The big news tonight? Khadeeja Safdar and Joe Palazzolo (The Wall Street Journal) reports:
Lawyers for Jeffrey Epstein’s estate have given Congress a copy of the birthday book put together for the financier’s 50th birthday, which includes a letter with President Trump’s signature that he has said doesn’t exist.
He's a liar. The world watches as he gets caught in another lie.
This is C.I.'s "The Snapshot:"
Resistance takes many forms.
Sometimes it’s people taking to the streets in protest, as they did this weekend in Chicago and its suburbs. Sometimes it’s governors banding together to ensure their citizens have access to vaccines that have been thoroughly vetted, as the governors of California, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii have.
And sometimes it’s ABC and ESPN not muting the full-throated chorus of boos that occurred when the president of the United States was shown at the U.S. Open on Sunday.
The rebel cry of desolation
To which we used to hearken
Echoes now in isolation
As the skies in fury darken
A thousand acts of desecration
Hundreds more continue
When y'know that you are all creation
You're gonna fight 'em with all that's in you
I remember a time gone by
When peace and hope and dreams were high
We followed inner visions and touched the sky
Now we who still believe won't let them die
Waters dammed to overflowing
Like tears brimming over in our eyes
Sometimes it's so hard to keep on going
When promises turn to lies
Go ahead, give in to confusion
And put aside your ideals, too
Soon you'll see only illusion
Don't care who's hurt
As long as it's not you
I remember a time gone by
When peace and hope and dreams were high
We followed inner visions and touched the sky
Now we who still believe won't let them die
Sometimes a leader emerges
And is followed for awhile
Doesn't matter what he encourages
As long as he's got style
Young ones conceived in a passion
Of directions we thought enlightened
Grown-up, they follow the mood in fashion
But beneath their bravado
You know they're frightened
I remember a time gone by
When peace and hope and dreams were high
We followed inner visions and touched the sky
Now we who still believe won't let them die
Republican Rep. Thomas Massie said Sunday that those who might be in the Jeffrey Epstein files need to be held accountable regardless of their social status.
"We can't avoid justice just to avoid embarrassment for some very powerful men," Massie told ABC News' "This Week" anchor George Stephanopoulos.
Appearing in the files is not indicative of wrongdoing or a crime.
Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna said there are enough votes in the House to force a vote on his and Massie's discharge petition, a rare bipartisan effort they've led to compel the Justice Department to release all records related to the convicted sex offender.
Massie posed the question: “Is it a hoax that Jeffrey Epstein was involved in underage sex trafficking, and there is unreleased evidence that would likely expose rich and politically connected perpetrators to indictments or convictions?”
With the results below (94 percent replied, “No, Release Epstein file”), Massie wrote: “The people know this is not a hoax (see poll), and as the survivors said this week, calling this a hoax dehumanizes the victims.”
The case of Jeffrey Epstein is not just a sordid tale of sex trafficking and privilege—it is a window into a justice system rigged to protect the powerful at the expense of the vulnerable. And despite his death nearly six years ago, the true story remains buried beneath a fog of sealed files, silenced voices, and unanswered questions. Julie K. Brown, the tenacious journalist who helped reopen the Epstein case through sheer investigative will, recently outlined nine critical questions we still need answered. Every one of them demands public reckoning.
Why did the FBI wait nearly a decade to act after Epstein’s infamous 2008 sweetheart deal? Why were his victims ignored in violation of federal law? Why did the Department of Justice allow him to be placed in a jail so riddled with “coincidences” that even seasoned correctional officers called it suspect? Why hasn’t Ghislaine Maxwell -- convicted of trafficking girls to unnamed, unindicted men—been compelled to testify about the clients she and Epstein serviced? And what happened to the troves of hard drives, videos, and surveillance footage seized from Epstein’s homes -- materials rumored to contain evidence of high-profile sexual abuse? What powerful names are being protected, and why?
The American public doesn’t need conspiracy theories. We need transparency. The idea that Epstein died alone in his cell with broken cameras, absent guards, a removed cellmate, and no suicide watch—just as the walls were closing in—is not a theory. It's a collection of verified facts that no responsible government would allow to go unexamined. Yet that’s exactly what has happened. The Department of Justice issued a summary report calling it suicide and closed the book. The files remain sealed. The abusers remain anonymous. And justice remains undone.
This is a case that involved minors being raped and trafficked across borders. And yet not a single man who participated in Epstein’s operations has been prosecuted. Not one. The world knows the names that floated around his private jets and mansions -- from British royalty to American tech billionaires, financiers, presidents, and prime ministers. Are we truly to believe they were just… bystanders?
We have seen a multi-tiered justice system before. But the Epstein saga might be the most flagrant example in modern memory. He weaponized his wealth to buy silence, legitimacy, and even immunity. His connections reached into intelligence agencies, Ivy League universities, Wall Street banks, and global political offices. These institutions were not innocent enablers. Many were direct beneficiaries -- financially, socially, and politically -- of Epstein’s web of exploitation. The complicity goes beyond individuals. It is systemic. The U.S. legal system allowed this predator to walk free for over a decade. The Bureau of Prisons failed to uphold even the most basic duties of care. The Justice Department's refusal to release the full investigative report into Epstein's death is a disgrace to any democracy claiming to uphold transparency and accountability. This is not just about Epstein. It is about whether the United States still has the will to hold its most powerful citizens to the same laws that govern everyone else. It is about whether our institutions are still capable of self-correction—or whether the rot has gone too deep.
The Justice Department on Friday asked a federal judge overseeing the case of deceased sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein to deny a request from NBC News to unseal the names of two associates who received large payments from him in 2018, court documents show. The Justice Department cited privacy concerns expressed by the two individuals as the reason for not making their names public.
The first associate received a payment of $100,000 from Epstein and the second associate received a payment of $250,000, both in 2018, days after the Miami Herald began publishing a series of investigative stories where victims criticized a plea deal he received in Florida in 2008.
As part of the plea agreement, Epstein secured a statement from federal prosecutors in Florida that the two individuals would not be prosecuted.
The payments became public after Epstein was indicted and arrested in New York in 2019 and asked to be released on bail. Federal prosecutors in New York filed a memorandum on July 16, 2019, that argued Epstein should remain in jail to prevent him from tampering with witnesses.
They cited the payments he made to the two individuals, which began two days after the Miami Herald began publishing its stories on Epstein’s plea deal, also known as a nonprosecution agreement, or NPA.
Prosecutors wrote that on Nov. 30, 2018, Epstein “wired $100,000 from a trust account he controlled, to an individual named as [REDACTED] a potential co-conspirator — and for whom Epstein obtained protection in — the NPA.”
Prosecutors also wrote that “this individual was also named and featured prominently in the Herald series.”
Prosecutors added that “the same records show that just three days later, on or about December 3, 2018, the defendant wired $250,000 from the same trust account to [REDACTED], who was also named as a potential co-conspirator — and for whom Epstein also obtained protection in — the NPA.”
On Friday, however, the new jobs report found that only 22,000 jobs were created in August, far fewer than the 73,000 created
in July. A downward revision of the previous month shows 13,000 jobs
were lost in June. Shockingly, firing the commissioner of the Bureau of
Labor Statistics could not disguise the impact of Trump’s own policies:
As economists noted, most signs suggest his tariffs are an important reason for the slowdown.
All this suggests that Democrats have a fresh opening to undermine the foundation of Trump’s political strength by portraying him as a politically weak, failing, diminished, naked-emperor figure—and some new internal polling conducted by Senate Democrats hints at why.
The polling—conducted for the Senate Majority PAC and provided to The New Republic—probes voter attitudes toward Trump, his tariffs, and the economy. It finds that 56 percent of likely 2026 midterm voters say Trump’s tariffs are hurting the economy overall, with 44 percent saying they’re hurting a lot. Only 32 percent say they’re helping. Among swing voters—defined as voters who switched in either direction from 2020 to 2024—57 percent say they’re hurting.
Governor JB Pritzker's office served up a few key points:
Here are the facts Donald Trump should read and the White House should include in their next press release:
- Chicago does not even make the list for Most Dangerous Places in the U.S., according to U.S. News & World Report.
- Illinois ranks in the top half of states with the lowest violent crime rates in the country.
- Gov. Pritzker’s Reimagine Public Safety Act (RPSA) invested $250 million evidence-based programs to reduce gun violence.
- The Peacekeeper Program, which trains residents to mediate and de-escalate conflicts, has resulted in a 41% reduction in gun violence in targeted Chicago and suburban Cook County neighborhoods
- Over 90% of communities in Chicago that received state funding experienced declines in total firearm victimizations in July 2025 as compared to July 2024.
- Chicago is on track to have the lowest number of homicides in decades with violent crime trending downward across categories as well.
- Murders and shooting incidents are both down by more than 30% in the past year and have been cut roughly in half since 2021.
Read more about Illinois public safety efforts and facts here.
In response to the post, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a Democrat, called Trump a “wannabe dictator.”
Trump on Friday signed an executive order seeking to rename the Defense Department the Department of War, after months of campaigning to be considered for the Nobel Peace Prize. The renaming requires congressional approval.
The illustration in Trump’s post shows him against a backdrop of the Chicago skyline [. . .]
Sunday on THE TODAY SHOW, NBC filed this report.
MARGARET BRENNAN: And we're joined now by Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth. She joins us this morning from Schaumburg, Illinois. Good morning to you, Senator.
SENATOR TAMMY DUCKWORTH: Good morning.
MARGARET BRENNAN: So you attended, as I understand, a demonstration yesterday in Chicago where thousands of people were out on the street protesting President Trump's vow to send in immigration agents. I know he's also posted on social media suggesting troops will go in. Quote, "Chicago is about to find out why it is called the Department of War." Vice President Vance says there aren't plans to send in troops. Do you have concrete indication, now, that there are plans to do so?
SEN. DUCKWORTH: Let's make it clear the president of the United States essentially just declared war on a major city in his own nation. This is not normal, Margaret. This is not acceptable behavior. No, we don't have any indications of them getting ready to send troops into Chicago. In fact, I was out at Great Lakes base yesterday, naval training base, and they were able to confirm that the only assistance they've been requested to provide is just office space for ICE, but that no barracks, no detention facilities, none of that is being requested or prepared in order to support troops into Chicago.
MARGARET BRENNAN: So, so then is this just, you know, social media trash talk? When you say he's declaring war, is this tongue in cheek?
SEN. DUCKWORTH: I think he's renaming the Department of Defense the Department of War, and did he not just say that Chicago will find out what it means to be at war? I don't- I take what the President of the United States says very seriously, because that is the respect you have to give to the office. And if that's what he's declaring, then let me make it clear, it would be an illegal order to declare war on a major city, any city within the United States, by the President of the United States.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Senator, I know you just mentioned you went out to the Great Lakes Naval training session- station, I should say, and you said the military leadership said they'll only get office space, ICE cannot bring in lethal munitions, and the resources will not be diverted from military training. So all of that together, did you breathe a sigh of relief and say this won't have a real impact on the military?
SEN. DUCKWORTH: Well, we're going to make sure that there's not an impact on the military. We need to make sure that- as, you know, Great Lakes naval training base is where every single recruit in the United States Navy goes through to get that basic training, and then later on, some advanced training. We need to make sure that not a single dollar, not a single penny of the resources that they have that should be- that should be directed towards training our nation's sailors and making them ready to dare- do their jobs, none of that money needs to be diverted in order to support ICE or any of Donald Trump's political, you know, theater efforts. We need to focus on making sure we turn out the very best sailors we possibly can out of the base.
The Rev. Marshall Hatch urged congregants of a prominent Black church on Chicago’s West Side to carry identification, stay connected to family and protest as the city readied for an expected federal intervention.
“You need to start telling people about your whereabouts, so you don’t disappear,” Hatch said during Sunday services at New Mount Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church. “We’re not going to despair. We’re not going to feel threatened. We’re not going to give up and give in to fascism and authoritarianism.”
A rally and march was held Saturday evening in downtown Chicago against the anticipated surge in ICE operations. A large crowd gathered at Michigan and Ida B. Wells before marching up Michigan Avenue.
President Donald Trump says the surge in immigration enforcement activity in the Chicago area is about getting dangerous criminals off the streets.
The White House has not released any details about what's being planned. City and state leaders oppose deploying federal agents to the city.
Protests wrapped up Saturday night in the city and suburbs as federal immigration enforcement was expected to expand. The protests stayed peaceful, but demonstrators had a strong message for the president.
Massive crowds marched through downtown Chicago. At least a few thousand people protested the Trump administration.
Veronica Castro, deputy director of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights said, "Our job is to take to the streets, defend our space and keep each other safe."
"Our communities are still experiencing state-sanctioned trauma as a result of this orchestrated fear campaign," Viviana Barajas of Palenque USA said.
They marched through the Loop, stopping at the U.S. citizenship and immigration services office, the federal courthouse and paused at the foot of Trump Tower to send loud messages.
There’s been no sign of the National Guard in Chicago but the city is braced for it.
The surge, dubbed Operation Patriot 2.0, is expected to last several weeks, according to a Saturday report by the New York Times. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security confirmed the move Saturday afternoon.
[. . .]
Reports of ICE agents near Harvard’s campus spread quickly among students Friday afternoon.
Students saw three vehicles marked with ICE lettering and the slogan “Defend the Homeland” driving in Harvard Square on Friday. The vehicles were photographed parked on Mt. Auburn Street and filmed driving toward Central Square.