Elon Musk and Steve Bannon Named in Epstein Files as Pressure to Release them Grows

Good afternoon, everyone. Today’s update focuses on several stories poised to dominate headlines in the coming weeks. Elon Musk and Steve Bannon have both been named in the Epstein Files. Meanwhile, a government shutdown looms just days away as Donald Trump vows “maximum pain” for Americans — all while confirming that more of his perceived opponents will be prosecuted, a list that could even include journalists like me.

For months, MAGA activists have openly called for my arrest. Yet I refuse to be intimidated, silenced, or deterred. The truth is too important. We are standing at a historic inflection point for our nation — a moment that will define whether the First Amendment and a free press survive or crumble under pressure.

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With that, here’s what you missed:

Newly released Epstein estate documents, obtained by House Oversight Democrats, reveal that Elon Musk, Steve Bannon, and Peter Thiel had scheduled interactions with Jeffrey Epstein years after his 2007 sex offender plea deal, including a tentative 2014 island visit by Musk, a 2017 lunch with Thiel, and a 2019 breakfast with Bannon, further underscoring Epstein’s continued ties to powerful figures.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has summoned hundreds of generals and admirals to Virginia for a surprise gathering where he will promote a “warrior ethos,” rebrand the Pentagon as the “Department of War,” and enforce stricter standards—an unusual show of force seen as pressuring senior officers to align with Trump’s vision or risk their careers.

Newly appointed acting U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, a former Trump defense lawyer, unilaterally presented a case against ex-FBI Director James Comey to a Virginia grand jury—despite career prosecutors warning there wasn’t enough evidence—leading to an indictment on false statement and obstruction charges just before the statute of limitations expired, a move critics call politically driven.

Trump, defending the felony indictment of ex-FBI Director James Comey, said more prosecutions of political opponents may follow, framing the moves as “justice, not revenge” while signaling potential investigations into figures like John Bolton and George Soros as his administration escalates efforts against critics and perceived adversaries.

The Trump administration is preparing for a government shutdown next week, with officials vowing to inflict “maximum pain” on Democrats through mass federal layoffs and stalled programs, betting the public will blame Democrats for the crisis.

President Trump sparked alarm by posting unproven medical claims about Tylenol and childhood vaccines—contradicting federal health agency guidance and echoing anti-vaccine rhetoric from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—including discouraging Tylenol use in children, suggesting delayed hepatitis B shots, and pushing for altered vaccine schedules unsupported by scientific evidence.

Sinclair announced it will resume airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! on its ABC affiliates after pulling the show over Kimmel’s remarks about Charlie Kirk’s killing, stressing the move was independent of government pressure, while Nexstar continues to block the program amid political controversy and ongoing regulatory scrutiny.

Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts was arrested by ICE during a targeted operation after fleeing in a district vehicle, found with a loaded gun, cash, and a knife; Roberts, who has a prior weapons charge and a final deportation order, has been replaced by Associate Superintendent Matt Smith as interim superintendent while state and local leaders, educators, and the community react with concern and calls for support.

A New York ICE officer was placed on leave after video showed him violently slamming asylum-seeker Monica Moreta-Galarza’s head onto a courthouse floor in front of her children following her husband’s detention, prompting widespread outrage, hospitalization of the victim, and a DHS investigation into the officer’s “unacceptable” conduct.

Attorney General Pam Bondi has begun transferring people whose death sentences were commuted by President Biden to ADX Florence supermax prison in Colorado, drawing criticism from the ACLU and experts who call the move punitive and part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to revive support for the death penalty despite declining public approval.

MyPillow CEO and Trump ally Mike Lindell, known for pushing debunked 2020 election fraud claims and facing multiple defamation suits, says he is “99%” sure he’ll run for Minnesota governor in 2026, entering a crowded GOP primary against Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, who is seeking a third term.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned in an NBC interview that Trump’s policies risk “setting fire” to the Middle East, discussed being injured in this summer’s war with Israel, and invited nuclear inspectors to visit Iran amid rising tensions over its nuclear program and looming reimposed sanctions.

Senate Republicans, led by Lindsey Graham, are pressing Trump to back tougher sanctions on Russia by highlighting the abduction of nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children, framing the issue as terrorism and leveraging appeals from Melania Trump and Ukraine’s first lady to galvanize bipartisan support.

An NBC News investigation found that childhood vaccination rates are declining across the U.S., eroding decades of progress, leaving communities vulnerable to outbreaks, fueling school conflicts over mandates, and reflecting a growing national divide over trust in immunization.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced a mass walkout at the U.N. General Assembly as he condemned countries recognizing Palestinian statehood as “shameful,” vowed to “finish the job” in Gaza despite genocide accusations from the United Nations, and praised Trump—who simultaneously warned Israel against annexing the West Bank while promoting a new peace plan.

Italy and Spain deployed navy ships to escort a Gaza-bound activist flotilla, which includes Greta Thunberg, after drones attacked the boats off Greece; the move heightens tensions as Israel warns the vessels to turn back and raises fears of a potential military clash at sea.

Former Louisiana priest and ex-state official Mark Francis Ford was arrested in Indiana on charges including first-degree rape and kidnapping, accused of sexually assaulting a 10-year-old disabled boy he met while ministering in New Orleans beginning in 2004.

A rare bright-orange lobster, dubbed Jean-Clawed Van Damme, was discovered in a New York grocery store and released back into Long Island Sound with help from Humane Long Island and the New York Aquarium. Experts say such lobsters are a one-in-30 million find.

Assata Shakur, the former Black Liberation Army member convicted of killing a New Jersey state trooper in 1977 before escaping prison and living in exile in Cuba, has died at 78 in Havana. Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said she died on September 25, 2025, of age-related health conditions. Shakur, long a symbol of Black liberation and resistance, was remembered by her daughter, Kakuya Shakur, who announced her passing on Facebook.

NYC gunman Shane Tamura, who killed four people and himself in July, was confirmed by medical examiners to have had low-stage CTE, highlighting risks of the brain disease in young athletes and renewing calls for stricter football safety rules as experts warn high school players face significant, often overlooked danger.

Texas brothers Raymond and Isiah Garcia were arrested and charged after allegedly kidnapping a Minnesota family at gunpoint, holding them hostage, and stealing $8M in cryptocurrency, a case highlighting a sharp rise in violent crypto-related abductions in the U.S. and worldwide.

See you in the morning.

— Aaron