“A federal judge said he would not unseal grand jury transcripts and evidence from the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein – rejecting the Justice Department’s request to make them public,” CNN reports.
“Judge Richard Berman said the Justice Department did not overcome long-standing precedent to keep grand jury materials sealed and noted that the information contained in the sealed materials is small relative to the entire investigation file already in DOJ’s hands.”
“Customs and Border Protection agents searched nearly 15,000 devices from April through June of this year, a nearly 17 percent spike over the previous three-month high in 2022,” Wired reports.
Roughly 8 in 10 Washington, DC, residents oppose President Trump ordering the federal government to take control of the city’s police department as well as his deployment of the National Guard and FBI to patrol the city, a new Washington Post-Schar School poll finds.
“A Texas federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked from taking full effect a new state law requiring public schools to display donated posters of the Ten Commandments in classrooms,” the Texas Tribune reports.
New York Times: “The law, passed earlier this year by the Republican-controlled Legislature, mirrors one in Louisiana that was declared ‘plainly unconstitutional’ in June by a panel of judges from the conservative U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans. A federal judge also blocked a nearly identical measure in Arkansas this month.”
Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) claimed on Fox Business that he’s spoken to “large numbers” of dead people who had mail ballots sent to them.
Hillary Clinton predicted that the Supreme Court will “do to gay marriage what they did to abortion” and send it back to states to decide, Axios reports.
Said Clinton: “I don’t think they’ll undo existing marriages, but I fear that they will undo the national right.”
A new Politico-Citrin Center poll finds California Democrats would take Gavin Newsom over Kamala Harris in a 2028 presidential primary, 25% to 19%.
“Car buyers are likely to pay more this fall as tariffs begin to drive up sticker prices — and not just on imported vehicles,” Axios reports.
“Automakers can’t eat the cost of tariffs forever, and September is a convenient time to adjust prices, as the 2026 models begin arriving in showrooms.”
“It might not be obvious: Lower-priced trim levels could be eliminated, for example, or desirable features might be rolled into expensive option packages. Be on the lookout, too, for higher destination fees — add-on dealer delivery charges that aren’t part of the manufacturer’s suggested retail price.”
“Multiple California Common Cause advisory board members have resigned as the organization grapples with its response to a national gerrymandering battle,” Politico reports.
“The departures speak to a fraught moment for an organization that has historically supported independent redistricting and fought the kinds of partisan map-drawing that California Democrats are now pursuing. Common Cause — the national group — last week reversed on its previous position and said it would not oppose California’s effort to counter Texas.”
“Texas House Democrats on Wednesday plan to offer an amendment that would block a Republican redistricting effort until the complete release of the Jeffrey Epstein files,” Axios reports.
“The Democratic effort, which aims to put new political pressure on the Trump administration regarding his association with Epstein, is sure to fail in the Republican-controlled Legislature.”
Tom Nichols: “Donald Trump loves to speak extemporaneously, and usually, he makes very little sense… Trying to turn his ramblings into a coherent message is like trying, as an old European saying goes, to turn fish soup back into an aquarium. But he is the president of the United States and holds the codes to some 2,000 nuclear weapons. When he speaks, his statements are both policy and a peek into the worldview currently governing the planet’s sole superpower.”
“This morning, the commander in chief made clear that he does not understand the largest war in Europe, what started it, or why it continues. Worse, insofar as he does understand anything about Russia’s attempted conquest of Ukraine, he seems to have internalized old pro-Moscow talking points that even the Kremlin doesn’t bother with anymore.”
President Trump praised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel as a “war hero” for ordering his country’s forces to bombard Iran’s nuclear sites — and then said that the same label should apply to himself, the New York Times reports.
Said Trump: “He’s a war hero, because we work together. He’s a war hero. I guess I am too,” he added.
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New York Times: “Between the federal government’s heightened vetting of student visas and President Trump’s travel ban, the number of international students newly enrolled in American universities seems certain to drop — by a lot.”
“There were about a million international students studying in the United States a year ago, according to figures published by the State Department. Data on international student enrollment is not expected to be released until the fall. But higher education is already feeling the pain and deeply worried about the fallout.”
Janan Ganesh: “If Trump were clear and consistent that he is abandoning Ukraine, as well as Europe and Nato, the continent would have no choice but to become militarily self-sufficient as soon as possible. It might fail, of course, but there could be little doubt what should be done. If Trump were clear and consistent that he stands with democratic Europe, to the death, there would be no problem. One of these situations is ideal. The other, while grim, is an impetus for Europe to change: a fixed point that its leaders and voters can plan around.”
“The worst of all worlds is one in which Trump blows hot and cold, and we are living in it.”
“President Donald Trump has been on a multimillion-dollar bond-buying spree since taking office, investing in debt issued by local authorities, gas districts and major American corporations,” CNBC reports.
“Donald Trump has called on Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook to resign, after one of his top allies in government called for an investigation into the central banker over alleged wrongdoing related to home mortgages,” the Financial Times reports.
Minnesota has “joined a wave of states suing TikTok, alleging the social media giant preys on young people with addictive algorithms that trap them into becoming compulsive consumers of its short videos,” the AP reports.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.