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Today's top stories
House Speaker Mike Johnson is sending lawmakers home today for an early start to their annual August recess. He aims to avoid dragging out a fight among Republicans over releasing details of federal investigations into Jeffrey Epstein. President Trump, who was once friends with Epstein, faces backlash from supporters who are demanding more information. He has characterized the uproar as a politically motivated "witch hunt" that distracts from his agenda. Republicans hope the controversy will subside while they're away, but some believe that won't be the case.
- "It is pretty rare to see the House floor paralyzed like this, even for a day," NPR's Claudia Grisales tells Up First. The extended recess leaves House Republicans with tight deadlines for critical legislation once they return in September. Trump has said related grand jury files will be released, but some Republican voters say they want the administration to do more. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., is leading a bipartisan petition that could force a vote to release the Epstein records. Massie says he believes Americans want to see justice and transparency, and, when they return in September, it will become a problem for Johnson and Trump.
Trump deflected questions yesterday about the Epstein case, shifting the focus to an old controversy: Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. This comes after Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard stated last week that she released evidence that former President Barack Obama and his national security officials manipulated intelligence to target Trump. The documents released include nearly 100 pages of newly declassified Obama-era emails, leading up to and after the 2016 election.
