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July 22, 2025
Epstein furor upends House for second week in row
(The Hill) The Jeffrey Epstein saga is causing chaos in the House for the second week in a row, as threats of Democrats forcing politically tough votes are prompting House GOP leadership to toss out many of their plans for the week. The trouble started as soon as lawmakers returned to Washington on Monday, when the House Rules Committee, which sets up action for bills on the floor, met to tee up votes to rescind Biden-era rules and on an immigration bill.
Go to discussion'Ask the FBI': WH Throws Kash Patel Under the Bus on Epstein
(Daily Beast) The White House is desperately trying to move on by directing the ongoing uproar to the FBI as MAGA world clamors for the release of more Jeffrey Epstein files. When asked on Monday why the president does not just order the FBI to release the full Epstein files, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt left the ball in the bureau’s court and claimed it was up to the attorney general. “The president has said if the Department of Justice and the FBI want to move forward with releasing any further credible evidence, they should do so,” Leavitt responded. “As to why they have or have not or will, you should ask the FBI.”
Go to discussionGOP megabill's final score: $3.4T in red ink and 10 million kicked off health insurance, CBO says
(Politico) Congress’ nonpartisan scorekeeper released its final prediction Monday for how President Donald Trump’s signature legislative achievement will grow the national debt and affect U.S. households. Over the next decade, the megabill Trump signed on July 4 would increase the federal deficit by $3.4 trillion and cause 10 million people to lose health insurance, the Congressional Budget Office forecasts.
Go to discussionFEMA Search and Rescue Chief Resigns
(Political Wire) “The head of FEMA’s Urban Search and Rescue branch, which runs a network of teams stationed across the country that can swiftly respond to natural disasters, resigned on Monday,” CNN reports. “Ken Pagurek’s departure comes less than three weeks after a delayed FEMA response to catastrophic flooding in central Texas caused by bureaucratic hurdles put in place by the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the disaster response agency.” “Pagurek told colleagues at FEMA that the delay was the tipping point that led to his voluntary departure after months of frustration with the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the agency.”
Go to discussionTrump's border czar to target sanctuary cities in US: 'We're gonna flood the zone'
(The Guardian) The Trump administration is targeting sanctuary cities in the next phase of its deportation drive after labelling them “sanctuaries for criminals” following the shooting of an off-duty law enforcement officer in New York City, allegedly by an undocumented person with a criminal record. Tom Homan, Donald Trump’s hardline border czar, vowed to “flood the zone” with Immigration, Customs and Enforcement (Ice) agents in an all-out bid to overcome the lack of cooperation he said the government faced from Democrat-run municipalities in its quest to arrest and detain undocumented people.
Go to discussion'Go F*ck Yourself!' Stephen Colbert Hits Back After Trump Celebrates 'The Late Show' Cancelation
(Mediaite) Reading out Trump’s prediction that Jimmy Kimmel would be “next” on the late-night show chopping block, Colbert protested, “Nope! No, no. Absolutely not, Kimmel. I am the martyr, okay? Okay? There’s only room for one on this cross and I gotta tell you, the view is fantastic from up here!” “The only other story out there is kind of a small one,” Colbert concluded. “The president was buddies with a pedophile.”
Go to discussionNative Americans rail against Trump's call to change Commanders' name back
(USA Today) Native American groups fought for years to get this city's National Football League team to change its name. Now, President Donald Trump wants to change it back to a moniker many Native Americans consider offensive and disrespectful. “No Native American child should have to sit through a pep rally or in a stadium where their culture is being mocked,” said Jacqueline De León, senior staff attorney for the Native American Rights Fund.
Go to discussionTrump administration released FBI records on MLK Jr. despite his family's opposition
(AP) The Trump administration has released records of the FBI’s surveillance of Martin Luther King Jr., despite opposition from the slain Nobel laureate’s family and the civil rights group that he led until his 1968 assassination. The release involves more than 240,000 pages of records that had been under a court-imposed seal since 1977, when the FBI first gathered the records and turned them over to the National Archives and Records Administration.
Go to discussionUS withdraws from UNESCO again, this time due to its support for 'woke' causes
(France 24) The United States withdrew from the United Nations cultural organization UNESCO on Tuesday, saying continued involvement was not in the US national interest. Head of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, on Tuesday said the US announcement had come as no surprise. "I deeply regret President Donald Trump's decision to once again withdraw the United States of America from UNESCO," Azoulay said. "However regrettable, this announcement was expected, and UNESCO has prepared for it".
Go to discussionUS Marines mobilized to Los Angeles are being sent home, Pentagon says
(CNN) Roughly 700 active-duty US Marines who were mobilized last month to respond to protests in Los Angeles are being sent home from the mission, the Pentagon said Monday. There are still another roughly 2,000 California Army National Guard soldiers assigned to the mission who were mobilized later in June. California Gov. Gavin Newsom in a statement Monday called for the remaining National Guard soldiers to be withdrawn from the state.
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