The U.S. Senate is set to vote next week on overturning a 20-year mining ban in Minnesota’s Cook, Lake and St. Louis counties. Former President Joe Biden signed the protection during the end of his time in office.
Lawmakers, including Minnesota Democratic U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, were joined Monday by environmental groups and outfitters that serve the Boundary Waters to say they don’t want to see the bill pass.
Their fear is that copper mining projects will quickly move in, causing pollution and destruction to what has been protected land.
Smith says she’s working on rallying Senate Republicans to join her side to block the bill. She and others say at least one foreign group is already interested in mining the area.
Mining groups say any projects would be heavily regulated and vetted, but Smith says it’s not a deal she wants to see go through.
“We appreciate that mining is crucial to our economy and our national security and our way of life, but that is not what this mine is about. This mine is about a very well-connected, foreign mining conglomerate, Antofagasta,” Smith said. “It wants to develop this mine, dig up the copper, leave us with the mess, then send the metal most likely to China, and then sell it back to us or whoever is willing to pay the highest price.”
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi plans to endorse Jack Schlossberg, John F. Kennedy’s grandson, in the Democratic primary race for New York’s 12th Congressional District, a source familiar confirmed to CBS News Saturday.
The endorsement has been in the works for weeks, a person familiar said, but has not yet been announced publicly.
The 33-year-old Schlossberg, the son of Caroline Kennedy and first cousin of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., announced his campaign in November.
Jack Schlossberg, grandson of late President John. F Kennedy, speaks to members of the New York State Nurses Association outside Mount Sinai West on Jan. 12, 2026, in New York City.
Edna Leshowitz / Getty Images
The online political commentator joined a highly competitive field of Democratic candidates fighting to replace retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler. The field includes state Assemblymen Alex Bores and Micah Lasher, as well as attorney George Conway and journalist Jami Floyd.
Schlossberg campaigned with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election cycle in an effort to help them connect with young voters, and is running a progressive campaign with an emphasis on social media.
If he wins, Schlossberg would be at least the seventh member of the extended Kennedy family to serve in Congress.
New York’s 12th Congressional District is a wealthy, Democratic-leaning area, made up of Manhattan’s Midtown, Upper East Side, and Upper West Side.
The New York Times was first to report the news of Pelosi’s planned endorsement.
Democratic California Rep. Robert Garcia, the ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, laid out four of the report’s key findings:
“The Trump Administration’s extreme policies, violent tactics, and culture of impunity led to the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.”
“The Trump Administration’s lies about the killings cannot cover up what the American people saw with their own eyes.”
“The available evidence suggests that the Trump Administration is attempting to cover up misconduct.”
“The Trump Administration is continuing its cover-up by impeding thorough and impartial investigations into the shootings.”
The report also highlights how evidence counters the administration’s initial claims that both victims were domestic terrorists aiming to harm federal law enforcement.
“Let’s be clear: the killings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti could have been prevented, and they should both still be alive,” Garcia wrote. “President Trump, [Homeland Security Secretary] Kristi Noem, and [the U.S. Department of Homeland Security] have lied over and over again and are now trying to cover up the truth. The Trump Administration needs to be held accountable.”
In a statement to WCCO, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson defended the work of federal officers.
“Federal law enforcement officers are heroically removing dangerous criminal illegal aliens from American communities – including murderers, rapists, and pedophiles. The Trump Administration is grateful for their important work,” Jackson said.
WCCO has also reached out to Homeland Security for comment.
The committee, chaired by Kentucky Republican Rep. James Comer, is currently comprised of 44 representatives: 24 Republicans and 20 Democrats.
Republican members include Reps. Jim Jordan, Paul Gosar, Virginia Foxx, Pete Sessions, Nancy Mace and Lauren Boebert. Its Democratic members include Reps. Eleanor Holmes Norton, Kwesisi Mfume, Shontel Brown, Jasmine Crockett, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib.
Good’s brothers, Brent and Luke Ganger, testified Tuesday at a public Congressional forum co-led by Garcia on “the violent tactics and disproportionate use of force by agents of the Department of Homeland Security.”
Democrat Christian Menefee won a Texas U.S. House seat in a special election Saturday that will narrow Republicans’ already-slim majority, telling President Trump that the Democratic district “topples corrupt presidencies.”
Menefee, the Harris County attorney, prevailed in a runoff against Amanda Edwards, a former Houston City Council member. He will replace the late Rep. Sylvester Turner, a former Houston mayor, who died in March 2025.
The seat representing the heavily Democratic Houston-based district has been vacant for nearly a year.
Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott didn’t schedule the first round of voting until November. Menefee and Edwards were the top vote-getters in a 16-candidate, all-parties primary. They advanced to a runoff because no candidate won a majority of the vote.
Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee, a candidate for the open House seat in the 18th congressional district, speaks to his supporters during an election night watch party in Houston, on Nov. 4, 2025.
Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images
Speaking to supporters at his victory party, Menefee promised to fight for universal health insurance, seek to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem over U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations and “tear ICE up from the roots.”
He also addressed Mr. Trump directly after noting that one of the district’s most storied representatives, Democrat Barbara Jordan, was an eloquent voice for President Richard Nixon’s impeachment ahead of his 1974 resignation.
“The results here tonight are a mandate for me to work as hard as I can to oppose your agenda, to fight back against where you’re taking this country and to investigate your crimes,” Menefee said.
Menefee will fill the remainder of Turner’s term, which ends when a new Congress is sworn into office in January 2027.
After Saturday, yet another election lies ahead in little over a month. Both Menefee and Edwards are on the ballot again on March 3, when they will face Democratic Rep. Al Green in another election — this one a Democratic primary in a newly drawn 18th congressional district, for the full term that starts in 2027. Green currently represents the 9th congressional district.
GOP lawmakers who control Texas state government drew a new map last summer for this year’s midterms, pushed by Mr. Trump to create five more winnable seats for Republicans to help preserve their majority.
Abbott had argued that Houston officials needed the six months between Turner’s death and the first round of voting to prepare for the special election, but Democrats criticized the long wait as a move designed to give the GOP a slightly bigger cushion in the House for difficult votes.
While campaigning Saturday, Edwards, 44, referenced the long vacancy in a video she posted to social media, saying voters have gone too long without a voice in Washington. Later, she told supporters at her watch party that the race “never was about winning a particular seat.”
“This journey has always been about creating a community where every single person in it, no matter what their background, no matter where they were from, no matter where they lived, would have the opportunity to thrive,” she said. “That means access to health care. That means education. That means economics.”
Menefee, 37, was endorsed by several prominent Texas Democrats including former congressman Beto O’Rourke and Rep. Jasmine Crockett. He was joined Saturday by Crockett, who is running for the U.S. Senate.
Menefee ousted an incumbent in 2020 to become Harris County’s first Black county attorney, representing it in civil cases, and he has joined legal challenges of Mr. Trump’s executive orders on immigration.
Edwards served four years on the Houston City Council starting in 2016. She ran for U.S. Senate in 2020 but finished fifth in a 12-person primary. She unsuccessfully challenged U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in the 2024 primary, and when Lee died that July, local Democrats narrowly nominated Turner over Edwards as Lee’s replacement.
Menefee finished ahead of Edwards in the primary, but Edwards picked up the endorsement of the third-place finisher, state Rep. Jolanda Jones, who said Edwards had skills “best suited to go against Trump.”
Winter weather added to voters’ confusion, forcing local officials to cancel two days of advance voting this week, prompting civil rights group to go to court to win a two-day extension, into Thursday.
Washington — House Republican leaders unveiled a plan Friday to address health care costs ahead of a year-end lapse to tax credits that will result in skyrocketing premiums for more than 20 million Americans.
But the plan does not include an extension to the Affordable Care Act subsidies. Instead, Republican leaders will allow a vote on an amendment to the plan that would include an extension to those expiring tax credits, according to a GOP leadership aide.
The move is aimed at appeasing moderate Republicans who are trying to force votes, through what is known as a discharge petition, on separate pieces of legislation to extend the tax credits for one to two years with reforms.
An extension has split the party, with those opposed saying the subsidies are ripe with fraud and high-income households shouldn’t qualify.
Democrats have pushed a three-year extension without reforms — a nonstarter with Republicans.
The Republican plan released Friday includes a provision to expand association health plans, in which multiple employers band together to purchase coverage and lower the costs of benefits. Another provision would provide funding for cost-sharing reduction payments meant to lower premiums for some Affordable Care Act enrollees. The proposal would also require more transparency from pharmacy benefit managers in an effort to lower drug costs.
“While Democrats demand that taxpayers write bigger checks to insurance companies to hide the cost of their failed law, House Republicans are tackling the real drivers of health care costs to provide affordable care, increase access and choice, and restore integrity to our nation’s health care system for all Americans,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said in a statement.
Johnson has been meeting with leaders of several factions of the conference this week to try to build a consensus on a plan.
The House Rules Committee is set to take up the package on Tuesday afternoon, teeing it up for a potential floor vote as soon as Tuesday evening or Wednesday.
It’s unclear whether it has enough support to survive a floor vote.
In a statement Friday night, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, called the GOP proposal an “11th hour measure” and said he would oppose it if the bill reaches the House floor.
“House Democrats will continue our fight to protect the healthcare of the American people. We are ready to work with anyone in good faith on the other side of the aisle who wants to prevent the Affordable Care Act tax credits from expiring at the end of the month,” Jeffries said. “Unfortunately, House Republicans have introduced toxic legislation that is completely unserious, hurts hardworking America taxpayers and is not designed to secure bipartisan support.”
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander says he is running for Congress in New York’s 10th District.
Lander released a campaign video Wednesday morning, talking about his years of service in New York. He said he’s ready to take on the Trump administration during what he calls “a moment of dark oppression.”
Lander was elected as comptroller in 2021 after spending 12 years in the City Council, where he co-founded the Progressive Caucus. He and his family live in Brooklyn.
NYC Comptroller Brad Lander arrives to speak at a rally after being released from ICE detention on June 17, 2025 in New York City.
Michael M. Santiago / Getty Images
Speaking to a packed crowd at the Nitehawk Cinema Theater in Park Slope on Wednesday night, Lander said he “will fight not fold” and embraced what he called “Mr. Rogers’ energy.”
“Yeah, it’s a Mr. Rogers that stands up, fights ICE and fights Trump and fights Musk and kleptocrats, and fights AIPAC and says this is our neighborhood,” Lander said.
Rep. Dan Goldman, a fellow Democrat, currently represents District 10, serving parts of Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan.
Lander highlighted one of many issues he says that sets them apart.
“Only I, of the two of us, recognize that Netanyahu’s leveling of schools and hospitals and the destruction of Gaza was a war crime. It’s an ongoing war crime,” Lander said.
Progressives are looking to seize the moment
Goldman isn’t the only sitting congressman being targeted by fellow Democrats. Bronx Rep. Ritchie Torres is going to be challenged by former state Assemblyman Michael Blake, who has criticized Torres’ support of Israel.
Progressives are also going after two other seats, vying to replace Manhattan’s Jerry Nadler and Brooklyn’s Nydia Velázquez, who are both retiring.
J.C. Polanco, a law professor at the University of Mount Saint Vincent in Bronx, says progressives see this as their moment to grab the brass ring of power.
“The fact is this squad is very loud on social media. That congressional delegation, these four, if they were to win, they will just make the squad larger. And one of the dangers of having a larger squad is that you’re going to have a situation in Washington where socialists are gonna have a bigger voice and they’re gonna be tied to the Democratic Party, which is gonna hurt the Democrats in national elections,” Polanco said.
Lander and Goldman taking on immigration enforcement
“While the oligarchy drives an affordability crisis, they shouldn’t be able to buy a seat in Congress. While our neighbors are being demonized and attacked, we can put our bodies on the line to protect them,” Lander said in his campaign video. “New York is for everyone.”
Goldman on Tuesday joined Reps. Adriano Espaillat and Velázquez announcing new legislation to stop federal agents from arresting immigrants as they show up for court-ordered appearances.
“Dan is focused on stopping the Trump administration from what they’re doing to immigrant families in his district right now. He’s proud of his progressive record in Congress and will deal with Brad and other challengers in the new year,” a spokesperson for Goldman’s campaign said after Lander’s announcement.
Lander says he has Mayor-elect Mamdani’s endorsement
He said he also has the support of Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, New York State Sen. Andrew Gounardes, New York State Assemblymember Robert Carroll, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, and the Working Families Party.
Sanders released a statement Wednesday calling Lander a “relentless fighter for working people.”
“Brad Lander is a public servant who will bring a much-needed voice to Congress. He will deliver for the people of New York and all working class Americans. I am proud to endorse him,” Sanders said.
The U.S. House of Representatives approved the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act in a 312-112 vote late Wednesday, advancing the policy bill to the U.S. Senate for possible clearance by next week.
The U.S. House of Representatives officially approved the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act in a 312-112 vote late Wednesday, advancing the policy bill to the U.S. Senate for possible clearance by next week.
The 3,000-plus page bill includes legislation that offers a pay hike to service members, increasing congressional oversight over the U.S. Department of Defense and language in favor of reopening up the District’s airspace to the military.
Restrictions for military flyovers were put in place in January following the midair collision between an American Airlines Flight 5342 and an Army helicopter near D.C.’s Reagan National Airport. The fatal collision killed 67 people.
Ahead of the NDAA’s passage in the lower congressional house, National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said she “vehemently” opposed the Section 373 provision, explaining it rolls back essential safety measures.
“This section to the lay reader is drafted to seemingly enhance safety,” she said. “I want to be very clear that it does not, in any way, enhance safety.”
Adam Tuss, the transportation reporter with NBC4, told WTOP that a key question surrounding the legislation is how it wound up in the defense bill in the first place.
“Nobody has the answers. So, in the days and weeks coming up here, we’re going to have to start digging and see who really wants that provision in there for military training operations around our airports, and why?” Tuss said.
Reaction from families of Flight 5342
In a joint statement, the families of Flight 5342 said Section 373 “does not resolve the visibility and coordination failures that contributed” to the January midair collision.
“Section 373 applies only to training missions — even though military helicopters in the National Capital Region fly a wide range of missions that routinely place them near commercial aircraft. It focuses narrowly on TCAS-compatible alerts rather than true visibility and broadcast requirements, and it preserves broad national-security exceptions similar to those in place at the time of the Flight 5342 collision,” the statement reads.
“These gaps mean the provision does not meaningfully mitigate the risks that proved fatal for our loved ones,” the families wrote in the statement.
“We urge Congress to strengthen Section 373 by requiring real, enforceable visibility standards for all military aircraft operating near civilian traffic,” it continues.
In separate remarks, Tim and Sheri Lilley, whose son, Sam, was the first officer of the jetliner, said the current version of the provision that was cleared by the U.S. House “has several unsatisfactory provisions related to aviation safety.”
“Safety that depends on exemptions cannot be the foundation of a secure airspace system,” their statement reads. “The flying public and all those that utilize our airspace deserve better than what this bill provides.”
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser blasted the inclusion of Section 373, saying the measure “disregards” airspace restrictions and safety factors that were implemented in the wake of the midair collision.
“It is now clear that this provision was included without consultation from the NTSB, the agency leading the investigation into the crash, and without regard for the safety of D.C. residents, visitors, and our military personnel,” she said in a statement.
“I urge Congress to strike Section 373 from the NDAA and to follow the recommendations of safety experts. I will continue working alongside our federal partners to ensure compliance with safety protocols and to protect the integrity of our airspace,” her statement added.
Virgina Senators
U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) shared similar sentiments and concerns about the NDAA’s impact on D.C.’s airspace safety.
“The language in this provision could allow rolling back crucial new safety practices I fought to implement after the Jan. 29 tragedy and give the Department of Defense more discretion over safety procedures in the region,” Warner said in a statement.
He added that the Department of Defense needs more supervision and regulation, not less.
“It’s clear that we cannot rely on the DoD alone to be the safety authority over its flights in this area,” he stressed in the statement.
U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), who also serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Subcommittee on Seapower, weighed in on the NDAA’s failure to include language on restoring the names of military bases, an action that was backed by a bipartisan commission.
“I’m glad that the House voted to pass this year’s defense bill, which includes important provisions that will support service members, military families, Virginia’s defense community, and our allies,” he said in a statement.
“However, I’m extremely disappointed that a provision I fought for to restore a bipartisan commission’s names of our military bases was taken out at the last minute because President Trump threatened to veto the entire defense bill — just like he did in 2020, even though it included a pay raise for service members — to prevent changes to bases named for Confederates.”
“Virginians were proud to honor Tech. Sgt. Van T. Barfoot, Lt. Gen. Arthur J. Gregg, Lt. Col. Charity Adams, and Dr. Mary Walker. It’s shameful that the Virginia bases won’t continue to be named after these four amazing individuals,” Kaine’s statement added.
Kaine’s statement notes that both a bipartisan committee and the House Armed Services Committee cleared the language in efforts to restore the names of the Virginia bases.
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The White House’s plan to draft an Affordable Care Act subsidies extension may have hit a snag. CBS News has confirmed that House Speaker Mike Johnson called senior Trump officials, telling them that most House Republicans have little interest in extending the tax subsidies once they expire at the end of the year. CBS News political reporter Hunter Woodall has more details.
After seven weeks away, the House returned last week and spent a decent amount of time debating and voting on censure resolutions. Democratic Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia joins “The Takeout” to discuss a push from lawmakers to slow down these votes and the formal rebukes behind them.
Marjorie Taylor Greene resigning from Congress after falling out with Trump – CBS News
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Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is resigning from Congress early next year after a weekslong falling out with President Trump and much of her party.
Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida was indicted in federal court Wednesday for allegedly stealing millions of dollars in federal emergency funds and routing some of it to her campaign account, the Justice Department said in a statement.
The Justice Department alleged that in 2021, a year before Cherfilus-McCormick was elected to Congress, a health care company that she ran was overpaid $5 million on a Federal Emergency Management Agency-funded contract related to coronavirus vaccinations. The defendants in the case allegedly “conspired to steal” the money by sending it through multiple accounts.
Some of that overpaid money was then used to help fund Cherfilus-McCormick’s campaign to represent South Florida in the House, the Justice Department alleged. In particular, she was accused of funneling some of the money to friends and family members who donated it to her campaign, in what’s known as a “straw donor” scheme.
“Using disaster relief funds for self-enrichment is a particularly selfish, cynical crime,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. “No one is above the law, least of all powerful people who rob taxpayers for personal gain. We will follow the facts in this case and deliver justice.”
The Justice Department’s statement did not specify the charges against Cherfilus-McCormick or any other defendants. An indictment for Cherfilus-McCormick was not posted on the federal court database as of Wednesday evening.
File photo: Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida at a news conference in Washington, Sept. 20, 2024.
J. Scott Applewhite / AP
“This is an unjust, baseless, sham indictment — and I am innocent,” Cherfilus-McCormick said in a statement provided to CBS News early Thursday morning. “The timing alone is curious and clearly meant to distract from far more pressing national issues. From day one, I have cooperated with every lawful request, and I will continue to do so until this matter is resolved. I am deeply grateful for the support of my district, and I remain confident that the truth will prevail. I look forward to my day in court. Until then, I will continue fighting for my constituents.”
Cherfilus-McCormick’s legal team said in a statement the congresswoman “is a committed public servant, who is dedicated to her constituents. We will fight to clear her good name.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told reporters late Wednesday that he would issue a statement on the criminal charges after speaking with Cherfilus-McCormick, but added: “She’s innocent until proven guilty.”
The congresswoman’s company, Trinity Healthcare Services, was also sued by emergency officials in Florida earlier this year over an alleged multimillion-dollar overpayment.
The Florida Department of Emergency Management said it contracted with Trinity to sign people up for COVID-19 vaccines. At one point, the company was accidentally paid more than $5 million rather than $50,000 due to a “clerical error,” and the company “knowingly” processed the invoice and refused to give the money back, the lawsuit says.
In response, Trinity said in court papers that the state waited three years to inform the company about the overpayments. The company said it told the Florida Department of Emergency Management it was willing to discuss the dispute, but the agency didn’t respond.
The state dropped the case last year following mediation between the two parties.
Cherfilus-McCormick has also faced a House Ethics Committee probe, after the Office of Congressional Ethics said last year she may have “requested community project funding that would be directed to a for-profit entity.”
Washington — The House on Tuesday passed a bill in a near-unanimous vote that would compel the Justice Department to release materials related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The Senate then approved it by unanimous consent, meaning it will soon head to President Trump’s desk for a signature.
The vote took place after House GOP leaders dragged out the process for months. The issue has disrupted committee meetings, stalled floor action on other legislation since this summer and fueled President Trump’s tirades against some House Republicans, most recently GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia. House Speaker Mike Johnson finally expedited a vote on the issue after more than half of all House members — including every Democrat and four Republicans — signed a petition forcing a vote.
Mr. Trump suddenly reversed his opposition to the bill late Sunday after it appeared all but certain there would be mass Republican defections.
Here’s what to know about the process, what comes next, and how we got here.
What the House’s Epstein bill would do
The bill would require the attorney general to make public all unclassified records, documents, communications and investigative materials in possession of the Justice Department, the FBI and U.S. attorneys’ offices within 30 days of becoming law.
Information that falls under that umbrella includes investigative and prosecutorial materials related to Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, as well as flight logs, travel records and materials about Epstein’s detention and death. It also calls for the release of names of individuals and entities referenced in any Epstein case and internal Justice Department communications about the case.
It would also make public any records “concerning the destruction, deletion, alteration, misplacement, or concealment of documents, recordings, or electronic data” related to Epstein and his associates.
What files does the DOJ have on Epstein?
It’s not clear what — or how many — records the Justice Department has in its possession, but Epstein and Maxwell have been the subject of multiple federal investigations.
Epstein was investigated by federal and state officials in Florida in the 2000s, which ended with him pleading guilty to state-level prosecution charges. He was investigated again more than a decade later, leading to federal charges in 2019 for allegedly sex trafficking minors.
Maxwell was charged in 2020, and she is now serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in helping Epstein recruit, groom and abuse underage girls.
And Epstein’s 2019 death by suicide in federal custody was probed by the Justice Department.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a South Dakota Republican, was noncommittal about bringing it up for a vote when asked in September. On Sunday, before Mr. Trump encouraged lawmakers to vote for the bill, Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, a Wyoming Republican, expressed a similar sentiment.
“It’ll come to the Senate. We’ll take a look at it,” he told NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “But to me, this is not about truth. It’s not about justice. This is about an attempt by the Democrats to make President Trump a lame duck president. I’m not going to aid and abet them in their efforts to do that.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said in a statement Tuesday that he would move to “immediately” take up and pass the bill, and said that if Thune “tries to bury the bill, I’ll stop him.”
Once it passed the House, Schumer called for Senate approval by unanimous consent, which it quickly received.
Mr. Trump told reporters Monday he would sign the bill if it makes it to his desk.
The president also has the power to order the Justice Department to release the files without action from Congress, but he has not indicated any plans to do so.
Lawmakers push for Epstein files’ release
The bill’s lead sponsors — Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California and Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky — have led the charge in the House for the documents’ release. First, they introduced legislation that would force the Justice Department to make Epstein-related files public within 30 days, and they later used a procedural maneuver to bypass House leaders, who control what legislation hits the floor.
The procedural maneuver, known as a discharge petition, secured the final signature needed to force a vote last Wednesday, when newly seated Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva of Arizona added her name. Her swearing-in was delayed for seven weeks while the House was on an extended break during the shutdown.
Instead of waiting until early December, when Johnson would be required to hold a vote on the issue under the rules governing the discharge petition process, the speaker is now seeking to move on sooner.
“It’s a totally pointless exercise,” Johnson said last week about why he was now choosing to accelerate the vote. “It is completely moot now. We might as well just do it.”
Massie said Johnson’s decision to drag out the vote for months “caused nothing but political pain.” Greene called Mr. Trump’s previous opposition to releasing the files a “huge miscalculation.”
Johnson has repeatedly criticized the effort by Democrats and some Republicans to force a vote, saying their measure lacked enough protections for Epstein’s victims. More recently, Johnson has touted the House Oversight Committee’s investigation as sufficient.
The Republican-led committee has so far released tens of thousands of documents from Epstein’s estate and the Justice Department, as well as transcripts from interviews with former government officials about their handling of the case. The committee has also sought to depose Maxwell.
The most recent release contained text messages and emails from Epstein in which he alluded to having dirt on Mr. Trump. In his correspondence with others, Epstein said of Mr. Trump, “of course he knew about the girls as he asked ghislaine to stop,” and referred to him as the “dog that hasn’t barked.”
“You see, I know how dirty Donald is,” Epstein wrote in an email chain discussing a 2018 New York Times opinion column on impeachment.
Mr. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and has not been charged with any crimes related to the Epstein case. He and Epstein knew each other in New York and Palm Beach social circles in the 1990s and early 2000s, but Mr. Trump has said he cut ties years ago.
Even Republicans who have supported making the Epstein materials public have defended Mr. Trump against criticism of his appearances in the files, arguing Democrats have cherry-picked details to damage the president.
Trump weighs in
Mr. Trump has accused Democrats of focusing on Epstein to deflect from the shutdown, which ended last week after 43 days. He also said he’s ordering the Justice Department to investigate Epstein’s relationships with prominent Democrats, including former President Bill Clinton, and major financial institutions.
But late Sunday, Mr. Trump ended his pressure campaign against the House bill, saying “House Republicans should vote to release the Epstein files, because we have nothing to hide.”
Mr. Trump had previously lashed out at Republicans supportive of the efforts, calling them “weak and ineffective.” In recent days, he pulled his endorsement from Greene, who was once a close ally, bashing her as a “traitor.”
Greene said the Epstein files “sent him over the edge” and alleged Mr. Trump had directed his ire at her “to scare all the other Republicans” from voting to make the materials public.
“It’s astonishing really how hard he’s fighting to stop the Epstein files from coming out that he actually goes to this level,” she wrote on Friday.
On Saturday, she added, “It really makes you wonder what is in those files and who and what country is putting so much pressure on him?”
Massie pondered Sunday whether Mr. Trump’s directive for the Justice Department to investigate Clinton and others was an attempt to block the files from becoming public.
“If they have ongoing investigations in certain areas, those documents can’t be released,” Massie told ABC News’ “This Week.” “So this might be a big smoke screen … a last-ditch effort to prevent the release of the Epstein files.”
Trump administration’s handling of Epstein files
The Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein materials has divided Mr. Trump’s base.
Some of those who believe that the federal government has concealed information about Epstein to protect powerful figures have been disappointed by his administration’s disclosures so far.
When right-wing influencers visited the White House in February, Attorney General Pam Bondi gave the group binders labeled “The Epstein Files: Phase 1.” But she faced criticism after the influencers said that the binders contained documents that had been public for years.
Months later, a July memo from the Justice Department and FBI said they had conducted an “exhaustive review” of material related to Epstein and “did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.” There was no “client list” or “credible evidence” that Epstein blackmailed prominent figures, according to the memo, which also confirmed that Epstein died by suicide in a Manhattan jail.
Bondi had previously suggested a “client list” was sitting on her desk.
After pressure from members of both parties, the Trump administration asked courts to unseal grand jury materials from the Epstein and Maxwell cases earlier this year, but those moves have beenrejected by judges.
In a statement, Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said he would take immediate action on the Epstein legislation once it’s approved by the House.
“Once the House passes the bill to release the Epstein files today, I will move for the Senate to immediately take it up and pass it—period,” he said.
Schumer continued, “Republicans have spent months trying to protect Donald Trump and hide what’s in the files. Americans are tired of waiting and are demanding to see the truth. If Leader Thune tries to bury the bill, I’ll stop him.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson addressed reporters on Wednesday night after the lower chamber voted to pass a Senate-backed funding package to end the 43-day government shutdown, the longest in U.S. history. Johnson admonished Democrats over the impasse and touted Republicans’ achievements in the first 10 months of President Trump’s second term.
House passes bill to fund government and end shutdown – CBS News
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The House passed a funding bill to end the government shutdown on Wednesday night, sending the measure to President Trump’s desk for final signature. CBS News congressional reporter Taurean Small has the latest.
Washington — House Republicans voted Wednesday to repeal the legal justifications used to attack Iraq in 1991 and 2003, the latest attempt by Congress to revoke the president’s authority to wage war.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have long questioned leaving the authorizations in place, arguing it allows presidents to abuse their power.
The House adopted the measure in a 261 to 167 vote. It was supported by 212 Democrats and 49 Republicans. The bipartisan amendment is linked to the annual National Defense Authorization Act, which passed later Wednesday. The amendment was sponsored by Democratic Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York and Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas.
During floor debate, Meeks said the authorizations are “long obsolete” and “risk abuse by administrations of either party.”
“It is time for Congress to reclaim its constitutional authority over matters of war and peace,” Meeks said.
Republican Rep. Brian Mast of Florida, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he was objecting to the amendment for “procedural reasons.”
“We have, I think, probably large agreement on reasons to sunset things,” Mast said. “But it should not be done in absence of doing something of this gravity in the proper way.”
A similar measure passed the Democratic-controlled Senate in 2023, with the support of 48 Democrats and 18 Republicans. But it never received a vote in the Republican-controlled House.
In the House, 219 Democrats and 49 Republicans voted to repeal the 2002 authorization in 2021. But it stalled in the Senate. Both chambers had a Democratic majority at the time.
Congress adopted the 2002 authorization ahead of the March 2003 invasion of Iraq that led to the toppling of Saddam Hussein’s regime. The 1991 authorization was approved during the Gulf War.
“We should not be operating under a 23-year-old authorization of the use of military force,” Roy said. “We don’t need to have Congress effectively modern-day declaring war and leaving it in place for a quarter of a freaking century, or in this case, 34 years since 1991.”
In 2020, Mr. Trump used the 2002 authorization as part of the legal justification for an airstrike that killed Iranian military leader Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad.
Caitlin Yilek is a politics reporter at CBSNews.com, based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked for the Washington Examiner and The Hill, and was a member of the 2022 Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press Foundation.
Washington — House Republicans will fast-track a short-term spending bill after sidestepping the lower chamber’s Rules Committee as the bipartisan measure to keep the government open faced opposition from the panel’s conservative members.
House Republicans are expected to bring up the three-month funding bill for a floor vote under a procedure known as suspension of the rules, meaning it will need a two-thirds majority for passage. It puts House Speaker Mike Johnson in a position of, once again, needing to rely on Democrats to pass legislation.
The plan is to bring up the bill for a vote on Wednesday, according to House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a Louisiana Republican.
The House Rules Committee was set to vote on approving the measure for a floor vote on Monday night, but nixed the rule vote after Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Rep. Chip Roy of Texas said they would not support it. Had the measure come up for a floor vote under a rule, it would have needed a simple majority to pass.
“Republicans need Democrats in order to keep the government open,” said Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, the committee’s top Democrat.
House conservatives have for months pushed the lower chamber to pass the dozen individual appropriations bills that fund the government. The short-term bill, they argue, sets up Congress to pass a massive spending bill, called an “omnibus,” at the end of the year as lawmakers are eager to ditch Washington for the holidays.
“I would encourage people not to vote for this,” Massie said. “Why do we want to set up a shutdown crisis the week before Christmas? Why would we even want to set up a shutdown crisis next spring? We shouldn’t. We should fund the whole thing for a year.”
Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, unveiled the latest plan Sunday after the House last week rejected his initial plan that paired a six-month funding bill with a measure requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote.
The new plan would fund the government at current levels through Dec. 20, punting the fight over spending to after the November election. But it also risks spoiling lawmakers’ December holidays if they can’t reach another agreement to extend funding into next year.
In a letter to his colleagues, Johnson said Sunday the three-month measure is “the only option that remains.”
“Our legislation will be a very narrow, bare-bones [continuing resolution] including only the extensions that are absolutely necessary,” he wrote, adding that it prevents “the Senate from jamming us with a bill loaded with billions in new spending and unrelated provisions.”
While continuing resolutions usually don’t alter funding levels, the three-month bill includes about $230 million in additional funding for the Secret Service, which comes after a second assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. The voting measure that was part of the six-month funding legislation, which Democrats opposed, is no longer attached.
“While this is not the solution any of us prefer, it is the most prudent path forward under the present circumstances,” Johnson wrote. “As history has taught and current polling affirms, shutting the government down less than 40 days from a fateful election would be an act of political malpractice.”
Trump had called for a government shutdown if lawmakers could not get the voting measure, known as the SAVE Act, passed, despite it already being illegal for noncitizens to vote in federal elections. Johnson signaled Friday that Trump could soften his calls for a shutdown, saying the former president “understands the situation that we’re in.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, both from New York, praised the bipartisan negotiations that resulted in the funding agreement. Schumer said in a statement Sunday that he was hopeful that Congress could pass the legislation this week.
“This agreement could have very easily been reached weeks ago, but speaker Johnson and House Republicans chose to listen to Donald Trump’s partisan demands, instead of working with us from the start,” Schumer said Monday on the Senate floor.
Caitlin Yilek is a politics reporter at CBSNews.com, based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked for the Washington Examiner and The Hill, and was a member of the 2022 Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press Foundation.
In a campaign memo reviewed by CBS News, Democratic Congressional campaign operatives are encouraging their candidates to focus on a messaging around the concepts of “freedom” to win a series of competitive U.S. House races throughout the nation.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s memo urges a continued focus on the ideas of freedom as a pathway to regaining the majority in the U.S. House, which remains highly competitive in the homestretch to Election Day.
“It is incumbent on House Democrats to focus on calling out GOP attacks on reproductive freedom, economic freedom, and freedom from violence or fear,” the memo says. “In public-facing media, both paid and earned, House Democrats and candidates are engaging and energizing voters with messaging that centers on the fight for our freedoms.”
The memo includes an array of issues in which such a message has been — and can be — utilized. For example, the memo says “Donald Trump and House Republicans are attacking Americans’ freedoms — rolling back reproductive freedoms, banning books in schools, and dictating to people who they are allowed to love or how they can or cannot build a family. These far-right extremists are hellbent on restricting rights and taking away Americans’ freedoms.”
Democratic candidate Pat Ryan speaks to supporters during a campaign rally, Monday, Aug. 22, 2022, in Kingston, N.Y.
Mary Altaffer / AP
The final months of the race for control of the House have featured campaign advertisements, mailings and speeches focused on a variety of wedge issues, including consumer prices, border security, gun control and public safety.
The Democratic campaign memo includes a broader argument that concept of “freedoms” can be utilized to encompass several pressing issues that are important voters, including women’s reproductive rights, the controversial Project 2025 to overhaul the executive branch, the ongoing criticisms of Trump’s defense of Jan. 6 Capitol rioters and his baseless claims of 2020 election fraud.
“Across the battlefield, DCCC candidates and ‘frontliners’ are engaging the issue and working diligently to ensure voters know that electing House Democrats means codifying the protections of Roe, fighting for families and investing in their economic freedom, and standing up to Donald Trump and House Republicans’ plans to attack their freedoms,” the memo says. “This strong contrast messaging is essential to help Democrats reclaim the House majority to defend our rights, freedoms, democracy, and future.”
Speaking with CBS News between campaign stops in Nebraska, Democratic Congressional candidate Tony Vargas invoked some of his party’s messaging on freedom issues.
“This is a Republican party that wants to take away — and tell you — what you can learn,” Vargas said. “They want to tell you what you can and cannot do with your body. They’re inserting themselves between women’s healthcare decisions.”
After meeting with Democratic party volunteers in Dutchess County, New York, last month, Rep. Pat Ryan also emphasized a message that invoked the word freedom. Ryan, a Democrat facing a stiff reelection fight, told CBS News, “We’ve seen the far right and Donald Trump double-down and triple-down on taking away rights. “
A spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee responded to the Democrats’ messaging efforts, telling CBS News that “the Republican platform is to grant Americans freedom from Kamala Harris’ inflation, border, and public safety crises. We will win in November because voters refuse to live in fear of Democrats’ effect on their economic and community security.”
Scott MacFarlane is a congressional correspondent. He has covered Washington for two decades, earning 20 Emmy and Edward R. Murrow awards. His reporting has resulted directly in the passage of five new laws.
Last year, there were more than 21,000 deepfake pornographic videos online — up more than 460% over the year prior. But Congress could soon make it illegal to share the doctored images.
Leading the charge are New Hampshire Sen. Maggie Hassan, a Democrat, and Texas Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican, who co-authored bipartisan legislation aimed at cracking down on people who share non-consensual intimate deepfake images online. The legislation proposes criminal penalties that include a fine and up to two years in prison, and civil penalties could range up to $150,000.
“It’s outrageous,” Hassan said. “And we need to make sure that our laws keep up with this new technology and that we protect individuals.”
Breeze Liu said she was shocked when a friend discovered her face superimposed on pornographic images.
“And I really feel like my whole world fell apart at that moment,” said Liu. “You have to look at how many views are there, and how many people have violated you. I just didn’t want to live anymore, because the shame was too, too much for me to bear.”
Liu, who said she knew who the perpetrator was, decided to take her case to police.
“The police did not really do anything about it,” said Liu. “The police actually called me a prostitute. They slut shamed me.”
Liu said when law enforcement didn’t pursue the issue, the perpetrator created more deepfakes of her, creating more than 800 links across the internet. Liu said the FBI is now investigating her case and she’s also part of a class-action lawsuit against Pornhub.
Pornhub told CBS News it swiftly removes any non-consensual material on its platform, including deepfakes. The site also said it has protocols in place to prevent non-consensual material from being uploaded.
People have also created artificially generated intimate images of celebrities like Taylor Swift. In January, the social media site X disabled searches related to the singer in an effort to remove and stop the circulation of deepfake pornographic images of the pop superstar.
Teens across the country are also grappling with the increasingly common problem. Some students are creating deepfake porn of fellow students and spreading them among their friends and family members, sometimes even extorting them. In New Jersey earlier this year, a teen sued another student, accusing them of creating and sharing AI-generated pornographic images of them and others.
Hassan said Congress is working toward criminalizing the creation of non-consensual intimate images.
“There is work going on in Congress right now about how to set up this kind of guardrail, but what we know is that most people don’t know about the deepfake that exists until somebody tries to distribute it, right? So we wanted to really attack this problem at the point where it becomes obvious and somebody is likely to take action,” Hassan said.
Cornyn said that while it could take months to get the bill through the Senate, he’s confident it will pass with bipartisan support.
“We’re not going to take our foot off the gas pedal,” Cornyn said. “We’re going to continue to press this issue, because then, as long as the bill is not out, there are people taking advantage of the absence of this sort of punishment to exploit people using these deepfakes.”
In the meantime, Liu created a startup called Alecto AI to help others quickly identify and remove deepfakes they find of themselves online.
“I came to the conclusion that unless I change the system, unless I change the world, justice wouldn’t even be an option for me,” she said.
Journalist Jo Ling Kent joined CBS News in July 2023 as the senior business and technology correspondent for CBS News. Kent has more than 15 years of experience covering the intersection of technology and business in the U.S., as well as the emergence of China as a global economic power.
