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Donald Trump is one step closer to the White House ... destroying Nikki Haley in another primary -- this time in her home state!

Saturday's South Carolina primary has been projected for the former president just minutes after polls officially closed in the state ... with at least 29 delegates heading Trump's way.

The whole state's got 50 total, with the last 21 being divided up based on the winners of the seven congressional districts ... three delegates for each district a candidate wins.

Regardless, Trump's already apparently won the majority of delegates in the state -- a state where Haley not only was born but also where she served as governor from 2011 to 2017.

She left the post after then-President Trump named her United Nations Ambassador ... and, it seems voters would rather go with the man who appointed her to the post than their former gov.

Nikki's had a very difficult run as of late ... becoming embroiled in controversy caused by comments she made about the Civil War while her opponent's dominated every single primary so far.

Of course, it ain't over 'til the lady sings ... but, with her home state now squarely in Trump's camp, it seems only a matter of time before Nikki cuts bait and 45 stands unopposed in the Republican party.

BTW ... Trump's already delivered a victory speech where he praised how united his party is at this moment -- and also looked past Haley and said he was looking to take President Joe Biden's job instead.

Super Tuesday's less than two weeks away ... and, it's hard to imagine Haley hanging in there for that long after tonight's crushing defeat.

More insight on the biting problems with President Biden's family dog Commander ... the German Shepherd bit Secret Service agents on at least two dozen occasions.

Commander is no longer living with the Bidens at the White House ... but when he was, the Secret Service had to change their tactics as a result of all the biting incidents.

The staggering figure is revealed in new internal Secret Service documents obtained by CNN ... and the 24 biting incidents don't even include the times Commander chomped on members of the White House staff ... only incidents with the SS are documented here.

Commander not only sunk his teeth into agents at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, he also attacked them at two Biden family homes in Delaware ... plus trips to Nantucket and Camp David.

Biden's dog bit members of the Prez's protective detail, plus other uniformed Secret Service agents ... and in at least 10 instances, the Secret Service agent who was bit required medical treatment.

Commander bit agents on their arms, hands, legs and even their waists.

As we reported ... Commander was kicked out of the White House back in October as a result of his human-biting ways. At the time, the Secret Service only acknowledged 11 biting incidents.

In the months leading up to Commander's ouster, the Secret Service issued this warning in an internal memo ... "The recent dog bites have challenged us to adjust our operational tactics when Commander is present – please give lots of room."

The warning also said Secret Service agents "must be creative to ensure our own personal safety."

President Joe Biden is in L.A. this week to fundraise for his reelection campaign -- but he's also out here spreading the wealth ... including with some Jacksons for the common folk.

JB and a bunch of politicians and Secret Service agents hit up a Mexican restaurant in the Baldwin Hills neighborhood ... where he popped into CJ's Cafe for lunch, although -- we're told he ended up ordering a breakfast item.

A CJ rep tells us Joe had a hankering for a basic breakfast burrito -- complete with ham, eggs and bacon ... and we're told the Prez even ordered an orange juice to wash it down.

He was there with Mayor Karen Bass, BTW, and CJ's tells us she was also feeling eggs for lunch -- going in on a plate of scrambled eggs with cheese, tomatoes and toast. Yes, they're not necessarily Mexican dishes, per se, but hey ... this is what they were in the mood for.

Anyway, we're told Biden and Bass paid separately ... and that their teams took care of their bills with respective credit cards. However, CJ's says Joe left a little something extra for the crew ... namely, a $20 tip which we're told he paid for with cash.

You can actually see him reaching into the old wallet in this photo here ... and his total bill also appears to be on display as well. It was about $30 -- the cost of grub in this economy!

And yes ... a bunch of people there in the restaurant were eager to snap some pics with Joey -- and he happily obliged, including photos with the managers/owners of the joint.

And no, believe it or not ... we're told CJ's wasn't shut down for this spontaneous pop-in.

POTUS left after eating, and he went on to deliver a speech at a local library. He was hobnobbing around L.A. all morning -- and best believe he had a bunch of cops tailing him just about everywhere he went ... including his own motorcade, complete with a Secret Service detail.

Word is, Joe's gonna jet on up to San Francisco later today ... and his Cali tour should come to an end by Thursday before he heads back to D.C. to get back to the people's business.

Pretty cool seeing him in the City of Angels ... pretty surreal too, if we're being honest. We see a lot of celebs around here -- but when Joe's in town ... the streets tend to shut down!

President Biden nearly fell boarding Air Force One this week -- a bit surprising since he took a shorter flight of stairs ... confirming a report that that's what his staff has him doing now.

Joe was getting on the famed aircraft Tuesday as he was getting ready to leave D.C. for California -- where he'll be in town for a few days as he fundraises for his reelection campaign ... but as we've seen before, he had somewhat of a hard time climbing aboard.

Check it out ... you can see JB make his way up a shorter staircase into a different part of the plane -- which is much lower to the ground than the usual entrance he might take -- but even here, the Prez struggles a bit ... jolting forward a couple times as he catches himself.

Luckily, he didn't fall here -- as he has in the past -- but it was a little jarring. Even more surprising is the fact that a Secret Service agent was stationed at the bottom of the stairs ... keeping a watchful eye on his boss. We've been seeing this more lately with Joe.

It's interesting ... the agent at the bottom of the (shorter) stairs is something the NYT reported on earlier this month -- part of a new strategy in managing/shielding Biden.

Worth noting ... Donald Trump would also use the shorter stairs at times during bad weather, but now -- it seems Joe taking the shorter stairs with someone monitoring him from behind is the new norm. Even here though -- it seems like a potential fall is still in the mix.

It goes without saying ... these concerns have been mounting -- namely, ones about his age/fitness for office. It's something he's swatted away time and again ... but folks are talkin'.

Also worth noting ... this ain't the first time Joe has fallen during his presidency. He's taken some nasty tumbles before -- including while boarding Air Force One.

Joe Biden's pardoned a bunch of folks during his presidency, and as it turns out -- one of his own ancestors was granted mercy by none other than Abraham Lincoln way back when.

WaPo dug up old documents in the National Archives which show that POTUS's great-great-grandfather, Moses J. Robinette, received a pardon by Honest Abe back in the mid-1860s ... this after he got into a fight with a fellow Union Army worker that landed him in jail.

Here's what happened, per ancient history ... Moses was working as a civilian veterinary surgeon for the U.S. Army during the Civil War -- and while he was stationed at the Army of the Potomac's winter camp in Spring 1864, he got into a brawl with another fella.

Long story short ... John J. Alexander -- a brigade wagon master -- apparently overheard Joe's grandad talking s*** about him to the female cook in one of the tents, and he confronted him on the spot -- which led to an argument and eventually a scuffle.

During the fight, Moses was accused of pulling his pocketknife and stabbing John -- as he was left bleeding from several cuts in the aftermath. Soon, authorities arrived to check in.

Moses ended up getting charged with attempted murder -- but during the trial ... that charge ended up being dropped --- although he was convicted on other charges, including assault, "inciting a dangerous quarrel" and "violating good order and military discipline."

A transcript of his trial quotes Moses as saying ... "[W]hatever I have done was done in self defence, that I had no malice towards Mr. Alexander before or since. He grabbed me and possibly might have injured me seriously had I not resorted to the means that I did."

He ended up getting convicted on all counts -- minus the attempted murder -- and he was sentenced to two years incarceration at hard labor. Once they finally figured out where to send him, Moses was shipped to the Dry Tortugas islands near Key West, FL.

Once he was there, other army officers who knew Moses wrote a letter in his defense -- and that worked its way up the channels and eventually landed on Lincoln's desk. He reviewed the case and decided Moses' punishment was way too harsh ... and pardoned him.

There's a piece of Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy on the market ... a book he inscribed to a nurse who helped save his life following an assassination attempt.

MLK signed a copy of his book, "Stride Toward Freedom," and wrote a personalized note to Gwen Brown, thanking her for caring for him at Harlem Hospital after his 1958 stabbing.

The autographed copy is going up for sale over at Moments In Time ... with a $35,000 price tag.

MLK was actually at a book signing for this very book at Blumstein's Department Store in Harlem when Izola Ware Curry approached him and stabbed him in the chest with a steel letter opener.

The stab wound was so close to MLK's aorta he would have died if he sneezed or coughed on his way to the hospital. With Gwen's help, MLK made a full recovery.

MLK's note to Gwen reads ... "With best wishes and genuine appreciation for the attention you gave me as one of my nurses while I recuperated at Harlem Hospital."

Donald Trump is hoping for a Michael Jordan moment because he's now selling sneakers ... presumably to pay off what is now amounting to a total of half a billion in judgments.

Trump announced the sneaker line Saturday ... under the moniker, "Trump Sneakers." He's calling them the "NEVER SURRENDER HIGH-TOP SNEAKER" with a price tag of $399.

Trump claims he's had the idea for more than 10 years, but it's pretty coincidental the kicks were unveiled a day after he was ordered to pay $355M for cooking the books of his company.

There are only 1,000 pairs being sold, so it won't come close to digging him out of the financial hole.

Trump made the announcement Saturday at Sneaker Con. The sneakers have a "T" and a "45" emblazoned on them.  And he's selling cologne and perfume at $99 a pop.

BTW ... the company that's selling the items is CIC Ventures LLC. It doesn't appear to be part of the Trump org, which would be problematic since the judge in the case said Trump can't do business in his New York-based company for 3 years.

BTW ... if he's thinking of picking RFK Jr. as his running mate, he should think again. RFK and his wife, Cheryl Hines made it clear on "TMZ Live" Friday that's not gonna happen.

And one more thing ... Trump launched on folks on social media for images of him they were using with belly in full display ... claiming the pic was a fake -- generated by A.I.

Bill Maher is f***ing sick of Republicans and Democrats who reflexively villainize everyone with whom they disagree ... and he's got receipts of how stupid hard-core partisans have become.

For starters, the far right is trying to sell a story that Biden has destroyed America. Rep. Nancy Mace said since Joe Biden took office America has become a raging "s*** show." Bill concedes he wouldn't pick Joe as his "Squid Games" partner, but he says it's actually Nancy who's full of s*** when you look at the facts.

Fact is, the 'Real Time' host says Biden's not perfect by any stretch, but he's done a lot of good.

The funniest thing ... he points to Rep. Lauren Boebert who grouses we are now dependent on Saudi oil. Not true, BM says, and warns her not to jerk him off!

On the other side, people who don't like Ron DeSantis say he's worse than Donald Trump. Bill shows that just not true, even if you strongly disagree with his views.

The real point ... mindless partisanship. If you disagree with someone, then they're the worst people who ever lived. There's no good in them ... just evil. And that's why the largest voting block these days is independents, because they're sick of the tribalism.

And the media plays right into this. Cable networks find no good in the people with whom they disagree, and no bad in the people they embrace. And cable networks aren't alone.

Donald Trump is taking a swing at social media users with his nine iron for posting "fake" A.I. pics of him with a massive beer gut on the golf course.

On Friday, the 45th U.S. President posted a message on Truth Social, blasting everyone who uploaded to their accounts what he claims are Artificial Intelligence-generated photos portraying him as a fatso as he hits a golf ball on the links.

The pic, BTW, appears to be a photoshopped version of golfer John Daly.

Regardless, an infuriated DT wrote, "The Fake News used Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) to create the picture. These are despicable people, but everyone knows that."

He continued, "The other pictures are me hitting Golf balls today to show the difference. Sadly, in our Country, Fake News is all you get!"

Alongside his bloated "A.I." image, DT posted three snaps of a skinnier version of himself supposedly playing golf Friday afternoon.

As you know, the insult could not have come on a worse day for Trump as a New York judge ordered him to pay $355 million in fines after he was found liable in his civil business fraud trial.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. knows a happy wife makes for a happy life ... and that's why he has no desire to be Donald Trump's running mate.

RFK Jr. and his wife, actress Cheryl Hines, joined us on Friday's "TMZ Live," and we asked the presidential candidate why he wouldn't be down with a potential Trump pairing.

Cheryl jumped in and told us her husband knows that wouldn't make her very happy ... and he smiled and laughed as he sat back. Smart man.

While there's a marital agreement on the Trump topic, the Kennedy family's been at odds over RFK Jr.'s politics -- most recently, his campaign ad during last week's Super Bowl raised eyebrows.

Kennedy says, like most families, they don't agree about everything ... but it won't be an issue as his campaign moves forward because his Kennedy upbringing taught him to debate things with passion, but also congeniality.

Healthy debate, disagreement, and tough conversations are what RFK Jr. thinks our country needs ... as long as we don't hate on each other.

Speaking of hate, the candidate caught some lighthearted blowback over the viral photos of him walking barefoot on an airplane -- so, naturally, we had to follow up!

RFK says he can't do that anymore after we put him on blast ... even though it sounds like it's his preferred way to fly. Cheryl says he never should've taken off his shoes in the first place.

See, healthy family disagreement!

RFK Jr. and Cheryl seem warmed up for their upcoming comedy show fundraisers ... the first of which kicks off Wednesday night in Los Angeles, with Cheryl serving as host.

Jon Stewart went after Joe Biden in his official return to "The Daily Show" -- part of his both-sides approach to covering the news and politics again ... just like old times.

The comedian came out guns blazing Monday night in his first gig of hosting the Comedy Central show anew ... and yes, he was ready to discuss the upcoming 2024 election -- diving head-first into the candidates (thus far), and taking aim at POTUS.

As you can see, Jon didn't hold back ... taking jabs at Biden for a recent slip-up where he mistakenly referred to the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi as the president of Mexico during a recent press conference.

He also called out Biden for, at times, not being able to recall basic details during his deposition regarding the Special Counsel report on his management of classified documents.

Now, JB's opponent wasn't let off the hook so easily -- JS also roasted Donald Trump ... playing a clip of DT's own deposition where he also couldn't remember stuff, quipping, "It turns out that the leading cause of early onset dementia is being deposed."

Stewart continued bashing the two for being too old ... pointing out they are well outside the age range for anyone who has run for the presidency in the country's history.

Jon roasted the hell out of both of them ... saying that while both might be "vibrant, productive or even capable," they were each also "stretching the limits of being able to handle the toughest job in the world."

Basically, he's saying that Trump and Biden should make way for new blood in politics -- especially now that they've both got their AARP cards, social security, and movie discounts.

Donald Trump says he'd be shocked if Taylor Swift endorsed President Joe Biden again ... 'cause Donald says he made her a ton of money -- and implied he expects some loyalty.

The former prez took to Truth Social early Sunday morning and addressed the world's biggest celebrity couple -- as well as rumblings that Taylor would endorse Biden again.

DT started by touting one of his legislative accomplishments ... passing the Music Modernization Act -- a law that basically changed the way songwriters and music publishers are paid certain royalties -- on the whole, it helps artists receive fairer compensation.

The MMA was signed into law in 2018, under 45 ... so he feels he helped make Swift some serious cash -- adding Joe Biden hasn't done "anything for Taylor, and never will."

He then invoked the word "disloyal" ... saying Swift could never turn against "the man who made her so much money."

Trump finished off his post with some complimentary words for Travis Kelce ... saying he quite likes the two-time Super Bowl champ -- even if he is a liberal!

While not outright complimentary of Swift, this seems like a shift away from his campaign's reported strategy regarding the world's biggest pop star.

Remember ... Rolling Stone reported the Trump campaign was preparing for a "holy war" against her. Unclear exactly what that means, but this isn't the blatant condemnation one would expect from holy warriors.

It does seem to draw a line in the sand though ... ex-POTUS expects loyalty -- and it seems like the situation could get messy if T-Swift doesn't kiss the ring.

Taylor endorsed Joe for his 2020 presidential run ... and it seems unlikely she'll back Trump this time, though we suppose anything is possible.

Kickoff is just a few hours away ... but a much bigger battle seems to be brewing on the horizon.

Wolf Blitzer looked like he was about to puke during a CNN segment on Donald Trump ... seemingly choking back vomit before the network suddenly cut to commercial.

The 'Situation Room' host looked to be in distress Thursday during an interview with Rep. Jamie Raskin, making a series of pained facial expressions as Raskin talked about Trump and the Colorado ballot controversy.

Check out the video ... Wolf seems to be on the verge of vomiting and he struggles to choke something down and keep his mouth closed.

CNN finally catches on and cuts Wolf's feed, leaving Raskin on the screen ... and seconds later vomit-like sounds are heard off camera as CNN pulls the plug and goes to commercial in the middle of a Raskin sentence.

Wolf did not come back on camera after the break, instead being replaced by CNN chief legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid, who announced "Wolf had to step away" and would "be back."

However, Wolf never came back before his show ended and CNN told the Washington Post, "Wolf wasn’t feeling 100% while anchoring Thursday night. He looks forward to being back in the Situation Room and appreciates the well wishes."

For his part, Wolf gave a health update Thursday night, saying ... "I'm fine! Thanks for the well wishes. I’ll see you back in the Situation Room soon."

President Biden is showing serious signs of life and energy ... getting testy with reporters who tried grilling him on his memory loss and a damning special counsel report.

The highlight ... Biden telling Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy, "My memory is so bad I let you speak."

Biden's zinger came as POTUS took the podium in the White House press room Thursday for some rare remarks, fielding questions from journalists in the wake of a special prosecutor calling out his "faulty memory."

Biden had the old noodle working on this occasion, firing off zingers aimed at the media ... and verbally sparring with reporters from multiple outlets.

When Doocy started asking questions about the special counsel report, Biden got testy ... and, if we're being honest, channeled a bit of Donald Trump.

Biden mocked the special counsel, who in his report said JB won't be charged for his handling of classified information while out of office because 46 is a "well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory."

The Prez jokingly agreed, adding ... "I know what the hell I'm doing. I'm President and I put this country back on it's feet."

Asked directly how bad his memory is and if he can continue as President, Biden shot back at Doocy with his "memory so bad I let you speak" one-liner ... which has some serious meme potential.

Another reporter followed up by asking Biden if his memory has gotten worse ... with POTUS saying his memory is "fine" before listing off his legislative accomplishments.

The commander-in-chief also wasn't happy with the special counsel saying Biden couldn't remember when his son Beau died.

Biden's response ... "How in the hell dare he raise that. Frankly, when I was asked the question I thought to myself it wasn't any of their damn business."

Biden groused further ... "I don't need anyone to remind me when he passed away."

The special counsel says there's evidence Biden mishandled classified docs, but the prosecutor decided against charging Biden because he wasn't confident in a guilty verdict due to Biden's faulty memory and ability to make jurors sympathetic.

7:54 AM PT -- King Charles just emerged from his meeting with Prince Harry at Clarence House -- one that only lasted about 45 minutes or so -- and His Royal Highness was all smiles next to Camilla.

This is one of the first times we're seeing the King since word of his cancer diagnosis broke -- and he's surprisingly in very good spirits. Now, he's on his way to Buckingham Palace.

Prince Harry has wasted no time hopping on a plane to London to see his dad less than 24 hours after Buckingham Palace announced King Charles has cancer.

Harry flew private from LAX to London's Heathrow Airport and arrived at 12:20 PM London time. He beelined it for Clarence House ... where his father is staying.

It's unclear how to read this ... whether Harry's quick move in any way intersects with the severity of King Charles's diagnosis.

As you know, Harry and his dad have a fractured relationship, although it's more cordial than Harry's relations with his brother, Prince William.

As we reported, doctors discovered the cancer during a procedure for an enlarged prostate. It is not prostate cancer -- though, the Palace was not more specific.

It's unclear how long Harry will stay. We also don't know if there are plans for Harry and William to see each other, but it would seem that would be hard to avoid given that William is probably spending time at Clarence House as well.

BTW ... Meghan Markle did not travel with Harry.

10:43 AM PT -- King Charles III has notified both of his sons -- Prince William and Prince Harry -- about his diagnosis ... and both of them are rushing to be by his side. Will is said to be in regular contact with his dad, and is obviously nearby to see him in person too.

As for Harry ... he's reported to be flying into the UK in the coming days to see his father.

Major health update out of Buckingham Palace ... King Charles III is fighting cancer.

Buckingham Palace – the United Kingdom's royal residence – released an official statement Monday saying ... "During The King’s recent hospital procedure for benign prostate enlargement, a separate issue of concern was noted. Subsequent diagnostic tests have identified a form of cancer."

The Palace adds ... "His Majesty has today commenced a schedule of regular treatments, during which time he has been advised by doctors to postpone public-facing duties."

Charles, the Palace says, will continue with his state business and official paperwork despite the diagnosis.

As we reported, Charles was admitted to a London hospital last month for a "corrective procedure" for an enlarged prostate. Kate Middleton was in the same hospital at the same time for stomach surgery.

The Palace says Charles "remains wholly positive about his treatment and looks forward to returning to full public duty as soon as possible."

The Royal family says it's announcing Charles' diagnosis "to prevent speculation and in the hope it may assist public understanding for all those around the world who are affected by cancer."

It's interesting ... Charles' cancer announcement comes on the heels of World Cancer Day.

The King's wife, Queen Camilla, last week opened a new cancer support center at Royal Free Hospital in the UK.