Media

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick dropped $5 million on the main House Republican super PAC just four weeks after lawmakers arranged to interview him about his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — making him the first Trump cabinet official to make a seven-figure disclosed federal donation since being confirmed.

The April 1 donation went to the Congressional Leadership Fund, the super PAC backing Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and House Republican incumbents — including those who sit on the very committee scrutinizing Lutnick. The closed-door interview with the House Oversight Committee took place on May 6 and lasted more than four hours.

Tulsi Gabbard didn't leave the Trump administration on her own terms — at least according to one well-placed source.

Despite an official story centered on her husband's cancer diagnosis, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters that Gabbard "had been forced out by the White House" — a stark contrast to the carefully crafted farewell playing out on social media Friday.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) dismissed the Epstein files as a "nothing burger," mocked concerns about healthcare affordability, and compared a nurse killed by ICE to Kyle Rittenhouse — all in private texts to staffers, according to a bombshell New York Magazine investigation published Thursday.

The texts, obtained by reporter Alex Shultz, paint a portrait of a senator who, his own staff says, has been "acting like a Republican" in private — even as his approval among Pennsylvania Democrats has collapsed.

A Trump administration official tasked with proving debunked election-rigging conspiracy theories tried to ban voting machines used in more than half of U.S. states — and failed spectacularly when he couldn't produce a shred of evidence to back it up.

Reuters reported Thursday that White House adviser Kurt Olsen asked the Commerce Department to declare components of Dominion Voting Systems machines national security risks. This move would have effectively banned them before the November midterms.

CBS News head Bari Weiss suffered an embarrassing public blow on Sunday when Anderson Cooper, one of the most recognized news anchors in the world, was allowed to deliver thinly veiled criticism of her leadership — catching her completely off guard.

According to media watchdog Status, the already embattled Weiss was not given advance notice of Cooper's remarks and was effectively "blindsided" by the criticism. The exit interview, published as part of "60 Minutes" "Overtime" series, saw Cooper reflect on his nearly two decades as a correspondent while taking subtle but pointed shots at the CBS News boss.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) skipped a White House meeting Thursday — and sources say it wasn't an accident.

Two aides familiar with the cancellation told reporter Pablo Manríquez that Johnson flatly refused to attend, marking what may be the first time the Speaker has said no to Donald Trump.

Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) accused President Donald Trump of rigging the election against Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) — using the same "stolen election" language Trump deployed for years to dispute his own 2020 loss.

Speaking with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on The Alex Jones Network on Thursday, Greene unloaded on Trump after Massie's Tuesday night defeat in the most expensive House primary in American history.

Sarah Kellen, Jeffrey Epstein's longtime personal assistant, told the House Oversight Committee on Thursday that she was repeatedly raped and abused by the convicted sex offender — and handed lawmakers the names of three previously unknown alleged offenders.

Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-KY) announced the development after Kellen's closed-door, transcribed interview, calling it "by far the most substantive and productive interview that we've had. She was very brave."

President Donald Trump said Thursday he might skip his eldest son's upcoming wedding — because the optics are a lose-lose no matter what he does.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump acknowledged that Donald Trump Jr. and socialite Bettina Anderson are set to wed this Memorial Day weekend in what is expected to be a destination ceremony on a private island in the Bahamas, attended by a small group of friends and family.

Joy Behar unloaded on the Trump administration's $1.776 billion "anti-weaponization fund" on Thursday, comparing potential payouts to Jan. 6 rioters to compensating the Manson family for their crimes.

"This guy, the former Proud Boys chairman Enrique Tarrio — who directed the Proud Boys to assault the government — he received a 22-year sentence for seditious conspiracy, and he expects to get between $2 million and $5 million in compensation," Behar said on The View. "What about the Manson family? Why don't we give them money?"

MAGA influencer Steve Bannon is predicting Republicans will lose the Senate in the 2026 midterms — and he's laying the blame squarely at the feet of Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD).

"The Senate, I think, is gone," Bannon said Thursday on his War Room program, rattling off a list of vulnerable Republican candidates he expects to fall. "We're gonna lose it big."

Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin unloaded a pointed critique of President Donald Trump on Thursday, arguing the president has failed to build public support for his legislative agenda and is alienating the very Republican senators he needs to end the filibuster.

Speaking on Real America's Voice, Johnson was asked about Trump pressuring Senate Majority Leader John Thune to fire Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth McDonough after she ruled the GOP could not include funding for the president's ballroom in a budget reconciliation bill. He didn't defend the move.