Live Updates
Trump feuds with Marjorie Taylor Greene as House vote on releasing Epstein files looms
” data-timestamp-html=”
” data-check-event-based-preview data-is-vertical-video-embed=”false” data-network-id data-publish-date=”2025-11-16T16:42:02.872Z” data-video-section=”politics” data-canonical-url=”https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/16/politics/video/sotu-mtg-faircriticism-digvid” data-branding-key data-video-slug=”sotu-mtg-faircriticism-digvid” data-first-publish-slug=”sotu-mtg-faircriticism-digvid” data-video-tags data-breakpoints=”{“video-resource–media-extra-large”: 660}” data-display-video-cover=”true” data-details data-track-zone=”live-story-lede” data-sticky-anchor-pos=”bottom”>
‘That’s fair criticism’: Dana Bash presses Marjorie Taylor Greene about past divisive comments
02:09 • Source: CNN
‘That’s fair criticism’: Dana Bash presses Marjorie Taylor Greene about past divisive comments
02:09
• Epstein files: After months of delay — and despite resistance from President Donald Trump — the House will vote this week on whether to release more files from the case of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
• Political breakup: Trump is feuding with GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, once a staunch ally, who told CNN’s “State of the Union” today that the rift “has all come down to the Epstein files.” Greene is among a handful of conservatives who have been adamant about releasing the documents, though more Republican defections are expected in the vote.
• Military buildup: The US military’s most advanced aircraft carrier has arrived in the Caribbean as Trump weighs potential operations in Venezuela. President Nicolás Maduro has condemned the military buildup near South America as US forces target alleged drug-trafficking operations.
President Donald Trump offered a brisk assessment of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s safety on Sunday, after she sounded the alarm about increased threats in the aftermath of their falling out.
“I don’t think her life is in danger. … Frankly, I don’t think anybody cares about her,” Trump told reporters in Florida on his way back to Washington, referring to the Georgia Republican as “Marjorie ‘Traitor’ Greene.”
The president’s comments come after Greene expressed concerns about Trump’s rhetoric toward her on CNN’s “State of the Union” this morning.
In a recent post on X, Greene said, “President Trump’s unwarranted and vicious attacks against me were a dog whistle to dangerous radicals that could lead to serious attacks on me and my family.”
Some context: Trump announced Friday he was rescinding his endorsement of Greene and attacked her in personal terms, while the congresswoman countered that Trump was trying to make an example of her to prevent the release of files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
President Donald Trump suggested Sunday that designating Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization allows the US military the ability to target Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s assets and infrastructure inside the country.
“It allows us to do that, but we haven’t said we’re going to do that,” Trump told reporters as he departed Florida to return to Washington. “We may be having some discussions with Maduro, and we’ll see how that turns out.”
“They would like to talk,” he said, without elaborating further.
Trump made one thing clear: He doesn’t believe the administration needs congressional authorization for potential military actions inside Venezuela. At the same time, the president said he is in favor of in keeping lawmakers informed.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Sunday that the United States will designate Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization, effective November 24. The US alleges the Venezuelan cartel is led by President Nicolás Maduro and other high-ranking officials of the “illegitimate Maduro regime.”
The designation comes as the United States has ramped up its military presence in the Caribbean, including with the arrival of the world’s largest aircraft carrier on Sunday, and as tensions flair between the President Donald Trump and Maduro.
In July, the US Treasury Department sanctioned Cartel de los Soles, deeming it a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist” organization and alleging it “provided material support to Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa Cartel.”
According to the Treasury, “The cartel’s name is derived from the sun insignias often portrayed on the uniforms of Venezuelan military officials.”
In August, Attorney General Pam Bondi put out a $50 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Maduro to face US drug charges. She has not presented conclusive evidence of the Venezuelan leader’s alleged role in international drug trafficking. Caracas has flatly rejected the claims.
“Cartel de los Soles, per se, doesn’t exist. It’s a journalistic expression created to refer to the involvement of Venezuelan authorities in drug trafficking,” Phil Gunson, a researcher with the International Crisis Group based in Caracas, previously told CNN.
But this doesn’t mean there aren’t military personnel or government officials involved in drug trafficking. “All of this wouldn’t be possible without direct involvement from above,” Gunson said.
” data-timestamp-html=”
” data-check-event-based-preview data-is-vertical-video-embed=”false” data-network-id data-publish-date=”2025-11-16T23:47:20.022Z” data-video-section=”politics” data-canonical-url data-branding-key data-video-slug=”epstein-survivors-push-for-release-of-files-in-psa-ls” data-first-publish-slug=”epstein-survivors-push-for-release-of-files-in-psa-ls” data-video-tags data-breakpoints=”{“video-resource–media-extra-large”: 660}” data-display-video-cover=”true” data-details>
Epstein survivors push for release of files in latest PSA
01:10
Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein are making a last-minute public push to convince House Republicans to vote to release all of the files related to the convicted sex offender with an emotional direct-to-camera appeal.
The public service announcement was created by World Without Exploitation, which fights against sexual exploitation, and released Sunday evening ahead of this week’s highly anticipated vote. In the video, a number of Epstein’s survivors hold up photos from their teenage years, when they allegedly first encountered the financier, who died by suicide in 2019.
“I suffered so much pain,” they say through tears, before stating how old they were when they met the sex offender: 14, 16, 17. “This is me, when I met Jeffrey Epstein.”
“There are about a thousand of us,” one survivor says; another voice says: “It’s time to bring the secrets out of the shadows.”
A message flashes on the screen that reads: “Call your congress member and demand they release ALL of the Epstein files.”
A discharge petition that would force the House to vote to release the Epstein files garnered the final necessary signature last week, and the lower chamber is expected to take a vote this week. While only four House Republicans supported the petition, CNN has reported that many more GOP “yes” votes are expected on releasing the files. Epstein survivors have made other efforts to lobby lawmakers, including sending a group letter to members of Congress.
“The survivors believe this vote offers an opportunity to stand firmly on the side of protecting minors from abuse,” Lauren Hersh, national director of World Without Exploitation, said in a statement. “They want the public to see how gaps in the system allowed a predator to operate for years and to understand what must change to prevent that from happening again.”
The streets of Caracas were calm this morning, despite the all-too-real possibility of US strikes on Venezuelan soil looming in the background.
Yesterday, the country’s strongman President Nicolás Maduro boasted that over 4 million Venezuelans had taken a solemn oath to defend the fatherland. CNN cannot verify the figure, and the Venezuelan government has exaggerated similar claims in the past, but the announcement shows how urgently the threat is felt by Maduro.
Regular Venezuelans, not so much.
“There’s not much going on, going out on a Friday you feel like nothing odd is happening,” Jose Roman, an entrepreneur in Caracas, told CNN last week.
This morning, as the tropical sun scorched Caracas, residents were more likely to spend the day with their families or at the park than bulking up on groceries or gasoline with an eye to a potential war.
Economics might play a part too.
According to the International Monetary Fund, Venezuela has the highest inflation rate in the world, at more than 400% year on year.
The local currency, the bolívar, has depreciated more than 80% since the first deployment of US military assets in the region, which can explain why — rather than an attack — Venezuelans are more worried what to put on the table.
” data-timestamp-html=”
” data-check-event-based-preview data-is-vertical-video-embed=”false” data-network-id data-publish-date=”2025-11-16T22:33:28.422Z” data-video-section=”us” data-canonical-url=”https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/16/us/video/venezuelans-in-new-york-city-react-military-trump-digvid” data-branding-key data-video-slug=”venezuelans-in-new-york-city-react-military-trump-digvid” data-first-publish-slug=”venezuelans-in-new-york-city-react-military-trump-digvid” data-video-tags data-breakpoints=”{“video-resource–media-extra-large”: 660}” data-display-video-cover=”true” data-details>
Venezuelan community in New York City reacts to possible military action
00:34 • Source: CNN
Venezuelan community in New York City reacts to possible military action
00:34
Venezuelans in New York City are anxiously watching developments in their home country as President Donald Trump mulls the possibility of scaled-up military action in the region.
Inside a Venezuelan restaurant called El Budare Café in Queens, families gathered for Sunday lunch, telling CNN they are largely supportive of any intervention in their home country if it means bringing strongman President Nicolás Maduro’s regime to an end.
Boanerges David Tortolero told CNN he was supportive of any action to get Maduro out of power.
The Venezuelan president remains in power after a 2024 election marked by widespread fraud accusations and counting irregularities.
Several Venezuelans in New York said they worry for their families back home. Many referenced a media blackout in the country, saying their families and friends are largely uninformed about the situation playing out around their own country.
Jose Miguel Fajardo, who has been in New York City for a little over three years, said Venezuelans back home live in fear of speaking out against their government.
Fajardo said he supports American intervention in the region but would not support anything that would bring violence and further destabilization into the area.
The Pentagon conducted its 21st known strike on an alleged drug-trafficking boat yesterday, killing three people aboard the vessel, according to US Southern Command.
“Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics,” SOUTHCOM wrote in a post on social media.
“The vessel was trafficking narcotics in the Eastern Pacific and was struck in international waters,” according to the announcement.
The latest attack brings the total number of people killed by the US military’s strikes on alleged drug boats to at least 83. The legal justification for the strikes is murky, and the administration has not publicly provided evidence that specific targets are involved in trafficking.
CNN has reported that the military is using a variety of fighter jets, drones and gunships to carry out the strikes.
Remember: The Trump administration has been building up military assets in the Caribbean as it conducts the boat strikes.
The US president is now weighing a potentially scaled-up campaign, possibly including land strikes inside Venezuela or an effort to oust President Nicolás Maduro, who has condemned US intervention and denied claims that his government is involved in trafficking.
Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, says she isn’t clear on the Trump administration’s ultimate aims with its military activity in the Caribbean.
“I don’t think it’s clear what the endgame is for this administration with respect to Venezuela,” Shaheen said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” today, as the US mounts a growing show of force near South America and President Donald Trump mulls a potentially scaled-up military operation in Venezuela.
Shaheen said the administration has already not been transparent on the legality of its strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean.
The senator expressed concern that a potential military operation in Venezuela poses risks to US service members, and while she called President Nicolás Maduro a “bad character,” she said he is not a threat to the US.
“What (President Trump) has done here is to put at risk other parts of the world, and Americans in other parts of the world, for this fascination on trying to get rid of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela,” Shaheen told CBS.
“He’s been involved in drug, illegal drugs, but he is not a threat to the United States of America, and what the president is doing is raising real questions,” she added.
National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett declined to say that tariffs are feeding inflation but suggested prices for food staples like bananas, beef, coffee and tomatoes will come down after the Trump administration announced new exemptions.
Some context: To address rising costs of groceries amid a spending pullback from weary Americans, the Trump administration announced last week that agricultural imports would largely be exempt from “reciprocal” tariffs, instead of rates as high as 50% on coffee from Brazil or 10% on goods from most South American countries.
Average grocery prices in the US were 2.7% higher in September compared to last year. Coffee prices, for instance, were up nearly 21% year-over-year in August, and bananas are about 8% more expensive than they were a year ago.
We’re hearing from lawmakers and Trump administration officials on where things stand after Congress voted to reopen the government following the longest shutdown in US history.
If you’re just joining us, here’s the latest:
Republicans still have no clear solution on the expiration of key health care subsidies, which was at the center of the shutdown debacle.
- Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, was sharply critical of the Affordable Care Act during an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” but did not provide specific solutions to fix it, with just six weeks remaining before the enhanced subsidies expire. Watch the interview here.
- GOP Sen. Rick Scott of Florida signaled in a Fox News interview that he supports President Donald Trump’s proposal to send health care subsidy funds directly to consumers — a plan that’s been met by skepticism from some experts. Scott said Obamacare would ultimately not be repealed, but that it needs to be “fixed.”
- Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire called for bipartisan discussions to begin immediately with her GOP colleagues, arguing partisanship cannot bog down the urgent need to extend the subsidies. Speaking on CBS, Shaheen said she’s open to some changes to Obamacare, including income caps for people who receive benefits.
We’re also watching the soul-searching within the Democratic Party, which is dealing with internal divisions and political fallout from the shutdown vote.
- Voters dissatisfied: A majority of Democrats (55%) say their party compromised too much to end the shutdown, while half or more across party lines agree that Trump and the Republicans got more of what they wanted out of the deal, according to a new poll from CBS News and YouGov.
- Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia is still fending off criticism of his vote to end the government shutdown last week, saying today on NBC that he “knew if we wanted to get to the health care discussion, we had to open up government.”
- And for our subscribers: Read more about the heat faced by Senate Minority Lead Chuck Schumer after eight Democrats broke rank and voted with Republicans to end the shutdown.
The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group has entered the Caribbean Sea, according to the US Navy, putting the world’s most advanced carrier at the center of deepening tensions in the region.
The group is joining US forces already in the Caribbean as part of the Trump administration’s effort to “defeat and dismantle criminal networks,” the Navy said in a news release.
The Ford arrived in the broader US Southern Command area of operations on Tuesday, following orders from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Why this matters: The Trump administration has been building up military assets in the region and conducting deadly strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats. The US president is now weighing a potentially scaled-up campaign, possibly including land strikes inside Venezuela or an effort to oust President Nicolás Maduro.
Maduro has condemned any US intervention and other regional leaders have warned of potential destabilization. The Trump administration has conducted the boat strikes with little transparency.
“Ready, if asked”: US Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll said today that the US military is standing by if ordered to take action in Venezuela.
He declined to specify whether any order had been given, saying, “We would be ready, if asked.”
CNN’s Haley Britzky contributed to this report.
GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene had a wide-ranging conversation with CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union” today, marking her first interview since President Donald Trump withdrew his endorsement of her and attacked the lawmaker online as a “traitor.”
If you missed it, you can watch the full interview below:
” data-timestamp-html=”
” data-check-event-based-preview data-is-vertical-video-embed=”false” data-network-id data-publish-date=”2025-11-16T15:24:58.319Z” data-video-section=”politics” data-canonical-url=”https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/16/politics/video/sotu-mtg-full-digvid” data-branding-key data-video-slug=”sotu-mtg-full-digvid” data-first-publish-slug=”sotu-mtg-full-digvid” data-video-tags data-breakpoints=”{“video-resource–media-extra-large”: 660}” data-display-video-cover=”true” data-details>
Marjorie Taylor Greene talks Trump breakup, Epstein files in wide-ranging interview
18:10 • Source: CNN
Marjorie Taylor Greene talks Trump breakup, Epstein files in wide-ranging interview
18:10
House Speaker Mike Johnson appeared to concede today that the House will vote this week to release the Epstein files.
Johnson dismissed the push to release the documents as a political stunt by Democrats, despite a number of lawmakers in his own conference supporting the move, including lead GOP co-sponsor Rep. Thomas Massie.
He said the discharge petition forcing the vote doesn’t mention the Epstein estate files, which contains the “treasure trove of documents.”
Keep in mind: While the House bill to release the files is expected to pass, it awaits an uncertain fate in the Senate.
If the bill were to pass through the upper chamber, it would still need Trump’s signature unless it earns a veto-proof majority, which would require a huge number of GOP defections. Massie has voiced confidence that could happen.
Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna says he’s concerned that President Donald Trump’s demand for a Justice Department investigation into high-profile figures, including some of his political enemies, will get in the way of releasing more files from the case of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
“So what I’m for is transparency. Release the files and then have the accountability for anyone, regardless of their party,” he added.
Khanna said he’s hoping around 40 Republican lawmakers will vote to release all the Epstein files this week. He said Trump is “sowing the seeds for his own lame duck presidency” by going after Republicans in Congress that support the documents’ release, like Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Republican Sen. Rick Scott voiced support for President Donald Trump’s military intervention in the Caribbean, saying the president is doing “the right thing” in going after drug cartels and that Congress should not stand in the way.
“I’m appreciative that this is a president that cares about the health and safety of America. He’s doing everything he can to stop these drugs from coming in and killing our kids,” Scott said on “Fox News Sunday.”
Scott said Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, the strongman leader who remains in office following an election that was marked by widespread accusations of fraud, is not a duly elected leader.
The big picture: Trump suggested last week that he has made up his mind on a course of action in Venezuela following multiple high-level briefings this week and a mounting US show of force in the region, where his administration has already been carrying out deadly strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats.
The US president is now weighing the risks and benefits of launching a scaled-up campaign, potentially including land strikes inside Venezuela or an effort to oust Maduro.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene apologized for her role in “toxic politics” during an exclusive interview with CNN today. It came as the Georgia lawmaker says she’s facing death threats due to her growing rift with President Donald Trump.
“The most hurtful thing (Trump) said, which is absolutely untrue, is he called me a traitor, and that is, that is so extremely wrong, and those are the types of words used that can radicalize people against me and put my life in danger,” Greene told anchor Dana Bash on “State of the Union.”
Bash pushed back: “We have seen these kinds of attacks or criticism from the president at other people — it’s not new — and with respect, I haven’t heard you speak out about it until it was directed at you.”
Greene, who embraced far-right conspiracy theories during her rise into politics, said she realizes she has participated in or supported rhetoric that resulted in threats toward others, and that it has been a point of reflection for her.
Ties to White nationalist: Greene also defended her association with White nationalist and Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes, including her appearance at a conference hosted by Fuentes in 2022.
While she acknowledged the speaking engagement, Greene said she doesn’t know Fuentes personally and that she doesn’t want “anything to do” with “toxic politics” or antisemitism.
Marjorie Taylor Greene is responding to President Donald Trump’s claim that her recent criticism of him is because he discouraged her from running for Senate or governor in Georgia, telling CNN that is “absolutely not true.”
“Actually, I never had a conversation at all with the president about running for Senate or running for Georgia, and those were decisions I came to on my own,” the lawmaker told Dana Bash on “State of the Union.”
Greene said her disagreements with the president were over other issues, including Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s visit to the White House, the issuing of H1-B visas and the president’s level of involvement in foreign affairs.
That perceived focus on foreign issues over domestic priorities — in addition to Trump’s handling of the Epstein files — has been central to recent public criticism from Greene on media outlets including CNN and ABC’s “The View.”
Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene lamented the fracture between her and President Donald Trump, saying today that the rift centers on her push to release files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
In an exclusive interview with CNN’s Dana Bash, Greene said her relationship with the president deteriorated because she has been among a handful of conservatives adamant about releasing all files related to the Epstein investigation. Trump has been trying to stop Republicans in the House from voting to release the files.
“Unfortunately, it has all come down to the Epstein files,” Greene said on “State of the Union.”
The Georgia lawmaker said she doesn’t understand why the president is fighting against the files being released, as she doesn’t believe he has been implicated in anything illegal by any of Epstein’s victims.
Rep. Thomas Massie, the lead GOP co-sponsor of a bill to release more Jeffrey Epstein case files, predicted today that a large number of Republicans in the House could break with President Donald Trump and back the documents’ release when it comes up for a vote as soon as Tuesday.
Massie touted the predicted success of his discharge petition effort with Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, calling it a big win over the resistance of the House speaker, attorney general and the president himself, among other Trump officials.
Massie said he thinks Trump is “trying to protect a bunch of rich and powerful friends, billionaires, donors to his campaign, friends in his social circles” and told his fellow GOP lawmakers that the “record of this vote will last longer” than Trump’s presidency.
Keep in mind: While the House bill to release the files is expected to pass, it awaits an uncertain fate in Congress’ upper chamber.
If the bill were to pass through the Senate, it would still need Trump’s signature — unless Massie succeeds in earning the veto-proof majority he referenced, with two-thirds of the House. That’s nearly 290 votes, if all members are present.
President Donald Trump’s nationwide deportation push has come to Charlotte, North Carolina, this weekend.
Federal officials confirmed yesterday that a surge of immigration enforcement in the state’s largest city has begun, as agents were seen making arrests in multiple locations.
Local officials including Mayor Vi Lyles criticized the crackdown, saying in a statement that it is “causing unnecessary fear and uncertainty.”
What residents are saying: Manuel “Manolo” Betancur closed the doors to his family’s bakery yesterday after men in green uniforms chased and tackled people outside the popular shop on Central Avenue, he told CNN. He said he isn’t sure when he will reopen.
Betancur said he doesn’t want his customers to risk a similar encounter with federal agents — not when they’re just trying to buy some Colombian cakes or pastries.
Security video viewed by CNN shows agents chasing two people down on foot outside the bakery.
After coming to the United States with just $900 in his pocket, Betancur has become a US citizen, owns three businesses and employs almost 35 people — proof that the American dream exists, he said. Now with federal agents on the prowl, he says he’s closing the bakery to protect his community.
Elsewhere: The focus on Charlotte comes as Texas National Guard troops ready to leave Chicago, according to a source familiar with the planning. The city has been one of the epicenters of resistance to Trump’s crackdown, and the administration said it deployed the troops there to help protect Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and other federal personnel.
The Associated Press and CNN’s Dalia Faheid contributed to this report.
Leave a Reply