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In today's issue:

▪ GOP leaders seek to squash rebellion over Epstein

▪ Appeals court blocks Alien Enemies Act deportations

▪ Trump calls online health rumors 'crazy'

▪ Democrats jockey for primary lineup

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Congress returned to Washington this week consumed with the case over convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, an issue that has divided President Trump's base and stoked backlash against his administration.

House GOP leaders are hoping to tamp down a rebellion in their ranks over Epstein. The tug-and-pull over GOP members' demands for more documents and testimony comes as lawmakers juggle the appropriations process and face an end-of-month deadline to fund the government.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), a frequent Trump critic, on Tuesday filed a discharge petition to release all government files pertaining to Epstein, kicking off a new confrontation with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).

Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), who cosponsored the bill, will hold a press conference with 10 Epstein victims this morning at the Capitol.

GOP leaders, including Johnson, met with a group of Epstein victims privately on Tuesday, led by Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), the chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

“It’s for us to hear from them, to express our deep sympathy for what they’ve been made to endure and ensure that we have been and always will be for maximum transparency, for justice to be brought for all those engaged in these evils and to ensure that happens as quickly as possible,” Johnson said.

Tuesday evening, the Oversight panel released the first batch of Epstein-related files it received from the Justice Department last month as the result of a subpoena. The Hill's Emily Brooks reports many of the materials, such as video from outside Epstein's jail cell and court filings, had already been made public. Democrats said the vast majority of the material had been previously released.

Johnson told reporters: "This is the beginning and not the end."

▪ The Hill: Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) left Tuesday’s meeting with Epstein survivors early and was visibly upset.

▪ NBC News: Epstein’s accusers urge Trump to release all the case files and rule out a Ghislaine Maxwell pardon.

The Epstein case has long interested Trump's most loyal followers. During the 2024 presidential campaign, Trump and his allies promised transparency in the case, while Attorney General Pam Bondi later vowed to release new details pertaining to the disgraced financier.

Ultimately, the DOJ said in July there was no "client list" that could implicate other high-profile Epstein associates and the FBI reaffirmed that Epstein died by suicide in his jail cell in 2019. That set off a frenzy within MAGA circles for new information, driving a wedge in Trump’s core base.

Democrats have seized on the GOP division, stoking the issue as they struggle for power and influence in a Washington where they control no branches of government.

Massie teamed up with Khanna to override House leadership and bring an Epstein bill to the floor for a vote that would require the DOJ to release all its documents in a searchable database.

The discharge petition will need six Republicans to pass if all Democrats vote in favor. Massie and Khanna said Tuesday that they have the votes.

Johnson, in an effort to avoid the discharge petition, on Tuesday added a vote to the docket for later this week to direct the Oversight Committee to “continue its ongoing investigation” into Epstein.

The last-minute vote is designed to provide rank-and-file Republicans with a formal outlet to register their support for congressional investigations into Epstein and Maxwell, his former girlfriend who is in prison for crimes related to the sexual abuse of minors.

Massie called the move a “meaningless vote to provide political cover for those members who don’t support our bipartisan legislation to force the release of the Epstein files.”

SHUTDOWN WATCH: House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) said Tuesday he’s pushing for a stopgap bill that punts this month’s threat of a government shutdown into November to buy time for funding talks.

One obstacle: Trump's move to claw back funding through a pocket rescission is splitting Republicans, with several pushing back on the idea.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and Johnson now must decide how to play their cards and whether to sit down with Democratic leaders to negotiate a bipartisan agreement, or to simply move forward with a stopgap in the House and dare Democrats to vote it down.

“Anything that gives our Democrat colleagues a reason not to do the bipartisan appropriations process is not a good thing. If they can use that as an excuse, that causes us a problem,” Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) warned. “I do not think this is a good idea and I think it’s going to give our Democratic colleagues a reason not to work with us on an appropriations process.”

Smart Take with Blake Burman

After a violent holiday weekend in Chicago, President Trump on Tuesday kept the pressure on that city when it comes........

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