What we're covering
• Epstein files: The Justice Department on Friday released more than 3 million pages from the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, which contain references to President Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and other powerful figures. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche signaled on CNN this morning that the DOJ will not pursue new charges related to the case.
• Election fears: Democratic officials are preparing for potential federal intrusion in the midterms, as Trump appointees search for evidence backing long-debunked election fraud claims. Blanche did not offer an explanation for spy chief Tulsi Gabbard’s involvement in a probe of Fulton County, Georgia, when pressed by CNN.
• Partial shutdown: The federal government likely won’t fully reopen until at least Tuesday, when the House is expected to hold critical votes. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries says the GOP can’t rely on Democrats to pass a deal struck by Senate Democratic leadership and Trump to temporarily fund DHS during negotiations on federal immigration enforcement.
Trump brushes off Texas special election that flipped state Senate seat
President Donald Trump on Sunday brushed off Democrats’ upset in a special election in Texas, after they flipped a seat in the state Senate in a district Trump won by 17 points in 2024.
The president had made a late push in the race, posting on social media in support of Republican Leigh Wambsganss’ campaign three times in the last two days. But asked by reporters in Florida for his reaction to the result, he said, “I don’t know, I didn’t hear about it. Somebody ran? Where?”
After reporters told the president the election was for the Fort Worth-area 9th District, he shrugged off the race, saying he was not involved, despite endorsing a candidate.
“I’m not involved in it. That’s a local Texas race.”
Taylor Rehmet, a union president and Air Force veteran, defeated Wambsganss, a GOP activist and executive at conservative wireless provider Patriot Mobile, in a runoff. Wambsganss was endorsed by Trump.
“You mean I won by 17 and this person lost? Things like that happen,” Trump said. “You don’t know whether or not it’s transferable. I’m not on the ballot.”
“It’s too bad, what can I say? I have nothing to do with it,” Trump added, distancing himself from the loss.
US Senate race: Meanwhile, Trump said he is friendly with all three Republican candidates vying for US Senate in Texas this year and to expect an endorsement soon. The heated three-way race features longtime incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and Rep. Wesley Hunt.
“They say whoever I endorse wins, that’s probably right,” Trump said.
Trump: If no deal is reached with Iran, the world will “find out” if a US strike would spark regional war
President Donald Trump suggested Sunday that if Iran doesn’t reach a nuclear agreement with the United States, the world will soon see whether Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was correct in warning that a US attack would spark a regional war.
“Why wouldn’t he say that? Of course, you can say that,” Trump told reporters when asked for his reaction to the Iranian leader’s defiant comments about the potential consequences of a US strike.
“But we have the biggest, most powerful ships in the world, over there, very close,” Trump added. “And hopefully we’ll make a deal.”
“If we don’t make a deal, then we’ll find out whether he was right.”
Trump said Saturday that Iran is “seriously talking” with the United States, while declining to say whether he has decided on a potential military strike against the regime.
Khamenei told a crowd in Tehran on Sunday that Iran does not “intend to attack any country, but the Iranian nation will deliver a firm blow to anyone who attacks and harasses it,” according to state media.
Some context: CNN reported last week that Trump was weighing a major new strike on Iran after preliminary discussions between Washington and Tehran over limiting the country’s nuclear program and ballistic missile production failed to make progress.
The USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group entered the Indian Ocean last week, putting it closer to assist in any potential US operations targeting Iran.
Iran's foreign minister says agreement with US can be made if Washington commits to “fair and equitable” deal
Turning now to a couple of foreign policy updates, as Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said he is confident an agreement could still be reached between his country and the US if Washington commits to a “fair and equitable” deal.
Though Iran doesn’t want a war to break out, it is nonetheless prepared, Araghchi said in an exclusive interview with CNN’s Frederik Pleitgen earlier today.
Given that the US has so many military bases in the Middle East, “inevitably, many parts of the region would be involved, engaged, and that could be very dangerous,” he added.
This comes after President Donald Trump said yesterday that Tehran was “seriously talking” with the United States. Trump declined to say whether the US could still carry out a strike against Iran.
In other foreign policy news: An Israeli official told CNN the country’s military chief met senior Pentagon officials in Washington, DC, over the weekend. Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir was in DC to discuss regional developments, the official said.
The visit comes days after the IDF’s intelligence chief, Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder, traveled to DC and met with senior US defense officials, the official added.
Epstein bill co-authors prepared to move forward with impeachment or contempt proceedings against Bondi
Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna said he and GOP Rep. Thomas Massie, his co-author of the law compelling the release of the Justice Department’s Jeffrey Epstein files, are prepared to move forward on impeachment or contempt proceedings against Attorney General Pam Bondi if the DOJ does not comply to their liking.
Khanna told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that while he and Massie first threatened to hold Bondi in inherent contempt after the legal deadline for DOJ to turn over the files late last year, “we still have not moved on it.”
Khanna said he hopes they can meet with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who he said is “open to explaining why the redactions were done,” but if they do not get access to the remaining material related to the Epstein case and if the survivors are not satisfied, then they are “prepared to move on impeachment or contempt.”
Some key context: It’s not clear how realistic a possibility this is. Inherent contempt is a process that involves telling the House or Senate sergeant-at-arms to detain or imprison the person in contempt until he or she honors congressional demands. This is an extremely rare process and hasn’t happened in modern times.
GOP should be wary of turning immigration issues into a political liability, Republican lawmaker says
GOP Rep. Michael McCaul expressed concerns this morning that cases like that of 5-year-old Ecuadorian Liam Ramos will hurt the Republican Party’s ability to campaign on immigration issues.
“What I worry about is turning a winning issue into a liability,” McCaul, who has been among the few Republicans willing to break with the Trump administration on aspects of its immigration crackdown, told CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”
McCaul said that while President Donald Trump’s campaign promises on immigration helped get him re-elected, the optics of cases like Ramos’ can cause the issue to backfire on the party.
Some background: Federal officers took Liam Ramos and his father from a suburban Minneapolis driveway in January after they returned home from preschool. The pair was sent 1,300 miles away to a Texas detention facility and held there for more than a week before being released. As of today, the pair is back in Minneapolis.
The Ramos case attracted national attention and condemnation last month, which also saw the fatal shootings of Minnesota residents Alex Pretti and Renee Good by federal officers.
Jeffries digs in heels over administrative warrants, showing possible sticking point in DHS funding deal
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said requiring ICE to use judicial warrants rather than administrative warrants would be “a condition of moving forward,” on a funding deal for the Department of Homeland Security, previewing a possible sticking point with Republicans.
“I think this is a broadly held perspective shared by Democrats in the House and the Senate,” Jeffries said today on ABC’s “This Week.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham simply said “ain’t going to happen” when asked about the Democrats’ push for judicial warrants on “Fox News Sunday.”
“That would grind it to a halt if you had a judicial warrant in all these things,” he added, saying he would not agree to such a condition.
An administrative warrant is issued by a government agency, in this case by DHS or Immigration and Customs Enforcement. A judicial warrant is a court order signed by a judge or magistrate and is typically used in criminal investigation for search, seizure, and arrest.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has also made it clear that it was an unacceptable condition, claiming it would add another layer of “bureaucracy.”
GOP Rep. McCaul supportive of Bovino's removal from Minnesota operations
Republican Texas Rep. Michael McCaul, one of the first and few Republicans who diverged from the standard party line on ongoing immigration enforcement operations in Minnesota and beyond, appeared supportive of recent moves to remove controversial Border Patrol Commander-at-Large Gregory Bovino from the state.
“He escalated the tension between the public and law enforcement,” McCaul said this morning on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.” “He put his agents in a position they should never have been put in. They have no training for crowd control.”
McCaul praised President Donald Trump’s dispatch of White House border czar Tom Homan in Bovino’s stead, arguing that Homan’s extensive resume as a former director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement makes him the better suited liaison for enforcement outside of border cities.
“I would advise the Secretary (of Homeland Security Kristi Noem) and the president to involve Tom Homan, and he should have been there from day one, and to utilize his expertise and his talent,” McCaul added.
White House says it will work with Senate to “quickly” confirm Warsh, despite potential holdup
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said today that the administration will work with the Senate to expedite confirmation of Kevin Warsh as the next Federal Reserve chair, even as key Republican Sen. Thom Tillis has threatened to hold up the process.
“President Trump has appointed Kevin Warsh, who is a highly qualified and distinguished economist with a very exceptional resumé,” Leavitt said on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo.”
“And the White House is going to work with the Senate to quickly confirm him because we need a new chairman of the Fed,” Leavitt added.
The press secretary also addressed Republican opposition, responding to comments from Tillis, a key vote on the Senate Banking Committee, who has suggested the panel should not act on the nomination until the Justice Department’s ongoing investigation of current Fed Chair Jerome Powell is resolved.
“I certainly don’t think a United States sitting senator should be holding the entire country and our economy hostage over the fact that he has some political disagreements with an investigation that the Department of Justice is overseeing,” Leavitt said.
“It’s very unfortunate that Senator Tillis is making such comments,” she added.
White House press secretary: Trump “will be the decider” on immigration crackdown changes
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said today President Donald Trump will have the final say on any changes to immigration policy, as the administration faces nationwide demonstrations and a Justice Department civil rights probe into the killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents.
But Leavitt said on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo” the administration is listening and engaging in discussions.
The press secretary highlighted recent outreach to lawmakers as part of that effort.
“Last week the White House invited moderate Democrat senators to come to the White House and discuss their concerns so that we can hear them out and at least see what they are trying to put on the table,” she said. “That meeting was blocked by their leadership.”
She added that despite the talks, the ultimate authority rests with Trump: “Ultimately, the president will be the decider on any policy changes.”
The comments come after protests erupted in multiple cities over the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement actions, which have intensified scrutiny of federal operations and prompted calls for policy reform.
Here's a closer look at Tulsi Gabbard's involvement in Georgia election probe
We’ve been reporting this morning on the questions surrounding Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s involvement in seizing 2020 ballots from an elections office in Fulton County, Georgia.
The Georgia probe marks the latest attempt by Trump administration officials to find evidence supporting the president’s long-debunked election fraud claims.
If you’re just catching up on the story, here’s some background:
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard was present at an elections office in Fulton County, Georgia, as the FBI probes alleged voter fraud in the 2020 election. CNN chief law enforcement and national intelligence analyst John Miller reports.
DNC chair suggests Texas win vindicates the party's down-ballot strategy
Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin pointed to the projected Texas State Senate seat win of Taylor Rehmet — a flip of a heavily Trump-favoring district — as proof that the Democratic Party is regaining its footing when it comes to broader voter outreach and messaging ahead of what is expected to be a contentious Midterms season this year.
“We’ve seen a historic overperformance throughout the country just in last year’s elections,” Martin said Sunday morning on MS NOW’s “The Weekend,” which coincides with the one-year anniversary of his election as DNC Chair. “And it’s because the DNC has taken a big bet, and that big bet is that we’re going to invest in deep-down-ballot races to make sure we’re building power around our agenda throughout the country.”
Rehmet’s defeat of Leigh Wambsganss, a Trump-endorsed candidate is the latest in a series of races in which Democrats overperformed or won since the party’s subpar performances throughout the 2024 elections.
“I am confident we’re going to win in ’26, but I’m not complacent. There is wind at our back. Historic wins at our back. We’ve never seen an overperformance like we saw last year, but we’re not complacent,” Martin added.
Noem evasive on whether she still believes Pretti is a “domestic terrorist”
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem today again defended her description of Alex Pretti as a “domestic terrorist” in the immediate aftermath of his killing by federal agents in Minneapolis, saying authorities were working from the best information available amid chaos at the scene.
Pressed again on whether she still believes Pretti is a “domestic terrorist,” Noem said the investigation is ongoing.
Easing tensions in Minnesota
The DHS secretary said she supports efforts to turn down the temperature in Minnesota, where President Donald Trump dispatched border czar Tom Homan last week to oversee an apparent shift in strategy on the ground.
Asked about Homan’s recent comments that DHS made mistakes on the ground, Noem said the agency can always improve and affirmed her support for Trump’s revised strategy.
“We’re going to continue to get as much information as soon as possible to give a strategy to protect people, protect our federal buildings, like the president laid out yesterday,” Noem said.
“There’s nobody who’s more pro-Second Amendment than me”
Hours after Pretti’s death last month, Noem said, “I don’t know of any peaceful protester that shows up with a gun and ammunition rather than a sign.”
No evidence has emerged that Pretti, who Minneapolis police believe was carrying his firearm legally, ever brandished the gun before being shot and killed.
Noem’s comment stirred controversy among gun owners, who perceived the secretary’s stance as undercutting Second Amendment rights.
“I’m a carrier as well and a lifetime member of the NRA,” Noem said on Fox today. “There’s nobody who’s more pro-Second Amendment than me.”
But Noem argued that Pretti was impeding a federal operation while carrying a weapon, which she said violates the law.
This post has been updated with additional comments from Noem.
Speaker Johnson: White House and Democrats on path to deal for some ICE reforms
House Speaker Mike Johnson said today that he believes the White House and Democrats are on the path to an agreement on immigration enforcement reform, after describing a phone conversation that he was present for between President Donald Trump and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Johnson said the president and administration officials laid out which Democratic demands to reform the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency that he was open to.
He said both Trump and White House border czar Tom Homan told Schumer that they support requiring ICE agents to wear body cameras, pointing out that additional funds were already allocated for that reform in Trump’s domestic policy package proposal.
Homan, Johnson told NBC’s “Meet the Press,” also indicated to Schumer that in addition to the body camera requirement, he also was already intending to end roving patrols by ICE agents now that he has taken over operations in Minneapolis.
While Johnson said Trump was “right to acknowledge” that ICE has made mistakes and change is necessary, he made clear that GOP lawmakers and the president are opposed to other Democratic demands, including requiring agents to remove masks and changing parameters around warrants, which he warned would add another layer of “bureaucracy.”
Johnson was also pressed on whether he thinks DHS Secretary Kristi Noem should remain in her post, telling NBC “yes,” he has full confidence in Noem.
“I have a lot of sympathy for her job. I’ve got a difficult job too. But look, I think that there will be a recalibration in some measure,” Johnson said.
Speaker Johnson "confident" House GOP can end partial shutdown by Tuesday
House Speaker Mike Johnson said he expects he’ll have the votes to end the ongoing partial government shutdown early this week as House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has made clear Democrats will not help Johnson with passage.
The House now must pass legislation advanced by the Senate last week that would allow key government agencies to remain open through the fiscal year while separately extending funds for the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks while lawmakers work through an agreement to reform immigration enforcement.
Jeffries has communicated to his GOP counterparts that his caucus will block an attempt to fast-track the bill with two-thirds support in the House. This tees Johnson up for the challenge of garnering enough votes from his conference to both clear a key procedural step and eventually to send the legislation to the president’s desk.
What is a government shutdown?
The federal government has partially shut down after Congress did not agree on funding for several agencies before a deadline of midnight on Saturday.
Those agencies include the departments of Homeland Security (DHS), Defense, Education, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, State, Labor and Treasury, among others.
A government shutdown happens when lawmakers fail to pass a spending package for a period of time, usually either the full year or for a shorter period, known as a continuing resolution. When this happens, many agencies and activities must shutter until Congress appropriates more money.
Some of a shutdown’s impact is known in advance. Agencies file what are known as contingency plans that detail what operations will continue and how many employees will remain on the job, many of them without pay.
This is only a partial shutdown: In this instance, Congress approved annual funding for certain agencies since the last shutdown ended, so those can continue operating while other departments go dark.
It’s likely that immigration, border patrol and defense activities funded through the GOP’s tax and spending package will continue.
Nearly all DHS personnel will continue working during a shutdown, according to the agency’s most recent contingency plan.
Where things stand: The government likely won’t fully reopen until at least Tuesday, when the House is expected to hold critical votes. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has warned Republicans that they can’t rely on Democrats to pass a deal struck by Senate Democratic leadership and President Donald Trump to temporarily fund DHS during negotiations on federal immigration enforcement.
Democrats have demanded reform measures be part of any long-term funding deal after federal agents fatally shot Minnesota residents Alex Pretti and Renee Good last month.
Blanche says he doesn’t know why Tulsi Gabbard was at Fulton County FBI search
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche sought to downplay Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s presence during an FBI search of the Fulton County elections office last week, telling CNN’s “State of the Union” she is not part of the Grand Jury probe into alleged voter fraud in the 2020 election.
The investigation drew heightened attention after Gabbard was spotted at the scene of the FBI search. Gabbard has recently taken a prominent role in election-related efforts.
“Folks want to make something out of this that does not exist,” Blanche said. “This is a grand jury investigation being run by the FBI.”
Blanche seeks to downplay Trump’s role in the probe
Blanche also sought to distance President Donald Trump from the probe, after Trump told reporters this week, “they got into the votes, you’re going to see some interesting things happening.”
Asked by Bash on whether Trump was briefed on the probe, Blanche said, “I mean, I don’t know. I’m not around when the President is briefed or not briefed. What I said is that this is a criminal investigation. So it’s as tightly held as it must be under the law. It’s a grand jury investigation, and that’s how we’re proceeding.”
Rep. Raskin says he'll vote to hold Clintons in contempt if Bondi is as well
Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, said he will vote to hold anyone – including the Clintons – in contempt of Congress if Attorney General Pam Bondi is held in contempt as well.
“I will vote yes on contempt against them and anybody else, as long as Pam Bondi is part of it,” Raskin told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union,” referring to former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Raskin said he believes Bondi should be held in contempt due to the Department of Justice’s failure to release documents related to Jeffrey Epstein in a timely manner.
“I will definitely vote no on any partisan measure one side or the other. I want all of the information from everybody, and I want everybody to come forward and comply,” he said.
DOJ’s Todd Blanche says many allegations about Trump in Epstein files were "not credible"
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said that the Justice Department’s release of more than 3 million documents tied to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation should not be viewed through the lens of President Donald Trump, even as the files reference the president more than 1,000 times.
“It’s about a ton of people, multiple, multiple people that that were quoted in the Epstein files.” Blanche told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union.”
Officials at the FBI compiled a list of sexual assault allegations related to Trump this past August — many of which appear to have come from unverified tips — and the list was included as part of the millions of documents in the new Jeffrey Epstein files released by the Justice Department on Friday.
Blanche said today the FBI did not only compile such a list with Trump: “(I)t was all kinds of individuals, other politicians, other, quote, famous people, where we wanted to understand … why and where that was coming from.”
“What I think folks will see when they review the materials we released is that there have been hundreds of calls made to the FBI where allegations are made by either anonymous individuals or people who are very quickly determined to not be credible,” Blanche said.
When asked about allegations involving Trump specifically, Blanche said many were impossible to investigate.
“It turns out, there was a number of claims made by either … anonymous people or somebody, for example, calling and saying I used to have a roommate who told me this sensational story,” he said.
“So just, you know, obviously that’s not something that can be really investigated, right? ‘What’s your roommate’s name? I don’t remember,’ So that’s what that’s about,” Blanche continued.
Blanche pushed back on the focus on Trump, saying, “I don’t appreciate it being directed towards Donald J. Trump, because that that pushes a narrative that is completely false.”
Trump has denied any wrongdoing and hasn’t been charged with any crime related to Epstein.
DOJ's Blanche signals there will be no new charges related to Epstein
Asked on CNN’s “State of the Union” whether the Justice Department is considering bringing any more charges related Jeffrey Epstein, after it released millions of documents related to the convicted sex offender last week, Blanche pointed to earlier reviews and the scope of the newly released materials.
“The entire world can look at and see if we got it wrong,” Blanche said.
Pressed again by Bash on whether new information from civilians could reopen the case, Blanche reiterated the department’s position.
Blanche acknowledged the disturbing nature of much of the material but said it does not meet the threshold for prosecution.
“There’s a lot of correspondence, there’s a lot of emails, there’s a lot of photographs. There’s a lot of horrible photographs that appear to be taken by Mr. Epstein or people around him, but that doesn’t allow us necessarily to prosecute somebody.”
Blanche defends prosecution of Don Lemon, rejects claims case targets journalist role
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on Sunday defended the Justice Department’s decision to bring charges against former CNN anchor Don Lemon, pushing back on claims that the case criminalizes journalism or was pursued for political reasons.
“There was absolutely probable cause that a crime had been committed,” Blanche told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union.”
“Our system doesn’t allow judges to make that decision,” Blanche added. “But only a grand jury can bring forth an indictment, and so that’s what we did,” saying that the grand jury, made up of citizens from Minneapolis and surrounding areas, determined there was probable cause and returned an indictment.
When asked why a trial jury wouldn’t see Lemon’s actions as protected newsgathering under the First Amendment, Blanche argued the indictment alleges conduct beyond observation as a journalist. Blanche cited claims that Lemon was involved in planning and concealing movements from law enforcement.
“There are multiple allegations there, and guess what? He gets to have a lawyer, and he gets to have a defense,” Blanche continued. “If he wants to go forward with the defense at, ‘Aw, shucks, I was just a journalist,’ he can do that.”
Blanche pushed back, when Bash pressed, whether the case was about making an example of someone who has publicly sparred with President Donald Trump.
“I don’t even know that the president’s even ever thought of Don Lemon,” he said. “We’re not making examples of people.”
