Republican-Led House Oversight Makes Major Move On Epstein Case

The Republican-led House Oversight Committee will meet with 10 victims of serial sexual abuser and wealthy socialite Jeffrey Epstein. The meeting will seek to shed more light on “the possible mismanagement of the federal government’s investigation of Mr. Jeffrey Epstein and Ms. Ghislaine Maxwell, the circumstances and subsequent investigations of Mr. Epstein’s death, the operation of sex-trafficking rings and ways for the federal government to effectively combat them, and potential violations of ethics rules related to elected officials,” Oversight Chair James Comer noted.

This bipartisan effort comes after months of distraction and denial from the Trump administration—from Attorney General Pam Bondi first claiming she had the Epstein files on her desk, to later saying there actually were no files and the case was effectively closed, to President Trump himself proclaiming that anyone who still cared about the said files is a big stupid idiot. That fiasco only fed more attention to the case, and now nearly 70 percent of the country believes that someone in the government (perhaps … the president) is hiding something. House Speaker Mike Johnson even called summer recess early to avoid having to vote on Epstein related issues. Now, as Congress returns, eyes are turning back to it.

If the House Oversight’s move wasn’t concerning enough for the Trump administration, Representatives Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie will be holding a public press conference at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday morning. “I pray Speaker Johnson will listen to the pleas of these victims for justice and quit trying to block a vote on our legislation to release the Epstein files,” Massie wrote on X.

Massie and Khanna filed a bipartisan discharge petition calling on the Justice Department to release the Epstein files in full. The move struck a nerve with Trump, who called Massie “the worst Republican congressman.”

We’ll see if Trump has anything more to say on Wednesday morning.

“These victims haven’t spoken for decades. When Epstein got that lenient plea deal, no one talked to the victims or their lawyers,” Khanna said to Fox News Digital on Monday. “There are a lot of other rich, powerful men, politicians, business leaders, who have committed abuse and who have not been held accountable. That’s what we’re going to hear on September 3, and people are going to be outraged, and I don’t see how, after that, the House can’t vote for the release of these files.”

Owen Shroyer, a host for Infowars, announced Monday that he is leaving the conspiracy-driven news platform due to a fight with its founder, Alex Jones. Jones believed Shroyer was too “anti-Trump,” according to the outgoing host.

“I have nothing but respect and appreciation for Alex and everything we’ve done at Infowars,” Shroyer said in a livestream late Monday. “I’m not sure that was mutual, but it doesn’t really matter.”

Prior to his decision to leave, Shroyer said, “Alex had been coming into my show [War Room], and talking about how I’m negative and calling me a pessimist, and all this other stuff, which is fine.” Shroyer said. “He says I’m too negative, he says I’m a pessimist, whatever, I’m too anti-Trump.”

Shroyer decided to take time off, thinking “maybe he’s right.” But their issues persisted when he returned.

“It’s not to say that I didn’t have creative control over the Infowars War Room,” Shroyer said. “But I mean, imagine. It’s like somebody staring over your back 24/7. And so every single day that I came back, it was either a guest I was told I had on at the last minute or it was him coming into the studio—he wants me to cover this, he wants me to cover that.”

On Thursday, these frustrations came to a head, as Shroyer said he prepared a three-hour show that he thought he would host where a “babysitter wouldn’t be looking over my shoulder.”

“I was wrong,” he continued. “It happened, and I just said I’m out.”

On air, Jones attributed Shroyer’s absence to a family emergency, but, Shroyer said, “There was no family emergency. I walked off the show.”

Jones on X Tuesday said he wishes Shroyer the best, but denied insinuations of censorship, which he claimed were drummed up to promote the departing host’s next venture.

“I only encouraged him to be more positive in general about the fact that humanity has come a long way in the great awakening,” Jones wrote—the “great awakening” referring to a time during which humanity is “waking up” to the supposed sinister plans of a global elite cabal. “I am surprised by the censorship claim he is hinting at but if he thinks he needs to say that to build his show that will be on him.”

A new poll has found that Americans have lost faith in the American dream. 

A July 2025 Wall Street Journal-NORC survey found that nearly 70 percent of registered voters said that the idea that “if you work hard, you will get ahead,” no longer held true, or never did. The Journal reported that it was the highest percentage in nearly 15 years of surveys. 

Forty-six percent of respondents said that the ideal once held true but not anymore, and 23 percent said it never held true—a five point increase from the previous two years of surveys. 

The survey also found that pessimism was plaguing Democratic voters: 90 percent of Democrats held a negative view of prospects for themselves and their children, while only 55 percent of Republicans felt down about their futures. 

Across generations and demographics, respondents fretted that the next generation would struggle to buy homes or save for retirement, and believed that the previous generation had an easier time securing homes, being full-time parents, and launching businesses.

An engine for some of this uncertainty is the substantial disconnect between the traditional measures of economic growth and the real economic experiences of Americans. While the economy was comparatively robust under President Joe Biden, many Americans still experienced economic hardship. That disconnect was part of why President Donald Trump was elected into office, where he has promised to improve the nation’s economy—and managed to destabilize the global one.  

Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs have decimated key trading partnerships, obliterated thousands of jobs across the country, and sent prices soaring—with even worse to come. The Trump administration’s silver lining: You and your children, and your children’s children, can work in the same factory forever.

Is it any surprise, then, that the survey also found that American exceptionalism has taken a hit? Only 17 percent percent of respondents said that America had the best economy in the world, while 40 percent said other nations had better economies—a 15 point increase from 2021. 

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer on Tuesday ruled that the Trump administration’s use of military troops in Los Angeles was a blatant, illegal violation of the Posse Comitatus Act. Breyer has blocked the president from deploying the National Guard to California again. 

“Congress spoke clearly in 1878 when it passed the Posse Comitatus Act, prohibiting the use of the U.S. military to execute domestic law. Nearly 140 years later, Defendants— President Trump, Secretary of Defense Hegseth, and the Department of Defense— deployed the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles, ostensibly to quell a rebellion and ensure that federal immigration law was enforced,” Breyer wrote in his decision. 

“There were indeed protests in Los Angeles, and some individuals engaged in violence,” he continued. “Yet there was no rebellion, nor was civilian law enforcement unable to respond to the protests and enforce the law.... Defendants systematically used armed soldiers (whose identity was often obscured by protective armor) and military vehicles to set up protective perimeters and traffic blockades, engage in crowd control, and otherwise demonstrate a military presence in and around Los Angeles. In short, Defendants violated the Posse Comitatus Act.” 

Breyer put the ruling on hold for 10 days, as the Trump administration is likely to appeal.

The president sent 4,000 National Guards troops and 700 active-duty Marines  to Los Angeles after he claimed that “violent mobs” were attacking ICE officers—the same officers snatching their friends, family, and neighbors from their homes and workplaces. That was a clear exaggeration then, and now Breyer has made it known now that it was a complete violation of U.S. law as well. 

This move, if extended, will likely have a significant impact on Trump’s stated plans to expand his military takeover of Washington, D.C., to other cities like New York, Baltimore, and Chicago. The president has used exaggerated numbers and descriptions of these cities in recent weeks as his federal takeover of D.C. continues, serving at least in some capacity as a trial run for similar actions elsewhere. 

This story has been updated. 

Iowa Senator Joni Ernst reportedly told confidantes that she would not seek reelection in the 2026 midterms.

Multiple sources told CBS News that Ernst plans to announce her decision next Thursday.

The Iowa Republican’s apparent decision comes just a few months after a horrifying gaffe at a town hall.

When constituents expressed concerns that people would die as a result of President Donald Trump’s behemoth budget bill, she responded by saying, “Well, we all are going to die.” And as voters reeled from her callous comment about millions of Americans being booted from their Medicaid coverage, Ernst doubled down.

The senator’s comments seriously tainted her political reputation, sparking widespread speculation that she would not run again. But Ernst sent mixed signals, refusing to say whether or not she would seek another term.

In June, she brought on Bryan Kraber to manage her 2026 reelection campaign, signaling her intent to turn her sinking ship around. But she also delayed her annual “Roast and Ride” fundraiser until October. Typically, Ernst—who has been in office since 2015—holds the event in June.

A few Iowa Democrats have already waded into the race, including State Senator Zach Wahls, Des Moines School Board chairwoman Jackie Norris, and State Representatives J.D. Scholten and Josh Turek. Turek even used Ernst’s infamous existential blunder in an ad announcing his candidacy for her Senate seat.

As recently as last week, Ernst claimed she wasn’t concerned about Democratic challengers in her state. “Bring it on, folks. Because I tell you, at the end of the day, Iowa is going to be red,” she said.

One source told CBS News that Ernst feels that she achieved her goal of serving two terms, and now intends to head for the private sector.

This story has been updated.