Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) is defying House Speaker Mike Johnson's warnings and pressing forward with his discharge petition to force the release of Jeffrey Epstein records, even as some of his initial Republican backers are fading away.
Why it matters: Just days ago, the discharge petition's success almost looked inevitable. But Republican leadership, White House pressure, and the release of Epstein-related files from the House Oversight Committee have blunted the petition's momentum.
Leaders on the Senate Intelligence Committee are expecting to receive a bipartisan briefingthis week about the deadly U.S. strike on a drug vessel off the shore of Venezuela, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: Lawmakers want more information from the White House on what Trump officials have indicated is just the start of a broader military campaign.
Passengers whose flights are delayed would no longer be entitled to compensation from airlines under a Transportation Department plan to kill off a Biden-era rule on disruptions caused by carriers.
Why it matters: The shift is the latest in a series of actions by the Trump administration that have rolled back consumer protections, including the planned dismantlement of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Top MAGA world officials rushed to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s defense after Congressional Republicans and Democrats grilled the health secretary during a senate hearing for his anti-vaccine views.
Why it matters: After days of Republican leaders questioning Kennedy's leadership following his massive shakeup at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Trump White House officials are signaling that Kennedy isn't going anywhere.
A federal judge was wrong to order Florida to dismantle its Alligator Alcatraz immigration facility, an appellate panel ruled Thursday.
Why it matters: The ruling pauses last month's order, which prohibited state and federal officials from bringing new detainees to the site and demanded it be dismantled within 60 days.
The acting deputy chief of a Justice Department unit said on hidden camera that the government will "redact every Republican" from an Epstein client list. He later admitted he was basing his comments on media reports.
Why it matters: The O'Keefe Media Group, a far-right media organization, secretly recorded Joseph Schnitt's comments and published them on Thursday.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Thursday that former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Susan Monarez lied to Americans when she said she was fired for refusing to endorse vaccine recommendations not supported by science.
Why it matters: Kennedy's public rebuke will likely cause additional turmoil at the CDC. Monarez's firing led to outrage, with several top officials resigning and other employees staging a walkout at the agency.
Northwestern University president Michael Schill announced his resignation Thursday, following a high-profile battle with the Trump administration over alleged antisemitism on campus and federal funding freezes.
Why it matters: Schill's exit becomes the latest casualty in President Trump's war on higher education.
Federal judges are increasingly criticizing the Supreme Court, including likening its approach to the Trump administration to "Calvinball," the fictional game without rules.
Why it matters: The integrity of the nation's high court is being questioned as its conservative majority rules in favor of President Trump in emergency docket decisions that offer very little explanation of the highest court's reasoning.
Massachusetts will require health insurers operating in the state to cover vaccines recommended by the state's department of public health, Democratic Gov. Maura Healey announced Thursday.
Why it matters: Massachusetts is the first state to mandate insurance coverage of vaccines even if the federal government stops requiring it.
Health insurers have to cover vaccines as recommended by the CDC at no extra cost to patients. But Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has indicated that he wants to roll back some federal vaccine recommendations.
Zoom in: The directive is supported by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Association of Health Plans, the state said in a news release.
The national health insurance trade group AHIP in June said its members will continue to cover vaccines for this year's respiratory season.
Healey filed legislation last month that would give the state's public health department the ability to set independent standards for buying and recommending vaccines.
Zoom out: Massachusetts is joining several other Democrat-led states in pushing back on Kennedy's changes to vaccine policy.
The other side: "Democrat-run states that pushed unscientific school lockdowns, toddler mask mandates, and draconian vaccine passports during the COVID era completely eroded the American people's trust in public health agencies," HHS said in a statement.
"ACIP remains the scientific body guiding immunization recommendations in this country, and HHS will ensure policy is based on rigorous evidence and Gold Standard Science, not the failed politics of the pandemic."
What's next: Healey is also leading efforts to create collaboration of northeastern states that would develop evidence-based guidelines around vaccines, disease surveillance, emergency preparedness and supporting state public health labs, the state confirmed.
The Trump family has a bitcoin mining company that started trading on the Nasdaq Wednesday.
Why it matters: Running mining rigs is one of the most policy-sensitive corners of the crypto industry, with its number one cost input being the price of power.
Senate Democrats lambasted Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday for repeatedly questioning the safety and effectiveness of vaccinations, including the COVID shotsPresident Trump championed in his first term.
The big picture: Kennedy had assured Senators during his confirmation that he would do nothing to discourage or hinder people from using vaccines, but in his tenure at HHS, lawmakers say he's created confusion among physicians and families and eroded access.
Ørsted led a lawsuit against the Trump administration Thursday over its decision last month to halt construction on the company's Revolution Wind project off Rhode Island's coast.
Why it matters: The move — which was followed by a separate lawsuit — sets off a closely watched legal brawl over whether the Trump administration can undo its predecessor's energy-related actions.
President Trump told European leaders in a virtual meeting on Ukraine on Thursday that they are "funding the war" through purchases of Russian oil and must cut Russia off and pressure China to do the same, a White House official said.
Why it matters: Trump has sporadically threatened to punish Russian President Vladimir Putin for continuing to bombard Ukrainian cities and refusing to make peace. But in the call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and a group of European leaders, he turned the tables on the EU.
The House voted Thursday by the narrowest of margins to advance a fiscal 2026 spending bill that would codify many of President Trump's nuclear- and fossil fuel-driven "energy dominance" objectives.
Why it matters: The 214-213 vote — which came only after Republicans held the vote open to flip two GOP "nos" to "yes" — shows it won't be easy to advance Trump's energy agenda.
D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb is suing to end the National Guard's deployment in the nation's capital, alleging President Trump is illegally using the military for local law enforcement purposes.
Why it matters: The lawsuit is D.C.'s most aggressive step so far to counter Trump's anti-crime surge.
The big picture: His testimony is senators' first opportunity to publicly question Kennedy since May, when he defended the Trump administration's mass layoffs and funding cuts to his department. Since then, turmoil at HHS has grown and spilled into public view.
Combined levels of U.S. "clean" power installations barely grew in Q2, and the future project pipeline also stalled, new data shows.
Why it matters: The effects of Trump 2.0 U-turns on energy policy are coming into focus, the American Clean Power Association said alongside its latest market snapshot.
Nuclear startup Curio, which aims to turn radioactive waste into usable reactor fuel, said Thursday it received validation from several Energy Department national laboratories for its technology.
Why it matters: Some companies are making the case that nuclear waste can become a valuable commodity, and it shouldn't just be buried deep underground.
MAGA is seizing on President Trump's trade war with India to mount a broader crusade against Indian immigration, influence and culture.
Why it matters: The sudden hostility from Trump's base has stunned Indian officials at a time when New Delhi already was reeling from the president's 50% tariffs, which he imposed as a penalty for buying Russian oil.
More missiles. Fewer arrests. President Trump's war on drugs is officially a war, not a mere law enforcement action.
Why it matters: The U.S. has entered a new era in which narcotraffickers are classified as terrorists — and Trump is claiming the right to kill them before they or their drugs reach this country.
Across the globe, investors are selling off long-duration bonds, pushing up 30-year yields.
Why it matters: If U.S. investors follow their global counterparts and drive yields higher by selling long-dated debt, that could be a serious headwind for stocks.
Donald Trump added a branch to the U.S. military in his first term and kick-started a $175 billion missile defense initiative in his second with the same impetus in mind: Future wars will be waged from space.
Why it matters: The U.S. is poised to pour hundreds of billions of dollars into a zone of warfare few Americans understand, but that the world's biggest powers are racing to dominate.
The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Wednesday night to weigh in on its appeal to keep a broad set of tariffs in place after a lower court ruled they were illegal.
Why it matters: Global trade is in a new state of limbo over whether the bulk of President Trump's trade agenda might be overturned.
The Texas Legislature on Wednesday passed a sweeping measure aimed at restricting mail-order abortion medications and allowing private citizens to sue those mailing, delivering or distributing abortion pills to or from Texas.
Why it matters: Republicans hope the new law shuts down medication abortion in Texas and provides a blueprint for red states in the ongoing battle over abortion access.
Why it matters: Democrats "will tell you privately they know it's broken, but they can't bring themselves to fix it," Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) said Wednesday.
The big picture: The Trump administration's demands on Harvard were unconstitutional and violated the university's First Amendment rights, Judge Allison Burroughs said in the ruling.
Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chair Mark Warner (D-Va.) said Wednesday his "long-scheduled" classified intelligence agency meeting was canceled after far-right activist Laura Loomer attacked him online.
The big picture: Warner questioned whether Loomer is a member of President Trump's Cabinet, saying she was behind the firings of the National Security Agency/U.S. Cyber Command chief and the Defense intel agency boss.
A morning poll in The Wall Street Journal showed that 75% of Americans see little hope for improving their economic status — a 35-year high. Almost 70% said the American dream (work hard, you'll get ahead) is dead, a 15-year high. "This is just sad," I texted Mike Allen. His response: "Yes, shrunken ambitions for 3/4s of America."
Twelve hours later, we posted our Finish Line message to college students, arguing that reality is so much better than our social feeds and politicians tell us. I received an email a minute for hours upon hours — the most instant feedback on any column I've written. 90% of you lit up at seeing a hopeful lens on America; 10% felt I had downplayed a truly hopeless reality.
Why it matters: We have a crisis far bigger than nasty politics, surging screen time or economic angst. It's a crisis of hope.
Former GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn is preparing to run for Florida's 19th Congressional District seat, people familiar with the matter told Axios.
Why it matters: Cawthorn, who once said the House Republican conference is full of degenerates, appears eager to rejoin his old colleagues. If elected, he'd almost certainly create fresh headaches for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).
Senate Republicans are publicly and privately enthusiastic about the prospect that former Sen. John Sununu (R-N.H.) will jump into New Hampshire's open Senate race.
Why it matters: Republicans have been hungry for some pleasant surprise on the recruitment front all cycle.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) is using his signature light touch when it comes to the delicate subject of his older members' reelection plans. So far, his strategy seems to be paying dividends.
Why it matters: Democrats are caught in a virtual civil war over their aging leadership, with the party's grassroots pressuring lawmakers in their 70s and 80s to step aside in favor of a new generation.
