What are they hiding? First Trump, then Trump’s Department of Justice, and now Republicans in the House of Representatives are blocking the release of the Epstein files.

DRIVING THE NEWS: House Republicans on Tuesday voted unanimously to keep the documents about Jeffrey Epstein secret.

The vote failed 211-210, with Republicans fully united in opposition.

BUT WHY? That’s the question. Epstein, the accused sex trafficker and pedophile who allegedly committed suicide in prison before his trial, was a close friend of Donald Trump.

The issue is tearing apart the MAGA base—with many leaders calling for full transparency—which Trump is refusing.

BUT BUT BUT: If there’s any good news, it seems that Democrats are taking full advantage of this issue.

GO DEEPER: What MAGA's Epstein war means for Democrats

The UN’s special rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories (an independent expert appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council) is calling on countries to sever all ties with Israel. At a global summit co-hosted by Colombia and South Africa, over 30 nations gathered to explore legal and diplomatic strategies to pressure Israel, as more than 58,000 Palestinians have been killed since 2023. Full story from the AP.

Trump’s tariffs and immigration “crackdown” are starting to show up in the U.S. economy, driving up prices for goods like furniture and copper, and slowing job growth in industries dependent on undocumented labor. Inflation hit 2.7% in June, and experts warn the full impact of tariffs—now at their highest since 1910—could cost the average household $2,800 a year. While wealthy Americans continue spending, signs of strain are emerging among lower-income households. Full story from The Wall Street Journal.

Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani just locked in the backing of NYC’s largest labor union, DC 37—a huge boost in the city’s mayoral race. Representing nearly 250,000 public sector workers and retirees, the endorsement signals that the people who actually keep New York running are all-in for Mamdani’s working-class agenda. Full story from 1010 WINS.

Electricity bills are expected to soar across the U.S.—especially in red states—after Trump signed a new law ending tax incentives for wind and solar projects. The move is projected to gut clean energy investment, boost natural gas reliance, and stall climate progress, with some states like Oklahoma facing rate hikes of up to 350%. Full story from NPR.

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Last week’s violent ICE raid of two large-scale cannabis farms in California that killed at least one person now have a dubious distinction: it’s the largest raid of Trump’s second term—so far.

QUICK RECAP: On Thursday, federal authorities arrested more than 360 people at two legal marijuana farms in Southern California.

It’s part of a plan by Trump to “crackdown” on “illegal immigration,” which has caused many workers to lose income or be forced into hiding. One even told The Guardian they felt like “hunted like animals.”

BUT BUT BUT: This really isn’t about illegal immigration. This is first and foremost a political spectacle: a weaponized distraction designed to channel working-class anger away from the capitalist class (i.e. billionaires and huge corporations) and onto people who can’t fight back.

SOME CONTEXT: Over the last 40 years, the capitalists in charge have decimated public services, eroded wages, and shattered job security for people like you and me—all while enriching a tiny elite.

WHY NOW? Raids like these whip up his base, stoke white grievance, and reinforce the myth that undocumented workers—not bosses or billionaires—are to blame for poverty, job loss, or rising rent.

THE BOTTOM LINE: One man is dead. Hundreds more were thrown into cages. A community is reeling. And the billionaires who profit off this violence? They walk away richer.

That’s capitalism in action.

Yesterday we asked, do you support school vouchers? The answer was a resounding no.

Gwyn voted no and said, “Education should be free to all children. Parents should pay for private education if they want it.”

Rjer also voted no: “Public education should be fully funded and no public funds for private schools.”

Ccarteen disagreed and voted yes: "I believe a voucher system may work better for [a new] type of education than our current system. We shouldn't be housing our children, we should be teaching them for the next stages of their life. Our current school system doesn't do that. We have too many college graduates to still can't find a job. That needs to change!”

Here are some stories the algorithms may be keeping out of your feed.

And finally: As several people pointed out, we had the wrong link for the story “Obama has a blunt message for Democrats.” Here’s the correct link. Our apologies!