House remains in recess for sixth week having worked only 20 days in 17 weeks, with new congresswoman blocked from Capitol access.
By Aaron Parnas•October 24, 2025•5 min read
Opinion & Commentary
Good afternoon, everyone. Today, I have a very important interview. As Speaker Mike Johnson once again sends the House of Representatives home for a sixth straight week of inaction, I’m speaking with Congresswoman-elect Adelita Grijalva, and what she tells me is absolutely shocking.
Mike Johnson expects her to “do her job,” yet she’s being blocked at every turn. She can’t access official computers, doesn’t have a budget, and is even barred from entering the Capitol Building after hours.
And here’s the part that might explain why: Grijalva tells me she’s ready to sign the Epstein files discharge petition on her very first day in office. It’s no wonder Johnson seems terrified to swear her in.
Meanwhile, TikTok has ramped up its censorship of creators like me. Our content has been reaching millions, breaking through the noise, and now anything related to Epstein, and increasingly anything at all, is being wiped out.
The House will extend its recess for a sixth straight week, having worked only 20 days over 17 weeks, with its last vote occurring on September 19. The yellow highlighted days are those that the House has been in session, per Jamie Dupree:
Ontario will air World Series ads using edited clips of Ronald Reagan criticizing tariffs, angering President Trump, who halted U.S.-Canada trade talks in response; Premier Doug Ford later agreed to pause the campaign Monday to allow talks to resume.
The Justice Department will deploy election monitors to six counties in California and New Jersey for upcoming off-year elections, citing the need to uphold “faith in the electoral process.” Attorney General Pam Bondi said the move ensures “free and transparent elections,” though critics like California Democrats called it partisan “election interference,” while New Jersey’s attorney general pledged to protect voters from intimidation.
President Trump is weighing plans to strike cocaine facilities and drug routes inside Venezuela, deploying major U.S. naval forces to the Caribbean while also authorizing CIA covert operations; officials say he hasn’t ruled out diplomacy but is considering military action despite Venezuela not being a primary cocaine source.
The U.S. sent the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier to the Caribbean as part of a military buildup targeting Venezuelan “narco-terrorist” networks, after strikes that killed at least 43 people; President Nicolás Maduro cautioned Washington against a “crazy war,” while a White House source was quoted saying Trump would coordinate with Congress “when Maduro’s corpse is in U.S. custody.”
The U.S. sanctioned Colombian President Gustavo Petro, his family, and top officials for alleged involvement in the global drug trade, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent blaming Petro for surging cocaine production; Petro denounced the move as “a paradox” and vowed “not one step back,” amid escalating tensions after Trump cut U.S. payments to Colombia and revoked Petro’s visa.
As the U.S. government shutdown drags on, funding for SNAP food assistance is set to run out by November 1, threatening benefits for nearly 42 million Americans; experts warn of “the greatest hunger catastrophe since the Great Depression,” while Democrats and Republicans trade blame over stalled funding, with Trump’s earlier budget cuts already slashing $187 billion from the program.
Donald Trump plans on naming the White House ballroom after himself as the “Donald J. Trump Presidential Ballroom.”
Jose Castro-Rivera was struck and killed on a Virginia highway while fleeing ICE agents during a targeted immigration operation, marking the second such fatal incident since August; authorities said he ran from a car stop and onto Interstate 264 before being hit by a passing vehicle.
New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani delivered an emotional speech condemning Islamophobia and “racist, baseless attacks” against him ahead of early voting, responding to remarks by Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa accusing him of antisemitism; Mamdani defended his record, decried rising anti-Muslim sentiment, and reaffirmed his goal to represent all New Yorkers.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries endorsed Zohran Mamdani for New York City mayor, praising his focus on affordability and unity while acknowledging possible policy differences; the endorsement strengthens Mamdani’s Democratic support ahead of the election, though some leaders like Chuck Schumer have yet to back him.
Canal Street vendors in New York City are slowly returning after a major ICE raid that arrested nine undocumented sellers accused of trafficking counterfeit goods; the operation sparked protests, fears among immigrant workers, and renewed debate over the city’s underground economy and treatment of immigrant communities.
New York Attorney General Letitia James pleaded not guilty to federal bank fraud charges in Virginia, calling the case a politically motivated “weaponization” of the justice system after Trump urged her prosecution; she’s accused of misrepresenting a property to obtain better loan terms, with trial set for Jan. 26.
The U.S. will expand facial recognition at all borders to track non-citizens entering and leaving the country under new regulations taking effect Dec. 26, allowing authorities to photograph travelers at any departure point and collect additional biometrics like fingerprints or DNA—part of Trump’s broader immigration crackdown that has raised privacy and racial bias concerns.
U.S. inflation rose 3% year-over-year in September 2025, driven largely by a 4.1% jump in gasoline prices, despite Trump’s pledge to “end inflation”; economists say tariffs and deportation policies are fueling higher costs, while the Federal Reserve is expected to cut interest rates amid slowing job growth and persistent price pressures.
