Trump exempts some food imports from reciprocal tariffs, tells DOJ to look into political figures' Epstein ties
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Airlines say they are ready to ramp up to full flight operations once they get government clearance.
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.
Trump withdraws nomination for assistant general counsel of the Treasury Department
Trump said on Truth Social today that he will withdraw the nomination of Donald Korb to be assistant general counsel in the Treasury Department.
Trump did not provide a reason for the withdrawal, but the move comes after The Daily Caller last week reported that Republicans had expressed concerns about Korb’s alleged past donations to Democrats.
According to Rhode Island campaign finance reports, Korb has donated to Democrat Gina Raimondo, a former commerce secretary and former Rhode Island governor.
Marjorie Taylor Greene questions if Trump is still the ‘America First’ president
Ten months into Trump’s second term, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has positioned herself as a surprising critic of the administration’s policies — and as a torchbearer for the “America First” agenda that she believes the president has drifted from, she told NBC News in recent interviews.
Greene, who has long been one of his most outspoken allies, said that Trump personally inspired her run for Congress in Georgia in 2022 and described her political identity as rooted in his promise to represent what she calls “the forgotten man and woman of America.”
“That was me,” she told Tucker Carlson recently, recalling how she saw Trump’s campaign as a “referendum to the Republican Party on behalf of the American people … that were just so sick of Washington, D.C.”
Now, Greene finds herself at the center of a divide inside the Republican Party over how deeply the U.S. should involve itself abroad, as surveys show the state of the economy is top of mind for many Americans and following a round of elections that focused on affordability.
Epstein accusers urge lawmakers to vote next week to release files
Epstein accusers and the family of Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who died by suicide earlier this year, are urging members of Congress to vote to release the government's files on the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
"We write to you as the family of Virginia Roberts Giuffre, and as fellow survivors of Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, and their co-conspirators. You have the ability to vote to release the Epstein files, and with it, deliver a promise the American people have awaited for far too long. We implore you to do so," they wrote in a letter obtained by NBC News.
They reference Giuffre's death in April and said, "Her courage brought this case to a monumental turning point, and her testimony exposed the lurid secrets of a global sex trafficking network."
"Virginia was failed over and over by the systems that consistently believed and supported her abusers over her. Today, we urge you not to fail another survivor and deny them justice any longer," they wrote. "Embody Virginia’s courage. Be brave and stand for her, in her absence. Vote YES on the Epstein Files Transparency Act. Vote for justice, accountability, and the truth."
The House is expected to vote on the legislation next week that would require the Department of Justice to release the Epstein files.
If Democrats regain the White House, Trump’s ballroom could be an early casualty
The East Wing that Trump tore down last month stood for decades.
The ballroom he’s building in its place could be gone not long after the first wave of guests sit down for dinner, depending on the outcome of the 2028 presidential race.
If elected, a Democratic president would have plenty to worry about aside from White House decor; war and peace can easily fill up a day. But a new president may face considerable pressure from within the Democratic fold to do something about a massive new ballroom forever linked to Trump.
Already, prominent Democratic officials are workshopping ideas for repurposing the space in favor of something that’s decidedly un-Trump. If any of these come to fruition, the $300 million ballroom that Trump birthed could take on a function that he never intended.
White House announces trade deal with Switzerland and Liechtenstein
The White House has just announced a trade deal with Switzerland and Liechtenstein, saying in a statement that U.S. tariffs on them would be lowered to a cumulative reciprocal tariff rate no higher than 15%.
“On November 14, 2025, the United States announced that the country-specific additional tariff for Switzerland would be limited to a maximum of 15%," the agreement says.
In response, Switzerland said it would reduce import duties on a range of U.S. products, including industrial products, fish and seafood and agricultural products.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer teased the deal with Switzerland this morning under which he said manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, gold smelting and railway equipment would come to the U.S.
This follows yesterday’s announcements of U.S. trade agreements with Argentina, Guatemala, El Salvador and Ecuador.
Study shows state and local opposition to new data centers is gaining steam
A new study found the total value of blocked or delayed data center projects during a three-month stretch earlier this year exceeded the total in the prior two years, signaling accelerating opposition to a foundational piece of artificial intelligence development in the U.S.
The study — conducted by Data Center Watch, a project of AI intelligence firm 10a Labs that tracks local data center activity — found that an estimated $98 billion in data center projects were blocked or delayed from late March through June. That compares to $64 billion worth of projects that were blocked or delayed between 2023 and late March 2025.
“Opposition to data centers is accelerating,” the authors wrote in the report, shared exclusively with NBC News. “As political resistance builds and local organizing becomes more coordinated, this is now a sustained and intensifying trend.”
Leaders in both parties are locked in competition to encourage tech giants to put sprawling data centers in their states, looking for an economic leg up and an innovation edge in the early days of the AI boom. But residents' backlash has intensified in recent months as the projects have contributed to rising electricity bills, among other concerns.
Fani Willis replacement named in Trump election interference case
The head of the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia, Peter Skandalakis, said today that he will replace Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in overseeing her election interference case against Trump and numerous co-defendants.
Willis, a Democrat, was disqualified from the case over conflict of interest issues late last year and exhausted her appeals in September. Skandalakis, a Republican, was tasked with finding a replacement prosecutor, but said everyone he contacted declined the appointment.
Skandalakis said he plans to continue his comprehensive review of the materials his office started receiving from the Willis’ team Oct. 29 and will “make an informed decision regarding how best to proceed.”
In his new role, Skandalakis will have the authority to either proceed with the prosecution, which has been stuck in legal limbo for well over year, or drop the case.
“You have to look at the case as if you’re starting from scratch,” he told NBC News in an interview last year, when asked about the possibility of Willis being disqualified.
Skandalakis’ decision was announced on the day Judge Scott McAfee had set for him to find a replacement. The judge said he would otherwise dismiss the case.
"While it would have been simple to allow Judge McAfee’s deadline to lapse or to inform the Court that no conflict prosecutor could be secured — thereby allowing the case to be dismissed for want of prosecution — I did not believe that to be the right course of action," he said in a statement.
"The public has a legitimate interest in the outcome of this case. Accordingly, it is important that someone make an informed and transparent determination about how best to proceed," Skandalakis added.
Trump attorney Steve Sadow hailed the appointment and the official end of Willis' involvement in the case.
“This politically charged prosecution has to come to an end. We remain confident that a fair and impartial review will lead to a dismissal of the case against President Trump,” Sadow said.
Skandalakis, a former district attorney, has stepped in for Willis in the investigation before. After Willis was disqualified from investigating now-Lt. Gov. Burt Jones' alleged role in the effort to overturn the 2020 election results in the state, he eventually named himself to oversee the probe. After a five month investigation, he decided not to charge Jones, finding he "did not act with criminal intent."
Poll: Republicans are more likely than Democrats to say they have a good friend in the other party
Despite a polarized, partisan political environment, most voters who consider themselves a member of a party say they have a close friend on the other side of the aisle, according to the latest national NBC News poll.
However, Democrats in the poll were less likely to say they have a close, cross-party friendship, the results show.
More than 8 in 10 Republicans (82%) said they have at least one close friend who is a Democrat, while a little more than 6 in 10 Democrats (64%) are close friends with a Republican — a gap of 18 percentage points.
That difference is most pronounced among voters who are most loyal to each party and more ideological.
Pennsylvania Democrats seek to roll momentum from judicial elections into House battles
The Pennsylvania Democratic Party is highlighting the party’s success last week in swing and red counties that voted for Trump in 2024, arguing it can build upon off-year election results in the upcoming midterms, the party chairman wrote in a memo published today.
Pennsylvania Democrats pointed to substantial victories in three judicial retention races, as well as downballot elections in 15 counties, including key swing counties such as Bucks, Erie, Luzerne and Northampton, as well as wins from traditionally Republican areas such as Lancaster and Beaver counties.
“This is bad news for the Pennsylvania Republicans who have completely embraced Trump and the most unpopular elements of Washington politics — from higher costs and taxes, to rampant corruption and attacks on our democracy,” Pennsylvania Democratic Party Chair Eugene DePasquale wrote in a memo. “Whether it’s Stacy Garrity, Doug Mastriano, Ryan Mackenzie, Rob Bresnahan, Scott Perry, or Brian Fitzpatrick, the GOP candidates up in 2026 have championed an agenda of chaos and high prices, and they will be held responsible for it with Pennsylvania voters.”
Democratic judges won by 3 to 15 points in Beaver, Berks, Columbia, Cumberland, Lancaster, Luzerne, Montour, Pike, Union, Washington and Westmoreland counties — all places Trump has won three times — in last week’s off-year elections (elections that have been more favorable to Democrats in recent cycles).
Some of those counties will host competitive U.S. House races next year that will be key to determining congressional control, with DePasquale going after GOP Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, Scott Perry, Rob Bresnahan and Ryan Mackenzie in the memo.
Responding to the memo, James Markley, communications director for the PA GOP, said his Democratic counterparts have "not had much to cheer for in recent years so we should not be surprised that they’re using last week’s election results as an opportunity to get rid of years of pent-up frustration."
"In 2026, voters will look to the party that is best able to deliver lower prices, safe communities, secure borders, and an improved quality of life," Markley said. "Republicans are more trusted on all those issues and we are delivering real results where it matters most. The PA GOP is ready, and we welcome the 2026 election."
Air travel disruptions continue despite government shutdown
After the longest shutdown in American history, the federal government is slowly beginning to reopen, but challenges persist at airports across the United States with the Federal Aviation Administration still forcing airlines to slash 6% of flights ahead of the Thanksgiving travel rush. It comes as federal workers are still waiting on paychecks. NBC’s Gabe Gutierrez reports for "TODAY."
Trump official refers Rep. Eric Swalwell for a federal criminal probe over alleged mortgage fraud
A top housing official in Trump’s administration has referred California Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell to the Justice Department for a potential federal criminal probe, based on allegations of mortgage and tax fraud related to a Washington, D.C., home, according to a person familiar with the referral.
He is the fourth Democratic official to face mortgage fraud allegations in recent months.
Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, alleged in a letter sent to Attorney General Pam Bondi on Wednesday that Swalwell may have made false or misleading statements in loan documents.
The matter has also been referred to the agency’s acting inspector general, this person said.
“As the most vocal critic of Donald Trump over the last decade and as the only person who still has a surviving lawsuit against him, the only thing I am surprised about is that it took him this long to come after me,” Swalwell said in a statement to NBC News.
Vance says he will ‘sit down’ with Trump after midterms to discuss 2028
Vance said during an interview that aired last night that he will speak with Trump after the midterms about a potential 2028 presidential bid.
During a Fox News interview, Vance said he remains focused on his role as vice president, but would discuss the matter with Trump after midterms.
“We’re going to do everything that we can to win the midterms, and then after that, I’m going to sit down with the President of the United States and talk to him about it. But let’s focus on the now,” Vance said.
Trump has previously said that Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio would be his top picks in 2028.
Vance said in the interview that if Rubio decided to run “we can cross that bridge when we come to it,” and that viewing Rubio as a rival “would be ridiculous.”
Rep. Chuy Garcia’s ploy to hand-pick successor sparks Democratic infighting
Democratic Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia’s ploy to hand-pick his successor for his Illinois seat has sparked a war of words between congressional Democrats. The divisions come at the exact time the party is trying to unify behind issues such as health care, affordability and releasing the Jeffrey Epstein files.
On Wednesday night, just as the House was prepared to vote to reopen the government, a fellow Democrat, Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington state, took to the floor and ripped into Garcia, sparking shock and outrage from many of her Democratic colleagues. Both are members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
Gluesenkamp Perez, known as MGP on Capitol Hill, offered a House resolution disapproving of Garcia’s actions this fall when he filed paperwork to run for re-election in 2026, then announced he was retiring after the filing deadline. Meanwhile, his chief of staff, Patty Garcia, had filed her own paperwork to run for the seat just hours before that same Nov. 3 deadline, ensuring that she would be the only Democrat on the ballot running for that deep-blue Chicago-area seat. The two are not related.
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell concedes re-election fight to progressive activist Katie Wilson
First-term Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell conceded his re-election fight to progressive activist Katie Wilson yesterday, handing another victory to leftist Democrats around the country frustrated with unaffordability, homelessness, public safety and the actions of President Donald Trump’s administration.
Harrell, a centrist Democrat who previously served three terms on the City Council, led in early results. But Washington conducts all-mail elections, with ballots postmarked by Election Day. Later-arriving votes, which historically trend more liberal, broke heavily in Wilson’s favor, adding to a progressive shift to the left nationally.
Epstein survivors urge Congress to release all the files on the sex trafficker
Two women who say they were sexually assaulted by Jeffrey Epstein urged Congress to compel the Justice Department to release all the files on the accused sex trafficker, whose powerful friends included President Donald Trump.
Liz Stein and Jess Michaels made these comments during an interview with NBC News yesterday, where they were joined by freshly minted Rep. Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz.
Moments after she was sworn in Wednesday, and with Stein and Michaels looking on, Grijvala provided the crucial 218th signature needed to bypass GOP leaders and force a floor vote on the issue.
“We need the American people to not stop putting the pressure on,” Michaels said. “We can’t stop putting the pressure, because it’s only one tiny victory.”
How long will impacts of government shutdown last?
The federal government is now back open, but the impacts could last for days or longer including at America’s airports. NBC News’ Ryan Nobles reports.
Federal employee paychecks should arrive within days, administration official says
The White House is urging federal agencies to send paychecks to employees out “expeditiously and accurately,” a senior administration official told NBC News.
Some federal workers, including at the General Services Administration, Office of Personnel Management and the departments of Energy, Health and Human Services and Veterans Affairs, are expected to get paychecks as soon as this weekend, the senior official said.
Other departments, including Education, State, Interior, Transportation and some agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency, NASA and the Social Security Administration, could get their back pay by Monday, the official said.
Still others, including Agriculture, Commerce, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Labor, Treasury and the DOJ, could receive their checks by the middle of next week, the official said.
Smithsonian museums will start to reopen today
The Smithsonian has announced it will reopen several museums today, including the Museum of American History, the National Air and Space Museum and its annex in Virginia, which houses planes and space artifacts.
Other museums and the National Zoo are set to reopen on a “rolling basis by Monday,” the Smithsonian’s website said.
