Trump Ramps Up Pressure on G.O.P. to Thwart Epstein Vote; The New York Times, November 12, 2025

Annie Karni and Devlin Barrett, The New York Times ; Trump Ramps Up Pressure on G.O.P. to Thwart Epstein Vote

[Kip Currier: What and who is in the Epstein files that the Trump administration doesn't want us to see?

Why are Trump 2.0 and the GOP desperate to impede the release of the Epstein files?

What do they fear will be revealed?

What do they think the consequences may be if the American people finally know the contents of these documents?

Does this look like normal behavior if there really is "nothing to see" in these files?

If someone in your own personal or professional life were engaging in these kinds of tactics to hide records would it raise your suspicions?

What can and will be done to attain transparency of these records?]

[Excerpt]

"President Trump and his administration on Wednesday ramped up a pressure campaign on congressional Republicans who are pushing for a full release of the Justice Department’s files about the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, rushing to head off a House vote on the matter."

Amazon’s Bestselling Herbal Guides Are Overrun by Fake Authors and AI; ZME Science, November 4, 2025

Tudor Tarita , ZME Science; Amazon’s Bestselling Herbal Guides Are Overrun by Fake Authors and AI

[Kip Currier: This is a troubling, eye-opening report by Originality.ai on AI-generated books proliferating on Amazon in the sub-area of "herbal remedies". As a ZME Science article on the report suggests, if this is the state of herbal books on the world's largest bookseller platform, what is the state of other book areas and genres?

The lack of transparency and authenticity vis-a-vis AI-generated books is deeply concerning. If a potential book buyer knows that a book is principally or wholly "authored" by AI and that person still elects to purchase that book with that knowledge, that's their choice. But, as the Originality.ai report identifies, potential book buyers are being presented with fake author names on AI-generated books and are not being informed by the purveyors of AI-generated books, or the platforms that make those books accessible for purchase, that those works are not written by human experts and authors. That is deceptive business practice and consumer fraud.

Consumers should have the right to know material information about all products in the marketplace. No one would countenance (except for bad actors) children's toys deceptively containing harmful lead or dog and cat treats made with substances that can cause harm or death. Why should consumers not be concerned in similar fashion about books that purport to be created by human experts but which may contain information that can cause harm and even death in some cases? 

Myriad ethical and legal questions are implicated, such as:

• What are the potential harms of AI-generated books that falsely pose as human authors?
• What responsibility do platforms like Amazon have for fake products?
• What responsibility do platforms like Amazon have for AI-generated books?
• What do you as a consumer want to know about books that are available for purchase on platforms like Amazon?
• What are the potential short-term and long-term implications of AI-generated books posing as human authors for consumers, authors, publishers, and societies?]

[Excerpt]

"At the top of Amazon’s “Herbal Remedies” bestseller list, The Natural Healing Handbook looked like a typical wellness guide. With leafy cover art and promises of “ancient wisdom” and “self-healing,” it seemed like a harmless book for health-conscious readers.

But “Luna Filby”, the Australian herbalist credited with writing the book, doesn’t exist.

A new investigation from Originality.ai, a company that develops tools to detect AI-generated writing, reveals that The Natural Healing Handbook and hundreds of similar titles were likely produced by artificial intelligence. The company scanned 558 paperback titles published in Amazon’s “Herbal Remedies” subcategory in 2025 and found that 82% were likely written by AI.

“We inputted Luna’s author biography, book summary, and any available sample pages,” the report states. “All came back flagged as likely AI-generated with 100% confidence.

A Forest of Fakes

It’s become hard (sometimes, almost impossible) to distinguish whether something is written by AI. So there’s often a sliver of a doubt. But according to the report, The Natural Healing Handbook is part of a sprawling canopy of probable AI-generated books. Many of them are climbing Amazon’s rankings, often outselling work by real writers...

Where This Leaves Us

AI is flooding niches that once relied on careful expertise and centuries of accumulated knowledge. Real writers are being drowned out by machines regurgitating fragments of folklore scraped from the internet.

“This is a damning revelation of the sheer scope of unlabeled, unverified, unchecked, likely AI content that has completely invaded [Amazon’s] platform,” wrote Michael Fraiman, author of the Originality.ai report.

The report looked at herbal books, but there’s likely many other niches hidden

Amazon’s publishing model allows self-published authors to flood categories for profit. And now, AI tools make it easier than ever to generate convincing, although hollow, manuscripts. Every new “Luna Filby” who hits #1 proves that the model still works.

Unless something changes, we may be witnessing the quiet corrosion of trust in consumer publishing."

CBS Cuts Trump’s Corruption Tantrum From ‘60 Minutes’ Edit; The Daily Beast, November 3, 2025

Cameron Adams , The Daily Beast ; CBS Cuts Trump’s Corruption Tantrum From ‘60 Minutes’ Edit

[Kip Currier: Read the transcript, some of which is excerpted below from CBS' transcript of an 11/2/25 60 Minutes interview by Norah O'Donnell. Staggering obfuscation and communication deficits by Trump.

If Trump truly doesn't know about this cryptocurrency billionaire he pardoned, that is appalling and incompetent conduct.

If he does know of him, he's not being truthful and/or transparent.

And given the known financial ties between Trump's family and the man he pardoned, a legitimate appearance of pay-for-play corruption exists.]

[Excerpt]

"NORAH O'DONNELL: Do I have the opportunity to ask you two more questions?

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: If you want, if it helps-

NORAH O'DONNELL: Okay. Okay. Two more questions-

 PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: That means they'll treat me more fairly if I do- I want to get- It's very nice, yeah. Now is good. Okay. Uh, oh. These might be the ones I didn't want. I don't know. Okay, go ahead.

NORAH O'DONNELL: Is everybody ready?

NORAH O'DONNELL: This is a question about pardons. The Trump family is now perhaps more associated with cryptocurrency than real estate. You and your son- your sons, Don Jr. and Eric, have formed World Liberty Financial with the Witkoff family.

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Right.

NORAH O'DONNELL: Helping to make your family millions of dollars. It's in that context that I do wanna ask you about crypto's richest man, a billionaire known as C.Z. He pled guilty in 2023 to violating anti-money laundering laws.

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Right...

In the aired interview, O’Donnell asks Trump, “How do you address the appearance of pay-for -play?” To which he responded, “Well, here’s the thing, I know nothing about…”

However, when O’Donnell again asked if Trump was “concerned about the appearance of corruption” over pardoning CZ due to the links to his family, the transcript revealed the president became annoyed.

“I can’t say, because—I can’t say—I’m not concerned. I don’t—I’d rather not have you ask the question. But I let you ask it. You just came to me and you said, ‘Can I ask another question?’ And I said, yeah. This is the question... ”

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: I can't say, because- I can't say- I'm not concerned. I don't- I'd rather not have you ask the question. But I let you ask it. You just came to me and you said, "Can I ask another question?" And I said, yeah. This is the question-"

Federal Workers Given Secret Order as Trump Tears Down Part of the White House; The Daily Beast, October 21, 2025

Janna Brancolini , The Daily Beast; Federal Workers Given Secret Order as Trump Tears Down Part of the White House

"The Trump administration has ordered federal employees not to share photos of the East Wing of the White House being demolished to make way for the president’s $250 million vanity project. 

The Treasury Department’s headquarters, which are located next door to the East Wing, look out on the construction site for the 90,000-square-foot ballroom Donald Trump is building with private donor funds.

Treasury employees received an email Monday evening telling them not to document the demolition, the Wall Street Journal reported. 

“As construction proceeds on the White House grounds, employees should refrain from taking and sharing photographs of the grounds, to include the East Wing, without prior approval from the Office of Public Affairs,” a Treasury official wrote. 

Crews began tearing down the East Wing’s covered entrance on Monday, with dramatic video showing cranes and backhoes smashing up windows and ripping away the façade."

Fox News Calls Out Trump for No-Question ‘Press Conference’; The Daily Beast, August 16, 2025

William Vaillancourt , The Daily Beast; Fox News Calls Out Trump for No-Question ‘Press Conference’

"Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich, who witnessed Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin ignore reporters’ questions after their summit Friday, said everyone in the room was “surprised” by the president’s silence.

Heinrich, the network’s senior White House correspondent—whom Trump has previously targeted—spoke about the summit’s conclusion with anchor Brian Kilmeade, who also said he hadn’t expected things to wrap up with the usually talkative Trump walking away without taking questions...

When reached for comment, the White House did not answer the Daily Beast’s question about why neither Trump nor Putin took reporters’ questions.

As for Heinrich’s report, a press aide directed the Daily Beast to White House Communications Director Steven Cheung’s brief post on X in reply to the tail end of her comments to Kilmeade. 

“Total fake news,” was the response from Cheung, who just yesterday tried to criticize California Gov. Gavin Newsom for avoiding questions after a speech—except Newsom answered nine questions, nine more than Trump did Friday."

Experts Raise Concerns Over Trump’s White House Ballroom Renovation Plans; The New York Times, August 3, 2025

 Ashley Ahn, The New York Times; Experts Raise Concerns Over Trump’s White House Ballroom Renovation Plans

"Experts on historic preservation are raising concerns over the feasibility of President Trump’s plans to complete large-scale renovations to the White House by the end of his term, and whether the project can be done while respecting the historic nature of the building.

Mr. Trump unveiled plans on Thursday to construct a $200 million, 90,000-square-foot state ballroom off the East Wing to be completed “long before” the end of his term in 2029. The project would be one of the largest renovations to the iconic building in decades...

The White House, the Supreme Court building, the Capitol and all their “related buildings and grounds” are exempt from the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, which requires federal agencies to assess and mitigate adverse effects to historic properties and seek consultation through a formal review process.

Instead, the White House has its own committee that provides advice on the “preservation and the interpretation of the museum character” of the building. The Committee for the Preservation of the White House — chaired by the director of the National Park Service — is made up of several federal officials and a number of members appointed by the president.

Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, said on Thursday in a news release that the administration was “fully committed to working with the appropriate organizations to preserving the special history of the White House.”

Still, the committee’s recommendations are not binding, giving the president significant leeway to do as he wishes."

Immigration courts hiding the names of ICE lawyers goes against centuries of precedent and legal ethics requiring transparency in courts; The Conversation, July 23, 2025

1. Cassandra Burke Robertson, Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Professional Ethics, Case Western Reserve University, The Conversation; Immigration courts hiding the names of ICE lawyers goes against centuries of precedent and legal ethics requiring transparency in courts

[Kip Currier: ICE immigration lawyers intentionally hiding their names, and immigration court judges facilitating this practice, should chill the blood of any lawyer and non-lawyer concerned about accountability, transparency, ethics, and the rule of law in a democratic country. This is not normal practice for free societies that value public trust. We should not and cannot permit such actions to be normalized: civil watchdogs like the ACLU and legal groups like the American Bar Association (ABA) have a responsibility to publicize their positions on these concerning Kafkaesque developments in U.S. courts and society at large.

The speed at which the U.S. is transitioning into an autocratic police state since Inauguration Day 2025 is both stunning and terrifying.

For more information on these issues, see here and here.]

[Excerpt]

1. "Something unusual is happening in U.S. immigration courts. Government lawyers are refusing to give their names during public hearings.
2. 
   
3. In June 2025, Immigration Judge ShaSha Xu in New York City reportedly told lawyers in her courtroom: “We’re not really doing names publicly.” Only the government lawyers’ names were hidden – the immigrants’ attorneys had to give their names as usual. Xu cited privacy concerns, saying, “Things lately have changed.
4. 
   
5. When one immigration lawyer objected that the court record would be incomplete without the government attorney’s name, Xu reportedly refused to provide it. In another case, New York immigration Judge James McCarthy in July referred to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, attorney as merely “Department” throughout the hearing.
6. 
   
7. New York immigration Judge Shirley Lazare-Raphael told The Intercept that some ICE attorneys believe it is “dangerous to state their names publicly.” This follows a broader pattern of ICE agents wearing masks during arrests to hide their identities. 
8. This secrecy violates a fundamental principle that has protected Americans for centuries: open courts. Here’s how those courts operate and why the principle governing them matters."

White House Hangs Hegseth Out to Dry for Rogue Arms Move; The Daily Beast, July 9, 2025

Cameron Adams , The Daily Beast; White House Hangs Hegseth Out to Dry for Rogue Arms Move

[Kip Currier: Regarding Trump's statement (see below) "[Putin is] killing too many people", how many is "too many"? The callousness of this statement is striking but not surprising.]

[Excerpt]

"On Tuesday, Trump was asked about the U.S. resuming sending key weapons to Ukraine as it battles the ongoing invasion spearheaded by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Putin is not... he’s not treating human beings right,” Trump said. “He’s killing too many people. So we’re sending some defensive weapons to Ukraine, and I’ve approved that.”

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins then asked Trump who ordered the pause last week. He sidestepped a direct answer, instead asking, “I don’t know, why don’t you tell me?” Hegseth, who was seated next to the president, remained silent."

Yancey residents plan lawsuit in response to July 1 library takeover by county over Pride display; Asheville Citizen Times, June 13, 2025

Johnny Casey, Asheville Citizen Times; Yancey residents plan lawsuit in response to July 1 library takeover by county over Pride display

"Edwards pointed to the multiple protests in which residents marched on Burnsville Town Square in support of the local library, and said the local library has been a bright spot for many residents dealing with hardships, particularly during the county's Tropical Storm Helene recovery.

"I care that the little boy with Down Syndrome who gets his therapy at the library won't start his session without getting a hug from me," Edwards said. "I care that a woman who lost her father turned to reading and rediscovered a passion for reading to help her cope.

"I care about the thousands and thousands of people we've helped after Helene find resources, fill out forms, send paperwork to agencies, and mostly just by listening to their stories. I never once asked somebody who walked through those library doors who they voted for, who they pray to or who they have at home that they love. Every patron interaction starts with a simple question: 'How can I help you?'...

Landon Beaver is born and raised in Yancey County and has been following the library takeover in his hometown since 2023, when the commissioners proposed the takeover.

Beaver is helping organize a First Amendment lawsuit in order, according to the Our Voice Our Library website, "to try to prevent the Yancey County Board of Commissioners from wresting control of the library for political purposes...

According to the Our Library Our Voice website, the team hopes to set a legal precedent that will protect libraries like Jackson County and Yancey County all across North Carolina.​"

This Latest AI Book Debacle Is A Disturbing Part Of A Growing Trend; ScreenRant, May 29, 2025

Rose-Graceling Moore, ScreenRant; This Latest AI Book Debacle Is A Disturbing Part Of A Growing Trend

"Yet another AI scandal has hit self-publishing, as an author left generative AI in a final draft of their book - but this isn't an isolated incident, and reveals a growing, and deeply problematic, trend."

Former Secretary of State Fagan Seeks to Settle With the Ethics Commission; Willamette Week, May 6, 2025

Sophie Peel , Willamette Week; Former Secretary of State Fagan Seeks to Settle With the Ethics Commission

"Former Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, who resigned in May 2023 after WW revealed she’d signed a $10,000 monthly consulting contract with two of her top campaign donors, is seeking to settle twin cases with the Oregon Government Ethics Commission.

As first reported by the Salem Statesman-Journal, Fagan agreed last week to pay a $1,600 fine stemming from two incidents that resulted in complaints filed with the OGEC: her consulting agreement with the co-owners of cannabis chain La Mota, and her seeking state reimbursement for some expenses incurred on work-related trips with her children and dog that the commission deemed had “provided a financial benefit to herself.”

The commission concluded, according to its proposed settlement order, that Fagan had violated state ethics laws by “using her position to obtain private employment” with Aaron Mitchell and Rosa Cazares, the principals of the troubled cannabis outfit La Mota and the principals of the LLC with which Fagan signed the contract, Veriede Holding."

Biglaw Firm Quietly Begins Purging Diversity Language From Website; Above The Law, February 7, 2025

Joe Patrice , Above The Law; Biglaw Firm Quietly Begins Purging Diversity Language From Website

"This is the story we hoped wouldn’t happen, but let’s be honest — of course it did. It was always going to happen. 

Between the administration publicly threatening criminal action against private sector companies over diversity initiatives and law firms rushing to curry favor with the White House, it was only a matter of time before a Biglaw firm tried to memory-hole prior diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.

As we’ve monitored Biglaw websites over the couple weeks since Trump returned to power, we took heart every time we noticed that a major firm still hadn’t tried to subtly purge its public-facing site of any mention of diversity. Unfortunately, though perhaps inevitably, the legal community is no longer pitching a perfect game...

The entire “Diversity and Inclusion”-turned-“Opportunity and Inclusion” page has changed. The old website included visual representations backing up the firm’s commitment. For example:

The accomplishments of these attorneys are now deleted. The page still offers general statements about inclusion, but any specific claims about individual achievements are gone, hiding from public view any way to measure the firm’s success in this area. The page also linked to “a robust educational toolkit” developed by the firm and a block set off in all caps recognizing that “WE PLEDGE TO FOLLOW THE MANSFIELD RULE.” 

And for what? If firms think scrubbing diversity efforts will shield them, they should ask Target how that worked out. The retail giant backtracked on its public DEI commitments — only to get sued by Trump’s fellow travelers anyway. These people won’t be satisfied until the entire workforce looks like a 1950s country club. It undermines firm culture for nothing."

‘BREACH OF PROTOCOL’: SENATORS STILL DON’T HAVE ETHICS FILINGS FROM TRUMP NOMINEES; Rolling Stone, January 13, 2025

ANDREW PEREZ, NIKKI MCCANN RAMIREZ , Rolling Stone; ‘BREACH OF PROTOCOL’: SENATORS STILL DON’T HAVE ETHICS FILINGS FROM TRUMP NOMINEES

"Confirmation hearings for a slew of Donald Trump’s picks for his Cabinet and other high-ranking positions are scheduled to begin this week. Senate committees still have not received vetting materials for several nominees, and many of their financial disclosures and ethics disclosures have not yet been made public."

‘Black mark’: Lawmakers seethe over Ethics’ Gaetz report imbroglio; Politico, November 20, 2024

JORDAIN CARNEY, NICHOLAS WU, DANIELLA DIAZ and OLIVIA BEAVERS, Politico ; ‘Black mark’: Lawmakers seethe over Ethics’ Gaetz report imbroglio

"Matt Gaetz is plunging the House into chaos, again.

Members of the House Ethics Committee deadlocked over whether to release the findings of an investigation into the former Florida lawmaker, who is Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general. The inaction is triggering outrage among Democrats, who argue the committee is dragging out the process, while Republicans remain furious that Gaetz put them in this position...

The havoc is the latest illustration of how Trump’s looming return to Washington is shaking the foundations of Capitol Hill and forcing Republican lawmakers to make a series of immediate, high-stakes calls about the integrity of the legislative branch."

NASA chief and Democratic lawmakers urge investigation into reports of Musk-Putin conversations; Business Insider, October 27, 2024

Erin Snodgrass and Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert , Business Insider ; NASA chief and Democratic lawmakers urge investigation into reports of Musk-Putin conversations

"NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and a growing number of Democratic lawmakers are calling for an investigation into The Wall Street Journal's report that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has been in contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Several Washington officials began pushing for a probe less than a day after The Journal — citing several current and former US, European, and Russian officials — reported that Musk and Putin have had regular calls since 2022 in which they have discussed "personal topics, business, and geopolitical tensions."

Musk has not responded to requests for comment from Business Insider. In a statement on X, which Musk reposted, the official SpaceX account described The Journal's report as an "incredibly misleading story" based on "completely unsubstantiated claims from unnamed sources."

On Friday, Nelson told Semafor that calls between Musk, the richest man in the world, and Putin "would be concerning" if true, particularly for NASA and the Department of Defense. Nelson added The Journal's report should be investigated but did not specify by which agency."

Elon Musk’s Secret Conversations With Vladimir Putin; Wall Street Journal, October 24, 2024

Thomas Grove, Warren P. Strobel, Aruna Viswanatha, Gordon Lubold, and Sam Schechner, Wall Street Journal; Elon Musk’s Secret Conversations With Vladimir Putin

"Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and a linchpin of U.S. space efforts, has been in regular contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin since late 2022."

Houston-area library moves Indigenous history book to fiction section; Lonestar Live, October 14, 2024

Ileana Garnad, Lonestar Live; Houston-area library moves Indigenous history book to fiction section

"A Houston-area public library reclassified a nonfiction children’s book about Native American history as fiction, after the title was reviewed by citizens, not librarians.

“I can only assume it is because it is a telling of the history of Indigenous people that they do not approve of,” said Teresa Kenney, a Montgomery County resident and founder of the Village Books store.

In September, “Colonization and the Wampanoag Story,” by Linda Coombs, was challenged in Montgomery County libraries by an unknown person, according to public records obtained by Kenney. Per county policy, the book was reviewed by a group of five citizens who weren’t required to consult a librarian...

The group’s meetings are closed to the public, so it is unclear why the book was reclassified as fiction. Details about the reconsideration committee, including its members, are not available on the county and library system websites."

Elon Musk’s financial support for Republican causes has been much more extensive and started earlier than previously known; Wall Street Journal, October 2, 2024

Dana Mattioli, Joe Palazzolo, Khadeeja Sardar, Wall Street Journal;  Elon Musk’s financial support for Republican causes has been much more extensive and started earlier than previously known

"Elon Musk’s financial support for Republican causes has been much more extensive and started earlier than previously known."

Sasse’s spending spree: Former UF president channeled millions to GOP allies, secretive contracts; The Independent Florida Alligator, August 12, 2024

Garrett Shanley, The Independent Florida Alligator; Sasse’s spending spree: Former UF president channeled millions to GOP allies, secretive contracts

"In his 17-month stint as UF president, Ben Sasse more than tripled his office’s spending, directing millions in university funds into secretive consulting contracts and high-paying positions for his GOP allies.

Sasse ballooned spending under the president’s office to $17.3 million in his first year in office — up from $5.6 million in former UF President Kent Fuchs’ last year, according to publicly available administrative budget data.

A majority of the spending surge was driven by lucrative contracts with big-name consulting firms and high-salaried, remote positions for Sasse’s former U.S. Senate staff and Republican officials.

Sasse’s consulting contracts have been kept largely under wraps, leaving the public in the dark about what the contracted firms did to earn their fees. The university also declined to clarify specific duties carried out by Sasse’s ex-Senate staff, several of whom were salaried as presidential advisers."

Sports Illustrated Published Articles by Fake, AI-Generated Writers; Futurism, November 2023

MAGGIE HARRISON, Futurism; Sports Illustrated Published Articles by Fake, AI-Generated Writers

"After we reached out with questions to the magazine's publisher, The Arena Group, all the AI-generated authors disappeared from Sports Illustrated's site without explanation.

Initially, our questions received no response. But after we published this story, an Arena Group spokesperson provided the following statement that blamed a contractor for the content..."