Alex Jones Breaks Down in Tears After DOJ, FBI Release Epstein Memo Finding No Evidence of a ‘Client List': It ‘Tears My Guts Out'
The memo released Monday by the DOJ and FBI (available at this link) says that an 'exhaustive review' of Epstein documents found 'no credible evidence' that Epstein 'blackmailed prominent individuals as part of his actions. We did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.' Axios broke news of the memo on Sunday.
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Jones shared his reaction in a video Monday posted on X, in which he teared up discussing the Epstein case. He alleged in the caption, 'The DOJ is running cover for the CIA and Mossad. NO ONE IS BUYING THIS!! Next the DOJ will say 'Actually, Jeffrey Epstein never even existed.' This is over the top sickening.'
'It's beyond insane,' Jones said. 'You couldn't try to hurt yourself worse. You couldn't try to discredit the FBI worse than what they've done.'
Jones criticized U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi, who had told Fox News in a Feb. 21 interview that an alleged list of Epstein's sex-trafficking clients was 'sitting on my desk right now.'
'All those videos are saying, 'Yeah, she's seen the videos, it's all coming out.' And then now it doesn't exist? I mean, what?' Jones said in the video. Jones also speculated that FBI Director Kash Patel and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino are 'being tortured' and said, 'I think you see them losing their souls on live TV.'
'So this is the swamp winning,' Jones said. 'The question is, is Trump's DOJ actually using this to control the deep state, or are they just so overwhelmed by it they are tapping out?'
Jones, who shot the video in his car, at another point became tearful and said, 'I just got to the office, I'm going to go throw up, actually… I mean, I'm physically gonna puke, probably right now. My mouth is watering right now because I have integrity. I just really need the Trump administration to succeed, and to save this country, and they're doing so much good. And then for them to do something like this tears my guts out.'
Jones added that 'the left, they're all complicit. They're openly promoting pedophilia. We know they're pure evil. And they'll think it's all funny, 'Oh, look, Alex is sad. MAGA's tearing [itself] apart.''
Jones and his company Infowars filed for bankruptcy after the families of victims in the Sandy Hook mass shooting in Connecticut won judgments in 2022 totaling nearly $1.5 billion against Jones in defamation lawsuits. Jones had repeatedly promoted baseless conspiracy theories about the Sandy Hook massacre.
Epstein, the disgraced multimillionaire financier and convicted sex offender, died in 2019 in what authorities said was a suicide while he was being held in a Manhattan jail awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. The DOJ-FBI memo released Monday also reiterated findings that Epstein died by suicide: 'After a thorough investigation, FBI investigators concluded that Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City on August 10, 2019.'
On Feb. 27, Bondi — who was appointed by Trump — declassified and publicly released the 'first phase' of files related to Epstein and 'his sexual exploitation of over 250 underage girls at his homes in New York and Florida, among other locations,' according to a Department of Justice announcement. Many of the documents had already been public.
Elon Musk, amid an escalating feud with President Trump that exploded last month, claimed in a June 5 post on X (which he has since deleted) that Trump 'is in the Epstein files,' which he asserted 'is the real reason they haven't been made public.'
The DOJ-FBI memo said the FBI 'conducted digital searches of its databases, hard drives, and network drives as well as physical searches of squad areas, locked cabinets, desks, closets, and other areas where responsive material may have been stored.' It continued, 'These searches uncovered a significant amount of material, including more than 300 gigabytes of data and physical evidence.' The files relating to Epstein 'include a large volume of images of Epstein, images and videos of victims who are either minors or appear to be minors, and over ten thousand downloaded videos and images of illegal child sex abuse material and other pornography,' the DOJ-FBI memo said. 'Consistent with prior disclosures, this review confirmed that Epstein harmed over one thousand victims.'
'Through this review, we found no basis to revisit the disclosure of those materials and will not permit the release of child pornography,' the DOJ-FBI memo said. 'One of our highest priorities is combatting child exploitation and bringing justice to victims. Perpetuating unfounded theories about Epstein serves neither of those ends.'
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The Hill
25 minutes ago
- The Hill
Trump leans into trade deals to shake off polling slump
Morning Report is The Hill's a.m. newsletter. Subscribe here or using the box below: In today's issue: ▪ Trump, Starmer meeting in Scotland ▪ Digging into the US-EU trade deal ▪ Courts hand Trump more wins ▪ Israel pauses Gaza fighting for aid Fresh off announcing a U.S.-European Union trade deal, President Trump is looking to clinch more bilaterial agreements this week before his Friday tariff deadline. The president on Sunday touted the EU trade deal, struck during talks with European officials after a round of golf at one of his clubs in Scotland, and urged the Senate to confirm more nominees before starting their August recess. Trump will play host again today, meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at his golf clubs in Scotland for talks ranging from their recent bilateral trade deal to the worsening hunger crisis in Gaza. Follow along with The Hill's live blog. But the protesters who have gathered across Scotland for Trump's visit — including outside the U.S. Consulate in Edinburgh — offer a preview of the headwinds the president faces back home. POLLING NUMBERS: Trump saw some of his lowest approval ratings of his second term over the past week, with his net approval in the Decision Desk HQ average falling to more than 9 points underwater. As part of the drop, he's seen declines in particular among independents and on his handling of certain key issues like immigration. Lee Miringoff, the director of the Marist University Institute for Public Opinion, told The Hill's Jared Gans that Trump's quickly shifting political fortunes are part of his skill at 'keeping the focus moving all the time,' which requires redirecting people's attention to his benefit. 'But you do take a cost that your victories are short-lived, and the net effect is there's still an awful lot that people feel has not been accomplished and that he hasn't fulfilled a lot of campaign promises,' he added. At the same time, Trump is trying to ease an ongoing headache stemming from the controversy surrounding his administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. While his numbers certainly haven't bottomed out, they add up to a rough patch for Trump after a series of major victories just a few weeks earlier. The president has expressed his frustration with how aides are handling the backlash, The Washington Post reports, as the White House and Department of Justice's response to the crisis lacks any apparent strategy. 'This is a pretty substantial distraction,' a source told the Post. 'While many are trying to keep the unity, in many ways, the DOJ and the FBI are breaking at the seams.' ▪ The Hill: Five unanswered questions around Trump and the Epstein saga. ▪ CNN: Trump's Scotland trip is the latest example of blending private business with presidential duties. ▪ Politico: Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) panned a discharge petition from Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) designed to force the release of more files on Epstein. DEMOCRATS ARE TAKING ADVANTAGE of the widespread disapproval of the White House's handling of the Epstein case. A recent Emerson College Polling survey found 51 percent of registered voters disapprove of the administration's handling of the Epstein files, while 16 percent approve and a third said they're neutral. Trump's refusal to release federal files put him at odds with the same core MAGA loyalists who helped propel him to power. Democrats are only happy to watch the unraveling, however long it endures, and goad it along when the chance arrives. 'Let them destroy each other. If we have to throw a log on the fire, we'll do it,' one House Democratic aide told The Hill's Mike Lillis. House Democrats are using their long summer recess to ramp up their blitz of town halls in GOP-held districts. The strategy is not new, but this time they're armed with a powerful new talking point: Trump's defiance on the Epstein issue. 'People … want someone to listen,' said Rep. Suzan DelBene (Wash.), the head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. 'And if their member of Congress isn't going to listen, they want to make sure their voices are heard.' Republicans are also going on offense. Vice President Vance will be at a steel plant in Canton, Ohio, today to kick off an effort to promote the 'one big, beautiful bill' that the White House pushed through Congress this month. ▪ The Wall Street Journal: A Wall Street Journal poll found 52 percent of respondents oppose the GOP funding bill, showing the party's challenges in touting its benefits ahead of the midterms. IT'S ALL ABOUT 2026: The polling numbers and town halls all lead to the next big political target — the midterm elections. Democrats are looking to claw back a majority in one, or both, chambers of Congress, while Republicans are trying to buck the historical trend of a midterm disadvantage for the party in charge. This election cycle, Trump is using his influence to help Republicans avoid messy primary fights. The president recently waded into Michigan's Senate race and the New York gubernatorial contest in an effort to convince notable potential candidates in those races — Reps. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.) and Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) — to opt against running. In both cases, the Republicans in question bowed to pressure. The Hill's Julia Manchester and Brett Samuels break down Trump's influence on key races, from North Carolina to Texas. Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) hinted over the weekend that he plans to run for the open Senate seat in his state next year. Many Democrats have been hoping Cooper would enter the race, especially as Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) announced he would not run for reelection after bucking Trump and voting against his massive tax and spending bill. The announcement is buoying Democrats, who face a tough map in the upper chamber. Despite the president's souring approval numbers in recent surveys, allies argued the president's endorsement is still a make-or-break factor in primaries because of his enduring popularity within the party. 'His numbers are stronger than ever before with the Republican base,' one Trump ally said. 'Republican voters are happier with him now than ever before.' ▪ The Hill: Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) said Sunday she plans to decide in the coming days whether to launch a bid for South Carolina governor. ▪ The Hill: Civic groups are warning Democrats their plans for redistricting could violate the Voting Rights Act, creating a new problem for the party as it seeks to answer GOP efforts to redistrict its way to more power. Editor's note: Blake Burman's 'Smart Take' will return later this week. 3 Things to Know Today At this Texas school, students spend two hours a day on academics. The Alpha School has a curriculum driven by artificial intelligence (AI), and is set to expand to a dozen cities. Fights to expand or thwart the spread of abortion pills have intensified across the country. They tee up legal clashes that experts say could drag on for years. Blockbuster GLP-1 drugs could become a cure-all. The medications don't just help with weight loss, research finds, as more uses surface. Leading the Day TRADE: Trump reached a trade agreement with the European Union on Sunday that will set 15 percent tariffs on most imports — half the rate the president had threatened to levy on EU countries starting Friday. 'It's a very powerful deal — a very big deal,' Trump told reporters while sitting next to European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen at his Turnberry golf course in Scotland. 'It's the biggest of all the deals.' The EU trade deal is the largest the Trump administration has announced since its major 'Liberation Day' announcement on April 2. The EU countries combined represent the U.S.'s largest trading partner, with almost $2 trillion in goods traded in 2024. Under the new agreement, Trump and von der Leyen said the EU will purchase $150 billion in U.S. energy and make additional investments worth $600 billion. Trump had threatened to impose 30 percent tariffs on most goods if a deal wasn't reached beyond a temporary truce set to expire Friday. The new agreement will have no impact on steel and aluminum tariffs, which are subject to a separate 50 percent rate. ▪ The Hill: The White House has managed to secure some significant trade deals since the president's unprecedented sweeping tariffs were first announced in the spring. ▪ The Associated Press: As with other, recent tariff agreements that Trump announced with countries including Japan and the United Kingdom, some major details remain pending. ▪ The Washington Post: The EU agreement is likely to become a road map for further, more detailed talks. ▪ Politico: How the EU dashed to Trump's Scottish hideaway — and got the deal it craved. ▪ The Washington Post: The U.S. and China on Monday are set to begin their third round of trade talks in as many months. DEADLINE DAY: Trump will not extend Friday's deadline for countries that want to negotiate trade deals to prevent the president's proposed hikes, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday. Since January, Trump has regularly threatened trade moves before later changing tacks. It's effectively kept the world guessing. Critics have dubbed this 'TACO' trade, short for 'Trump always chickens out.' The Commerce chief signaled the threat of tariffs will stick this time. 'No extensions; no more grace periods,' Lutnick said Sunday on Fox News. 'They'll go into place, customs will start collecting the money, and off we go.' CONGRESS: Time is ticking for Republican senators who hope to avert a government shutdown this fall, and The Hill's Alexander Bolton reports that it's pushing some to try to reach common ground with Democrats and mend growing rifts. 'I know that our side won't want a shutdown,' a Republican senator told The Hill, 'Trump hates that and rightly so.' Senate appropriations bills, unlike in the GOP-controlled House, have reached bipartisan votes on higher spending levels to avoid rematches of the blistering battles that Congress had over Trump's priority tax and spending legislation during his first six months back at the White House. Republicans who spoke with The Hill said Trump made it clear he doesn't want the federal government to lapse its Sept. 30 funding deadline. 'I think [Democrats are] going to be under an enormous amount of pressure come fall, which is why … we need to do everything we can — House Republicans, Senate Republicans, President Trump and his team — to … set it up for success, to keep the government up and funded,' Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said in a recent podcast interview. OUT OF POCKET: The Trump administration's talk of using 'pocket recissions' to pare back federal spending without approval from Congress is making some Republicans nervous as they try to navigate the president's push for more cuts. White House budget chief Russell Vought recently referred to pocket rescissions as one of the executive tools available to the administration. 'It's not news that the Trump administration is going to bring a paradigm shift to this town in terms of the business of spending,' Vought said on CBS's 'Face the Nation' on Sunday. Trump signed a rescissions package last week to claw back $9 billion that Congress already appropriated, including for international aid and public broadcasting. But Trump has said he wants lawmakers to cut more, despite mounting political pressure. 'We're always gauging the extent to which the Congress is willing to participate in that process, and we're looking at a lot of different options along those lines,' Vought said. The Hill's Aris Folley spoke to experts and lawmakers about the potential tactic. COLLINS CONCERNS: Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is walking a tightrope to maintain Congress's grasp of the federal purse strings while the Trump administration tries to wrangle more control. The centrist chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee is tasked with ushering the GOP's spending priorities through the upper chamber, but it's quickly becoming what most lawmakers would consider a nightmare. 'Nobody wants that job right now,' Sen. Shelley Moore Capito ( an appropriator, told The Hill's Al Weaver. The Senate is aiming to pass a three-bill appropriations package by the end of September to fund the departments of Agriculture, Veterans Affairs, Commerce and Justice. Collins, 72, is facing reelection next year for a seat Democrats hope to flip. But Collins told The Hill she's not sweating the mounting pressure. 'I've been here a number of years. I've been through many high-pressure events,' she said. 'That's the nature of the job if you're in a leadership position or if you're representing your constituents.' Where and When The president is in Scotland. He will attend a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at Turnberry golf course at 7:30 a.m. ET (12:30 p.m. BST). Trump will then travel to Aberdeen. The Senate will convene at 3 p.m. The House is in recess and resumes work in Washington on Sept. 2. Morning Report's Alexis Simendinger will return in August. Zoom In COURTS: Trump keeps adding notches to his Supreme Court winning streak. The justices on Wednesday blessed his firings of more independent agency leaders, their latest green light for the president to resume his sweeping agenda. To date, Trump's administration has already brought more emergency appeals than former President Biden did during his four years in office, write The Hill's Zach Schonfeld and Ella Lee, making it an increasingly dominant part of the Supreme Court's work. But as the court issues more and more emergency decisions, often without explanation, the practice has sometimes come under criticism — even by other justices. 'Courts are supposed to explain things,' liberal Justice Elena Kagan said while speaking at a judicial conference Thursday. 'That's what courts do.' As Trump wins at the high court, Americans are split along party lines over their support for the institution. A majority of Republicans, 73 percent, approve of its actions, according to a Friday YouGov survey. That number is far higher than the 34 percent of independents and 14 percent of Democrats who approve of the justices' decisions. ▪ CNN: Trump's effort to end birthright citizenship could have taken effect over the weekend. Lower courts continue to block it. ▪ The New York Times: The Trump administration is planning to change the visa system for skilled foreign workers and is considering changing the U.S. citizenship test. SILVER STATE RACE: Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford (D) is running for governor next year, aiming to unseat first-term Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo. 'Nevadans are suffering in an economy that is rigged against those trying their hardest to stay afloat,' Ford, who has been the state's attorney general since 2019, said in a statement Monday. Nevada is seen as one of Democrats' best opportunities to flip a governor's office next year. The nonpartisan election handicapper Cook Political Report rates it as a toss-up. PRESSURE CAMPAIGN: Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard 's allegations about the Obama administration's review of the 2016 election led Trump to call for prosecution of former officials, including his predecessor. But many in Congress aren't ready to go quite that far. While his Republican supporters in Congress have united in expressing outrage, they have varying ideas of what accountability looks like. Democrats, meanwhile, say the Trump administration is completely misrepresenting the facts as they abuse intelligence and the justice system. 'Tulsi Gabbard has leveled some of the most serious charges ever leveled against an American at a former president. Bring charges. Bring charges,' said Rep. Jim Himes (Conn.), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee. 'And the reason I want her to bring charges is that there is not a court in the United States that will do anything other than to laugh hysterically over the bulls— that Tulsi Gabbard is peddling right now.' FEDERAL PROGRAMS: ▪ The Hill: Head Start programs face whiplash in funding and enrollment changes ahead of the new school year as big reforms from the Trump administration worry parents and staffers. ▪ The Hill: Medicaid cuts outlined in Trump's sweeping tax and spending package will harm family caregivers, experts warn, by reducing access to health care for themselves and those they care for. ▪ The Hill: Coca-Cola will offer a cane sugar version of its signature beverage, while ice cream and cereal makers pledged to phase out certain dyes. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has claimed them all as significant victories, but nutrition experts say the moves are far from signifying major change to make people healthier. Elsewhere GAZA: Israel implemented a 'tactical pause' in fighting in Gaza over the weekend amid concerns of mass starvation in the enclave. The pause in fighting, to allow in humanitarian aid via air drops and United Nations-approved routes, suspends fighting from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily until further notice in accordance with government directives. Secure routes for aid delivery will be permanently established. The pause in military operations, the first of its kind since March, is part of a broader set of measures that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved Saturday in response to increased international criticism over the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza. U.N. statistics estimate around 470,000 people face famine-like conditions in Gaza. The U.N.'s World Food Programme praised Israel's pause and said it has 'enough food in — or on its way to — the region to feed the entire population of 2.1 million people for almost three months.' When asked about the humanitarian conditions in Gaza, Trump on Sunday said Hamas is stealing food that was meant for civilians in the enclave. The Israeli military has reportedly found no proof of that. 'It's a mess, that whole place is a mess,' Trump told reporters. 'The Gaza Strip, you know it was given many years ago so they could have peace. That didn't work out too well.' ▪ The Hill: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Sunday there will be a 'change in tactics' by the Israeli military in its war in Gaza. ▪ The Washington Post: Gazans are dying of hunger. Here's what happens to a starving human body. ▪ The New York Times: After Israeli restrictions on aid, hunger has risen across Gaza. Doctors and nurses, struggling to find food themselves, lack the resources to stem the surge. SOUTHEAST ASIA: Leaders from Cambodia and Thailand on Monday agreed to a ceasefire, ending days of attacks across their disputed border. The two countries met in Malaysia for peace talks after Trump threatened that continued violence would jeopardize both countries' trade deals with Washington. At least 35 people were killed, more than 200 injured, and more than 200,000 displaced in the fighting that broke out Thursday, CNN reports. ▪ The New York Times: The Thai-Cambodian conflict tears at remnants of a once-proud empire. ▪ CNBC: How Trump and his trade wars pushed Russia and Ukraine into the cold. ▪ The Washington Post: The Trump administration is set to destroy a large stockpile of U.S.-funded contraceptives stored at a warehouse in Belgium, which says it has 'explored all possible options to prevent the destruction.' Opinion People of good conscience must stop the starvation in Gaza, chef and World Central Kitchen's José Andrés writes in The New York Times. Gaza's aid crisis helps only Hamas,by The Wall Street Journal editorial board. The Closer And finally … 🍅 A 17 percent tariff on fresh tomatoes imported from Mexico could soon create problems for U.S. consumers, experts warn. The tomato import tax that began July 14, could lead to a dramatic spike in prices, The Associated Press reported, as about 70 percent of fresh tomatoes consumed in the U.S. are imported from Mexico. From looming higher prices to lower quality, The Atlantic describes why summer tomato season just hits 'different this year' amid the tariff tumult. The Mexican government has continued to try to negotiate down a 30 percent general tariff the U.S. is slated to tack on Friday.
Los Angeles Times
an hour ago
- Los Angeles Times
Newsom responds to Trump's gutter politics
SACRAMENTO — In fighting President Trump, Gov. Gavin Newsom reminds me of actor Gene Hackman's hard-nosed character in the movie 'Mississippi Burning.' Hackman plays a take-no-prisoners FBI agent, Rupert Anderson, who is investigating the disappearance of three young civil rights workers in racially segregated 1964 Mississippi. His partner and boss is stick-by-the-rules agent Alan Ward, played by Willem Dafoe. The 1988 film is loosely based on a true story. The two agents eventually find the victims' murdered bodies and apprehend the Ku Klux Klan killers after Anderson persuades Ward to discard his high-road rule book in dealing with uncooperative local white folks. 'Don't drag me into your gutter, Mr. Anderson,' Ward sternly tells his underling initially. Anderson shouts back: 'These people are crawling out of the SEWER, MR. WARD! Maybe the gutter's where we oughta be.' And it's where they go. Only then do they solve the case. Newsom contends Trump is playing gutter politics by pressuring Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and the GOP-controlled Legislature to redraw the state's U.S. House seats in an effort to elect five additional Republicans in next year's midterm elections. House seats normally are redrawn only at the beginning of a decade after the decennial census. Democrats need to gain just three net seats to retake control of the House and end the GOP's one-party rule of the federal government. Trump is trying to prevent that by browbeating Texas and other red states into gerrymandering their Democrat-held House districts into GOP winners. Republicans currently hold 25 of Texas' 38 House seats. Democrats have 12. In California, it's just the opposite — even more so. Out of 52 seats, Democrats outnumber Republicans 43 to 9, with room to make it even more lopsided. 'We could make it so that only four Republicans are left,' says Sacramento-based redistricting guru Paul Mitchell, vice president of Political Data Inc. Mitchell already is crafting potential new maps in case Newsom follows through with his threat to retaliate against Texas by redrawing California's districts to help Democrats gain five seats, neutralizing Republican gains in the Lone Star State. Newsom and the Legislature would be seizing redistricting responsibility from an independent citizens' commission that voters created in 2010. They took the task away from lawmakers because the politicians were acting only in their own self-interest, effectively choosing their own voters. As they do in Texas and most states, particularly red ones. But the governor and Democrats would be ignoring California voters' will — at least as stated 15 years ago. And Newsom would be down in the political gutter with Trump on redistricting. But that doesn't seem to bother him. 'They're playing by a different set of rules,' Newsom recently told reporters, referring to Trump and Republicans. 'They can't win by the traditional game. So they want to change the game. We can act holier than thou. We could sit on the sidelines, talk about the way the world should be. Or we can recognize the existential nature that is the moment.' Newsom added that 'everything has changed' since California voters banned gerrymandering 15 years ago. That's indisputable given Trump's bullying tactics and his inhumane domestic policies. 'I'm not going to be the guy that said, 'I could have, would have, should have,'' Newsom continued. 'I'm not going to be passive at this moment. I'm not going to look at my kids in the eyes and say, 'I was a little timid.'' Newsom's own eyes, of course, are on the White House and a potential 2028 presidential bid. He sees a national opportunity now to attract frustrated Democratic voters who believe that party leaders aren't fighting hard enough against Trump. Newsom continued to echo Hackman's script Friday at a news conference in Sacramento with Texas Democratic legislators. Referring to Trump and Texas Republicans, Newsom asserted: 'They're not screwing around. We cannot afford to screw around. We have to fight fire with fire.' But yakking about redrawing California's congressional maps is easy. Actually doing it would be exceedingly difficult. 'Texas can pass a plan tomorrow. California cannot,' says Tony Quinn, a former Republican consultant on legislative redistricting. Unlike in California, there's no Texas law that forbids blatant gerrymandering. California's Constitution requires redistricting by the independent commission. Moreover, a 1980s state Supreme Court ruling allows only one redistricting each decade, Quinn says. Trying to gerrymander California congressional districts through legislation without first asking the voters' permission would be criminally stupid. Newsom would need to call a special election for November and persuade voters to temporarily suspend the Constitution, allowing the Legislature to redraw the districts. Or the Legislature could place a gerrymandered plan on the ballot and seek voter approval. But that would be risky. A specific plan could offer several targets for the opposition — the GOP and do-gooder groups. In either case, new maps would need to be drawn by the end of the year to fit the June 2026 primary elections. Mitchell says polling shows that the independent commission is very popular with voters. Still, he asserts, 'there's something in the water right now. There's potential that voters will not want to let Trump run ramshackle while we're being Pollyannish.' 'The reality is that a lot of Democrats would hit their own thumb with a hammer if they thought it would hurt Trump more.' Mitchell also says that California could out-gerrymander Texas by not only weakening current GOP seats but by strengthening competitive Democratic districts. Texas doesn't have that opportunity, he says, because its districts already have been heavily gerrymandered. Democratic consultant Steve Maviglio says Newsom is 'trying to put the toothpaste back in the tube' and doubts it will work. 'Unilaterally disarming was a mistake. 'But Newsom's not wrong. They play hardball. We don't.' Newsom and California Democrats should fight Trump and Texas Republicans in the MAGA gutter, using all weapons available. As Hackman's character also says: 'Don't mean s— to have a gun unless you (sic) ready to use it.' The must-read: Texas Republicans aim to redraw House districts at Trump's urging, but there's a risk The TK: The Age-Checked Internet Has Arrived The L.A. Times Special: Trump's top federal prosecutor in L.A. struggles to secure indictments in protest cases Until next week,George Skelton —Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Sign up here to get it in your inbox.
Politico
an hour ago
- Politico
Trump has Hegseth's back. Some of Hegseth's allies worry it won't last.
'Where's Pete?' he asked, according to a senior administration official who worked on the transition, recounting a now joked-about story. His advisers looked around confused. Pete, who? 'Pete Hegseth,' Trump said, referring to the Fox News star he'd admired over the years. 'I want Pete.' Trump has long admired the energy of the handsome, Princeton-educated Hegseth. During the GOP presidential primaries, when he felt 'Fox and Friends' wasn't giving him enough positive coverage, Hegseth's fawning commentary on the weekend version of 'Fox & Friends' buoyed his mood. A plus: The veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan emanates the 'warrior ethos' masculinity that Trump admires. The president saw him as the perfect messenger for an administration salivating to take a chainsaw to what MAGA viewed as the woke sensibilities of the armed forces. That desire ultimately won out even after Hegseth initially failed to disclose to the transition team that he'd paid a woman who alleged he sexually assaulted her as part of a settlement. (He has denied that accusation and was never charged.) And it stayed with Trump throughout the spring when Signalgate erupted. Notably, it was Michael Waltz who took the fall for adding a journalist to the chain. Trump, meanwhile, stood with Hegseth — even as many in the media speculated he was about to get canned. 'Keep fighting — I love what you're doing,' Trump told Hegseth during one meeting amid the controversy, a second White House official recounted. 'Whatever you need. You're a killer.' At the time, I asked one White House official why the administration stood by Hegseth despite the chaos. The answer was simple: Team Trump had put so much political capital in getting him confirmed that it would take a whole lot more dirt to send him packing. The reality is Trump doesn't give a fig about how Hegseth treats his staff, or whether there's an investigation into his use of Signal and classified documents, said one of the White House officials and three outside allies. 'He doesn't care about the palace intrigue stuff — he just doesn't,' said one top ally. 'It's not drama that impacts him or his agenda.' Nowadays, Trump's inner circle gives Hegseth props for the successful execution of Operation Midnight Hammer, the covert U.S. bombing of Iran's nuclear facilities and the military's joint-taskforce at the border. They credit him for historic recruitment and boosted morale with the troops who adore him. And they love that he's leading on Trump's desire to build a Golden Dome missile defense system to protect the U.S. Still, there's a dirty little secret that folks in the White House won't voice but their allies on the outside admit: No matter the drama, White House officials have to find a way to work with him because Trump has made clear that Hegseth is not going anywhere. 'The boss loves him — so it's like, 'We'll make it work,'' said one Trump ally close with the inner circle who has been aghast at the headlines. 'This is bullshit' The endless ability to forgive on Hegseth's behalf is particularly acute in the situation regarding the treatment of the fired employees, some who had known Hegseth for more than a decade and worked with him at a previous employer. Hegseth not only publicly harangued them as leakers but mused that his ex-buddies could be prosecuted by the Justice Department.
