Today\u2019s notice: The Epstein files saga enters an awkward phase. The latest on DHS funding talks. A question worth asking at today\u2019s high-profile immigration hearing, and a preview of some election-integrity fireworks in the House. Plus: A tale from a redistricted Ohio.<\/p>\n
THE LATEST<\/p>\n
Will Epstein fallout hit the U.S. like it has elsewhere? \u201cLook at what\u2019s happening in Britain,\u201d Rep. Ro Khanna told reporters at a press conference in freezing conditions outside DOJ HQ last night. \u201cI mean, the king of England is putting out statements, and yet in our country, we have not had that reckoning.\u201d<\/p>\n
The American political story is still about what\u2019s not been released, rather than what has. Elsewhere, royals, diplomats and businessmen are facing consequences. Even some paleontologists are feeling the heat<\/a>.<\/p>\n Khanna and his GOP counterpart, Rep. Thomas Massie, says the truth is still being hidden. Six potential Epstein co-conspirators<\/a> were redacted in files given to the public, they said, including at least one \u201cprominent\u201d person and a senior foreign government official. But they\u2019re not releasing the names just yet. (In some back-and-forths on X last night, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche unredacted some documents Khanna and Massie said were incorrectly blacked out. \u201cThis DOJ is committed to transparency,\u201d he posted<\/a>.)<\/p>\n Anticipation has been the glue that bonds together the unlikely coalition that eventually shamed congressional leaders and the White House into releasing the Epstein files. There\u2019s no denial that it worked. \u201cInitially my reaction to all this was, \u2018I don\u2019t care. I don\u2019t see what the big deal is,\u2019\u201d Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis said yesterday<\/a>. \u201cBut now I see what the big deal is. The members of Congress who were pushing this were not wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n Now the politics get more difficult \u2014 it\u2019s easier to talk about the files one has not seen than the files one has. Democrats are divided over how to respond to House Oversight Chair James Comer\u2019s demands<\/a> on Bill and Hillary Clinton, for example. But they all want to see the files. <\/p>\n Republicans are back to an awkward place, too. Revelations about Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick\u2019s dealings with Jeffrey Epstein led to some calls for his resignation \u2014 including from Massie<\/a> \u2014 but the White House wants that talk shut down<\/a>. Republicans don\u2019t seem eager to cross Donald Trump on the issue.<\/p>\n The way America is handling things: As long as there are redactions to argue about and the possibility of new paperwork to be found, it\u2019s hard to see how this shifts into a shared political reality of accountability.<\/p>\n Open tabs: Trump to Repeal Landmark Climate Finding in Huge Regulatory Rollback<\/a> (WSJ); How cigars, whiskey and an old-school Oklahoman got the government funded<\/a> (Politico); A Raid in a Small Town Brings Trump\u2019s Deportations to Deep-Red Idaho<\/a> (NYT); Federal judge blocks California\u2019s law enforcement mask ban<\/a> (CNN)<\/p>\n From the Hill<\/p>\n The White House has sent over a counterproposal to Democrats\u2019 initial wish list of reforms for ICE and CBP, an official told Jasmine yesterday. Officials remained mum when asked what, exactly, was included in that list.<\/p>\n Never say never: Discussions between the White House and Senate Democrats are creating some optimism that a new short-term resolution could be reached by Friday to avoid a partial shutdown, NOTUS\u2019 Hill team reports<\/a>. John Thune told reporters that he would start teeing up a new continuing resolution today, but he wasn\u2019t willing to predict how long it would go.<\/p>\n On the other hand: Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer aren\u2019t sold. \u201cThe initial GOP response is both incomplete and insufficient in terms of addressing the concerns Americans have about ICE\u2019s lawless conduct,\u201d they said in a joint statement late last night. \u201cDemocrats await additional detail and text.\u201d<\/p>\n The House\u2019s hearing with the heads of ICE, Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is today. The Senate takes its turn Thursday.<\/p>\n One question worth asking: Is the government tracking how many children have been separated from their families? NOTUS\u2019 Jackie Llanos reports<\/a> that it\u2019s proven very difficult to track family separations during Trump\u2019s mass deportations, with no comprehensive data on the number of children entering the foster care system.<\/p>\n Stunting the stunt? The House Administration Committee is set to hold a hearing<\/a> today centered around the MAGA vision for U.S. elections. We\u2019re told the committee\u2019s ranking member, Rep. Joe Morelle, will lead Democrats in trying to flip the majority script and talk instead about Trump\u2019s recent (and controversial<\/a>) suggestion that Republicans federalize election management.<\/p>\n From the White House<\/p>\n Trump takes a new infrastructure hostage: This time, it\u2019s the under-construction Gordie Howe International Bridge<\/a> between Detroit and Canada. \u201cI will not allow this bridge to open until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given them. Also, importantly, Canada treats the United States with the Fairness and Respect that we deserve,\u201d Trump posted to Truth Social last night.<\/p>\n The ransom? Ontario resuming its sale of U.S. spirits, Canada\u2019s suspension of trade talks with China and a lowering of the country\u2019s tariffs on American dairy products.<\/p>\n Plus: \u201cWith all that we have given them, we should own, perhaps, at least one half of this asset,\u201d Trump wrote.<\/p>\n From the campaign trail<\/p>\n Kaptur\u2019s challenge: \u201cWe are going to have to do a lot of work to introduce her and meet those voters and learn what their priorities are,\u201d a campaign strategist for Rep. Marcy Kaptur told NOTUS\u2019 Tyler Spence<\/a> about the new areas in her redrawn Ohio district, which is markedly more red than it used to be.<\/p>\n Meeting new voters is a 2026 Democratic trend. The DCCC is announcing this morning five new pick-up opportunities, bringing the list to 44. It\u2019s now targeting seats held by Republican Reps. Jeff Crank in Colorado, Brad Finstad in Minnesota, Ryan Zinke in Montana, John McGuire in Virginia and the seat being vacated by Rep. Nancy Mace in South Carolina.<\/p>\n NEW ON NOTUS<\/p>\n The House found a rare point of agreement last night: The chamber passed an affordable housing bill by a 390-9 vote, a stunning act of bipartisanship in an era of deep divisions.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll work with the devil himself to get something on housing passed,\u201d Rep. Mike Flood, the chair of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance, told NOTUS\u2019 Raymond Fern\u00e1ndez<\/a> just before the vote.<\/p>\n More: A Democratic Candidate in Pennsylvania Is \u2018Sick\u2019 of Congressional Stock Trading. He Also Owns Stocks.<\/a> By Dave Levinthal<\/p>\n NOT US<\/p>\n Thank you for reading! If you liked this edition of the NOTUS newsletter, please forward it to a friend. If this newsletter was shared with you, please subscribe<\/a> \u2014 it\u2019s free! Have a tip? Email us at tips@notus.org<\/a>. And as always, we\u2019d love to hear your thoughts at newsletters@notus.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Today\u2019s notice: The Epstein files saga enters an awkward phase. The latest on DHS funding talks. 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