23:01

Meanwhile, Donald Trump, who did not take any questions from the press as he boarded Marine One this afternoon, is headed to Florida for a rally.

The Guardian’s Richard Luscombe reports:

The importance of Florida to Donald Trump’s hopes of winning reelection in 2020 are reflected in the president’s decision to host a “homecoming” rally tonight in Sunrise, essentially a self-celebration of his becoming a full-time resident of the Sunshine State.

Trump won Florida by fewer than 113,000 of the 9.4m votes cast in 2016, and with 29 electoral college votes at stake, the nation’s most valuable swing state is a key prize in the chase for the White House next year.

“Florida always matters,” Brad Parscale, Trump’s 2020 campaign manager, told The Guardian as the 21,000-capacity BB&T Center filled ahead of the rally.

“It’s been important in every election for decades. Florida has done well under his presidency and is clearly in the win column for 2020, polling shows that. It’s his first time in Florida since he became a resident, and the people of Florida want to celebrate that.”

We await to hear whether Trump has plans to accept House Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler’s earlier invitation to attend his panel’s impeachment hearing on 4 December.

While thousands of MAGA-hat wearing Trump supporters make their way inside, Florida’s Democratic Party is holding a rally outside the arena, with the Baby Trump protest balloon in the skies.

“Florida is tired of being hurt by Trump’s broken promises,” said Terrie Rizzo, chair of the Florida Democratic Party. “This isn’t a homecoming rally, it’s a retirement party.”