President Trump is accusing six Democratic lawmakers of sedition “punishable by DEATH” after the lawmakers, all veterans, called on U.S. military members to uphold the Constitution and defy “illegal orders” in a video posted to X.

This is the original video that prompted President Trump to respond.

<p>President Trump is accusing six Democratic lawmakers of sedition “punishable by DEATH” after the lawmakers, all veterans, called on U.S. military members to uphold the Constitution and defy “illegal orders” in a video posted to X.</p><figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763674382514.png" alt="<br>" />
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                    </figure><p>This is the original video that prompted President Trump to respond.</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We want to speak directly to members of the Military and the Intelligence Community.<br><br>The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution.<br><br>Don’t give up the ship. <a href="https://t.co/N8lW0EpQ7r">pic.twitter.com/N8lW0EpQ7r</a></p>&mdash; Sen. Elissa Slotkin (@SenatorSlotkin) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorSlotkin/status/1990774492356902948?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 18, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763731398462.png" alt="<br>" />
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                    </figure><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) goes on a ridiculous rant where she doubles down on her treason where she told US Military to disobey orders.<br><br>She’s telling servicemembers to commit sedition.<br><br>Her doing that is clear treason. Try her. Sentence her to life.<a href="https://t.co/YyXpGhfgdf">pic.twitter.com/YyXpGhfgdf</a></p>&mdash; Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) <a href="https://twitter.com/Bubblebathgirl/status/1991643812389638283?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Earlier this morning, President Trump threatened me and a group of service and veteran Members of Congress with arrest, trial, and death by hanging.<br><br>Here’s my response: <a href="https://t.co/jIZYrQTlP7">pic.twitter.com/jIZYrQTlP7</a></p>&mdash; Sen. Elissa Slotkin (@SenatorSlotkin) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorSlotkin/status/1991571957494448420?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/rGyeeyOEXf">pic.twitter.com/rGyeeyOEXf</a></p>&mdash; Chrissy Houlahan (@RepHoulahan) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepHoulahan/status/1991636065774628945?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The President of the United States just called for my arrest and execution.<br><br>In these moments, fear is contagious, but so is courage: <a href="https://t.co/QMkRRoUxEn">pic.twitter.com/QMkRRoUxEn</a></p>&mdash; Rep. Jason Crow (@RepJasonCrow) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepJasonCrow/status/1991584226907681097?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Don&#39;t give up the ship. <a href="https://t.co/T4EiN521iY">pic.twitter.com/T4EiN521iY</a></p>&mdash; Chrissy Houlahan (@RepHoulahan) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepHoulahan/status/1991572053825093961?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The <a href="https://twitter.com/SecWar?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecWar</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/Sec_Noem?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Sec_Noem</a> should agree to testify on domestic deployments. It is a fundamental issue to who we are as Americans. No matter where you land on the issue, transparency shouldn’t be seen as a threat. <a href="https://t.co/H3SrQ31RlX">pic.twitter.com/H3SrQ31RlX</a></p>&mdash; Sen. Elissa Slotkin (@SenatorSlotkin) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorSlotkin/status/1991325305101832674?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Donald Trump is calling for my death and others, and every political leader should condemn the President&#39;s violent threats. <a href="https://t.co/Cgtmoujsba">pic.twitter.com/Cgtmoujsba</a></p>&mdash; Congressman Chris Deluzio (@RepDeluzio) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepDeluzio/status/1991611011942724004?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Q: &quot;Just to be clear, does the president want to execute members of Congress?&quot;<a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PressSec</a> Karoline Leavitt: &quot;No. Let&#39;s be clear about what the president is responding to...you have sitting members of the United States Congress who conspired together to orchestrate a video message… <a href="https://t.co/pPCLJ4LqCD">pic.twitter.com/pPCLJ4LqCD</a></p>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1991596354767057136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

🎥Dem lawmakers respond to President Trump's accusation of sedition

Measure comes after legislative session in which lawmakers prodded for changes to weaken or reverse ballot-passed laws

&nbsp; By:&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/author/jsalinas/">Juan Salinas II</a><br><a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/10/30/nebraska-dhhs-website-blames-dems-for-federal-government-shutdown-as-snap-shutoff-looms/">Nebraska Examiner&nbsp;</a>

LINCOLN — A group of voting advocates filed a ballot measure to make it harder for Nebraska lawmakers to override or alter voter-passed laws.&nbsp;

The group, Respect Nebraska Voters, announced its push to gather signatures on Thursday. The initiative is a state constitutional amendment that would require bigger majorities to repeal or change any law passed by voters.

The measure also would require larger majorities to make changes to the requirements or processes for a citizen-led initiative to reach the ballot.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Currently the Legislature needs two-thirds of lawmakers, or 33 senators, to vote to make those kinds of changes. The ballot measure would increase the required vote to four-fifths, or 40 senators.

Dawn Essink, a sponsor of the&nbsp;new ballot measure, said what prompted the proposed constitutional amendment is seeing the “anger from a lot of Nebraskans who had worked very hard on that paid sick leave initiative, among other initiatives.”

The new push comes after this year’s legislative session, in which the officially nonpartisan but Republican-led Nebraska Legislature, often with gubernatorial support and the support of at least one Democrat, prodded for changes that would have weakened or reversed some ballot measures.&nbsp;

Essink said the ballot initiative process was designed so that the voice of Nebraska voters is heard, but lawmakers are disrespecting voters.&nbsp;

“The Legislature is taking that vote and watering it down … diluting it … call it whatever you want, but they’re changing it to their will, not the will of the people,”&nbsp;Essink said.

For example, advocates said, the&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/11/06/pillen-hilgers-address-omaha-tribe-of-nebraska-marijuana-law-and-tobacco-tax-compact/">state is currently slowrolling</a>&nbsp;two voter-approved laws legalizing and regulating medical cannabis. Nebraska’s GOP lawmakers and Democratic State Sen. Jane Raybold of Lincoln successfully pushed to weaken the voter-approved law’s blanket requirements for paid sick leave by adding new restrictions and exceptions. Legislative majorities tried — and failed for now — to slow down voter-approved minimum wage increases. That proposal is already scheduled to be reconsidered in the upcoming session.

Some conservative lawmakers have considered making the petition process harder because of the recent passage of more progressive measures have been passed in recent years.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Jo Giles, executive director of the Women’s Fund of Omaha and a ballot measure sponsor, said the group wants to add “protections for the ballot initiative” and hopes Gov. Jim Pillen and conservative lawmakers support it.&nbsp;

The ballot initiative process “is direct democracy,” she said. “It is letting Nebraskans vote for issues that come up, and we want them to respect the will of the people,” Giles said.&nbsp;

The group organizing the new petition drive would need to gather the signatures of 10 percent of the state’s registered voters since the initiative seeks to change the state constitution.&nbsp;

Respect Nebraska Voters has until July to get on the November 2026 ballot.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763734074431.png" alt="Volunteer Chelle Jones, right, collects signatures from Jeff and Marge Everman of La Vista, left, for a ballot initiative in support of medical cannabis during the Omaha Farmers Market at the Old Market on Saturday, May 14, 2022, in Omaha, Neb. (Rebecca S. Gratz for the Nebraska Examiner)" />
                        <figcaption>Volunteer Chelle Jones, right, collects signatures from Jeff and Marge Everman of La Vista, left, for a ballot initiative in support of medical cannabis during the Omaha Farmers Market at the Old Market on Saturday, May 14, 2022, in Omaha, Neb. (Rebecca S. Gratz for the Nebraska Examiner)</figcaption>
                    </figure><h2>Measure comes after legislative session in which lawmakers prodded for changes to weaken or reverse ballot-passed laws</h2><p>&nbsp; By:&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/author/jsalinas/">Juan Salinas II</a><br><a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/10/30/nebraska-dhhs-website-blames-dems-for-federal-government-shutdown-as-snap-shutoff-looms/">Nebraska Examiner&nbsp;</a></p><p>LINCOLN — A group of voting advocates filed a ballot measure to make it harder for Nebraska lawmakers to override or alter voter-passed laws.&nbsp;</p><p>The group, Respect Nebraska Voters, announced its push to gather signatures on Thursday. The initiative is a state constitutional amendment that would require bigger majorities to repeal or change any law passed by voters.</p><p>The measure also would require larger majorities to make changes to the requirements or processes for a citizen-led initiative to reach the ballot.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>Currently the Legislature needs two-thirds of lawmakers, or 33 senators, to vote to make those kinds of changes. The ballot measure would increase the required vote to four-fifths, or 40 senators.</p><p>Dawn Essink, a sponsor of the&nbsp;new ballot measure, said what prompted the proposed constitutional amendment is seeing the “anger from a lot of Nebraskans who had worked very hard on that paid sick leave initiative, among other initiatives.”</p><p>The new push comes after this year’s legislative session, in which the officially nonpartisan but Republican-led Nebraska Legislature, often with gubernatorial support and the support of at least one Democrat, prodded for changes that would have weakened or reversed some ballot measures.&nbsp;</p><p>Essink said the ballot initiative process was designed so that the voice of Nebraska voters is heard, but lawmakers are disrespecting voters.&nbsp;</p><p>“The Legislature is taking that vote and watering it down … diluting it … call it whatever you want, but they’re changing it to their will, not the will of the people,”&nbsp;Essink said.</p><p>For example, advocates said, the&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/11/06/pillen-hilgers-address-omaha-tribe-of-nebraska-marijuana-law-and-tobacco-tax-compact/">state is currently slowrolling</a>&nbsp;two voter-approved laws legalizing and regulating medical cannabis. Nebraska’s GOP lawmakers and Democratic State Sen. Jane Raybold of Lincoln successfully pushed to weaken the voter-approved law’s blanket requirements for paid sick leave by adding new restrictions and exceptions. Legislative majorities tried — and failed for now — to slow down voter-approved minimum wage increases. That proposal is already scheduled to be reconsidered in the upcoming session.</p><p>Some conservative lawmakers have considered making the petition process harder because of the recent passage of more progressive measures have been passed in recent years.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>Jo Giles, executive director of the Women’s Fund of Omaha and a ballot measure sponsor, said the group wants to add “protections for the ballot initiative” and hopes Gov. Jim Pillen and conservative lawmakers support it.&nbsp;</p><p>The ballot initiative process “is direct democracy,” she said. “It is letting Nebraskans vote for issues that come up, and we want them to respect the will of the people,” Giles said.&nbsp;</p><p>The group organizing the new petition drive would need to gather the signatures of 10 percent of the state’s registered voters since the initiative seeks to change the state constitution.&nbsp;</p><p>Respect Nebraska Voters has until July to get on the November 2026 ballot.</p>

Nebraska group pushes to ‘protect’ voter-passed laws via ballot initiative

By:<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ashley-murray/">Ashley Murray</a>

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump accused six Democratic lawmakers of sedition on social media Thursday and threatened them with punishment as severe as death, after they appeared in a video message encouraging U.S. armed forces to refuse “illegal orders.”

Trump also shared another social media post that said the Democrats should be hanged.

The video’s distribution online by Democrats comes as the Trump administration is mired in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/11/19/nx-s1-5612793/national-guard-tennessee-trump-court-lawsuit" target="_blank">multiple legal cases</a>&nbsp;objecting to the president’s deployment of National Guard troops to cities across the country, including a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/cases/case-files/trump-v-illinois/" target="_blank">challenge</a>&nbsp;to Guard troops in Chicago which is now before the U.S. Supreme Court.

In several morning posts on his own social media platform Truth Social, Trump wrote, “This is really bad, and Dangerous to our Country. Their words cannot be allowed to stand. SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR FROM TRAITORS!!! LOCK THEM UP??? President DJT”&nbsp;

“SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!,” he added a couple of hours later.

Prior to writing and publishing his own, the president reposted several messages from users on Truth Social, including one by a user with the handle @P78 who wrote, “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!”&nbsp;

Trump and his social media supporters were referring to&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/SenatorSlotkin/status/1990774492356902948" target="_blank">the video</a>, which featured Democratic U.S. lawmakers who served in the military telling current members of the military and the intelligence community to “refuse illegal orders.”

Each line in the video is alternately delivered by Sens. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and Mark Kelly of Arizona, and Reps. Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire and Jason Crow of Colorado.

“We know you are under enormous stress and pressure right now. Americans trust their military, but that trust is at risk. This administration is pitting our uniformed military and intelligence community professionals against American citizens. Like us, you all swore an oath to protect and defend this Constitution. Right now, the threats to our Constitution aren’t just coming from abroad but from right here at home. Our laws are clear: You can refuse illegal orders,” the lawmakers said.

The video was titled “Don’t give up the ship.”

Does Trump want to ‘execute’ Democrats?

When asked by a CBS News reporter during the daily press briefing Thursday whether the president wants to “execute” members of Congress, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt answered, “No.”

Leavitt said Trump was reacting to sitting members of Congress who “conspired” on the video message to encourage active duty service members and national security officials to “defy the president’s lawful orders.”

Leavitt singled out the participation of Slotkin and Kelly, who respectively served as a CIA intelligence officer and a Navy captain. Leavitt also highlighted&nbsp; Goodlander’s marriage to former National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who served under President Joe Biden.

“They were leaning into their credentials as former members of our military, as veterans, as former members of the national security apparatus, to signal to people serving under this commander-in-chief, Donald Trump, that you can defy him, and you can betray your oath of office. That is a very, very dangerous message, and it perhaps is punishable by law,” Leavitt said.

During the ongoing exchange, CBS’s Nancy Cordes pressed back, saying the lawmakers specifically say “illegal order” in the video.

“They’re suggesting, Nancy, that the president has given illegal orders, which he has not. Every single order that is given to this United States military by this commander in chief and through this chain of command, through the secretary of War, is lawful,” Leavitt responded.

Democratic lawmakers sounded the alarm Thursday over Trump’s social media posts, accusing him of encouraging political violence.

“Let’s be crystal clear: the president of the United States is calling for the execution of elected officials. This is an outright threat, and it’s deadly serious. We have already seen what happens when Donald Trump tells his followers that his political opponents are enemies of the state,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on the Senate floor Thursday.

“Every time Donald Trump posts things like this, he makes political violence more likely. None of us should tolerate this kind of behavior,” Schumer said, highlighting political violence in recent years, including the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and political assassinations just this past year.

House Committee on the Judiciary Chair Jamie Raskin, D-Md., called on Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to “immediately denounce these reckless statements.”

The six Democratic lawmakers featured in the video issued a joint statement, saying they “love this country and swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

“That oath lasts a lifetime, and we intend to keep it. No threat, intimidation, or call for violence will deter us from that sacred obligation. What’s most telling is that the President considers it punishable by death for us to restate the law,” the lawmakers said.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763664714769.png" alt="Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan image from the controversial video" />
                        <figcaption>Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan image from the controversial video</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>By:<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ashley-murray/">Ashley Murray</a></p><p>WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump accused six Democratic lawmakers of sedition on social media Thursday and threatened them with punishment as severe as death, after they appeared in a video message encouraging U.S. armed forces to refuse “illegal orders.”</p><p>Trump also shared another social media post that said the Democrats should be hanged.</p><p>The video’s distribution online by Democrats comes as the Trump administration is mired in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/11/19/nx-s1-5612793/national-guard-tennessee-trump-court-lawsuit" target="_blank">multiple legal cases</a>&nbsp;objecting to the president’s deployment of National Guard troops to cities across the country, including a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/cases/case-files/trump-v-illinois/" target="_blank">challenge</a>&nbsp;to Guard troops in Chicago which is now before the U.S. Supreme Court.</p><figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763674382514.png" alt="<br>" />
                        <figcaption><br></figcaption>
                    </figure><p>In several morning posts on his own social media platform Truth Social, Trump wrote, “This is really bad, and Dangerous to our Country. Their words cannot be allowed to stand. SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR FROM TRAITORS!!! LOCK THEM UP??? President DJT”&nbsp;</p><p>“SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!,” he added a couple of hours later.</p><p>Prior to writing and publishing his own, the president reposted several messages from users on Truth Social, including one by a user with the handle @P78 who wrote, “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!”&nbsp;</p><p>Trump and his social media supporters were referring to&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/SenatorSlotkin/status/1990774492356902948" target="_blank">the video</a>, which featured Democratic U.S. lawmakers who served in the military telling current members of the military and the intelligence community to “refuse illegal orders.”</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We want to speak directly to members of the Military and the Intelligence Community.<br><br>The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution.<br><br>Don’t give up the ship. <a href="https://t.co/N8lW0EpQ7r">pic.twitter.com/N8lW0EpQ7r</a></p>&mdash; Sen. Elissa Slotkin (@SenatorSlotkin) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorSlotkin/status/1990774492356902948?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 18, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>Each line in the video is alternately delivered by Sens. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and Mark Kelly of Arizona, and Reps. Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire and Jason Crow of Colorado.</p><p>“We know you are under enormous stress and pressure right now. Americans trust their military, but that trust is at risk. This administration is pitting our uniformed military and intelligence community professionals against American citizens. Like us, you all swore an oath to protect and defend this Constitution. Right now, the threats to our Constitution aren’t just coming from abroad but from right here at home. Our laws are clear: You can refuse illegal orders,” the lawmakers said.</p><p>The video was titled “Don’t give up the ship.”</p><h2>Does Trump want to ‘execute’ Democrats?</h2><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Q: &quot;Just to be clear, does the president want to execute members of Congress?&quot;<a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PressSec</a> Karoline Leavitt: &quot;No. Let&#39;s be clear about what the president is responding to...you have sitting members of the United States Congress who conspired together to orchestrate a video message… <a href="https://t.co/pPCLJ4LqCD">pic.twitter.com/pPCLJ4LqCD</a></p>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1991596354767057136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>When asked by a CBS News reporter during the daily press briefing Thursday whether the president wants to “execute” members of Congress, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt answered, “No.”</p><p>Leavitt said Trump was reacting to sitting members of Congress who “conspired” on the video message to encourage active duty service members and national security officials to “defy the president’s lawful orders.”</p><p>Leavitt singled out the participation of Slotkin and Kelly, who respectively served as a CIA intelligence officer and a Navy captain. Leavitt also highlighted&nbsp; Goodlander’s marriage to former National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who served under President Joe Biden.</p><p>“They were leaning into their credentials as former members of our military, as veterans, as former members of the national security apparatus, to signal to people serving under this commander-in-chief, Donald Trump, that you can defy him, and you can betray your oath of office. That is a very, very dangerous message, and it perhaps is punishable by law,” Leavitt said.</p><p>During the ongoing exchange, CBS’s Nancy Cordes pressed back, saying the lawmakers specifically say “illegal order” in the video.</p><p>“They’re suggesting, Nancy, that the president has given illegal orders, which he has not. Every single order that is given to this United States military by this commander in chief and through this chain of command, through the secretary of War, is lawful,” Leavitt responded.</p><h2>Democrats decry political violence&nbsp;</h2><p>Democratic lawmakers sounded the alarm Thursday over Trump’s social media posts, accusing him of encouraging political violence.</p><p>“Let’s be crystal clear: the president of the United States is calling for the execution of elected officials. This is an outright threat, and it’s deadly serious. We have already seen what happens when Donald Trump tells his followers that his political opponents are enemies of the state,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on the Senate floor Thursday.</p><p>“Every time Donald Trump posts things like this, he makes political violence more likely. None of us should tolerate this kind of behavior,” Schumer said, highlighting political violence in recent years, including the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and political assassinations just this past year.</p><p>House Committee on the Judiciary Chair Jamie Raskin, D-Md., called on Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to “immediately denounce these reckless statements.”</p><p>The six Democratic lawmakers featured in the video issued a joint statement, saying they “love this country and swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”</p><p>“That oath lasts a lifetime, and we intend to keep it. No threat, intimidation, or call for violence will deter us from that sacred obligation. What’s most telling is that the President considers it punishable by death for us to restate the law,” the lawmakers said.</p>

Trump accuses Democratic lawmakers of ‘seditious behavior, punishable by death’

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/1/1704330351229.png" alt="Epstein photo New York sex offender registry" />
                        <figcaption>Epstein photo New York sex offender registry</figcaption>
                    </figure><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="qme" dir="ltr">🚨 <a href="https://t.co/1wOibgzIvg">pic.twitter.com/1wOibgzIvg</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1991315973425754570?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

Trump rips Dems as he signs bill to release Jeffrey Epstein case files

WASHINGTON —Both the House and Senate acted decisively Tuesday to pass a bill to force the Justice Department to publicly release its files on the convicted sex offender&nbsp;Jeffrey Epstein.

Members of the House were forced to go on the record on whether to release the files. U.S. Senators did not face a roll call vote on the bill.

The House voted overwhelmingly 427-1 in favor of the bill Tuesday afternoon. Nebraska members of the House of Representatives&nbsp; voted in favor of the bill.&nbsp; U.S. Senators did not have to go on the record on whether to release the files.&nbsp; The U.S. Senate agreed by unanimous consent to approve the House-passed bill.

Unanimous consent in the U.S. Senate is a procedure where a measure is passed, or action is taken, as long as no senator objects. This allows for the swift passage of legislation without the need for a formal roll call vote.

The only no vote in Congress against releasing the files came from Rep. Clay Higgins, a Louisiana Republican who is a fervent supporter of Trump.&nbsp;

&nbsp;The bill now goes to President Trump’s desk for his signature compelling the Justice Department to release the files.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763502796963.png" alt="Robin Galbraith, 61, of Maryland, and Donna Powell, 67, of Washington, D.C., held signs outside the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, ahead of a U.S. House vote on releasing the Epstein files. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)" />
                        <figcaption>Robin Galbraith, 61, of Maryland, and Donna Powell, 67, of Washington, D.C., held signs outside the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, ahead of a U.S. House vote on releasing the Epstein files. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>WASHINGTON —Both the House and Senate acted decisively Tuesday to pass a bill to force the Justice Department to publicly release its files on the convicted sex offender&nbsp;Jeffrey Epstein.</p><p>Members of the House were forced to go on the record on whether to release the files. U.S. Senators did not face a roll call vote on the bill.</p><p>The House voted overwhelmingly 427-1 in favor of the bill Tuesday afternoon. Nebraska members of the House of Representatives&nbsp; voted in favor of the bill.&nbsp; U.S. Senators did not have to go on the record on whether to release the files.&nbsp; The U.S. Senate agreed by unanimous consent to approve the House-passed bill.</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Senate agrees by unanimous consent to approve the House-passed bill requiring the Justice Department to release the Epstein files. <a href="https://t.co/LqfA3TfDgB">pic.twitter.com/LqfA3TfDgB</a></p>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1990918894240809216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 18, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>Unanimous consent in the U.S. Senate is a procedure where a measure is passed, or action is taken, as long as no senator objects. This allows for the swift passage of legislation without the need for a formal roll call vote.</p><p>The only no vote in Congress against releasing the files came from Rep. Clay Higgins, a Louisiana Republican who is a fervent supporter of Trump.&nbsp;</p><figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763495349874.png" alt="" />
                        <figcaption></figcaption>
                    </figure><p>&nbsp;The bill now goes to President Trump’s desk for his signature compelling the Justice Department to release the files.</p>

U.S. Senators avoid roll call vote on release of Epstein files

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump greeted Prince Mohammed on a red carpet and under a white tent ahead of a special dinner at the White House Tuesday.&nbsp;A military band was playing as they walked inside to the East Room.

List of people attending the official dinner of the Saudi Crown Prince at the White House : 

The President of the United States and Mrs. Melania Trump

His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

His Highness Prince Badr Bin Abdullah M. N. S. Alfarhan Al Saud

His Highness Prince Faisal Bin Farhan Al Saud

His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud

Her Royal Highness Princess Reema Bandar Al Saud

His Excellency Mosaad bin Mohammad Alaiban

His Excellency Salman Bin Yousef Al-Dossary

His Excellency Khalid Bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih

His Excellency Mohammed Abdullah A Aljadaan

His Excellency Majid Abdullah O. Alkasabi

His Excellency Yasir Othman H. AlRumayyan

Her Highness Princess Haifa Mohammed Al-Saud

His Excellency Mohammad Bin Abdulmalik Bin Abdullah Al Al-Sheikh

His Excellency Abdullah Bin Amer Al-Swaha

His Excellency Mohammad Bin Mazyad Al-Tuwaijri

Mr. Cristiano Amon and Mrs. Adriana Gamba Amon

The Honorable Scott Bessent, Secretary of the Treasury

The Honorable Pam Bondi, Attorney General and Mr. John Wakefield

Mr. Stefan Brodie and Mrs. Elizabeth Brodie

The Honorable Doug Burgum, Secretary of the Interior

Mr. William Clay Ford Jr. and Mrs. Lisa Ford

The Honorable Jamieson Greer, United States Trade Representative and Mrs. Marlo Greer

The Honorable Pete Hegseth, Secretary of War and Mrs. Jennifer Hegseth

The Honorable Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House of Representatives and Mrs. Kelly Johnson

The Honorable Christopher Landau, Deputy Secretary of State 

The Honorable Howard Lutnick, Secretary of Commerce and Mrs. Allison Lutnick

The Honorable Brian Mast, United States Representative from Florida

The Honorable Dave McCormick, United States Senator from Pennsylvania and Ms. Dina Powell

Mr. Kelly Ortberg and Mrs. Valerie Ortberg

The Honorable James Risch, United States Senator from Idaho and Mrs. Vicki Risch

The Honorable John F.W. Rogers and Ms. Deborah Lehr

The Honorable Brooke Rollins, Secretary of Agriculture and Mr. Mark Rollins

Mr. Cristiano Ronaldo and Ms. Georgina Rodríguez

The Honorable Marco Rubio, Secretary of State and Mrs. Jeanette Rubio

Mr. Stephen Schwarzman and Mrs. Christine Schwarzman

Mr. Jeffrey Sprecher and the Honorable Kelly Loeffler, Administrator of the Small Business Administration

<p>President Trump and first lady Melania Trump greeted Prince Mohammed on a red carpet and under a white tent ahead of a special dinner at the White House Tuesday.&nbsp;A military band was playing as they walked inside to the East Room.</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">President Trump welcomes Saudi Crown Prince back to White House for dinner. <a href="https://t.co/6aGcLbiCJa">pic.twitter.com/6aGcLbiCJa</a></p>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1990941062790074400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/Cristiano?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Cristiano</a> arrives for dinner at the White House 👀 🔥 <a href="https://t.co/seMABdhfWY">pic.twitter.com/seMABdhfWY</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1990944982510006712?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">OH, WHAT A NIGHT!<br><br>Thank you, <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/FLOTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FLOTUS</a>, for hosting the most lovely dinner — pure class from start to finish.<br><br>So proud of our peacemaking, world-changing President Trump. 🇺🇸<br><br>(…and sitting with the incredible <a href="https://twitter.com/Cristiano?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Cristiano</a> and his amazing wife Gio was pretty special!!!) <a href="https://t.co/3blgStm3qY">pic.twitter.com/3blgStm3qY</a></p>&mdash; Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecRollins/status/1991132252109950977?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">President Trump: &quot;Tonight, I&#39;m pleased to announce that we&#39;re taking our military cooperation to even greater heights by formally designating Saudi Arabia as a major non-NATO ally.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/vDJs2XOMHJ">pic.twitter.com/vDJs2XOMHJ</a></p>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1990970655223824479?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: &quot;This opening up of the new avenues of cooperation between the United States and Saudi Arabia is really unprecedented. On that trip, Saudi Arabia announced that it will invest an incredible $600 billion... he said, &#39;I am going to up that to $1 TRILLION.&#39;&quot; <a href="https://t.co/FB6qHuqjDJ">pic.twitter.com/FB6qHuqjDJ</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1990948338641088858?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: &quot;It&#39;s a special privilege to welcome His Royal Highness to Washington this year as we mark the 80th anniversary of the first meeting between a U.S. President and a Saudi King... right now, you have the best friend you&#39;ve ever had.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/5Leq7t55ob">pic.twitter.com/5Leq7t55ob</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1990947419417420105?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: &quot;My son is a big fan of <a href="https://twitter.com/Cristiano?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Cristiano</a>... Barron got to meet him and I think he respects his father a little bit more now.&quot; 🤣 <a href="https://t.co/uLPY84DHcu">https://t.co/uLPY84DHcu</a> <a href="https://t.co/nmOQotP9I9">pic.twitter.com/nmOQotP9I9</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1990946183859032382?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">President Trump welcomes Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the White House 🇺🇸🇸🇦 <a href="https://t.co/dHLj9Gep86">pic.twitter.com/dHLj9Gep86</a></p>&mdash; Margo Martin (@MargoMartin47) <a href="https://twitter.com/MargoMartin47/status/1990820614974636113?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 18, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>List of people attending the official dinner of the Saudi Crown Prince at the White House : </p><p>The President of the United States and Mrs. Melania Trump</p><p>His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia</p><p>Mr. Mohammad Abunayyan</p><p>Mr. Bill Ackman and Ms. Neri Oxman</p><p>His Highness Prince Badr Bin Abdullah M. N. S. Alfarhan Al Saud</p><p>His Highness Prince Faisal Bin Farhan Al Saud</p><p>His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud</p><p>Her Royal Highness Princess Reema Bandar Al Saud</p><p>His Excellency Mosaad bin Mohammad Alaiban</p><p>Ms. Adwa AlArifi</p><p>His Excellency Salman Bin Yousef Al-Dossary</p><p>His Excellency Khalid Bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih</p><p>His Excellency Mohammed Abdullah A Aljadaan</p><p>His Excellency Majid Abdullah O. Alkasabi</p><p>Mr. Jeremy Allaire</p><p>Ms. Lubna AlOlayan</p><p>Mr. Abdulrahman Rashed AlRashed</p><p>Mr. Abdulrahman Hamad AlRashed</p><p>His Excellency Yasir Othman H. AlRumayyan</p><p>Her Highness Princess Haifa Mohammed Al-Saud</p><p>His Excellency Mohammad Bin Abdulmalik Bin Abdullah Al Al-Sheikh</p><p>Ms. Sarah AlSuhaimi</p><p>His Excellency Abdullah Bin Amer Al-Swaha</p><p>His Excellency Mohammad Bin Mazyad Al-Tuwaijri</p><p>Mr. Tareq Amin</p><p>Mr. Cristiano Amon and Mrs. Adriana Gamba Amon</p><p>Mr. Brian Armstrong</p><p>Mr. Bret Baier and Mrs. Amy Baier</p><p>Mrs. Mary Barra and Mr. Tony Barra</p><p>Ms. Maria Bartiromo</p><p>Mr. Brendan Bechtel</p><p>Mr. Marc Beckman</p><p>Mr. Marc Benioff</p><p>The Honorable Scott Bessent, Secretary of the Treasury</p><p>The Honorable Pam Bondi, Attorney General and Mr. John Wakefield</p><p>Mr. Albert Bourla</p><p>Mr. Greg Brockman and Mrs. Anna Brockman</p><p>Mr. Stefan Brodie and Mrs. Elizabeth Brodie</p><p>The Honorable Doug Burgum, Secretary of the Interior</p><p>General Dan Caine</p><p>Mr. Charles Cascarilla</p><p>Mr. Derek Chang</p><p>Mr. Tim Cook</p><p>Mr. Larry Culp and Mrs. Wendy Culp</p><p>Mr. Bryson DeChambeau</p><p>Mr. Michael Dell and Mrs. Susan Dell</p><p>Dr. Hala Altuwaigri</p><p>Mr. David Ellison</p><p>Mr. William Clay Ford Jr. and Mrs. Lisa Ford</p><p>Ms. Jane Fraser</p><p>The Honorable Jamieson Greer, United States Trade Representative and Mrs. Marlo Greer</p><p>Mr. Charles Hallab</p><p>Mr. Josh Harris and Mrs. Marjorie Harris</p><p>The Honorable Pete Hegseth, Secretary of War and Mrs. Jennifer Hegseth</p><p>Mr. Jensen Huang and Mrs. Lori Huang</p><p>Mr. Gianni Infantino</p><p>The Honorable Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House of Representatives and Mrs. Kelly Johnson</p><p>Mr. Khaled Juffali</p><p>Mr. Abdullah bin Saleh Kamel</p><p>Mr. Vimal Kapur</p><p>Dr. Alexander Karp</p><p>Mr. Arvind Krishna</p><p>The Honorable Christopher Landau, Deputy Secretary of State </p><p>The Honorable Howard Lutnick, Secretary of Commerce and Mrs. Allison Lutnick</p><p>Mr. Kris Marszalek</p><p>The Honorable Brian Mast, United States Representative from Florida</p><p>The Honorable Dave McCormick, United States Senator from Pennsylvania and Ms. Dina Powell</p><p>Mr. Bill McDermott</p><p>Mr. Sanjay Mehrotra</p><p>The Honorable Stephen Miller</p><p>Mr. Elon Musk</p><p>Mr. Amin Nasser</p><p>Ms. Phebe Novakovic</p><p>Mr. Scott O'Neil and Mrs. Lisa O'Neil</p><p>Mrs. Meredith O'Rourke</p><p>Mr. Kelly Ortberg and Mrs. Valerie Ortberg</p><p>Mr. Ross Perot Jr. and Mrs. Sarah Perot</p><p>The Honorable James Risch, United States Senator from Idaho and Mrs. Vicki Risch</p><p>Mr. Chuck Robbins</p><p>The Honorable John F.W. Rogers and Ms. Deborah Lehr</p><p>The Honorable Brooke Rollins, Secretary of Agriculture and Mr. Mark Rollins</p><p>Mr. Cristiano Ronaldo and Ms. Georgina Rodríguez</p><p>The Honorable Marco Rubio, Secretary of State and Mrs. Jeanette Rubio</p><p>Mr. David Sacks</p><p>Mr. Charles Schwab and Mrs. Helen Schwab</p><p>Mr. Stephen Schwarzman and Mrs. Christine Schwarzman</p><p>Mr. Jeffrey Sprecher and the Honorable Kelly Loeffler, Administrator of the Small Business Administration</p><p>Mr. Scott Strazik</p><p>Dr. Lisa Su and Mr. Daniel Lin</p><p>Mr. James Taiclet and Mrs. Carol Taiclet</p><p>Mr. Vlad Tenev</p><p>Mr. Donald Trump Jr. and Mrs. Bettina Anderson</p><p>Ms. Tiffany Trump and Mr. Boulos</p><p>Mr. Jim Umpleby</p><p>The Vice President of the United States and Mrs. Usha Vance</p><p>Mrs. Kathy Warden and Mr. Charles Warden</p><p>Mr. Mike Wirth</p><p>The Honorable Chris Wright, Secretary of Energy</p><p>Mr. Stephen Wynn and Mrs. Andrea Wynn</p><p>Mr. Eric Yuan</p>

🎥Highlights of White House dinner for Saudi Crown Prince

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/ashley-murray/">Ashley Murray</a>

WASHINGTON — A bill is heading to President Donald Trump’s desk compelling the release of unclassified investigative files from the case against convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a friend to the rich and powerful who died in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 awaiting federal trial on sex trafficking charges.

Senate Republicans on Tuesday night did not object to a unanimous consent request from Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to accept and pass the legislation, as is, after the U.S. House overwhelmingly approved the measure earlier in the day.

A senior administration official told States Newsroom the president will sign the bill “whenever it gets to the White House.”

The lawmakers in the lower chamber voted&nbsp;<a href="https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2025289" target="_blank">427-1</a>&nbsp;to compel the Department of Justice to release materials related to the government’s investigation of the financier who harmed over 1,000 victims, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., was the lone “no” vote.

Survivors and their supporters watched the vote from the chamber’s gallery seats. Among them was Sky Roberts, the brother of the late Virginia Giuffre, who sued Epstein’s co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell and the British royal family’s Andrew Windsor, who recently was stripped of his title of prince. Giuffre died by suicide in April.

“I’m very happy with the outcome, but this is just the beginning, and we have a lot of work ahead of us, a lot more to do,” Haley Robson told States Newsroom in an interview after the vote. Robson is prominent among those who have shared their stories of abuse by Epstein.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-resolution/581" target="_blank">bill</a>&nbsp;now goes to Trump, who said Monday he will sign it.

‘Courage and advocacy’ of survivors cited

Schumer, a New York Democrat, wrote on social media earlier the vote would “not have been possible without the courage and advocacy of Jeffrey Epstein’s survivors. They made this vote possible. They risked their safety coming out of the darkness to share their stories and to tell the truth.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said earlier Tuesday he expected the bill to move through the Senate “fairly quickly” and likely without changes, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/18/politics/what-happens-next-epstein-bill" target="_blank">reporting</a>&nbsp;by CNN.

The legislation compels the Justice Department to publicly disclose “all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials in its possession that relate to Epstein or Maxwell.” They include records related to Epstein’s detention and death; flight logs from Epstein’s planes; names of those connected with Epstein’s alleged crimes; records of civil settlements, and sealed and unsealed immunity deals and plea bargains; records pertaining to entities with ties to Epstein’s trafficking or financial networks; and internal DOJ communications “concerning decisions to investigate or charge Epstein or his associates.”&nbsp;

The bill carves out exceptions for records containing victims’ identities, images of death or physical abuse, and information that could jeopardize a federal investigation.&nbsp;

The bill also notes that the “DOJ may not withhold or redact records on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity.”

Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson opposed the House effort to release the files until this week.

Johnson said Tuesday morning that he will vote for the measure that has been forced to the floor after Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., gathered enough signatures on a discharge petition to override leadership.

The Louisiana Republican told reporters at his regular House leadership press conference that the “forcing mechanism here prevents the very deliberate, professional, careful manner in which Congress is supposed to do this.”

“But having now forced the vote, none of us want to go on record and in any way be accused of not being for maximum transparency,” Johnson&nbsp;<a href="https://www.c-span.org/program/news-conference/house-republican-leaders-hold-news-conference/669234" target="_blank">said</a>.

The vote comes less than a week after lawmakers on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/us-house-dems-say-newly-released-epstein-emails-show-trump-knew-about-abuse" target="_blank">released</a>&nbsp;some 20,000 pages of emails from Epstein’s estate that repeatedly mentioned Trump’s name.&nbsp;

In one email from Epstein to convicted co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, the financier and sex offender claimed Trump “knew about the girls.”

Trump denies any involvement with Epstein’s alleged crimes, and has said that he&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/07/29/politics/epstein-trump-falling-out-analysis" target="_blank">kicked Epstein out</a>&nbsp;of his private Florida club, Mar-a-Lago, because he alleged the financier had poached young female staffers from the club. Epstein was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/01/us/jeffrey-epstein-grand-jury" target="_blank">convicted</a>&nbsp;in Florida of soliciting minors for sex in 2008.&nbsp;

During a press conference in the Oval Office Tuesday alongside the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Trump told reporters, “As far as the Epstein files, I have nothing to do with Jeffery Epstein. I threw him out of my club many years ago because I thought he was a sick pervert.”

Trump added, as he has repeatedly said before, that the files are a “Democratic hoax.”

Women who told stories of being abused by Epstein as teens rallied outside the U.S. Capitol Tuesday morning, alongside Massie, Khanna and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., whom Trump attacked online this weekend, nicknaming her a “traitor.”

Robson told the crowd that as a Republican herself, the advocacy from Massie and Greene is “unbelievable to watch, and we are so grateful.”

“And to the president of the United States of America, who is not here today, I want to send a clear message to you: While I do understand that your position has changed on the Epstein files, and I’m grateful that you have pledged to sign this bill, I can’t help to be skeptical of what the agenda is,” Robson said.

In a Sunday night post on his own social media platform, Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-about-face-urges-us-house-republicans-vote-release-epstein-files" target="_blank">told Republicans</a>&nbsp;to vote in favor of the bipartisan&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-resolution/581" target="_blank">legislation</a>&nbsp;Tuesday, which lawmakers have named the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

Greene, who also spoke at the press conference, said the administration’s refusal to release what are collectively referred to as the Epstein files “has ripped MAGA apart.”

“The only thing that will speak to the powerful, courageous women behind me is when action is actually taken to release these files, and the American people won’t tolerate any other b- – – -t,” Greene said.

GOP Reps. Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Lauren Boebert of Colorado were the other Republicans to join Massie, Greene and all Democrats to sign the petition.

In a second press conference outside the Capitol later Tuesday morning, the House’s newest Democratic member, Arizona’s Adelita Grijalva, spoke alongside sexual abuse prevention advocates.&nbsp;

“The momentum behind this did not come from politicians. It came from survivors and the public who demanded answers. This is why the discharge petition crossed 218 signatures, despite Speaker Johnson doing everything in his power to prevent this from happening, including calling an early summer release, and delaying myself my swearing in for seven weeks,” Grijalva said.

Grijalva became the petition’s 218th signature on Wednesday,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/arizonas-adelita-grijalva-sworn-us-house-signs-epstein-petition" target="_blank">immediately after</a>&nbsp;her swearing-in ceremony.&nbsp;

Johnson refused to swear in Grijalva, who won her seat on Sept. 23, during the government shutdown despite precedent of other representatives swearing an oath while the House is out of session.

U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., also spoke at the press conference, warning that Senate leadership should not “delay this any further.”

“They need to schedule a vote on this so this can get passed into law,” Kelly said.

Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/live-blog/trump-congress-jeffrey-epstein-files-venezuela-maduro-live-updates-rcna244133" target="_blank">told</a>&nbsp;NBC News Monday he would sign the legislation.

Roughly a dozen public protesters stood outside the police barricade surrounding the press conference, holding signs demanding the release of the Epstein files.

Robin Galbraith, 61, of Maryland, held a sign protesting Johnson’s refusal to allow an earlier floor vote to disclose the files.

“These survivors deserve justice. And you know, all women and girls deserve justice,” Galbraith told States Newsroom in an interview. “Like when you have the richest people in the world trafficking girls, I mean, as somebody who has daughters and sons, we all want to see that children are not victims like this anymore.”

In July, the FBI issued a memo stating the department would not publicly release any further information on the Epstein case.

The sudden reversal, after Trump and his supporters campaigned on releasing the files, sparked upheaval among the president’s base and trained a magnifying glass on Trump’s well-documented friendship with Epstein.

The president sued The Wall Street Journal for reporting on a 50th&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/trump-jeffrey-epstein-birthday-letter-we-have-certain-things-in-common-f918d796?mod=Searchresults_pos1&amp;page=1" target="_blank">birthday card</a>&nbsp;Trump allegedly gave to Epstein. The card featured a cryptic message and a doodle of a naked woman with Trump’s apparent signature mimicking pubic hair. Trump denies that he created and signed the birthday doodle.

The Journal also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/justice-department-told-trump-name-in-epstein-files-727a8038?mod=hp_lead_pos1" target="_blank">reported</a>&nbsp;that Attorney General Pam Bondi briefed the president in May that his name appeared in the Epstein case files. The context in which his name appeared is unclear.&nbsp;

A&nbsp;<a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/article221404845.html" target="_blank">series</a>&nbsp;in the Miami Herald in 2018 by journalist Julie K. Brown drew wide attention to Epstein’s crimes and Trump’s appointment in 2017 of former Miami federal prosecutor Alex Acosta, who cut a deal in 2008 to end a federal investigation into Epstein, as the secretary of Labor.

Jennifer Shutt contributed to this report.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763495156325.jpeg" alt="View of the House floor as the vote count ended Tuesday -image courtesy CSPAN" />
                        <figcaption>View of the House floor as the vote count ended Tuesday -image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/ashley-murray/">Ashley Murray</a></p><p>WASHINGTON — A bill is heading to President Donald Trump’s desk compelling the release of unclassified investigative files from the case against convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a friend to the rich and powerful who died in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 awaiting federal trial on sex trafficking charges.</p><figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763502796963.png" alt="Robin Galbraith, 61, of Maryland, and Donna Powell, 67, of Washington, D.C., held signs outside the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, ahead of a U.S. House vote on releasing the Epstein files. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)" />
                        <figcaption>Robin Galbraith, 61, of Maryland, and Donna Powell, 67, of Washington, D.C., held signs outside the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, ahead of a U.S. House vote on releasing the Epstein files. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>Senate Republicans on Tuesday night did not object to a unanimous consent request from Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to accept and pass the legislation, as is, after the U.S. House overwhelmingly approved the measure earlier in the day.</p><p>A senior administration official told States Newsroom the president will sign the bill “whenever it gets to the White House.”</p><p>The lawmakers in the lower chamber voted&nbsp;<a href="https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2025289" target="_blank">427-1</a>&nbsp;to compel the Department of Justice to release materials related to the government’s investigation of the financier who harmed over 1,000 victims, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.</p><p>Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., was the lone “no” vote.</p><p>Survivors and their supporters watched the vote from the chamber’s gallery seats. Among them was Sky Roberts, the brother of the late Virginia Giuffre, who sued Epstein’s co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell and the British royal family’s Andrew Windsor, who recently was stripped of his title of prince. Giuffre died by suicide in April.</p><p>“I’m very happy with the outcome, but this is just the beginning, and we have a lot of work ahead of us, a lot more to do,” Haley Robson told States Newsroom in an interview after the vote. Robson is prominent among those who have shared their stories of abuse by Epstein.</p><p>The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-resolution/581" target="_blank">bill</a>&nbsp;now goes to Trump, who said Monday he will sign it.</p><h2>‘Courage and advocacy’ of survivors cited</h2><p>Schumer, a New York Democrat, wrote on social media earlier the vote would “not have been possible without the courage and advocacy of Jeffrey Epstein’s survivors. They made this vote possible. They risked their safety coming out of the darkness to share their stories and to tell the truth.”</p><p>Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said earlier Tuesday he expected the bill to move through the Senate “fairly quickly” and likely without changes, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/18/politics/what-happens-next-epstein-bill" target="_blank">reporting</a>&nbsp;by CNN.</p><p>The legislation compels the Justice Department to publicly disclose “all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials in its possession that relate to Epstein or Maxwell.” They include records related to Epstein’s detention and death; flight logs from Epstein’s planes; names of those connected with Epstein’s alleged crimes; records of civil settlements, and sealed and unsealed immunity deals and plea bargains; records pertaining to entities with ties to Epstein’s trafficking or financial networks; and internal DOJ communications “concerning decisions to investigate or charge Epstein or his associates.”&nbsp;</p><p>The bill carves out exceptions for records containing victims’ identities, images of death or physical abuse, and information that could jeopardize a federal investigation.&nbsp;</p><p>The bill also notes that the “DOJ may not withhold or redact records on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity.”</p><h2>Trump, Johnson opposition</h2><p>Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson opposed the House effort to release the files until this week.</p><p>Johnson said Tuesday morning that he will vote for the measure that has been forced to the floor after Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., gathered enough signatures on a discharge petition to override leadership.</p><p>The Louisiana Republican told reporters at his regular House leadership press conference that the “forcing mechanism here prevents the very deliberate, professional, careful manner in which Congress is supposed to do this.”</p><p>“But having now forced the vote, none of us want to go on record and in any way be accused of not being for maximum transparency,” Johnson&nbsp;<a href="https://www.c-span.org/program/news-conference/house-republican-leaders-hold-news-conference/669234" target="_blank">said</a>.</p><p>The vote comes less than a week after lawmakers on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/us-house-dems-say-newly-released-epstein-emails-show-trump-knew-about-abuse" target="_blank">released</a>&nbsp;some 20,000 pages of emails from Epstein’s estate that repeatedly mentioned Trump’s name.&nbsp;</p><p>In one email from Epstein to convicted co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, the financier and sex offender claimed Trump “knew about the girls.”</p><p>Trump denies any involvement with Epstein’s alleged crimes, and has said that he&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/07/29/politics/epstein-trump-falling-out-analysis" target="_blank">kicked Epstein out</a>&nbsp;of his private Florida club, Mar-a-Lago, because he alleged the financier had poached young female staffers from the club. Epstein was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/01/us/jeffrey-epstein-grand-jury" target="_blank">convicted</a>&nbsp;in Florida of soliciting minors for sex in 2008.&nbsp;</p><p>During a press conference in the Oval Office Tuesday alongside the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Trump told reporters, “As far as the Epstein files, I have nothing to do with Jeffery Epstein. I threw him out of my club many years ago because I thought he was a sick pervert.”</p><p>Trump added, as he has repeatedly said before, that the files are a “Democratic hoax.”</p><h2>Stories of abuse&nbsp;</h2><p>Women who told stories of being abused by Epstein as teens rallied outside the U.S. Capitol Tuesday morning, alongside Massie, Khanna and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., whom Trump attacked online this weekend, nicknaming her a “traitor.”</p><p>Robson told the crowd that as a Republican herself, the advocacy from Massie and Greene is “unbelievable to watch, and we are so grateful.”</p><p>“And to the president of the United States of America, who is not here today, I want to send a clear message to you: While I do understand that your position has changed on the Epstein files, and I’m grateful that you have pledged to sign this bill, I can’t help to be skeptical of what the agenda is,” Robson said.</p><p>In a Sunday night post on his own social media platform, Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-about-face-urges-us-house-republicans-vote-release-epstein-files" target="_blank">told Republicans</a>&nbsp;to vote in favor of the bipartisan&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-resolution/581" target="_blank">legislation</a>&nbsp;Tuesday, which lawmakers have named the Epstein Files Transparency Act.</p><p>Greene, who also spoke at the press conference, said the administration’s refusal to release what are collectively referred to as the Epstein files “has ripped MAGA apart.”</p><p>“The only thing that will speak to the powerful, courageous women behind me is when action is actually taken to release these files, and the American people won’t tolerate any other b- – – -t,” Greene said.</p><p>GOP Reps. Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Lauren Boebert of Colorado were the other Republicans to join Massie, Greene and all Democrats to sign the petition.</p><h2>Grijalva signature</h2><p>In a second press conference outside the Capitol later Tuesday morning, the House’s newest Democratic member, Arizona’s Adelita Grijalva, spoke alongside sexual abuse prevention advocates.&nbsp;</p><p>“The momentum behind this did not come from politicians. It came from survivors and the public who demanded answers. This is why the discharge petition crossed 218 signatures, despite Speaker Johnson doing everything in his power to prevent this from happening, including calling an early summer release, and delaying myself my swearing in for seven weeks,” Grijalva said.</p><p>Grijalva became the petition’s 218th signature on Wednesday,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/arizonas-adelita-grijalva-sworn-us-house-signs-epstein-petition" target="_blank">immediately after</a>&nbsp;her swearing-in ceremony.&nbsp;</p><p>Johnson refused to swear in Grijalva, who won her seat on Sept. 23, during the government shutdown despite precedent of other representatives swearing an oath while the House is out of session.</p><p>U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., also spoke at the press conference, warning that Senate leadership should not “delay this any further.”</p><p>“They need to schedule a vote on this so this can get passed into law,” Kelly said.</p><p>Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/live-blog/trump-congress-jeffrey-epstein-files-venezuela-maduro-live-updates-rcna244133" target="_blank">told</a>&nbsp;NBC News Monday he would sign the legislation.</p><p>Roughly a dozen public protesters stood outside the police barricade surrounding the press conference, holding signs demanding the release of the Epstein files.</p><p>Robin Galbraith, 61, of Maryland, held a sign protesting Johnson’s refusal to allow an earlier floor vote to disclose the files.</p><p>“These survivors deserve justice. And you know, all women and girls deserve justice,” Galbraith told States Newsroom in an interview. “Like when you have the richest people in the world trafficking girls, I mean, as somebody who has daughters and sons, we all want to see that children are not victims like this anymore.”</p><h2>FBI memo&nbsp;</h2><p>In July, the FBI issued a memo stating the department would not publicly release any further information on the Epstein case.</p><p>The sudden reversal, after Trump and his supporters campaigned on releasing the files, sparked upheaval among the president’s base and trained a magnifying glass on Trump’s well-documented friendship with Epstein.</p><p>Trump denies any wrongdoing.</p><p>The president sued The Wall Street Journal for reporting on a 50th&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/trump-jeffrey-epstein-birthday-letter-we-have-certain-things-in-common-f918d796?mod=Searchresults_pos1&amp;page=1" target="_blank">birthday card</a>&nbsp;Trump allegedly gave to Epstein. The card featured a cryptic message and a doodle of a naked woman with Trump’s apparent signature mimicking pubic hair. Trump denies that he created and signed the birthday doodle.</p><p>The Journal also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/justice-department-told-trump-name-in-epstein-files-727a8038?mod=hp_lead_pos1" target="_blank">reported</a>&nbsp;that Attorney General Pam Bondi briefed the president in May that his name appeared in the Epstein case files. The context in which his name appeared is unclear.&nbsp;</p><p>A&nbsp;<a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/article221404845.html" target="_blank">series</a>&nbsp;in the Miami Herald in 2018 by journalist Julie K. Brown drew wide attention to Epstein’s crimes and Trump’s appointment in 2017 of former Miami federal prosecutor Alex Acosta, who cut a deal in 2008 to end a federal investigation into Epstein, as the secretary of Labor.</p><p>Jennifer Shutt contributed to this report.</p>

US Senate agrees with overwhelming House vote to force release of Epstein files

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762445699793.png" alt="Photo Frontier Airlines" />
                        <figcaption>Photo Frontier Airlines</figcaption>
                    </figure><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🚨The <a href="https://twitter.com/FAANews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FAANews</a> has determined that normal flight operations can resume after multiple days of positive staffing with air traffic controllers in our towers. <br><br>Now we can refocus our efforts on hiring and building the state-of-the-art air traffic control system the American people… <a href="https://t.co/28wQpOfKHD">https://t.co/28wQpOfKHD</a></p>&mdash; Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecDuffy/status/1990229655287218567?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 17, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

Good news for travelers: FAA lifts order slashing flights

The United States is reporting another deadly strike on an alleged drug boat.

According to a social media report from the U.S. Southern Command, on Nov. 15, at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization. 

Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics. Three male narco-terrorists aboard the vessel were killed. The vessel was trafficking narcotics in the Eastern Pacific and was struck in international waters.

<p>The United States is reporting another deadly strike on an alleged drug boat.</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">On Nov. 15, at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization. Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling,… <a href="https://t.co/iM1PhIsroj">pic.twitter.com/iM1PhIsroj</a></p>&mdash; U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/Southcom/status/1990147866397221102?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 16, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>According to a social media report from the U.S. Southern Command, on Nov. 15, at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization. </p><p>Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics. Three male narco-terrorists aboard the vessel were killed. The vessel was trafficking narcotics in the Eastern Pacific and was struck in international waters.</p>

🎥US military reports another deadly strike on alleged drug-running boat 

By:<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/jennifer-shutt/">Jennifer Shutt</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ariana-figueroa/">Ariana Figueroa</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/shauneen-miranda/">Shauneen Miranda</a>

WASHINGTON — Congress has roughly two months to find bipartisan agreement to curb rising health insurance costs if lawmakers want to avoid another government shutdown.

That herculean task would be difficult in the best circumstances, but is much more challenging after lawmakers spent the last 43 days criticizing each other instead of building the types of trust that are usually needed for large deals. Democrats maintained they wanted to address skyrocketing premiums for individual health care plans, while Republicans insisted those talks had to occur when the government was open.

At the same time, congressional leaders will try to wrap up work on the nine full-year government funding bills that were supposed to become law before Oct. 1 and weren’t included in the package that reopened the government.&nbsp;

Congress must pass all of those bills or another stopgap measure before the new Jan. 30 deadline, regardless of how well or disastrous talks on a health care bill turn out.&nbsp;

The two-track negotiations will push party leaders to compromise on issues they’d rather not, especially as next year’s November midterm elections inch closer.&nbsp;

House Speaker Mike Johnson said during a Wednesday night press conference the enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits set to expire at the end of the year are a “boondoggle” and that “Republicans would demand a lot of reforms” before agreeing to extend those in any way.&nbsp;

“We currently have 433 members of the House of Representatives. There’s a lot of opinions in this building. And on our side, certainly, a lot of opinions on how to fix health care and make it more affordable. I have to allow that process to play out,” Johnson, R-La., said.&nbsp;

While Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., made a commitment to hold a vote on a health care bill before the end of December to conclude the shutdown, Johnson has avoided giving a timeline for when he would bring any similar legislation to the floor.&nbsp;

President Donald Trump, aside from throwing insults at Democrats, largely stayed on the sidelines of the shutdown fight, though he suggested the funds used for the tax credits should in some way go directly to individuals instead of large insurance companies.

The shutdown highlighted the stark differences Republicans and Democrats hold on health care as prices for insurance continue to spike, forcing millions of Americans to choose between taking care of themselves and breaking their budgets, States Newsroom found in interviews with members of Congress.&nbsp;

GOP leaders held together throughout the funding lapse and didn’t negotiate on the expiring ACA marketplace tax credits, or anything else.&nbsp;

Now that it’s over, Republicans will need to put something forward.

Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said her sense is that Congress will “probably be in the same place on January 30th that we are now.”

“We have two parties here, two sides,” DeLauro said. “In the past … we’ve had serious negotiation back and forth, and that’s what we need to do, and that’s not happening.”

While Republicans have unified control of government, major legislation needs the support of at least 60 senators to advance in that chamber. Republicans hold 53 seats at the moment, meaning at least some Democrats must support a bill for it to pass.&nbsp;

DeLauro did not rule out another shutdown, saying Democrats plan to take the next few months “one day at a time,” while closely watching what Republicans are willing to do on the nine full-year appropriations bills and health care costs.&nbsp;

Maryland Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer, former House majority leader and a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, said Republican leaders keeping that chamber in recess for nearly two months leading up to and during the shutdown significantly delayed work on the full-year government funding bills.&nbsp;

Hoyer said that scheduling decision was a clear “indication they’re not interested in solving the problem.”

“If they were, they would have had members here working on appropriation bills,” Hoyer said. “And the only way you’re going to ultimately solve this problem is to pass appropriation bills.”

Hoyer said the real question facing Congress now isn’t whether there is time to work out agreement on the remaining nine government spending bills, but whether there’s a will to make the types of compromises needed.&nbsp;

The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/government-reopens-after-43-days-trump-signs-bill-ending-record-shutdown" target="_blank">spending package that reopened the government</a>&nbsp;included three of the dozen full-year bills, funding the Agriculture Department, Food and Drug Administration, Legislative Branch, military construction projects and Department of Veterans Affairs.

The remaining appropriations bills will be considerably tougher to resolve, especially because the House and Senate have yet to agree on how much they want to spend across the thousands of programs. Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-asks-congress-cut-163b-non-defense-spending-ax-dozens-programs" target="_blank">proposed major cutbacks</a>&nbsp;in multiple programs in his budget request earlier this year that Democrats have strongly resisted.

The Defense, Homeland Security, Labor-HHS-Education and State-Foreign Operations bills will be some of the more difficult to settle.&nbsp;

Congress could always lean on another stopgap spending bill to keep funding relatively flat for the departments and agencies not covered by a full-year bill before Jan. 30. But lawmakers will need bipartisan support to advance in the Senate.

Washington Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal, former chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said Republicans don’t seem to grasp how much Americans are struggling with the cost of living, including for health insurance and health care.&nbsp;

“My constituents are already telling me that they’re making that choice between having health insurance or having a house to live in, and they’re going to choose the house,” Jayapal said.&nbsp;

Whether or not a partial government shutdown begins in early 2026 will likely depend on whether Republican lawmakers from swing districts force bipartisanship on a health care bill.&nbsp;

“I really don’t know,” Jayapal said. “I think it depends on these vulnerable House Republicans, who are not going to be able to go back to their constituents without telling them that they’ve done something on health care.”

Democratic Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico said she wouldn’t be surprised if Congress is unable to strike a deal on government funding and winds up in a partial shutdown by February.&nbsp;

“Do I think that the Republicans have the political juice to get … the rest of their appropriation bills across the finish line and a health care deal? No,” Stansbury said.&nbsp;

She added that she hopes a handful of Republicans decide to join Democrats on the discharge petition bill that would force a floor vote on a bill to extend the ACA marketplace subsidies for three years.&nbsp;

“We gotta find a few brave Republicans who still have a backbone and some guts to stand up to this administration and actually care for their constituents,” Stansbury said.&nbsp;

But any bipartisan deal to extend those health care tax credits seems fraught, as House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries slammed Republicans as having “zero credibility on this issue.”

He pointed to Republicans trying several times to repeal the Affordable Care Act, including their last attempt in 2017, when GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine and the late John McCain of Arizona crossed party lines to vote against repealing the 2010 law.

“There’s no evidence that they’re serious about extending the Affordable Care Act tax credits,” Jeffries, of New York, said. “Republicans have zero interest in fixing the health care crisis that they’ve created.”

When Democrats controlled both chambers, temporary health care subsidies were originally passed as part of the COVID-19-era American Rescue Plan in 2021 for two years.&nbsp;

With Democrats still controlling both chambers, lawmakers approved the Inflation Reduction Act, the 2022 signature climate policy bill from the Biden administration, that extended those health care subsidies for three years, expiring at the end of December 2025.

The outcome of the just concluded shutdown is shaping some House Democrats’ views.

Virginia Democratic Rep. Bobby Scott said if there is a new shutdown come February, Senate Democrats will have to decide whether they’re going to “cave again, or at least engage in negotiations.”&nbsp;

“When the (Senate) Democrats say: ‘Our strategy wasn’t working,’ it wasn’t working because they assume you’re going to cave, which you just proved,” Scott told States Newsroom. “Their strategy worked — trying to get them to negotiate and talk to you doesn’t because they know you’re going to cave.”

Scott said “there’s no point in taking 41 days to cave,” pointing to the eight members of the Senate Democratic Caucus who broke ranks&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/us-senate-advances-bill-end-record-breaking-government-shutdown" target="_blank">to advance</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/us-senate-bipartisan-vote-passes-bill-end-record-breaking-shutdown-house-next" target="_blank">later approve</a>&nbsp;the package to reopen the government.&nbsp;

“Why don’t you just cave right at the beginning, on February 2nd?” he said. “If the Republican strategy is: ‘We’re not going to negotiate at all because you’re going to cave,’ you have to show them that you’re not going to cave, then you can have a discussion.”

Scott said the same health care issues will still exist if nothing happens between now and the package’s Jan. 30 government funding deadline.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“By then, we’ll know that several million people don’t have health insurance, we’ll know that rural hospitals are beginning to suffer,” Scott said.&nbsp;

Delaware Democratic Rep. Sarah McBride said that “from today through November (2026) and after, we will continue to be talking about health care, to be fighting for health care.”

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1763246330614.png" alt="Image Office of&nbsp; U.S. Senate Democrat Leade" />
                        <figcaption>Image Office of&nbsp; U.S. Senate Democrat Leade</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>By:<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/jennifer-shutt/">Jennifer Shutt</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ariana-figueroa/">Ariana Figueroa</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/shauneen-miranda/">Shauneen Miranda</a></p><p>WASHINGTON — Congress has roughly two months to find bipartisan agreement to curb rising health insurance costs if lawmakers want to avoid another government shutdown.</p><p>That herculean task would be difficult in the best circumstances, but is much more challenging after lawmakers spent the last 43 days criticizing each other instead of building the types of trust that are usually needed for large deals. Democrats maintained they wanted to address skyrocketing premiums for individual health care plans, while Republicans insisted those talks had to occur when the government was open.</p><p>At the same time, congressional leaders will try to wrap up work on the nine full-year government funding bills that were supposed to become law before Oct. 1 and weren’t included in the package that reopened the government.&nbsp;</p><p>Congress must pass all of those bills or another stopgap measure before the new Jan. 30 deadline, regardless of how well or disastrous talks on a health care bill turn out.&nbsp;</p><p>The two-track negotiations will push party leaders to compromise on issues they’d rather not, especially as next year’s November midterm elections inch closer.&nbsp;</p><p>Early signs were not good.</p><p>House Speaker Mike Johnson said during a Wednesday night press conference the enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits set to expire at the end of the year are a “boondoggle” and that “Republicans would demand a lot of reforms” before agreeing to extend those in any way.&nbsp;</p><p>“We currently have 433 members of the House of Representatives. There’s a lot of opinions in this building. And on our side, certainly, a lot of opinions on how to fix health care and make it more affordable. I have to allow that process to play out,” Johnson, R-La., said.&nbsp;</p><p>While Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., made a commitment to hold a vote on a health care bill before the end of December to conclude the shutdown, Johnson has avoided giving a timeline for when he would bring any similar legislation to the floor.&nbsp;</p><p>President Donald Trump, aside from throwing insults at Democrats, largely stayed on the sidelines of the shutdown fight, though he suggested the funds used for the tax credits should in some way go directly to individuals instead of large insurance companies.</p><h2>Pessimism over progress</h2><p>The shutdown highlighted the stark differences Republicans and Democrats hold on health care as prices for insurance continue to spike, forcing millions of Americans to choose between taking care of themselves and breaking their budgets, States Newsroom found in interviews with members of Congress.&nbsp;</p><p>GOP leaders held together throughout the funding lapse and didn’t negotiate on the expiring ACA marketplace tax credits, or anything else.&nbsp;</p><p>Now that it’s over, Republicans will need to put something forward.</p><p>Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said her sense is that Congress will “probably be in the same place on January 30th that we are now.”</p><p>“We have two parties here, two sides,” DeLauro said. “In the past … we’ve had serious negotiation back and forth, and that’s what we need to do, and that’s not happening.”</p><p>While Republicans have unified control of government, major legislation needs the support of at least 60 senators to advance in that chamber. Republicans hold 53 seats at the moment, meaning at least some Democrats must support a bill for it to pass.&nbsp;</p><p>DeLauro did not rule out another shutdown, saying Democrats plan to take the next few months “one day at a time,” while closely watching what Republicans are willing to do on the nine full-year appropriations bills and health care costs.&nbsp;</p><p>Maryland Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer, former House majority leader and a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, said Republican leaders keeping that chamber in recess for nearly two months leading up to and during the shutdown significantly delayed work on the full-year government funding bills.&nbsp;</p><p>Hoyer said that scheduling decision was a clear “indication they’re not interested in solving the problem.”</p><p>“If they were, they would have had members here working on appropriation bills,” Hoyer said. “And the only way you’re going to ultimately solve this problem is to pass appropriation bills.”</p><p>Hoyer said the real question facing Congress now isn’t whether there is time to work out agreement on the remaining nine government spending bills, but whether there’s a will to make the types of compromises needed.&nbsp;</p><h2>Untangling spending bills</h2><p>The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/government-reopens-after-43-days-trump-signs-bill-ending-record-shutdown" target="_blank">spending package that reopened the government</a>&nbsp;included three of the dozen full-year bills, funding the Agriculture Department, Food and Drug Administration, Legislative Branch, military construction projects and Department of Veterans Affairs.</p><p>The remaining appropriations bills will be considerably tougher to resolve, especially because the House and Senate have yet to agree on how much they want to spend across the thousands of programs. Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-asks-congress-cut-163b-non-defense-spending-ax-dozens-programs" target="_blank">proposed major cutbacks</a>&nbsp;in multiple programs in his budget request earlier this year that Democrats have strongly resisted.</p><p>The Defense, Homeland Security, Labor-HHS-Education and State-Foreign Operations bills will be some of the more difficult to settle.&nbsp;</p><p>Congress could always lean on another stopgap spending bill to keep funding relatively flat for the departments and agencies not covered by a full-year bill before Jan. 30. But lawmakers will need bipartisan support to advance in the Senate.</p><p>Washington Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal, former chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said Republicans don’t seem to grasp how much Americans are struggling with the cost of living, including for health insurance and health care.&nbsp;</p><p>“My constituents are already telling me that they’re making that choice between having health insurance or having a house to live in, and they’re going to choose the house,” Jayapal said.&nbsp;</p><p>Whether or not a partial government shutdown begins in early 2026 will likely depend on whether Republican lawmakers from swing districts force bipartisanship on a health care bill.&nbsp;</p><p>“I really don’t know,” Jayapal said. “I think it depends on these vulnerable House Republicans, who are not going to be able to go back to their constituents without telling them that they’ve done something on health care.”</p><h2>Political juice and a backbone</h2><p>Democratic Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico said she wouldn’t be surprised if Congress is unable to strike a deal on government funding and winds up in a partial shutdown by February.&nbsp;</p><p>“Do I think that the Republicans have the political juice to get … the rest of their appropriation bills across the finish line and a health care deal? No,” Stansbury said.&nbsp;</p><p>She added that she hopes a handful of Republicans decide to join Democrats on the discharge petition bill that would force a floor vote on a bill to extend the ACA marketplace subsidies for three years.&nbsp;</p><p>“We gotta find a few brave Republicans who still have a backbone and some guts to stand up to this administration and actually care for their constituents,” Stansbury said.&nbsp;</p><p>But any bipartisan deal to extend those health care tax credits seems fraught, as House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries slammed Republicans as having “zero credibility on this issue.”</p><p>He pointed to Republicans trying several times to repeal the Affordable Care Act, including their last attempt in 2017, when GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine and the late John McCain of Arizona crossed party lines to vote against repealing the 2010 law.</p><p>“There’s no evidence that they’re serious about extending the Affordable Care Act tax credits,” Jeffries, of New York, said. “Republicans have zero interest in fixing the health care crisis that they’ve created.”</p><h2>‘No point in taking 41 days to cave’</h2><p>When Democrats controlled both chambers, temporary health care subsidies were originally passed as part of the COVID-19-era American Rescue Plan in 2021 for two years.&nbsp;</p><p>With Democrats still controlling both chambers, lawmakers approved the Inflation Reduction Act, the 2022 signature climate policy bill from the Biden administration, that extended those health care subsidies for three years, expiring at the end of December 2025.</p><p>The outcome of the just concluded shutdown is shaping some House Democrats’ views.</p><p>Virginia Democratic Rep. Bobby Scott said if there is a new shutdown come February, Senate Democrats will have to decide whether they’re going to “cave again, or at least engage in negotiations.”&nbsp;</p><p>“When the (Senate) Democrats say: ‘Our strategy wasn’t working,’ it wasn’t working because they assume you’re going to cave, which you just proved,” Scott told States Newsroom. “Their strategy worked — trying to get them to negotiate and talk to you doesn’t because they know you’re going to cave.”</p><p>Scott said “there’s no point in taking 41 days to cave,” pointing to the eight members of the Senate Democratic Caucus who broke ranks&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/us-senate-advances-bill-end-record-breaking-government-shutdown" target="_blank">to advance</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/us-senate-bipartisan-vote-passes-bill-end-record-breaking-shutdown-house-next" target="_blank">later approve</a>&nbsp;the package to reopen the government.&nbsp;</p><p>“Why don’t you just cave right at the beginning, on February 2nd?” he said. “If the Republican strategy is: ‘We’re not going to negotiate at all because you’re going to cave,’ you have to show them that you’re not going to cave, then you can have a discussion.”</p><p>Scott said the same health care issues will still exist if nothing happens between now and the package’s Jan. 30 government funding deadline.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>“By then, we’ll know that several million people don’t have health insurance, we’ll know that rural hospitals are beginning to suffer,” Scott said.&nbsp;</p><p>Delaware Democratic Rep. Sarah McBride said that “from today through November (2026) and after, we will continue to be talking about health care, to be fighting for health care.”</p><p>“I think what you’ve seen over the last several months, you will continue to see from us through November and then, God willing, once we’re in a majority, we’ll do all that we can to reverse these cuts and restore care and expand access to it,” she said.&nbsp;</p>