What to know today
- SOME TARIFFS ROLLED BACK: President Donald Trump signed an executive order today that exempts some food imports from his reciprocal tariff policies.
- EPSTEIN FILES: Trump told Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate Jeffrey Epstein’s ties to political figures and financial institutions today. Earlier, victims of Epstein urged Congress to compel the Justice Department to release all the files in the case of the late convicted sex offender.
- GEORGIA ELECTION CASE: A new prosecutor has been named to replace Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in the Georgia election interference case against Trump and his allies over their efforts to overturn the 2020 results.
- CHECKS ON THE WAY: Paychecks for federal workers are expected to go out today through the middle of next week, a senior administration official said, while airlines announced they're ready to ramp up to full flight operations as soon as they get government clearance.
Trump withdraws his support for Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene
Trump issued a scathing social media post Friday against Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., saying that he was “withdrawing his support and Endorsement” of someone who had previously been one of his closest allies.
The announcement is a significant fracture in the president’s MAGA coalition. In recent weeks, Greene has been questioning Trump’s priorities. In an interview with NBC News that published just hours before his Truth Social post, Greene criticized Trump for spending so much time focused on foreign policy rather than an “America First” agenda.
Former federal employee sues government after allegedly being fired for Facebook comments about Kirk’s assassination
A former federal contract worker for the U.S. Coast Guard and Team USA athlete is suing the government after he says he was fired for making comments on Facebook about Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
Peter Souders, an engineer and project manager for government contractor Advanced Concepts Enterprises Inc. (ACES), alleges that he was fired “in retaliation for his private speech on a matter of significant national interest and attention,” violating his First Amendment rights, the lawsuit states. He had been working at the Coast Guard’s headquarters since July. Souders was also a member of the USA fencing team up until 2016.
The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Wednesday and names the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense, as well as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, as the defendants. The deputy assistant secretary of defense for civilian personnel policy, Michael Cogar, and the chief of staff to the undersecretary for management at the DHS, Greyson McGill, were also named as defendants.
Ghislaine Maxwell's lawyer says prison employees were terminated after Maxwell’s emails were publicized
Leah Saffian, an attorney for Ghislaine Maxwell, said today that employees at the Federal Prison Camp Bryan in Bryan, Texas, have been terminated after Maxwell’s email correspondence was shared publicly.
Saffian said there have been "appropriate consequences" for the employees and "they have been terminated for improper, unauthorized access to the email system used by the Federal Bureau of Prisons to allow inmates to communicate with the outside world."
NBC News has not independently confirmed the dismissals and has reached out to the Bureau of Prisons and Federal Prison Camp Bryan for comment.
Previously, NBC News reviewed and reported the emails Maxwell sent during her first few months at an all-women’s minimum-security prison camp, which were obtained by the House Judiciary Committee after Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., wrote a letter to the prison camp warden on Oct. 30.
Saffian said today that the emails' release is "as improper as it is a denial of justice" and claimed they were "both illegally obtained and put to unconstitutional purpose."
Maxwell will file a Habeas petition with the Southern District of New York, Saffian said, and provide the court with “material evidence not available" at her 2021 trial. She added that it "shows that Ms. Maxwell has every right to expect rapid and meaningful relief from the court, thus potentially obviating the need for any further action relating to her imprisonment."
Trump says 'it depends,' when asked about endorsing primary challenge to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene
Trump said tonight that he's "no longer much of a fan" of his onetime staunch ally Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., following her recent statements criticizing his attention to foreign policy and questioning whether he is still the "America First" president.
"Something happened to her over the last period of a month or two where she changed, I think politically," Trump told reporters when asked about Greene's recent criticism.
"I think that her constituents aren't going to be happy. Already, I have people calling me, they want to challenge her to a race in her district," he added.
Asked specifically whether he would consider endorsing a primary opponent to Greene, who is up for re-election next year, Trump said: "Well, it depends on who runs against her. I mean, I'm no longer much of a fan because I disagree with her policy."
Greene wrote on social media on Monday, days before the government shutdown concluded, that she thinks the president should be more focused on domestic policy, "not foreign policy and foreign country’s leaders.”
Trump issues order rolling back some of his food tariffs
Trump today signed an executive order exempting a range of food imports — including coffee, beef and bananas — from his reciprocal tariff policies.
The White House said the president had “determined that certain agricultural products shall no longer be subject to the reciprocal tariffs.” Among the items being exempted are coffee, tea, tropical fruits, fruit juices, cocoa, oranges and tomatoes, the White House said.
The rollback comes amid nationwide complaints of high grocery prices, despite Trump’s campaign pledge to lower prices.
Democratic leaders file brief in support of Letitia James who was indicted last month on bank fraud charges
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, both New York Democrats, filed an amicus brief in support of New York Attorney General Letitia James who was indicted last month by a federal grand jury in Virginia on bank fraud charges.
The 13-page brief argues that the case is "politically motivated" and urges the court to "reject the President's blatant abuse of the criminal law for political ends and dismiss the charges against AG James."
"The President's behavior, like that of the Crown during the colonial era, is intended to suppress dissent, to punish those who challenge his authority, and thereby to chill participation in the political process by other officials and voters alike," attorneys wrote on behalf of the Democratic leaders.
James pleaded not guilty last month following to the charges brought by acting U.S. Attorney Lindsay Halligan, one of Trump's former personal attorneys.
Jeffries argued in a statement that Trump has "corruptly weaponized the criminal justice system into his own personal retribution service."
Schumer accused Trump of seeking revenge against James, a prominent critic who secured a nearly $500 million judgment against him and his companies before he was elected to a second term last year that was later tossed out by an appeals court.
"This is not justice — it’s revenge. Every American — and court of law — should soundly reject this alarming lurch into authoritarianism and President Trump’s clear decision to use the Justice Department as his own partisan attack dog," Schumer said in a statement.
Epstein survivors joined by Trump accusers in plea to Congress to release files
Four women who have accused Trump of inappropriate sexual contact signed onto a letter sent today to Congress by survivors of Jeffrey Epstein, demanding the release of all the files on the accused sex trafficker.
They were joined by four relatives of Virginia Giuffre, an outspoken Epstein accuser who died by suicide in April.
“Dear Esteemed Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives,” the letter began. “You have the ability to vote to release the Epstein files, and with it, deliver a promise the American people have awaited far too long. We implore you to do so.”
Writing “there is no middle ground here,” the letter writers said the crimes committed by Epstein, his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, and their co-conspirators, “exposed a double standard of justice, where rich and powerful men and women evade repercussions.”
The Trump accusers who signed the letter are Alva Johnson, Natasha Stoynoff, Karena Virginia, and Amy Dorris.
Indiana Senate leader says there aren’t enough GOP votes for Trump’s redistricting push
The Republican leader of the Indiana Senate said the chamber would not meet to redraw the state’s congressional map, rejecting pressure from Trump and the state’s governor.
“Today I’m announcing there are not enough votes to move that idea forward, and the Senate will not reconvene in December,” Indiana Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray said in a statement.
The White House has repeatedly pushed Indiana, where Republicans currently control seven of nine congressional seats, to join the national mid-decade redistricting push to shore up the party’s narrow House majority in next year’s midterm elections. Vice President J.D. Vance visited the state twice to press lawmakers, while Trump called legislators recently.
Indiana Republican Gov. Mike Braun called a special legislative session last month to try and force the issue. State lawmakers had initially said that to save money, they wouldn’t meet until a regularly scheduled session in December, before pulling the plug on it on this afternoon.
Trump super PAC jumps into deep-red Tennessee special election
The top outside group aligned with Trump’s political operation is jumping into a deep-red House special election in Tennessee to boost the Republican contender there.
The super PAC MAGA Inc. spent more than $15,000 calling voters to shore up support for Republican Matt Van Epps in the special election in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, according to a report filed today with the Federal Election Commission.
While it’s a modest sum for a deep-pocketed group, it’s the first time the super PAC has spent on any race so far this term, according to its FEC filings.
Jobs report for September set to be released next week
The Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday that jobs data for September will be released Thursday, Nov. 20 — nearly two months after its originally scheduled release date.
Although the government shutdown delayed publication of September's employment-situation report, which includes monthly job-creation figures and the unemployment rate, data collection for that report was completed by the time the shutdown began on Oct. 1.
However, questions remain about the status of the jobs report covering October and the remainder of 2025. Yesterday, Trump’s top economic adviser said that month's report will be released without a reading of the unemployment rate because the required survey wasn't conducted.
"We’re going to get half the employment report,” National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said on Fox News. “We’ll get the jobs part, but we won’t get the unemployment rate, and that’ll just be for one month.”
A publication date for the October employment report has yet to be announced. The jobs data are seen as critical for investors and policymakers, like the Federal Reserve, to get an accurate read on the economy, which is showing signs of increasing weakness. However, Trump has been accused of politicizing the data after he fired the head of the BLS in August following a weaker-than-expected monthly jobs total.
