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House Republicans’ Cruel Summer

G.O.P. members were hoping to spend the August recess focused on selling the (unpopular) Big Beautiful Bill to their constituents, and messaging about extended tax cuts. But the Epstein drama has consumed everything.

Marjorie Taylor Greene
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has been vocal about the lack of transparency on the Epstein case from the Trump administration, told me and other reporters that calls into her district and D.C. offices have been “extremely high” and “almost 100 percent” about Epstein. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images
Leigh Ann Caldwell
July 23, 2025

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During a press conference this week, House Speaker Mike Johnson touted his party’s unity, boasting that House and Senate Republicans have worked hand in hand with the president over a successful six months, capped by the passage of Trump’s signature legislation, the One Big Beautiful Bill. And it’s true: Republican cohesion has been impressive, as party members have repeatedly fallen in line behind a president who doesn’t tolerate dissent or disloyalty. But suddenly, all of that bonhomie is being tested as the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein haunts the Capitol.