Highlights from Aug. 20, 2025
- TEXAS REDISTRICTING: Republicans in the Texas House tonight passed a GOP plan to redraw the state’s congressional map after Democratic lawmakers returned to Austin. Democrats had fled the state for two weeks to block a vote on the map, and several spent last night on the statehouse floor in a protest.
- U.S.-NATO MEETING: U.S. and NATO military officials are meeting to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine as the White House works to arrange a summit between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
- FED UNDER FIRE: President Donald Trump amped up his attacks on the Federal Reserve this morning, saying one member of the board of governors should resign after an administration official accused the member of "potentially committing mortgage fraud."
- TRUMP'S BOND BUYS: Trump has purchased at least $103 million worth of corporate and municipal bonds since he took office in January, according to new filings from the Office of Government Ethics.
Coverage of this live blog has ended. For the latest news, click here.
Trump administration’s newest allegation against political foes: Mortgage fraud
In recent weeks, the Trump administration has targeted Democratic officials over allegations of mortgage fraud, a new front in an effort to undermine critics.
The latest one came today, when Trump, who has been sharply critical of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policies, posted to his Truth Social platform that Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook “must resign, now!!!”
His post came after William Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, alleged in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi that Cook, who was nominated by President Joe Biden, “falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, potentially committing mortgage fraud.” Pulte’s letter claimed that Cook falsified her residence statuses for her properties in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Atlanta.
The move followed recent efforts targeting Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., who was a leading figure in Trump’s impeachments, and New York Attorney General Letitia James, who successfully sued Trump and his company over what her office said were fraudulent misrepresentations of his wealth and financial statements that he used to get favorable rates on bank loans and insurance policies that he otherwise would not have been able to obtain. (A judge awarded James’ office over $300 million in the case, an amount that has since ballooned to over $500 million with interest. Trump has called the case “a fraud on me” and is appealing the judgment.)
DNC chair says Democrats will 'get even' after Texas House votes to redraw congressional maps
Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin said today that Democrats will "get even" after the Texas House passed new congressional maps aimed at giving Republicans five more U.S. House seats.
“This is a shame — a craven, power-hungry, unconstitutional shame. But we won’t back down, and we won’t let the old rules stop us. Republicans tore up that rule book, destroying voting rights to try to cling to power, so we refuse to play fair anymore," Martin said in a statement.
“Make no mistake: this isn’t your grandfather’s Democratic Party. We don’t give up, we get even,” Martin added.
After tonight’s vote in Austin, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said on X, “It’s on, Texas,” after he threatened a retaliatory redistricting effort if Republicans in Texas voted to redraw congressional lines in their favor.
Martin said Newsom, "and likely others, will carry that movement forward on behalf of Texas and the entire country."
Abbott praises Texas House for passing redistricting maps
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tonight praised the state House for passing legislation to redraw congressional lines in the state and said he will sign the bill when it reaches his desk.
“I congratulate Speaker Burrows and the Republican members of the Texas House of Representatives for passing congressional districts that better reflect the actual votes of Texans," Abbott said in a statement.
"While Democrats shirked their duty, in futility, and ran away to other states, Republicans stayed the course, stayed at work and stayed true to Texas. I will sign this bill once it passes the Senate and gets to my desk,” he added.
Abbott also wrote on X that the maps, which are aimed at giving Republicans five more U.S. House seats, would make his state and Congress "a brighter shade of Red."
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is crafting a retaliatory redistricting plan in response to Texas, wrote on X after the bill was passed that Abbott "will now go down in history as one of Donald Trump’s most loyal lapdogs. Shredding our nation’s founding principles. What a legacy."
What’s next in the battle over redistricting as the Texas House passes new GOP maps
The Republican-controlled Texas House has passed new congressional maps that aim to pad the party’s majority in Washington by as much as five seats in the midterm elections as battles over redistricting spread across the country.
With Texas set to fully enact its new plan as soon as this week, urged on by Trump, California Democrats are moving quickly to implement a plan carving up their state’s maps in retaliation. Meanwhile, top Republicans in states like Indiana, Missouri and Florida continue to talk about tweaking their maps to create more Republican-controlled congressional seats in the 2026 elections. Ohio’s redraw, which it must do under state law, could benefit the GOP, too.
Governors in Democratic-controlled states are weighing responses, too, but in many cases, they’re restrained by procedural hurdles or by other practical limits — some have already stretched their own gerrymandered maps as far as they could go — that could make a tit-for-tat more difficult.
Top Federal Reserve official says she won't be 'bullied' by Trump and Pulte
A top Fed official, Governor Lisa Cook, said in a statement that she has "no intention of being bullied to step down from my position because of some questions raised in a tweet."
Earlier today, Federal Housing Finance Authority Director William Pulte alleged in a letter that Cook committed mortgage fraud. Trump quickly reacted, writing on Truth Social: "Cook must resign, now!!!"
Cook said in the statement that she intends "to take any questions about my financial history seriously as a member of the Federal Reserve and so I am gathering the accurate information to answer any legitimate questions and provide the facts.”
Trump and his administration have kept intense pressure on the central bank since the beginning of the year, repeatedly calling for it and its chairman, Jerome Powell, to lower interest rates. Cook has a permanent vote on the Fed's rate-setting committee.
Military officers shifted to prosecute local D.C. crimes amid Trump takeover
As members of the National Guard deploy to the nation’s capital as part of the Trump administration’s takeover of policing in Washington, members of the military are also set to take on prosecutorial roles handling civilian crimes.
Twenty members of the Defense Department are set to begin working as special assistant U.S. attorneys — federal prosecutors — in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia next week, two people familiar with the matter told NBC News.
Tim Lauer, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, confirmed the move, saying members of the Judge Advocate General Corps would be joining the office, though he did not know how long the detail would last.
Texas Democrat who camped out in statehouse abruptly leaves video call, saying she was warned 'it's a felony'
Democratic state Rep. Nicole Collier abruptly left a redistricting call with Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin and other leaders today, saying she was warned of breaking the law.
“Sorry, I have to leave,” Collier said about 30 minutes into the call while she was responding to a reporter's question. "They said it’s a felony for me to do this. Apparently I can’t be on the floor or in a bathroom.”
Collier, who didn't specify what statute was invoked, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on who told her she was committing a felony.
After her abrupt exit, Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., said on the redistricting call that “Collier in the bathroom has more dignity than Donald Trump in the Oval Office.”
“What we just witnessed, them trying to shut her down and say it’s illegal for her to be in the bathroom, and on this call, this is the lengths that they’re going to in Texas to try to bring about a system so unjust and so unjustifiable,” he added.
Martin wrote on X after the incident: “What a disgrace. This is Trump’s America."
Collier camped out in the statehouse chamber yesterday after she refused a security escort as part of the fallout from Texas Democrats' returning to their home state. The Democratic legislators fled to other states this month to disrupt Texas Republicans’ plans to redraw congressional lines in their favor.
Before she left today's call, Collier said Texas Republicans' proposed maps were "the most segregated" seen in the state in decades.
“We’re going to fight as much as we can, whether it’s on the rules or it’s even on the policy. We will continue to push back on the Republican quest to dilute our voice,” she said.
Gabbard announces new cuts at national intelligence office
National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard said today that her office will oversee a 40% reduction in "missions, functions and personnel" by the end of the fiscal year, framing the move as an attempt to make the "bloated" agency more "agile, effective and efficient."
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the intelligence community "must make serious changes to fulfill its responsibility to the American people and the U.S. Constitution by focusing on our core mission: find the truth and provide objective, unbiased, timely intelligence to the President and policymakers," Gabbard said in a statement.
Cuts to the national intelligence director's office will come from eliminating "redundant missions, functions and personnel," the agency indicated. A news release indicated the cuts will save taxpayers more than $700 million annually.
Gabbard has tried to crack down on leaks at the agency while also steering it to be more conciliatory to Trump in its assessments.
Kristi Noem is pushing for ICE to buy and operate a fleet of deportation planes, sources say
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is pushing for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to use an influx of funds to buy, own and operate its own fleet of airplanes to deport immigrants, two sources familiar with the discussions told NBC News. Former officials said that ICE’s owning and maintaining its own planes would be costly but that it could make it easier for the agency to potentially double the number of people it deports every month.
ICE uses charter planes to deport immigrants and has done so for years. The agency has typically chartered eight to 14 planes at a time for deportation flights, according to Jason Houser, who was ICE chief of staff from 2022 to 2023. He said that allowed the Biden administration to deport roughly 15,000 immigrants per month on charter flights.
“If the goal is to get to 30 to 35,000 removals a month, you would need to double the number of planes,” Houser said, or purchase roughly 30 planes.
With a guaranteed set of 30 or more planes, ICE wouldn’t be constrained by the limits of the companies it contracts with, which charter their planes to multiple clients.
Trump and his team are still working to set up a Putin-Zelenskyy meeting, despite Russian foreign minister's comments
A White House official said in a statement today that Trump and his national security team are still working on setting up a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy despite a Russian official's comments that didn't inspire confidence in such a plan.
“President Trump and his national security team continue to engage with Russian and Ukrainian officials towards a bilateral meeting to stop the killing and end the war," the official said.
"It is not in the national interest to further negotiate these issues publicly,” the official added.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said today that negotiations for a Putin-Zelenskyy meeting should start at the “expert level" and that any security discussions without Moscow are a "road to nowhere."
The Kremlin said today that it was prepared for settlement discussions with Ukraine that included security guarantees.
