Top Items:
New York Times:
Epstein Victims Upset About Lack of Transparency in Newly Released Files — Several victims said they were frustrated by the heavy redactions of photos and documents that the Justice Department released on Friday. — Disappointed. Frustrated. Suspicious.
Discussion:
USA Today, American Thinker, Mother Jones, Axios, The Atlantic, The Guardian, Politico, Eurasia Review, Wall Street Journal, Raw Story, The Hill, Newsweek, Deseret News, Rolling Stone, NewsMax.com and Fox News
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Politico:
Trump administration turns Epstein files into WikiLeaks 2.0 … The daily drip is a remarkable result for President Donald Trump, who has urged his allies to move past the Epstein files — prompting jeers from Democrats who say he's trying to conceal details about his own longtime relationship with Epstein.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Breitbart, Metro.co.uk, emptywheel, New York Times, The Independent, Washington Examiner, Bloomberg and The Guardian
Casey Morell / NPR:
Available to download Friday, some Epstein files no longer there Saturday afternoon — The Department of Justice started releasing files related to the life, death and criminal investigations of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein Friday. Files continued to be posted on its “Epstein Library” website on Saturday.
Discussion:
CBS News, Talking Points Memo, New York Magazine, Associated Press, New Republic, Washington Times, NOTUS, Townhall, Vox, Chicago Tribune, Raw Story, Mediaite, RedState, CNBC and WTTG-TV
Erica Orden / Politico:
What's missing from the Epstein files release … Want to read emails from federal prosecutors deciding who to charge — and, equally importantly, who not to charge — during their 2019 investigation? You're out of luck. … Nothing from her to see here.
Politico:
DOJ releases new Epstein docs on Saturday as lawmakers steam about first release … The new documents released Saturday included grand jury materials from the investigations into Epstein in Florida and New York. The Justice Department had renewed its requests to federal judges to publicly release …
Discussion:
The Hill, New York Times, Associated Press, The Intellectualist, The Guardian, Salon, The Independent, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, Fox News, Washington Times, CBS News, PoliticusUSA, MS NOW, The Daily Signal, Scripps News, Los Angeles Times, Roll Call, NPR, MPR News, Democracy Docket and New York Daily News
Sam Levine / The Guardian:
Trickle release of Epstein files on a Friday signals move to bury Trump ties — The justice department is using a variety of tactics to try to obfuscate the US president's connection to the sex offender — The justice department's partial release of the Epstein files on Friday signaled …
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money, CNN, Raw Story, USA Today, The Post Millennial and Mediaite
Victoria Bekiempis / The Guardian:
Outrage and legal threats: Trump justice department slammed after limited Epstein files release
Discussion:
The Hill, Townhall, Fortune, Vanity Fair, Newsweek, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Metro.co.uk, The Parnas Perspective and NPR
Jacob Knutson / Democracy Docket:
DOJ Likely Pulled Photo of Trump from Released Epstein Files
DOJ Likely Pulled Photo of Trump from Released Epstein Files
Discussion:
The Guardian, MS NOW, KIFI-TV, Fortune, Raw Story, Fox News, The Independent, Wired, CBS News, The Wrap, Vanity Fair, The Red Letter, TMZ.com, New York Post, PolitiFact, Associated Press, Daily Mail, New Jersey Online and NOTUS
Andrew Prokop / Vox:
The Epstein files release did nothing to clear up the scandal's biggest question
The Epstein files release did nothing to clear up the scandal's biggest question
Discussion:
New York Post, The Parnas Perspective, Raw Story, RTÉ, Straight Arrow News, New York Times, The Hill, NBC News, The Independent, Mock Paper Scissors, NewsNation, Newsweek, PBS NewsHour, UPI, Deadline, The Guardian, Daily Mail, Wired, The Gateway Pundit, MPR News, MS NOW, Washington Examiner, PoliticusUSA, Mediaite, The National Pulse, New Jersey Online, Washington Times, Business Insider and Politico
Ashleigh Fields / The Hill:
Epstein survivor lauds even partial release of files: ‘I feel redeemed’
Epstein survivor lauds even partial release of files: ‘I feel redeemed’
Discussion:
Marsh Law Firm, NewsMax.com, NewsNation and TMZ.com
Mike Baker / New York Times:
Epstein Files Include 1996 Child Porn Complaint That F.B.I. Ignored
Epstein Files Include 1996 Child Porn Complaint That F.B.I. Ignored
Discussion:
The Independent, Mediaite, The Atlantic, Michigan News Source, Vanity Fair and Raw Story
Reuters:
Exclusive: US seizes vessel off Venezuelan coast, officials say — The United States is interdicting and seizing a vessel off the coast of Venezuela in international waters, three U.S. officials told Reuters on Saturday, a move that comes just days after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a …
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Examiner, CBS News, Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, Townhall, Raw Story, Modern Diplomacy, RedState, Axios, NewsNation and Fox Business
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Wall Street Journal:
Witkoff's Other Backer in His Unlikely Diplomatic Ascent: Putin — The Kremlin release of an American prisoner and a Saudi backchannel bolstered the rise of Trump's longtime friend. … Steve Witkoff, a billionaire real-estate developer and longtime golfing partner of Donald Trump …
Discussion:
Deutsche Welle, Associated Press, NewsMax.com and Reuters
Haley Miller / NOLA.com:
LSU nursing grad, detained by ICE for 6 months, may self-deport: ‘I feel hopeless all the time’ — Vilma Palacios had just graduated from the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing and accepted a job with Touro Infirmary when she was arrested by ICE agents and sent to the processing center in Basile …
Michelle Goldberg / New York Times:
Candace Owens Is the Conservative Movement's Frankenstein Monster — This week, Charlie Kirk's widow, Erika Kirk, traveled to Nashville to meet with Candace Owens, a podcaster who has become the premier purveyor of conspiracy theories about her husband's murder.
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Jonathan Allen / NBC News:
MAGA infighting over Israel and 2028 heats up at the Turning Point USA conference
MAGA infighting over Israel and 2028 heats up at the Turning Point USA conference
Discussion:
The Times of Israel, Raw Story, Mediaite, MS NOW, Wall Street Journal, RedState, Townhall, New York Sun, NewsNation, New Republic, The Independent, Jewish Insider, Politico and LGBTQ Nation
NBC News:
Netanyahu plans to brief Trump on possible new Iran strikes — Israeli officials believe Iran is expanding its ballistic missile program. They are preparing to make the case during an upcoming meeting with Trump that it poses a new threat. — WASHINGTON — Israeli officials …
Discussion:
The Times of Israel, Algemeiner.com, Reuters, The Independent, NewsMax.com and New York Post
Kevin Liptak / CNN:
Trump talks about neuroses, selecting chairs and his wife's underwear drawer in latest affordability speech — President Donald Trump came to North Carolina on Friday to talk about the economy. — He ended up explaining how his wife organizes her lingerie drawer.
Discussion:
PoliticusUSA, Newsweek, Raw Story, Modern Diplomacy, Wall Street Journal and NewsMax.com
RELATED:
Jack Revell / The Daily Beast:
Trump, 79, Complains the FBI Made a Mess of Melania's ‘Panties’
Trump, 79, Complains the FBI Made a Mess of Melania's ‘Panties’
Discussion:
The Independent
Punchbowl News:
12/20/25 📝 The Readback … Our weekend digest features the best of Punchbowl News this week, including a roundup of our scoops, analysis and Capitol Hill insight you won't find anywhere else. We've also included a few of our favorite outside reads from the week.
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Sahil Kapur / NBC News:
Congress leaves town until 2026 with no health care deal, forcing premium hikes
Congress leaves town until 2026 with no health care deal, forcing premium hikes
Discussion:
The Daily Signal
Nicholas Wu / Politico:
This Indiana Democrat wants a redistricting ceasefire … While Indiana's attempt at mid-decade redistricting is now in the rearview mirror, other states have not ruled it out. The GOP-controlled Florida legislature is now exploring new maps, but so are the Democratic majorities in Maryland and Virginia.
Discussion:
Bolts
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Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Democrats Just Won Seats in Mississippi. The Supreme Court Could Block a Repeat.
Democrats Just Won Seats in Mississippi. The Supreme Court Could Block a Repeat.
Discussion:
Associated Press
Pooja Salhotra / New York Times:
Ramaswamy Challenges Conservatives on Surging Bigotry on the Right — The leading Republican candidate for Ohio governor is calling out his party for rising intolerance, including against Indian American immigrants and their children, like him. — Vivek Ramaswamy, the front-running Republican candidate …
NBC Los Angeles:
Man accused of towing ICE SUV during LA immigration operation found not guilty … A Los Angeles tow truck driver accused of towing a federal SUV during an immigration enforcement operation was found not guilty by a federal jury Friday. — Bobby Nuñez, 33, was arrested and charged …
Discussion:
Breitbart, ABC7 and Los Angeles Times
Michael Martina / Reuters:
US drops Uganda deportation order against Chinese dissident, lawyer says — The U.S. on Friday dropped its effort to deport a Chinese national who helped document Beijing's alleged abuses against Uyghur Muslims to Uganda, the man's lawyer told Reuters. — Guan Heng, a Chinese citizen-journalist …
Discussion:
New York Times, Associated Press and Reason
Ross Douthat / New York Times:
Marco Rubio Is Winning the Trump Era — You are watching the 2016 Republican primary campaign, trying to figure out if Ted Cruz or Marco Rubio can stop Donald Trump from winning the Republican nomination. A man from the future steps out of a shimmering portal and informs you that the winner …
Discussion:
New York Post, NewsMax.com and Al Jazeera
Ashleigh Fields / The Hill:
UFC fighter bucks Trump White House event over Epstein controversy: 'I'm good, dude' — UFC fighter Sean Strickland said Friday that he will not participate in the White House fight next year, citing the Trump administration's controversy around the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Adam Downer / The Daily Beast:
White House Made Bizarre Demands for Trump's Bogus Peace Prize — THE BIGGER THE BETTER — A report has outlined how the White House dictated FIFA's Peace Prize ceremony to Donald Trump. — President Donald Trump's aides demanded that FIFA's made-up “peace prize” awarded to him be literally as big as the World Cup.

