Epstein saga hangs over Congress during sprint to summer recess

(The Hill) — The contention surrounding the Trump administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files is poised to predominate the speech connected Capitol Hill this week, arsenic Congress sprints to August recess — and prepares to dive into authorities backing conversations.

The House returns to Washington connected Monday for its past week earlier breaking for the agelong summertime recess, portion the Senate is successful league for its penultimate week, a last agelong that volition beryllium inundated by conversations surrounding Epstein, whether the documents related to him should beryllium released and however the Justice Department has dealt with the existent uproar.

The concern has been a hard 1 for Congressional Republicans, who are weighing listening to the MAGA basal and calling for the merchandise of the documents against President Donald Trump, who has urged his enactment to driblet the matter.

Aside from Epstein, Congress this week volition walk immoderate clip focusing connected authorities funding, arsenic the Sept. 30 shutdown deadline inches closer. The Senate is expected to see its archetypal of 12 full-year backing bills, though that effort could beryllium analyzable aft Republicans passed a measure to claw backmost $9 cardinal successful national funding.

Also this week, the Senate is scheduled to ballot connected a fig of Trump nominees arsenic the president urges the precocious enclosure to cancel its August recess. And House Republicans are slated to prime a caller seat of the Homeland Security Committee pursuing erstwhile Chair Mark Green’s (R-Tenn.) departure from Congress.

Lawmakers face lingering Epstein files scandal

The outcry implicit the Trump administration's handling of the Epstein files is apt to proceed this week, arsenic Republicans await the expansive assemblage grounds Trump directed for merchandise and immoderate proceed to telephone for the merchandise of each the documents successful the case.

Adding to the contention is simply a imaginable — though improbable — vote successful the House connected a non-binding resolution, prepared by Republicans, that calls for the merchandise of immoderate materials from the lawsuit but gives Attorney General Pam Bondi the quality to exempt immoderate parts.

The House Rules Committee precocious the solution aft hours of deliberations past week, delaying a ballot connected a bundle to claw backmost $9 cardinal successful national funding.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), however, has not committed to holding a ballot connected the measure, a posture that volition apt spark disapproval from Democrats and adjacent immoderate Republicans who privation the documents to spot the airy of day.

“We’ll find what happens with each that,” Johnson said erstwhile asked if helium volition enactment the Epstein solution connected the floor. “There’s a batch developing. The president made his statements this afternoon, he’s asked the lawyer wide to merchandise the information, I’m definite that she will, and everybody tin marque their ain decisions astir that.”

Pressed connected if helium would perpetrate to staging a ballot connected the legislation, Johnson again stopped short, telling reporters: “We volition spot however each this develops.”

“We’re successful enactment with the White House, there’s nary daylight betwixt us,” helium added. “We privation transparency, and I deliberation that volition beryllium delivered for the people.”

Johnson suggested that the ballot was a mode to springiness Republicans connected the Rules Committee screen aft they voted against a antithetic measurement past week calling for the merchandise of the documents.

In the meantime, absorption is apt to proceed rolling successful about the Wall Street Journal’s reporting that Trump, successful 2003, allegedly sent Epstein a “bawdy” missive for his birthday. Republicans person slammed the report, and Trump sued the outlet and Rupert Murdoch, an proprietor of the outlet.

And lawmakers are awaiting the expansive assemblage transcripts that Trump directed Bondi to release.

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.), who has called for the merchandise of the Epstein files, said, “I judge that volition beauteous overmuch screen everything,” referring to the transcripts, but helium noted that helium inactive wants each the files to beryllium released.

Democrats, meanwhile, are downplaying the value of the transcripts, arguing that they volition lone pertain to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, a convicted enactment offender who is serving clip for wrongdoing successful transportation to Epstein.

Hanging implicit the full contention is simply a bipartisan effort, led by Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), to unit a ballot connected a solution that calls for the disclosure of Epstein files. The brace is vowing to record a discharge petition for the measure, which already has 10 different GOP supporters.

Government shutdown deadline inches closer

This week marks the last 1 that some the House and Senate are successful league astatine the aforesaid clip earlier August recess — and earlier Congress returns to a authorities backing sprint successful September.

With little than 10 weeks to spell until the shutdown deadline — and little than 20 legislative days until the cliff — Congress is down the 8 ball, staring down a upland of enactment that has to beryllium done earlier backing runs retired successful Washington. The House has lone passed 2 retired of 12 full-year appropriations bills, portion the Senate has approved nary of the dozen.

The precocious enclosure volition effort to spot distant astatine their to-do database this week, with an archetypal procedural ballot expected connected Tuesday connected the measure to money subject construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs and related agencies.

Votes connected the measures successful each chamber, however, are incapable to bring Congress person to averting a authorities shutdown, since the full-year measures are written astatine antithetic levels.

Adding to the dilemma is the measure Republicans approved this period to claw backmost $9 cardinal successful national funding, targeting overseas assistance and nationalist broadcasting. Democrats warned that transition of that bundle would tarnish the appropriations process, mounting the signifier for a high-stakes agelong to Sept. 30.

Earlier this month, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said clearing the authorities — known arsenic a rescissions measure — “would beryllium an affront to the bipartisan appropriations process.”

“That’s wherefore a fig of Senate Republicans cognize it is absurd for them to expect Democrats to enactment arsenic concern arsenic accustomed and prosecute successful a bipartisan appropriations process to money the government, portion they concurrently crippled to walk a purely partisan rescissions measure to defund those aforesaid programs negotiated connected a bipartisan ground down the scenes,” helium wrote successful a missive to colleagues, aboriginal adding: “This is beyond a bait and power — it is simply a bait and poison-to-kill.”

The existent dynamics are making the anticipation of a continuing solution successful September more-and-more likely.

Senate to ballot connected nominees arsenic Trump calls for canceling recess

The Senate this week is slated to proceed churning done Trump’s nominees, arsenic the president puts unit connected the precocious enclosure to corroborate much of his picks — and urges Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to cancel recess for that reason.

The absorption connected nominations comes aft the Senate spent sizeable level clip connected the “big, beauteous bill” and authorities to fastener successful cuts made by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which monopolized caller weeks.

The Senate volition ballot connected Joshua M. Divine’s information to beryllium U.S. territory justice for the Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri, Cristian M. Stevens’s information to beryllium U.S. territory justice for the Eastern District of Missouri, Aaron Lukas’s information to beryllium main lawman manager of nationalist intelligence, Bradley Hansell’s information to beryllium undersecretary of defence for quality and security, Arielle Roth’s information to beryllium adjunct caput of commerce for communications and information, and John Hurley’s information to beryllium undersecretary for coercion and fiscal crimes.

The absorption connected confirming Trump’s picks comes aft the president implicit the play encouraged Thune to nix the chamber’s August recess, which is acceptable to statesman astatine the extremity of adjacent week and tally done the month.

“Hopefully the precise talented John Thune, caller disconnected our galore victories implicit the past 2 weeks and, indeed, 6 months, volition cancel August recess (and agelong weekends!), successful bid to get my unthinkable nominees confirmed. We request them badly!!! DJT” Trump wrote connected Truth Social.

It remains unclear if Thune volition heed the president’s proposal and cancel recess. While Republicans privation to proceed confirming Trump’s nominees, they are besides anxious to caput location for the period to merchantability the “big, beauteous bill” to constituents, which they spot arsenic captious arsenic the midterm elections inch closer.

House GOP to prime caller Homeland Security Committee chair

House Republicans volition ballot connected a caller president for the Homeland Security Committee this week, aft Green officially resigned from Congress.

Republican Reps. Michael Guest (Miss.), Andrew Garbarino (N.Y.), Carlos Gimenez (Fla.) and Clay Higgins (La.) are each vying for the enactment position.

The Republican Steering Committee — a radical of Republican leaders and determination representatives — is scheduled to conscionable Monday and urge a campaigner for the job, who volition apt beryllium rubber-stamped by the league aboriginal successful the week.

The 4 candidates each bring antithetic qualities to the table.

Guest, presently serving arsenic president of the House Ethics Committee, is simply a erstwhile authoritative who has held stints arsenic vice seat and a subcommittee seat connected the Homeland Security panel. The Mississippi Republican has besides underscored that helium was an impeachment manager erstwhile the House penalized then-Homland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Garbarino has pointed to his New York roots, arguing that the sheet should crook backmost to its absorption connected counterterrorism, which was the focal constituent aft the Sept. 11, 2001, violent attack.

Gimenez, a erstwhile politician and firefighter, has said that his inheritance dealing with exigency readying successful Florida, a authorities prone to hurricanes, has uniquely prepared him for the role. He has besides said determination should beryllium “nuance” successful immoderate of Trump’s migration policies.

And Higgins, a erstwhile constabulary officer, is the astir elder of the candidates running, giving him a limb up successful an situation wherever seniority is taken into consideration. A fig of Louisiana Republicans, however, are already successful enactment — Johnson and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), for illustration — which could enactment against him.

Johnson said the candidates person created “quite a equine race.”