A U.S. judge denied on Monday the Justice Department's bid to unseal records from the grand jury that indicted the late financier Jeffrey Epstein's partner Ghislaine Maxwell on sex trafficking charges, writing that the records did not answer lingering questions from the public about their crimes or Epstein's death.

Manhattan-based U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer, who reviewed the transcripts of the witness testimony heard by the grand jury and other evidence the panel saw, wrote that the government's assertion that the materials would reveal meaningful new information about Epstein's and Maxwell's crimes was "demonstrably false."

"A member of the public familiar with the Maxwell trial record who reviewed the grand jury materials that the Government proposes to unseal would thus learn next to nothing new," Engelmayer wrote.

"Insofar as the motion to unseal implies that the grand jury materials are an untapped mine load of undisclosed information about Epstein or Maxwell or confederates, they are definitely not that," the judge wrote.

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Texas state House Democrats who left their state to prevent Republicans from passing a new congressional district map were forced to evacuate their hotel after a bomb threat, but officials say everyone is safe. 

The St. Charles Police Department in Illinois said officers responded to a report of a bomb threat at about 7:15 a.m. CDT Wednesday at a hotel where the Democrats were staying. The department’s officers, along with those from the fire department and the Kane County Sheriff’s Office, conducted a “thorough” search and did not find any device, according to a release. 

The release said 400 people were evacuated as bomb squad units conducted their search, and everyone has been able to return to the hotel.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) said he’s “aware” of the threats and instructed the Illinois State Police to ensure that public safety is maintained. 

“Threats of violence will be investigated and those responsible will be held accountable,” he said in a post on the social platform X. 

A group of Texas state House Democratic leaders — Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu, Mexican American Legislative Caucus Chair Ramon Romero and Legislative Black Caucus Chair Barbara Gervin-Hawkins — said in a statement that a threat was made on Wednesday morning against the members, but everyone is safe. 

“We are safe, we are secure, and we are undeterred,” they said. “We are grateful for Governor Pritzker, local, and state law enforcement for their quick action to ensure our safety.”

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The so-called Department of Government Efficiency, a project that President Donald Trump’s administration touted as the flagship endeavor in its “war on waste,” has generated $21.7 billion in waste since its launch, Democrats claimed in a new report Thursday.

The staggering figure comes from Democrats on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, spearheaded by Sen. Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), who released their findings in a 55-page report on losses accrued by DOGE, the brainchild of Trump and his billionaire friend-turned-enemy Elon Musk.

The results, the Democrats say, are the unsurprising outcome of a tech CEO with zero government experience taking charge of a massive federal spending overhaul, promising it was “going to be a revolution.”

“By prioritizing disruption over governance and failing to identify solutions for any of the problems it purported to solve, DOGE has created its own forms of waste,” the report stated.

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Brown University on Wednesday announced a deal with the Trump administration to regain access to federal research funding and end investigations into alleged discrimination.

The Ivy League school agreed to pay $50 million to workforce development organizations in Rhode Island over 10 years as part of the agreement, along with other concessions in line with President Donald Trump’s political agenda. Brown will adopt the government’s definition of “male” and “female,” for example, and must remove any consideration of race from the admissions process.

Brown President Christina H. Paxson said the deal preserves Brown’s academic independence. The terms include a clause saying the government cannot dictate curriculum or the content of academic speech at Brown.

“The University’s foremost priority throughout discussions with the government was remaining true to our academic mission, our core values and who we are as a community at Brown,” Paxson wrote.

The three-year deal has numerous similarities with one signed last week by Columbia University that the government called a roadmap for other universities. Unlike that agreement, however, Brown’s does not include an outside monitor.

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