Thousands of documents released by the House Oversight Committee offer a new glimpse into what Jeffery Epstein’s relationships with business executives, reporters, academics and political players looked like over a decade.
They start with messages he sent and received around the time he finished serving his Florida sentence in 2009 and continue until the months before his arrest on federal sex trafficking charges in 2019.
During that time, Epstein’s network was eclectic, spanning the globe and political affiliations: from the liberal academic Noam Chomsky to Steve Bannon, the longtime ally of President Donald Trump.
The emails don't implicate his contacts in those alleged crimes. They instead paint a picture of Epstein’s influence and connections over the years he was a registered sex offender.
Here's the latest:
FAA eases flight cuts at 40 US airports, but some restrictions remain
The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday it plans to roll back some of the restrictions on commercial flights it implemented at 40 major U.S. airports during the shutdown.
The agency says the current mandatory 6% flight cuts are being downgraded to 3% even though the record 43-day shutdown ended Nov. 12. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has repeatedly said restrictions would remain until staffing at air traffic control facilities stabilizes and safety metrics improve.
The unprecedented order, in place since Nov. 7, has affected thousands of flights. The head of the FAA said troubling data showed the measure was needed to ease pressure on the aviation system as the shutdown entered its second month and controller absences rose. Unpaid for more than a month, many controllers cited financial strain and the need to take on side jobs.
The flight cuts started at 4% and later grew to 6%. The FAA originally had a 10% target, but officials held off on further rate increases because they said more controllers were coming to work amid news that Congress was close to reaching a deal to end the shutdown.
Trump has no issue with phone records provision
The president has no objections to language, tucked into a bill to reopen the government, that would allow senators to sue when a federal official searches their electronic records without their knowledge, according to a senior White House official.
Trump has indicated privately that he does not think that’s a bad provision, according to the official, who was granted anonymity to describe the president’s thinking. The White House had been fully looped in as senators drafted the bill, which Trump signed into law Wednesday night.
But the provision has caused an uproar in the House, where both Democrats and Republicans have decried the language that would allow lawsuits when a senator’s electronic records are searched without prior notification. It would allow senators to sue for up to $500,000 for each violation.
The language seems aimed at helping Republican senators pursue damages if their phone records were analyzed by the FBI as part of an investigation into Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said he was “very angry about it,” and is planning to bring up legislation to repeal it as early as next week.
“That was dropped in at the last minute, and I did not appreciate that, nor did most of the House members,” the speaker said earlier this week. The senior White House official did not indicate what Trump would do should such legislation reach his desk.
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By Seung Min Kim
Rubio calls UAE foreign minister to discuss Gaza and Sudan ceasefire efforts
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called the deputy prime minister and foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates to discuss the U.S.-led plan to end the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and the deteriorating situation in Sudan, where the UAE has been accused of supporting the main rebel group.
Rubio and Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed discussed “collective efforts to implement” President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, which is currently awaiting endorsement by the UN Security Council, the State Department said.
During Friday’s call, Rubio “also emphasized the importance of achieving a humanitarian ceasefire in Sudan,” it said in a statement.
Rubio on Wednesday had decried the humanitarian situation in Sudan and said “something needs to be done” to cut off weapons and other support from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
Asked about allegations that the UAE is backing the RSF, Rubio said the U.S. knows who’s involved and is pushing them to stop. But he did not name any countries.
▶ Read more about the situation in Sudan
US military’s 20th strike on alleged drug boat brings death toll to 80 in South America
The U.S. military’s 20th strike on a boat accused of transporting drugs has killed four people in the Caribbean Sea, a Pentagon official said Friday.
The latest strike happened Monday, according to the official, who wasn’t authorized to discuss the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity.
It brings the death toll from the strikes that began in September to 80.
The attack comes as the Trump administration expands the U.S. military’s already large presence in the region by bringing in the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier. The nation’s most advanced warship is expected to arrive in the coming days after traveling from the Mediterranean Sea.
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By Ben Finley
Air traffic controllers get 70% of back pay from the shutdown
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said air traffic controllers received 70% of their back pay Friday for working during the shutdown.
A number of controllers called out of work during the shutdown as they dealt with the financial pressure from going without pay for so long.
Some controllers even got side jobs to help make ends meet. That led to delays and other flight disruptions when the Federal Aviation Administration ran short of controllers at airport towers and other radar facilities.
Controller staffing improved significantly earlier this week as the shutdown drew to a close. Duffy said earlier this week that controllers would receive the rest of their back pay in the next few paychecks.
Duffy and President Donald Trump have also proposed that controllers who didn’t miss a shift during the shutdown should receive $10,000 bonuses. But the details of exactly who might get those checks haven’t been released.
House Democrats press the FAA and DOT for answers on flight cuts
Democratic members of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure asked federal officials for an explanation of the decision to cut up to 10% of flights at 40 major airports during the shutdown, along with details on staffing levels and how airports were chosen.
“It appears that the administration made this decision without adequate coordination with key aviation stakeholders,” said Friday’s letter to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford, .
The group requested a briefing and written response by Nov. 20.
The FAA on Wednesday froze reductions at 6%, shortly before a deal was reached to end the shutdown. Requests for comment were sent to the department and FAA.
Trump to attend world economic conference in Davos
The president is planning to attend the World Economic Forum’s meeting in Switzerland in January, according to a senior White House official who spoke on condition of anonymity to share plans that were not yet publicly announced.
The annual meeting in the Swiss Alps draws world leaders, business executives, celebrities and, sometimes, U.S. presidents. Trump attended in his first term in 2018 and 2020.
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By Michelle L. Price
ICE recruits state and local agencies to do welfare checks on migrant children
Immigration and Customs Enforcement is working with state and local law enforcement agencies to carry out welfare checks on roughly 450,000 migrant children.
They said the program kicked off Nov. 10 in Florida.
The administration launched a similar effort earlier this year, but this one includes state and local law enforcement agencies authorized to work with ICE.
Migrant children traveling alone initially stay in government shelters before being released to sponsors.
Under the Biden administration, officials tried to release children to eligible sponsors within 30 days, reuniting many families quickly.
But there were problems, including some children released to adults who forced them to work illegally.
Migrant advocates are suspicious that the Trump administration’s efforts could end up being a way to deport sponsors or children.
New US political maps spur fears in disparate places
The effects of the rush to redraw U.S. political maps ahead of next year’s midterm elections can be seen in the contrasts between two very different places now in the same Missouri congressional district.
The 18th and Vine area in Kansas City is predominately Black, once known for jazz joints and the meeting that created professional baseball’s National Negro League when the established major leagues barred Black players. Boonville is a small, mostly white town set in an area teeming with cattle and row crops.
People in both areas worry about being ignored in the new district.
The incumbent is Democrat Emanuel Cleaver, who preached about racial justice as a Methodist minister and has worked for decades for federally funded projects in 18th and Vine. Boonville’s decades-long project is a trail favored by cycling enthusiasts.
But their differences are deeper and extend to issues such as health care, education and gun rights.
Union sues federal Bureau of Prisons over contract termination
A union representing federal prison workers is suing the Bureau of Prisons after the agency said it was canceling its collective bargaining agreement.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday in Connecticut federal court, seeks an injunction to block what the Council of Prison Locals union called an “arbitrary and capricious” move that has jeopardized the livelihoods of the agency’s nearly 35,000 employees.
Bureau of Prisons Director William K. Marshall III announced the termination for the collective bargaining agreement Sept. 25, citing President Trump’s executive order in March that exempts certain federal agencies from collective bargaining or recognizing employee labor unions.
Marshall said the union had become “an obstacle to progress instead of a partner in it.”
The union, in its lawsuit, contends the Bureau of Prisons failed to provide “any reasoned explanation” for its decision, as required under federal law.
Swiss government says it’s reached a deal with the US to reduce tariffs
The Swiss government says it’s reached a deal with the United States to reduce U.S. tariffs on the rich Alpine country to 15% from 39%, which had been the steepest Trump administration tariff level faced by a developed Western country.
The Swiss Federal Council, the country’s seven-member executive branch, said “Thank you President Trump for the constructive engagement” in a post on its X account.
Comment on the new prosecutor from Trump’s lead attorney in Georgia
Steve Sadow said he’s confident that “fair and impartial review” will lead to a dismissal of the case against Trump.
“This politically charged prosecution has to come to an end,” he said in an email.
Trump posts social media complaints about Epstein focus, saying ‘I have a Country to run!’
The president kicked off his Friday with posts on social media complaining about Democratic lawmakers focusing on thousands of documents from Epstein’s estate released this week by the House Oversight Committee.
Trump called it a “hoax” and a distraction from Democrats’ policies and the “EMBARASSMENT” of the government shutdown and decried “Weak Republicans” who “have fallen into their clutches because they are soft and foolish.” Trump seemed to be referring to the House Republican who are joining Democrats in a push to release files related to the sex trafficking investigation into Epstein.
Trump said Epstein is “not the Republican’s problem” and “don’t waste your time with Trump. I have a Country to run!”
New prosecutor can follow Willis’ vision, decide to pursue only some charges or dismiss the case
“While it would have been simple to allow Judge McAfee’s deadline to lapse or to inform the Court that no conflict prosecutor could be secured — thereby allowing the case to be dismissed for want of prosecution — I did not believe that to be the right course of action,” Pete Skandalakis wrote in a statement. “The public has a legitimate interest in the outcome of this case. Accordingly, it is important that someone make an informed and transparent determination about how best to proceed.”
Trump earlier this week announced pardons for those accused of backing efforts to overturn election
That included those charged in Georgia. But that doesn’t affect state charges.
New prosecutor to take on Georgia election case against Trump and others
The leader of a nonpartisan organization announced he will take over the Georgia election interference case against President Trump and others after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was removed from the case.
The Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia was tasked with finding someone to lead the case after Willis was disqualified over an “appearance of impropriety” created by a romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she’d chosen to lead it. The organization’s executive director, Pete Skandalakis, said Friday that he would take the case on himself.
While it’s unlikely that any action against Trump could proceed while he’s the sitting president, there are 14 other people still facing charges in the case, including former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and former New York mayor and Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani.
▶ Read more about the election interference case in Georgia
US trade negotiator says the US has ‘essentially’ reached a deal with Switzerland
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on CNBC on Friday that the White House plans to post details of the deal online Friday.
Greer said the agreement will see Switzerland move manufacturing of some pharmaceuticals, gold smelting and railway equipment to the United States.
German officials tight-lipped on left-wing group’s terrorist designation
Antifa-Ost — a German network suspected in attacks on people it perceived as fascists — was among four European left-wing groups designated as terrorist organizations by the Trump administration Thursday.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Josef Hinterseher said at a regular news conference in Berlin that his ministry has “taken note” of the designation. Asked whether the German government was contacted beforehand, he replied that “the U.S. decided independently on this.”
Interior Ministry spokesperson Sarah Frühauf said “we don’t evaluate the decisions and assessments of other states, so I also have no assessment of whether we consider this proportionate or disproportionate.”
Trump’s Friday schedule
Trump does not have any pubic events on his schedule for today, but this evening he will travel to Mar-a-Lago.
Trump administration designates 4 left-wing European networks as terrorist organizations
Trump’s administration on Thursday designated four European left-wing groups as terrorist organizations, following through on his vow to crack down on leftists after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The networks targeted by Trump’s administration all appear to be based in Europe, with no operations in the U.S. They are an Italian anarchist front that sent explosive packages to the then-president of the European Commission in 2003, two Greek networks believed to have planted bombs outside riot police and labor department buildings in Athens, and an anti-fascist group whose members were prosecuted by German authorities for a hammer attack against neo-Nazis in Dresden.
Europe has a long history of left-wing political violence, while in the United States political violence has been more likely to come from the right in recent decades, according to multiple studies, including by the Justice Department. However, there’s been an uptick in American political attacks across ideologies in recent years, culminating in the September fatal shooting of Kirk by a gunman who prosecutors contend was driven by hostility toward Kirk’s stance against transgender people and other positions.
▶ Read more about the networks
Trump administration says it has trade frameworks with Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador and Guatemala
The frameworks are about increasing the ability of U.S. firms to sell industrial and agricultural products in these countries, according to a senior administration official who insisted on anonymity as a condition for briefing reporters on a call about the agreements.
The White House also released statements on the frameworks, which have yet to be finalized and are expected to be signed within roughly two weeks. It’s all part of a broader effort by President Donald Trump to rewrite the rules of global commerce through the use of broad tariffs.
President Javier Milei of Argentina hailed his country’s first bilateral trade framework with the U.S. in nearly a decade as “tremendous news.”
“As you can see, we are strongly committed to making Argentina great again,” he said.
▶ Read more about the trade frameworks
Epstein kept a diverse political network
Epstein emailed current and former political figures on all sides, sending news clips and discussing strategy or gossip often in short, choppy emails laden with spelling and grammatical errors.
In several emails in 2018, Epstein advised Bannon on his political tour of Europe that year after Bannon forwarded Epstein a news clip that the German media underestimated Bannon and that he was “As Dangerous as Ever.”
“luv it,” Epstein responded.
Epstein wrote that he’d just spoken to “one of the country leaders that we discussed” and that “we should lay out a strategy plan. . how much fun.”
Just a few months earlier, Epstein was insulting Trump — whose movement Bannon was a representative of — in emails to Kathryn Ruemmler, the former White House counsel under President Barack Obama.
Ruemmler sent a message to Epstein calling Trump “so gross.” A portion of that message was redacted, but Epstein replied, “worse in real life and upclose.”
▶ Read more about the emails
Epstein said Trump ‘knew about the girls,’ but it’s unclear what he meant
Trump and Epstein were friends for years but at some point had a falling out, even before underage girls started to come forward to accuse Epstein of sexual abuse.
Journalists sometimes reached out to Epstein, perhaps hoping he might have dirt to spill on Trump. One of those writers was Michael Wolff, who has written extensively about Trump. In a 2019 email to Wolff, Epstein mentioned that one of his best-known accusers, Virginia Giuffre, had worked at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club.
“She was the one who accused Prince Andrew,” Epstein wrote.
Giuffre, who died by suicide earlier this year, had said that Epstein’s longtime companion Ghislaine Maxwell recruited her from Mar-a-Lago to give sexualized massages to Epstein. And Trump had long claimed that he banned Epstein from coming to Mar-a-Lago.
Epstein said in an email to Wolff that Trump hadn’t asked him to resign from the club, because he hadn’t been a member.
“Of course he knew about the girls as he asked ghislaine to stop,” Epstein added.
▶ Read more takeaways from the newly released emails
Epstein emails reveal enduring ties with influential figures even after his sex crime conviction
By the time Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting prostitution from an underage girl, he had established an enormous network of wealthy and influential friends. Emails made public this week show the crime did little to diminish the desire of that network to stay connected to the billionaire financier.
Thousands of documents released by the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday offer a new glimpse into what Epstein’s relationships with business executives, reporters, academics and political players looked like over a decade.
During that time, Epstein’s network was eclectic, spanning the globe and political affiliations: from the liberal academic Noam Chomsky to Steve Bannon, the longtime ally of President Donald Trump.
Some reached out to support Epstein amid lawsuits and prosecutions, others sought introductions or advice on everything from dating to oil prices. One consulted him on how to respond to accusations of sexual harassment.
Epstein was charged with sex trafficking in 2019, and killed himself in jail a month later. Epstein’s crimes, high-profile connections and jailhouse suicide have made the case a magnet for conspiracy theorists and online sleuths seeking proof of a cover-up.
▶ Read more about the emails
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