base that we as Latinos are ‘other’ and a less significant part of this country,” Rivera said.

Anthony Hernandez, a paralegal in the nation’s capital, wasn’t initially aware of the move and said it suggests what the coming years of a second Trump presidency would look like, with specific issues making headlines while “minor but equally malicious things like that go unnoticed.”

“A move like shutting down the Spanish White House page and X profile serves no purpose other than to cut off resources for millions of Hispanic Americans and immigrants attempting to enter the United States legally,” Hernandez said. “And it’s a slap in the face to the millions of Hispanic voters that supported him in this recent election.”

Trump’s secretary of state, Marco Rubio, is Cuban American and speaks Spanish. At his swearing-in Tuesday, he gave remarks in Spanish, thanking God, his family and Trump.

Meanwhile, Hispanic leaders and communication strategy experts expressed surprise with the page’s removal, given Trump’s popularity with certain Latino voters.

“If the White House is seriously interested in engaging with Latinos, the second largest group in this country, then they need to make sure that updates can also be distributed in Spanish, a preferred language for millions in our community,” said Frankie Miranda President and CEO of the Hispanic Federation.

He called that a way to ensure “everyone is a part of the civic process.”

Kris Klein Hernández, a U.S. historian specializing in race, gender, and sexuality at Connecticut College, said the content removal from official White House websites not only limits the access available to Spanish-speaking U.S. citizens and migrants but leads “some to question which constituencies the administration prioritizes.”

Jeff Lee, former deputy cabinet secretary and deputy director of external and international affairs for former California Gov. Jerry Brown, said the move seems counterintuitive given the opportunity to “showcase” policy changes, especially ones related to economics and border security.

“I didn’t see any other language mediums that got the kibosh. So I think that’s a really interesting thing to single out — if that’s the case,” Lee said.

AP VoteCast, a nationwide survey of more than 120,000 voters, found Trump won a larger share of Black and Latino voters than he did in 2020, and most notably among men under age 45. Young Latinos, particularly young Latino men, also were more open to Trump than in 2020. Roughly half of young Latino men voted for Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, compared with about 6 in 10 who went for Biden.

President Joe Biden, first lady Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, former President Bill Clinton, former first lady Hillary Clinton, former President George W. Bush, former first lady Laura Bush, former President Barack Obama, former President and President-elect Donald Trump, former first lady Melania Trump, former Vice President Al Gore, former Vice President Mike Pence and others, attend the State Funeral for former President Jimmy Carter at Washington National Cathedral in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

PALM BEACH, Fla. — President-elect Donald Trump hosted 22 of the nation’s 27 Republican governors for dinner at his Florida club on Thursday night, looking to help drive the agenda in conservative-run states after he takes office in 11 days.

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte told reporters outside the gathering that some of the GOP governors unable to attend were being inaugurated, and that one was delayed by snow and was unable to make it to Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach. But he said attendees who could come were “thrilled to accept the president-elect’s invitation” and welcomed a coming “collaborative, working relationship, which we have not had for four years” during the Biden administration.

“It’s been a long period without cooperation from Washington,” Gianforte told reporters outside. “So, we’re looking forward to the new administration coming in. We have a lot of business to get done on behalf of our states. We’re just pleased to be here to meet with the president.”

Most reporters weren’t invited to the proceedings, but cameras were allowed inside for part of the time. That allowed Trump to answer a series of questions from a Fox News Channel journalist.

He discussed everything from his desire to have the U.S. take control of Greenland to the parade of technology company leaders who have come to Florida to visit him since Election Day, to his threats to impose steep tariffs on Canada.

The president-elect also said that Russian President Vladimir Putin “wants to meet, and we’re setting it up.”

The dinner came after Trump held a lengthy, closed-door meeting Wednesday with Republican Senators on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. Trump described his discussions with his senators, as “a love fest” but added, “This is a love fest, too.”

“The governors aren’t exactly chopped liver,” he said to laughter.

Trump also renewed previous vows to cooperate with leaders in blue states, too, saying, “We want to get along with the Democrats. I’m trying to be nice.”

Gianforte said that many of the governors present were concerned about “overreach” by the Environmental Protection Agency and other federal entities under President Joe Biden, adding, “I know each governor that’s standing up here has expressed frustration.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — Trump’s GOP presidential primary rival in last year’s primary — was asked about the president-elect sharply criticizing Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom as cataclysmic wildfires rage across Los Angeles.

DeSantis blamed the media for what he said was unnecessarily promoting controversy and political division, adding that Trump will collaborate effectively with states regardless of whether they are red or blue.

“I worked well with Biden, during his time, with natural disasters, and I worked well with Donald Trump,” DeSantis said, referring to hurricanes that have hit Florida as well as the deadly collapse of a beachfront condo in Surfside in 2021. “So, I’m very confident, as a state that knows — we face these — that a Trump administration is going to be very strong and going to be there for the people regardless of party.”

One of the questions Trump answered Thursday was about the frequent drone sightings that made headlines in recent weeks, but have seen attention wane more recently. That prompted several of the governors around the table to express concern that such aircraft could make incursions into military or other secure areas.

“They don’t want to talk about it,” Trump said, repeating an assertion he’s made in the past that the government may be covering something up on the issue. He promised to shed more light on it after Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.

“We’re gonna find out on the 21st,” he said. “You have to give me a little time after the Inauguration. But, shortly thereafter, I will give you a report on it. We’ll tell you exactly what it is.”

___

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump has raised more than $170 million for his upcoming inauguration, a record amount as tech executives and big donors have eagerly written large checks to help bankroll the ceremony.

The private donations collected thus far were confirmed by a person with firsthand knowledge of the fundraising who was not authorized to speak publicly. The person said Trump’s inaugural committee is expected to raise more than $200 million by the end of the effort.

Trump’s inaugural committee did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Wednesday. The committee has not yet detailed how it plans to spend the donations.

The private donations are typically used to help pay for events surrounding the inauguration, such as costs related to the oath of office ceremony itself, along with a parade and glitzy inaugural balls. Money leftover from the inaugural committee is expected to be used toward a future Trump presidential library, according to the person.

The whopping amount raised thus far by Trump’s presidential inaugural committee is more than double the amount President Joe Biden raised four years ago when he brought in nearly $62 million for his inauguration, according to Federal Election Commission records.

Donations to Trump’s first inauguration in 2016 also set a record when he brought in nearly $107 million.

After the former president’s victory in November, along with Republicans winning control of both chambers of Congress, major donors, including tech companies, have been writing big checks as they’ve sought to improve their relationship with the incoming president.

Amazon and Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, said last month they were each planning to donate $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also said he was planning to make a $1 million personal donation.

The New York Times first reported on Wednesday the fundraising sum for this month’s inauguration.

___

Price reported from New York.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Donald Trump is expected to hold a big Washington rally the day before he’s sworn in as the nation’s 47th president.

The victory rally, as it’s being billed, will be held at the Capitol One Arena in the District of Columbia on Jan. 19. Trump has always preferred rally-style events where he can freewheel and joke with his supporters. He’ll be inaugurated in a formal ceremony at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 20th.

“This is President Trump’s VICTORY RALLY the DAY before being sworn in as the 47th President — the crowd needs to be HUGE!” read an email to supporters advertising the event.

The rally is indoors — Trump’s big outdoor events were limited in the months following an assassination attempt. The arena seats roughly 20,000 people.

Security will be tight; the inauguration is considered a national special security event which frees up federal funds and increased ease on collaboration with local law enforcement.

Trump invited Chinese President Xi Jinping and other world leaders to his inauguration — an unorthodox move that would fold U.S. allies and adversaries into a very American political tradition. It’s not clear if any leaders will actually attend.

The incoming president has pledged to begin a mass deportation effort as soon as he takes office. He’s also vowed to levy massive tariffs against the United States’ chief economic competitor, China, as well as neighbors Canada and Mexico unless those countries do more to reduce illegal immigration and the flow of illegal drugs such as fentanyl into the United States. He’s also pledged to move quickly to end Russia’s nearly three-year war in Ukraine.