Justice Department withheld and removed some Epstein files related to Trump  —  The Justice Department has withheld some Epstein files related to allegations that President Trump sexually abused a minor, an NPR investigation finds.  It also removed some documents from the public database …

Ahead of State of the Union, Trump's approval falls to new low of 37%  —  This article reports results from the February 2026 Strength In Numbers/Verasight poll.  You can read our previous poll releases here.  Subscribers to Strength In Numbers have access to additional tracking visuals and a full archive of crosstabs here.

Fresh Off a Supreme Court Loss, Trump Could Face New Challenges on Tariffs  —  Critics are questioning the legality of the provision President Trump has used to replace his previous slate of tariffs, raising the prospect of yet another legal battle.  —  Since the Supreme Court last week struck …

Donald Trump's state of mind is a global risk  —  A cabinet of sycophants makes an already erratic US president a greater threat  —  US psychiatrists have been discouraged from commenting on the mental health of public figures since the so-called Goldwater rule in the 1970s.

Kash Patel's use of jet delayed FBI team's mass shooting response, whistleblower tells top senator  —  Agents with the FBI's elite evidence response team were delayed in reaching the scene of a mass shooting at Brown University in December because there was no FBI plane available to take them to Rhode Island …

Tony Gonzales says he will not resign  —  GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales told reporters Tuesday he will not step down from his seat amid allegations he had an affair with a staffer who later died by suicide.  “I am not going to resign,” the Texas lawmaker said.  Speaker Mike Johnson said earlier Tuesday he planned to meet with Gonzales.

Trump Administration Considers Action Requiring Banks to Collect Citizenship Information  —  Potential executive order would enlist banks in the Trump administration's illegal immigration crackdown  —  The Trump administration is weighing a possible executive order or other action …

This App Warns You if Someone Is Wearing Smart Glasses Nearby  —  A new hobbyist developed app warns if people nearby may be wearing smart glasses, such as Meta's Ray-Ban glasses, which stalkers and harassers have repeatedly used to film people without their knowledge or consent.

Exclusive: Hegseth gives Anthropic until Friday to back down on AI safeguards  —  Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei until Friday evening to give the military unfettered access to its AI model or face harsh penalties, Axios has learned.

Judges plead with Congress for control of crumbling courthouses  —  The infrastructure of the nation's federal courthouses is crumbling, plagued by collapsing ceilings, malfunctioning elevators and contaminated water supplies, a top representative for the federal judiciary declared in an unusual plea to Congress on Tuesday.

Trump Angered by Fresh Slide in Polls as Even Fox Admits He's Tanking  —  A new CNN poll finds Donald Trump's approval at an abysmal 36 percent.  And a Washington Post survey finds him absolutely tanking on just about all major issues.  But to Trump, this cannot be real: He just issued an angry …

Charles Kushner adds to Trump's growing ambassador drama  —  France has cut off Charles Kushner, the U.S. ambassador and the father of President Trump's son-in-law, from meeting government officials after he failed to appear when summoned.  —  Why it matters: America's diplomatic corps is supposed to manage its relationships abroad.

D.O.J. Sues U.C.L.A. After It Refused to Pay $1 Billion Fine  —  The Trump administration accused the university's Los Angeles campus of not doing enough to curb antisemitism, months after it tried to cut research money and demanded more than $1 billion.  —  The Trump administration sued …

U.S. has breached trade deal and Europe is ready to retaliate, top trade lawmaker tells CNBC … The U.S. has breached the terms of its trade deal with the European Union and the bloc is ready to retaliate if necessary, a top EU trade lawmaker told CNBC.  —  “We wanted to have really stability and predictability.

GOP lawmaker quietly questioned ‘disturbing’ East Wing demolition  —  Rep. Michael Turner, co-chair of the congressional Historic Preservation Caucus, wrote to a top White House aide about his “substantial concerns” as party leaders publicly backed Trump's decision.

The Looming Taiwan Chip Disaster That Silicon Valley Has Long Ignored … Federal officials have for years tried to wean Silicon Valley from its dependence on Taiwan, an island democracy roughly the size of Maryland that makes 90 percent of the world's high-end computer chips.

Martin Short's Daughter Katherine Died By Suicide  —  Martin Short's daughter, Katherine, has taken her own life ... TMZ has learned.  —  The 42-year-old died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ.  —  LAPD and the fire department responded …

Fury as AOC and Mamdani urge illegal migrants to sign up for free childcare  —  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Zohran Mamdani have sparked backlash after urging undocumented migrants to sign up for free childcare in a Spanish advertisement.  —  The New York mayor was joined …

EXCLUSIVE: Trump Invites Girl Taken From Parents After Secret Gender Transition  —  President Donald Trump's guests for his State of the Union address will include Sage Blair, a young woman who was separated from her parents at age 14 after school officials attempted to secretly transition her to a male …

Internal Montgomery County Public Schools curriculum guidance calls for an “intentional shifting of content” to examine “resistance to and liberation from white supremacy”  — MONTGOMERY COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS - MD  —  Photos of internal documents on a Montgomery County Public Schools …

Two GOP Reps plan to join Dems in SOTU Epstein protests  —  At least two House Republicans who have been at the forefront of transparency efforts around the Jeffrey Epstein files are planning to display their support for the late billionaire's accusers during Trump's State of the Union, Axios has learned.

Alex Pretti, Renee Good, and Flight 93  —  We'll talk about the State of the Union address in tomorrow's newsletter.  Tonight, Tim and the gang will be live starting at 8:50 p.m. EST on Substack and YouTube to preview the speech, suffer through it with you, and give reactions after it wraps.