Top Items:
Punchbowl News:
HFC losing influence in Trump's Washington — The House Freedom Caucus has a reputation for wreaking havoc. But the far-right group is falling flat in Donald Trump's Washington. — Just a few recent examples: … But the package passed with the group getting little in return.
Discussion:
Washington Times and The Daily Signal
RELATED:
Paul Waldman / MSNBC:
The Epstein fallout literally shut down the House early for the summer
Discussion:
Townhall, Raw Story and New York Times
Punchbowl News:
7/23/25 ☀️ AM: … But if you're a House member or staffer, August starts this afternoon around 4 p.m.
7/23/25 ☀️ AM: … But if you're a House member or staffer, August starts this afternoon around 4 p.m.
Discussion:
Rolling Stone and Politico
Joe Perticone / The Bulwark:
Trump to Hill Republicans: I Will Make Your Summer Hell
Trump to Hill Republicans: I Will Make Your Summer Hell
Discussion:
Axios, So What, NewsMax.com, American Greatness, CNBC, Scripps News, The Hill, Washington Examiner, The Gateway Pundit and Fox News
Cheyanne M. Daniels / Politico:
Outraged Trump supporters not placated by DOJ's actions on Epstein
Outraged Trump supporters not placated by DOJ's actions on Epstein
Discussion:
Vox, New Republic, NBC News, New Jersey Online, HuffPost, Tallahassee Democrat, New York Times, Washington Post, Vanity Fair, Salon and NOTUS
CNN:
Exclusive: Newly discovered photos and video shed fresh light on Trump's ties to Jeffrey Epstein — Newly uncovered archived video footage and photos reveal fresh details about Donald Trump's past relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. — Photos from 1993 confirm for the first time that Epstein …
Discussion:
New York Times, Newsweek, Townhall, Metro.co.uk, Raw Story, Mediaite, TMZ.com, The Independent and Washington Times
New York Times:
Lawler Will Seek Re-election to House, Forgoing Run for N.Y. Governor — Representative Mike Lawler's decision clears a path for his Republican House colleague, Elise Stefanik, to challenge Gov. Kathy Hochul. — Representative Mike Lawler, Republican of New York, plans to seek re-election …
Discussion:
Fox News, NOTUS, New York Post, WTOP News, abc7NY, NewsMax.com and Gothamist
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Steve Kopack / NBC News:
Trump sets 15% tariff on Japanese imports as part of investment agreement — 15% would be less than the tariff rate Trump previously threatened to impose on Japan, a key U.S. ally. — President Donald Trump said Tuesday on Truth Social that his administration had reached a deal with Japan …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, CNN, Associated Press, Reuters, Washington Post, Bloomberg, Axios, Chicago Tribune, CNBC, Raw Story, UPI, Breitbart, USA Today, Washington Examiner, RedState, CBS News, NewsNation, Washington Times and The Japan Times
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Greg Sargent / New Republic:
Trump's Epstein Fiasco Takes Darker Turn as Dem Senator Drops New Bomb — A few days ago, as the Jeffrey Epstein scandal gripped Washington, Senator Ron Wyden offered a striking revelation in an interview with The New York Times. The Oregon Democrat said that his investigators had discovered …
Discussion:
Off Message
Tom Nichols / The Atlantic:
The Administration Wants Military Women to Know Their Place — Pete Hegseth seems to be on a mission to erase women from the top ranks of the U.S. armed forces. — President Donald Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth seem to be on a mission to erase women from the top ranks of the U.S. armed forces.
Discussion:
twitchy.com
Lisa Friedman / New York Times:
E.P.A. Is Said to Draft a Plan to End Its Ability to Fight Climate Change — According to two people familiar with the draft, it would eliminate the bedrock scientific finding that greenhouse-gas emissions threaten human life by dangerously warming the planet.
Martha McHardy / Newsweek:
Jeffrey Epstein's Former Attorney Who Secured Plea Deal Dead at 80 — Roy Black, the prominent defense attorney who helped secure Jeffrey Epstein's 2008 plea deal, has died, according to his law partner. — Black died on Monday at his home in Coral Gables at the age of 80 after an illness, his law partner Howard Srebnick said.
Discussion:
Miami Herald, Associated Press, NewsMax.com and IJR
Juliet Macur / New York Times:
U.S. Olympic Officials Bar Transgender Women From Women's Competitions — The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee changed its eligibility rules on Monday to comply with President Trump's executive order, taking the decision away from national governing bodies for each sport.
Discussion:
ABC News, NewsNation, Fox News, PinkNews, israelhayom.com, USA Today, The Hill, Must Read Alaska, Mediaite, HotAir, NewsMax.com, twitchy.com, New York Post, Axios, CBS News, MPR News, Washington Examiner, Advocate and Boston.com
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Chris Cillizza / The Daily Beast:
Hunter Biden Really Needs to Shut It — QUIET TIME — Why is he talking? Why is he still talking? — OPINION — Let's establish a few quick facts about Hunter Biden: He has never been elected to anything, ever. His business acumen appears to amount, largely, to having the last name “Biden.”
Discussion:
Fox News, New York Post, National Review, So What, The Hill and New York Sun
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Kira Davis / New York Post:
The Hunter Biden interview shows Democrats are party only for elites
The Hunter Biden interview shows Democrats are party only for elites
Discussion:
Mediaite, twitchy.com, Blaze Media and The Gateway Pundit
Washington Post:
U.S. deportees, freed from Salvadoran prison, describe ‘horror movie’ — Three Venezuelans, released last week from the Terrorism Confinement Center, said they were repeatedly beaten and denied access to lawyers. — just now — Julio González Jr. had agreed to be deported to Venezuela.
Discussion:
Reuters and The Independent
Marina Dunbar / The Guardian:
Videos reveal harsh conditions inside Ice's New York City confinement center — Footage shows people sleeping on floor next to toilets in facility that agency says is not a detention site — Two videos have surfaced shedding light on what is happening behind closed doors at a New York federal building …
Discussion:
The Independent
RELATED:
Whitney Curry Wimbish / American Prospect:
There's No Safe Place for Legal Immigrants in Trump's America
Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell / The Daily Signal:
EXCLUSIVE: White House Targets Bloated Federal Agency in Next Round of Rescissions — FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The White House plans to introduce another rescissions package soon that will include cuts to education funding, sources familiar with the matter tell The Daily Signal.
RELATED:
Axios:
Behind the Curtain: Losing by winning — President Trump, in terms of raw accomplishments, crushed his first six months in historic ways. Massive tax cuts. Record-low border crossings. Surging tariff revenue. Stunning air strikes in Iran. Modest inflation.
Washington Post:
Republicans propose naming Kennedy Center Opera House after Melania Trump — The House Appropriations committee passed an amendment that would rename the theater, months after President Donald Trump took over the performing arts center. — The Kennedy Center's Opera House could soon be called the …
Discussion:
The Hill, NBC News, USA Today, New York Times, Scripps News, Politico, Breitbart, PinkNews, Mediaite, Daily Kos, Must Read Alaska, CBS News, Variety, The Forward, The Wrap, RedState, Talking Points Memo, Newsweek, One America News Network, The Gateway Pundit, ABC News, Lawyers, Guns & Money, New York Post, NOTUS, Daily Mail, Rolling Stone, Deadline, Washington Examiner, The Independent, The A.V. Club, Raw Story, Fox News, NewsMax.com, New York Daily News and The Hollywood Reporter
Joseph Stieb / Liberal Currents:
Moyn's Muddle on Ukraine — Moyn makes both historical and moral errors in his analysis, and at times he uncritically adopts Putin's perspective. — Yale historian Samuel Moyn recently published a review in Harper's of Jonathan Haslam's new book on the Russo-Ukraine War.
Jeremy Roebuck / Washington Post:
Judges vote to oust Trump pick Alina Habba as U.S. attorney in New Jersey — The state's U.S. district court judges made the announcement in a brief order that did not offer any explanation for their decision. — New Jersey's federal judges declined Tuesday to appoint Alina Habba …
Discussion:
Democracy Docket, New Jersey Globe, Townhall, Ace of Spades HQ, Fox News, Newsweek, Wall Street Journal, Politico, Associated Press, American Greatness, UPI, One America News Network, NOTUS, Breitbart, Raw Story, Bloomberg, Washington Examiner, RedState, The Post Millennial, The Hill, Al Jazeera, The National Pulse, The Daily Caller, New York Post, New York Daily News, New Jersey Online, New Republic, The Independent, New York Sun, CBS News, WTOP News, MeidasTouch News, Forbes, MSNBC, Washington Times and The Gateway Pundit
Luke Harding / The Guardian:
Zelenskyy approves bill weakening anti-corruption bodies despite big protests — Move by Ukrainian president widely opposed and may prove a setback to hopes of country one day joining the EU — Volodymyr Zelenskyy has approved a contentious bill weakening Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies …
New York Times:
Trump Told Park Workers to Report Displays That ‘Disparage’ Americans. Here's What They Flagged. — Descriptions and displays at scores of parks and historic sites have been flagged for review in connection with an executive order from President Trump. — At Cape Hatteras National Seashore …
Discussion:
Breitbart, Lawyers, Guns & Money, NewsMax.com and Vox
Kate Santaliz / Axios:
Exclusive: Emmer says Epstein is a “non-issue” — House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) called the push to force release of the Epstein files a “non-issue” at an Axios News Shapers event Wednesday. … - “It's kind of funny if it was so important, then why weren't Democrats clamoring …
Discussion:
ABC News and The Gateway Pundit
Lawrence Hurley / NBC News:
Calls to strip Zohran Mamdani's citizenship spark alarm about Trump weaponizing denaturalization — Past administrations, including Obama's, have sought to denaturalize U.S. citizens, such as terrorists and Nazis. But advocates worry he could target political opponents.
New York Times:
Showdown in New Jersey Over Top Federal Prosecutor — Alina Habba's term as interim U.S. attorney was set to expire this week. Federal judges announced a replacement, but Attorney General Pam Bondi quickly intervened. — 5 MIN READ — As Billionaire Funds Opera House, Nazi-Era Questions Linger Over His Company
Kate Knibbs / Wired:
Silicon Valley AI Startups Are Embracing China's Controversial ‘996’ Work Schedule — In an industry once known for cushy perks, some founders are now asking staff to commit to a 72-hour weekly schedule. You're either in or you're out. — Would you like to work nearly double the standard 40-hour week?
Discussion:
Fox News
Stephen Robinson / Public Notice:
Medicaid ‘gamers’ are the new ‘welfare queens’ — 🧬 💊 🚑 With corporate outlets like CBS caving to authoritarianism, supporting independent political media is more important than ever. Public Notice is possible thanks to paid subscribers.
Madeline Materna / GovExec.com:
Why a federal program paying employees not to work may violate spending laws — Agencies appear to be making unauthorized payments on a large scale. Federal spending law prohibits agencies from using funds without congressional authorization. But under the Fork in the Road deferred resignation program …
Ian Millhiser / Vox:
The lawsuit seeking to kill Trump's tariffs is back — Three very important tariff-related stories loom over the US economy this month. — The first is that, after a few weeks of relative quiet, President Donald Trump is once again threatening to raise tariffs on a whole raft of other nations.
Ari Natter / Bloomberg:
US Nuclear Weapons Agency Breached in Microsoft SharePoint Hack — The US agency responsible for maintaining and designing the nation's cache of nuclear weapons was among those breached by a hack of Microsoft Corp.'s SharePoint document management software, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.
Discussion:
New York Times, The Verge, Semafor, NewsMax.com and The Japan Times, more at Techmeme »
Sarah Rumpf / Mediaite:
Trump Claims the Epstein Story Has Boosted His Approval Rating to 'Best Numbers I've Ever Had' — At a reception with members of Congress Tuesday, President Donald Trump claimed that the festering scandal regarding the Epstein files had made his poll numbers improve five points.
Discussion:
Newsweek


