Today’s Headlines: The Epstein files just keep coming—House Oversight dropped a batch of subpoenaed documents from his estate, including Trump’s long-denied birthday note (with the very recognizable Trump signature) plus another note from a Mar-a-Lago member joking about Epstein “selling” Trump a woman for $22,500. Meanwhile, the NYT dropped a bomb on JP Morgan, showing how the bank ignored red flags to keep Epstein as a client for years because he was too lucrative—and too connected to people like Bill Gates and Sergey Brin. The DOJ, for its part, asked a judge to keep the names of two Epstein associates who got six-figure payments in 2018 sealed. Elsewhere, the Supreme Court greenlit roving immigration patrols in LA, prompting Gov. Newsom to accuse the conservative majority of being the “Grand Marshal for a parade of racial terror.” Trump, asked about his Chicago “war” meme, claimed he just meant “cleaning up cities” as DHS launched “Operation Midway Blitz” targeting undocumented immigrants with criminal records. ICE raided a Hyundai plant in Georgia, detaining 475 workers—most of them South Korean nationals—sparking diplomatic talks with Seoul. On top of that, Trump wants to make the citizenship test harder, possibly with an essay requirement. In digital warfare news, the FBI warned China’s Salt Typhoon campaign has now hit 600 companies in 80 countries—and possibly every American. Hackers even impersonated Rep. John Moolenaar during trade talks. Finally, Axios reported Biden staffers were uneasy about his heavy reliance on autopen for pardons and Trump cheered West Point for scrapping an award for the “woke” Tom Hanks.

Resources/Articles mentioned in this episode:

WSJ: Epstein Birthday Letter With Trump’s Signature Revealed

NYT: How JP Morgan Enabled The Crimes Of Jeffrey Epstein

NBC News: DOJ says names of two associates Epstein wired $100k and $250k to should stay secret

LA Times: Supreme Court allows Trump administration to resume indiscriminate immigration raids in Los Angeles

NYT: Trump Administration Live Updates: President Says He's Not Declaring 'War' on Chicago

NYT: Immigration Crackdown in Chicago

WSJ: Seoul Says Deal Reached With U.S. to Release Workers Detained in Hyundai Raid

Axios: Trump's team plans harder test for U.S. citizenship — and more leeway to reject applicants

Axios: China's hacking machine wants your data and knows how to get it

WSJ: Chinese Hackers Pretended to Be a Top U.S. Lawmaker During Trade Talks

Axios: Scoop: Biden officials raised concerns with how he issued pardons, used autopen

AP News: Trump celebrates West Point alumni group canceling award ceremony to honor Tom Hanks

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

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