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Johnson shifts strategy on Epstein files vote as GOP leaders brace for mass defections

(CNN) House Speaker Mike Johnson decided to quickly schedule a House vote on an effort to force the release of all of the Jeffrey Epstein case files once the calculation was made that it couldn’t be stopped. The decision marked a shift in strategy for Johnson and the White House, who had long sought to delay the process, ​three sources told CNN. House GOP leaders are bracing for a significant number of Republicans to break from President Donald Trump and support the bipartisan bill led by GOP Rep. Thomas Massie and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna calling for the Justice Department to release the Epstein files — as supporters push for a veto-proof majority.

Lawmakers release more emails alleging ties between Trump and Epstein

(Scripps) House Democrats Thursday released even more new emails connected to the Jeffrey Epstein case that they allege show President Trump knew of Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking. The release is in addition to 23,000 emails that were released on Wednesday. In many of the emails, Epstein is talking about Trump in the days leading up to his inauguration as well as during his first year in office. Details from the messages suggest Epstein knew where Trump was at the time and maintained some level of connection to developments at the White House. In one 2018 email, Epstein appears to suggest that he should communicate with Russia's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov to share insight into Trump.

Economic promises helped Trump get elected. Now he has an affordability problem

(NPR) President Trump says he is going to "make America affordable again." It's a pledge he made frequently during the campaign. And now, after dropping it from his lexicon for more than eight months, he's saying it again as polls show voters rank the economy and cost of living as their top concern and blame Trump's policies for making things worse. Thus far, Trump has spent far more time boasting about how great the economy and stock market are doing than acknowledging any economic anxiety.

America First? Some Trump Supporters Worry That's No Longer the Case.

(New York Times) President Trump has been dining with Wall Street bigwigs. He has embarked on an opulent revamp of the White House at a time when Americans are struggling to pay their bills. He has expressed support for granting visas to skilled foreigners to take jobs in the United States. He approved a $20 billion bailout for Argentina, helping a foreign government and wealthy investors at a moment when the U.S. government was shut down. For a president who returned to office promising to avoid foreign entanglements, make life more affordable and ensure that available jobs go to American citizens, it has been a significant departure from the expectations of his loyal base. And it is starting to open a rift with his supporters who were counting on a more aggressively populist agenda.

Friday Cartoons

Firm Tied to Kristi Noem Secretly Got Money From $220 Million DHS Ad Contracts

(ProPublica) On Oct. 2, the second day of the government shutdown, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem arrived at Mount Rushmore to shoot a television ad. Noem has hailed the more than $200 million, taxpayer-funded ad campaign as a crucial tool to stem illegal immigration. The Department of Homeland Security has kept at least one beneficiary of the nine-figure ad deal a secret, records and interviews show: a Republican consulting firm with longstanding personal and business ties to Noem and her senior aides at DHS. The company running the Mount Rushmore shoot, called the Strategy Group, does not appear on public documents about the contract.

Trump's 'Department Of War' Rebrand Could Have Staggering Cost: Report

(Huff Post) A little over two months after President Donald Trump announced a rebrand of the Department of Defense to rename it the Department of War, an NBC News report citing six people with knowledge of the matter has revealed the potential cost: up to $2 billion. The rename would require thousands of signs, placards, letterheads and badges to be changed, according to two senior Republican congressional staffers, two senior Democratic congressional staffers and two anonymous people briefed on the cost, per NBC News. The four staffers and one of the people briefed added that new letterheads and signage alone could cost taxpayers $1 billion.

Comey and James seek case dismissal, arguing prosecutor was illegally appointed

(NPR) Lawyers for former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James asked a judge Thursday to dismiss the cases against them, saying the prosecutor who secured the indictments was illegally installed in the role. U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie said she expects to decide by Thanksgiving on challenges to Lindsey Halligan's appointment as interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Trump administration issues policy change making deep cuts to homeless housing program

(Politico) The Department of Housing and Urban Development released policy changes Thursday night that will significantly cut funding for a permanent housing program for people experiencing homelessness. More than half of the 2026 funding for HUD’s Continuum of Care program, which partners with local organizations to connect people experiencing homelessness to housing and resources, will be cut for permanent housing assistance and moved to transitional housing assistance with some work or service requirements. The funding cuts could put 170,000 people at risk of experiencing homelessness, according to internal HUD documentation previously obtained by POLITICO.

Hemp industry plans next move after Trump signs THC ban

(The Hill) The hemp industry is regrouping and gearing up for a significant lobbying blitz following passage of the government funding package that contained a provision they say would outlaw nearly all hemp products. The legislation clarifies the definition of hemp to ban all hemp-derived products containing THC, which were legalized by the 2018 farm bill. Legal hemp products are limited to a total of 0.4 milligrams per container of total THC, or any other cannabinoids with similar effects. Cannabinoids that are synthesized or manufactured outside the plant, like delta-8 THC, are banned.