The Latest: Justice Department fires prosecutor on Epstein case and daughter of ex-FBI director

The Justice Department has fired Maurene Comey the daughter of former FBI director James Comey and a prosecutor in the federal cases against Sean Diddy Combs and Jeffrey Epstein two people familiar with the matter informed The Associated Press on Wednesday There was no specific reason given for her firing from the U S attorney s office in the Southern District of New York according to one of the people who spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters Earlier Wednesday President Donald Trump commented that it was highly unlikely he would fire Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell unless he has to leave for fraud The comment came less than hours after Trump indicated in a private meeting that he is leaning in favor of dismissing the head of the U S central bank U S stocks were shaky after the news broke as such a move could help Wall Street get the lower interest rates that it loves but would also jeopardy a weakened Fed unable to make the unpopular moves needed to keep inflation under control Here s the latest Justice Department fires prosecutor on Epstein episode two people familiar with the matter tell AP There was no specific reason given for her firing from the U S attorney s office in the Southern District of New York according to one of the people who spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters Her termination comes shortly after she prosecuted Sean Diddy Combs who was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges The rapper was convicted of lesser prostitution-related offenses The Justice Department of late appeared to acknowledge the existence of an analysis into her father former FBI director James Comey though the basis for that inquiry is unclear He was abruptly fired by Trump during his first administration in Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer and Eric Tucker contributed Make American Coke Great Again President Donald Trump mentioned Wednesday that Coca-Cola has agreed to use real cane sugar in its flagship soft drink in the U S at his suggestion though the company didn t confirm such a move This will be a very good move by them You ll see It s just better Trump wrote on his social media site A spokesperson for Atlanta-based Coca-Cola Co announced in a report that the company appreciated Trump s enthusiasm and promised that more details on new offerings within its products would be shared soon Coca-Cola didn t elaborate further Any switch from high-fructose corn syrup in Coke sold in the U S would put Coca-Cola more in line with its practice in other countries including Mexico and Australia Returning to sugar in U S production might affect the nation s corn farmers whose yields are used in artificial sweeteners Read more about the feasible of cane sugar being used in U S Coke production Trump tries to blame others as tensions rise around handling of Epstein scenario On Tuesday he accused former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden as well as former FBI Director James Comey of making up the much-hyped unreleased records in the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking event Trump presented no evidence in claiming that Democrats and Comey tampered with documents related to Epstein s occurrence Comey was fired in two years before Epstein s arrest and Obama was long gone from the White House by the time of Epstein s death During Biden s presidency the Justice Department put on trial an Epstein co-conspirator but there is no indication that he or anyone from the White House had anything to do with that episode Read more about Trump s states against former regime leaders First your shoes and now your shampoo More changes may be afoot for airline travelers going through TSA checkpoints Homeland Measure Secretary Kristi Noem has hinted there could be changes to the current -ounce milliliters liquid limit for carry-ons Noem says she is questioning the liquids limit So that may be the next big announcement is what size your liquids need to be she recounted a conference on Wednesday hosted by The Hill This follows her current announcement that travelers will be allowed to keep their shoes on during airport screenings The liquid limits were introduced after a plot involving liquid explosives was foiled Read more on Noem s plan Trump says his fentanyl bill is a blow to drug cartels Trump commented the bill will toughen prison sentences by permanently reclassifying illegal fentanyl-related drugs as Schedule narcotics We ll be getting the drug dealers pushers and peddlers off our streets Trump explained before signing the bill into law Wednesday Fentanyl is a highly potent opioid drug that doctors sometimes prescribe for severe pain But illegal forms of the drug often fabricated in China have been driving U S overdose deaths for years Illicit producers have developed an array of tweaked versions of the drug to get around U S regulations The new bill automatically places all fentanyl-related copycat drugs into the cabinet s the bulk highly restrictive category of banned substances which also includes heroin The bill does not affect fentanyl when used for curative purposes Several people spoke about losing their loved ones including children to fentanyl overdoses Lt Gen Michael Flynn pleads with Trump to take action on Epstein files Trump s first-term national guard adviser isn t satisfied with the president s actions on Epstein and he s making it known In a post on X Flynn commented records of the late New York financier s sex-trafficking scrutiny are not a hoax as Trump has called them He urged Trump to reestablish trust between the ruling body and the people by holding accountable anyone involved in Epstein s abuse of children With my strongest recommendation please gather your unit and figure out a way to move past this Flynn wrote The roll out of this was terrible no way around that Americans want America to be flourishing therefore WE NEED YOU TO BE PROSPEROUS House Speaker Mike Johnson insists he and Trump see eye-to-eye on Epstein Johnson is emphatically denying that his views differ from the president s on whether records related to Jeffrey Epstein s sex trafficking probe should be made population He stated reporters he has been misquoted and misrepresented as he attempted to bring together a coalition that has been roiled by the administration s handling of the issue Johnson stated on a podcast Tuesday that on the Epstein files the Trump administration should put everything out there and let the people decide The House Speaker was more specific Wednesday saying he agrees with the president that all of the credible information should be circulated Trump has been trying to get supporters to move on from Epstein He explained reporters Tuesday that Attorney General Pam Bondi should release whatever she thinks is credible but followed that with suggestions that the documents had credibility issues and were made up by Democrats in past administrations On Wednesday he reiterated those insists and lambasted what he called the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax He also lashed out at his own base saying he no longer demanded the endorsement of people who are still talking about Epstein A federal judge in Tennessee may rule on whether to release Kilmar Abrego Garcia from jail Lawyers for the Justice Department have reported U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement will detain Abrego Garcia if he s freed The Salvadoran national is awaiting trial on human smuggling charges The judge could rule in his situation on Wednesday ICE bureaucrats have disclosed they will initiate deportation proceedings against Abrego Garcia if he is distributed and may even send him to a third country such as Mexico or South Sudan Abrego Garcia became a flashpoint over Trump s immigration policies when he was wrongfully deported to his native El Salvador in March That expulsion violated a U S immigration judge s order that shields Abrego Garcia from deportation because he likely faces threats of gang violence in El Salvador Justice Department alumni urge lawmakers to reject Trump s judicial pick In a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee more than former Justice Department lawyers raised concerns about elevating Emil Bove a top department official to the rd U S Circuit Court of Appeals They cited Bove s role in the dismissal of New York Mayor Eric Adams occurrence and the declares of a whistleblower who says Bove suggested the department might have to flout court orders It is intolerable to us that anyone who disgraces the Justice Department would be promoted to one of the highest courts in the land as it should be intolerable to anyone committed to maintaining our ordered system of justice they wrote The committee is expected to vote Thursday on Bove s nomination Bove who also defended Trump in his criminal cases has denied the whistleblower s asserts He communicated lawmakers at his confirmation hearing I am someone who tries to stand up for what I believe is right Vance wraps Pennsylvania speech The vice president urged those in the crowd to Talk about what the bill does for American citizens ahead of the next year s midterm elections Vance also called the vice presidency a fun job and declared it was the honor of his life Vance rails against elites in Washington promoting four-year college The vice president says the Trump administration is pushing for Americans coming out of high school to be able to chart your own unit in your own career path Why is it that we force every single young person to get a big chunk of debt at a four-year college or university Why don t we give our young people more options Vance requested He added We think it s fine if you want to go to college go to college But he continued If you want to work with your hands if you want to build a house build a bridge then your administration should not be forcing you to do what elites in Washington want you to do Vance himself graduated from Ohio State University and Yale Law School Vance touts Trump s budget bill in Pennsylvania Vice President JD Vance is speaking in Pennsylvania working to sell Trump s sweeping budget-and-policy package in a blue-collar district that could see a ferocious congressional campaign next year Vance addressed the crowd at Don s Machine Shop in West Pittston saying While you guys thrived with bad framework coming from Washington D C I think that you re going to take off into a rocket ship with good protocol coming from Washington D C under Donald J Trump s leadership He highlighted how the measure cuts taxes including federal levies owed on overtime pay The vice president also commented the measure cuts taxes for companies creating jobs in the U S and pledged that the Trump administration would keep fighting for people who want to work with your hands The Pentagon offers a peek at the future of drone warfare The Pentagon is showcasing the next generation of autonomous military equipment with a demonstration of aerial undersea and terrestrial drone tool The Department of Defense displayed more than a dozen prototypes Wednesday during an exhibition in the Pentagon s central plaza The event was designed to highlight emerging technologies that military leaders hope will soon be available on the battlefield Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth toured the exhibition and spoke about the need to incentivize more partnerships between the military and private tech companies On drones large small all classes we need to be world class Hegseth commented The equipment included several unmanned aircraft designed to execute offensive and defensive missions There were also unmanned water vessels and an autonomous submersible that generates power from temperature fluctuations in the ocean Other high-tech devices included weapons stations that can fire bullets or rockets The exhibition comes as Trump has issued new rules intended to spur innovations in drone expansion in the U S Trump waves a prop letter about firing the Fed chair while meeting lawmakers The president waved it during a discussion with lawmakers Tuesday night about firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell but it was essentially a prop drafted by someone else Trump hasn t drafted an actual letter firing Powell according to a person familiar who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the private meeting The president has called for Powell s resignation and indicated that a renovation of Fed buildings could be grounds for dismissing the leader of the U S central bank But no final decision has been made by Trump on whether he will try to dismiss Powell or wait out the Fed chair whose term expires in Mary Trump advised reporters Wednesday that it s highly unlikely he will fire Powell By Josh Boak Speaker Mike Johnson says a new Fed chair would be helpful Johnson stopped short of calling for Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to be fired saying he wasn t certain about the executive authority involved But he did say new leadership would be helpful at the Fed I ve been unhappy with the leadership there personally Johnson communicated reporters Wednesday when urged whether Trump should remove Powell Tempers flare as State Department defends mass layoff in congressional committee Disagreements erupted into a shouting match during a meeting of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday when a Democratic lawmaker accused a top department official of lying about the extent of staff reductions Deputy Secretary of State for Management Michael Rigas testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday about the firing of more than civil servants and foreign facility officers last week Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey was visibly angry as he confronted Rigas with a list of what Booker commented were misstatements half-truths or lies I don t trust you Mr Rigas Booker commented Your statements lack veracity This is outrageous Rigas replied as he sought to respond despite multiple interruptions from Booker Booker s list resembled one compiled by former State Department executives that identified certain eliminated positions that Rigas announced had been largely spared from the so-called reduction in force Those include employees in the bureaus of intelligence and research consular affairs diplomatic guard potential and international organizations Sir you have not been truthful Booker revealed I have watched you lie to this committee I have watched you lie to the House committee Former Jill Biden aide declines to answer questions about former president s age during House Republican inquiry Anthony Bernal Jill Biden s former chief of staff invoked his Fifth Amendment rights during a deposition before the House Oversight Committee Well unfortunately that was short revealed Congressman James Comer the committee s chair Comer promised to continue the inquiry and did not rule out subpoenaing former Vice President Kamala Harris or members of President Joe Biden s family Oversight Republicans claim without evidence that Biden was mentally incapacitated during his term and that his use of the presidential autopen while in office was illegal This is corruption at the highest level mentioned Rep Byron Donalds a Florida Republican running for governor of his state Democrats have dismissed the study as a sideshow They still look like losers commented Rep Jasmine Crockett a Texas Democrat who sat in on Bernal s deposition US companies doing business in China hope for a leader-level summit A meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping could lower tensions in bilateral relations according to Sean Stein president of the U S -China Business Council The business locality is very supportive of the idea of a meeting between the two presidents Stein mentioned Wednesday In its annual survey disclosed Wednesday a record high number of council members announced they had no new plans to invest in China this year The survey also identified a record-high number of companies indicated they may relocate business operations outside China The survey identified the U S -China relationship and tariffs as the top concerns for U S businesses operating in China Stein mentioned tariffs and export controls by China and the U S are presenting challenges U S Secretary of State Marco Rubio this month announced odds are high for the two leaders to meet this year but that there s no firm plan Trump defends Bondi says she s done very good on the Epstein event The president complained that Attorney General Pam Bondi has been waylaid over her handling of the episode but that he thinks she s doing a great job Bondi has given out credible information about Epstein and if she finds any more credible information she ll give that too he commented What more can she do than that Trump stated Bondi has bigger problems to work on and cited the administration s work to remove criminals who are in the U S illegally Read more on the Epstein event Trump continues criticizing his supporters over Epstein conspiracy theories Although parts of the president s base have clamored for more information about the Jeffrey Epstein scenario Trump has made it clear that he s done with the story It s all been a big hoax he mentioned in the Oval Office on Wednesday It s perpetrated by the Democrats and selected stupid Republicans and foolish Republicans fall into the net Trump echoed a social media post earlier in the day when he revealed talking about the matter distracts from his accomplishments Trump opens his meeting with flattery Sitting with the crown prince of Bahrain he described the Gulf nation as a fantastic ally He revealed they would discuss deal and other topics The prince explained they would announce billion of investments in the United States which builds upon a legacy that we re very proud of Trump only wants a Federal Reserve chair who would cut interest rates The president declared Wednesday that he wants to replace Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell with someone who would cut interest rates setting one of the criteria for candidates seeking to lead the U S central bank I m only interested in low interest people Trump communicated reporters The White House is pressuring Powell over the cost of renovating Fed buildings but Trump has been outspoken in attacking Powell for declining to the Fed s benchmark interest rate until the inflationary impact of the president s tariffs is reflected in the content Trump insists that inflation is low and has suggested anyone with a brain could be the Fed chair It s not a tough job to be honest assuming you re smart he disclosed It might be one of the easiest jobs I ve ever seen Trump floats Powell dismissal in meeting with lawmakers The president indicated in a private meeting late Tuesday that he is leaning in favor of firing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell The comments came in a meeting with House Republicans in the Oval Office according to a White House official During the meeting which was scheduled on a separate matter Trump inquired lawmakers how they feel about Powell and they expressed aid for dismissing him reported the official who was granted anonymity to discuss a private conversation In response the president communicated that he was leaning in that direction according to the official By Seung Min Kim Bahrain s crown prince arrives at the White House Trump met his guest at the door to the West Wing He did not answer questions about the foreseen for a ceasefire in Gaza Maine clinics sue over Medicaid defunding One piece of the big budget and agenda measure Trump signed this month sought to cut off Medicaid reimbursements for Planned Parenthood affiliates But the nation s biggest abortion provider isn t the only organization hit by the cuts Maine Family Planning sued Wednesday seeking to have reimbursements for its clinics restored The group says it can be hard for a large number of people in rural Maine to access healthcare care without it Medicaid is already barred under federal law from covering most of abortions This defunding measure impacts other services including contraception cancer screenings and primary care offered by certain abortion providers A judge has already restored Planned Parenthood s reimbursements for now Read more about the Maine clinics lawsuit Trump slams his own supporters as he tries to move past Epstein SCAM Trump faces mounting criticism from his political base over the Justice Department s failure to release much-hyped records in Jeffrey Epstein s sex trafficking inquiry Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax and my PAST supporters have bought into this bulls hook line and sinker he wrote on his Truth Social site Wednesday morning He goes on to say Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats work don t even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success because I don t want their advocacy anymore Thank you for your attention to this matter Read more about Trump s Epstein dilemma Rubio says US very concerned by surge in Israel-Syria violence seeking a restoration of ceasefire Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated reporters he had just been on the phone with relevant parties and hoped to have an update later Wednesday We want the fighting to stop because we had a ceasefire he mentioned Overnight it broke down so we re talking with both sides all the relevant sides and hopefully we can bring it to a conclusion Earlier Wednesday the Israeli military launched are airstrikes in the heart of Damascus hitting the Syrian Defense Ministry headquarters and near the presidential palace in the hills outside the capital Clashes have raged for days in the southern Syrian city of Sweida between cabinet forces and Druze armed groups and Israel has launched dozens of strikes targeting regime troops and convoys Israel says the strikes are in patronage of the religious minority group and has vowed to escalate its involvement Read more about the fighting in Syria Trump to sign Louisiana senator s fentanyl bill into law Sen Bill Cassidy R-La asks a question during a Senate Soundness Instruction Labor and Pensions HELP Committee hearing Wednesday June on Capitol Hill in Washington AP Photo Mariam Zuhaib Republican Sen Bill Cassidy s office says he has been pushing the HALT Fentanyl Act since The bill would make permanent a exigency rule that classifies the synthetic opioid and its knockoffs as Schedule I controlled substances That change would end in harsher sentences for possession of the drug The White House has a bill-signing ceremony scheduled for Wednesday afternoon US and Bahrain pave the way for a civilian-nuclear cooperation deal The U S and Bahrain signed the agreement as the Trump administration ramps up efforts to enhance global capacity measure The deal will open up negotiations on what is known as a agreement It will allow U S and American companies to invest in and construct nuclear force projects in Bahrain an island nation off the coast of Saudi Arabia with a population of around million people Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani signed the memorandum of understanding on Wednesday after Rubio signed a similar agreement with Malaysia last week The United States is prepared to be partner with any nation on Earth that wants to pursue a civil nuclear operation that clearly is not geared towards weapons and or threatening the guard of their neighbors Rubio announced Huckabee makes surprise visit to Netanyahu s trial U S Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee s visit to the courthouse was a rare act of involvement in his host country s internal affairs It comes after Trump condemned the trial as a witch hunt Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is accused of fraud breach of trust and accepting bribes in three separate cases Huckabee explained Wednesday s appearance was a matter of representing what the president has mentioned repeatedly The president has made his position very clear Huckabee disclosed ahead of his visit to the courthouse in Tel Aviv It s a personal thing for him He considers the prime minister a friend After the visit Huckabee reposted Trump s call for the trial to be thrown out and added the comment My conclusion Trump is right again Read more about Trump and Netanyahu s relationship A look inside a lab making the advanced fuel to power growing US nuclear force ambitions Near signs that warn of radioactive peril at Oak Ridge National Laboratory a half-dozen workers from the nuclear power company X-energy are making what appear to be gray billiard balls Inside they re packed with thousands of tiny black spheres that each contain a speck of uranium enriched beyond what the present day s power plants use The United States is chasing a new age of nuclear power that banks on domestic production of reactor fuel like X-energy is making and though the work at Oak Ridge is unfolding across just square feet X-energy and others are already revving up for big production President Trump set a goal of quadrupling domestic production of nuclear power within the next years signing executive orders in May to speed up advance A new wave of advanced nuclear reactors could be operational around But just like cars won t run without gas those plants won t run without fuel To expand nuclear potency long-term the nation must maximize its nuclear fuel production according to Trump Read more about US nuclear vigor ambitions Wholesale inflation can indicate where inflation might be headed Economists also watch it because specific of its components notably measures of vitality care and financial services flow into the Federal Reserve s preferred inflation gauge the personal consumption expenditures or PCE index Inflation began to flare up for the first time in decades in as the market system roared back with unexpected strength from COVID- lockdowns That prompted the Fed to raise its benchmark interest rate times in and The higher borrowing costs helped bring inflation down from the peaks it reached in and last year the Fed felt at ease enough with the progress to cut rates three times But it has turned cautious this year while it waits to see the inflationary impact of Trump s transaction policies Trump has aggressively stepped up pressure on the Fed to cut rates a move that threatens the central bank s independence US producer prices unchanged with wholesale inflation remaining under control U S wholesale inflation cooled last month despite worries that Trump s tariffs would push prices higher for goods before they reach consumers The Labor Department broadcasted Wednesday that its producer price index which tracks inflation before it hits consumers was unchanged last month from May and up from a year earlier Both measures came in below what economists had expected Excluding volatile food and capacity prices so-called core producer prices were also unchanged from May and up from June The statement on wholesale inflation came a day after the Labor Department announced that consumer prices last month rose from June the biggest year-over-year gain since February as Trump s sweeping tariffs pushed up the cost of everything from groceries to appliances Trump s schedule according to the White House Certain Republicans remain skeptical of the rescissions package Maine Sen Susan Collins the Republican chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee declared she was particularly concerned about a lack of specifics from the White House Nobody really knows what operation reductions are in it Collins explained That isn t because we haven t had time to review the bill Instead the complication is that OMB has never provided the details that would normally be part of this process The Office of Management and Budget acts as a nerve center for the White House growing its budget initiative priorities and agency rulemaking Sen Lisa Murkowski R-Alaska announced she didn t want the Senate to be going through numerous rounds of rescissions We are lawmakers We should be legislating Murkowski declared What we re getting now is a direction from the White House and being informed This is the priority and we want you to execute on it We ll be back with you with another round I don t accept that Sen Mitch McConnell R-Ky Collins and Murkowski joined with Democrats in voting against the Senate taking up the measure but the large majority of Republicans were supportive of Trump s request Trump administration says it is ending deployment of National Guard troops in Los Angeles Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell communicated the decision Tuesday in a announcement Roughly National Guard troops and Marines had been deployed It was not forthwith clear how long the rest would stay The troops were tasked with protecting federal buildings and guarding immigration agents as they carry out arrests The president ordered the deployment of about California National Guard troops and active-duty Marines in early June to respond to protests against immigration raids in and around Los Angeles Their deployment went against the wishes of Gov Gavin Newsom who sued to stop it A district court judge initially mentioned Trump acted illegally in deploying the Guard over Newsom s opposition but an appeals court revealed the administration could keep control of the troops The episode is ongoing Newsom revealed the National Guard s deployment to L A has pulled troops away from their families and civilian work to serve as political pawns for the President in Los Angeles Source