U.S. Economy Slowed in First Half of 2025 as Tariffs Scrambled Data  —  Gross domestic product rebounded in the spring after contracting at the start of the year, but consumer spending remained weak.  —  Economic growth softened in the first half of the year, as tariffs …

Patel found thousands of sensitive Trump-Russia probe docs inside ‘burn bags’ in secret room at FBI  —  EXCLUSIVE: FBI Director Kash Patel found a trove of sensitive documents related to the origins of the Trump-Russia probe buried in multiple “burn bags” in a secret room inside the bureau, sources told Fox News Digital.

Trump says Epstein ‘stole’ Virginia Giuffre, a heartless and revealing admission  —  Virginia Giuffre died by suicide only three months ago, having lived much of her life as an advocate for survivors of sex trafficking.  Now the president is speaking about her like she's property.

House Democrats Sue ICE for Barring Them From Detention Facilities  —  The 12 Democrats accused the Trump administration of violating the law when it turned them away from immigrant detention sites and imposed a new policy limiting congressional access.  —  A dozen House Democrats who were barred …

Now That They're Free  —  Venezuelan men deported by the Trump administration say they endured months of physical and mental abuse inside a Salvadoran prison.  Though happy to be home, they say the fact that they were released is proof of how senseless their detentions were.  —  Reporting Highlights

How the Israeli Right Explains the Aid Disaster It Created  —  The fiercest defenders of Netanyahu's war in Gaza continue to insist that Palestinians aren't starving.  —  Last week, in a piece for the Guardian, Nick Maynard, a volunteer surgeon at a hospital in southern Gaza, wrote …

Democrats struggle against Trump-waged redistricting battle  —  The News  —  Democrats are struggling to respond to a White House-backed push to redraw Texas' congressional maps with five new safe GOP seats, which could short-circuit their entire midterm campaign effort.

Democrats invoke rare Senate rule to force release of Epstein documents  —  Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and other Senate Democrats announced Wednesday that they'll use an obscure federal law known as the “Rule of Five” in an attempt to force the Justice Department to release …

Sen. Cory Booker in angry outburst says ‘complicit’ Democrats need a ‘wake-up call’  —  In a rare public outburst on the Senate floor Tuesday, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker took his Democratic colleagues to task, declaring his party “needs a wake-up call!”  Angrily screaming at two of his …

Pete Hegseth has discussed running for political office in Tennessee, sources say  —  The defense secretary has talked privately about running a campaign in Tennessee, sources told NBC News.  The Pentagon said Hegseth's “focus remains solely on serving under” Trump.

The antitrust war inside MAGA Powerful lobbyists are battling populist reformers  —  President Trump returned to the Oval Office thanks to massive support from working-class and low-income Americans.  During the transition, Trump telegraphed an intent to honor this realignment by nominating …

Ted Cruz is latest to defend Sydney Sweeney's American Eagle ad ripped as ‘Nazi propaganda’  —  Sen. Ted Cruz came to the defense of Sydney Sweeney and her American Eagle jeans spot after twisted leftist TikTokkers claimed it was full of “Nazi propaganda.”  —  “Wow.

Fed Meeting Today: Federal Reserve Leaves Rates Unchanged; Investors Await Powell Remarks  —  Two Fed governors dissent, calling for quarter-point rate cut  —  The Fed held interest rates steady, as expected, Wednesday.  For the first time since 1993, two Fed governors dissented from the majority decision …

Paramount deal thrusts David Ellison into Trump's war with US media  —  What began as a Hollywood studio merger has become a test of how far corporate America will bend to president's will  —  Anna Nicolaou and James Fontanella-Khan in New York, Christopher Grimes in Los Angeles and Daniel Thomas in London

Fossil Fool  —  How Europe took Trump for a ride  —  Like many U.S. institutions, the European Union has abysmally failed the Trump test.  The EU is an economic superpower and could have retaliated effectively against Trump's illegal tariffs — illegal under both U.S. and international law.

8.8-magnitude earthquake in Russia's Far East sets off tsunami warnings in Japan, Alaska and Hawaii  —  One of the world's strongest earthquakes struck Russia's Far East early Wednesday, an 8.8-magnitude temblor that set off a tsunami in the northern Pacific region and prompted warnings for Alaska, Hawaii and south toward New Zealand.

Epstein grand jury transcripts include testimony from two witnesses, feds say  —  The disclosure raises questions on whether unsealing the transcripts would satiate the appetite for more information.  —  just now  —  The grand jury transcripts the Justice Department is seeking to make public …

His Name Is Jesus.  He's a Carpenter.  ICE Arrested Him.  —  Seriously.  —  ∙ Paid  —  JESUS TERAN FLED PERSECUTION in Venezuela, seeking asylum in the United States in 2021 and joining his family in Imperial, Pennsylvania, half an hour outside Pittsburgh.  He was living a version of the American Dream.

Murdering higher education, 1-2-3  —  Much of Donald Trump's governing approach in his second term is to take conservative bogeymen — long used for fundraising and for riling up base voters — and actually use the power of the government to attack them.  We've seen that with foreign aid …

GOP House committee chair yet to issue a subpoena for Epstein files  —  The chairman is physically required to sign each subpoena, but there is no deadline by which Rep. James Comer must issue the subpoenas, according to House rules.  —  Just now  —  A week after a House Oversight subcommittee voted …

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz files bill to target activist groups with anti-organized crime laws  —  Activist groups that fund and organize protests could be targeted by federal law enforcement under the same statute used to go after organized crime if U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz gets his way.

How Edward ‘Big Balls’ Coristine and DOGE Got Access to a Federal Payroll System That Serves the FBI  —  Hundreds of pages of records reviewed by WIRED show just how quickly DOGE gained access to systems at the Small Business Administration—and through it, a USDA system that handles payroll for federal law enforcement.

Transcript: Krugman Wrecks Trump's Europe Deal: “Scam on His Voters”  —  The following is a lightly edited transcript of the July 30 episode of the  —  Daily Blast podcast.  Listen to it here.  —  Greg Sargent: This is The Daily Blast from The New Republic, produced and presented by the DSR network.

US placed on rights watchlist over health of its civil society under Trump  —  International non-profit Civicus says ‘sustained attacks on civic freedoms’ put US on par with El Salvador and Kenya  —  A group of global civil society organizations have placed the US on a watchlist for urgent concern …

Why Won't Democrats Fight?  —  A tale of two judges.  —  ∙ Paid  —  1. Asymmetry  —  Two news items from the judiciary this week illustrate our post-liberal moment:  —  First, on Monday, Pam Bondi's Department of Justice filed a misconduct complaint against Judge James Boasberg.

Musk's “America Party” is failing to launch  —  Elon Musk's new political party is so far a no-go on the launch pad.  —  Why it matters: A Musk-backed “America Party” could disrupt the midterms and escalate his feud with President Trump.  But “Musk has read the room,” said Dan Ives …

Danny Davis to announce he won't seek House reelection  —  Democratic Rep. Danny Davis of Illinois is expected to announce Thursday he won't run for reelection in 2026, according to two people granted anonymity to discuss his plans in advance.  Davis — at 83, one of the oldest members of Congress …

As MAGA storm over Epstein calms, White House plans next steps  —  Officials concede the furor has hurt Trump's standing, but the White House believes they've survived the worst of the furor.  —  Three weeks ago, White House officials were battling a frenzy from President Donald Trump's supporters over the Jeffrey Epstein case.