The three liberal members of the Supreme Court issued a scathing dissent to an unsigned order granting President Donald Trump more power to reshape federal agencies.
Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented from the order in Trump v. Boyle, a decision published Wednesday that allowed Trump to fire three Democratic members of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. In the dissent, the justices argued that the conservative majority of the Supreme Court seems hellbent on expanding the president's authority over independent agencies.
"Once again, this Court uses its emergency docket to destroy the independence of an independent agency, as established by Congress," Kagan wrote in the dissent.
The order in Boyle represents another decision by the High Court that Kagan argued allows the president to ignore federal law. Last week, the court issued a decision in McMahon v. New York that effectively allowed the president to shut down the Department of Education by firing all of its workers. That's despite federal law giving Congress the power to create independent agencies.
"By means of such actions, this Court may facilitate the permanent transfer of authority, piece by piece by piece, from one branch of Government to another," Kagan wrote.
President Donald Trump spoke at an artificial intelligence summit Wednesday, where he rambled about not liking the name "artificial intelligence."
After giving acknowledgments to notable people in the crowd, Trump bragged about his trade deal with Japan, under which Japan no longer pays tariffs on U.S. goods, while Americans will pay a 15% tax on all goods coming in from Japan.
"We're still in the earliest days of one of the most important technological revolutions in the history of the world," Trump told the crowd. "Around the globe, everyone is talking about artificial intelligence. I find that too artificial — get — I can't stand it. I don't even like the name. You know, I don't like anything this artificial. So could we straighten that out, please? We should change the name. I actually mean that. I don't like the name artificial anything because it's not artificial. It's genius. It's pure genius."
He went on to say that Silicon Valley should not be hamstrung by regulations from states.
Trump attempted to insert in his 2026 budget bill a mandate that no state could regulate AI for the next 10 years. It prompted many Republicans to become angry that they had supported the bill without knowing that it contained that provision.
Republican Sen. Rand Paul (KY) is blocking Mike Waltz from becoming President Donald Trump's new ambassador to the United Nations.
Paul addressed the Waltz hold, saying, "They pulled it for now, we're going to see what happens over the next week," Axios reported Wednesday.
Waltz was up for a confirmation vote ahead of the August Recess, when the members flee Washington's heat for their home states, family vacations, or an international congressional delegation trip.
Republicans remain hopeful they can convince Paul to support Waltz or that they can make a deal with a Democrat on the committee, Axios reported.
"If you want to report my opinion," Paul said. "I had an exchange in the committee last week — that's probably the best thing to report."
Paul raked Waltz across the coals during the hearing. Among his issues is Waltz's 2020 vote as a member of Congress to hinder Trump's ability to withdraw troops from Afghanistan.
“I guess it just worries me that you come more from the [former Rep. Liz Cheney] wing of the party than the Donald Trump party,” Paul said.
Before the Senate, Waltz also answered questions about his role in Signalgate last week. The scandal involved Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth sharing classified information via a Signal chat that included a reporter.
Waltz also testified that no classified information was shared in the chat. However, a new report Wednesday revealed that a classified message that Hegseth copied into the Signal chat was rated "SECRET."
Several of President Donald Trump's top administration officials have claimed while speaking to the House and Senate that there was no "secret" information being discussed in the Signal chat that included a reporter.
The information that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth put into the Signal chat came from "a classified email labeled 'SECRET/NOFORN,'" the Post said, citing people familiar with the matter.
According to the Department of Defense website, “NOFORN” means "information may not be disseminated in any form to foreign governments, foreign nationals, foreign or international organizations, or non-U.S. citizens."
The secret email containing the strike plans for Yemen was shared with more than a dozen defense officials by Gen. Michael "Erik" Kurilla, who oversees U.S. military operations in the Middle East. They were then posted in the unclassified group chats from Hegseth on March 15, before the bombing campaign began, the sources said.
When Kurilla sent the message, it was over a classified system using a "Secret Internet Protocol Router Network" or SIPRNet, confirmed by four sources. It follows government regulations for disseminating messages.
The most recent denial came from National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, who testified before the Senate, "There was no classified information exchanged."
“The Department stands behind its previous statements: no classified information was shared via Signal,” said Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell in a statement. “As we’ve said repeatedly, nobody was texting war plans and the success of the Department’s recent operations — from Operation Rough Rider to Operation Midnight Hammer — are proof that our operational security and discipline are top notch.”
American farmers are struggling under a “crisis” brought on by President Donald Trump’s trade war, wrote Bloomberg reporters Steven Church and Ilena Peng on Wednesday, one that has left a number of small farmers on the brink of bankruptcy.
“Now we are seeing farmers run out of liquid cash after trying to ‘just make it to next year’ several years in a row,” said Ryan Loy, assistant professor at the University of Arkansas and agricultural economist, speaking with Bloomberg.
According to data analyzed by Bloomberg, 173 small farms have filed for bankruptcy in 2025, a more than 63% increase when compared to small farm bankruptcies in 2024, and the highest number since 2020.
Among the leading factors in farmers’ financial struggles has been Trump’s trade war, more specifically, its impact on U.S.-China trade. Prior to Trump’s second term, the average U.S. tariff imposed on Chinese imports was around 16%. However, Trump would soon impose tariffs on Chinaas high as 145%, though he eventually reduced them to their current rate of around 30%.
As a result, many small farmers have been hurt by reduced exports to China, particularly corn, pork and soybean producers, with American farmers previously leading Chinese imports for those products. Now, Brazil leads in exports to China on corn, pork and soybeans.
“We’ve had three years of tough sledding here where breakevens are at or below cost,” said Land O’Lakes Inc. COO Brett Bruggeman, speaking with Bloomberg.
The reduced sales on exports have led to farm debt exploding, reaching a record high of $561.8 billion this year, per the Department of Agriculture.
“Once you lose a customer it’s awful hard to get them back,” said Joseph Peiffer of the law firm AG & Business Legal Strategies, speaking with Bloomberg.
Trump is still embroiled in negotiations with foreign leaders on tariffs, imposing new rates by the day. On Wednesday, Trump wrote in a social media post that tariffs would be lowered for countries that agree to lower their own tariffs on U.S. imports.
Democrats on the Hill may have finally cracked the code for dealing with their GOP counterparts, according to a new report.
The GOP has hurriedly worked to shut down any discussions of releasing the Jeffrey Epstein files since President Donald Trump's administration declined to release them earlier this month. Those efforts include voting down a bipartisan resolution to release the files sponsored by Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Thomas Massie (R-KY) and shutting down committee hearings over Democratic motions.
But the Democrats have piloted a new strategy, with the blessing of party leadership, and it appears to be "forcing" the GOP to respond, Politico reported on Wednesday.
The strategy involves using amendments and committee procedures to gum up the legislative process and make it more difficult for the GOP to pursue its policy agenda.
For example, Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ) filed an amendment to a bill that would have required the Department of Labor to publish information about Epstein's business in its training materials, Politico reported. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) filed another amendment to require DOL to release documents about Epstein and co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell.
The new efforts were launched as the GOP attempts to recess to the August break ahead of schedule.
Former federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann said President Donald Trump’s own behavior may be the biggest indicator that the Jeffrey Epstein allegations could be true.
He noted that the unusual concept of a deputy attorney general meeting with a convicted criminal, Ghislaine Maxwell, after she had already been jailed. One thing he said he's watching for is whether other Justice Department prosecutors or investigators are fired or resign if Maxwell is given some kind of "deal" despite being a "convicted child predator."
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche "may be" looking to make "a deal that's not trying to get at the truth, but is really trying to get at a sort of cover-up," said Weissmann. "However, it is certainly highly unusual to see cooperation at this juncture and to have it sought by the deputy attorney general of the United States. That is not the person who usually goes and meets with a convicted defendant."
He noted that looking at the whole picture "in a cynical way," the information could be released today. "They don't need to go to a court" to release the Epstein files.
"The information that they have today, if it is damning of President Trump, then clearly they are avoiding that and trying to basically do lots of diversionary tactics, including the grand jury motion, which is, you know, something that they knew would be denied and now has been denied by one judge," said Weissmann. "I assume it's going to be denied by others. And so they're sort of saying, look over here, look over here. And they don't want that turned over. That's sort of the worst case scenario."
It's also "one of the greatest signs that there is a there there," Weissmann said, of "Donald Trump's reaction to all of this."
If Trump truly believed that there was nothing in the files, then he could release them, said Weissmann.
"Todd Blanche says the president has said to be as transparent as possible. Well, guess what? That means all of your investigative files could be turned over, other than grand jury information, and they're not doing it," he noted. "And you have to ask yourself, 'Why?'"
The Supreme Court gifted President Donald Trump another win in his effort to purge government workers.
In an unsigned order published on Wednesday, the court said Trump can fire three Democratic members of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, a federal body that is responsible for monitoring the safety of kids' toys and other products. Trump has tried to remove the three commissioners since May. The case could return to the Supreme Court on appeal.
Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts said the decision was "squarely controlled" by another decision where the court allowed Trump to fire a lawyer on the National Labor Relations Board without cause.
Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.
House Republicans swiftly shut down a congressional hearing on Wednesday when Democrats tried to introduce a measure to subpoena the Epstein files from the Justice Department, Axios reported.
The chaos unfolded during a hearing of the House Oversight Subcommittee on Federal Law Enforcement, where the topic at hand was the "crisis of unaccompanied alien children." Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA), the ranking member on that committee, introduced the motion on Epstein.
At that point, Chair Clay Higgins (R-LA), "suspended the motion until the end of the hearing," and then, "Rather than holding a vote on it, however, Higgins abruptly recessed the hearing, telling members, when pressed on when the panel would reconvene, to 'stand by.'"
This marks the latest conflict in the House as Republicans grapple with how to handle the exploding controversy over the Epstein sex trafficking case, which Trump's Justice Department declined to release files on in defiance of promises the president had previously made.
It also comes as more information comes to light about the nature of Trump's friendship with Epstein, including a salacious letter he sent to the deceased financier allegedly featuring a drawing of a nude woman.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) told reporters Wednesday that he was concerned House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) may “try to pull a fast one” and rewrite House rules to stonewall a vote on releasing files related to Jeffrey Epstein.
Massie introduced what’s known as a discharge petition last week, a procedural measure to force a vote on a particular bill, which in this case is a bill that would compel the Justice Department to release all files it holds on Epstein, the convicted sex offender alleged to have operated a blackmail operation targeting powerful figures.
“The House rules that were voted on the same week that we elected Mike Johnson say that this is a way to get true grassroots bills to the floor if they're being blocked by leadership,” Massie told reporters.
“I really hope that Mike Johnson doesn't try to pull a fast one when we get back in September and rewrite the rules to get around this preliminary procedure that he agreed to in the rules, the discharge petition.”
Johnson has accused Massie of playing “political games,” and said that the Kentucky Republican is “trying to bite Republicans.” Johnson has repeatedly spoken out against efforts to force a vote on releasing files on Epstein, even going as far as to adjourn the House early for the summer to stonewall Massie’s efforts.
The House going into its August recess early, Massie admitted, thwarted his discharge petition for now, but he pledged to bring it back the moment the House reconvened, and that the extended delay would only end up hurting Republicans in the long run.
“I don't think this issue is going to go away, I think it's going to fester over the August recess,” he said. “...We needed seven legislative days for my bill to ripen, we only got six before the August recess, so as soon as we come back, I'm going to collect signatures.”
While he hasn’t spoken directly on Massie’s discharge petition, President Donald Trump has slammed what he called “stupid” and “foolish” Republicans who “bought into” theories around Epstein. On Monday, he called Massie the “worst Republican congressman,” and said he was hopeful Massie would be unseated by a primary challenger.
Critics have latched onto Trump’s unsuccessful attempts to move past the Epstein matter, pointing to the growing pile of evidence that the two maintained a deeper friendship than previously known, as well as a new report that revealed Trump was informed by his own DOJ that he was among those listed in the Epstein files.
Massie needs 218 signatures for his discharge petition to be successful, and with nearly all House Democrats eager to weaponize the files on Epstein against Trump, and a handful of Republican House members supporting the measure, Massie said he’s confident the House will be forced to vote on the matter.
Massie also warned that if Republicans continue to stonewall efforts to release Epstein files, the GOP would pay a heavy price in the upcoming midterm elections.
“The MAGA base, they voted for a Republican majority and Donald Trump to be president to reach the untouchables, because there have always been this class of people that seem to be above and beyond the law, and so the Epstein files are about reaching those people,” he said.
"Here's the problem for us here in the House: if those voters who got energized and put Trump in the White House and us in the majority become apathetic because we don't follow up on this one simple, small promise, then they're not going to show up in the midterms. We're going to lose the majority, and the Democrats will be in charge.”
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) told CNN on Wednesday that she plans to vote with the Democrats to subpoena all of the files on sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
CNN's Manu Raju reported from Capitol Hill, "Republicans are poised to defy President Trump and join with Democrats to subpoena all of the Epstein files."
Raju called it a "hugely significant move."
"In a key subcommittee that is now considering this measure, Democrats have tried to force a vote to consider to call for a subpoena for all of the Epstein files, as pushed by Congresswoman Summer Lee (D-PA). They need one Republican to vote for it. Congresswoman Nancy Mace of South Carolina just told me moments ago she plans to vote for this measure."
On tape, Mace said she will "for sure" support the motion after she's assured that the names of Epstein's victims will be redacted.
"I think it's very important. I will be supporting it, but it's very important that we protect victims," Mace said. "I think that is should be first and foremost, as someone who's fought for the protection to protect women and kids."
MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell accused President Donald Trump's Internal Revenue Service of conducting the "biggest attack" on him so far.
During a Wednesday appearance on his Lindell TV network, the pillow executive celebrated an appeals court ruling that reversed a decision requiring him to pay $5 million in connection with his "Cyber Symposium" election machine contest.
"I mean, I almost started crying in the other room when the lawyer called and said, I go, whoa," Lindell recalled. "And it's not because of $5 million. This is because of what, you know, this is the breakthrough! This is — we broke through the cover-up, the lies that have been taken and the suppression."
The CEO, however, said that he did not have all good news.
"The IRS, you know, I've been under attack by the IRS for three years," he explained. "I just got word that they are taking off all my deductions for Lindell TV and Frank's Speech."
"They're not allowing — they're calling it, it was political and Mike Lindell, it was entertaining and political for Mike Lindell," he added. "You don't call that an attack? That's about the biggest attack I could think of. So now we got to go back and fight that out with these guys. It's unbelievable!"
A former Republican Party spokesperson and Bulwark host thinks that President Donald Trump is sunk when it comes to trying to deny his links to Jeffrey Epstein.
Speaking to MSNBC's Katy Tur, Tim Miller, who left the GOP, said that denying his involvement will no longer work for Trump.
Tur noted Trump and his allies have fed conspiracy theories about a sex ring with Democrats drinking the blood of children. They started a fire, she described, and now are trying to keep it contained.
"He had a little bit of a scapegoat in the first term, right? When he wanted to change the subject," Miller recalled Trump would claim, "Oh, the deep state is blocking me. And I have these old establishment Republicans that we need to get rid of."
Now, however, he's installed people like Kash Patel, Dan Bongino and Pam Bondi, all of whom have promoted the release of the Epstein files.
"So, I don't know, it seems like they have some personnel issues, but like, so he doesn't have an excuse this time, right? Like, you know, there's nobody that he can point a finger at and say it's their fault. He put these people in and said, 'This time I'm coming back to get revenge,'" Miller continued.
Meanwhile, the president's former personal lawyer, Todd Blanche, is now working with Epstein's girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, a convicted sex trafficker linked to the sex ring.
"This whole thing is like, look over there, squirrel!" Miller continued. "Like that works if you're at Mar-a-Lago and Joe Biden's in charge, you can blame him. Or if you're like, the deep state is in charge. You can't do that now. And to me, the biggest news about this story, just one sentence on it real quick, is when Hakeem Jeffries first talked about this about a week out."
Jeffries said that the country is now confused as to whether the Trump administration was lying about Epstein before or they're lying now.
"Either it's a cover-up or they didn't really have the goods and they're pretending to. This pretty much makes clear that this is a cover-up," he said of the Journal report. "Which is a very different story and much harder to contain, because now, if the Democrats ever get back in power, all these people are going to be subpoenaed. It's not a five-week story for Mike Johnson. It's a two-year story in 2027. Now they're all going to have to discuss this meeting. And so, I mean, I just think that that makes a big difference over where the story was a couple days ago."
