‘We are entitled to five more seats’, Trump says on Texas redistricting battle
Speaking to CNBC earlier, the president said that Republicans are entitled to the five more seats they stand to pick up if the Texas GOP’s new congressional map is passed.
“In Illinois, what’s happened is terrible what they’re doing. And you notice, they go to Illinois for safety, but that’s all gerrymandered. California is gerrymandered. We should have many more seats in Congress in California. It’s all gerrymandered,” he added.
Key events
Texas senator asks FBI to help arrest state fleeing Democratic lawmakers
Senator John Cornyn of Texas has sent a letter to FBI director Kash Patel, imploring him to take “any appropriate steps” to aid Texas law enforcement in locating and arresting Democrats who have fled the state.
“In a representative democracy, we resolve our differences by debating and voting, not by running away,” Cornyn writes of the quorum break, now in its second day. “These legislators have committed potential criminal acts in their rush to avoid their constitutional responsibilities and must be fully investigated and held accountable.”
Texas House fails to reach quorum for a second day
With only 94 lawmakers present, the Texas House failed again today to reach a quorum to conduct legislative business.
The state house needs at least 100 members – or two-thirds – present to reach a quorum.
Here’s a recap of the day so far:
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Democratic legislators from Texas are still hunkered down in various blue states across the country, as they maintain their quorum break over a new congressional map proposed by state Republicans. At a press conference earlier today, Illinois governor JB Pritzker – who has welcomed several fleeing lawmakers – said that Texas Democrats are “leading the way in choosing courage and country over politics and party”.
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Meanwhile the Texas legislature will again try to reconvene today, after the Capitol failed to reach quorum yesterday. Governor Greg Abbott has ordered arrest warrants for the absent lawmakers, but these are civil warrants that only apply within state-lines.
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For his part, Donald Trump said that the Republican party is “entitled” to the five House seats they could pick up if the Texas map is approved. In a wide-ranging interview with CNBC earlier today, the president criticised blue states for accepting Texas Democrats. “You notice, they go to Illinois for safety, but that’s all gerrymandered. California is gerrymandered. We should have many more seats in Congress in California. It’s all gerrymandered,” he said.
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Texas’ redistricting battle has now turned into an “arms race”, Rep. Gina Hinojosa told me today. She’s one of the state lawmakers who decamped to a Chicago suburb. California governor Gavin Newsom has pledged to push for a special election that could reinstate his state legislature with the power to redraw congressional maps if the Texas map passes. Meanwhile, DNC chair Ken Martin described the quorum break, and in-kind redistricting from blue states as part of Democrats’ plan to “fight fire with fire”.
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Beyond Texas, the House Oversight Committee subpoenaed the justice department for “records related to Epstein”. The committee also issued deposition subpoenas to several high profile individuals, including Bill and Hillary Clinton.
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Meanwhile, the DOJ has ordered department officials to launch a probe into how Obama-era officials handled Russian interference in the 2016 election.
In another nugget from his CNBC interview today, Donald Trump confirmed his plan to raise the tariffs on India “very substantially” over the next 24 hours. This would be an increase on the 25% already in place.
“They’re fueling the war machine. And if they’re going to do that, then I’m not going to be happy,” he said, referring to India’s purchasing of Russian oil.
While Congress is on recess, members from both parties are hearing from their constituents. To get a taste of how Republicans are dealing with concerns back home, let’s turn to Lincoln, Nebraska.
This is in Republican congressman Mike Flood’s district. And yesterday scores of people turned up to his town hall to make their feelings known on a number of issues: from ICE raids, to the one big beautiful bill, to the Epstein files.
There were several points in the night were Flood was heckled by the crowd, with some even chanting “vote him out”.
Flood faced scrutiny about his decision to vote for Trump’s sweeping domestic policy bill. Eventually the crowd erupted into chants of “tax the rich”.
Flood was one of the few GOP representatives who held a town hall this August recess, particularly since the chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee advised lawmakers earlier this year to forgo holding in-person town halls, per Politico.
Here’s Donald Trump touring the roof of the White House with architects this morning. A few days ago he announced the $200m construction of a new 90,000 sq ft ballroom due to be ready before his term ends in 2029.
Trump says he will announce Fed appointments ‘shortly’ but Bessent will stay in Treasury job
Donald Trump has said he would “shortly” announce his pick for an open seat on the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors and possibly his nominee to lead the US central bank as well, but added that he had ruled out treasury secretary Scott Bessent from consideration.
In an interview with CNBC this morning, Trump said Fed governor Adriana Kugler’s decision to vacate her seat early was a “pleasant surprise”. The departure of Kugler, whose term would have ended on 31 January, appears to have accelerated Trump’s planning for the central bank, giving him an immediate opening to fill with a person who could also be promoted to the top policymaking role when Fed chair Jerome Powell’s term ends in May.
“It’ll be one of four people,” Trump said, adding that he considered both current White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett and former Fed governor Kevin Warsh as “very good” possibilities. He did not name the other two, but is reportedly considering current governor Christopher Waller, who has advocated rate cuts but not at the pace or extent Trump wants.
“There are numerous people that are qualified,” Trump said. “I am going to be announcing that very shortly,” the president said in reference to naming a replacement for Kugler, who was appointed to the Fed’s board by former president Joe Biden. Trump said Bessent would not be in the running for the position because he wants to remain in the top Treasury job.
The nominee would, at least initially, serve the few months remaining in Kugler’s term. But Trump could be explicit that he plans for that person to then be nominated to a full 14-year term after that time, and to also be his choice to replace Powell when the Fed chief’s term expires next May – giving his nominee several months and several policy meetings to begin to influence the policy debate.
“A lot of people say, when you do that, why don’t you just pick the person who is going to head up the Fed? That’s a possibility too,” Trump said.
The nominee to fill Kugler’s seat will need to be confirmed by the Senate, and would require another Senate vote for a full 14-year term early next year. The nomination for the next Fed chief would require a separate Senate confirmation process.
Ghislaine Maxwell grand jury information largely already public, DOJ says
Much of the information presented to the grand jury that indicted Ghislaine Maxwell for helping Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls has already been made public, the justice department said in a court filing today.
Donald Trump last month instructed attorney general Pam Bondi to seek the release of the Epstein and Maxwell grand jury material, as he sought to quell discontent from his base of supporters over his administration’s handling of documents from the cases.
This filing underscored how it is unclear whether the public will learn anything new or noteworthy from the potential release of such material. The justice department said much of the testimony from law enforcement officers at Maxwell’s grand jury proceedings in 2020 was corroborated by the victims and witnesses who testified publicly at her trial the following year.
“Much of the information provided during the course of the grand jury testimony – with the exception of the identities of certain victims and witnesses – was made publicly available at trial or has otherwise been publicly reported through the public statements of victims and witnesses,” the department wrote in the filing.
Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence after being convicted of sex trafficking and other crimes. Last month, deputy attorney general Todd Blanche met with her to see if she had any information about other people who may have committed crimes. Neither party has provided a detailed account of what they discussed. Maxwell last week was moved from a prison in Florida to a lower-security facility in Texas.
The justice department has cited what it calls continuing public interest in the cases in asking Manhattan-based judges Richard Berman and Paul Engelmayer to authorize the disclosure of the grand jury transcripts.
Lawyers for Epstein, Maxwell and their alleged victims are due to share their views on the potential disclosures with the judges by Tuesday.
Separately on Tuesday, the House oversight committee issued a subpoena to the justice department for records related to Epstein.
Democrats are also pushing for the release of Epstein files, saying Trump should be held accountable for breaking his promise to release them.
“I also want to talk to my Republican colleagues in Texas – you wrong for this,” said Texas state representative Barbara Gervin-Hawkins. “The reality is, Trump called and they fell down and said ‘what do you want us to do?’ Which says they’re weak, and we don’t need that in Texas.”
Many of the Texas lawmakers who fled the state to break quorum are speaking now at a press conference with Illinois governor JB Pritzker.
“Texas House Democrats are leading the way in choosing courage and country over politics and party,” Priztker said.
House Oversight Committee subpoenas DOJ for Epstein files
The House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena to the justice department for “records related to Epstein”. The committee has also issued deposition subpoenas to a number of high profile individuals, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, former FBI director James Comey, and former attorney general Bill Barr.
In recent months, the Epstein files have been the Trump administration’s albatross. The fallout over the files has enraged lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, particularly after House speaker Mike Johnson sent lawmakers home early for August recess to avoid votes on releasing records about the Epstein investigations.
The committee chair, Republican congressman James Comer, issued a deadline of 19 August for the justice department to turn over records related to Epstein.
Oliver Laughland
Donald Trump’s second presidency has led to allegations of pervasive self-dealing.
From the acceptance of a luxury jet from the state of Qatar, to the creation of a Trump cryptocurrency, the president has been accused of monetizing the White House while enacting a swath of extreme policy. My colleague, Tom Silverstone, and I travelled across south Florida, visiting Turning Point’s student action summit, meeting the Republican strategist Steve Bannon, and witnessing events at the harsh new detention centre “Alligator Alcatraz”.
I just spoke with Representative Gina Hinojosa, a Texas Democrat who fled the state with her colleagues. She’s now in a suburb outside Chicago.
She confirmed that Ken Martin – chair of the Democratic National Committee – will join the Texas lawmakers in Illinois for a roundtable discussion today.
Rep. Hinojosa said that she’s committed to staying out of the Texas Capitol for “as long as it takes”. She added that Governor Abbott does “not have the power” to remove legislators from elected office, calling it “disrespectful” to voters. She also told me that lawmakers who left the state have “received nothing but gratitude” and messages of support from their constituents.
“It’s not ideal. It’s just the reality,” she said of the redistricting arms race that might escalate across the country if the new Texas map is passed.
“Democrats need to fight to win,” she said. “We fight to win for the day, and we take tomorrow as it comes.”
‘We are entitled to five more seats’, Trump says on Texas redistricting battle
Speaking to CNBC earlier, the president said that Republicans are entitled to the five more seats they stand to pick up if the Texas GOP’s new congressional map is passed.
“In Illinois, what’s happened is terrible what they’re doing. And you notice, they go to Illinois for safety, but that’s all gerrymandered. California is gerrymandered. We should have many more seats in Congress in California. It’s all gerrymandered,” he added.
‘The gave phony numbers in order to win the election’, Trump says of fired BLS commissioner
In an interview on CNBC today, Donald Trump said that the Bureau of Labor Statistics under former commissioner Erika McEntarfer – who he fired last week after she issued a jobs report that showed stalled growth – was responsible for issuing “phony” jobs numbers just before the 2024 presidential election.
He went on to say, without evidence, these numbers were rigged to help Democratic nominee Kamala Harris. Trump cited the revision the BLS made two weeks after the election which was a notable change from the original report. CNBC host Joe Kernen tried to fact check the president by highlighting these were benchmark figures that are part of the BLS’ annual process.
“Those numbers were rigged, Biden was doing poorly,” Trump said.
Bondi launches grand jury investigation into Obama administration handling of 2016 Russian election interference
Attorney general Pam Bondi has ordered justice department officials to launch a probe into how Obama-era officials handled Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Reuters reports that the DOJ will investigate allegations that the Obama administration manufactured intelligence on Russia’s interference, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Last month, director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said that she had received “overwhelming evidence” that demonstrates Obama and his national security officials “manufactured and politicized intelligence to lay the groundwork for what was essentially a years-long coup against President Trump.” She declassified numerous documents as evidence of what described as “treasonous conspiracy” from the Obama administration to undermine Donald Trump’s 2016 victory.
After Gabbard’s document release, the justice department formed a taskforce in July to investigate the allegations further. Democrats, in response, have criticised Gabbard’s attempts to re-litigate a 2020 bipartisan Senate Intelligence review that did find evidence that Russia engaged in an “aggressive” effort to influence the outcome of the 2016 election.
