Federal Politics

James Massola

James Massola is chief political reporter in the Canberra bureau. He was a Walkley finalist in 2015 and has worked in the federal press gallery for eight years, including stints for The Australian Financial Review and The Australian before joining the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

US President Donald Trump has called a deal between Australia and the Obama administration "dumb".

Scramble to repair US-Australian alliance after Trump tweets

Australian and American officials spent Friday scrambling to shore up the US refugee swap deal – and repair damage to the alliance relationship – amid signs that Donald Trump will likely follow through on the agreement with Malcolm Turnbull.