Trump loses grip on the House

IN THIS EDITION

Congress slips from Trump’s grip as Epstein scandal drags on

The brewing Senate GOP primary fight in Georgia

White House prods Missouri Republicans to redistrict

Senate Republicans shrug at Trump’s U.S. attorney strategy

Tech: Hill GOP wants to run with Trump’s AI plan

THE TOP

Congress slips from Trump’s grip as Epstein scandal drags on

Happy Thursday morning.

President Donald Trump has lost control of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

The House Oversight Committee – the top investigative panel in the House – will issue an array of subpoenas related to the Justice Department’s Epstein investigation, rebuffing Trump’s pleas to his base to move on from the matter.

Republicans on the Oversight panel tried to soften the blow by also agreeing to subpoena former President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton over their interactions with the disgraced financier, as well as all the attorneys general and FBI directors since Epstein first came under criminal investigation in 2005.

Yet suddenly, the White House finds itself not getting any cover from Hill Republicans. In fact, GOP lawmakers are teaming up with Democrats to seek depositions and documents.

The Epstein subpoena – offered by Democratic Rep. Summer Lee of Pennsylvania – demands the Justice Department produce the very material that Trump said doesn’t matter. Three Republicans backed the request — Brian Jack (Ga.), Scott Perry (Pa.) and Nancy Mace (S.C.).

A separate subpoena, offered by Tennessee GOP Rep. Tim Burchett, compels testimony from Ghislaine Maxwell, an Epstein associate serving a 20-year sentence at a federal prison in Tallahassee, Fla. Congressional investigators will depose Maxwell Aug. 11 at FCI Tallahassee, a “low-security” prison. Justice Department officials are scheduled to interview Maxwell today.

Subpoena surprises. Not only is this political embarrassment for Trump, but it’s also a practical issue for Republicans. The congressional subpoenas all but guarantee that the Epstein story will continue to play out for at least another few months – just as Congress and the Trump administration wrestle with government funding.

It also comes as the Wall Street Journal – in its second Epstein scoop in a week – reported that Attorney General Pam Bondi told Trump in May that his name was among hundreds of others in the Epstein files. Of course, that doesn’t mean Trump is implicated in any of Epstein’s crimes. But it contributes to the sense that the White House is losing its handle on the story, a dangerous place for any president.

Democrats also have seized on the Epstein issue quite effectively, forcing rank-and-file Republicans to vote repeatedly against something the base deeply cares about.

Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) said Democrats’ Epstein messaging has resonated “because we didn’t check with any pollsters or strategists.”

“The difference here is we just used our good instincts to say it’s bad to be affiliated with a pedophile and a cover-up and just ran right into it without checking with anyone,” Schatz added.

We may see even more Epstein-related votes get GOP support. The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to consider several bills and U.S. attorney nominations during a business meeting this morning.

Judiciary Committee Democrats are expected to offer at least one Epstein amendment. Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) was polling the panel’s Republicans Wednesday night to see if they would stick with him to defeat these requests. It’s not yet clear how they’ll react.

Part of the problem is that Trump’s allies – with the president’s urging – have spent the last decade insisting that Epstein was part of an insidious pedophile ring that included top government officials, Democrats and business leaders. The Trump faithful saw Epstein’s lenient 2008 plea deal as symbolic of what’s wrong with the country – the rich and well-connected can do whatever they want with no consequences.

Trump isn’t blameless here either. His administration has given GOP lawmakers little reason or cover to stick by his side, a fact that’s deeply frustrated the Republican leadership.

It’s also symptomatic of a larger messaging problem plaguing Trump and senior White House officials — the president is winning many of the biggest policy fights yet losing on the political-communications war. That’s bad news for Republicans heading into this fall’s gubernatorial races and the 2026 midterms. Some examples:

1) The One Big Beautiful Bill: This is Trump’s signature legislative achievement, likely the biggest of this term. It extends and expands the 2017 Trump tax cuts, as well as slashing taxes on tips, overtime and Social Security.

However, the centerpiece of Trump’s domestic agenda is deeply unpopular with voters. Medicaid work requirements are modestly popular, but are very susceptible to Democratic attacks. Furthermore, Obamacare and Medicaid itself are growing in popularity.

Some news on the OBBB front: Liberal group Protect Our Care is launching a $525,000 radio ad campaign attacking Republicans for threatening Medicaid coverage for rural Americans. The ads are running in Arizona, Florida, California, Georgia, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Washington.

2) Immigration: Trump has had stunning success closing the U.S. border to illegal crossings. Yet heavy-handed tactics used by ICE during raids searching for undocumented migrants, combined with harsh deportation policies, have caused Trump’s numbers to fall dramatically on this issue.

3) The economy: The stock market is hitting new highs, unemployment remains low and the White House has begun to roll out some high-profile trade deals, including a new agreement with Japan this week.

But Trump’s approval rating on the economy – thanks mainly to tariffs and inflation – is underwater by 11 points.

It appears the White House seems to see some opportunity to change the message. Trump will visit the Federal Reserve at 4 p.m. today. Trump has threatened to fire Fed Chair Jay Powell over cost overruns at the massive Fed headquarters renovation project, so we’ll see how this goes.

– Jake Sherman, John Bresnahan and Andrew Desiderio

THE SENATE MAP

The brewing Senate GOP primary fight in Georgia

Georgia Republican Senate hopefuls Derek Dooley and Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) are dominating the conversation before they’ve even entered the primary for a chance to unseat Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.).

Both candidates are expected to jump into the race during the coming weeks. And with some Republicans unsatisfied with the current crop of contenders, the entry of Dooley and Collins into the fray could set up a proxy fight for the future of the Georgia GOP.

Dooley, a former college football coach with no political experience, represents the Gov. Brian Kemp wing of the party. Collins — a conservative hardliner who’s served in Congress since 2023 — is closer to the MAGA movement.

Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.) and Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King are the other major candidates in the race. Carter has kicked off his campaign by dumping in millions of his own money into ads branding himself as a “MAGA warrior.”

Dooley is getting hit constantly with opposition research dumps questioning his support for President Donald Trump and his relationship with the Republican Party. The Washington Examiner reported this week that Dooley didn’t vote in numerous presidential elections, never donated to Trump and didn’t register as a Republican in a number of states.

Trump vs. Kemp? The Senate primary could potentially pit Trump’s allies against Kemp’s circle if both candidates enter the race. Most Georgia Republicans are hoping Trump and Kemp, who last met in May to discuss the primary, will coalesce behind the same candidate.

Dooley’s team says the coach’s status as a political outsider is valuable. Crucially, a number of top Kemp advisers have signed onto Dooley’s camp as consultants, lending an extra air of credibility to the football coach’s effort.

But some Georgia Republicans say the unknown quantity of Dooley’s political chops is worrying.

“I don’t know him at all,” Collins told us about Dooley. “I’ve never met him.”

Collins, the son of former Rep. Mac Collins (R-Ga.) and the owner of a trucking business, attracted national attention as the main House sponsor of the Laken Riley Act.

Collins, who’s been teasing a Senate run for months, faces questions over his fundraising capacity and whether he can build a statewide team. But the Georgia Republican is closest to Trump’s movement among the potential contenders and has talked to the White House about running.

It’s important to note that even as the Republican primary uncertainty reigns, the top Senate GOP super PAC is spending millions of dollars on the air to attack Ossoff for opposing the One Big Beautiful Bill.

— Max Cohen

REDISTRICTING WARS

White House prods Missouri Republicans to redistrict

President Donald Trump’s political team is urging Republicans to redraw Missouri’s congressional map to net a seat by targeting Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver.

The White House is interested in a map that would divide Cleaver’s Kansas City-based seat, giving Republicans control of seven of the state’s eight districts, according to multiple people briefed on their plans. The current map has six Republicans and two Democrats.

“The president’s team is serious about it,” said Rep. Bob Onder (R-Mo.), who was at the White House on Tuesday night celebrating the OBBB’s passage. “I think they’re giving it a fair amount of thought.”

Onder fought aggressively for a 7-1 map in 2022 when he was a state senator. Onder said he’s in touch with Jefferson City lawmakers about the proposed redistricting. “Most of them, I think, would be in favor,” Onder said.

The state legislature, however, isn’t in session. Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe would need to call a special session.

The new map would leave Rep. Wesley Bell as the lone remaining Democrat. Bell’s St. Louis-based district is protected by the Voting Rights Act, but Cleaver’s is not. Republicans would split Kansas City among multiple districts, and they believe they can do so without endangering any of the other Republican incumbents.

This is a big deal for a few reasons. First, it proves that Trump isn’t stopping with Texas when it comes to his push to claw safer seats for House Republicans in the midterms. We previewed his other options already.

And don’t forget the House is so narrowly divided that just a handful of seats can determine which party has the majority.

Tough task. Missouri’s last redistricting was extremely prolonged and contentious. A conservative faction demanded a 7-1 map, but they couldn’t convince the rest of their colleagues to go along.

“There are some things that no one, no matter how powerful or how important they are, can move through the Missouri Senate,” Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) said.

What’s changed now? Trump.

There may not be much appetite among some state legislators to redraw mid-decade — there wasn’t in Texas either — but it’s hard to imagine them resisting a direct request from the president.

Cleaver told us that he will run no matter how red his seat becomes.

“I’m a football player. I play football. When you tell me you’re going to run over me, then I become a little more physical. I’m not going to just lay down,” Cleaver said.

– Ally Mutnick, Laura Weiss, Mica Soellner and John Bresnahan

JUDICIARY WATCH

Senate Republicans shrug at Trump’s U.S. attorney strategy

Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee said they aren’t bothered by the White House’s repeated sidestepping of the traditional confirmation process for U.S. attorneys.

Rather than bemoaning a loss of institutional power, Republicans say President Donald Trump’s moves are necessary because Democrats are blocking the long-standing bipartisan tradition of quickly confirming U.S. attorney nominees.

In the northern district of New York, Trump appointed John Sarcone as “special attorney to the attorney general” after a panel of judges attempted to remove him from his interim position. In New Jersey, Trump may adopt a similar tactic to keep Alina Habba — his former defense lawyer — in power as U.S. attorney, even after federal judges tried to appoint a different successor.

The White House’s practice is effectively sidestepping the role of the Judiciary Committee in approving U.S. attorney nominees. But this isn’t bothering Republicans.

“The president has a right to not go along with what the judges want,” Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said. “It’s going around the fact that all U.S. attorneys are being held up here. You’re talking about a universal problem that we have in all 93 districts, not just in New York and New Jersey.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a former chair of the panel, struck a similar tone.

“I’m more concerned about what Democrats are doing to force things like this,” Graham said. “If you’re associated with Trump, you work with Trump, you help Trump, you can’t serve in the government — that’s BS.”

We’ll note that the Judiciary Committee is holding a business meeting today to consider the nominations of seven Trump nominees for U.S. attorney, including Jeanine Pirro as U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, a high-profile post.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said Republicans are complaining that “We are requiring [U.S. attorney nominees] to have votes and be treated separately, not to be processed en bloc and moved in bunches. But that was the precedent set by his Republicans, including JD Vance and Josh Hawley.”

The view from the Garden State. Predictably, New Jersey Democrats are apoplectic at the Habba situation.

“We have had numerous years in the Senate where we worked in a bipartisan way to come up with U.S. attorneys that are focused on public safety, and this is a violation of that,” Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) said.

“I am concerned about any and all avenues that they can take to try to impose Habba on my state. She’s someone that has clearly shown she’s not fit for that job,” Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) added.

— Max Cohen and John Bresnahan

MOMENTS

CLIPS