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The Department of Justice on Tuesday night laid out further arguments for the release of grand jury transcripts in Jeffrey Epstein’s and Ghislaine Maxwell’s criminal cases, arguing that its request was “consistent with increasing calls for additional disclosures in this matter.”
The filing comes after two judges requested that the DOJ submit further information about the government’s request earlier this month to unseal grand jury transcripts.
Separately, Democrats on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday invoked a rarely used law to request that the government provide them with files related to Epstein, the convicted sex offender who died in jail in 2019, by mid-August.
Read the full story here.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley said this morning that he was “offended” by a post Trump shared on Truth Social that called on the Iowa Republican to allow the president to nominate district or circuit court judges in states even if the senators from those states object.
“Last night, I was surprised to see President Trump on Truth Social go after me and Senate Republicans over what we call the blue slip,” Grassley said at the beginning of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing on nominations this morning, “I was offended by what the president said, and I’m disappointed that it would result in personal insults.”
The blue slip is a tradition in the Senate Judiciary Committee where, when the president nominates someone for the circuit or district court, a blue-colored slip is sent to the two senators from the respective state.
If the senators from that state have no issue with the nominee, they return the blue slip and the nomination moves forward through the normal process, but if a senator from that state opposes the nomination, they do not return the blue slip, and the nominee is effectively blocked, before even getting a hearing.
Grassley has said he will continue this tradition despite pleas from Trump, who says he wants to nominate partisan conservative judges across the country, no matter if the state is considered Democratic or Republican-leaning.
Trump said in his Truth Social post last night that Grassley could solve the problem “with a mere flick of the pen.”
“Democrats like Schumer, Warner, Kaine, Booker, Schiff, and others, SLEAZEBAGS ALL, have an ironclad stoppage of Great Republican Candidates,” wrote Trump, who after continuing to lash out at Democrats concluded the post with, “Chuck, I know you have the Courage to do this, DO IT!”
Today, the Commerce Department reported that GDP for Q2 grew at 3%. That was higher than the Dow Jones consensus estimate of 2.3% and the Bloomberg consensus estimate of 2.6%.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick celebrated the figures in a post on X, saying that the “Trump Economy has officially arrived. Biden’s first quarter is behind us, and growth is already accelerating.”
But it was mostly driven by a 30% drop in imports, which reversed the 37% surge in imports last quarter as consumers and companies raced to beat tariffs.
Economists are already sounding a note of caution. As Wells Fargo writes, “today’s barn-burner of a headline overstates it,” adding, “Headline GDP growth ultimately continues to be whipsawed by tariff-induced behavioral effects.”
Sales to private domestic purchasers (a measure that strips away volatile components like trade and inventories) slowed to just 1.2%, which was the weakest level since 2022. That’s also much slower than the 3% rate it ran at last year. “Even despite remaining much stronger than the -0.5% GDP print, that marks the slowest pace of domestic demand in two years and signals growth is slowing even if headline rates suggest otherwise,” Wells Fargo’s economists added.
“Business investment may improve a touch due to clarity on trade relationships, but momentum has undoubtedly been lost,” economists at ING said in a note to clients today recapping the report.
With all that being said, it’s also worth noting that today’s reading was just the first of three revisions to GDP. Typically, it’s released as an “advance estimate,” second reading, then third (and final) reading.
Trump shared more details about a potential meeting he plans to have with Chinese President Xi Jinping amid the ongoing trade war.
“[Xi] wants me to go there and he’s going to come [to the United States],” Trump told far-right media outlet Breitbart during his trip to Scotland.
“We’re just going to work out dates, but we look forward to it,” Trump added. “We’ll see what happens, but we’ll most likely be going to China in the not-too-distant future, maybe before this year is out—and he’ll be coming here.”
Both U.S. and Chinese officials have been meeting this week in Sweden to discuss how they might be able to resolve the tariff issue between their two countries.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is leading all seven senators on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in invoking a rarely used law to request files in the Jeffrey Epstein case and have them delivered to the committee next month.
In a letter sent to Attorney General Pam Bondi, the group says it is requesting the files under the law, which says an “Executive agency, on request of … the Committee on [Homeland Security and] Governmental Affairs of the Senate, or any five members thereof, shall submit any information requested of it relating to any matter within the jurisdiction of the committee.”
The group requests the documents be delivered to Congress by Aug. 15, with a briefing of committee staff no later than Aug. 29. The letter was first reported by The New York Times.
The senators also ask that the department take all necessary steps to protect the identities of victims, and is requesting “all documents, files, evidence, or other materials in the possession of DOJ or FBI” related to the case. It’s not clear what enforcement mechanism Democrats would use if the Trump administration refuses to comply.
Trump said in a post to Truth Social that imports from India will face a 25% tariff “plus a penalty” starting Friday.
The penalty will be for doing business with Russia and China, Trump said in his post. It is unclear what the penalty entails.
Trump said that “while India is our friend, we have, over the years, done relatively little business with them because their Tariffs are far too high,” adding that India’s business with Russia comes “when everyone wants Russia to STOP THE KILLING IN UKRAINE.”
In 2024, the U.S. and India traded more than $129 billion worth of goods, with a U.S. trade deficit of $45.7 billion, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
Trump said in a post to Truth Social that he would not extend the Friday deadline, when steep tariff rates on many imports are expected to snap into place.
“The August first deadline is the August first deadline — it stands strong, and will not be extended. A big day for America!!!” Trump wrote in all-capital letters.
U.S. trade officials will also discuss with Trump whether to extend a pause on high tariffs on Chinese imports, according to U.S. Trade Rep. Jamieson Greer, who was in talks this week with Chinese counterparts.
Greer said yesterday that extending the pause was “under discussion,” but that Trump would ultimately make the decision. Higher tariffs on goods traded between the U.S. and China will return unless the two sides come to another agreement by Aug. 12.
The International Monetary Fund raised its global growth forecasts for 2025 and 2026 slightly yesterday, citing stronger-than-expected purchases ahead of an Aug. 1 jump in U.S. tariffs and a drop in the effective U.S. tariff rate to 17.3% from 24.4%.
It warned, however, that the global economy faced major risks including a potential rebound in tariff rates, geopolitical tensions and larger fiscal deficits that could drive up interest rates and tighten global financial conditions.
The Federal Reserve has so far resisted Trump’s aggressive pressure campaign to throw inflation concerns out and attempt to boost the U.S. economy with lower interest rates.
That’s expected to continue today, as the central bank is expected to leave interest rates unchanged. If so, that’s likely to annoy Trump, who is already reshaping the global economy with his tariffs.
Read the full story here.
Trump said convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein “stole” Virginia Giuffre from his Mar-a-Lago club, a stunning admission that could increase scrutiny of his relationship with the late financier — even as his administration seeks to change the subject from Epstein.
Trump was speaking to reporters yesterday afternoon when he was asked about his comments over the weekend about a falling-out with Epstein because the financier took employees from his business.
Read the full story here.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has privately discussed the idea of running for political office next year in Tennessee, according to two people who have spoken directly with him about it.
If Hegseth were to follow through on the discussions, it would amount to a major leadership shake-up at the department that oversees the American military and millions of federal employees. The Defense Department bars civilian employees from running for political office, meaning Hegseth would have to resign to do so.
Read the full story here.
The Republican-led Senate voted last night to confirm Emil Bove as a judge on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, granting a lifetime appointment to Trump‘s former personal lawyer.
He was confirmed 50-49, with only Republican votes, as they set aside allegations from three whistleblowers about the conduct of Bove, a Justice Department official, which include accusations that he flouted laws and Justice Department procedures.
Read the full story here.
Trump started his second term with one huge difference compared with his first term: Polls regularly showed majorities of Americans approving of his handling of immigration. In fact, it was his best issue, whereas it had been one of his least popular before.
Six months into his second term, it’s still among his best issues, but it’s no longer as popular. There has been a clear decline in support for Trump’s handling of immigration, with his approval rating dropping across a handful of prominent polls.
Read the full story here.
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Live updates: Trump announces 25% tariffs on India, won't extend Friday deadline for imposing duties on nations – NBC News
