
The next big health care fight that's splitting Republicans: From the Politics Desk
Happy Friday! In today's edition, Sahil Kapur notes that a looming Obamacare deadline is dividing Republicans on Capitol Hill. Plus, Kristen Welker breaks down the political fallout thus far from the Jeffrey Epstein saga. And Scott Bland answers this week's reader question on Texas Republicans' redistricting efforts.
— Adam Wollner
The next big health care fight that's splitting Republicans
By Sahil Kapur
After passing President Donald Trump's sweeping megabill that included steep cuts to Medicaid, Republicans have another big health care fight on their hands.
GOP leaders are facing growing calls from their members to extend a bucket of funding for the Affordable Care Act that is set to expire at the end of this year as some look to avert insurance premium hikes and millions of Americans losing their health coverage.
But the cause faces opposition from conservatives who detest Obamacare and don't want to lift a finger to protect it. Some argue it'd be too expensive to continue the premium tax credits, which cost over $30 billion per year and were initially adopted as part of a Covid-19 response.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projects that about 5 million Americans will lose their insurance by 2034 if the money expires.
The divide: Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., who represents a swing district that Trump lost in 2024, said that Congress should continue those ACA tax credits in order to avoid price increases.
'I think we gotta be doing everything to keep costs low across the board — health care, groceries, energy, all of the above. So I am currently working on addressing that as we speak,' he said.
But Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., the chair of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus, said he 'absolutely' wants that funding to end.
'It'll cost hundreds of billions of dollars. Can't afford it,' he said. 'That was a Covid-era policy. Newsflash to America: Covid is over.'
For now, top Republican leaders are keeping their powder dry about whether — or how — they will take up the issue.
'I think that goes to the end of the calendar year, so we'll have discussion about the issue later. But it hasn't come up yet,' House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said when asked about an ACA subsidy extension. 'But it's on the radar.'
A midterm warning: Veteran GOP pollsters Tony Fabrizio and Bob Ward recently released a memo warning that extending the health care tax credits is broadly popular, even with 'solid majorities of Trump voters and [s]wing voters.' They warned that the GOP will pay a 'political penalty' in the competitive districts in the 2026 midterm elections if the funding expires on schedule.
Analysis by Kristen Welker
The Jeffrey Epstein saga is the political headache that won't go away for President Donald Trump, as the drip-drip of new reporting on his past relationship with the convicted sex offender and repeated attempts to deflect have only fed the story.
It's the first time we've really seen Trump's base break with him to this degree. Even though the impulse to rally around their leader remains as each new story breaks, no matter how Trump tries to change the subject, the calls for his administration to release more information from the Epstein files are only growing louder.
The issue transcends politics — it's a devastating reminder of the victims of the crimes committed by Epstein and those who enabled him.
As far as how it's playing out on Capitol Hill, Democrats and even some Republicans are trying to hold the Trump administration's feet to the fire. Both parties believe the GOP could pay a political price on the issue as they look to defend their congressional majorities in next year's midterms.
That includes Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., one of our guests on 'Meet the Press' this Sunday.
'People will become apathetic again. They'll say, we elected President Trump. We gave him a majority in the House and the Senate, and they couldn't even release evidence of an underage sex trafficking ring. They couldn't even bring themselves to release that. I thought we were the party of family values, and I guess we're not,' Massie said this week on the 'Redacted' podcast.
And Democrats, including Rep. Ro Khanna of California — another one of our guests this Sunday — argue the issue has salience on multiple fronts. They note it divides Trump and his base while also making a relatively popular appeal for transparency, one piece of a broader Democratic line of attack that the administration isn't being open with the American people.
While it's unsurprising that Democrats overwhelmingly disapprove of how the Trump administration is handling the Epstein files, according to a recent Quinnipiac University poll, 71% of independents disapprove, too. And Republicans are about evenly divided, with 40% approving and 36% disapproving of the administration's handling of the issue.
The political cost for Republicans isn't clear yet. Will it depress the enthusiasm of voters Republicans are scrambling to motivate to turn out with Trump not on the ballot? Will it force the party onto the defense at a time where it needs to be cementing public sentiment about its landmark tax cuts and spending bill, which Democrats are already weaponizing as a key midterm issue? Could Democrats overplay their hand if it overshadows their message on the most important issue to many voters, the economy?
We'll discuss this and more on this Sunday's 'Meet the Press.' In addition to Khanna and Massie, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., will also be joining us.
Thanks to everyone who emailed us! This week's reader question is on Republicans' attempts to draw new congressional maps in Texas.
'Is it legal what Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas Republicans want to do for Trump?'
To answer that, we turned to senior politics editor Scott Bland. Here's his response:
Redistricting happens every decade after the decennial census, so that each state has representation in the House of Representatives reflecting its official population and each district in a state has the same number of people in it.
But this isn't the first time someone has moved to change the maps mid-decade.
In fact, this isn't even the first time it's happened in Texas. In 2002, Texas Republicans gained full control of the state Legislature, and they decided the following year to draw a new map to replace a court-drawn one that had been imposed for that decade — and to increase the GOP advantage in the state.
'I'm the majority leader and we want more seats,' Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas, told reporters at the time.
What flies in Texas doesn't necessarily fly everywhere, though. Colorado Republicans also tried to redraw maps in their state in 2003, but the state Supreme Court ruled that the state Constitution forbade revisiting the maps more than once per decade.
While Democrats are eager to fight back against the GOP's effort to draw more red seats in Texas, such obstacles could stand in their way. As New York Democratic Party Chair Jay Jacobs told Politico this week, 'I understand those in New York who are watching what's happening in Texas and Ohio want to offset their unfair advantage.'
But, he added, 'The [state] Constitution seems pretty clear that this redistricting process should be done every 10 years.'
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Axios
an hour ago
- Axios
Some Republicans aren't backing down from Epstein transparency push
Amid bipartisan calls for transparency and a cascade of Epstein-related headlines, some GOP lawmakers are holding the line — while others are urging more sunlight from the Trump administration. The big picture: The case of the disgraced financier, who died in 2019, has taken on new life under the second Trump administration, creating splinters in the president's base and dominating conversations on Capitol Hill. While some Republicans are falling in line with President Trump and making calls to move on, others are defying leadership and joining in with Democrats by continuing to criticize the administration's handling of the case. Driving the news: Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), who are leading a bipartisan charge to force a House vote on releasing files related to Epstein, were optimistic on Sunday's political talk shows that their measure would succeed. "It will pass," Khanna said on NBC's "Meet the Press." Massie warned on ABC's "This Week" that if a vote doesn't come to the floor, the GOP could feel political punishment in 2026, cautioning voters could "check out" because "Republicans didn't keep their promise." And with the House breaking for its weeks-long recess, Massie predicts the pressure will only build: "I don't think it's going to dissipate like the speaker hopes that it will." Yes, but: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) argued in a Sunday interview with NBC's Kristen Welker that the lawmakers' discharge petition is "not the right approach," contending it doesn't build in "adequate protections" for victims. "House Republicans insist upon the release of all credible evidence and information related to Epstein in any way, but we are also insisting upon the protection of innocent victims," he said. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), echoed Johnson on "Meet the Press," saying he's "on board" to "release as much as you can, protecting victims the best you can." The other side: Massie, responding to the DOJ's conclusion that releasing further materials could hurt victims, told Welker, "That's a straw man." He continued, "Ro and I carefully crafted this legislation so that the victims' names will be redacted and that no child pornography will be released, so they're hiding behind that." Catch up quick: Trump directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to "produce any and all pertinent Grand Jury testimony, subject to Court approval" earlier this month. But a federal judge on Wednesday struck down the administration's request to unseal grand jury transcripts in connection with an investigation into Epstein, writing that the court's "hands were tied." And while Trump has said Bondi should release"credible" information, he's repeatedly bashed what he has dubbed the "Jeffrey Epstein Hoax" and blamed his political rivals for "making up" the files. Zoom out: While some Republicans and MAGA-friendly figures have turned up the heat on the administration, other Trump allies have echoed the president's targeting of his predecessors. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) sparred with CNN's Jake Tapper Sunday over Epstein's controversial plea deal with federal prosecutors in Florida, arguing the agreement was struck under the Obama administration.

Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
Fury over Epstein files follows Congress home as summer break begins
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Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
Calif., Illinois may fight new Texas congressional maps with their own
As the Texas Legislature plans to redraw congressional maps in an effort to increase Republican members in the U.S. House, the governors of California and Illinois may devise their own new borders. Traditionally, the boundaries are changed every 10 years with the latest U.S. Census data but Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has called a special legislative session after pressure from the White House to preserve the GOP majority in the U.S. House. President Donald Trump believes an additional five seats could be created by changing the borders. Of the state's 38 districts, 25 are held by Republicans. Democrats hold seats in big cities of Austin, Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Houston, Laredo, McAllen, San Antonio. Ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, Republicans hold a 219-212 advantage in the House with four vacancies -- three Democrats who died and one Republican who resigned this week. More than a dozen Texas House members flew to Illinois and California -- two blue states -- on Friday for a meeting with California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzkeper, during which they revealed their intentions. 'Donald Trump called up Governor Abbott for one simple reason: to rig the 2026 elections. California's moral high ground means nothing if we're powerless because of it,' Newsom said after meeting with Democrats from the Texas House. 'This moment requires us to be prepared to fight fire with fire. Whether that's a special election, a ballot initiative, a bill, a fight in court. If they proceed in Texas, we will be ready.' 'This is not a bluff. This is real, and trust me, it's more real after listening to these leaders today, how existential this is,' Newsom said. As the most populous state in the nation, California has 43 Democratic members of the house and nine Republican members, while Illinois is represented by 14 Democrats and three Republicans. 'Everything is on the table,' Pritzer said. The Illinois governor said he doesn't want to redraw the maps but 'if they're going to take this drastic action, then we might also take drastic action to respond.' 'We want the country to understand [that] what's going on in Texas is a national battle,' State Rep. Richard Pena Raymond, a Democrat from Laredo, said. Raymond told Pritzner that redistricting is 'clearly aimed at affecting the entire country.' Responsibility for determining Congressional district maps differs from state to state. In California, an independent commission approved by voters in 2010 works on the maps. Illinois maps, on the other hand, are put together by the state lawmakers have been drawn strongly to favor the Democrat Party in the state. Newsom said he is considering having a referendum to change the rules before the 2026 election, unless the Legislature comes up with another solution, which would take two-thirds of legislators voting in favor of. 'We have to fight fire with fire,' Newsom said. Two other Democratic governors are considering new maps -- Phil Murphy in New Jersey and Kathy Hochul in New York. 'There's other states that are violating the rules,' Hochul said during a news conference on Thursday. 'I'm going to look at it closely with Hakeem Jeffries,' a New York member of the House, as well has House minority leader. In New York, Democrats have a 19-7 advantage as a result of their districting maps. 'It's deplorable,' Murphy said during an interview at the summer meeting of the bipartisan National Governors Association in Colorado Springs. 'If they're going to play these games, we're going to have to be just as aggressive. We can't bring a knife to a gunfight.' Democrats hold nine of the 12 seats in New Jersey. In Florida, the state Supreme Court on July 17 upheld its newest congressional map. He said he believes the state had been 'malappropriated' and redistricting 'would be appropriate' in a few years. Florida's congressional delegation is controlled by Republicans, 20-8. In Ohio, legislators are required to redraw maps before 2026. The GOP has 10 of the 15 seats. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis is against redistricting more frequently. The state's maps are overseen by an independent commission and it's eight U.S. House seats are evenly split 4-4. Texas last redrew its borders in mid-cycle in 2003 after the GOP gained control of both chambers for the first time since Reconstruction. In Texas, Abbott noted a July 7 letter from the Justice Department that said majority Black and Hispanic districts in Dallas need to be redrawn based on a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit last year. The DOJ said those districts are 'unconstitutional racial gerrymanders,' but Abbott argued the opposite in 2021. In federal court in El Paso, he argued race had not been taken into account there. 'We are no longer compelled to have coalition districts,' Abbott said in an interview with KDFW in Dallas. U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, a San Antonio Democrat, appeared at a state House hearing. 'That's what's at stake here, whether you all are going to work for the people of Texas, as we used to do, to try to do, or whether you take your commandments from Donald Trump and the White House,' Castro said. 'I hope that you all will choose to do the business of the people of Texas, as this body has a history of being independent from the federal government.' Copyright 2025 UPI News Corporation. All Rights Reserved.